Cherreads

Chapter 103 - Chapter 103: Has My Dear Teacher Orochimaru Already Earned a Title?

"Of course, Lord Raikage. The power of the Sharingan never disappoints."

Suddenly, Uchiha Kaien erupted with a surge of chakra on par with Namikaze Minato's—roughly half of the Third Raikage's total reserves.

That kind of output... would probably be enough to count as a top-tier genius, right?

Even the Third Raikage couldn't help but be surprised at the volume of Kaien's chakra. For a jonin, this was an exceptional level.

A ten-year-old jonin?

Were all Uchiha like this? Born with this level of innate potential?

Back in the day, there had been another Uchiha named Uchiha Kagami, who served beside the Second Hokage. He'd also left a strong impression—calm, capable—but their encounter had been brief due to a sudden, unfortunate incident.

As A and Killer B began their second coordinated round, Kaien quietly activated his Sharingan and replicated their chakra pathways in perfect detail.

He moved behind B, placing a hand gently on his shoulder.

"Hey, mind stepping aside? Big bro here wants to try out that Double Lariat move for himself."

"Huh?"

B blinked behind his shades. A handsome face had suddenly appeared before him. The hand on his shoulder... smelled kind of nice?

He'd never experienced anything like this before. His cheeks flushed bright red, completely thrown off.

Young B hadn't learned how to freestyle rap yet—he had no idea how to handle this situation.

[Affection from Killer B +1]

Thanks to the effect of [Affinity +2], Kaien didn't even need to try to win people over—it just happened naturally.

[Affinity +2: Your behavior easily wins others' affection. Your words carry persuasive power, and you leave a moderately strong first impression. It's easier to gain favor when meeting new people.]

The original [Affinity] had only slightly boosted first impressions—ideal for a kid trying to get by with cuteness. Now, though, it gave a significant edge.

As long as Kaien didn't go out of his way to mock people, almost no one would develop hostility toward him at first sight.

Plus... he smelled nicer now? Last time, it had been Minato who mentioned a pleasant fragrance. Now Kaien could smell it on himself.

It was... oddly calming. A serene, clean scent that made him feel composed.

Kaien honestly thought it smelled pretty great.

"Hey. You spacing out?"

Maybe [Affinity] had some kind of bonus effect on people younger than him?

Kaien wasn't sure, but he gently picked B up and set him down beside the Third Raikage.

Too close! And too fragrant!

It was the first time B had ever been picked up like that—like a kitten grabbed by the scruff. He froze up, completely stiff.

Only once Kaien set him down did B snap out of it, face still flushed. Thank god for the shades—no one could see how wide his eyes had gotten.

Even as Kaien stepped up to face A, B kept staring at him, dazed.

"What are you doing?" A asked with a frown. "Why did my old man remove your seal?"

"I want to give that move a shot. Let's see if our less-than-a-day-old teamwork is enough to pull it off."

Kaien flashed a confident smile.

"You sure? With that skinny little body?"

A couldn't help the skepticism. Kaien looked... delicate. Pale skin, slight build—he didn't exactly scream 'powerhouse.'

"Just don't be the one who can't keep up. I can copy all your movements with my Sharingan. The stronger you are, the better our performance will be."

Sure, Kaien looked fragile, but he had enough raw power to shatter Minato's ribs with one punch.

Even though his stat gains from the system weren't huge each time, the steady accumulation had made his physical condition terrifying.

Truth be told, he could probably break A's ribs with a well-placed hit.

"In that case, let's give it a shot."

Despite the short time they'd known each other, A could already tell Kaien had serious confidence in his abilities.

And honestly? A little humility wouldn't hurt the kid. Better to knock him down a peg before he kept calling him the idiot.

A returned to position. After setting up a new wooden dummy, the two stood facing one another.

"Double Lariat!"

The moment A took a step forward, Kaien matched him in perfect sync.

Thanks to the Sharingan's insight, Kaien mirrored every move down to the tiniest detail.

Not to mention—Kaien's own mastery of Lightning Release was no joke. Boosting his cellular activity with Lightning Chakra? Child's play.

After the acceleration phase, the two arrived in front of the wooden dummy almost simultaneously. Both extended their arms.

The dummy twisted grotesquely from the combined torque and immediately burst apart, a cloud of scorched smoke rising.

The Double Lariat—perfectly executed.

And it was even smoother than when A did it with B.

"What?!"

"See? That's the power of the Sharingan."

"Incredible... That kind of technique, copied and mastered so easily? This really is a terrifying kekkei genkai."

...

Uchiha. With this level of strength... it's no wonder Madara once stood shoulder to shoulder with Hashirama to found the first Hidden Village.

The Third Raikage couldn't help being amazed. At the same time, he became even more certain that seizing Konoha's kekkei genkai users was the right move for Kumogakure.

If they could harness that power, the village's strength would skyrocket.

After all, elite shinobi were not easily cultivated.

In the world of shinobi, a jonin was top-tier combat strength. Especially in the five great villages—each jonin represented a major piece on the board.

But Kaien... was already at that level at ten years old.

His future potential? Practically unmeasurable.

That said, the Raikage also understood Kaien was a special case.

If every Uchiha were like him... how had the Senju even managed to compete back in the day?

This was a real windfall.

The Third Raikage chuckled inwardly. He was especially pleased with Motoi now—clearly a valuable asset to Kumogakure. He'd definitely reward him properly.

Originally, he'd considered deploying Kumogakure forces to the Rain Country front. Now, he shelved the idea.

From what he'd heard, the Uchiha hadn't even joined the war effort yet.

