"Senior Neji... is he all right?" he asked.
"He was discharged before you," Shisui said with a shrug.
"The Hyuga Clan heals pretty well, too. They checked his chakra pathways, and he was good to go. Before he left, he asked me to pass on a message: 'Next time, I'll use my true strength.'"
Qingyu smiled wryly. "He wasn't using his true strength today?"
"He was, but not completely." Shisui lowered his voice.
"Neji knows some secret techniques of the Main Family, but his status as a member of the Branch Family keeps him from using them openly. Of course, that's just between you and me."
Qingyu nodded, but something stirred in his mind.
The conflict between the Hyuga Branch Family and the Main Family apparently existed on this strange timeline, too.
"Speaking of which," Shisui said, leaning closer and lowering his voice further.
"That last move of yours... how did you think to strike there?"
Here it came! The killer question!
Qingyu's mental CPU went into overdrive. At the same time, he heard two voices inside his head:
Izuna: "Tell the truth! Just say inspiration struck in the middle of the fight!"
Tobirama: "That's too far-fetched! I suggest blaming it on some old books your parents left behind. Say you happened to read a similar account."
"I..." Qingyu opened his mouth, and inspiration struck.
"I just... had a feeling that was a weak point."
Mysticism against mysticism—fight magic with magic!
Let the Daimyo investigate the Daimyo, and the shinobi investigate the shinobi!
Shisui stared at him for three seconds, then smiled. "A feeling, huh... Fair enough. Sometimes instinct is more reliable than analysis."
He actually believed him!
That was the Uchiha for you—so authoritative!
Qingyu discreetly wiped away a bead of cold sweat.
"But," Shisui said, changing tack.
"You can't rely on instinct all the time. Starting tomorrow, I'll come to the hospital every afternoon to help with your recovery training and teach you some systematic tactical analysis."
Qingyu: "...Senior, I just finished a brutal fight."
"That's why we need to strike while the iron's hot," Shisui said, as if it were obvious.
"The post-battle review period is when you learn best. Don't worry, I'll keep the training intensity under control~"
Looking at Shisui's bright smile, Qingyu suddenly had a bad feeling.
"Once you've recovered a bit, we'll start special training at the hospital tomorrow. We'll also work on getting your Heart-Intent Style to work with your Water-Fire Technique~"
Shisui stayed for a while longer, chatting about the match. He even peeled an apple and handed it over, his technique so practiced it seemed he'd done it thousands of times.
"I used to peel my own apples every day when I was injured and stuck in the hospital after Anbu missions," Shisui explained with a smile.
"Practice makes perfect."
As Qingyu munched on the apple, he suddenly remembered something. "Senior Shisui, who do you think will win tomorrow's match between Sasuke and Gaara?"
Shisui's smile faded a little.
After a few seconds of silence, he spoke slowly.
"Judging by strength and experience, Gaara has the advantage. Sasuke... has the pride of the Uchiha and his older brother's expectations weighing on him, so it's hard to say."
"Then who do you want to win?" Qingyu asked cautiously.
Shisui looked at him, his gaze growing distant. "I hope... both of them come through safely."
Qingyu: That's our Uchiha little angel.
After Shisui left, the hospital room grew quiet again.
Qingyu sprawled on the bed, staring at the ceiling as his mind automatically replayed the match.
[ Ding! ]
[ System notification: Host has entered post-battle sage mode. Activating "Tactical Review Module (Trial Version)." ]
[ Generating match report... Loading... ]
A translucent data panel appeared before his eyes:
[ Match: Uchiha Qingyu VS Neji Hyuga ]
[ Duration: 9 minutes 47 seconds (7 minutes spent running away) ]
[ Chakra consumed: Qingyu 92% (not a drop left), Neji 68% (barely breaking a sweat) ]
[ Successful attacks: Qingyu 11 (the master of tickling), Neji 87 (a storm of strikes) ]
[ Fatal openings exposed: Qingyu 3 (that was close), Neji 1 (caught off guard) ]
[ Tactical rating: B+ (overcame a stronger opponent, but relied too much on gambling) ]
[ New title acquired: "Gambler of Subversion" (slightly increased luck when facing stronger opponents) ]
Qingyu looked at the data, especially "fatal openings exposed: 3," and felt a chill run down his back.
