Pov: Goro, Cloud ninja.
*Tap* *Tap* *Tap* *Tap*
Rhythmic taps of my chains against the stone floor keep my mind at ease, I don't have much... but even then I got everything I need.
Takumi Uchiha is dead.
That's all I could ask for... and not only that, I got revenge on him before he died too... I couldn't kill his entire extended family but his close relatives? Yeah. That is a fitting price for him to pay.
For my mother.
My wife.
My son.
And my brother.
*Clack!*
My taps stop as I turn my head to the cell door... it isn't dinner time yet, are they delivering food early today?
*Flap* *Flop!*
A small folder falls through the tray flap on the door... it's paper flops onto the floor revealing the contents within.
*Tap* *Tap* *Tap*
I step cautiously and my chains tap the stone.
I kneel down and inspect the papers.
"...Takumi had a grandchild...? With his name...?" My face scowls as I glare at this document.
I look up and listen for another minute... whoever was at the door left as soon as the papers dropped- who were they?
*Flip!* *Flip!*
Such detailed information... this is..?
The key to my chains.
I tuck it in my mouth and prepare to destroy this folder.
-One week later-
Pov: Takumi Uchiha.
"Takumi...! Takumi...! That's the last warning, sensei will give you a zero if you don't participate!" Rin whispers to me and Obito awkwardly smiles at me.
"A perfect outcome" I mutter under my breath.
"Is it...?" Obito asks.
"It is" I glance up and watch my sensei shake his head and turn to the next student.
I internally chuckle as I completely skip the graduation tests, not only that- I get to train my jutsu more as I wait for everyone else to finish up their taijutsu tests.
Unfortunately for Obito he will have to be disappointed with me today, I cannot allow myself to work hard after I achieved this level of laziness.
Looking at this test I am pleasantly surprised by some of the children's techniques here, the Hyuga clan children have a wonderful way with taijutsu and those with clan backing have skills capable of surprising me.
I know that the soldiers of the Empire start training around twelve years old and entered military life around... I would say seventeen.
And even after those five years they could not compare to most of these 'ninja' who fight with such intensity.
Perhaps it is because of Chakra that is much more accessible then Aura, or maybe it is because they start their training younger.
I know I started as early as my memory flows and I was significantly ahead of every other combatant in the Empire. The amount of noblemen I had to humble were numerous and it was often disappointing.
Even more so now. I should have picked a few of the talented ones and trained them well enough to take on some of my duties.
But I had so many burdens, and all of them weighed far too much for ordinary shoulders.
"I did it!" Obito cheers and I watch as he completes the final steps of the Taijutsu exam.
Hm. He did, I should correct some of the flaws in his basic move sets but the academy style interception techniques were up to my standard- I dare say he has a talent for swift strikes that leave him room to retreat.
"Obito you are free to go- congratulations on passing... take Takumi as well, he is disqualified officially from the taijutsu exams" Sensei calls out and Obito steps near me.
"Did you see?" He asks.
I step out of my jutsu and start walking alongside him, we make our way through the village.
"Yes, quite standard of someone your age. Well done" I offer him a nod and he smiles.
Though I would like to refine a few of his miscalculations in a battle, is their a method to refine battle based strategy in Konoha? Or is it self taught here?
The taijutsu methods he was using are far too aggressive for someone who is betting on using the fireball jutsu, he needs to take a step back and use a thousand cuts rather than one.
Is their a smaller variation of the fireball jutsu? I know it is Obito's favourite and he has been itching to both learn it and master it.
Or has he already learnt it? Some of his ramblings often escape my ears, I would like to blame it on my dull senses and mind but I can only look inside myself and realise that I do not care.
Rude, I understand that. But I have never been one to care for manners either, I can blame the old fool for raising me as a weapon rather than a man.
I yawn and stare above... It is only mid-day, I need more sleep at night if I am to operate on standard levels. But why would I need to be operating on any level? Am I not dedicated to my life of laziness?
Hn.
"Hey- hey- can we visit the training ground today? I just want to test out a few moves!" Obito launches a very enthusiastic punch and I close my eyes.
He is much too excited after the test, I should prepare to calm him down when the next one comes along.
"Of course" I state in response blandly.
"Yes! Lets go to the forest!" Obito chants.
"That is some walk away from my house, I would like to be writing notes within the hour" I tell him.
"Come on- please!" Obito begs me.
...
Hn, it is acceptable.
"Just this once. But I will be criticising your moves until that excitement dwindles down into fragments of understanding and growth" I warn him and he chuckles in response.
Child.
He is getting far too close to me lately, understanding my comments and deciphering my methods of speaking.
