Chapter 154: Adjusting the Mindset
This time, Ishiro detected his mental imbalance early—unlike last time. That previous delay had cost him dearly, widening the gap between him and top-tier geniuses like Ikura.
The result? Those prodigies had all reached the quasi-Kage level, and some might have even become full Kage-class by now.
And Ishiro? He was still just an elite jōnin. Though he had successfully developed the Porcelain Release kekkei genkai, he remained far from true Kage-level power.
Fortunately, he realized it early. Otherwise, if his training had turned into an obsession, things would've gotten messy.
There was no special method to deal with this kind of mental fixation. The only solution Ishiro could think of was balance—work and rest.
So he decided to give himself a proper break. Truth be told, ever since he reincarnated, Ishiro hadn't taken a proper rest unless he was injured.
Even when injured, he still practiced less physically demanding techniques. Like when he was bedridden in pain, he'd still practiced Banshō Ten'in (Universal Pull) from bed.
After explaining things to Kitsuchi, Ishiro was granted a few days off. During this time, anything related to personal training was paused. Any intel that might induce anxiety was filtered out.
The effect was immediate. The moment his leave was approved, Ishiro felt his whole body relax.
Thinking further, he returned to his quarters and took off all his weighted gear. He even changed out of his standard jōnin uniform, swapping it for plain civilian clothes.
Since reincarnating, he had trained until late every night. But tonight, after dinner, Ishiro just took a casual stroll and went to bed early.
He had thought that his years of strict biological clock might make it hard to fall asleep. But the moment he laid down, he was out cold—and slept soundly straight into late morning the next day. About 14 to 15 hours in total.
When he finally woke, still groggy, he shook his head, slowly washed up, and left his room.
Yawning as he walked, Ishiro went to the logistics office to get some food, then returned to the training field.
But he wasn't there to train. Dragging a chair to the edge of the field, Ishiro sat down and, with eyes half-closed, basked in the sun while watching others train.
Watching others work while I rest—what a great feeling.
As the Eastern Division's deputy commander and a public figure, Ishiro's uncharacteristic behavior immediately drew attention.
Many glanced his way curiously, wondering, What strange plan does this guy have now?
In their minds, Ishiro was a visionary leader.
When the camp was first established, he had led them in learning collaborative jutsu. Then he developed a kekkei genkai—Porcelain Release—which had now spread across the shinobi world. Just a few days ago, he had introduced balance training.
Some even said he had created multiple jutsu, including powerful A-rank offensive ones.
Ishiro didn't care about the whispers. Half-dozing, he continued watching the others.
These days, most of the camp was focused on balance training.
Kitsuchi not only encouraged it as the commander, but had submitted a report to the village recommending all shinobi adopt the practice.
Watching the others treat training as a fun game, Ishiro's mood unknowingly improved.
Sigh… Ishiro murmured, "It's been years since I looked around and enjoyed the scenery."
This thought brought a tinge of regret. For years, driven by fear of that god-tier battle in the Fourth Shinobi World War, Ishiro had lived like a taut bowstring.
Even eating and sleeping felt like exertions.
Maybe it was the warm sun, or his accumulated fatigue, but soon Ishiro dozed off on his chair—snoring softly.
Everyone in the camp noticed immediately. They were shinobi, after all. But none of them disturbed him.
In the shinobi world, no one could tell whether a comrade's strange actions were part of some esoteric training.
So Ishiro peacefully napped through the afternoon.
Eventually, his three students returned from a mission and, seeing it was dinner time, gently woke him.
Still half-asleep, Ishiro stretched, slowly realizing he had slept on the edge of the training ground.
He found it funny. As a shinobi, one should always stay alert—even in sleep, one should be able to spring into action.
But he was pleased with this mental state. Balance and rhythm—that's what had been missing. He had been far too tense.
His three students found his behavior a little odd. Kawakita, ever straightforward, voiced their shared question:
"Teacher, what's wrong? Why were you sleeping out here? You don't seem like yourself."
Ishiro chuckled and ruffled Kawakita's hair without explaining. They were still far from understanding his level. Even Chiko Tomoe, the most advanced of the three, hadn't yet become a jōnin. Kajiyama and Kawakita weren't even special jōnin.
