Number One entered the field.
“Both sides, form the Seal of Confrontation.”
…
“Little Jotaro is unable to continue fighting.
Form the Seal of Reconciliation.”
…
Soon, it was Number Twelve’s turn.
Shikatoki Nara versus Ri Uchiha.
Both stepped onto the field.
Tobirama Senju’s gaze fell upon them.
“So that child is Shikatoki Nara?”
“Yes, Teacher.”
Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded.
“Three months ago, the Nara Clan began referring to Shikatoki Nara as the future hope of their clan.
Although he seems to have remained rather quiet over the past three months.”
Tobirama nodded.
“Let’s see what these two children can do.”
“Both sides, form the Seal of Confrontation.”
“Begin!”
The moment the teacher gave the signal, Ri Uchiha hurled four kunai in rapid succession.
Each came from a particularly troublesome angle.
At the same time, Ri followed directly behind the kunai, launching his own assault.
He clearly intended to overwhelm Shikatoki in a single burst.
Shikatoki loved opponents who fought at close range.
He hadn’t spent the past three months training for nothing.
Shikatoki easily dodged the kunai and collided directly with Ri.
Without any obvious movement, he activated the Shadow Imitation Technique.
The two were standing so close together that Ri didn’t even notice.
From the viewing stand, Kagami Uchiha shook his head.
“That child doesn’t understand his opponent at all.”
“They’re only children.”
Hiruzen comforted his friend.
“Once they suffer a loss, they’ll remember the lesson.”
“Perhaps.”
Their shadows had already touched.
Shikatoki immediately retreated.
Seeing this, Ri revealed a smug smile.
“What?
Scared?!
If you’re scared, surrender!”
“Arise!”
Ri Uchiha’s pitch-black shadow rose from the ground.
This was the first time Shikatoki had openly displayed this technique before such a large audience.
Naturally, everyone found it rather unusual.
“Interesting.”
Tobirama’s attention sharpened.
“Yin-nature chakra controlled with remarkable precision.”
“The shadow has clearly been separated from its owner, yet the connection between them remains intact.”
“This child is quite creative.”
He narrowed his eyes slightly.
“And there’s another quantity of Yin Release chakra hidden inside the shadow.
What is that meant to do?”
For once, Tobirama had become genuinely interested.
“What the hell is this thing?”
Ri frowned.
Then, without hesitation, he charged.
“Get out of my way!”
Ri and his shadow immediately began exchanging taijutsu.
For a time, the two were evenly matched.
Shikatoki had Shikaomi Nara to thank for discovering this property.
During their previous experiment, the shadow extracted from a Jōnin had inflicted damage equivalent to a Jōnin-level taijutsu attack.
That meant the extracted shadow’s physical combat ability was at least roughly equal to that of its original owner.
The problem was that the shadow’s intelligence was rather low.
That meant opponents could exploit openings.
So Shikatoki simply helped it.
A thin chakra thread extended from Shikatoki’s right index finger and connected to the shadow.
Whenever the shadow exposed an opening, Shikatoki corrected it.
“What an annoying thing!”
Unable to break through after several exchanges, Ri rapidly formed hand seals.
“Fire Release: Fireball Jutsu!”
A fireball instantly engulfed the shadow.
Shikatoki showed no panic whatsoever.
Instead, he looked towards Ri with anticipation.
The shadow disappeared.
The next instant, Ri’s vision blurred.
Then a heavy impact struck his abdomen.
“Ri!
You’re as useless as ever!”
A furious voice echoed around him.
“How many times have I told you?!”
“You are an Uchiha!”
“You represent the honour of the Uchiha Clan!”
“How can you lose?!”
“Father, I…”
“Hmph!”
“A loss is a loss.
Stop making excuses.”
“Trash deserves to be abandoned!”
“No!”
“Please, no!”
As Ri Uchiha let out miserable cries, Shikatoki watched without the slightest emotional fluctuation.
Instead, he pulled out a small notebook and began furiously writing.
[Genjutsu effect extremely effective.
Ri Uchiha failed to detect it.
— Trainee Genin]
“I can prove myself!”
“I can!”
Crack!
The illusionary world shattered.
Ri Uchiha staggered upright, breathing heavily.
