Chapter 15 – Could Seiji Be a Genius?
Allowing Danzo to manage Root unchecked had turned the organization into a dictatorship ruled solely by him.
If the village blindly followed Danzo's stance on the Uchiha, who knew what kind of catastrophe it might lead to?
"Hmph! Hiruzen, you'll regret this!"
Danzo Shimura stormed out, slamming the door behind him.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed.
He had long forgotten the teachings of the Second Hokage.
This softness toward the Uchiha… one day, it could bring disaster to the village.
He turned his gaze to the window. In the distance, his stone likeness was etched into the Hokage Rock, overlooking the village.
Moments later, he summoned a member of the ANBU.
The masked ninja presented him with a file—Seiji's complete dossier from the Ninja Academy.
Every detail of Seiji's performance was meticulously recorded.
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**The Next Day – Ninja Academy**
"Next match: Kakashi versus Might Guy," announced the instructor.
From the group stepped Kakashi, with his short, silver-white hair, and Might Guy, clad in his signature green jumpsuit.
The two boys exchanged the Seal of Confrontation and began sparring.
Obito, down below, was already fired up—his fists clenched tight.
He had trained non-stop these past few days, sacrificing sleep just to prepare for this moment.
"Hey, Obito—don't lose to the new guy, Uchiha Seiji," Asuma teased, with a toothpick dangling from his lips.
"Hmph! Today, I'm reclaiming my pride! From now on, I'm not going to be the class loser anymore!"
Obito gave a thumbs-up, pointing proudly at his own face, full of confidence.
"No way… are you serious?"
Asuma raised a brow. But seeing Obito's determined expression, he was 80% convinced.
Both Obito and Seiji were from the Uchiha clan, but Seiji had only recently transferred into the academy.
Their time and resources weren't even comparable.
Sure, Obito was usually at the bottom of the class—but beating Seiji should still be possible, right?
"Don't embarrass yourself, man."
"Just watch me."
Obito turned his head, scanning the crowd for Rin Nohara.
More than anything, he just wanted her to notice him.
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"Next match: Seiji versus Obito. Hey! Obito—are you even paying attention?" the instructor raised his voice sharply.
"I'm coming, I'm coming!"
Only then did Obito finally react—he had already been called several times.
He squeezed through the crowd and stepped into the open sparring field.
"Don't say I'm bullying you," Obito said as he formed the Seal of Confrontation.
"This is just a friendly match. Of course not," Seiji replied, forming the same seal to show he was ready.
With that, Obito charged in—a straight punch aimed directly at Seiji!
Seiji's figure shifted ever so slightly—he dodged it with ease.
Obito twisted in the air and launched a spinning kick.
Seiji steadied his stance, lowered his center of gravity, and blocked the kick with his left arm.
His right hand shot out, aiming to throw Obito to the ground.
Mid-air, Obito quickly pulled a kunai from his pouch.
Clang!
Their kunai clashed, sparks flying as metal met metal with a dull thud.
The fight quickly turned into a rapid exchange—blow for blow, strike for strike.
And for Seiji, this was his very first sparring match.
His movements were still a bit unpolished, yet even in a fight against Obito, Seiji didn't feel pressured at all.
Honestly, there was a reason Obito was known as the class underachiever.
In the Book of War: Official Character Databook, Obito's overall stats totaled just 36 points—an aggregate score of the eight core ninja abilities. Coincidentally, that was the same score Sakura Haruno had during her early genin days.
While overall stats don't paint the full picture of a shinobi's potential, they still reflected how weak Obito currently was.
His true growth came later—on the battlefield, under intense pressure, and after awakening the Sharingan.
"Hey, who do you think will win?"
The duel between the two Uchiha in class was clearly drawing attention from the other students.
"Probably Obito. He's an Uchiha, after all."
"Yeah, I think so too."
Whispers spread among the students.
"Kakashi, who do you think will win?" Rin Nohara asked.
"Hard to say," Kakashi replied, adjusting his now-messy scarf—disheveled from his earlier sparring match with Might Guy. "But I'd say Seiji has the better odds."
"Huh? Why?"
Rin's curiosity was piqued—Kakashi rarely gave such straightforward assessments.
In truth, her own guess had aligned with most of the class: that Obito would win.
After all, he'd been training far longer than the recently transferred Seiji.
Kakashi explained, "Most of the students still haven't mastered the basic three ninja techniques well enough to graduate."
"Oh, I get it now. That's why most of the matches are just taijutsu or throwing tools like shuriken from a distance," Rin said, nodding thoughtfully.
She turned her eyes to Seiji, observing him more closely.
"Wait… does it look like he's gotten stronger since last week?" she asked, unsure.
Previously, Seiji had been on the lean side—but now, his physique had filled out to something more balanced.
Kakashi nodded. "That's right. He has a natural talent for taijutsu. That strength makes up for his lack of experience."
Just as he finished speaking, the tide of the match visibly shifted.
Obito was panting heavily as he jumped back, tossing three shuriken in a last-ditch effort.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Seiji easily deflected each one with his kunai.
Although he hadn't activated his Sharingan, the eye's latent power had already begun to subtly enhance his body.
Bit by bit, the chakra from his ocular power was strengthening his limbs and senses.
His baseline vision had already improved significantly.
To Seiji, Obito's sluggish shuriken throws were as slow as drifting leaves.
"Is that all you've got, Obito?" Seiji said calmly.
He hadn't even used his Sharingan yet.
"Hmph! I was just going easy on you," Obito shot back, wiping sweat from his brow, trying to save face.
But inside, he was shocked—how did Seiji have so much stamina?
Wasn't he even tired?
He glanced at Seiji again and saw that the boy had barely broken a sweat.
"So that's the kind of monsters they raise in the Land of Lightning…"
But before Obito could catch his breath, Seiji was already charging with a kunai.
Obito scrambled to respond, blocking the strike with his own blade.
In the same moment, Seiji planted his left foot and swung his right in a powerful roundhouse kick.
BAM!
Obito was launched off his feet, crashing to the ground with a loud thud, crying out, "Ow, ow, ow!"
"You lost," Seiji said, pressing his kunai to Obito's throat.
"Winner: Uchiha Seiji!" the instructor finally declared after a moment of stunned silence.
Even he hadn't expected that outcome.
Was Seiji really that strong?
One kick, and Obito was on the ground clutching his waist in pain.
"Thanks for the match," Seiji said politely, slipping his kunai back into his gear pouch and returning to the group.
His [Long-Distance Runner] (White) trait had increased his leg strength by 5%.
Combined with the inherent physical prowess of the Yotsuki clan, his kicks packed serious power.
After the instructor announced the result, the previously noisy class fell into a hush.
This turn of events had completely flipped expectations.
Could it be… that the new Uchiha, Seiji, was a genius like Kakashi?
More than a few students were beginning to think so.
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