Chapter 319: Exceeding the Expected Number of People
Mugetsu had already guessed that this round of special training would be more crowded than the last.
The genin who had graduated this year all knew his teaching level and were far more willing to sign up, and on top of that, he had even been mentioned in the Leaf Newspaper.
The write up might not have been in a prominent position, but the Leaf Newspaper was Konoha's only official publication and was rarely issued. Its value and influence were still considerable.
Even so, when the teacher responsible for tallying the applications came over with the list, Mugetsu was still a little surprised.
The entire Fourth Grade was set to participate by default. For the other years, the original rule of taking eight students per grade was still in place. But the genin turnout had exploded. A total of three hundred and fifty had signed up.
What did that mean in practice?
The total number of participants in his previous special training had not even reached that number. This time, the genin alone already outnumbered all the Academy students combined from last year's camp.
"Teacher Mugetsu, what should we do? Should we change the rules? There are too many people signing up for the special training," the record keeper asked nervously.
Initially, there had been no restrictions on genin participation. Any genin who applied could join. But with this many extra people, far more than the enrolled students, he could not help worrying that Mugetsu simply would not be able to handle it.
"A special training with a total of six hundred ninety four people, huh…"
Mugetsu's eyes narrowed slightly as he did the math.
If this were the old him, he would already be thinking of ways to cut the numbers. Nearly seven hundred shinobi, and none of them ordinary civilians. A standard combat squad did not even approach that kind of headcount.
But things were different now. His current strength was on a completely different level compared to last year's camp. His chakra reserves had grown tremendously, and his body, ninjutsu foundation, and everything else had advanced just as far.
"I will give it a try," Mugetsu said after a moment of thought. "It is a lot of people, but it should not be a problem."
An unprecedented number of participants also meant an unprecedented opportunity.
Last time, teaching a little over three hundred people in one large class had unlocked a generous reward. Now, with nearly seven hundred, would the reward change again?
He had redesigned this special training specifically to chase higher tier rewards. With that chance standing right in front of him, there was no way he would let it slip.
Mugetsu scanned the list of genin applicants. Almost all of the names were familiar. Many were this year's graduates who had experienced his first special training camp. As he expected, Ebisu and Shiranui Genma were both returning.
There were also genin from previous years. Asuma, for example, had heard that Mugetsu would be teaching nature transformation this time and had brought his teammates along.
Mugetsu's eyes paused when he saw Inuzuka Midori and Nara Shiosui on the list. That was something he had not quite anticipated. The members of Shiosui's squad were all quite strong. Under normal circumstances, they might well have passed the Chunin Exams already.
"Alright then, Teacher Mugetsu, we will keep all of these names," the registration teacher said when he saw that Mugetsu had no objections.
His respect for Mugetsu rose a little more.
With this many people, most teachers would not even dare talk about instruction. Just managing the group would be a nightmare. Yet Mugetsu still believed he could teach them properly.
Thinking it over, the teacher had to admit that Mugetsu was not an ordinary ninja like the rest of them. Konoha had formally recognized his strength. A certain level of confidence was only natural.
Mugetsu nodded, and the matter of the special training roster was settled.
…
On Monday, every registered shinobi and Academy student arrived at the training ground Mugetsu had designated, waiting for the start of camp.
"Shiosui, why did we have to sign up for this?" Inuzuka Midori asked, confused. "The Chunin Exams start in nine days. It is not like our strength will change much in that time, right?"
A shinobi's power did not jump overnight. It was the result of persistent training and accumulation. Unless someone suddenly awakened a bloodline limit, it was almost impossible to see dramatic growth in such a short window.
"The person in charge of this camp, Hayate Mugetsu, was the chief examiner for the second exam," Nara Shiosui explained calmly. "From what we saw in the Death Forest, he is also Rin Nohara's teacher. If she attends this special training as well, I can gather more intel on her."
Having fought side by side with Rin during the Forest of Death, he already knew two things about her. First, she could explode with powerful combat strength. Second, she was a medical ninja.
But if they trained together for a few days, Shiosui was confident he could pick up far more: habits, tendencies, the rhythm of her attacks and retreats. Those details might prove decisive at a critical moment.
"Also, according to my investigation, Hayate Mugetsu is a very strong jonin, and teaching is his specialty," Shiosui continued. "Even if Rin Nohara does not show up, we will still learn something worthwhile."
He had asked his own jonin father about Mugetsu's abilities. As for Mugetsu's reputation as a teacher, he had heard it directly from the genin who had attended last year's summer camp.
"There are so many people… Midori feels like she came to the wrong training ground," Inuzuka Midori muttered, staring at the crowd.
At a glance, there had to be at least five or six hundred people present. Surely all of these were not here for the same special training, right?
"It should be the right place," Shiosui said, frowning.
