Obito Arrives, and So Does the Fun

The atmosphere at the scene was very silent.

More accurately, it was grave.

At least, that was how Itachi Uchiha perceived it.

Standing behind Genkawa Uchiha, he watched the two men facing each other from a great distance apart and seemed to sense an unusual killing intent lingering around them.

It put considerable pressure on him.

Though he was young, he was still the Clan Head's son. By the rules of ninja clans, that made him the young clan head.

And as the young clan head, there was much he had needed to learn since childhood, especially matters concerning his own clan, which he had grown up hearing and seeing.

Others might not have been sensitive to the name Madara Uchiha, but he knew exactly what it meant.

That was the man known as the Asura of the Ninja World, the being who had ended the chaos of the Warring States Period alongside the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, a man as powerful as a god.

And now, such a person had suddenly appeared before him and claimed to be Madara Uchiha. No matter how he looked at it, this visitor had come with ill intent.

He might have been young and understood little, but he could still tell whether the current situation was good or bad.

One eye was exposed beneath the visitor's mask, and Itachi Uchiha was all too familiar with that eye.

It was the Sharingan.

So Itachi Uchiha subconsciously believed him.

At that moment, the man calling himself Madara Uchiha said nothing more. His single eye merely stared at Genkawa Uchiha, as though he had been angered by Genkawa's words.

Fine.

Genkawa Uchiha admitted that his insults had been pretty filthy, but he had only spoken the truth. Madara Uchiha was a damn fool, and that was beyond dispute.

As for Obito Uchiha, wearing Madara Uchiha's identity, he would have been better off changing his name to Obito Uchiha the Ass.

For once, Genkawa Uchiha did not expose the newcomer's identity. Instead, he maliciously chose to play along and simply have some fun.

As for why Obito Uchiha had come looking for him, he had a rough guess.

Today was the day Hiruzen Sarutobi had left the village to report to the Feudal Lord. With the Hokage absent from the village, it was the perfect time for Obito Uchiha to sneak in.

As for why he had sought him out, Genkawa Uchiha figured that either Obito Uchiha wanted to recruit him, or he had simply come to show his face.

In any case, it was nothing good.

But did Genkawa Uchiha care?

He did not even care about the entire Uchiha Clan. Why would he care about some defeated dog?

What a joke.

"Not answering? Or did you come here just to stand there and put on an act?"

"Madara" Uchiha moved, stepping toward them once more with a low laugh.

"Hohoho, you sharp-tongued brat. Do you think that will make this old man angry?"

Genkawa Uchiha smiled at that and slowly drew the Ninja Blade from his waist.

It was the very blade Fugaku Uchiha and his wife had sent him, a fine weapon.

As for the Kusanagi Sword, that thing was too conspicuous, so he would not take it out for now.

"You say you're Madara Uchiha, so I'll treat you as Madara Uchiha for the moment. I assume you didn't come here alone just to chat with me, did you, Asura of the Ninja World?"

"Madara" Uchiha stopped several meters before Genkawa Uchiha and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Naturally. This old man came to weigh your mettle."

Seeing him like that, Genkawa Uchiha's eye twitched, and he nearly failed to keep a straight face.

Honestly, knowing the truth and knowing that the person standing before him was Obito Uchiha, while watching him desperately imitate Madara Uchiha, was genuinely hilarious.

The imposing air was there, but not much of it. It might fool others, but it would never fool him.

It was rather ridiculous.

But considering that Obito Uchiha himself was ridiculous, it somehow made sense again.

"I see. Then come on. Let me see just how strong you, the Asura of the Ninja World, really are."

As he spoke, the Ninja Blade was fully drawn, its edge flashing with cold light.

"Aren't you going to take out a weapon?" Genkawa Uchiha asked.

"Hmph. Against a brat like you, there's no need."

"Madara" Uchiha stood proudly, putting on quite the pose.

"Heh."

Genkawa Uchiha chuckled twice to ease the inexplicable awkwardness, then instructed without looking back, "Move back. Stay farther away."

