Chapter 316: Mu Yue is hot on the outside but cold on the inside?

It wasn’t just Obito and the others who were striving to improve themselves; Asuma, the only one in their team to advance to the third round of the Chunin Exams, also wanted to make a breakthrough within a month.

However, Asuma didn’t know the location of Muzuki’s home, so he waited for Muzuki at the Ninja Academy gate after school on Monday afternoon.

As soon as he saw Muzuki walk out, he immediately greeted him.

Muzuki smiled in response, roughly guessing the purpose of Asuma coming to him.

After all, at this time, there shouldn’t be anything else that would make someone actively seek him out.

“Teacher Muzuki, do you have time to help me come up with a special training plan? I feel that only by training with you do I have hope of defeating Obito,” Asuma asked, a little embarrassed.

Although it sounded a bit hurtful, his instructing Jonin was indeed far behind Muzuki. If he were to train with his Jonin teacher for a month, he would definitely lose.

“I do have some ideas for short-term strength improvement, but defeating Obito will still be very difficult,” Muzuki replied tactfully.

It wasn’t that Asuma’s strength was insufficient, but Obito’s strength was already on a different level from ordinary Chunin. He had the Sharingan and could activate the Mark, though it wasn’t the complete version.

Even if Asuma’s strength improved significantly within this month, he wouldn’t be Obito’s opponent because Asuma mastered Wind Release and Fire Release.

For peers to defeat Obito, it could only be through elemental counter like Mei Terumī, or other disciples who received daily instruction from Muzuki, just like Obito.

Although the rewards given by the system all belonged to Muzuki, the disciples also benefited, such as the unique forbidden Ninjutsu like Breathing Technique, and powerful teaching skills.

Obito and the others’ rapid mastery of various powerful Ninjutsu and teaching skills taught by Muzuki had a lot to do with it. Although Asuma was considered the one Muzuki taught the most outside of his few disciples, the time he received instruction was far less than Obito and the others.

Moreover, due to Asuma’s identity as the Third Hokage’s son, Muzuki previously had to choose only the Ninjutsu he publicly possessed to teach Asuma in order to avoid revealing anything unusual. He could only teach a little Nature Transformation and C-rank Ninjutsu and B-rank Ninjutsu, as he wasn’t yet a Jonin powerhouse capable of assisting Jiraiya in defeating Tailed Beast at that time.

Now, Muzuki could teach Breathing Technique to Asuma and continue to establish his genius persona.

Although the Mark and Transparent World were very powerful, neither could be cultivated casually. The normal Breathing Technique could only be described as a good secret art, not something so astonishing.

So, even if Asuma hadn’t come to Muzuki, Muzuki would have taught him the Basic Breathing Technique the next time he taught Asuma.

As for why it wasn’t Flame Breathing but Basic Breathing, it was because Asuma clearly had more talent in Wind Release and was more suitable for Wind Breathing. However, the system had not rewarded Wind Breathing, so Muzuki could only develop this himself.

Muzuki now had proficient Wind Release Chakra Nature Transformation, two perfect-level Breathing Techniques, two proficient-level Breathing Techniques, and experience in developing Water Breathing. Muzuki estimated that he could now develop the complete Wind Breathing in half a year.

When this Wind Breathing development was completed, Muzuki would try to develop Sun Breathing himself.

If Wind Breathing was completed, Muzuki would have gathered all five basic Breathing Techniques. He would be a bit unwilling if he didn’t try to work towards Sun Breathing.

Muzuki’s current speculation about Sun Breathing was that it was primarily based on Yang Release Nature Transformation, possibly Yang plus Fire Release, or possibly related to natural energy and Sage Mode, or even all of the above.

“It’s fine. If I give my all and still can’t win, then I’ll lose wholeheartedly,” Asuma said with a serious expression.

Currently, Obito was strong and he was weak. Even if he trained hard for the next month and Obito didn’t train much, whether he could defeat Obito was an unknown. So Asuma knew it would be difficult to win; he just didn’t want to lose so easily.

After all, he was considered Obito’s senior. It would be too embarrassing to be defeated by Obito in two moves like that person in the preliminaries. He was now the sole hope of his team.

“I understand your determination,” Muzuki nodded, and after dinner, began instructing Asuma.

“Next, I will teach you a secret technique that can enhance your physical abilities. You must practice this diligently every day from now on,” Muzuki introduced the Basic Breathing Technique to Asuma.

Basic Breathing Technique was a must-learn. It could both enhance Taijutsu and lay the foundation for future Wind Breathing, making it extremely cost-effective.

“In addition, strengthen your Wind Release Nature Transformation training. I will teach you a Wind Release Ninjutsu with very strong wind power,” Muzuki continued.

