Chapter 7- Morning from Obito's perspective
The dawn cracked open over (Obito) as he woke.
A single,determined sunbeam stabbed through his window, landing directly on his eyelids.
With a grunt that was more of a squeak,he flung his blanket aside.
The fabric landed on the floor with a softthump.
He moved quickly, a blur of sleepy urgency.
His feet slapped against the cold wooden floorboards—pat, pat, pat—as he dashed to the bathroom before even thinking about getting dressed.
The morning chill seeped into his skin,a sharp contrast to the warm cocoon of his bed.
He then hurried downstairs to greet his grandmother.
"Good morning,Grandma!"
His grandmother, now in her sixties, was a whirlwind of gentle motion.
Yet,she did everything in the house with a smile that seemed permanently etched onto her kind face.
The scent of miso soup and steamed rice hung warmly in the air,a comforting blanket of aroma.
She turned at the sound of his voice,her eyes crinkling at the corners with genuine pleasure.
She greeted her grandson with joy.
"I'm happy to see you waking up early,(Obito). Sit down and eat. It's hot now."
The table was laden with a traditional Japanese breakfast.
A feast of colors and textures:white, fluffy rice, dark, savory miso soup with little cubes of tofu dancing inside, a perfectly grilled piece of salmon, and a small portion of pickled vegetables.
(Obito)ate quickly, shoveling food into his mouth with a focused intensity.
His grandmother smiled while he ate.
She was always watching his progress.
The boy who used to play pranks within the Uchiha clan was different now.
After weeks,little by little, he had become more responsible.
He trained until he was exhausted.
He even stopped yelling so much.
In fact,he now carried out anything asked of him.
All of this made her happy.
As a grandmother,she felt her grandson had become more mature.
A quiet pride bloomed in her chest,warm and solid.
"(Obito), take this too."
She pulled out a lunchbox and placed some extra light snacks inside,in addition to the main meal, and handed it to (Obito).
The lacquered wood of the box was cool and smooth under his fingers.
He smiled and thanked her.
"Thank you,Grandma. Now I have to go. The teacher is waiting for me."
The grandmother, as (Obito) was leaving the house, said to him,
"There's enough food for both of you.Remember to share it with your teacher. I made some bean paste cakes for him, since he helps you, my boy."
(Obito) smiled and didn't say anything.
A slight,knowing smirk played on his lips.
But the grandmother knew he would do what she asked.
She could read it in the set of his shoulders,the determined glint in his eyes that hadn't been there weeks before.
Therefore,she went and sat down to rest comfortably.
As for (Obito), he was on the road, walking so fast he appeared blurry.
His small feet kicked up little puffs of dust from the path—swish, thud, swish, thud.
The six-year-old boy,training to increase his physical strength, was quickly becoming faster than most ordinary civilian children.
His breaths came in sharp,controlled puffs in the cool morning air.
Finally,he reached the training ground, where he found his teacher.
He smiled.
He always found his teacher training long before him.
Therefore,he was always trying to adjust his sleep schedule to wake up earlier.
A futile endeavor,it seemed.
"Ah, you're here, (Obito). You're late again."
The teacher smiled at him while saying this.
The teacher was just a youth of 15 years.
Yet,he possessed this aura that (Obito) appreciated, which seemed to carry a great deal of wisdom far beyond his years.
A weary,ancient knowledge lurked behind those dark eyes.
"Sorry I'm late, Sensei. But I'll try again."
The clock had just struck 6:00 AM.
For ordinary people,this time would seem incredibly early.
But his teacher usually arrived at 5:00 AM.
Therefore,he was trying to catch up to the schedule.
Even the teacher seemed as if he wasn't serious when he told him to wake at five.
Rather,he seemed more like he was trying to compete with him, to make the matter fun for himself.
A subtle,unspoken challenge hung between them every morning.
"Well then, start your exercises."
After the teacher said this,(Obito) left his lunchbox by a tree with a soft clack.
He began running around the training ground in a regular pattern,not with speed.
The hard-packed earth felt unforgiving beneath his thin-soled shoes.
After weeks of training in this place and the guidance from the teacher,he understood that it was better to conserve his energy and run more regularly to make the blood flow, as he put it, more smoothly.