I think I enjoy getting along with someone else. It is nice- perhaps this is what a true friend is? Or maybe I am being quick to judge.
Either way he is reminding me of that inventor who studied in the north and came by the Empire, I was assigned to guard him for merely a day and the amount of corpses I had created in that single day could not compare to the last months at all.
I do not understand how someone so childishly excited for innovation could manage to incur the wrath of so many people.
Obito has his laugh, I also recall that Inventor having a strange habit of trying to overpower others who were clearly superior, perhaps that is why I am so inclined to believe them similar?
The difference however is that Obito has the bloodline and chakra to bridge that gap in power while that Inventor only had his mind as his Aura was 'broken' and dismantled.
That inventor also called me a friend but I never saw him again, I do admit to being curious about how his steam based technology was coming along, supposedly granting innovations that would take generations for other people to decipher and create.
A shame I never saw it.
"Oi- stop walking, were you even paying attention to my questions?" Obito asks.
"No, I was recalling a questionable human who you resemble in character" I answer.
"Can you stop having an internal monologue around other people? Especially when they are talking to you?" Obito asks.
...
"No. You are rudely interrupting my inner talks and I shall ask you to remain silent as they occur" I stubbornly refuse.
"That's- well I can't say I didn't try..." Obito shakes his head.
"A bit rude isn't it?" Someone states and both of us look up to the treetops of the forest we have entered.
"Yes- see he agrees" Obito points.
"Hn. It is rude, but I lack care for such things" I stand a little taller as I scan the individual above.
He is hidden in the leaves, I should attempt to have him reveal himself since I lack multiple detection techniques.
"Woah- and I here I thought that maybe the apple would have fallen further..." The voice coldly states.
That is an introduction of an enemy if I ever heard one, we must be far from patrols or any other ninja and he must consider himself of higher strength.
I will rule out running and abandoning my duties to deal with this shinobi, although I would prefer to leave him in the hands of some unsuspecting patrol team.
I glance at Obito and sigh.
He is probably faster than us-
"Oi- pay attention!" Obito whispers and jabs my side.
Rude.
"... that is why your grandfather deserved death Takumi... and the fact that you share his name is disgusting, to name anyone after that animal is repulsive..." The ninja breathes out in disgust as he slowly inches out from the tree.
..? Oh.
"I understand, many have taken revenge onto their shoulders- a rather dull goal but it does motivate quite well does it not? Very well, my caretaker wronged you, it is only natural to wish him dead" I nod in acceptance.
"Oh I didn't just wish him dead kid... I killed him, the same way I killed your parents... the same way he killed what was mine..." The ninja coldly echoes out as he fist clenches... Obito is itching to run but stays by my side.
Loyal, even under threatening circumstances, perhaps he is defined as a true friend?
"Of course, he killed someone you held dear correct? Then his death is only the natural outcome" I accept that fact as well.
It was my undoing, who am I to blame my enemies for hunting me down through the curse when I had slaughtered them in the physical plane like they were herd animals.
"You... do not care?" The ninja looks at me, revealing his Lightning shinobi gear.
He was imprisoned right? So he both managed to escape and collect his items before intercepting me at a perfect time away from any patrols.
An inside helper then.
"Hn? Why would I?" I ask him back.
"I killed him! I killed your mother! Your father!" He yells at me.
"So you did. Would you like a congratulations? Or perhaps you wait for those you avenged to crawl from the grave to thank you?" I taunt him and then push Obito to the side and tilt my head.
*Bang!*
Lightning strikes between us and I barely move my head in time, heat rushes up my back as the tree behind us is destroyed in the explosion.
"An explosive based lightning technique that is... I would say mid-ranged, four seconds of preparation including hand signs and perhaps a straight shot on a good day, I can see your training was cut short with how the lightning curves to the right a mote more then where you aimed. Tell me, did my caretaker kill your teacher before they corrected that flaw or do you just lack the required talent to perform such a basic technique?" I taunt again and glance at Obito.
I hold up four fingers and point behind him- Obito dashes back four meters and I turn my head to glance at the target above.
He should be sufficiently taunted enough to target only me but I will not hesitate to hurt his feelings more.
*Bang!*
I step to the side reading his body language and dodge his second attack as the heat rushes past my left arm and leg.
"That one should have dealt damage even if it didn't hit- I had distracted myself for a moment and only took one step in preparation to dodge your next attack, if you could aim that jutsu well you would have done some damage at least- maybe if you focused on training it better you could have saved those you lost" I taunt again and step away from Obito... further and further.
"Shut up...! Shut up! I knew it was a good idea to end you all, your family is nothing but a bunch of cruel bastards!" The ninja flickers to where I was and faces me, ignoring Obito behind him completely.
