But right now, this situation was undeniably real.
"Is this really an A-rank jutsu?"
Muttering to himself, Sasuke frowned as he let the ball of lightning in his hand dissipate. Though the technique had consumed a significant amount of chakra, executing it felt almost effortless—it came out far too easily.
"Of course it is. Not only is it A-rank, it's also one of the best."
Hinata landed lightly on a nearby training post. Using her Byakugan, she had clearly observed Sasuke's Chidori in action. Though she was slightly surprised, she quickly understood why.
Chidori is essentially a technique where a large amount of lightning chakra is condensed in the palm. The core component is chakra nature transformation, something that's generally only attainable at the jonin level.
But thanks to the Sacred Fist's harsh regimen—medication, grueling training, and special gloves—Sasuke was forcibly made to meet the criteria for nature transformation. That left only the chakra concentration part, which, given Sasuke's excellent control, was practically child's play.
"Tch, it's you. Looks like last night's situation is behind us?"
Crossing his arms, Sasuke sounded annoyed. He had planned to surprise Hinata with Chidori, but now that this supposedly powerful jutsu posed no real challenge to him, he just felt disappointed.
"Pretty much. I mean, we've got the perfect scapegoat—no way we're taking the blame."
With a sly smirk tugging at her lips, Hinata got straight to the point. "Where's Naruto? I've brought the next step in our training."
Sasuke's eyes narrowed at that, and the dark-haired boy instinctively clenched his fist. "…Finally… it's here."
Before long, Naruto showed up, dragged back by Sasuke from who-knows-where. Judging by his messy appearance, he'd clearly been training much harder than Sasuke.
"What's up, Hinata? I was just getting the hang of a new move~"
Still rubbing his shoulder, Naruto had his usual laid-back demeanor. He had clearly already forgotten everything that happened last night.
"Do you even know the meaning of the word 'concern,' you happy-go-lucky idiot? Ugh, never mind…"
Pressing her fingers to her forehead, Hinata decided not to dwell on Naruto's brain structure. Instead, she simply tossed three scrolls to the ground in front of them.
"Alright, here's the new Sacred Fist training method. Read the scrolls."
"Whoa~~ I've been looking forward to this!"
Eyes gleaming, Naruto and Sasuke each picked up a scroll and began to read. When they finished, the two of them instinctively glanced at each other. Clearly, the contents had shocked them once again. But since they'd been surprised so often since starting Sacred Fist training, they were too used to it to even bother reacting now.
"Is this really… gonna make us stronger?"
Sasuke looked at Hinata with a frustrated expression, while Naruto grimaced. "I mean… whatever. But what does this 'chakra control' stat even mean?"
"That one's easy. It's the precision with which you can control your chakra. Whether it's ninjutsu or taijutsu, any technique that requires refined execution depends heavily on this trait."
Hinata cut off their follow-up questions with practiced efficiency. "Instead of wasting time talking, just come try it. Follow me—the materials are easy to prepare."
Though skeptical of this new training method, Sasuke and Naruto had grown used to Hinata's Spartan style. The three of them quickly picked up the required supplies from around the Konoha streets. After hauling a large box each back to the Uchiha compound, they got ready to begin.
"Phew… we'll start from the lowest difficulty. Once you can stably output chakra, then we'll move to the next step."
Lifting the box she'd carried, Hinata dumped its contents into a nearby wooden bucket. Out poured a pile of shiny, plump, dry seeds—golden-yellow corn kernels. As a food source, they looked pretty high quality.
Yes, corn. That was Hinata's training tool for this stage. It sounded ridiculous, but it was real.
"As long as it helps me get stronger, I don't care what it is."
Frowning, Sasuke opened his own box and pulled out a small cardboard package. Inside was a household lightbulb. So his training tool was… a box full of lightbulbs.
"Tch~ this kind of training seriously necessary?"
Naruto grumbled as he opened a box with fruit illustrations and pulled out a big, shiny red apple. Apparently, he'd gotten the most normal training material—just a box full of juicy apples.
"Save it. Talk to me again after you pull it off. I thought after last night you'd understand a little about how brutal this world is."
With a furrowed brow, Hinata donned her Sacred Fist gloves. Carefully, she pinched a corn kernel between her index finger and thumb. Compared to past training—jumping off cliffs, electrocution, iron sand drills—this method felt practically harmless. But as the saying goes, the simpler a task is, the harder it is to perfect.
Focusing her chakra, she let it gather in her palm. The glove converted the fire-nature chakra into tangible flames, which she directed into the corn kernel. Visibly, the kernel began to swell, blacken—then with a pop, it exploded into a piece of scorched charcoal.
"Tch! Failed…"
Frowning down at the charred kernel in her palm, Hinata declared the result.
That's right. The goal of this training was now crystal clear.
To make a proper popcorn kernel using only her fingers.
It sounded silly, even absurd—but it wasn't. To pop popcorn correctly, the kernel needed a stable high-temperature environment. Too intense and it would just explode, like what happened to Hinata.
And producing chakra steadily and smoothly was incredibly hard—especially when the required output was much lower than what Hinata was used to.
It's like punching an ant to death—easy. But punching an ant without killing it? That's much harder.
If Hinata could actually refine her chakra control to the point she could pop popcorn with her bare hands, her control would be off the charts.
Meanwhile, Sasuke was conducting a similarly themed experiment.
Holding the lightbulb by its base, he began cautiously releasing lightning-nature chakra. The glove converted it into actual current. In the next instant, the bulb in his hand flared once—then with a crisp pop, exploded in a shower of glass.
Shards flew into Sasuke's face, and the young Uchiha heir clicked his tongue in defeat.
Yep—his training was to power a lightbulb with his lightning chakra, keeping it steadily lit. If it exploded or didn't light up, he failed.
"Yeeowch~!"
Just then, Naruto let out a yelp. Juice dripped down his face as he stared at the mess of an apple in his hand—sliced like it had been hacked at a dozen times.
Alright, so his training was the same idea: to use wind-nature chakra in his palm to peel an apple. He'd succeed only when he could peel the apple without damaging the fruit itself.
The three of them exchanged glances—and sighed in unison. It was clear now: this training wasn't going to be easy.
Popcorn Maker, Human Lamp, and Apple Peeler—those were their new roles.
All three techniques demanded chakra output that was precise, subtle, sustained, and stable. From a theoretical standpoint, this training method was perfect. If they could master it, their chakra control levels wouldn't just jump a few notches—they'd leap six or seven.
Pop! "Hmph~!"
Boom! "Tch~!"
Crash! "Whoa~!"
And so, from deep within the Uchiha compound, the sound of small explosions rang out nonstop—and looked like it would for a while.
---
Inside the freshly cleaned main hall of the Uchiha compound, Hinata's team resumed work once more. After a half-month break, the returning crew was full of energy—except for Shikamaru.
"In light of Comrade Shikamaru's prior deception of Sakura and Ino—this vile act of toying with pure-hearted girls, damaging team morale, and undermining class unity—after careful deliberation, the group has decided to administer final punishment."
Holding a corn kernel between her fingers, Hinata's tone was calm, solemn, and righteous—like a judge handing down a final verdict. But given how the team hierarchy actually worked, group deliberation basically meant Hinata's decision.
"Well well~ fooling your own teammates… that's definitely a bit much~"