"Jin, it's you."
Shisui wasn't all that surprised to see Jin appear out of nowhere.
He just smiled and greeted him.
After knowing each other for several years, Shisui had gotten used to how Itachi's little brother seemed to appear and disappear at will.
Or rather—how he suddenly showed up!
Maybe the kid would pop up behind him without warning.
And suddenly start talking.
At first, he really had been startled several times.
Especially once, when he was taking a dump and the kid suddenly sprang out behind him.
He'd been so startled that he'd clenched shut midstream!
"Shisui, what are you doing here?"
"Hm? I..."
Shisui paused, looking a little confused.
Wasn't this a spot he'd discovered himself?
Why did it feel as if there was something wrong with him being here?
Of course, the odd feeling vanished as quickly as it came.
The two of them, one tall and one short, stood on the river's surface and chatted.
Caw, caw—
A crow alighted above them.
It sped along the riverbank.
As time passed, Jin gradually noticed that the traits on Shisui seemed to have changed.
A brilliant golden glow surrounded him, dazzling to behold.
One of the traits below it was spewing black smoke.
[Conversation target: Uchiha Shisui.]
[Analyzing copyable traits.]
[Kotoamatsukami (Gold), Phantom Body Flicker Technique (Purple), Mangekyō Sharingan (Purple), Kotoamatsukami (Gold), Death Wish (Black)...]
Compared with two years ago, Shisui's traits were nearly perfect.
The only thing he lacked was that green Susanoo.
But...
When he saw the unusual black trait, Jin sighed to himself.
"A man with one foot in the grave... So Shisui's already sensed something?"
In the original story, this cheerful, bright-eyed boy actually had a chance to survive.
A very good chance.
Whether he escaped back to the clan or defected from the village, he could have made it.
But in the end, he gave his last eye to his friend.
He'd given his life to help Itachi awaken the Mangekyō.
Jin couldn't tell which of those things had caused the others, or which had followed from them.
Thinking of that, he couldn't help recalling his own black trait.
He grimaced and checked it.
[Name: Uchiha Jin.]
[Chakra: 1852511.]
[Traits: Seven-Year Itch (Black), Golden Body of Light (Rainbow), Weak Presence (Rainbow), Flying Thunder God Technique (Gold) Lv. 6, Nine-Tails Jinchuriki (Gold), Mangekyō Sharingan (Purple)...]
Six years had passed, and his mental and physical strength had grown tremendously.
Especially over the past two years. As he'd gotten a little older, his body had developed faster, too.
And that was just his normal state. If he activated Cloud Style Body Technique and his Nine-Tails Jinchuriki power, his stamina would multiply several times over!
With taijutsu alone, he could match an ordinary Jonin!
But most importantly...
Years had passed, yet Seven-Year Itch hadn't changed at all.
The black smoke around the trait was so dense it was almost terrifying.
He'd tried feeding it other traits, but nothing had changed.
It was still like a stagnant pool.
Maybe he'd have to wait until next year's Night of the Uchiha Clan Massacre to see what this thing was about?
Jin thought as he nodded to himself.
Then, after a moment's hesitation, he looked at the cheerful, grinning boy beside him and asked pointedly, "Shisui, what do you think of the village?"
"The village? It's great. There's no fighting going on right now, and everyone's living happily."
"And what do you think... of Danzo?"
"Lord Danzo?" Shisui hesitated at the name, then answered earnestly, "He's a true hero who selflessly devotes himself to protecting the Leaf from the shadows!"
Jin: ...
Well, that's hopeless!
The Uchiha Clan had plenty of clever people, but Shisui hadn't inherited a single bit of their cunning.
[Ten-Minute Talk: Attempting to copy traits.]
[Copy failed.]
Another failure.
If talking didn't work, then—how about a fight?
Jin lifted his head slightly and looked at the boy before him. Sunlight fell on his tousled hair, making it a little dazzling.
"Shisui."
"Yeah?"
"I'm feeling a little... fired up."
"Huh? Have you been staying up late again, Jin?" Shisui blinked.
"No. I want to... fight you."
Jin rolled his neck. His bones cracked and popped.
The laziness and lethargy in his eyes vanished completely.
Like a waking lion, he radiated dazzling light from head to toe.
"Haha, what's gotten into you all of a sud—"
Shisui laughed, even reaching out as if to pinch Jin's cheek.
But just as he reached for him, he saw Jin's eyes turn scarlet.
His expression shifted slightly. Had Jin awakened his Sharingan?
When had Jin awakened it?
Shisui couldn't figure it out.
In his memory, Jin was always lounging around lazily.
Once he'd finished talking, he didn't want to move again.
Uchiha usually awakened their Sharingan on the battlefield, after witnessing a comrade's death and being struck by the shock.
But Jin had never even had the chance to go to war!
And nothing especially tragic had happened to him from the day he was born until now.
So how had he awakened it?
Especially...
Those scarlet Sharingan made even Shisui feel as if he had thorns at his back.
So Jin was serious?
He took a deep breath, his expression turning serious. Then he nodded.
"Okay."
Whoosh!
He drew the sword from his back and leaped several steps away.
Chakra surged through him in waves.
Glug, glug.
At his feet,
the river's surface bubbled like a pot of boiling oil.
"Then let's see how far little Jin has come!"
With that, he slashed.
Splash!
A blade of chakra, carrying a wave of water, shot straight toward Jin!
Smack, splash.
Sprays of water burst out, instantly obscuring their vision.
Beyond the mist of white spray, Shisui formed hand seals and called out a warning.
"Jin, be careful! I'm going to use Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique from three directions at once—"
He abruptly fell silent.
Drip.
A bead of sweat appeared on his forehead.
Goosebumps prickled across his back.
At the edge of his vision, the gleam of a shuriken hovered beside his kidney, glinting coldly.
The Flying Thunder God Technique flashed above Jin's head.
Holding the shuriken by its end, Jin shook his head.
"Shisui, has no one ever told you not to talk so much in a fight...?"
"Taking too long to get to the point makes it way too easy to get taken out."
They were already fighting, and this guy was still reminding him to be careful.
If he'd been up against someone fast, wouldn't he have been killed in one strike?
It was only then that Jin finally understood firsthand why the Yellow Flash, Namikaze Minato, had made the major shinobi villages abandon their missions outright.
Even the famed Sannin of the Leaf hadn't made the villages issue a notice saying: "If you encounter them, you may abandon your mission immediately"!
"You... when did you...?"
Shisui furrowed his brow. For the first time, a note of caution entered his bright eyes.
He was completely taken aback.
Jin had been right in front of him just a moment ago. How had he suddenly appeared behind him?
The Body Flicker Technique?
But when had he formed the hand seals?
Splash.
The next second, Shisui turned into a puddle of water and flowed into the river.
Splash, splash!
Soon, he re-formed ten meters away, splitting into a dozen figures.
Twelve clones in all!
Each held a sword and faced Jin!
"Body Flicker Technique? Now that's a little interesting... But—"
Bumps rose at the corners of Jin's eyes. The whites of the Byakugan appeared beneath his scarlet gaze in an instant.
"Sharingan plus Byakugan? Shisui, your Body Flicker Technique is useless now, isn't it?"
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