"Cruel? Do not put words into my mouth, I have not deemed you worthy of my cruelty in any way shape or form" I frown at his suggestion and pat my side.
Hn. Right, no weapon. No matter, a blade of any kind is only worth something to me if my body is sharp enough to imitate it- a weapon like myself should only ever rely on an extension if I needed better versatility or reach. This man seems to specialize in mid ranged combat and will suffer under my close combat arts.
*Bang!* *Bang!*
He preforms two jutsu at the same time... so he can load two attacks into both hands, I will keep that in mind and always anticipate a second attack.
My mind races quicker and quicker as the lightnings heat rushes across my face.
The flicker technique... it was like this right?
*Woosh!*
My body speeds up and I dive under the first lightning bolt and leap over the second one landing in front of the man- as the flicker wears off I grab his wrist and the collar of his robe.
"Wha-" He shouts before pulling out a Kunai and slashing it at my shoulder.
I let go of his collar and slam that hands palm into the inside of his elbow before smoothly sliding it down his arm and grabbing his other wrist- *Twist!* I pull both wrists and twist them.
*Slam!*
He suddenly gains a burst of speed as he jumps and kicks me in the chest before slipping out of my hold and landing on a tree behind him horizontally- he then crouches against the tree before throwing his kunai and flickering alongside them.
*Snatch*
"Slow" I mock and grab the kunai from the air before pointing it at him, he slows down and pushes his foot forward to stop his momentum, slamming it into the dirt he twists his torso around the kunai and punches at my side.
"Confident" I state as I move the kunai swiftly down onto him and slash at the man.
He fades as if never existing, the clone technique. Unfortunately named as I would prefer to call it an illusory self technique.
*Zzzzzzttt!*
I twist my torso and glance backwards as I see the lightning approaching from a small distance- if I dodge it will hit near Obito.
I hold the kunai to block the attack and take a breath.
...
*Bang!*
Heat rushes past me and I wince as I make on the second adjustments to my standing sleep jutsu- absorbing both the impact and any heat I can before dispensing it into the ground below me.
*Crack!*
The earth splits under my feet and the kunai loses its edge as it nearly crumbles.
I see... if I make these adjustments and then...
*Zzzt!* *Bang!*
I throw away the kunai and slap the next attack- reducing the chakra cost in half as combat stimulates the mind that only sharpens through battle.
*Crack!*
...
Hm. If I keep still for only a moment, a fragment of a second... the instant that the attack hits, then I can stop a huge amount of wastage in the jutsu- most of the chakra was being wasted in the preparation phase, but I can remove that entirely for now.
*Zzt* *Wooosh!* *Bang!* *flick!*
I hold up my palm and use the last of my heavily wasted chakra to stop the final lightning blast before taking one step back and flicking the shuriken that curves around and passes by me.
*Crack!*
...
I see... if I completely freeze everything in my body and maintain a moment of complete stillness I will be capable of reducing the costs further, instead of letting my organs and insides move as normal.
This would leave one open to many attacks if performed terribly, and would need to be mastered for if I am a fraction of a second off of any attack then I would get directly struck.
Luckily this technique is for me and no one else, it would be a shame to remove this jutsu due to 'standard' talent and capability.
I am also out of chakra it seems, my mental energy seems high but my body is exhausted, meaning I am lacking one part for the mixture that is chakra.
"Finally, exhausted enough are we? Let me show you how I felt- weak, tired... unable to help in any way" The ninja says as he flickers behind me and grabs Obito.
I slip out of my slippers and feel the cracked rocks and dirt between my toes... I take a breath in as the air around me becomes slightly colder and my I tilt my head downwards as I stop lazily looking and start focusing my eyes.
"Are you going to kill Obito? A shame, I thought you were only avenging those who were wronged, but if you bring others into this feud I can only conclude that you are less sane than suggested- perhaps I misjudged you" I critique.
"Run Takumi! I can take him!" Obito suggests kindly.
"This is well within the scope of my revenge child! You don't understand what was taken from me! You mock my hatred and lack care for those around you! I have had enough of your taunting, I will gladly open your eyes to the hate that your 'caretaker' showed me!" The ninja yells out and I sigh.
He grabs a kunai from his pouch.
"Last chance, this goes beyond revenge and interferes with an unrelated third party, do you wish to fall under my blade?" I ask.
"Shut up! Get over your self!" The ninja yells as he raises the kunai.
*Kick!*
I kick a small clump of dirt at the man and sprint after it- snatching a branch that seems firm enough as I run.
*Puff!*
The dirt strikes his eyes and he closes them as the kunai rushes towards Obito's head- I watch as he resists and pushes himself out of the grip before stumbling onto his back and crawling away.
