True Fire of Samadhi

"Just perform it normally. Is that so hard?"

Seeing Uchiha Aozora's puzzled expression, Shisui felt somewhat depressed and sickened.

If he remembered correctly, he seemed to have said those very words more than once before—when learning the Great Fireball Technique, when learning the Body Flicker Technique...

Heaven's Cycle truly came around. He had never expected to live to hear someone say those words to him.

Though his thoughts were numerous, Uchiha Shisui quickly came back to himself.

His eyes turned red, and three tomoe emerged within his pupils.

He looked directly into Aozora's eyes and solemnly asked, "Aozora, can you perform the Great Fireball Technique once more?"

Stared at by the three-tomoe Sharingan, Uchiha Aozora felt a little unnerved, sensing a bloody and ominous aura.

The feeling vanished in an instant, but Uchiha Aozora knew it had not been an illusion.

The Sharingan emerged when one lost someone dear to them and experienced intense emotional turmoil. Thus, every pair of Sharingan carried a sorrowful story behind it. It was the Mind's Eye of the Kaleidoscopic Flower, and also the Eye of Calamity. That was why, despite being a member of the Uchiha Clan, he had never deliberately pursued awakening the Sharingan.

Countless thoughts ran through Uchiha Aozora's mind, but he revealed none of them on his face.

He pointed at his throat and said, "My throat is a little hot. I need to rest first!"

After returning to the house, drinking two mouthfuls of cold water, and resting for several minutes, Uchiha Aozora formed Hand Seals again.

Snake—Goat—Monkey—Boar—Horse—Tiger!

"Fire Release—Great Fireball Technique!"

On his second attempt, Uchiha Aozora formed Hand Seals much faster.

But from Uchiha Shisui's experience, such a speed would still cause errors in Chakra circulation, resulting in the Great Fireball Technique failing to activate.

Under the observation of his Sharingan, Uchiha Aozora's Hand Seals seemed to become slow-motion movements of his left and right hands.

The Chakra within Uchiha Aozora's body resembled a pool of pale-blue water. After he formed the Hand Seals, a portion of the Chakra split off from the pool and traveled along the usual circulation path of the Great Fireball Technique.

What astonished Uchiha Shisui was that when Aozora switched between two Hand Seals, the Chakra that had lost the seals' control did not run wild. It remained where it was until it received instructions from the next seal, then continued circulating.

He was rather surprised. As he pondered it, Uchiha Aozora spat out another fireball.

Compared with the first time, this fireball was somewhat smaller, but Uchiha Shisui was not disappointed.

This was not because Uchiha Aozora had failed to cast it or had failed to bring out the Great Fireball Technique's power. On the contrary, Uchiha Aozora could now control the Great Fireball Technique. He had kept its power within what his body could endure.

After five seconds, when the Fire Release Chakra in Uchiha Aozora's throat was nearly exhausted, he voluntarily released the Hand Seals.

"Whew—"

He first let out a long breath, then drew in a deep one, using that exhale and inhale to press the remaining Fire Release Chakra in his throat back into his body.

After circulating and regulating his breath for two cycles, the Fire Release Chakra turned back into ordinary Chakra and returned to his dantian.

Seeing Uchiha Aozora's control over the Great Fireball Technique, Uchiha Shisui was utterly astonished.

He had activated his Sharingan in order to discover why his younger brother had learned the Great Fireball Technique instantly.

Unfortunately, he had not succeeded.

Although the Sharingan also possessed the ability to inspect Chakra, it was not the Byakugan and could not see through the body.

He could only see the general direction of Chakra flow and could not accurately distinguish the changes within the body.

In truth, even the Byakugan could only roughly observe the amount and direction of Chakra flowing through the chakra pathways. It could not grasp the subtle changes in Chakra either.

Of course, Uchiha Shisui had not gained nothing.

Through his observations just now, he discovered that his younger brother could actually keep Chakra still during the gaps between Hand Seals.

Was it due to exceptional Chakra Control, or something else? He was somewhat puzzled.

