Want to learn? I'll teach you!

Night, Sosuke's tent.

"Ah, I understand."

Supported by Shū as he sat up, the Youth's expression was dazed. He hadn't expected the clan to suffer a defeat on the main battlefield.

After obtaining intelligence on Fūma Eiichirō, the Corps Commander had eagerly led the team out personally.

Looking back, the whole affair was a complete trap—not just aimed at the frontline headquarters, but also laying a killing scheme for Uchiha Shinya.

Who could have foreseen that the enemy would master the Fūma Clan's long-lost secret technique, Nirvana?

Fūma Eiichirō was already formidable, but after his rebirth through Nirvana, he seemed like an entirely different person. His appearance and build were vastly changed from before, yet his overwhelming strength was even more astonishing than in the past.

Caught off guard, Uchiha Shinya was instantly beaten down. If not for the guard unit's desperate sacrifice, the Corps Commander's seat might have changed hands.

After this battle, the Western Army Corps' morale plummeted, and Sosuke's victory couldn't effectively inspire the clan.

There was no helping it—Uchiha Shinya's prestige was too high. His defeat was practically a shattering blow to the corps' confidence.

Ordinary methods might not work for now.

"By the way." Just before leaving, Shū suddenly turned to face him. After a brief pause, a sinister crimson gleamed in his eyes.

In the life-or-death battle earlier, Uchiha Shū had finally awakened the Sharingan.

Seeing this, Sosuke's heart stirred, and he probed, "I told you to work on developing Lightning Release. How are the results now?"

After a moment's thought, Shū gave a firm answer: "Not bad."

Shū wasn't one to boast. If he said it was not bad, it meant his mastery of Lightning Style was already excellent.

"Good. Remember to come find me tomorrow at noon. And don't train in the morning."

"Got it."

Once his subordinate had left, Sosuke sank into his own thoughts.

In the earlier defensive battle, while his side seemed to have won, the casualties on both sides were roughly equal.

The Uchiha side was outnumbered, and their combat power hadn't reached a level of total dominance.

Just now, Sosuke had been wondering—if there were a few more users of Chidori, would the overall battle situation have turned out differently?

Shadow Clones could be taught, so there was no reason Chidori couldn't be, as long as the learner became his subordinate.

Now that Uchiha Shū had awakened the Sharingan and completed his Lightning Release development, it was time to teach him the secrets of the Chidori technique.

The corps' morale was low; they needed something uplifting to inspire everyone. Sosuke's idea was simple: he wanted to hold a large-scale selection.

Those who met the conditions could join his squad and learn a series of techniques, including Chidori.

He believed this would surely shake the clan, and everyone would unconsciously forget the last battle's failure.

Once their overall strength improved, they'd handle mission competition with more ease.

It would indirectly relieve some pressure from the Corps Commander.

"Highly feasible. Let's see how it goes tomorrow."

His body slowly slid down, and Sosuke pulled the covers over himself, drifting into sleep.

The next day at noon, as everyone was eating, they were suddenly drawn by a sharp, piercing sound.

Everyone was all too familiar with that noise—Uchiha Sosuke's signature technique.

"An enemy attack?!"

When the crowd hurried over, they found that the one using Chidori wasn't Uchiha Sosuke, but Uchiha Shū, long seen as the dead last.

The youth's hand crackled with lightning, capturing everyone's attention. They all knew what that meant.

"Damn, why does he get to learn it?"

"No choice—that's Lord Sosuke's technique. It's his freedom to teach whoever he wants."

"I know, but my talent is clearly better. Ah, forget it, I don't have that luck."

"This is Sosuke's ultimate trump card. He wouldn't casually teach it to just anyone."

"We all understand, but..."

Ignoring the surrounding clamor, Uchiha Shū gritted his teeth, his Sharingan locked onto a massive boulder not far ahead.

In the blink of an eye, he covered dozens of meters. When his arm pierced through the rock, the scene fell so silent you could hear a pin drop.

Seeing the moment was right, Sosuke slowly stepped forward, his voice echoing clearly in everyone's ears: "See that? That's the power of Chidori."

"Do you want to learn?"

At these words, the clan erupted into an uproar.

"Did... did Lord Sosuke just say something?!"

"He asked if we want to learn."

"Uh, learn what?"

"Learn your mother's head."

He shot a glare at his clueless companion, then raised both hands to join the cheering crowd.

After a long while, everyone's enthusiasm gradually subsided as they awaited the inevitable follow-up.

Sure enough, the captain, who was almost too young for his role, slowly laid out his demands.

First, they must awaken the Two-Tomoe Sharingan and master the application of Lightning-natured Chakra.

Second, they must join his squad; anyone who defected would have their ninja qualifications personally revoked by him.

Third, those who joined must sever their original complex ties and not bring factional strife into the team.

Three demands, each harsher than the last.

Awakening the Two-Tomoe Sharingan instantly eliminated half the people on the battlefield.

As for the Lightning-nature requirement, only about one-fifth of the remaining half could meet it.

Joining his squad meant completely cutting ties with their original circles—a very risky move.

As for defectors having their ninja qualifications revoked, that was essentially the captain personally crippling the traitor.

It was a straightforward threat.

As for the third point, it made clear that Captain Sosuke would not meddle in clan factional disputes, so those with complicated backgrounds basically had no hope.

After carefully calculating this, the number of members who met the requirements was actually quite small.

After a long selection process, only three people present successfully joined Sosuke's unit.

The rest all failed at least one of his demands, but that was fine—everyone could wait and see for a while longer.

If the benefits were truly substantial enough, sacrificing a few things wouldn't be out of the question.

After all, in the Ninja World, strength was what mattered most. With strength, wasn't everything within easy reach?

Before anyone realized it, many clan members had shifted their attention to this matter.

Uchiha Shinya, hidden behind the scenes, had a face blooming with smiles every day. He wished every member of the corps could learn it.

Of course, that was unrealistic—if even a portion succeeded, he'd be burning incense to the heavens in gratitude.

The Uchiha's retreat had invisibly emboldened their enemies, as was easy to see from recent missions.

To curb the enemy's momentum, someone had to step up.

Now, he finally knew who that someone was.