Itachi Uchiha suddenly snapped back to his senses. Sweat had already appeared on his little face, and without hesitation, he ran backward, being very obedient.

The next instant, he heard a sharp metallic ring.

It was the sound of a blade slashing down.

He instinctively turned around, and his eyes widened.

In his sight, Genkawa Uchiha's body became a streak, appearing before Madara Uchiha almost instantly as his Ninja Blade came down from above.

The latter seemed caught off guard. He had not expected Genkawa Uchiha to be so fast, and he could not dodge in time. A gash was cut across the black robe over his chest.

Looking closely, one could see faint currents of electricity flickering around Genkawa Uchiha's legs and feet.

Only then did the explosive sound reach them. The ground where he had originally stood had sunk slightly and cracked apart, clearly from the force of Genkawa Uchiha's kick.

"S-So strong..."

Itachi Uchiha forgot to keep running. He actually stopped where he was and stared wide-eyed at the scene.

Madara Uchiha quickly retreated, leaping back several times to widen the distance between himself and Genkawa Uchiha.

He lowered his head and looked at the tear across his chest. Fortunately, it had not reached his body and had only cut through his clothes.

Even so, the face beneath his mask darkened.

I was careless!

He had come here intending to see just what made this famed genius of the Uchiha Clan so exceptional.

After releasing the Nine-Tails, fighting the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato, and causing the Nine-Tails Incident, he had accomplished quite a great deal and considered himself a powerful man.

On top of that, he was wearing Madara Uchiha's identity. With that mindset, he had naturally placed himself above Genkawa Uchiha.

But Genkawa Uchiha had sobered him up with a single slash.

That slash... was too fast.

Genkawa Uchiha slowly straightened up as the lightning around his legs gradually dissipated, then took the initiative to speak. "This is a Body Flicker Technique developed using Senju Strength of a Hundred and Kumogakure's Lightning Style Nintaijutsu as its foundation. Asura of the Ninja World... what do you think?"

This Body Flicker Technique was only a half-finished product and far from complete, but that did not stop him from showing it off for Madara Uchiha to see.

When the other man did not speak, Genkawa Uchiha added, "Are you thinking of saying that I'm mere dust, not even worth half of you?"

The other man still said nothing, but the corner of his eye twitched beneath the mask.

"Heh, what an interesting brat."

Genkawa Uchiha grinned. "Is that so? Then... shall we continue?"

As soon as the words fell, his figure vanished again. This time, he still charged at his opponent like a streak, kicking up quite a commotion.

Yet "Madara" Uchiha remained rooted to the spot, as though he had not noticed the attack at all.

The next moment, the two passed through each other.

Itachi Uchiha did not blink once.

He saw it clearly. For an instant, their bodies overlapped. Genkawa Uchiha had plainly passed through the other man's body, yet not even a strand of the other man's hair had moved.

"How... how is that possible?"

Itachi Uchiha's young mind could not figure out what had happened, but at the sight, his heart sank.

Genkawa Uchiha flashed aside to evade a Kunai, landing high atop a nearby tree.

"A Space-Time ninjutsu? Not bad. But I wonder, how long can you maintain that technique?"

"Madara" Uchiha's fingers trembled slightly.

Then Genkawa Uchiha continued, "It's a very unusual technique. Nothing like it has ever circulated in the Ninja World. So is this the ability of your eye?"

"Madara" Uchiha looked up and met Genkawa Uchiha's smile.

"If you are Madara Uchiha, then you must possess those eyes. Looks like I was right."

Genkawa Uchiha spoke to himself. It sounded like he was guessing, but in truth, he was simply messing with Obito Uchiha's head for fun.

At last, his smile vanished, and his expression turned cold.

"Do you want to dance too?"

"Madara" Uchiha fell silent. He took a deep breath, then slowly let it out, his voice still hoarse.

"I underestimated you, Genkawa Uchiha. In that case, I'll defeat you in the field you are most proud of and make you see reality."