In truth,he didn't understand anything.
In the end,the subject was too big for him.
Therefore,he asked for an explanation.
In the end,he told him:
The body cannot withstand exerting great effort in a single moment.
You have to make it flow in several pushes so it can withstand high effort.
It's like muscles;they need training to become stronger and more efficient.
Of course,he didn't understand most of the talk, but he agreed since it was the teacher's words.
The words had been a low,steady rumble, like distant thunder, and (Obito) had simply decided to trust the source.
One hour had passed since he started his running.
But he never let his eyes stray from the teacher for a single moment.
The teacher was training with push-ups.
(Obito)felt that drops of sweat were falling from his body regularly.
They hit the dry ground with tiny,dark plips.
He had been surprised the first time because he felt this exercise was easy.
After weeks of push-up training,he began to feel as if he was capable of doing 100 or even more with ease.
He would have been able to do them.
But after that,the teacher explained something.
He was using something called Chakra Weights.
These weights allowed for increasing the weight around the body.
Therefore, he understood that the teacher was lifting heavier weights than he was while doing push-ups.
Therefore,he starts getting tired while doing them.
He asked him if he could get some like them.
But he told him it wasn't useful for him.
He didn't understand the reason.
But he explained in a calm way,his voice barely strained despite the immense pressure on his body.
"They're not useful for you because these weights put great pressure on the body. You have to be at least ten years old before you train with them. Otherwise, you'll break your growth and won't be able to become taller. You'll remain short."
(Obito) shuddered while running.
He would become short just because he used these weights?
It was terrifying for him.
He still wished to become tall like his teacher.
It was true that his teacher seemed taller than most adults,especially since he was 160 cm, or at least that's what he told him.
Yet,he still respected his teacher.
He wished to become the same height as him.
Therefore,he encouraged himself more.
He ran with speed until he heard the teacher's voice calling him.
"Alright, that's enough. It's time for another exercise, (Obito)."
He had been waiting for this—for the teacher to tell him to move to another exercise.
This time,he lay on the ground and began the push-up exercise.
He wanted to reach at least 100 reps before stopping.
Half an hour passed quickly.
He stopped,having accomplished 100 push-ups.
His arms felt warm instead of the exhaustion and burning he used to feel.
He felt the difference in strength.
It had been a long time,and it was as if he was tens of times stronger.
Of course,the teacher told him every time they sparred together that he was still at the beginning.
But he would become stronger with time.
(Obito)couldn't describe his feeling that there was someone who trusted he would be able to become stronger in the future.
All the members of his clan described him as a loss,a failure, and useless.
Even though he asked them for training,they did nothing and always told him he would never be able to become strong.
But the teacher trusted him.
Therefore,he decided he would never let him down.
The thought was a burning ember in his chest,hotter than any muscle burn.
Finally, after (Obito) finished his push-ups, he heard his teacher's voice again.
The teacher was running on the trees and training on something.
(Obito)wanted to train on it too.
But the teacher told him he still didn't have enough chakra control.
He told him something about the amount of chakra he possessed being too great,and therefore it needed a long time before he could control it.
The teacher told him it was better to train on the leaves.
"Look, (Obito), don't worry and don't rush things. You just have to train with the leaves first, using the Leaf Sticking Exercise. You increase your chakra control. Besides, this is one of the important exams at the academy. So, you'll be ahead of the other students who haven't done it."
Of course, these words made (Obito) forget the matter.
Since he would become a top student just by knowing how to stick to trees,he was ready to do it hundreds of times.
Therefore,he stuck several leaves to his hand and began training with them.
In the beginning,he couldn't stick anything.
The leaves just fluttered uselessly to the ground—flutter, fall, flutter, fall.
But with time,the matter was improving, and he was able to stick more leaves.
With time,the teacher even told him he was progressing very quickly and could become an exceptional student at the academy if he continued with the same amount of effort.
(Obito)was very happy and thanked the teacher for the praise.
But the teacher said,
"I'm not praising you,boy. I'm just stating the truth."
During this,the teacher was shaking his head at (Obito)'s silliness.
But(Obito) didn't stop smiling while sticking tree leaves to his hand.