After witnessing the Sharingan firsthand, the Raikage fell deep into thought. Kaien's was a two-tomoe Sharingan. That alone already placed him among the Uchiha's core fighters. And the black market had dozens of bounties posted for Uchiha jonin with three tomoe.

Who knew how many more three-tomoe powerhouses the clan still had hidden?

The Uchiha... were far stronger than expected.

Even if Kumogakure entered the war, Konoha would still have plenty of reserves. Better to avoid a pointless conflict for now.

Kumogakure's time would come in the next Great Ninja War. No need to waste resources prematurely—just keep Iwagakure's ambition in check.

...

The team trial ended in spectacular success.

The Third Raikage returned to his office, planning to personally supervise Motoi's training regimen.

A, meanwhile, had found his "B"—but also suffered another blow to his pride.

Kaien had teased him again, feeling quite pleased with himself afterward.

"How the hell did you manage to match me? I've been training that move for years…"

"Relax. Not everyone's a genius like me," Kaien said smugly. "My Sharingan is way stronger than most Uchiha's."

He lightly patted A's shoulder. "Besides, I can't even use that move anymore—unless you unlock my chakra seal."

"Not happening. You've still got to be evaluated. No way I'm giving you your chakra back anytime soon."

A shut that down immediately. Something about Kaien didn't sit right. If he got his chakra back and bolted from the village? That would be a major headache.

Especially when, during their Double Lariat, Kaien's power had matched his own. That alone was deeply unsettling.

Sure, chakra boosting helped, but Kaien was five years younger and had trained for a fraction of the time. How the hell did he get that strong?

A secret technique? Or was the Sharingan really that powerful?

He thought it over the whole way home, still unable to figure out how someone like Motoi—a guy with only average jonin-level ability—had managed to bring Kaien back to the village.

Even with a few extra chunin, could they really have captured him?

Eventually, he gave up trying to reason it out and asked directly: "How did Motoi manage to bring you in?"

"Oh, that? He gave me two lollipops. Seemed like a decent guy, so I didn't resist."

"…"

"If it's interesting, I don't mind treating this trip to Kumogakure as a vacation."

Kaien smiled mysteriously.

He always told the truth. It wasn't his fault no one believed him.

"We're here."

"Another housemate, huh… What should I have for lunch?"

Kaien began to seriously ponder it. He wanted too many things—that was the real problem.

Kumogakure's wagyu-style beef was fantastic. Kaien didn't hold back and made his request outright. No way the Raikage's son couldn't afford some meat.

"Make sure it's the best cut."

"Got it."

A grumbled and walked out.

He planned to slaughter a cow himself.

His usual confidence had taken a hit today.

He'd wanted to shock Kaien with some raw Kumogakure-style strength. The power he used had been way more than he'd used with B.

But Kaien had matched it effortlessly with the Sharingan.

That scorched, shattered dummy? The result of him going full power.

No way he and B alone could've produced that level of destruction.

The two Lightning Releases had clashed and created a force of devastating magnitude.

In other words, Kaien's mastery of Lightning Release wasn't beneath his own.

Frustrated, A decided he'd take it out on the cow.

...

Meanwhile, Kaien had led B into A's house.

Since the two had been confirmed as the new A-B combo, they'd be living together from now on to build teamwork and train their willpower.

The Third Raikage had decided B would move in with A.

Since there was already an Uchiha Kaien in the group, adding someone like Killer B didn't feel all that strange.

"You've been quiet this whole time."

Kaien reached out and poked Killer B, curious about why this guy seemed so silent.

It didn't match his impression of the boisterous, rapping Killer B from his own world.

Still, the sunglasses and that distinct hairstyle made it clear—this was Killer B.

"I..."

Killer B stammered. He was clearly uncomfortable talking to a girl.

"Is there anything you'd like to eat?"

"A-Anything is fine..."

Killer B, get it together! Don't clam up just because she's pretty!

Internally, he was in complete turmoil.

"You don't need to be nervous, really. I just moved in yesterday too, so it's not like we're strangers—we were all strangers until recently."

Kaien could see how tense Killer B was and tried to reassure him with a soft voice.

"Go ahead and pick whichever room you like. A's house is pretty big anyway."

He pointed toward the other empty rooms down the hall.

Killer B obediently went off to choose a room, though his hurried steps made it clear he was still flustered.

[Affection from Killer B +1]

A's house had two floors. The first floor was a spacious kitchen and living room, while the second floor was lined with empty bedrooms.

After speaking, Kaien wandered into the kitchen, wondering what else he should eat besides beef.

Just as he reached out to grab a radish, it suddenly spoke.

"Waaah, I've got some special news for you today, Kaien~"

"Oh, it's you, Zetsu."

The talking radish was none other than White Zetsu in disguise. He only revealed himself once Killer B had gone upstairs.

"What's the news about?"

Kaien wasn't even fazed—Zetsu always showed up in the weirdest ways.

"It's about your teacher, Orochimaru."

"The battle in the Land of Rain?"

If it was about Orochimaru, it probably had to do with the warfront.

"Bingo! Hanzō the Salamander wiped out all the Konoha ninja except for Hiruzen Sarutobi's three students. Shocking, right?"

"And what about Sunagakure?"

"Sunagakure pulled their troops back before Konoha did. But before that, Hanzō cut down a lot of them too!"

Zetsu tilted his head, thinking for a moment before responding.

"Not too surprising."

Kaien replied quietly.

"Oh! And Hanzō gave Sarutobi's students a title—he called them the 'Legendary Sannin'!"

"Oh? My dear teacher Orochimaru already got himself a title?"

----------------

Pls Drop some Power Stones

Fanfic is finished on Patreon (156 chapters in total.) 

Patreon(.)com/Jixo (for only $4.50, read this entire fanfic)

More Chapters