Feng Zheng, in the Meditation Room, suddenly opened his eyes. After receiving the message from his Shadow Clone, he frowned and thought.
"Wind and Lightning truly don't mix. Although the clone found some good Ninjutsu, there isn't a single Lightning Release Ninjutsu that complements my current skills."
He analyzed it for a long time and came to a conclusion.
"It seems that aside from the Raikage's Lightning Release Chakra Mode and Sasuke's Kirin, other Lightning Release Ninjutsu are not helpful in improving my strength. I can only hide my identity as a Lightning Release user."
"If that's the case, I will build a new combat system based on Lightning Release Ninjutsu. Besides Shadow Clone and Body Flicker Technique, I will not use any Wind Release Ninjutsu or Ninjutsu that could link me to Konoha. The foundation of this new combat system will be speed, combined with highly accurate and highly penetrating attacks."
"Although I'm not that urgent right now, I am currently in a very calm phase with a lot of free time. It's best to establish this combat system before my life gets busy."
"Since it's decided, I'll start learning Ninjutsu. I'll begin with..."
Feng Zheng's thoughts were interrupted by the doorbell. He wondered with confusion.
"Who would visit at this time? Has Renjiro returned? No, the Chakra signature is too low."
Feng Zheng went to check. Before opening the door, he sealed off the entrance to the basement.
Feng Zheng opened the door and saw five faces he didn't recognize. A few seconds later, he recognized two of them and was very surprised. He thought to himself.
"Well, what a surprise. I almost forgot about these two. Why are they here?"
Daisuke Aoki said somewhat nervously.
"Hey, Feng Zheng, how have you been lately?"
Tatsuya also greeted Feng Zheng.
Feng Zheng said.
"I'm fine, how about you? Come in."
The five young boys walked into his house.
Daisuke looked around the house in surprise. He was already surprised when he saw it from the outside. He exclaimed.
"Your house is so big!"
Feng Zheng said.
"Yes."
They sat in the circular room. Feng Zheng asked.
"Why are you here? Who are these three people?"
Daisuke introduced them.
"They are our good friends, they are Fumimachi Anzai, Handa Buncirō, and Ryoma Irie. They are our best friends in our class, and like us, they are orphans."
Feng Zheng scanned them. They all seemed normal. He said.
"Hello everyone! Welcome."
They responded to Feng Zheng.
Feng Zheng noticed some nervousness on Daisuke's face. Daisuke said.
"Feng Zheng, we actually came here to ask for your help."
Feng Zheng asked.
"What do you need help with?"
He said.
"Actually, we're struggling in the Ninja Academy. The graduation exam is less than half a year away, and I'm worried we'll fail. We saw your battle during the Chunin Exams, and how you easily defeated everyone. Even the children from Ninja families were no match for you! So we wanted to ask for your help and guidance to pass the exam."
Feng Zheng was greatly surprised by these words. What surprised him was not just the request, but also Daisuke's change. He thought to himself.
"I know the adults in this world are cunning bastards. But how did this straightforward guy become so eloquent? He perfectly blended flattery with a request, not appearing excessive, but rather very sincere!"
Seeing that Feng Zheng didn't answer, the five boys became a little nervous. They decided to let Daisuke speak, as he was more familiar with Feng Zheng. But since Feng Zheng didn't answer, Tatsuya asked.
"Feng Zheng?"
Feng Zheng replied.
"Can you tell me what you've learned so far? What areas are you struggling with?"
They immediately began to tell Feng Zheng about their problems. Feng Zheng only half-listened to their words. As for the other half, he was thinking.
"Hmm, what should I do? I'm not interested in teaching them. After all, although I have time, there are many things I want to learn."
"The only gain I see from helping them is earning their goodwill. If my good deeds spread, another possible gain is an increase in reputation. However, both of these benefits are not significant. Even if I gain their goodwill, what can a bunch of Genin do for me? Moreover, in a world where strength is paramount, reputation is worthless. At most, it can improve my image in Hiruzen's eyes, but I don't expect him to give me more benefits in the short term."
