Chapter 130: Trial Version
"If I pay the price, will I really be able to become like them?"
Obito Uchiha stared at the old man who claimed to have built the foundations of the chakra network. His mind, which had nearly seized up under the weight of the day, finally began to creak back into motion.
Just a little.
Because what he had been told sounded even more absurd than any miracle story.
That was Kakashi, ranked eleventh in Hueco Mundo, the genius who had helped refine the legendary Blut Vene armor that reshaped the ninja world. Later, he went on to take charge of research into Blut Arterie armor and chakra theory itself. Just those two achievements alone were enough to place his name firmly in the history of ninjas.
Rin might not be at Kakashi's level, but she was still terrifyingly strong for their generation. Her rank, close to the top hundred out of all the hidden elites and Jonin in Konoha, proved that she already possessed fighting power on par with an elite Jonin.
Coupled with what Kakashi had just said about her Black Coffin, and what was written about her online, she could be considered one of the village's main pillars.
On top of that, she was using Kido.
Kido, which was already nightmare fuel in the field of medicine and demanded flawless control in every step.
One misstep and you could drag yourself into a bottomless abyss. Yet Rin had stepped across those razor thin lines with casual ease, even releasing a ninetieth level Kido. Even an idiot like Obito understood just how monstrous that was.
And now this old man in front of him claimed he could make Obito stand beside them.
Obito's first honest reaction was very simple.
I do not believe you at all.
There had been a lot of education about online scams in the village lately. Ever since the network had taken off, all kinds of lowlifes had crawled out of the shadows. The classic story of a mysterious old man handing out treasure was already a standard cautionary tale.
A typical example went like this.
A powerful Jonin would use an alternate account to stomp you effortlessly, then claim that you had amazing potential, that you were actually very strong, that he had almost lost to you.
Then he would invite you to join some "special training class," and from there, start squeezing money out of you with endless "teaching fees," "resources," and "secret materials."
So the moment he heard the words "just a small price," Obito's guard shot straight up.
If he remembered correctly, every scam started about the same way.
First, you were lured into some harmless sounding small group. Then they would give you a little real guidance so you saw some results. After that, it became a cage of empty theory and sweet talk, keeping you distracted and emotionally hooked so you stopped thinking clearly.
Everything about this felt suspicious.
But when Obito thought about it again, he had to admit that if he really could see clear results in a short time, then there was still hope.
As long as the direction was right.
Once he found the right direction, he could go to Konoha's open lectures, then work part time and save money to book real consultations with Jonin.
Compared to Rin, who was trying to comprehend increasingly complex Kido theories, and Kakashi, who was carving out completely new paths ahead of everyone else, Obito might actually have a chance to overtake them from behind.
Besides, he had the Sharingan.
It was unsettling that this eye usually needed intense negative emotions to awaken, but he had heard from clan members that there were shortcuts.
Once he had enough money and influence, maybe the clan would naturally pull him inside and recognize him as one of their own.
"So you are refusing."
The old man watched Obito's silence stretch on and finally sighed, giving his head a slow shake.
"This is the stubbornness of Uchiha blood," he muttered. "You and that brat Kagami are the same. So convinced of your own judgment, so sure of yourselves…"
"…No," Obito said. He lifted his head and met the old man's gaze with uncharacteristic seriousness. "I want to hear what your conditions are."
He spoke as if reading an oath.
"I will never betray Konoha, and I will never do anything that hurts Rin or Kakashi. As long as it does not violate that, I will accept anything. No matter how hellish the training or growth is, I can endure it."
"…Oh?"
Madara's expression shifted slightly as he watched the boy's face go through several rounds of panic, hesitation, and struggle, only to finally settle into a clumsy resolve.
At that moment, the frozen sky around them began to loosen.
The world's accelerated flow slowly started to align with the original timeline.
It was not that Madara's control was failing.
Obito's brain simply could not keep up with such a high speed of thought. His perception of the outside world had started to slow down on its own, his awareness sliding back towards the ordinary flow of time.
The upside was that this proved Obito did not overthink things. He simply did whatever clumsy conclusion his heart arrived at.
The downside was that this also meant Obito needed an absurdly long time to think through anything anyone said to him and, most of the time, still could not reach a clear answer.
For Madara, that was both good news and bad news.
Good, because such a person was easier to push along a path.
Bad, because such a brain was not exactly the finest instrument to work with.
Still, he had chosen the boy for that very reason.
If he had not possessed this stubborn, single track nature, he never would have been chosen.
Only someone with such pure, unwavering fixation could carry the next stage of Madara's plan.
