"Isn't it just that he has a talented younger brother? If he can't cut it himself, he'll be useless wherever he goes. There's no way he'll pass the Chunin Ninja Exams this time!"
Choji snorted.
Meanwhile, in the Uchiha Clan district of Konoha.
Ever since the Uchiha Clan had been wiped out, the village had never reclaimed their territory. It now covered nearly a tenth of the village, and all of it belonged to the brothers, Uchiha Sora and Sasuke!
Now that Uchiha Sora had returned, Sasuke Uchiha was waiting for him at home.
The moment he saw his cousin come back, Sasuke's face lit up with joy.
"Cousin! You're back! Look, I practiced my shuriken throwing today. Am I getting better?"
Uchiha Sora smiled and reached over to pat Sasuke on the head.
"All right, I don't have time to train with you right now. We'll talk after I finish the Chunin Ninja Exams!"
Unlike in the original story, Sasuke wasn't full of hatred. On the contrary, thanks to the patient guidance of his older cousin, Uchiha Sora, he had already improved quite a bit.
And that was the first thing Uchiha Sora had done after transmigrating, using his knowledge of the original story.
He'd made up for the family affection Sasuke had been missing and guided him onto the right path.
This gave Uchiha Sora two advantages.
First, Sasuke was part of the protagonist's inner circle. No matter what, he had plot armor.
If Uchiha Sora couldn't make it on his own later, he could cling to Sasuke's coattails and still live comfortably.
For starters, Sasuke could easily get him a job as a Hokage's secretary in the village.
Second, Uchiha Sora knew Sasuke had to stay by his side. Otherwise, Orochimaru might set his sights on him instead.
Uchiha Sora had no intention of becoming a test subject.
Sasuke looked curious.
"Cousin, you haven't awakened your Sharingan. How are you going to take the Chunin Ninja Exams? Why not team up with me?"
As far as Sasuke was concerned, his cousin treated him well, but he just didn't have much talent.
He was already eighteen and still hadn't awakened his Sharingan. In the past, that would have made him a good-for-nothing in the village.
But Sasuke had felt the warmth of family from Uchiha Sora, and he wouldn't give up on him easily.
"It's just a little something. Don't worry about it. When the Chunin Ninja Exams start, make sure you team up with Naruto and Sakura!"
"And stay away from the ninjas from the Land of Rain!"
Uchiha Sora warned him sternly.
Having read the original story, he knew Orochimaru would take advantage of the chaos to sneak in, disguised as a ninja from the Land of Rain.
Uchiha Sora couldn't change that, and he couldn't face Orochimaru head-on.
So all he could do was avoid him.
Sasuke didn't quite understand, but he knew his cousin wouldn't hurt him, so he nodded.
"Got it! Cousin, go take care of your business. I'll keep practicing my shuriken throwing!"
Seeing how obedient Sasuke was, Uchiha Sora nodded in satisfaction.
If he hadn't stepped in, Sasuke would probably still be brooding and blaming the world, just like in the original story.
Looking at it that way, he was definitely one of the Ten Most Inspiring Figures in the Shinobi World!
"Ah, never mind. The priority now is to hurry up and synthesize something!"
Uchiha Sora shook his head, put the thought out of his mind, and quickly went into his room.
Then he opened the system in his mind.
The synthesis interface popped up at once. Just like before, it had seven or eight white item slots.
Uchiha Sora could place the items he'd obtained in a certain order and quantity.
He could leave the rest to the system!
Without another word, Uchiha Sora pulled out some charcoal and other materials.
As soon as he placed them in his palm, they vanished. When they appeared again, they were already in the item slots!
"Ding! Materials detected... The system is assessing them!"
Time passed, and the assessment continued.
Fine beads of sweat appeared on Uchiha Sora's forehead.
What would the system make of them?
Could he successfully synthesize Black Powder?
And once it was synthesized, would he get a bomb or a ninjutsu?
As he waited anxiously, the system finally chimed in again.
"Ding! Congratulations, host. The recipe is scientifically sound. The system has determined that this is a Black Powder recipe. In recognition of your precise control over the recipe, the system will mutate and double the results of this synthesis!"
A dazzling stream of light shimmered through Uchiha Sora's mind. The next moment, the materials turned into light and fused together.
A moment later, a mass of black energy appeared before him!
It looked familiar—almost like chakra!
"Ding! Congratulations, host. Mutation successful. Black Powder Chakra unlocked!"
"As the saying goes, all chakra is one. Chakra is simply a form of energy with different attributes. Under normal circumstances, a ninja only possesses a wind nature, along with a few other pure nature types!"
"It has little effect on combat. At most, it can affect a ninja's proficiency with certain techniques."
"But mutated Black Powder Chakra can be considered a Kekkei Genkai. It can mutate the host's chakra, granting the ability to ignite any object—even to detonate things from a distance!"
At those words, Uchiha Sora was thrilled!
He could make anything explode, and even from a distance. Didn't that mean he'd basically learned the Great Fireball Technique?
The Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique was considered a high-level technique in the Ninja World.
Only a handful of geniuses and members of the Uchiha Clan could master it.
It was powerful, useful at close range, and could also be launched from a distance.
But it was also difficult to learn.
Wasn't the chakra he'd just gained an upgraded version of the Great Fireball?
After all, no matter how intense it was, fire was still just an intangible thing.
A wall of earth or a stream of water could stop it.
But explosions were different. If the system was right, he could set off an explosion at a specific point, even from a distance. Wouldn't that mean he could blow up anything he pointed at?
Uchiha Sora couldn't hold back his excitement.
Without another word, he stood up and went to the Uchiha Clan's backyard.
Their territory was huge, and the brothers had plenty of space in the backyard to test their techniques.
As Uchiha Sora called on his chakra, he could clearly feel that it was different now!
It felt stronger and more violent, yet it couldn't hurt him!
It was as if a flood of beasts was surging through his veins!
"What a powerful presence... What would happen if I set it off?"
As he spoke, Uchiha Sora extended a hand and pointed at the lake in the distance.
He released only a tiny amount of chakra.
Normally, that little chakra would have been insignificant.
In other words, even if Uchiha Sora—or even the Hokage himself—released a tiny amount of chakra, it wouldn't do any real damage.
After all, before it was converted into a ninjutsu, chakra was just a gas, like coal gas or propane.
It couldn't be ignited. Put simply, it was just air.
But now, right in front of Uchiha Sora, a dark mass suddenly appeared.
It was as if it had leaped out of thin air. That was Uchiha Sora's chakra!
The moment it appeared, it exploded, blooming into a flower of flame across the lake.
The blast covered an enormous area. In the blink of an eye, it had blown a huge crater into the middle of the lake!
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