"See that?" Izuna's voice rang out.
"Three times! If he'd caught you even once, you'd have been done for!"
"But he only caught you once," Tobirama countered. "And you neutralized it with the Substitution Technique. That shows your ability to adapt in the moment has improved."
"You were just lucky!"
"Luck is part of strength, too."
The two started their usual bickering.
Qingyu sighed and opened his system rewards:
[ Byakugan Insight (Youth Edition) ]
[ Effect: Dynamic vision +15%, chakra flow detection range +5 meters ]
[ Special skill: Can briefly (0.5 seconds) see through an opponent's chakra pathways to spot weak points (Cooldown: 30 minutes) ]
[ Note: A knockoff is still a knockoff. Don't expect it to hold a candle to the genuine article. The Hyuga Clan reserves the right to final interpretation. ]
Qingyu: "..." System bro, are you serious about that last line?
[ System: Do you have any idea how you won?! Kid, look at the kind of luck I gave you! You're lucky to get anything at all, so quit whining! There's plenty of work to do! ]
Qingyu: ...666
He tried activating the ability. His eyes warmed slightly, and his vision changed.
He could see the faint chakra particles floating in the air and even vaguely sense the flow of chakra inside the nurse outside the door.
The range was short and the image unclear, but... this was already ridiculously powerful!
Even a little one was cute!
"This ability," Tobirama commented.
"Has tremendous strategic value. Combined with my analysis, it can help you quickly find an opening in battle."
"Flashy nonsense," Izuna scoffed.
"Real powerhouses fight head-on. Why bother looking for weak points?"
"That's why you—"
"Shut up!"
Qingyu cut off the conversation in his head and started thinking about his next problem: how should he handle Kankuro or Temari?
In the original story, Kankuro used puppets and Temari used Wind Release. Neither of them was an easy opponent.
"If it's Kankuro," Tobirama began analyzing.
"Your Water-Fire Technique counters puppets. Fire can burn wood, and water can rust mechanisms, but watch out for poison and hidden weapons."
"If it's Temari," Izuna chimed in.
"Wind counters fire, but water counters wind. You can use Water Release to create mist and disrupt her, then close in. Her fan has a wide range, but close combat is her weakness."
Qingyu listened and took notes while unrolling the intelligence scroll Shisui had given him.
The scroll contained detailed records of common Sunagakure puppet designs, several variations of Wind Release, and even measurements and weight data for Temari's fan...
"Senior Shisui really dug up everything there is to know about Sunagakure," Qingyu exclaimed.
"Intelligence gathering is basic shinobi training," Tobirama said.
"Back when my older brother and I... ahem. Anyway, know yourself and your enemy."
Qingyu caught the mention of "older brother," but tactfully didn't ask.
Time passed as he reviewed the fight and planned ahead.
In the evening, the nurse came in to change his bandages and brought him dinner: a patient's meal, so bland it could bring tears to his eyes.
"I want meat..." Qingyu moaned, staring at the white rice porridge and vegetables on his tray.
"Not until your chakra has recovered," the nurse said coldly.
"Your stomach can't handle greasy food right now."
Qingyu resigned himself to the meal. The two mentors in his head were still discussing tactical details.
"Oh, right," the nurse said, turning back at the door.
"A blond kid came by earlier to see you, but they stopped him. They said non-family visitors would have to wait until tomorrow."
Blond? Naruto Uzumaki?
Qingyu froze for a moment, warmth spreading through his heart. He hadn't expected that hot-blooded idiot to come see him...
Wait, did I just say something weird too?!
Before you continue