"Ready?" Seisui asked with a smile, looking at Uchiha Obito.
"Ready!" Obito shouted loudly in response.
"You need to form the opposing hand seals, right?" Obito scratched his head and began rapidly forming hand signs.
He couldn't quite remember how to do the opposing seals.
Seeing Obito fumble, Seisui's smile widened even more.
"Kid, lesson one," Seisui said, then vanished in an instant. Obito looked up in confusion, but saw nothing.
"Strange… where did he go?"
"Lesson one for a ninja: never trust the ninja in front of you to form opposing hand seals." Seisui reappeared behind Obito, grabbed him by the collar, and lifted him off the ground entirely.
"Hey! You're cheating!" Obito struggled in midair, yelling about unfairness.
"Ha! Little Obito is defeated in one move!" Seisui laughed.
"Little Obito, come have dinner at my place tonight with your grandma. I'll console you properly—no crying, okay? Haha!"
"Kid, this isn't cheating," Seisui said, holding Obito over to a table of reasonable height. "A ninja battle isn't a game of pretend."
He pressed Obito's upper body against the table.
Slap! Slap! Slap!
Three quick slaps in a row made Obito's eyes water, but he held back the tears.
"I'll get revenge!" Obito cried in a choked voice.
"Hmm?" Seisui paused at this defiance, then delivered a few more slaps to his backside.
"You still dare to talk big?"
"I didn't even have this courage when I was your age. You've got guts!"
"Lesson two: when facing someone who can control your life or death, never speak recklessly."
"I'll get revenge!" Obito repeated stubbornly, ignoring Seisui's words.
The surrounding Uchiha watched with amusement. If it had been anyone else beating a child, they wouldn't have reacted this way.
But this was Seisui—no, in their minds, Uchiha Harusui.
With a Mangekyo Sharingan, Seisui was "one of them." No one would think ill of him disciplining a Uchiha child.
And Seisui's reasoning made sense. As for Obito, a bit of punishment was only for his own good.
"Waaah! I'll get back at you!"
"Still talking big?" Seisui delivered more slaps.
Slap! Slap! Slap!
"Now?!"
"Waaahhh! That guy… when I awaken my eyes… I'll get back at you!"
Slap! Slap! Slap!
"I will—"
Slap! Slap! Slap!
"I'm sorry! Waaahhh!"
Hearing Obito admit defeat, Seisui slapped him one final time and then set him down.
Seeing Obito with red eyes and watery rims, Seisui crossed his arms and said,
"Kid, now do you understand?"
"Waaah… I understand." Obito wiped his tears and nodded.
Seisui smiled, satisfied.
"Good. Go play. I'm leaving."
As Seisui walked away, Obito shouted,
"I'll get revenge for sure!"
Then he ran straight to his house.
Seisui stopped in his tracks when he heard this, then vanished from sight.
The surrounding Uchiha sighed,
"Obito's going to have a sore backside."
"This kid's braver than both of us were at his age."
"Now that's an Uchiha child!"
"Exactly. Obito's got spirit!"
"Then why didn't you let your son challenge him? He's just watching from behind," one person asked, pointing to a few curious children.
"My son's too young. Seisui-sama really does discipline kids," another replied.
The others: "…You're just saying that, right?"
The crowd murmured, and soon Seisui reappeared with Obito in his grasp.
Seisui's smile remained, while Obito hung limp, his face pale and body dangling.
He pressed Obito to the table again, the slap! slap! slap! sounds relentless.
This time, dozens of slaps struck without pause.
Obito cried loudly,
"I'm sorry! I really am!"
"No, you're not wrong… it's me who's at fault."
"I'll never do it again! Waaahhh!"
His cries drew even more spectators.
"What's going on?" an elite Uchiha, fresh from a mission, asked.
"This kid challenged Seisui-sama," explained a middle-aged man who had witnessed everything.
"At first, Seisui was just teaching him a lesson: don't try to follow rules when facing a ninja."
The Uchiha nodded, understanding.
"Indeed, outside ninjas play by no rules."
"And then?" the senior asked, noticing Seisui still delivering slaps.
The middle-aged man explained further,
"Obito threatened to get revenge, and Seisui kept going until he admitted his mistake. That was supposed to be the end."
"But Obito shouted he'd get revenge again once Seisui walked away."
The Uchiha senior shook his head with a smile.
"This kid really needed it. Knowing in his heart is enough—why shout?"
"Seisui-sama, well done!" he added, as Seisui continued a few more slaps.
Finally, Seisui released Obito and exhaled slowly.
"Do you understand now?"
"Waaah… I… I understand," Obito choked out, nodding.
"Good," Seisui clapped, then continued toward Uchiha Haru's house.
Beating Obito lifted Seisui's spirits considerably.
You bullied me at the duel arena before. Now it's my turn—this isn't too much, right?
Years of pent-up frustration finally found release.
Soon after, Obito's grandmother came out. Seeing him, she hugged him with worry.
After hearing the explanations, she realized the spanking was his own fault.
"You silly child, can't you think things through?"
"I'll become stronger!" Obito said, wiping tears and clenching his fists.
"Foolish boy," she said, patting his forehead with a smile.
"Seisui-sama is teaching you how relationships work between ninjas.
Remember this well: when facing someone stronger, show respect, don't be stubborn.
That's how you survive the battlefield."
"Got it!" Obito nodded vigorously.
Seisui didn't care about the rest. Whether Obito held a grudge or not wasn't his concern.
Before turning dark, this kid was just like Naruto—hot-blooded and idiotic.
After the incident with Kamui, only then did Obito truly fall into darkness.
Hmm… love is the true theme of the ninja world.
Seisui finally arrived at Uchiha Haru's home. A servant was waiting at the door.
"Seisui-sama," the servant greeted respectfully.
"You knew I was coming?" Seisui asked instinctively.
Then he realized—this was the Uchiha clan. What could the clan head, Uchiha Setsuna, not know?
The servant seemed to notice his awkward expression, said nothing, and led him inside.
"The clan head and Miss Haru are waiting."
"Good," Seisui replied casually.
The moment he entered, Haru leapt into his arms, holding on tightly.
Uchiha Setsuna's brow twitched at the sight.
Damn kid!
"I've been waiting for you!"
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100 Power Stones = Bonus Chapter
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