Konoha,
The sun shone brilliantly in the blue sky.
Rays of sunlight fell on a training ground in the middle of a vast forest.
Uchiha Itachi clenched his little hands, his eyes shining as he stared ahead.
Uchiha Chen nodded calmly, then crouched and leaped into the air. He didn't form any Hand Seals, only giving a soft shout.
"Fire Release—Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
A fireball burst from Uchiha Chen's mouth, rapidly growing larger. In the blink of an eye, it had become a colossal ball of fire more than a hundred meters in diameter.
The enormous fireball slammed into the ground like a falling meteor. A deafening crash rang out, and the earth trembled.
A gigantic crater had been blasted into the ground. Several scattered patches of fire still burned inside it...
"Wow, Brother Chen, you're amazing!"
Though he'd seen this before, Uchiha Itachi still clapped excitedly.
It was no wonder Uchiha Itachi was so excited. Even other members of the Uchiha Clan would have been left utterly dumbfounded by the sight.
The reason was simple: the jutsu Uchiha Chen had just performed was only a C-rank technique, one of the Uchiha Clan's most basic jutsu. Nearly every Uchiha Clan ninja knew it.
Yet the Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu Uchiha Chen had just used was more than a hundred times as powerful as the versions cast by others. Its power rivaled that of a forbidden jutsu!
Most astonishing of all, Uchiha Chen had performed this terrifying jutsu without forming a single Hand Seal!
How many people in the entire Ninja World could do that?
"Itachi, I've shown you again. You should have learned this improved Fireball Jutsu by now, right?"
Looking at the thoroughly excited Uchiha Itachi, Uchiha Chen felt a little helpless.
A few days earlier, when Uchiha Itachi was practicing Fire Release, Uchiha Chen had gotten the urge to practice it himself and improve his proficiency.
He'd mentally rehearsed Fire Release: Fireball Jutsu once, and his astonishing Max-Level Comprehension had activated again.
Not only had he grasped an advanced version of Fire Release: Fireball Jutsu, he'd also deduced and mastered other advanced, standard Fire Release Ninjutsu. Just like before, he could perform all of them without Hand Seals.
Uchiha Chen even wondered whether he could use jutsu from other styles and, just as with Water and Fire, deduce and learn other jutsu of the same style.
But he'd have to find time to test those theories later.
As it happened, Uchiha Itachi had seen Uchiha Chen perform the advanced Fire Release: Fireball Jutsu. He'd been awestruck, and his admiration for Uchiha Chen had soared.
After that, he'd kept pestering Uchiha Chen to teach him the advanced Fireball Jutsu.
And since Uchiha Chen wanted to get closer to Uchiha Itachi, he'd naturally agreed.
"Brother Chen, I... I haven't learned it."
At Uchiha Chen's question, the excitement faded from Uchiha Itachi's little face, replaced by deep frustration.
"What? You still haven't learned it? But I've demonstrated it for you every day these past few days!"
Uchiha Chen stared at Uchiha Itachi in surprise.
After all, in the original story, Uchiha Itachi was a once-in-a-generation genius. He'd learned the Fireball Jutsu after seeing it only once.
Even if the advanced version was much harder to learn, Uchiha Chen had still expected Uchiha Itachi to pick it up quickly. He'd even thoughtfully demonstrated it for him every day.
But the result had left Uchiha Chen utterly astonished.
Sure, Uchiha Itachi's destiny had started turning with Uchiha Chen's arrival, but that didn't mean a genius should become an ordinary person, did it?
"Brother Chen, you didn't form any Hand Seals when you demonstrated it. I couldn't figure it out..."
Uchiha Itachi lowered his head and mumbled, feeling wronged.
"Uh..."
Now it was Uchiha Chen's turn to be stunned. So after all that, it had actually been his fault...
Of course, there was no way he was taking the blame.
Uchiha Chen's expression shifted, and he suddenly looked very serious.
"I knew you wouldn't be able to learn this jutsu when I didn't form any Hand Seals. But do you know why I never mentioned it these past few days?"
"I... I don't know."
Uchiha Itachi shook his head in bewilderment, his mind completely blank.
"Because I was waiting for you to ask. If you knew you couldn't learn it, why didn't you ask me?"
Uchiha Chen said it with a perfectly straight face.
"Brother Chen, I was afraid of disturbing your training..."
"Don't make excuses! What about when I wasn't training? Didn't you have plenty of free time? Why couldn't you ask me then? What's your mouth for?"
"Brother Chen, I know I was wrong. I'll do better from now on!"
"Good. Knowing your mistake and correcting it is great. If you don't understand something in the future, ask me. Got it?"
Uchiha Chen looked at Uchiha Itachi with satisfaction. He'd handled that perfectly.
"Thanks, Brother Chen. I understand!"
"Good. So what should you do now?"
"Please teach me the Hand Seals for the improved Fireball Jutsu!"
Uchiha Itachi's earlier frustration was gone. He gazed at Uchiha Chen, his eyes shining.
"Good. Watch closely."
Half an hour later...
"Fire Release—Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
Uchiha Itachi's hands moved in front of him, rapidly forming Hand Seals. They were mostly the same as those for the Fireball Jutsu, with only a few small differences.
Once he'd finished the Hand Seals, a huge fireball more than ten meters across burst from Uchiha Itachi's mouth...
"Brother Chen, I finally learned this jutsu!"
Uchiha Itachi ran over to Uchiha Chen, who was enjoying the shade beneath a tree. A hint of excitement showed on his young face.
If Uchiha Fugaku had seen this, he would have been astonished. He'd never seen Uchiha Itachi wear such an expression before.
After all, it was rare to see any emotion on Uchiha Itachi's face. Even when he'd first learned the Fireball Jutsu, he'd shown no emotion at all.
He'd never seen him this excited.
Just then, a gruff voice came from the woods.
"Good, good! Just as you'd expect from the clan leader's son. Even his basic jutsu is more powerful than anyone else's!"
Uchiha Chen and Uchiha Itachi looked up in surprise. Almost all of Konoha's able-bodied forces had gone to fight on the front lines recently, and few people came to the training grounds.
Several figures dressed in Uchiha Clan uniforms emerged from the woods and walked toward them at an unhurried pace.
Uchiha Chen frowned. Although they were all members of the Uchiha Clan, he didn't recognize any of them.
Besides, they didn't look like they'd come in peace!