A wide,goofy grin was plastered on his face, making him look his age for the first time that morning.
But now, he was able to stick dozens of tree leaves at the same time.
The leaves clung to his palm and fingers,a green, rustling glove.
Meanwhile,the teacher, far away, was running up and down a tree.
He would stop while releasing some electricity in his hand,as if he was doing strange training.
It was surprising to(Obito).
But it was also magical.
It made him wish he could do that.
A spark of literal and figurative electricity danced in the older boy's palm,a tiny, crackling sun.
"Sensei will teach me when I reach that level,I'm sure."
With renewed confidence,he searched for more leaves to stick and increase his control ability.
By working this way,he was sure his teacher, (Sosuke), would teach him how to release the electricity and walk on trees.
The rustle of leaves became a determined symphony.
...
"What a terrifying talent."
(Sosuke)couldn't help but say that as he watched (Obito) train on leaf sticking.
The original(Sosuke)'s memories made him see the difference between a civilian and a clan child clearly.
For the previous(Sosuke), the control training through sticking tree leaves had taken him many months to master and reach the ability to keep three or five leaves at the same time.
Even though his chakra reserves were low.
But for(Obito), it was very easy.
In just a few weeks,the child who didn't even realize how to control chakra was capable of sticking dozens of tree leaves to his hand.
Anyway,he had found the reason.
Simply,it wasn't talent, but rather the chakra itself.
For civilians, chakra is less than that of clan members.
But also,it isn't as thick and rich.
It's akin to clan children possessing thicker chakra,much more than what civilians possess.
It's as if chakra has muscles.
Civilians'chakra doesn't have these muscles, so they need to train them.
Whereas clan children,they naturally possess these muscles in their chakra.
Therefore,it's easier for them to learn chakra control through tree sticking.
Of course,this advantage wasn't the only one (Obito) possessed.
For(Sosuke), the physical strength the boy possessed was also a great surprise.
He could train with the same amount of strength,even though he was only six years old.
Besides that,he was very talented and possessed a strong will.
He could train even if his body ached,and run even if his chest was burning.
All these things made(Sosuke) unable to stop being amazed.
He even felt a certain amount of fear.
A cold trickle of dread traced its way down his spine.
"I'm 15 years old, plus I'm a person who came from Earth and have knowledge of the future. Will I lose against a six-year-old child, even before this child gets bigger?"
Of course, (Sosuke)'s thoughts weren't illogical.
In the end,Kakashi, the White Fang's son, had become a ninja at five and a Chunin at the age of six.
And at the age of 12,he was a Jonin.
Therefore,he couldn't rule out (Obito)'s future superiority over him if he didn't do something and train with greater strength.
The ghost of a future Masked Man loomed in his mind.
"I suppose this follows the saying, 'the student can surpass the teacher.' At the very least, I have to do something to delay this saying a little. At least until I prove my ability to control the little boy."
At this moment, he returned to his training, which was his own version of what (Obito) was doing.
He was running,in addition to manipulating Lightning Chakra at the same time, while he trained using Chakra Weights to increase his physical strength.
He had definitely become physically stronger after weeks of intensive training.
Besides,his understanding of chakra had deepened.
Moreover,he had mastered three of the four techniques he had bought.
The Clone Technique of A-rank.
The Lightning Cutter,a technique close to C-rank.
And the Body Replacement Technique of B-rank.
All these techniques he had mastered to a degree where he could perform them at an 80%success rate.
After his soul merged with the original(Sosuke)'s soul, his ability to understand techniques had become much higher.
Besides,his perspective, which came from another world, allowed him to understand chakra application in a different way.
Unlike the ninja here,who were primitive now and used trial and error, he used scientific laws while applying Lightning Chakra.
Therefore,his progress was slightly faster than that of civilian individuals.
But he was still far from the geniuses in this world.
But he would definitely make an effort to become,at the very least, a person capable of survival.
The crackle of lightning in his palm was a promise to himself—a promise not to be left behind.
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Author's Note:
Thank you,dear readers, for joining (Obito) and (Sosuke) on their grueling, sweaty, and slightly terrifying morning! Your time is appreciated. ❤️ 🙂
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End of Chapter.
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