It was impossible for Asuma to defeat Obito with Fire Release. Asuma couldn’t win even if Obito didn’t use Flame Breathing. Obito was stronger in Fire Release Nature Transformation proficiency and Chakra volume, so Asuma could only focus on Wind Release.

Although in terms of nature, Fire Release was superior to Wind Release, the actual clash between the two was not like Water Release and Fire Release. However, if the wind power was strong enough, it could greatly affect the opponent’s control of flames.

Of course, elemental counter still existed. The main reason was that the odds of winning with Fire Release were smaller, and it was too late to practice Water Release now. Wind Release still offered a glimmer of hope.

The Ninjutsu Muzuki planned to teach Asuma was Wind Release: Cyclone. This was a B-rank Ninjutsu he exchanged from the Ninjutsu Pavilion, and it was very suitable for Asuma’s current situation in all aspects.

After explaining the arrangements, the formal training began. Asuma, who was just introduced to Breathing Technique, behaved like Obito and the others initially—unable to find the correct breathing rhythm.

“I never thought that even breathing could develop Ninjutsu. Why have I never heard of it before?” Asuma complained.

“This area is relatively obscure, I suppose. Aside from myself, I rarely hear of anyone else developing Ninjutsu related to Breathing Technique,” Muzuki replied with a smile, subtly revealing his identity as the developer.

“Wow, so it was Teacher Muzuki who developed it!” Asuma’s eyes lit up. He felt like he had hit the jackpot, learning Muzuki’s unique Ninjutsu.

Muzuki gently adjusted his black-framed glasses with his right hand and smiled warmly, “Developing some Ninjutsu yourself when your abilities allow is a good choice, as you are the one who best understands your own needs.”

Next, Muzuki became busy.

He had to teach at the Ninja Academy to brush up skills, give special training to his disciples, find time to study with Tsunade, and also find time to develop Wind Breathing and self-study Sealing Technique. His days were packed, with only a few hours left for sleep.

However, Muzuki could still accept it, as his busyness genuinely led to an effective increase in his strength.

While he was helping Asuma strategize to defeat Obito, Muzuki also spared no effort in helping Obito with Fire Release Ninjutsu.

Muzuki had mastered many high-level Ninjutsu, and his Fire Release Nature Transformation had even reached perfect level, so he had a great advantage in developing Fire Release Ninjutsu.

However, considering Obito’s slightly weaker learning ability and the limited time of only one month, Muzuki developed three moves for Obito.

The first was Fire Release: Flame Fist. When Muzuki developed it, he drew on all the techniques of the Monstrous Strength. Chakra was condensed and compressed within the fist, and the moment it struck the target, flames would instantly erupt, engulfing the enemy.

The second was Fire Release: Leaf Whirlwind. While retaining the high-speed spinning kick of Leaf Whirlwind, it added high-temperature flames to increase its power.

The third Fire Release Ninjutsu was called Fire Release: Blazing Impact. Chakra was concentrated at the shoulder, causing the entire body to ignite with flames for a charge. Upon reaching the target, it would strike with an iron mountain lean. It was the most powerful of the three Fire Release Ninjutsu.

Although they seemed simple, they were not easy to learn. In terms of Hokage Ninjutsu ranking, Flame Fist and Blazing Impact could both be classified as B-rank. However, due to their perfect compatibility with the characteristics of Flame Breathing, they would be somewhat easier to practice.

After Muzuki taught Obito these three Ninjutsu, Obito would use Blazing Impact to ram trees every day, breaking them with the iron mountain lean. He thought this move was very cool, with his entire body burning with flames—it was too dazzling.

Kakashi’s special training was truly a hellish regimen, the most arduous among all of Muzuki’s disciples.

Because Kakashi had to push his body to its limit before starting combat, and Muzuki’s Shadow Clone wouldn’t hold back too much; injuries would occur if necessary.

This high-difficulty training, even if only once a day, put great pressure on Kakashi. His Breathing Technique progressed quickly. Although his stats were still just short of reaching proficiency, Muzuki could sense that Kakashi’s Thunder Breathing was growing stronger.

It’s worth mentioning that ten days after the Chunin Exams, Muzuki encountered Mei Terumī on the street again.

It was the same place as last time, and Mei Terumī was still standing in front of the ice cream stall, looking conflicted.

“If you don’t know what to buy, just buy all of them,” Muzuki said as he walked up to the ice cream stall.

“You need money to do that,” Mei Terumī said, glaring at Muzuki with resentful eyes.

She wasn’t stupid; if she could have all of them, she wouldn’t have been agonizing over the choice.

