Chapter 5: The Goal of Training
Swish!
Whoosh!
Bang!
In the clearing behind the house, Kakashi's blade danced through the air.
Dressed in dark shinobi shorts and a fitted training outfit, his expression was focused and intense as he wielded his chakra blade, each swing deliberate, every step measured.
For a shinobi, no matter the form of training, one truth always remained:
The foundation is everything.
Especially for a swordsman.
If you couldn't fully master the blade in your hand—if you couldn't move with it as though it were an extension of your own body—then you had no right to call yourself a swordsman at all. The man Kakashi now called his "cheap, second-life father," Hatake Sakumo, had once achieved that very feat. He had fused blade and body into one, elevating his swordsmanship to an otherworldly level.
Chakra, of course, was the most fundamental resource for a ninja.
But more chakra didn't automatically mean more power.
If it did, wouldn't the Tailed Beasts be unstoppable?
And yet, excluding the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails, human shinobi had managed to overpower the other seven. Even Rasa—the Fourth Kazekage, often regarded as the weakest of the Five Kage—had managed to suppress and seal the rampaging One-Tail on multiple occasions. His chakra reserves weren't even a fraction of a Tailed Beast's.
What truly determined a shinobi's strength wasn't just chakra. It was their physical conditioning, mental resilience, and mastery of technique.
No need to look further than the iconic Might Guy and his father, Might Duy.
They weren't born geniuses. But their bodies—honed to absolute perfection—allowed them to break through the Eight Inner Gates and unleash power that rivaled the gods themselves.
Kakashi had no intention of walking down the same path as his "original self" from this world.
Copying a thousand jutsu and becoming Konoha's "Technique Master"? In front of a true powerhouse, that title meant nothing.
The long-term future was still hazy.
But for now?
Sharpening his swordsmanship.
That was his clearest, most urgent goal.
"Hah..."
After a solid two hours of relentless basic drills, Kakashi was drenched in sweat. It soaked through his clothes, running down his body in rivulets. He was exhausted, but there was a strange clarity in the repetition.
To immerse oneself completely in monotonous, repetitive training was one of the greatest tests of human will.
To become truly powerful, one needed both talent and hard work. One without the other simply wasn't enough—especially in this world.
In his previous life, Kakashi had spent years in the military. A place that tested the limits of one's will, one's patience, and one's endurance.
If pain and solitude were the price of strength, Kakashi would pay it. Gladly.
Fortunately, while Sakumo had still been alive, his training in swordsmanship had been strict, methodical, and relentless. By age eight, Kakashi already had an extremely solid foundation.
Now all that remained was to refine it further—layer by layer, swing by swing.
There'd be no overnight transformation. The results wouldn't show right away.
But one day, they would.
Kakashi understood this truth deeply—and so he never wavered.
Still, that didn't mean his training would consist solely of basic drills.
After all, the swordsmanship of the White Fang was never just taijutsu.
It was a perfect synthesis of body and ninjutsu.
A style that combined the raw ferocity of Lightning Release, the razor sharpness of Wind Release, and the shared swiftness of both. A technique so deadly that even Kage-level shinobi feared it.
If it were just raw physical power, the White Fang wouldn't have earned his title.
He wasn't Might Guy.
He didn't rely on opening the Eight Gates.
And yet, his name was whispered with reverence across the four great shinobi villages.
That spoke for itself.
So Kakashi's next step was clear:
Improve his mastery of Wind and Lightning chakra—both in nature and form manipulation.
Only then could he fuse that with his blade. Only then could he forge a new generation of "White Fang."
It would take years.
It wasn't a shortcut.
But Kakashi had a clear vision of the path ahead. He knew better than to rush.
He wasn't a Jinchuriki.
He didn't have a Kekkei Genkai like the Sharingan.
If he wanted to grow stronger in a short amount of time...
"Then I'll need to develop that technique early—or start experimenting with Lightning chakra stimulation…"
Kakashi picked up a nearby towel and wiped the sweat from his brow, deep in thought.
Lightning-style chakra stimulation was a common, if dangerous, trick among shinobi with that elemental affinity.
By directing Lightning chakra through one's body, it could excite cellular activity, enhance reflexes, and boost speed and explosive power.
In the original Chunin Exams, even Rock Lee had worn a complex expression after witnessing Sasuke's lightning-fast moves.
But this technique wasn't for the weak or unskilled.
Only those with exceptional control could pull it off safely.
Lightning chakra was violent and unforgiving. Misuse didn't just "stimulate" cells—it destroyed them. Push too far, and you weren't strengthening your body. You were burning it from the inside.
And every ninja had a biological limit to how many times their cells could regenerate.
Hit that ceiling, and it was game over.
So while the theory was widespread, very few could actually use it effectively. Those who could were usually at least Special Jōnin level. And a well-designed jutsu—one tailored to a shinobi's element and style—could exponentially increase their battlefield effectiveness in the early stages of their growth.
Kakashi wasn't arrogant.
But he wasn't self-deprecating either.
Once he fully adapted to this body—once he became completely one with it—he'd begin experimenting with Lightning stimulation. Step by step.
In his past life, Kakashi had been a fairly devoted Naruto fan.
Sure, he didn't remember every arc or side character in detail.
But he clearly remembered the bigger picture.
He especially remembered that the Third Great Ninja War broke out not long after Sakumo's death.
To be exact, it happened shortly after the disappearance of the Third Kazekage.
The gap between those events was narrow.
Which meant Kakashi didn't have much time.
He needed to build his foundation—but he also needed to grow stronger fast.
"Zzzzzzt—"
He extended his right hand, palm facing the sky. Slowly, he closed his fingers into a tight grip.
With a quiet crackle, a streak of electric-blue light burst from his hand—a sharp, brilliant arc of Lightning chakra dancing ominously across his palm.