The Training Begins

In the forest of the Land of Rivers, five ninja raced through the trees.

Uchiha Obito brought up the rear, his legs feeling as if they were filled with lead. Every step wrung another ounce of effort from his body.

"Damn it, I knew you weren't that nice. How dare you target the great Obito?" he grumbled, looking thoroughly aggrieved.

He was kicking himself now for muttering under his breath about Sen Chisato earlier.

Sen Chisato hadn't chewed him out at the time, so he'd assumed the man hadn't heard him.

But when they put on their weights, the bastard had doubled Obito's load!

If only he'd known, he would've complained out loud!

That was right—he hadn't even considered keeping quiet.

Sweat gathered on his forehead and, as he ran, trickled toward his eyes.

Obito blinked and tried to wipe it away, but the moment he raised his hand, his arm started trembling. Every inch he lifted it brought a searing ache.

His eyes closed on instinct, and he lowered his head toward the back of his hand. Just then, a bone-chilling cold swept up from behind, and a terrifying killing intent engulfed him.

He stumbled, pitched forward, and sprawled face-first in the dirt.

"Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey!"

Spitting the dirt from his mouth, Obito looked up and saw Sen Chisato standing on a tree, watching him coldly.

"Get up. Don't fall behind."

"You jerk, why'd you scare me?!" Obito snarled.

"This is to help you get used to it in advance, so you don't freeze like an idiot when you face an enemy."

Sen Chisato explained impassively, pointing ahead. "Hurry up. You're slowing us all down. Do you want to keep being a burden?"

Obito looked up. Namikaze Minato and the others were waiting farther ahead.

"That's only because you doubled my weights." Obito struggled to his feet, still feeling indignant.

"More effort means more progress. Or do you want to stay at the bottom of the class?" Sen Chisato asked.

Obito paused, then stopped complaining. After a couple of deep breaths, he braced his hands on his knees and slowly straightened up. Without a word, he ran on.

Seeing this, Sen Chisato grinned, then bounded ahead and joined Kakashi.

Kakashi glanced at him but paid him little attention, remaining absorbed in his own thoughts.

He was exhausted too, but in much better shape—not just because his weights were half as heavy as Obito's. He was already stronger than Obito, and his resolve was firmer.

After talking through his troubles, he also felt much lighter in both body and mind.

So he still had enough energy to think about how to combine the Hatake Sword Technique with the few sword moves Sen Chisato had demonstrated to him.

Watching him occasionally lift a hand and twist his wrist as if gripping and swinging a sword, Sen Chisato understood. Most of the movements were practice for the Hatake Sword Technique, interspersed with a few stiff, unfamiliar motions.

This kid had gotten himself stuck in another dead end!

Sen Chisato said bluntly, "Swordsmanship is an extension of taijutsu. Your swordsmanship has already developed into a complete system, and the Hatake Sword Technique is also mature and comprehensive. Randomly adding and changing things won't improve it at all."

"But weren't you the one who told me to make changes?" Kakashi asked, confused.

"I want you to make improvements—not change the system or the moves themselves. You should make subtle adjustments so they suit you better and bring out more of the technique's power," Sen Chisato explained.

Kakashi thought for a long time, then shook his head. "Can you be more specific?"

"Sure." Sen Chisato nodded, then glanced back at Obito, whose eyes were vacant and body swaying. "Give me a moment."

That moment lasted until sunset.

A thud came from the back of the group. Everyone stopped and turned to see Obito lying motionless on the ground.

"Obito!" Nohara Rin cried, worried, and hurried toward him.

Sen Chisato got there even faster. He flipped Obito over to check him, then carried him to Rin.

"Don't worry. He just passed out from exhaustion."

Setting Obito down, Sen Chisato couldn't help remarking, "I thought he'd give up pretty quickly, start whining, or pass out before long. I didn't expect him to last this far. He's made me see him in a new light."

That was the highest praise Sen Chisato had ever given Uchiha Obito. Even Kakashi said, "If he heard that, he'd get so full of himself."

"Then let's not tell him. Knowing him, he'd go right back to being arrogant," Sen Chisato said without mercy.

Rin carefully checked Obito over, then finally let out a breath of relief. "He's fine. He's just completely worn out."

Namikaze Minato observed Obito's condition and smiled. "That's not all. Obito broke through his limits this time. He'll be stronger when he wakes up."

"Really? If Obito knew, he'd probably jump for joy," Rin said, her eyes curving into a smile.

"So the weights aren't heavy enough anymore, huh?" Sen Chisato murmured thoughtfully, rubbing his chin.

His priorities had always been rather unusual.

Namikaze Minato and the others all looked at him, their eyes full of disbelief.

Was this guy a demon or what?

They looked back at Obito, a hint of sympathy appearing on every face.

That's what you get for running your mouth without thinking!

Uchiha Obito had a dream.

In the dream, everything was dark, and he was alone. Minato-sensei, that jerk Kakashi, Rin, and the guy who was even more annoying than Kakashi had all disappeared without a trace. No matter how hard he looked, he couldn't find them.

He ran forward as hard as he could, with no idea where he was going or why. All he could hear was his own ragged breathing and the steady pounding of his heart.

Suddenly, faint voices drifted over. Obito stopped at once and listened closely.

Gradually, his eyes lit up.

Those were Kakashi and Sen Chisato's voices!

He immediately sprinted toward them. A sliver of light appeared ahead, growing brighter as he approached until it forced him to close his eyes.

When he opened them again, distant mountains stretched before him. Orange-gold clouds glowed at the horizon, and the forest canopy rippled in waves of green beneath a gentle breeze.

He turned and saw Sen Chisato and Kakashi sitting opposite each other. Sen Chisato was talking, occasionally gesturing with his hand, while Kakashi listened intently and chimed in from time to time.

As if noticing the movement, Sen Chisato glanced his way and raised an eyebrow. "Oh, you're awake."

Obito hadn't come to his senses yet. He simply nodded, dazed.

But Sen Chisato didn't notice. After greeting him, he continued talking with Kakashi.

"The Hatake Sword Technique is powerful. You don't need to add anything else to it—not for now, at least. But everyone's body is different. Even the same person's body changes with age and build."

"What you need to do now is adjust the Hatake Sword Technique to suit your body and bring out your full potential."

"When your father trained you, he must have adjusted it to fit your body at the time. But so many years have passed. Practicing it the same way you did back then isn't quite right anymore."

Kakashi nodded in agreement. "I've felt like my progress has slowed over the past few years, even though I never let up on training and have been through so many real battles... I see."

"So you need to make subtle adjustments, including your swing speed; how much your wrist and shoulder move as you swing; and how you use your waist, legs, and arms to generate force."

"I understand." Kakashi committed it all to memory.

At last, Obito came to his senses and interrupted them. "Where's Rin? And Minato-sensei?"

Kakashi looked annoyed. He'd been right at the most important part.

Sen Chisato didn't scowl at him. Turning his way with a bright smile, he said, "They went to cook. Rin made a special meal just for you."