Grind is My Ninja Way

In the blink of an eye, the morning passed.

Generally, the Ninja Academy's curriculum consisted of theoretical knowledge in the morning and practical training in the afternoon.

Thanks to his adult mindset and the original owner's memories, Seimei managed to keep up with the morning's theoretical lessons.

As for the afternoon's practical training...

As long as they weren't testing the three basic techniques, he could muddle through.

And the three basic techniques...

According to the original owner's memories, they were tested about once a week. The rest of the time was spent teaching combat knowledge and the use of ninja tools.

The last test had been three days ago, so he didn't have to worry about being exposed for now.

As for the next one...

Four days were enough for him to grind the Clone Technique to a basic level.

With that as a foundation, he wouldn't have to worry about the assessment.

Time flew by, and it was afternoon.

On the training ground.

Sugiki Kazuto looked at the thirty or so students below and said sternly, "Next, I will divide you into groups. Then you will fight each other. Until I call for a stop, you must not stop, even if you are defeated. You must get up and continue fighting. Do you understand?"

Hearing this, the students below immediately became noisy.

In the past, when they fought, they did so one group at a time, with Sugiki Kazuto watching from the side, providing commentary and analysis.

But now, not only did they have to fight simultaneously, but they weren't allowed to back down. This had never happened before.

Seimei didn't know what others were thinking, but he sensed urgency in this.

That's right, urgency.

Logically, this kind of combat training shouldn't be introduced until the fifth or even sixth year. Having them do it now clearly meant the curriculum was being accelerated.

Combined with the current situation in the ninja world, it wasn't hard to guess that the school intended to have them graduate early.

This was normal, though.

In peacetime, a six-year system was fine, but during wartime, the front lines were in dire need of manpower, so naturally, the time spent in school would be shortened.

'If I remember correctly, Konoha's annual graduation exams are from October 7th to 10th.'

In the following three days, the school would submit the exam results to the higher-ups. After being personally approved by the Hokage, the students would be officially registered on October 15th.

And today was September 3rd!

In other words, he would be forced to graduate in about a month at the earliest.

This made Seimei feel a sense of urgency.

"Quiet!"

Sugiki Kazuto's voice came from above, immediately silencing everyone.

"Next, those whose names I call, step forward. Hanada Sundō."

Hearing this, a sturdy student stepped out.

"Hirai Matsu."

Another student stepped out.

Sugiki Kazuto looked at the two and said, "You two are a group."

"Yes, sensei!"

Hanada Sundō and Hirai Matsu stood together and responded simultaneously.

"Mm."

Sugiki Kazuto nodded and continued calling out names, "Yamanaka Hana, Aoki Ryūko..."

As he called out names one by one, the entire class was quickly divided into over a dozen groups.

Seimei was no exception. He was grouped with a civilian ninja named Moriki Satoshi. Satoshi had decent talent, and his strength was on par with the original owner.

But that was the original owner. The current Seimei wasn't confident he could defeat Satoshi.

Even though Satoshi was just a kid around ten years old, in terms of combat experience, Seimei couldn't even compare.

After all, his school in his previous life didn't teach him how to fight.

Fortunately, his adult mentality allowed him to remain calm.

Soon, Sugiki Kazuto's voice came again, "Remember, you are not allowed to use weapons in the upcoming battles."

Hearing this, Seimei secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Although the training kunai weren't sharpened, getting hit in a vital spot wouldn't feel good.

It just so happened that he needed to gain experience. It was better to suffer less if he could. He wasn't a masochist.

That's right, Seimei was already prepared to get beaten up.

'I just hope this beating won't be in vain.'

Thinking this, Seimei opened the panel and glanced at it. If he wasn't mistaken, he would have another skill on his panel after today.

"Get ready~, form the Confrontation Seal!"

Sugiki Kazuto's voice rang out.

Seimei and Moriki Satoshi simultaneously raised their right hands and formed the Confrontation Seal.

"Begin!"

As soon as Sugiki Kazuto finished speaking, Moriki Satoshi charged forward, his right fist aiming straight for Seimei's face.

Facing this swift attack, even though Seimei was mentally prepared, he was still caught off guard.

However, whether it was due to the influence of the original owner's memories or muscle memory from the body, he reacted at the critical moment and narrowly dodged the blow by leaning to the side.

Not only that, almost at the same moment he dodged, he instinctively counterattacked, throwing a punch towards Moriki Satoshi's side face.

Bam!

Moriki Satoshi raised his right arm to block the punch.

As they passed each other, Moriki Satoshi pivoted ninety degrees, using his left foot as the axis and twisting his waist and abdomen, then swept his right leg towards Seimei's head.

'Damn, such a ruthless kid.'

Feeling the strong wind rushing past his ear, Seimei cursed inwardly.

However, he also knew that this was how ninjas fought. They were not only ruthless to themselves but even more so to their enemies. Battles were like dancing on the edge of a blade.

This was just the adaptation phase. Once Sugiki Kazuto allowed them to use weapons, it would become even more dangerous.

If he wanted to survive in this chaotic world, he had to adapt to all of this quickly. Otherwise, even with the proficiency panel, he would end up being nothing but trash.

With this in mind, Seimei stopped thinking and focused all his attention on the memories in his mind and the current battle, absorbing the original owner's legacy as quickly as possible.

Time passed by, and the battles on the training ground continued without pause. From time to time, someone would cry out in pain due to injuries.

However, no matter how badly they cried, Sugiki Kazuto didn't call for a stop.

During this time, Seimei was knocked down multiple times.

Although he had the original owner's memories and could cope with Moriki Satoshi for a short time, his moves were too stiff, and his flaws were quickly exposed.

As a result, he suffered.

Seimei didn't know if Moriki Satoshi had a grudge against the original owner or what, but his attacks were merciless. By the time school ended, bruises covered Seimei's body.

"Hiss~"

Rubbing his bruised eyes as he walked down the street, Seimei didn't feel much resentment. On the contrary, he wanted to thank Satoshi.

Because now, he had a new skill on his panel - Basic Taijutsu.

"Panel!"

With a thought, Seimei opened the panel.

Immediately, a light blue screen appeared in his vision:

[Name: Uchiha Seimei

Age: 10 years old

Physique: 5

Spirit: 7

Chakra: 6 (127)

Bloodline: Sharingan - Unawakened (51/100)

Skills: Chakra Refinement Technique: lv0 (2/100)

Clone Technique: lv0 (19/100)

Basic Taijutsu: lv0 (35/100)]

As one could see, after just one battle, his 'Basic Taijutsu' had reached lv0 (35/100), surpassing the 'Clone Technique' and becoming the skill with the fastest merging progress.

According to Seimei's estimation, the original owner's skill level in this area was only at the early lv1 stage.

In other words, after two or three more battles like this, he would be able to completely merge with everything the original owner had regarding this skill.

He owed this progress to Moriki Satoshi's relentless attacks, which forced him to respond with all his might.

So, how could he resent Satoshi?