Ninja Art: Circle
He gathered chakra and expanded it outward from himself as the center, forming a circular chakra membrane with no blind spots across a full 360 degrees. The moment an enemy intruded and touched the "membrane," he would sense them.
This was a sensory jutsu Suifeng had developed specifically to counter the Mist Ninja's Silent Killing Technique, after he'd once been caught in a Kirigakure ambush!
Whenever Uchiha Haruki thought about it, he felt a dull ache in his brain.
Could someone really do that? Could it be done? Could one person be this much of a genius?
The Silent Killing Technique!
Kirigakure's renowned high-level assassination art—and just because Suifeng had encountered it once, he'd figured out how to counter it?
He really had figured it out. Though he hadn't successfully mastered the jutsu, its description alone made it clear that it was an extremely straightforward sensory technique.
Once the membrane covered the entire area around him, there was no way an enemy could launch a surprise attack from any direction.
The problem was that it demanded far too much control over chakra.
Using precise control to make chakra wrap around, condense, and spread was asking too much of most ninja.
Just like Tsunade's Strength Enhancement Technique, the more Suifeng improved his chakra control, the higher the control requirements of the jutsu he created became. They were increasingly tailored to suit him alone.
How different from a jutsu like Iron Body, which was simple and crude: take a few more beatings, and you'd get the hang of it.
Thinking back to all the chakra-control materials Suifeng had requested for training in the Strength Enhancement Technique, Haruki wondered how that training was going.
How could someone like him be sent to the battlefield? A research institute or laboratory was where he truly belonged. He should be studying jutsu in the clan, not going to the battlefield to kill people.
Just like the Second Hokage. Why become Hokage when he could have stayed a jutsu inventor? He'd ended up dying on the battlefield. What a waste.
"Sir, Fugaku is here!"
As Haruki pondered, a voice announced the visitor beside him.
"Fugaku? Let him in."
The Great Elder set down the scroll in his hands and placed it in the box before him. Then he straightened up, his demeanor turning stern.
"Fugaku pays his respects to the Great Elder!"
Fugaku was still very young, barely in his twenties, with bright, alert eyes. He was a far cry from the clan head he'd become more than a decade later, worn down by the combined pressure of the clan and the village.
"Fugaku, you're here. No need to be so formal." Uchiha Haruki gave him a kind smile, though he sighed inwardly. Whatever he thought of the matter, Fugaku was now in his prime, at the best age for a ninja. He was also steady in his conduct, making him the ideal choice for clan head.
The Great Elder looked him up and down before speaking. "Fugaku, I assume Eikawa has already explained that you'll be taking on greater responsibility in this war."
"Yes, Great Elder. My father-in-law has already explained everything."
Uchiha Eikawa was the current head of the Uchiha Clan, as well as Uchiha Mikoto's father.
"Your talent and abilities are plain for all to see. Among this generation of Uchiha, there's no one more capable than you. We old-timers all agree that you should shoulder greater responsibility. So, in this war, make sure you do well and achieve results that will earn everyone's confidence!"
"Rest assured, Great Elder. I won't let you down."
"Good. There's one more thing I need to tell you in advance."
"Please give me your orders."
"Suifeng will be your escort and go to the battlefield with you."
"Suifeng?!"
Uchiha Fugaku didn't understand at first. He stared blankly for a moment. "He's going to the battlefield too?!"
"He's a Chunin now, so of course he has to go."
"I mean, at his age, shouldn't he...?"
"His strength speaks for itself. He needs to be tempered on the battlefield."
Uchiha Haruki sighed softly. "Having him accompany you will give you a chance to get to know each other better. You should guide him when you can. He's still a child, after all, and doesn't know much about the clan or the village. Also, Danzo has set his sights on him. He'll be safer with you than elsewhere."
"Danzo again?!" A sharp glint flashed in Uchiha Fugaku's eyes. As the future clan head, he'd already been let in on all the Uchiha Clan's secrets, including its nearly irreconcilable conflict with Konoha and the few jutsu Suifeng had recently developed.
As a jonin, he'd heard about the conflict between the clan and Konoha and knew a little about it. But before this, all he'd known about Suifeng was that he was a gifted child who'd graduated early from the Ninja Academy and defeated White Fang's son, Kakashi. He hadn't thought much of him.
A genius? Who didn't know a few geniuses? Who hadn't been called one at some point?
He'd been called a genius as a child, and he'd remained one ever since.
But after reading about the two jutsu Suifeng had developed, which had already been designated as secret techniques to be passed down through the clan, Fugaku's understanding of the word "genius" had changed completely.
Compared to a genius like that, what did his own reputation as a genius amount to? A joke?
He'd meant to find a chance to meet Suifeng and win him over. He hadn't expected the Great Elder to send him directly to Fugaku's side.
"Suifeng's talent for developing jutsu is unmatched. The last time he encountered the Mist Ninja, he created a new sensory jutsu specifically to counter Kirigakure's Silent Killing Technique." The Great Elder took the scroll from the box and handed it to Fugaku. "Your mission this time is to guard the Land of Fire's coastline and prevent Kirigakure from infiltrating while we're at war with Sunagakure. Suifeng should be a great help at your side."
"I understand." Fugaku opened the scroll and glanced over it. He took a deep breath and bowed. "Thank you for your consideration, Great Elder."
"Are you really going to the battlefield?!"
Konoha, Anko Dango Shop
Rin handed Suifeng a skewer of dango, her face full of worry. "You only graduated recently. Why are they sending you to the battlefield?"
"I'm a Chunin now!" Suifeng stood up straight. "No one's going to treat me like a child anymore."
"But the battlefield is dangerous!"
"Don't worry. I'll take good care of myself."
After finishing their dango, the two left the shop and walked hand in hand through the streets of Konoha.
"Rin, listen, you've got to practice Medical Ninjutsu seriously. Once you're good at it, even if they send you to the battlefield, you'll be assigned to a protected role. Then I'll apply to serve as a guard for the medical unit, and you'll be safe!"
"But, but..." Rin's cheeks flushed.
"Don't hesitate. Study Medical Ninjutsu hard. The battlefield isn't a place for girls like you." Suifeng smiled and patted Rin on the head.
The legendary head pat!
A dimensionality-defying blow!
The target of the attack, twenty meters away at an empty street corner: Obito, the obsessive peeping tom.
"Damn you, damn you, damn you, Suifeng! You bastard!"
At the deserted street corner, Obito craned his neck and watched Rin, her face flushed and her eyes sparkling with laughter, radiate happiness. He was falling apart. "This isn't right. It can't be! Rin can't like a fake like him. She can't!"
His heart pounded, and his mind churned as he came up with countless explanations for the scene before him. Not one of them could convince him.
"You're Obito Uchiha, aren't you?"
Just then, two figures abruptly appeared in front of him.
"Who are you? Anbu?!"
Obito was still reeling from the dimensionality-defying blow of Suifeng's head pat, and he was dazed.
"Lord Danzo wants to see you. Come with us!"
"Who are you?!" Only when one of them grabbed his shoulder did he finally snap out of it. He twisted his shoulder, trying to break free, but the hand gripping it felt like iron. No matter how hard he struggled, he couldn't escape.
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