Because she was there for the Chunin Exams, Mei Terumī hadn’t brought much money with her. She was there on a mission to get good results, not for tourism.

Coupled with her failure in the Death Forest, which made her very unhappy, she had been gorging on ice cream for several days after five days without any sweets, eating it like a meal. So, she quickly ran out of money. To ensure she could consume some sweets every day, Mei Terumī could only reluctantly control her spending.

Mei Terumī felt that Muzuki was one percent responsible for her empty wallet. After all, it was Muzuki who led her to open the new world of ‘having it all,’ and her failure in the Death Forest was also due to Muzuki’s disciple.

“Give me three strawberry ice creams,” Muzuki said to the stall owner, ignoring Mei Terumī’s words.

The owner was very efficient and quickly prepared three strawberry ice creams, handing them to Muzuki.

Mei Terumī looked on with envy. A few days ago, she could have been even more extravagant, directly asking the owner for three of each kind.

Then, to Mei Terumī’s surprise and delight, Muzuki handed two strawberry ice creams to her.

“Last time you gave me one, this time I’m giving you two. Let’s call it even,” Muzuki said with a smile.

Muzuki still found it a bit hard to contain himself when he recalled Obito saying that Mei Terumī was crazy and fought him for a strawberry ice cream.

He decisively left to avoid trouble for himself, which ended up causing Obito to suffer an undeserved calamity.

So, Muzuki bought three strawberry ice creams: two for Mei Terumī, to resolve this unfortunate entanglement caused by strawberry ice cream and prevent Mei Terumī from constantly thinking about it, and the remaining one for Obito, as compensation for him.

Mei Terumī took the two strawberry ice creams, feeling delighted. This way, she could buy a vanilla one for herself, which would be incredibly satisfying.

However, Mei Terumī then felt a little embarrassed, hitting someone’s disciple and still accepting ice cream.

“During the Chunin Exams, I’ll make sure he loses beautifully and handsomely.” Giving back the ice cream she had was out of the question. Mei Terumī decided to put on a show during the Chunin Exams, letting Obito fight with spirit and style before defeating him. This way, Obito might also advance, which would be a way to repay Muzuki’s ice cream favor.

“Thank you, you’re a good person,” a happy Mei Terumī thanked Muzuki and gave him a ‘good person’ card.

Muzuki said nothing more, calmly accepted the card, and walked away. The future relationship between Hidden Mist and Konoha was uncertain, and too much interaction would not be good for either side.

…

In the dimly lit cave, Uchiha Madara was listening to Black Zetsu’s report.

“Under Hayate Mugetsu’s warm exterior might be coldness. He was clearly nearby but didn’t intervene, watching his students get injured. Although Akami Hideyuki was eventually defeated by his students working together, it was barely successful through an extreme burst of power,” Black Zetsu said, after reporting Obito’s changes, he also mentioned Muzuki’s performance.

“He’s usually meticulous with his disciples, but when they’re in danger, he watches from the side…” Uchiha Madara felt that this Hayate Mugetsu was interesting and likely held some secrets.

“If he truly doesn’t care about these students, then the plan will go very smoothly,” Uchiha Madara thought of something and a smile appeared on his face.

If everything Muzuki did for Obito was merely an act, then in the beginning, not much would be needed. Simply guiding Obito to discover this would be enough to cause Obito’s emotions to collapse once. Then, by killing Rin Nohara, the one he loved, Obito would fall into the abyss of darkness and be used by him.

“But if not, this Hayate Mugetsu will be a great obstacle. He was able to injure Kumogakure’s Raikage Candidate without using his full power, and his strength might even surpass Minato Namikaze,” Black Zetsu reminded him.

Due to monitoring Obito, Black Zetsu also possessed a lot of information about Muzuki: Armament Haki, Flame Breathing, and Flame Breathing Chakra Mode.

These techniques were all extremely powerful, and even Black Zetsu, who had lived for over a thousand years, had never heard of them. This undoubtedly meant they were Muzuki’s original creations. In Black Zetsu’s eyes, Muzuki was a figure like Senju Tobirama, just one who preferred to hide his abilities.

If Uchiha Madara were in his prime, he naturally wouldn’t need to care about Muzuki. After all, even Senju Tobirama himself would only die. But the current Uchiha Madara was just an old man surviving through the Gedo Statue. Resolving to deal with Muzuki, whether successful or not, would require a great deal of effort.

“Even Hashirama has passed away. What can a junior under twenty do?” Uchiha Madara said with a calm expression.

He didn’t look down on anyone in the Ninja World; rather, he equally looked down on everyone except his brother and Hashirama.

I’m a bit stuck on writing. It seems I’m still not used to one update a day. I’ll see if I can get back to it tomorrow.