"Is something wrong?"

Seeing his elder brother looking confused, Uchiha Aozora hurriedly asked.

"Hm?" Uchiha Shisui came back to himself. "Nothing's wrong. You used the Great Fireball Technique quite well!"

Uchiha Aozora smiled upon hearing that. "I think so too."

Although his brother had only said "quite well," who was Uchiha Shisui?

He was publicly acknowledged as the strongest of the current Uchiha Clan. Even counting those in the shadows, he could at least rank among the top three.

If he said it was quite good, then in other shinobi's eyes, it was at least excellent.

In truth, he had never expected the Great Fireball Technique to be so simple.

He remembered that, in the original story, even the protagonist Uchiha Sasuke had practiced for a long time before succeeding. The first time, he had only managed to spit out sparks, far inferior to him.

But Sasuke had only been six or seven years old then, right?

At that thought, the smug look on Uchiha Aozora's face vanished.

Uchiha Shisui watched his younger brother's proud expression with interest. When he suddenly saw Aozora's expression worsen, he found it somewhat strange.

However, he did not try to guess Aozora's thoughts. Instead, he imparted all his understanding of the Great Fireball Technique without reservation.

As the sun rose higher, Uchiha Shisui patted his younger brother on the shoulder and said, "Aozora, I'm glad you've grown up and are gradually gaining the ability to protect yourself."

"I have to go on another mission. I'm sorry I can't stay with you for a few more days!"

"This mission is to support the Border of Cloud Country. It may take as little as a month or as long as half a year, but I will definitely return."

"I hope that when I return, you'll already have become an outstanding shinobi capable of standing on your own."

After saying that, he gave a light leap onto the rooftop, then bounded left and right. Before long, he vanished from Uchiha Aozora's sight.

His gaze remained fixed on where his elder brother had disappeared. Only after a long while did Uchiha Aozora withdraw his eyes.

"My foolish brother!"

"When you devote yourself to this village, do you ever consider the schemes aimed at your back? Konoha is rotten to the core now. It isn't worth your sacrifice!"

He felt it was not worth it for his brother.

All his life, Uchiha Shisui had treated others kindly in the village and devoted himself wholeheartedly to Konoha. For the sake of the village, he had even been willing to betray his own clan.

Yet even so, he had never earned the village's complete trust. He had even been plotted against by his own superior. Afterward, no one sought justice for him, and no one bore responsibility for his death.

"In this life, I won't let you repeat the same mistakes!"

Filled with motivation at that thought, Uchiha Aozora began practicing the Great Fireball Technique again.

He first adjusted the amount of Chakra and the speed of his Hand Seals, using them to control the Great Fireball Technique's power and range.

Next, he began simplifying the Hand Seals and even removing them entirely, relying purely on the Chakra within his body to perform the Great Fireball Technique. After two attempts, Uchiha Aozora succeeded.

He only smiled happily for a moment before continuing his practice. He knew it was not because his talent was so exceptional; it was all thanks to the method of Guidance and Qi Cultivation.

From the age of five to twelve, for a full seven years, he had continuously circulated Chakra through his body in cycles. When it came to controlling Chakra within the body, he was confident that few in the Shinobi World could do better than him.

The reason he did not say "no one in the Shinobi World could do better" was because he still had to account for that group of overpowered Otsutsuki who did not need Hand Seals.

Uchiha Aozora continued practicing. As he practiced and practiced, he suddenly discovered that the Chakra inside his body had become much hotter.

Before he could think further, the pages of the Heavenly Book in his mind suddenly shone, followed immediately by that familiar absorption.

The scorching Chakra was sucked dry in an instant.

Uchiha Aozora was not the slightest bit alarmed. Instead, he was exceedingly excited. He returned to the house and sat cross-legged to wait.

Only a few minutes later, scorching Chakra flowed out from the Heavenly Book.

At that moment, four new pale-gold ancient characters appeared on the Heavenly Book—"True Fire of Samadhi."