The numbers were undeniably high. If not for the fact that everyone here looked very young and many did not even have forehead protectors yet, Shiosui might have assumed this was a gathering of multiple active duty squads.
"Big Brother Ebisu, long time no see! You really came!"
Kotetsu Hagane had arrived early and had been searching for Ebisu in the sea of genin. After a grueling five minute sweep, he finally spotted that familiar face behind a pair of sunglasses.
Hearing Kotetsu's shout, Izumo Kamizuki hurried over as well.
"We finally meet again! We really miss the time we spent creating ninjutsu with Big Brother Ebisu," Izumo said earnestly.
Ebisu's lips twitched. He did not miss those days at all. That whole period had turned him into someone girls avoided on sight, and the Third Hokage now associated him with certain… problematic experiments.
"Yo, isn't this Kotetsu and Izumo? Long time no see," Shiranui Genma called out with a grin, senbon still in his mouth as he raised a hand in greeting.
By now he was very familiar with Ebisu's two little admirers.
Since Genma had already opened his mouth, Ebisu had no choice but to stop pretending he had not heard anything.
"Mm. Long time no see. Good morning," he replied in a flat tone.
Seeing the headbands on Ebisu and Genma's foreheads, Kotetsu said enviously,
"Big Brother Genma, after you graduated, did you do missions every day to earn big money, defeat powerful enemies from other villages, and then rescue noble daughters to gain their recognition…?"
"Hahaha."
Genma could not help laughing at that.
"Kotetsu, you should really read fewer novels," he said. "How could a genin live like that? Fresh graduates are not even allowed to take missions outside the village. Most of our time is spent training."
Their team composition was far worse than Obito's, and since none of them had the personality to go straight to the Hokage and ask for high level assignments, they had been quietly doing D Rank missions with their teacher Chen and Might Guy.
"But we did have some interesting moments," Genma added, remembering. "For example, that Enemy Confusion Technique you all developed. Even the strongest taijutsu user in Konoha fell for it."
Thinking back to the bell snatching exercise, Genma still wanted to laugh.
They had put in so much effort attacking head on only to get thoroughly beaten. In the end, Ebisu, who had practically given up on dignity and gone all in on the bit, used the Enemy Confusion Technique with perfect timing to snatch the bells.
Izumo and Kotetsu both stared, stunned.
Even if it was "only" taijutsu, being called the strongest in Konoha was not a title given lightly. Someone like that had fallen for their jointly developed technique.
As the creators of the Enemy Confusion Technique, the two boys suddenly felt a rush of pride. Their mouths curled up almost involuntarily.
"Big Brother Ebisu, I think the Enemy Confusion Technique has even greater potential," Izumo said. "How about we study it together and develop it further?"
"I think it is already pretty good as it is. No need to change anything," Ebisu answered politely but firmly.
He was here to learn nature transformation, not to deepen his reputation as a pervert.
"That really is a shame," Izumo sighed. "I recently found a very good picture book. I was planning to share it with you, Big Brother Ebisu."
"Uh… If I have time, we can talk about it," Ebisu said at once, unable to bear seeing their disappointed faces.
"Are you planning to discuss ninjutsu?" Genma asked with a teasing smile.
As the start time approached, the number of people on the training ground continued to swell, and the noise level crept steadily upward.
"I did not expect so many to show up. It is like the whole year got back together again, just like when we were in school."
"Of course. This is Teacher Mugetsu's special training. When I first said I wanted to attend a month long camp, my instructor was really unhappy. But as soon as he heard it was run by Mugetsu, he agreed right away."
"Long time no see. How's life as a shinobi?"
"Almost the same as during the internship. We still are not allowed to take C Rank missions."
Students and shinobi formed small clusters, chatting easily. Most of them were only a few years apart in age, and many were old classmates or acquaintances.
"Everyone, quiet down."
Right at eight o'clock, Mugetsu appeared and raised a hand, signaling for silence.
He did not actually raise his voice much, but almost everyone here was either an Academy student or a newly graduated genin, and Mugetsu's one meter eighty stature stood out clearly among them.
Even those who had not heard his words clearly could see that familiar figure with golden hair, and the students closest to him went quiet first. That silence spread outward in waves, and within moments the entire training ground had fallen still. Hundreds of pairs of eyes turned toward Mugetsu.
"Many of you are familiar faces," Mugetsu said. "For some of you, this is not the first time you have attended my class. Thank you for your trust."
He swept his gaze calmly over the crowd.
"However, there are a lot of people here. So I hope everyone can stay quiet until I finish speaking."
For small classes, he did not actually mind students whispering now and then. Class would be too stiff and boring otherwise. But here, there were nearly seven hundred people. If even one seventh of them started talking, that would still be around a hundred voices.
"The main focus of this special training will be four areas," Mugetsu continued. "Chakra control, taijutsu, basic ninjutsu, and chakra nature transformation."
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