"The only benefit worth considering is if I can gain their loyalty and make them my subordinates. In that case, I could establish a small power base within Konoha. While it wouldn't be as strong as any of the clans, it has great growth potential. Especially after Danzo is out of the picture, the large number of casualties from the Fourth Shinobi World War will leave many orphans, whom I could recruit."
"But do I really need such a team, especially within Konoha? Will these people be that loyal?"
Feng Zheng quickly analyzed and came to a conclusion.
"No. Factions within Konoha would be watched by many eyes. If I infringe on others' interests, we would be hit by numerous schemes and get into a mess. This would also take up my valuable training time. All the attention would also make it more difficult for me to operate in the shadows."
"More importantly, I can't trust that these people would be that loyal. Root members were loyal to Danzo because he took them in when they were orphans and thoroughly brainwashed them. Orochimaru, on the other hand, took in children who had lost everything and had no hope, giving them food, power, hope, and dreams. This is also why his subordinates were loyal to him. Of course, besides that, both also used Cursed Seals to control their subordinates."
"Neither of these situations applies here. Even if I stay in contact with them after entering the Academy, become best friends, and help them, that level of loyalty won't exist. At most, it would be a deep friendship and camaraderie like Naruto and Shikamaru."
"That being said, I do plan to build my own team outside of Konoha. I have many plans, and a team can help with those plans. Perhaps training these people can help me understand how to cultivate the members of my future team. I need to create a suitable training system for the team to make them effective."
After a long internal debate, Feng Zheng decided to help them.
He listened to what Daisuke said. Their class didn't learn as much as Feng Zheng's class. They only learned three Academy Ninjutsu in their sixth year. In the previous five years, they only received theoretical training, Hand Seals gestures, leaf concentration training, Shuriken throwing, kunai usage, and various survival skills required to become a Ninja. None of these five mentioned going to the Library.
When they finished speaking, Feng Zheng said.
"Let's go outside, and I'll see how you perform these three Ninjutsu."
Their eyes lit up when they heard this. This meant that Feng Zheng intended to teach them. They left the house.
Daisuke started first. He said.
"I'll start with the Substitution Technique."
He began to perform Hand Seals gestures. Feng Zheng thought to himself.
"The Hand Seals gestures are correct, just too slow."
Daisuke wanted to impress Feng Zheng with the Substitution Technique, but Feng Zheng kept staring at him intently.
The purpose of the Substitution Technique is to mislead the enemy. But with Feng Zheng constantly staring at him, there was no way he could mislead Feng Zheng.
He wanted to use the Substitution Technique when Feng Zheng blinked. But Feng Zheng saw everything clearly; he grabbed a nearby log and swapped places with it.
Seeing Feng Zheng's gaze still fixed on him, he was a bit embarrassed. Feng Zheng said.
"It looks decent. But you need to be faster. Show me the Transformation Technique. Transform into Tatsuya."
Daisuke nodded, performed the Hand Seals, and transformed into Tatsuya. There were still many imperfections in the technique.
Feng Zheng said.
"You need to practice this one more, then show me the Clone Technique."
Daisuke performed the Hand Seals. Immediately, a clone appeared beside him. But the clone didn't look like him at all. Feng Zheng even doubted if this clone could even walk!
Feng Zheng thought to himself.
"I guess Naruto isn't the only one who's terrible at this."
Daisuke looked at the clone awkwardly. Feng Zheng asked the others to perform their Ninjutsu as well. All four of them could satisfactorily complete one Ninjutsu, but performed poorly in the remaining two.
Feng Zheng said.
"Actually, I can't help you too much. You can only master them through continuous practice. I will teach you some other techniques that can help you learn Ninjutsu faster."
Their faces fell when they heard that Feng Zheng couldn't help them. But upon hearing that he would teach them other techniques, they became excited again.
They had seen the Ninjutsu Feng Zheng used during the Chunin Exams. They thought.
"If he can teach us even one of the Ninjutsu he used in the exam, we'll be the strongest in the class!"
Unfortunately, their high expectations were destined to be shattered and turn into fragments!
