Training! Day 5

{Training ground 21, Konohagakure}

{5:15 AM, 25 March 78 Yrs}

~Pant~

~Bang~

The three wooden posts, a staple of Konoha's training ground, Hiroshi was currently punching and kicking one of them while manipulating his chakra to use his taijutsu style. Since Hiroshi decided against sparring with anyone to hide from Kabuto's surveillance, the progress of his Vaccum fist has slowed down in comparison to what he was able to accomplish during the simulations.

Still, he reasoned that at least he was addressing his bad habits, it took all of his concentration to do everything, he had to maintain his footing and center of gravity as he followed through the katas. Every punch and kick needed to be complimented with a packet of chakra that at his will could attach to the post, making it a platform for him to launch his next attack.

~Pant~

~Bang~

Though another part of his brain was focused on surveying his surroundings, he went through the motions his eyes focused on the post but his ears were focused on the surroundings. Through the last 4 days since he arrived back in Konoha, during some moments when he was training he felt like someone was watching him. The paranoia was eating at him so he had to postpone learning the Fire Release: Great Fireball jutsu. During the first two days he didn't realize what that feeling was so he went through his usual practice and learned the three Earth Release Jutsu, but during the third day he felt like something was a little off, the crickets were quiet as he went through the motions.

~Twirp~ ~Twirp~

Today though the sounds were back, it wasn't the time yet to investigate around, he would do it when he got back to Ninjutsu training. Earth: Release Hiding like a mole technique was ranked at C-grade, it allowed someone to hide in the ground removing any traces unless you were a sensor shinobi. And whoever was watching him wasn't one.

'It wasn't the clan though, there were no traces of any bugs around the training ground, plus the crickets wouldn't have stopped making noise if the bugs would be around...'

The Aburame clans were naturally more suited to sneaking around because of the natural habitat, the crickets and various bugs in the vegetation around Konoha are very perceptive to danger so they stop making any sound if someone was close by, the only reason Hiroshi didn't disturb them was that he had stayed in the same training ground for two years now. Any member of the Aburame clan could simply make some of their bugs mimic the sounds and sneak around.

'...why though.'

That was the question that has been sneaking into his thoughts a lot, he didn't change anything from the last simulation, he even stopped sparring with others to not gain any attention, so why was someone spying on him?

~Pant~

~Bang!~

A spike of pain shot through his right hand as he missed the moment when he had to use chakra to hold onto the log. A grimace made it into his face as he stopped for a moment and walked off, he was currently trying to take the advice that Guy Sensei gave him in the last simulation. Although he didn't have the visual example that his counterpart got in the simulation, Hiroshi still got the gist of what Guy Sensei was trying to say, his taijutsu style was very rigid like the academy taijutsu style. The direct upgrade to the Academy style was the Goken that the green twins used, while the core of his taijutsu style was deception, his win condition was destroying your opponent's stance like the Jūken.

So he was trying one of the techniques he remembered reading in his past life, black and white boxing, a fighting style where you deceive your opponent by throwing similar-looking punches but although both look similar, the black fist had your weight behind the punch whereas the white fist was a fake. What he was trying was something similar, each punch and kick would either have his full force behind it, or it would be a feint which if an opponent blocks could be used as a platform for further combos.

~Pant~

~Pant~

Hiroshi leaned against the tree, his eyes fixed on the training log while chakra was flowing through his ears trying to enhance his hearing.

'No one's here today too, did he just spy on me for three days? What was he after?'

As the questions kept piling Hiroshi shook his head as he stood up after resting for a few minutes, he looked at the sun rising so he started going through the hand signs.

Bird → Tiger → Ram -> Snake

The ground beneath Hiroshi's feet started softening before he sunk into the ground, he closed his eyes as he stretched his senses towards the chakra surrounding his whole body. Sometimes Hiroshi just marveled a the things he could do with chakra and Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique was a technique that challenged his understanding. As soon as he finished the seal and channeled his chakra to cover his feet, he started sinking, then he had to hurry and move his chakra to the surface of his body to let his whole body sink into the ground otherwise he would be half-buried in the ground as the jutsu failed. The chakra acted as a bubble, it softened and moved the soil away for his body to move through, it also acted as an information channel, his chakra interacted with the magnetic field of the ground giving him a lot of confusing information about what was happening above the surface.

It was a little confusing on the first successful attempt but after a few tries and the level-up of the skill he was able to figure out what everything was, every point where someone was touching the ground around him sent a small disturbance in the natural magnetic field of the ground. Although it still could have been an animal, there was no way an animal stayed at the same spot for 3 hours completely still.

'Nothing except a hopping bunny...'

Hiroshi did a full circle of the clearing before he came back out, he frowned as his eyes now surveyed the surroundings before a notification popped up taking his attention away.

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[Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique (Active) Lv-3, 90 CP per second]

The hiding Like a Mole technique manipulates earth into fine sand by channeling chakra into it, allowing the user to dig through it like a mole. This effect goes around the body, making space just large enough for a person to move through.

Movement penalty = -76%.

Sensing around the user =12m.

Minimum weight to be able to sense = 70kg.

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AN- The technique seems a bit overpowered... what do you think should I increase the chakra cost? Maybe double it?

I have written 3 chapters now that are around 1.5-1.6k words, let me tell you that fucked up my schedule for a couple of days before I got used to it by now!

P.S.- For advanced chapters check out my P.atreon - p.atreon.com/DesMark.

Currently, 6 chapters ahead of Webnovel, but I would probably try to get it 10 chapters ahead before this weekend ends, read the latest chapter- Chapter 39- Escape! Part-2.