Who are you calling a stable boy?!

The weasel choked.

"Well... I can also treat the three of you to a meal on the street; there should be some shops open now..."

"What trouble? Come on, if you feel bad, come and help me out. You can always chop meat, right?"

With that, Zheng Jing grabbed You and pulled him outside.

"Wait, wait! Master—"

Watching Zheng Jing drag Itachi out, Kakuzu turned his gaze to Aizen, who was getting up.

"He can cook?"

Then Kakuzu saw Aizen push up his glasses with a proud smile.

"Unfortunately, you can't enjoy it."

-

Standing at the entrance of the clan head's house, Uchiha Izumi peered inside.

She heard from Uncle Chengyi yesterday that the weasel had returned to its clan's territory.

This made her, who hadn't seen Itachi for almost a week, immediately want to see Itachi again.

But when she heard that Itachi had brought back guests from outside the clan, and that there were three men, Izumi guessed that Itachi and Uncle Fugaku would have something important to do that night. After thinking it over, she waited until this morning before coming to visit.

Somewhat worried that her expectations might be dashed, but also mentally prepared that Itachi might have already left home early in the morning to go on another mission, Izumi rang Itachi's doorbell.

With her hands behind her back, she waited anxiously for a moment, when the door suddenly opened.

"..."

"..."

The person who appeared was neither the gentle Uncle Fugaku, nor the beautiful Aunt Mikoto, nor the boy she had been longing for day and night.

Izumi stood frozen in place, staring at the tall, unfamiliar masked man in front of him.

Kakuzu looked down at the young Uchiha girl in front of him: "Who are you looking for?"

"Ah, uh, I, you, hello! I'm looking for Itachi... um..."

Kakuzu raised an eyebrow and looked closely at Izumi.

"Are you that kid's lover?"

Quan's face flushed instantly, and his speech, which he had just managed to straighten out, immediately became slurred again.

She does have feelings for Itachi, and they have a good relationship, but they haven't gotten to that point yet.

Or rather, she hasn't yet mustered the courage to take that step.

Before Kakuzu could say anything more, Itachi, wearing an apron, came out of the entrance hall.

"Mr. Kakuzu, is it—Izumi?"

His gaze swept past Kakuzu, who had moved aside, and he immediately saw the girl with a flushed face.

The girl, who was seeing Itachi dressed like this for the first time, was momentarily stunned by Kakuzu's words, which had already confused her.

"What's wrong? Xiao Duzi, open the door—"

As he said this, Zheng Jing, holding a spatula in one hand, appeared behind Itachi.

"Oh?"

Zheng Jing blinked when he saw Uchiha Izumi.

"Hey! I almost forgot about your girlfriend!"

Zheng Jing slapped his forehead and immediately took back the apron that Itachi was reaching for.

"Go away, we don't need you anymore. Come have breakfast together in ten minutes, and remember to call your mom. Xiao Duzi! Come here!"

Zheng Jing nudged Itachi's heel and called out to Kakuzu.

As Kakuzu walked past Itachi, he suddenly reached out and patted Itachi on the shoulder.

"Being young is good."

"?"

Itachi turned around somewhat blankly, watching as Kakuzu was quickly put on an apron by Zheng Jing and dragged to the kitchen.

"...Itachi, who are those two?"

Once the entrance hall had quieted down, Quan, who had finally calmed down, asked in a low voice.

Itachi remained silent for a moment.

"Master Zheng and Mr. Kakuzu."

He paused.

"Our distinguished guest."

-

Finally, at Zheng Jing's invitation, Uchiha Izumi not only stayed for breakfast, but also had the privilege of witnessing Zheng Jing imparting his skills to Itachi for the first time.

"Since I said I would take charge of your cultivation, I still have to teach you some things."

In the courtyard, Zheng Jing said to Itachi, "However, don't expect me to teach you any fighting skills."

"What I'm going to teach you today is just one thing."

He held up his finger.

"So that in the future, you can outlive Xiao Duzi."

Chapter 189: I Have Special Cultivation Techniques

Itachi, unaware of the situation, looked with suspicion at Kakuzu, who was sitting under the eaves, basking in the sun with his eyes slightly closed.

"So that you can have a general idea. Don't underestimate Kotoko just because he looks like that. He's older than the Third Hokage and can be considered a generation above Hashirama Senju."

"what?"

Upon hearing Zheng Jing's words, Izumi, who was sitting next to Kakudu, exclaimed in surprise.

Although Itachi didn't say anything, he looked at Kakuzu with a surprised expression.

Kakuzu always wore a mask, and Itachi never saw him take it off. However, judging from his physique and eyes, Kakuzu was no more than thirty years old.

How could that be...?

Even if the third generation has a relatively old-looking face, the difference shouldn't be this much.

"However, Xiao Duzi's method of prolonging life is terrible. Don't even think about learning it; it's a dead end."

Kakuzu looked at Zheng Jing with a hint of helplessness.

"What? Did I, Old Zheng, say something wrong?"

"......you're right."