When he raised his head and glared at Shikatoki, a single tomoe spun within one of his Sharingan eyes.
“Whoa!”
Shikatoki stared.
“It was only a D-rank genjutsu.
Was that really enough to trigger you?!
What a fragile heart!”
“Sharingan?!”
Ri suddenly burst into wild laughter.
“Hahahahaha!”
“Shikatoki Nara, you’re finished!”
Watching this scene, Shikatoki felt a strange sense of nostalgia.
“What a familiar yet unfamiliar iconic scene.”
Then he grinned.
“But the experiment isn’t over yet.”
“Arise!”
Another shadow appeared.
This time, Shikatoki didn’t control it.
Ri became even more arrogant.
“I’ve awakened the Sharingan now!”
“A mere genjutsu is nothing to fear!”
Boom!
The shadow was blasted apart.
And then?
Ri Uchiha was caught again.
Even Shikatoki, the creator of the technique, froze.
“Why?”
“Wasn’t the Sharingan supposed to reflect all genjutsu?”
“And this is only a D-rank genjutsu!”
“Wait…”
Shikatoki immediately opened the Skill Editor and checked the template description.
[Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique — Compatibility: High: When the shadow disperses, a Fear effect will be triggered simultaneously.]
Shikatoki stared at the wording.
“Don’t tell me this ‘Fear effect’ isn’t actually considered genjutsu anymore…”
“It’s hard crowd control?!”
“Just how damn underhanded has this technique become?!”
Watching the scene, Tobirama’s appreciation for Shikatoki increased even further.
It didn’t matter who you were.
If you could develop a technique capable of suppressing those evil little Uchiha brats, then you were clearly a good person.
The Uchiha representatives, meanwhile, looked extremely grim.
This was the first time the Sharingan had visibly and unmistakably failed against something resembling genjutsu.
“This technique is dangerous.”
The Uchiha First Elder spoke in a dark tone.
Three seconds later, Ri Uchiha broke free once again.
But this time, he looked lost.
Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that his entire worldview had shattered.
Since childhood, his family had told him that once he awakened the Sharingan, he would become immune to genjutsu.
That he would become invincible among his peers.
And now Shikatoki Nara had slapped that belief directly across the face.
“Come on, fight me.”
Shikatoki beckoned to him.
“I still need some more experimental material—”
He immediately corrected himself.
“I mean, I haven’t had enough fighting yet.”
Better not phrase it in a way that would upset the other guy.
Ri Uchiha stood rigidly in place.
He didn’t move.
Kagami Uchiha sighed.
“Teacher, perhaps we should stop here.”
“Mm.”
Tobirama nodded coolly.
Kagami used the Body Flicker Technique and appeared beside Ri.
“Kid, our Ri concedes.
Your technique is impressive.”
With that, Kagami took Ri away.
Shikatoki nodded.
“Thanks for the compliment.”
“Number Twelve—Shikatoki Nara wins!”
“See that?!”
Shikaomi Nara was even more excited than Shikatoki himself.
“That’s the genius of our Nara Clan!”
The Yamanaka Clan Head beside him rolled his eyes.
“Stop showing off.
The Uchiha are looking over here rather strangely.”
That immediately cooled Shikaomi down.
True.
Shikatoki had just broken the supposed rule that the Sharingan could resist genjutsu.
Of course the Uchiha would be alarmed.
Shikatoki returned to the group.
Minato approached with lingering fear written across his face.
“Thank goodness I didn’t fight you.”
“You’re getting more and more devious, you know that?”
“Even the Sharingan couldn’t defend against your genjutsu.
That’s ridiculous!”
“An accident.
Completely accidental.”
Shikatoki put on an innocent expression.
To be fair, he genuinely hadn’t expected that result either.
“Sure.
Keep pretending.”
Minato rolled his eyes.
“It’s my turn.
I’m going up.”
Coincidentally, Minato’s opponent was Tenichi Hyūga.
At present, both specialised primarily in taijutsu.
Tenichi might possess his clan’s secret Gentle Fist fighting style— but Minato was simply a freak of talent.
His reaction speed was absurd.
By the time you threw a punch, this guy had already dodged it and was halfway through punching you back.
After watching Shikatoki’s battle, Tenichi’s reaction had been:
What the hell?!
