"Kenichi, you seem a little distracted today," Kakashi remarked, glancing curiously at his friend. Amemiya Kenichi's performance tonight had been unusually poor.
Just yesterday, they'd been evenly matched in their game, but today he kept losing focus.
"Ah, sorry, Kakashi. I was just thinking about something," Kenichi said, shaking his head and offering an apologetic smile.
His apology was sincere, and Kakashi found himself feeling a little embarrassed by it.
Looking at Kakashi, Kenichi's expression remained apologetic. The reason he was distracted was because today was a special day.
Yes, as the peaceful days passed, Konoha's turning point had finally arrived. Today was Uzumaki Kushina's due date.
Kenichi shouldn't have known this, being just one of Konoha's many Chūnin. But fortunately, his teacher had hinted at it, allowing him to learn about the day's significance.
"Uzumaki Naruto, huh?" Amemiya Kenichi clicked his tongue. Today was the day Naruto was born—the absolute protagonist of Naruto, the Child of Prophecy.
Even though the distant future would bring Boruto, a series initially criticized for its lackluster start, Naruto remained the central figure for now.
And from this moment onward, the plot Amemiya Kenichi knew so well was about to unfold.
But those were concerns for later. Right now, Amemiya Kenichi had a different problem to solve.
"Kakashi, want a drink?" Amemiya Kenichi grinned, holding out a bottle and popping it open right in front of Kakashi.
Kakashi didn't mind. After spending some time at his friend's place, he'd noticed Kenichi's fondness for drinks—he drank one every night.
Kakashi glanced outside. The sky wasn't completely dark yet, but it was getting close. He'd need to leave for Anbu soon.
If his teacher hadn't known about his close relationship with Amemiya Kenichi and given him half a day off, he'd already be masked and on a mission.
"Kenichi, I'm sorry, I have to leave soon," Kakashi said, forcing a weak smile. He still felt compelled to explain to his friend.
"Ah, I understand. No worries, no worries. Finish your drink before you go," Amemiya Kenichi replied with a more genuine smile.
Kakashi wasn't surprised. He took a sip and finished the drink—the familiar taste lingered. Then he stood up, bid farewell to his friend, and left Amemiya Kenichi's house.
Amemiya Kenichi smiled as he saw Kakashi off. The moment Kakashi turned his back, Amemiya Kenichi struck.
He had refined his Yang Chakra to its absolute limit. With a single palm strike, he channeled all of it into Kakashi's body.
Completely unprepared, Kakashi shuddered. He felt a blow to his back, followed by a massive surge of Chakra flooding into him. A dizzying sensation washed over him.
The combined assault left Kakashi no time to react. He collapsed unconscious at Amemiya Kenichi's doorstep.
"Sorry, Kakashi," Amemiya Kenichi murmured, a faint smile playing on his lips as he gazed at the unconscious figure.
The Healing Palm Technique is a unique medical ninjutsu that requires precise control over chakra output. If a ninja releases too much Yang chakra, it can actually cause unconsciousness.
Having inherited the First Hokage's Sage Body Constitution, Amemiya Kenichi possessed a substantial amount of Yang chakra.
Combined with the anesthetic he'd smeared at the bottom of the cup, it was no surprise Kakashi fell for it completely unprepared.
"This is such a pain. If my research was finished, I wouldn't have to ask my teacher for this eye," Kenichi muttered, scratching his head as he stared at the glass jar in his hand.
Inside floated an eyeball—one of Orochimaru's private collections, a Three-Tomoe Sharingan from the Uchiha Clan that his teacher had acquired during the Second Shinobi World War.
Orochimaru had two of these eyes, and Kenichi had spent ages begging to get his hands on this one.
"Even if Obito probably won't be fooled, whatever." Kenichi dragged Kakashi into his house and laid him on the table.
Time was tight, the mission was critical, and he didn't have time for chit-chat.
Amemiya Kenichi carefully removed the Mangekyō Sharingan he had long coveted from Kakashi's eye socket with a scalpel. He then swiftly inserted a Three-Tomoe Sharingan in its place.
The entire procedure took only a few moments. After all, replacing an eye wasn't particularly difficult.
It simply required basic Medical Ninjutsu, which Amemiya Kenichi had learned during his collaboration with Danzo.
He used the scalpel only to avoid being too rough.
"Mangekyō Sharingan... What a truly wondrous eye. I wonder if I can study it?" Amemiya Kenichi gazed at the eyeball in his hand with keen interest before placing it in a specially prepared glass bottle for preservation.
After wiping away the blood, Amemiya Kenichi dragged Kakashi onto the bed and laid him down.
Kakashi would remain unconscious for a while, but not for long.
As time passed, a frenzied roar echoed through Konoha. Amemiya Kenichi glanced at the massive figure outside the window and couldn't help but smile.
The Nine-Tailed Beast had finally been unleashed. With that, the fate of the Fourth Hokage and his wife was sealed, unless Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly charged out to fight the Nine-Tailed Beast to the death.
But that was about as likely as Amemiya Kenichi suddenly conjuring a nuclear bomb out of thin air.
Amemiya Kenichi helped Kakashi walk away. The streets were filled with fleeing crowds, but no one noticed them. This allowed Amemiya Kenichi to find a quiet corner and drop Kakashi there.
"What a mess," Amemiya Kenichi muttered, grabbing a mask from an abandoned stall and putting it on.
He remembered from the story that someone had collected a portion of the Nine-Tailed Beast's chakra during the Nine-Tailed Beast's attack. He wanted to try collecting some himself.
He could then resume his research. After all, even someone who wasn't a Nine-Tailed Jinchūriki had managed to manifest a Tailed Beast Cloak using that chakra.
"Kenichi, where are you going?" a gentle voice called out. Amemiya Kenichi froze, turning to see his teacher, Orochimaru.