Sasuke opened his mouth, wanting to refute Ethan's words, but after thinking for a long time, he couldn't come up with anything.

Was Ethan wrong? It seemed like everything he said was true.

He wasn't even the strongest among his graduating class, so what kind of genius was he? Since he wasn't a genius, shouldn't he be working even harder?

"So... am I just a failure hidden beneath the false reputation of the Uchiha?"

Of course not. In this world of Naruto, where lineage and background determined everything, Sasuke, as someone with the bloodline of the Sage of Six Paths' son, definitely had reason to be proud.

But he didn't know he was such an extraordinary existence, so he fell into self-doubt.

Ethan looked at his unwilling yet clearly discouraged expression and knew the blow was enough. Going any further would only crush his confidence completely, which served no purpose.

He had said all this just to make Sasuke let go of that baseless sense of superiority. He did have the advantage of bloodline, but if he wanted to grow stronger faster, he had to ignore that for now.

Besides, those advantages wouldn't come into play until his strength reached a certain threshold.

"You're not a failure, but you're also not as strong as you think. If you still want to become stronger, you need to adjust your mindset and see yourself clearly."

Sasuke clenched his fists tightly. He felt incredibly unwilling. He had thought he had already closed the gap with Itachi (Ethan really didn't understand where Sasuke got this confidence from), but Ethan made him realize that it was just a delusion.

It made him very uncomfortable, but what could he do?

"Go find Orochimaru?"

"!?"

As this thought surfaced in his mind, Ethan said it out loud first.

"Do you think that guy, who was so scared he didn't even dare show his face in front of Uchiha Itachi, can teach you how to defeat him?"

Sasuke's eyes widened. He didn't know that Itachi had defeated Orochimaru, or even made him afraid to challenge him again. But this seemed to explain why Orochimaru had set his sights on him.

"How do you know all this?"

"I told you, there are some things you're not qualified to know right now... when you become strong enough..."

"When I'm strong enough, I can know everything!"

"That's right."

Sasuke took a deep breath, closed his eyes to calm himself, and when he opened them again, his usual cold expression had returned.

"Then... how do we start?" 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Orochimaru didn't even dare to provoke Itachi. If someone else had told him this, he would have been doubtful.

But Ethan was different. Among the people he knew, Ethan was the only one who had fought both Orochimaru and Itachi. Compared to others, his words were much more credible.

Since Orochimaru's strength couldn't meet his needs, Sasuke's assessment of him dropped significantly. The idea of going to Orochimaru for power was pushed far down his list of priorities.

As for whether Ethan could truly make him stronger... it was just as uncertain as whether Orochimaru could. But comparing the risks and reliability, Ethan's side clearly looked better in every way.

"First, forget that you're an Uchiha. Let go of your baseless sense of superiority and treat yourself as a regular Genin... then start with the basics."

"Basics again?"

"What? You look down on basic training?"

"..."

"This training is different from what you did at the Ninja Academy."

That made Sasuke take it more seriously. Even though it was still basic training, if it was different, it had to be some kind of special training method.

"The method is simple: weighted training."

"Weighted training?"

It wasn't that Sasuke looked down on weighted training. After all, both Ethan and Lee used it to improve their physical strength and perform powerful Taijutsu techniques.

Sasuke also used Taijutsu in battle, but he was more of a ninjutsu-type ninja. Taijutsu was only a secondary skill.

Besides, with his Lightning Release, he had more efficient ways to enhance his physical capabilities. So was this kind of training really necessary?

"You're underestimating weighted training too much..."

Besides improving speed and strength, weighted training also boosts a ninja's stamina. At the same time, this kind of grueling and repetitive training tempers a ninja's mental resilience.

As everyone knows, chakra is a combination of physical and spiritual energy. This training improves both body and mind, which indirectly increases total chakra reserves.

"Although the increase is very small... if you gain just a little bit every day, what about after a thousand days... or two thousand?"

The idea of small gains adding up wasn't exclusive to Earth. Sasuke understood what Ethan meant, and now he didn't look down on such a 'minimal' improvement anymore.

