Three Years

Three years had passed since the Uchiha massacre. At first, everyone in the village had been shocked and on high alert. After all, the destruction of a great clan overnight would have been a shocking event anywhere. The "culprit" behind it all, Itachi Uchiha, had naturally been placed on the most-wanted lists of the various ninja villages.

After the massacre, however, the Third Hokage came forward to explain what had happened. He claimed that Itachi Uchiha had conspired with outside forces to plan the attack. Konoha called on the other ninja villages to remain vigilant, mourned and prayed for the dead members of the Uchiha Clan, and assured the other clans in the village that nothing like this would ever happen again.

Zi Xu and the others had grown quickly over the past three years. They had thoroughly mastered the Ninja Academy's basic subjects, and their practical combat results were among the best. Zi Xu maintained an unremarkable place in their group, showing more strength than Hatsumi but less than Chino.

Their group was about to face its final assessment, thanks to their outstanding performance, and officially become Genin. But the so-called assessment was little more than a formality. Takeshi Goda knew exactly how strong they were, and their passing was a foregone conclusion.

Ever since the Uchiha massacre, the three of them had felt as if a great mountain weighed on their hearts. They all knew perfectly well that there was no way a teenager could have killed an entire clan without anyone noticing. Zi Xu absolutely didn't believe that the Third Hokage hadn't ordered it behind the scenes.

Even if the Anbu assassins couldn't stop Itachi Uchiha, couldn't they have alerted the other Uchiha? All it would have taken was a shout, yet they hadn't done even that. If they had taken so much as one precaution, the Uchiha Clan wouldn't have been wiped out.

This led to a horrifying conclusion: the Third Hokage wanted to eliminate the Uchiha Clan. The exact reason was unknown. The Uchiha had always been one of Konoha's main fighting forces. Though they often seemed proud and aloof in the village, on the battlefield they were the sort to lead the charge, with something of the spirit of medieval knights.

Perhaps it had something to do with the Uchiha's love of battle and ambition? After all, in his previous life, Zi Xu had read plenty of history books about emperors who, afraid their generals would become too powerful or build up armies of their own, had sentenced their entire families to death.

There was no point guessing at the reason. Konoha had wiped out one of its own great clans. It was also a warning to the other clans, a clear case of killing one to frighten the rest. And after the massacre, the other clans did indeed become even more supportive of the Third Hokage's rule. Whether he had planned all of this remained to be seen.

Zi Xu hadn't stopped training over the past three years. He had mastered the Shadow Clone Technique, and felt that he was just one step away from mastering its more advanced form, the Multi Shadow Clone Technique. He just couldn't find the inspiration to take that next step. After thinking it over for a long time, he had his Shadow Clone eat the Silent Fruit.

The clone could indeed use the Silent Fruit's power. It suffered side effects too, but they weren't as severe as in the original story. When it came into contact with water, it only felt an instinctive aversion; it didn't become weak and limp all over. Zi Xu guessed that perhaps the sea in the One Piece world was different from the water in the Naruto World and didn't contain Seastone particles.

The bad news was that the fruit's power seemed to be strongest only when used by the clone. When the clone disappeared, Zi Xu could feel the power dwelling within it return to his body along with it. But it was as if his body were merely an inn to that power. It didn't seem particularly attached to him, as though it had no intention of staying in his body for long.

Zi Xu could use the fruit's power with his main body too, but it always felt as if the Demon Power in the Silent Fruit was slacking off instead of doing its job, like an office worker trying to coast through the day. Once Zi Xu made a clone, he could transfer the Devil Fruit power into it. Inside the clone, the power seemed to be back home, and he could use it however he pleased.

That could be considered good news, too. At least this way, he could combine multiple abilities in one body. He might even—no, he definitely could—master more abilities than Blackbeard. Still, he had more faith in Haki than in Devil Fruit Abilities. Devil Fruit Abilities determined the floor, while Haki determined the ceiling.

If he weren't so eager to improve his ability to protect himself, he would have prioritized unlocking Haki. After all, the power of those who relied on Haki and Taijutsu alone, without Devil Fruit Abilities, was astonishing: Hawkeye Mihawk, Pluto Rayleigh, Red-haired Shanks, One Piece Roger...

Zi Xu hadn't unlocked any other abilities over the past three years. He had fully adapted to his current physique, and with the help of Hatsumi's bugs, his Chakra had become purer and more abundant. The Horned Beetle was the one that suffered, constantly trying to pierce Zi Xu's skin. It had even bent its horn ramming him, yet still hadn't made him feel a thing.

He had also learned Chino's Gentle Fist very well, including its different hand techniques, methods of applying force, and knowledge of the body's pressure points. Zi Xu could now fight a Chunin without dying—or at least, a Chunin as he understood them from books. Anyone who knew better would understand that if he fought for real, killing a Chunin with one punch would mean he'd been holding back.

It was the weekend. Zi Xu lay in the spot where the three of them often trained, looking up at the clear sky as he dozed for a while. He had changed quite a bit in three years. At ten years old, he stood around 1.65 meters tall and had grown much more muscular. Lean muscle covered his powerful frame, not an ounce too much or too little, giving him a harmonious, well-proportioned look.

