In a dimly lit underground structure, gray-black pipes were densely packed along the corners of the walls, resembling the tentacles of a lurking monster.
"Lord Danzo!" A man in a black outfit, wearing a blue crow mask, knelt on one knee with a straight posture.
"Crow Demon. You're here." Danzo emerged from the shadows, a sliver of dim light revealing the scar on his chin, making him look as fierce as a demon.
"Yes, Lord Danzo. I've already tested Uchiha Fūka," reported Crow Demon.
"What did you find?"
"I cast a genjutsu on him. He quickly realized it and attempted to disrupt his chakra flow to break free from the illusion," Crow Demon explained Fūka's response calmly, then summarized, "His awareness is decent, but his strength is lacking. He doesn't measure up to Uchiha Shisui."
"Of course not. Uchiha Shisui is a genius," Danzo said with a smile that twisted his scarred chin even more grotesquely. "Keep a close watch on Shisui. As for Fūka, we'll ignore him for now."
"Understood, Lord Danzo!" Crow Demon raised his head, revealing blood-red eyes with three tomoe slowly rotating, exuding an ominous and bloodthirsty aura.
Hidden in the shadows, Danzo narrowed his eyes slightly, a flash of greed crossing his face, though it quickly faded.
The next morning, before the sun had risen, Fūka got up early, prepared breakfast and lunch, and left a note for Obito before heading out to the small grove.
Since his transmigration, Fūka's physique had become extraordinarily resilient. No matter how grueling the training, his energy would completely recover after a good night's sleep, making him naturally suited for taijutsu!
Last night's incident still puzzled him—he couldn't be sure who was behind it. But since the other party hadn't made any overt moves, Fūka decided not to investigate or make a fuss. In his current situation, silence was the only way to ensure his safety.
"I need to get stronger, fast!"
When he arrived at the grove, Might Duy and Guy were already there.
"Fūka, you're late!" Might Duy roared, "Youth doesn't tolerate such wastefulness. For the warm-up, run twenty laps. If you can't finish, it's twenty thousand skips!"
Fūka winced, then resigned himself to running laps around the grove.
"Guy, why are you just standing there? Go catch up!" Might Duy shouted at his son.
"Yes, Father!" Guy's thick eyebrows framed his eyes burning with passion as he stared intensely at Fūka ahead of him.
In yesterday's evening training, Fūka had outperformed Guy by a small margin, so Guy now viewed him as a lifelong rival, the second after Kakashi.
"Fūka, I will surpass you, and then I'll surpass Kakashi too! I will surpass both of you!" Guy's eyes blazed with intensity, his youthful energy boiling over. He felt his blood boiling and his youth igniting—what an exhilarating feeling!
"Yaaaahhh!!!"
With a loud yell, Guy suddenly sped up, overtaking Fūka in an instant.
"…" Fūka's eye twitched. Damn, Guy is seriously a freak!
Fūka could tell that Guy had just broken through some kind of limit, his stamina surging.
'No wonder he's the future Taijutsu Master.'
Fūka, despite being only six years old, tried to imitate Guy's loud yell of "Yeah," but after shouting for a while, he still didn't break through any limits.
This was awkward.
After finishing the laps around the grove, neither of them was spared, as Might Duy found some excuse to make them do jump rope, followed by squats and push-ups.
By the time the sun had risen above the horizon, Fūka and Guy were drenched in sweat, exhausted to the point of rolling their eyes, collapsing together like a matching pair in a puzzle game.
"Alright, that's it for this morning. You two should head to class now!" Might Duy said with satisfaction.
Panting heavily, Fūka quickly asked, "Uncle Duy, could you teach me the Shadow Clone Jutsu?"
"What? The Shadow Clone Jutsu?" Might Duy looked at Fūka in surprise, "How do you even know about that technique?"
The Shadow Clone Jutsu was developed by the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju. It creates physical clones identical to the caster, splitting their chakra evenly among the clones.
Unlike the regular Clone Jutsu, which creates intangible illusions, the Shadow Clone Jutsu is flawless in appearance and possesses physical substance, capable of attacking and performing ninjutsu. However, if a clone is dealt a fatal blow, it disappears.
This jutsu can be further developed into the Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu, one of Naruto's signature techniques in the original series, and is recorded in the Scroll of Seals held by the Third Hokage.
Fūka explained, "I heard about it from someone in my clan. It creates physical clones, which could be useful."
Might Duy frowned. "Fūka, the Shadow Clone Jutsu is mainly used for gathering intelligence. Why do you want to learn it?"
Fūka immediately replied, "Uncle Duy, I want to use the Shadow Clone to attend ninja school while my real body trains in taijutsu with you!"
Though Might Duy was known as the "eternal Genin," his strength was not to be underestimated, and his intelligence was sharp. He quickly realized the potential value of using the Shadow Clone Jutsu in this way.
In the past, Konoha's shinobi had used Shadow Clones to gather intelligence and, upon success, dispel the clone to transfer its memories back to the original body. If that's the case, why not use it for learning?
From a certain perspective, knowledge gained in class isn't much different from intelligence!
And what about training? If the Shadow Clone Jutsu could be used to practice hand seals or other techniques… it would be incredibly convenient!
"Fūka, you're really smart!" Might Duy praised Fūka, clapping him on the shoulder so hard that it nearly dislocated. "No one's ever thought to use the Shadow Clone Jutsu for studying or training before—you're the first!"
Fūka winced, his shoulder almost going numb from the enthusiastic patting.
Might Duy laughed heartily, then suddenly looked awkward. "But, uh…"
Fūka sighed inwardly. Of course—Might Duy, being an eternal Genin and a purely taijutsu-based ninja, wouldn't know the Shadow Clone Jutsu.
"But don't worry. The Shadow Clone Jutsu isn't a high-level technique. I'll get it for you!" Might Duy promise with confidence.
Guy, standing nearby, looked envious. "Father, I want to learn the Shadow Clone Jutsu too!"
Might Duy glanced at him. "Guy, how's your Three Basic Techniques training going?"
Guy lowered his head.
"The Shadow Clone Jutsu requires some talent for ninjutsu, Guy, and you…" Might Duy couldn't finish the sentence, his eyes reddening slightly.
"It's okay, Father! Even if I only have taijutsu, as long as I work hard enough, I can still become a great ninja and defeat geniuses like Fūka and Kakashi!" Guy's eyes, burning with determination under his thick eyebrows, seemed to blaze even brighter, his teeth sparkling in the morning sun like a blinding flash of light, practically dazzling Fūka's eyes.
"Guy, you truly are my son! This is the essence of an unending, passionate youth!" Might Duy, overwhelmed with emotion, embraced Guy, tears streaming down his face.
Guy immediately hugged him back, and they began to wail uncontrollably.
The scene quickly spiraled out of control.
Fūka stood to the side, feeling more awkward than ever.
Seriously? You're crying over this?
When exactly did you two develop such extreme sensitivity?