Tch- had he timed that correctly the target would have stabbed himself.
*Whip!*
The branch in my arm flies forward and slaps across the hip of the man as he brushes away the dirt and slashes at the branch.
Not strong enough, I forgot my lack of sharpness for a moment there- stepping back I aim my wrist towards his eyes.
I throw the branch at the targets eyes and he slaps it away as he cleans the dirt finally, I jump at him now that I am close and kick his right armpit which causes the kunai in his hand to loosen.
I spin mid air and kick him in the chin as my body twists and turns enough for me to jab his wrist and use my other hand to grab the kunai.
I throw it at his foot before flipping my body over and sliding across the ground as I land- *Slam!*
I stomp on the kunai as he grabs my arm and pulls me into one of his punches that aims straight for my face.
*Swoosh!*
He grunts in pain as the Kunai pushes in deep and I narrowly dodge away from the blow before pinching the kunai with my toes and pulling it out.
*Woosh!*
I flick the kunai up with my foot.
*SLAM!*
Before swiftly following up with a kick that sends the kunai into the mans throat with ease.
He stops mid attack and looks at me with horror... he grasps the kunai and stumbles backwards.
"Hn. As expected, your body may be stronger and faster but your mind is structured only for defeat- every time I hit or injured you, your next attack would be delayed by 1.3 seconds. Perhaps this is an instinct of the body to understand what is causing the pain before focusing on the problem ahead- Adrenaline is usually enough to push past that but you couldn't find the time to get it pumping as my attack was quick enough to catch you off guard. Your taijutsu is below my standards, I would suggest focusing less on the high level ninjutsu you seem to have and rounding yourself out, I saw some adequate styles but they never took off completely... a few structured punches- and some basic kunai attacks, one shuriken was thrown to throw me off but you failed to utilize that chance properly and focused on Obito rather than me, again- your battle strategy was structured only to fail in this fight. I would like to say I expected more from you but in the end you were estimated perfectly in my head. One big disappointment" I tsk my tongue as I close in, he falls to the ground and reaches for his medical supplies.
"Now, I have been studying many techniques that my 'caretaker' left for me and after looking at the rankings of ninja and the techniques available to them I would say you are a 'Jonin' because you have access to a ninjutsu and I saw some vague imitations or intentions to perform some taijutsu techniques of the 'Jonin' level, however the taijutsu was subpar and the ninjutsu was not mastered... I would then demote you to 'Special Jonin' but you really lack anything that would define you as special. I will leave your official ranking as Chunin. Perhaps this Uchiha humiliated you before you could show why you earned those Jonin level techniques but this was not a test, you may hold the rank of Jonin or Special Jonin adjacent but to me you are nothing. Imperfect. Untrained. Undisciplined. Slow. And worst of all... confident" I shake my head as I walk onto his torso and slam my foot into the shoulder that reaches for medical supplies.
"You could have done better but lacked the humbling to estimate my power properly. Enjoy whatever afterlife you believe in" I place my foot on the kunai and rip it out much like before... the kunai drops in the dirt to the side and I crouch down on- and dig my feet into his ribs.
*Snap!*
I grab his head and snap his neck cleanly, his flesh tears as the kunai wound provides some grotesque visuals.
...
I wipe some of the blood on my hands onto his robe before hopping off of him and picking up the kunai. I place it in his pouch and inspect the area.
Maybe my curse wouldn't have been as deadly if I stopped criticising the enemy after I beat them?
I should bury the body, do ninja bury the dead in these lands? I know the villages to the south of my Empire preferred to be burnt upon flame.
I should also fine tune the jutsu- it will work against a moderate number of attacks but I will need another method to get past attacks that last longer than a moment of impact- I can also enhance details of the chakra moulding... but that fight nearly completed this project entirely.
I need to start working on my other styles soon.
"Woah" Obito says.
"Hn? Obito, what are the burial customs of these lands? Shall we bury him where he fell or should we burn him perhaps?" I ask.
"Shouldn't we tell someone about the body..?" He asks.
"Ah, and avoid all troublesome responsibility. I must say you surprise me with your quick wit sometimes Obito" I nod in approval before walking back where we came from.
I grab my slippers and hold them as we walk.
"Uh- hey wait! How did you do that?" Obito asks me as he catches up.
"I am glad you are interested but I have gotten dirt in my feet, I require cleaning. I also exhausted my chakra and would like some rest- perhaps we can go over the methods used another time and compare them to what you could have done in the situation I was in, we will save it for later however" I nod while yawning.
The walk back is pleasant.
Thanks for reading :)