His once-messy dark red hair had been trimmed many times, but it still grew quickly. Perhaps it was because of Kaido's Physique; his hair grew like chives, sprouting back soon after each cut. In the end, he stopped bothering with it and simply kept it around ear-length.

"Zi Xu, you're here early today!" a sweet voice called from behind him. He opened his sleepy eyes, raised a hand to shield them from the sunlight, and looked toward the speaker.

Hatsumi, who had once been so timid and shy, had grown into a real beauty. She was a little shorter than Zi Xu, standing at about 1.5 meters. She had replaced her old glasses with the "Tashigi's Glasses" he'd given her, giving her an intellectual air. She also seemed more outgoing, and had filled out quite nicely—in every sense of the phrase.

"Oh, it's you, Hatsumi. Have you bred any new kinds of bugs lately?" Zi Xu sprang to his feet and stretched.

"Mm... I've bred the Green Silk Worm and the Moonlight Worm recently. The Green Silk Worm can live in your hair. If you feed it Chakra, it makes your hair grow instantly and greatly increases its defensive strength. The Moonlight Worm can absorb moonlight to replenish itself. It can fire a ranged Moon Blade. It doesn't do much damage, but at least it doesn't use up Chakra..."

Hatsumi excitedly introduced her results. Three years ago, Zi Xu had remembered a novel about Gu worms that he'd read in his previous life, and had guided Hatsumi by describing the bugs' abilities from memory. The results had been surprisingly good. Hatsumi had become completely engrossed in it, and seemed to have taken up a rather strange path. Zi Xu wasn't sure whether that was a good thing or a bad one.

But when he heard about the Green Silk Worm, he became interested. It was perfect for him. Perhaps one day he could even put together a whole set of hair-based combat moves. Its potential was limitless.

"Good work. You could try combining bugs with different abilities into killer moves. If you find a particular kind of bug promising, you could also try refining it with other bugs to raise its rank..." As Zi Xu spoke, Hatsumi's eyes lit up. She was delighted to have discovered a new path, and all sorts of bug combinations were already taking shape in her mind.

Zi Xu held the Green Silk Worm in his hand. It was a small, green creature with an elongated body, somewhat like a mantis, but without the mantis's forelegs. A few green, hair-like tufts also grew from its belly. He wrapped it in Chakra and merged it into his hair, then put the Moonlight Worm in his pocket. Both would be very useful to him.

"Are you here already? Looks like I'm late." Just as the two of them were excitedly discussing the bugs' future development, a cool voice interrupted their reverie.

"Chino, you're here! How's your Byakugan training going? My bugs have made a qualitative leap. Next time we spar, I'll show you what they can do." Hatsumi waved to Chino. She had a confidence now that she'd never had before. Over the past three years, they had fought each other quite a few times. Chino had won most of the time, while Zi Xu always forfeited halfway through.

Both of them knew Zi Xu was strong, but he was the sort who would say, "I'm at my limit," while not even breathing hard. They knew he was hiding his true strength, but even now they still hadn't been able to figure out where his limits lay.

"Oh? Then I won't go easy on you," Chino said lightly, though a smile played at the corners of her mouth. This had become part of their daily routine.

Chino stepped out of the shade, sunlight falling across her shoulders. Her blue-black hair now fell to her shoulders. Her left eye sparkled in the sunlight like a finely polished white crystal. But the right eye that had matched it before her powers awakened had turned gray-black, making for a striking contrast.

"Most of my Byakugan's abilities have awakened. I can now strike each pressure point with precision, so you'd better watch out for my attacks in a fight." Chino waved to Hatsumi. She was a little taller than Hatsumi, only half a head shorter than Zi Xu. Her long legs barely touched the ground as she moved in an instant to stand in front of him.

"I still don't completely understand that Feng Hou Qi Men you mentioned. The parts about luck and fate are a little too mystical. But I can control the position of the Bagua formation beneath my feet and instantly cast ninjutsu from it..." As she spoke, she formed a hand sign. Zi Xu felt the dirt beneath his feet shift slightly, though it only stirred faintly.

"But its shortcomings are obvious too. The ninjutsu is too weak, and there's still a lot of room to improve..." Chino analyzed the results seriously, her delicate brows slightly furrowed.

Zi Xu made a hand sign, asking, "Let's leave that aside for now. Has anyone found out about your Red Eye?"

Chino nodded. She had hidden it well. Ever since awakening the power in both eyes three years ago, she had realized that her right eye's ability didn't seem to be the Byakugan. It could see through objects and sense power. Its ability to sense danger was much like the Byakugan's, but when she used it, dark red Chakra gradually seeped from her right eye.

After experimenting, she had also discovered that the eye could create Chakra images and completely interfere with the Byakugan's judgment, making the Byakugan see only the illusions created by the Red Eye and miss the real enemies around it. It was almost as if... it were a pair of eyes born to counter the Byakugan.

"We can talk about that later. It's the weekend, and Fat Tiger doesn't have classes today either. Let's go get the exam over with. We've already put it off for months." Zi Xu patted them both on the shoulder. They were ready, too.

"Sure."

"Okay."

The three of them set off together for the Ninja Academy, the place where they had spent the past three years.