What an underhanded jutsu!
Against Minato, however, his reaction became:
What the hell?!
This guy is cheating!
How was he supposed to strike chakra points when he couldn’t even touch the bastard?
In the end, just as expected, Tenichi was knocked away.
Minato Namikaze won.
“That child’s reaction speed really is suited to the Flying Thunder God Technique.”
Tobirama nodded in satisfaction.
“And he’s still a civilian?
Very good.”
The remaining matches were rather dull by comparison.
They soon came to an end.
“Monkey.”
Tobirama turned towards Hiruzen.
“Give Shikatoki Nara and Minato Namikaze priority in future training.”
“Also, notify the Nara Clan Head.
Have him bring Shikatoki Nara to see me.”
Hiruzen nodded.
“Yes, Teacher.”
“Good.
I’m leaving.
You and Danzō can handle the rest.”
Tobirama departed.
With the practical exercise finished, the Academy dismissed everyone for the day.
Shikatoki was in an excellent mood.
He had collected some critical experimental data.
“Minato, let’s go!”
“My treat.
Barbecue!”
“We both won today, so we’re celebrating!”
Before Minato could even respond, Shikatoki dragged him away.
After eating and drinking their fill, Shikatoki returned home— only to find Shikaomi Nara waiting for him in obvious agitation.
“Uncle, what happened?”
“The Second Hokage wants to see you.”
“Huh?”
“Don’t just stand there saying ‘huh.’ Come on.”
Shikaomi took Shikatoki straight to the Hokage Building.
Inside the office, Tobirama Senju observed Shikatoki.
Shikatoki observed Tobirama Senju right back.
“Shikatoki Nara.”
Tobirama spoke directly.
“I want to know how you caused the Sharingan to fail against your genjutsu.”
He paused.
“Of course, I won’t ask you to give me the information for free.”
“You may choose one jutsu from the Scroll of Seals in exchange.”
Holy shit!
Shikatoki nearly lost control of his expression.
He wasn’t exaggerating.
Tobirama Senju really knew how to conduct business.
If this had been Hiruzen Sarutobi, he’d probably be talking to Shikatoki about the Will of Fire.
Tobirama?
If he wanted something from you, he actually paid for it!
Still, this technique involved the Nara Clan’s secret arts to some extent.
He needed to see what the Clan Head thought first.
Shikatoki turned towards Shikaomi.
Only to discover that Shikaomi looked even more impatient than he did.
Noticing both Shikatoki and Tobirama looking at him, Shikaomi hurriedly regained his composure.
“Ahem.”
“As long as it doesn’t involve our clan’s core secrets, the Nara Clan is naturally willing to contribute to Konoha.”
“Clan Head Nara is truly devoted to the village.”
Tobirama offered the briefest possible compliment.
“Lord Tobirama, I’m actually not certain whether this is truly the reason.”
Shikatoki decided to give himself some room first.
“I only discovered it by accident.”
Tobirama nodded.
“Explain.
I’ll judge for myself.”
“The shadow I summon still maintains a connection with its original owner.”
“That connection is why damage to the shadow can be transferred back to the original body.”
“The genjutsu is transmitted through that same medium.”
“However, when the shadow is created, I store a small portion of chakra inside it.”
“This causes the genjutsu effect to trigger first, and only afterward is that stored chakra consumed.”
Tobirama’s eyes immediately lit up.
A brilliant idea.
He had conducted extensive research into the Sharingan.
At its core, the Sharingan’s ability to reflect genjutsu relied on rapidly analysing the chakra responsible for the illusion and then reversing it.
But first, it had to identify the genjutsu.
Shikatoki’s method triggered the effect first and consumed the chakra afterward.
So when the Sharingan performed its initial analysis, it detected no active chakra flow.
It therefore judged that no genjutsu was being cast.
That was why its automatic resistance failed.
The victim could only dispel the effect after personally recognising that they had fallen under genjutsu.
However, there was still one prerequisite.
The chakra responsible for triggering the genjutsu had to be transmitted and disappear almost instantaneously.
Shikatoki accomplished that through the shadow.
But if Tobirama wanted to develop a genjutsu specifically designed to bypass the Sharingan’s countermeasures…
What could he use as the medium for that instantaneous transmission and disappearance?