"Don't always look so aggrieved. People who don't know better might think that I, Old Zheng, am bullying you or something. If you're really willing to calm down and cultivate yourself, and have some understanding, I might be able to help you think of a solution."

As he spoke, Zheng Jing suddenly exchanged a glance with Lao Lan, as if they had exchanged some thoughts, before continuing to say to Kakuzu, "It's just that you'll most likely have to die first."

Now it's Kakuzu's turn to be completely clueless.

But Zheng Jing didn't wait for him to ask, and turned to look at Itachi.

"Come sit down, with your back to me."

The weasel obediently did as instructed.

Zheng Jing raised his palm and pressed down on the weasel's head: "Concentrate, I, Old Zheng, will pass on the incantation to you and personally guide you through the meridians once more."

Itachi immediately composed himself, and then he felt a surge of heat pour into his body from the top of his head. At the same time, Zheng Jing's clear voice rang in his ears.

"All forms are not forms, the extraordinary are also ordinary, all dharmas are not dharmas, the mind observes all..."

Looking at Itachi with his eyes closed, Uchiha Izumi felt a little worried.

But with only Kakuzu and Aizen by her side, she really didn't know how to bring it up.

Quan watched anxiously for a quarter of an hour, when suddenly Zheng Jing withdrew his palm, as if he had finished transmitting the incantation and guiding the meridians.

But Itachi did not wake up as a result.

Not only did he not wake up, but he also frowned deeply, as if Zheng Jing's withdrawal had caused him pain.

"Master, what happened to Itachi?"

Seeing this, Quan finally couldn't hold back any longer and looked at Zheng Jing anxiously, asking a question.

"Don't worry, little girl, you won't die."

Zheng Jing waved his hand with a smile, and before Quan could burst into tears, he continued, "This kid, Cha Shao You, really does have some talent. There's definitely a saying about 'yin doesn't produce life.' Don't worry, he's at a crucial moment right now. In my opinion, the first round shouldn't be too difficult."

As he was speaking, a burst of red light suddenly rose from Itachi's body, like a soft veil draped over his shoulders, enveloping Itachi completely.

"Hmm, not bad, not bad!"

After jumping around the weasel a couple of times, Zheng Jing looked him up and down, a hint of smugness on his face.

As soon as he finished speaking, the red veil began to slowly melt back into the weasel's body.

A moment later, Itachi, who showed no signs of distress, slowly opened his eyes.

"how?"

Zheng Jing squatted down in front of him with a grin.

"How is my chakra training method?"

"..."

This question seemed to bring Itachi's still somewhat wandering mind back to reality.

He lowered his head, looked at his hands, and clenched his fists.

"Please enlighten me, Master."

"Hmph, the three channels and seven chakras, you've only just opened the first one. Opening the first one means opening the central channel. Once the central channel is opened, the yin energy in the left channel can interact with the yang energy in the right channel. Once your Uchiha clan awakens their Sharingan, the yin energy in the left channel often becomes stronger than the yang energy in the right channel. And since you don't know how to open the central channel, both yin and yang become isolated, which will inevitably lead to trouble sooner or later. Like you, having learned my old Zheng's method, your yin and yang are now automatically harmonizing within the first chakra... Hmm? Hehe!"

Zheng Jing chuckled and patted Itachi's forehead.

"Is this the first time in your life that you feel truly comfortable living in this world?"

Sensing the changes within himself, Itachi seemed to have suddenly made up his mind.

"Master, I have a favor to ask of you..."

"You may pass on this cultivation method."

Upon hearing this, Itachi immediately changed from sitting cross-legged to sitting upright, and bowed to Zheng Jing.

"Thank you, Master!"

"Hey, don't thank me yet. Let me make this clear: if you ever teach any evil or heretical sects, I, Old Zheng, will not hesitate to use my stick to clean house!"

"I will follow the master's teachings!"

"Also, if you really want to thank me, take good care of Matt Dae's only son, Matt Kai."

This chakra training method was developed by Zheng Jing based on the chakra training methods that Kakuzu had talked about along the way, combined with the Ripple Breathing Technique as a foundation, and supplemented by the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique and the Eight Gates Formation.

The Eight Gates Formation he bought back then was an improved version that could be directly activated with life energy. Thus, after Zheng Jing learned about the chakra cultivation methods of the ninja world and studied the meridians of the people there by capturing rogue ninjas and bounty hunters along the way, he was naturally able to deduce the complete original Eight Gates Formation.

After capturing Itachi, Zheng Jing learned about the meridian system of the Uchiha clan through Itachi.

Based on this series of accumulations, this morning when Zheng Jing was making breakfast for everyone, he had a flash of inspiration, broke through the final barrier, and created this chakra training method.

Itachi was unaware of these things, and naturally wouldn't understand why Zheng Jing would say such a thing, but he would obey Zheng Jing's orders and keep them in mind.

"I've written it down."

"Alright, the rest is up to you in your cultivation. Now go and let your girlfriend know you're safe."

Zheng Jing gave a thumbs-up and compared it to Uchiha Izumi.

"She was almost frantic with worry."

"..."