Chapter 8: Changes in Talent
After leaving the school, Yoru didn't head home but instead used Teleportation Jutsu to arrive at the Nakano River.
At this time, the Uchiha clan had not yet been forced to relocate near the Nakano River, so this area remained largely uninhabited.
Above the Nakano River stood cliffs and forests.
In the forested area, a black afterimage was leaping between treetops, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
Unlike other shinobi's Teleportation Jutsu that sometimes produced harsh noises or, with poor Chakra control, would scatter leaves and leave permanent footprints on branches, this afterimage passed through the treetops without making a sound or leaving any trace.
Though not exceptionally fast, this level of Chakra control was something even versatile Jōnin who had mastered at least two Nature Transformations couldn't hope to match.
Without a doubt, this was a master of Teleportation Jutsu.
Thud—
After leaping through the forest for some time, the afterimage suddenly crashed into a thick tree trunk wide enough to require several people to embrace, producing a heavy, muffled sound. The figure stuck to the tree like a mounted painting before slowly sliding down.
"Ouch... That hurts so much!"
The fallen Yoru clutched his reddened face with both hands, continuously hissing through his teeth in pain.
If any classmates had witnessed this scene, Yoru's image would have instantly shattered.
Rubbing his nose—which thankfully hadn't been deformed by the impact—Yoru stared at the tree before him, thinking to himself: "Performing phasing during combat movement is still too difficult."
Indeed, Yoru had just attempted to use his Space-Time Ability to pass through the tree, but had failed.
This marked his first such attempt.
His remarkable growth during this period had inevitably made him somewhat overconfident.
Yoru had initially believed that evolution only allowed some of his cells to extract Space-Time Energy.
But now it appeared to have been a comprehensive transformation.
Seven months had passed since he awakened his Space-Time Ability.
During these seven months, Yoru's body underwent tremendous changes.
First, in terms of height: though only seven years old, he had already grown to 143 cm.
This height would be quite ordinary in the Land of Lightning and Cloud Village, where Black and White people were common.
But in the Leaf Village and other shinobi villages, he stood head and shoulders above his peers.
After all, even Naruto was only 147 cm tall when he graduated at twelve.
As his classmates often remarked, anyone unaware would mistake Yoru for a fifth or sixth grader.
His physical precocity also led to a dramatic increase in his Chakra reserves. Originally larger than an average genin's, his Chakra volume had now likely surpassed that of ordinary Chūnin.
Though he couldn't compare to Kakashi, who could perform Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu in his first year, Yoru now fully qualified to train in both Shadow Clone Jutsu and Rasengan.
However, with the explosive growth of his overall Chakra, the proportion of his Space-Time Chakra had decreased from one-third to just one-fifth.
Additionally, whether due to his Space-Time talent or the evolution affecting his brain and nerves, Yoru clearly noticed over the past six months that his innate abilities had also improved dramatically—progress that was almost frightening.
Both students and teachers at the Ninja Academy considered Yoru a genius.
But only Yoru himself knew he didn't truly deserve that title.
To be precise, he was completely incomparable to those rare geniuses who appeared once in a decade, or even once in several decades.
Maintaining a disciplined routine of early sleep and wake-up times with adequate nutrition allowed his Chakra reserves to far exceed those of his peers.
Yet before five-year-old Kakashi, he wasn't even qualified to carry his shoes.
After refining his Chakra, Yoru began practicing tree climbing and water walking to enhance Chakra control. Having long mastered the Three Body Technique, he completely overpowered his age group—even sixth-year seniors were no match for him.
But Minato, within just one semester, nearly turned the tables on him through terrifying reflexes.
As for Orochimaru, even Tsunade—the Fire Shadow's granddaughter bearing the Senju bloodline—couldn't overshadow his brilliance.
Being unable to compete with these non-Kekkei Genkai monsters meant he stood no chance against prodigies with Kekkei Genkai.
Had he not awakened his Space-Time Kekkei Genkai, it would have been inevitable for Yoru to be left far behind by Minato once his intelligence advantages faded.
This was the gap in innate talent—something hard work alone couldn't bridge. Only extraordinary means could rival or surpass it!
But now, Yoru was fully worthy of bearing the title "genius."
Because Yoru discovered his thinking had become sharper and his reflexes significantly enhanced.
After observing Minato's battles or rematching him, Yoru no longer struggled excessively, finally experiencing the advantages of heightened reaction speed.
That sensation—where opponents' movements resembled slow motion while his own felt like fast-forward—was utterly exhilarating.
No wonder the Uchiha clan's Sharingan held such fascination for Orochimaru and Danzō.
With this transformation, even his Ninjutsu training and Chakra control became twice as effective with half the effort.
This was the source of his swelling confidence!
In just six months, Yoru's Teleportation Jutsu had improved at an alarming rate.
Like how adding Senjutsu Chakra to a half-completed Rasenshuriken immediately made it throwable.
Though Yoru couldn't yet blend ordinary Chakra with Space-Time Chakra to perform elemental ninjutsu, he could fuse them for Teleportation Jutsu.
His Space-Time Chakra-enhanced Teleportation Jutsu not only gained explosive speed but also moved like a silent specter.
Once Yoru could envelop his entire body with Space-Time Chakra during movement, his teleporting form—integrated with space—would encounter zero resistance, penetrate all obstacles, and become truly phantom-like.
Further developed, this might evolve beyond teleportation into genuine instantaneous movement.
This became Yoru's new pursuit!
After easing his physical strain, Yoru continued leaping through the forest via teleportation.
Only when sunset glow could no longer penetrate the canopy did he teleport home.
After dinner, he entered the basement inscribed with seals—likely designed to block perception and perspective—not to revise his "game strategies," but to form hand signs and channel Space-Time Chakra through his body.
The next moment, Yoru's figure gradually sank into the earth, silently departing the Leaf Village.
Unbeknownst to him, whether Sarutobi had mastered the Crystal Ball Jutsu yet, or might accidentally scan his location.
Nor did he know if he—a commoner prodigy and orphaned child—had already drawn the attention of Danzō.
Just to be safe, Yoru never practiced advanced Ninjutsu beyond Teleportation Jutsu and C-grade elemental techniques at home or in the village.
It wasn't that he feared being targeted, but rather that he worried they might develop an appreciation for his talent and force him to graduate early.
After all, Itachi had used Shadow Clone Jutsu in his first year, leading the school instructors to conclude they had nothing left to teach him and arranging his early graduation.
Perhaps this was also a reason behind the Uchiha clan's downfall.
A six-year-old child, devoid of any academic knowledge, graduating early solely because of overwhelming power—wasn't that just creating an illiterate with immense strength?
No wonder he had no brains!