"Don't worry about it. Let's go eat." Ishiro yawned and headed toward the mess hall.
The three students followed, dazed and confused.
Ishiro maintained this relaxed mindset for five full days. He slept more than half the time—still getting over 12 hours of sleep each night. During waking hours, he mostly sunbathed and relaxed, occasionally giving casual advice to his students.
But all three were at a stage where they needed to walk their own paths. They didn't need much guidance for now.
With little to do, Ishiro spent his time watching the others train—or watching Dan'go practice. He wasn't allowed to leave camp, so he couldn't go sightseeing either.
Sometime in the future, when the shinobi world is finally at peace, I'll travel and explore. I didn't reincarnate just to toil away forever, right?
Throughout these five days, Ishiro never visited Kitsuchi's office, never concerned himself with camp matters, and didn't do any training. For once, he had truly let himself rest.
On the sixth day, his break ended.
Returning to his usual routine, Ishiro woke early, washed up, donned his weighted gear and jōnin vest, and resumed training.
He didn't rush. He started by resuming his regular physical training, which he had paused for five days. After breakfast, he moved on to targeted training. His focus for the morning: Lightning Release.
Back at the man-made lake, Ishiro stood on the central platform and formed hand seals, casting the jutsu Guided Lightning. He carefully contained the generated lightning to the lake's center.
This first step succeeded perfectly. Not a single spark reached the lake's edge—all remained within his control.
Next, Ishiro tried guiding the lightning to strike the small pillars around the lake.
Though not flawless, the results were promising. About a dozen strands hit their intended targets under his control. The rest lost precision midway. Some still hit pillars, but that was pure luck.
Compared to his previous zero success rate, this was a massive breakthrough. Clearly, his decision to rest had been the right one. His prior mental tension had severely hindered his performance.
Now, with a calmer mind, his control had improved dramatically.
Dispersing the remaining lightning, Ishiro repeated the process.
By the end of the morning, he had found a rhythm. In the final round, he accurately guided over thirty lightning strands to hit their marks—an incomparable improvement.
That afternoon, Ishiro resumed balance training. With a clone's help, he sat atop the stone spike on a wooden board once more.
Everyone in the camp noticed his renewed practice. After the past few days' unusual behavior, everyone was curious to see how far he'd come.
This included Shironeko and his three students.
Once the clone let go, Ishiro began swaying—but this time, the movements were much smaller than before.
"One Ishiro… two Ishiros… three…"
A shinobi began counting.
At first, Ishiro remained very steady. Even past 40, he only swayed slightly—likely due to a breeze. But that little shift snowballed, and he soon fell.
"Forty-four?! Ishiro-sama lasted 44 units?!"
"Incredible! Does basking in the sun really improve your skills?!"
Chiko Tomoe rubbed her eyes and asked, "Sister Shironeko, was it Dan'go who taught Sensei this?"
Shironeko shook her head. Dan'go had given some advice, but she knew it hadn't helped much.
Kajiyama Ri whispered, "Could he be using Light-Weight Boulder Technique?"
Kawakita nodded—he had the same suspicion. Ishiro could fly, after all. Hovering mid-air should be easier than balancing.
But Chiko shook her head. "Nope. Sensei isn't emitting any chakra. He's not using ninjutsu."
Amid their chatter, Ishiro started his second attempt.
"One… two… ten… twenty… fifty…"
This time, there was no accident. Having adjusted his mental state, Ishiro rode out the initial swaying and gradually stabilized—until he was completely motionless.
After a while, he opened his eyes and smiled faintly. Scanning the onlookers, he sneered in his heart:
Let others fade into obscurity—my name will last forever like the mighty rivers.
With a domineering aura, Ishiro walked to Dan'go's stone spike and used Earth Release again—this time creating a taller spike.
Huh? Didn't expect this… After adjusting his mindset, even his Earth Release had improved—the spike was about 10% taller.
He summoned a clone to stand ready below in case of a fall. Then, with Light-Weight Boulder Technique, Ishiro carried the wooden board to the new spike's summit.
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