Staring at the hesitant child who was trying to pose as calm and determined, Madara saw through his thoughts at a glance and spoke in a low voice.
"Is that so. You still do not trust my abilities."
He chuckled.
"Very well. You can continue your duel with Kakashi later. When the moment comes, I will help you use your own power to launch a single sneak attack on Hatake Kakashi. No matter what the result is, it will be your strike. How does that sound?"
"My own strength…?" Obito blurted. "But it is impossible for me to do anything with my own strength."
"Idiot," the old man snapped. "If you cannot control your power, then let the power control you. The power of the Sharingan exists in every Uchiha."
"But my Sharingan only has one tomoe…"
"Time is up. Get ready."
Before Obito could finish, the old man let out a soft, cold laugh.
Color flowed back into the world.
Countless sounds, the roar of residual spiritual pressure and the faint crowd noise of the network, all crashed into Obito's ears at once, dragging his mind back into motion.
He had returned.
In front of him, up in the sky of the virtual arena, Kakashi and Rin were still talking.
Obito, who had been about to blurt out everything that had happened, suddenly felt a sting in his eyes.
Instinctively, he summoned a mirror panel in front of his face.
Beneath his goggles, the swirling pattern in his eyes slowly receded, compressing back into a single tomoe, then sinking quietly into his eyeballs.
Do not tell anyone.
Obito could not hear a voice, but the intent lingered there, a faint whisper burned into his mind.
Was that… real?
He clenched his hand into a fist, as if to check whether he was still himself.
His body felt the same.
His thoughts still felt clear.
He did not have much chakra in stock.
The two people in front of him were still chatting as if nothing had happened.
Could someone like him really frighten Kakashi?
His ability was not outstanding. He was just a regular Uchiha with a one tomoe Sharingan and nothing particularly special.
If he had to point to anything, his space time instincts seemed… above average, maybe?
Even so, staring at Kakashi floating in the sky, Obito suddenly yelled.
"Hey, Kakashi! This is supposed to be our match time. Rin just barged in!"
"…You are right."
Kakashi looked from Rin to Obito and gave a small nod.
In the next instant, he vanished from the air and reappeared about ten meters in front of Obito.
That step was Shunpo, a movement technique Obito knew well.
It was a step created by combining natural energy with chakra, allowing movement at a speed that nearly rivaled teleportation.
Not only Las Noches members but many Konoha ninjas were fond of this convenient technique that left almost no trace.
Watching that familiar blur, Obito felt his body react before his mind did.
He subconsciously stirred his chakra.
It felt as if an invisible hand had reached into his body, guiding it. Space, coordinates, angles, everything aligned with terrifying clarity as his one tomoe Sharingan locked onto Kakashi's back.
Kakashi had just landed.
He brushed imaginary dust from his white coat, looked up at Obito, who was standing with his head bowed, and spoke in a low voice.
"Even if you say you want to see my abilities, this is really just me putting on a show for you, Obito. What exactly do you want to see…"
Coax.
A short, tight sound, like something being rapidly pressurized, burst at Obito's side.
In the heartbeat between the first syllable and the next, Kakashi's eyes widened.
Obito, who had been standing in front of him, vanished.
Almost at the same instant, Kakashi felt a presence appear at his back, and a fingertip press lightly against his spine.
Clang.
"…!"
Obito froze, staring at his own hand.
A thin sizzle ran along his finger where it touched Kakashi's back.
Kakashi was even more stunned.
The white haired prodigy stared straight ahead, then slowly lowered his gaze to the finger that had been aimed at his throat and was now stopped cold by his Blut Vene armor.
He turned his head and met Obito's equally shocked eyes.
The Sharingan's dynamic vision, coupled with Yin attribute chakra, had activated in a form similar to space time ninjutsu, yet it had completely bypassed the sealed field created by the arena's system.
Instead of a standard teleport that could not cross a bounded "black box," the technique had slipped around the boundary and arrived behind the target, driving the user's body there in an instant and placing a strike directly against the spine.
"This is Shunpo… no." Kakashi's voice was quiet, but there was no hiding the astonishment in it. "Soniton? Obito, you developed Soniton on your own?"
"T… this…"
Obito stared at the point where his finger met the shimmering surface of the Blut Vene armor, his mind reeling.
Even he could not quite believe the alien sensation that had just surged through him in that single, impossible step.
<><><><><>
[P@treon Christmas Discount: 20% OFF]
[Check Out My Patreon For +40 Advance Chapters On All My Fanfics!]
[[email protected]/FanficLord03]
[Every 100 Power Stones = +1 Bonus Chapter]
[Join Our Discord Community For Updates & Events]
[https://discord.gg/MntqcdpRZ9]