"Is it just weighted training?"

"No. In the coming days, I'll personally spar with you to refine your combat skills."

Sasuke might look down on other kinds of training, but having a stronger opponent to spar with anytime was, in his view, the best form of practical training.

Never mind anything else, just having Ethan as a sparring partner was enough to get him excited.

"Alright!"

"Don't get happy too soon. From now on, you'll wear the weights during training, during combat, during meals, even while resting."

"..."

Sasuke suddenly felt that he might be entering the most painful period since he started learning ninjutsu. Ethan's teaching style was clearly very different from Kakashi's.

As if seeing through his thoughts, Ethan even emphasized it specifically, "Kakashi will let you rest when you're tired, but I won't... Be mentally prepared. What awaits you is hell."

"..."

Maybe it was the way Ethan said it, but Sasuke couldn't help swallowing.

By then, it was already dinner. The servants had prepared a rich meal. After eating a light dinner, Ethan went back to the guest room to rest.

In front of 'outsiders,' he was still a wounded man. He wouldn't be walking around too freely. Anyone with a brain would know he was faking it.

Even though the only people around were Uchiha servants, being Uchiha servants didn't necessarily make them trustworthy.

The night passed quickly. Although Sasuke hadn't slept well, he was eager for training to begin. But Ethan didn't appear early. Only after the sun had risen completely did he show up, wearing the clothes the Uchiha family had prepared for him, walking slowly, coughing, and looking pale and weak.

"..."

Sasuke really wanted to say, isn't that a bit much?

Looking at his pale face, slightly messy medium-length hair, and a plain white yukata... While he had to admit it was a nice-looking scene, he couldn't help but feel something was off.

Shaking off the unnecessary thoughts, Sasuke focused back on training.

"What do I need to do?"

"Are the things ready?"

Sasuke pointed to the side, where all the weighted gear was laid out. These were the items Ethan had mentioned the day before, including weighted clothing, wristbands, and ankle weights.

Ethan looked them over, tested them lightly by hand, then tossed aside the lightest set and picked up the heaviest ones.

"Put all of these on."

Sasuke's eyelid twitched. In fact, he had already tried them before Ethan arrived. If he chose the lightest ones, they basically wouldn't have any effect.

The medium weights would start to affect his speed and significantly reduce his strength.

The ones Ethan chose were exactly at the threshold—he could still move normally, but couldn't exert any real combat power. His accurate selection showed Ethan had a precise grasp of Sasuke's strength.

Once he put everything on, Sasuke immediately felt his body become heavy. For the first time, he experienced what Ethan and Lee felt like.

Even worse, in this state, Ethan announced a list of 'basic training exercises.'

"Finish them within two hours!"

They were basic exercises, but there was a time limit and he had to wear weights. Even without the weights, it would be tough to finish on time. In this state...

"That's the point of training. If you can finish it easily, what's the point? This training is meant to push you beyond your limits."

Sasuke had never pushed himself to his limits. Ethan was very curious to see what would happen once Sasuke underwent this kind of hellish training.

As for injuries? With Ethan personally overseeing everything, the idea that Sasuke could still hurt himself was a joke.

Watching Sasuke run laps with heavy steps and a strained expression, Ethan found it very entertaining.

After Sasuke barely completed the training, collapsing like a dead dog, Ethan immediately made him start chakra control exercises. He even arranged for the training ground to be at the Uchiha family's lake.

Sasuke, whose stamina was already depleted, sank into the water again and again. With the drag of the weights, if Ethan hadn't pulled him out, he probably would've drowned in his own family's lake, becoming the most pathetic Uchiha in history.

And that was just the morning training. After lunch and a short rest, the afternoon training was simply being beaten by Ethan.

"You might've been wondering during the morning session why it was all basic and physical training."

The words were still echoing in his ears when Ethan, who had been standing far away, suddenly appeared in front of Sasuke, a kunai pressed against his neck.

"Because killing an opponent doesn't require anything flashy."

(To be continued.)

◇◇◇

◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.

◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves

(Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)