Wouldn't That Leave Me Like Meat on a Chopping Board?

Hibari caught his breath and got back into position.

"Could Tobirama have given me a fake scroll?" he wondered, then dismissed the thought. "Why would he waste his time messing with me? Besides, the theory in this scroll is explained so clearly. It looks genuine..."

This time, he was more careful. He steadied himself, formed the Hand Seals again, and called out, "Shadow Clone Technique!"

But the same problem struck again. Just as the Shadow Clone was about to take shape, Hibari felt his chakra flow falter. Then came a soft poof, and the technique failed once more.

"...This is freaking unreal!" Hibari clutched his aching chest, his face full of disbelief.

He remembered Naruto Uzumaki in the original story. The first time that kid tried the Multi Shadow Clone Technique, he'd only glanced at the scroll before creating hundreds of clones.

Hibari had spent ages trying to make just one Shadow Clone, and he'd failed twice in a row?

One setback after another left him feeling uncertain. The problem was, he was sure he'd followed every step correctly, and his chakra distribution had been just right. It made no sense.

He could blame the first failure on being out of practice, but after failing a second time, Hibari couldn't believe it was just bad luck.

He figured either Tobirama's scroll was faulty, or the technique had undergone some strange change inside him.

Hibari furrowed his brow, first suspecting that damn Human-Human Fruit. Thinking about it, there might really be a connection between it and the Shadow Clone Technique... After all, one acted on a "person," while the other created a "person."

"This time, I won't rush," he muttered. "I'll pay close attention and figure out exactly what's going wrong."

Hibari formed the Hand Seals for the Shadow Clone Technique again, but this time he didn't immediately move his chakra. Instead, he slowed its flow to a crawl and gently set the technique in motion.

Everything went smoothly at first, but just as his chakra was about to split in two and the clone was about to emerge, that same sluggish feeling returned.

However, because he'd slowed everything down, the technique didn't fail right away. Hibari was able to pinpoint the problem.

"Good grief..." His heart lurched. "Is it not enough chakra? Does a single Shadow Clone need more than half my chakra?"

It seemed ridiculous, but to get to the bottom of it, Hibari steeled himself and ignored the scroll's warning to "distribute the chakra evenly."

"Fine. Take as much as you need!"

He stopped controlling the output and let the Shadow Clone Technique draw chakra from his body. As soon as he let go, his chakra surged over like floodwater through a broken dam.

In the blink of an eye, the chakra reserves that far surpassed an ordinary person's were completely drained. His legs went weak, and he nearly toppled over.

But as his chakra was drained, that sluggish feeling disappeared too.

With a poof, a figure identical to Hibari appeared beside him and reached out to steady him.

"Well, there you have it..." Hibari looked at the Shadow Clone holding him up, at a loss for words. "A B-rank technique, and I have to empty my reserves just to use it? If I tried the Multi Shadow Clone Technique, wouldn't I drop dead on the spot?"

After catching his breath, he began examining the clone. It looked no different, but something still felt off.

"How do you feel?" Hibari asked.

The Shadow Clone answered naturally, "Nothing special. I just feel... like I've come alive. My whole body's brimming with chakra."

Hibari nearly laughed in frustration. Of course he was brimming with chakra. All of Hibari's had gone straight into him!

But the clone's words, "like I've come alive," caught Hibari's attention. He rubbed his chin and looked the Shadow Clone up and down, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"Hey, what are you planning?" The Shadow Clone warily took half a step back. "We're the same person. If you mess with me, when the technique ends, you'll feel everything I felt!"

"Hahaha, listen to you," Hibari said with a grin. "Would I really hurt myself? Relax..."

As he spoke, he reached into the tool pouch at his lower back and pulled out a Kunai, weighing it in his hand. Sunlight glinted coldly off its blade.

"Hey! Are you even listening to me?" The Shadow Clone's voice wavered at the sight of the gleaming Kunai. "We come from the same source. If you hurt me, you'll suffer for it!"

"Don't worry. I just want to test something." Hibari weighed the Kunai in his hand, a smile on his face. "You drained all my chakra, so there has to be something different about you, right?

"I figure this strange business has something to do with that damn Human-Human Fruit. Maybe we can learn something by testing it."

The Shadow Clone fell silent for a few seconds. The two of them were one and the same, so naturally they thought alike. "I guess we can try... but what exactly are you planning to do?"

"Come on, you're an ordinary Shadow Clone. Take enough damage and the technique ends on its own." Hibari grinned mischievously. "So let's start by testing that."

"...Do you have to go that far? You're jumping straight to stabbing me?" The Shadow Clone's voice was already growing weak.

"Relax, I know what I'm doing!" Hibari twirled the Kunai. "It's my first time, but I promise it won't hurt! Come on, let me stab you once!"

"Hey! Listen to yourself! Does that even make sense?!" the Shadow Clone shouted.

He said that, but he didn't back away. Just as he'd said, they were the same person, and the experiment really was necessary.

The Shadow Clone gritted his teeth and steeled himself. "...Damn it, fine! Go ahead. Just make it quick!"

"Just watch. I told you I'm good at this." Hibari's eyes narrowed slightly.

Before he'd even finished speaking, the Kunai in his hand shot forward without the slightest hesitation, plunging straight into the Shadow Clone's shoulder. With a wet squelch, blood sprayed out, and a few drops even splattered onto Hibari's face.

"Ah, ow, ow... You bastard! You're really that rough with yourself?!" the Shadow Clone groaned in pain.

But as soon as he finished speaking, he froze. Hibari, standing beside him, also stared wide-eyed in disbelief.

A Shadow Clone could take a little damage, sure, but Hibari had struck hard. An ordinary clone would've vanished with a poof.

Yet this one hadn't disappeared. He could even curse at him?

Even stranger, Hibari could clearly feel the Kunai plunging in, just like stabbing into real flesh. The blood that sprayed out was warm and bright red.

It wasn't unusual for a Shadow Clone to get hurt. Scrapes and bruises were normal. But bleeding like this... it was just like watching a living person!

"You..." Hibari's voice wavered. "What kind of Shadow Clone are you? You're not... You're not a Shadow Clone at all. You're another living, breathing me!"

The Shadow Clone was just as stunned. Gritting his teeth, he grabbed the Kunai handle in his shoulder and yanked it out. Blood immediately welled from the wound, leaving him staring in shock.

"Looks like you were right... The Shadow Clone Technique has definitely gotten mixed up with the power of the Human-Human Fruit..."

After speaking, he pressed hard against the acupoints around the wound. Strangely enough, the blood that had been pouring out moments earlier gradually stopped.

"Holy crap, you can even stop your own bleeding?!" the Shadow Clone exclaimed, looking at his bloodied hand. "This really is my body!"

"Try using a jutsu," Hibari suggested after a moment's thought.

The Shadow Clone nodded and quickly formed several Hand Seals. He could clearly feel chakra flowing through his body. He took a deep breath, raised his head, and spat toward the sky. "Wind Style: Vacuum Sphere!"

The technique flowed smoothly, without the slightest hitch. The Shadow Clone breathed a sigh of relief. "No problem at all..."

But before he could finish speaking, he stopped short. He carefully checked his body, his eyes widening further. "Wait... The chakra I just used is... actually coming back on its own?!"

Hibari was at a complete loss for words.

Everyone knew that an ordinary Shadow Clone took a portion of the original's chakra, then disappeared once it ran out. But chakra recovering on its own? No one had ever heard of such a thing!

Yet this clone Hibari had created could take real damage, bleed, use jutsu, and even recover his own chakra... How the hell was that any different from cloning a fully grown person?!

After all that, Hibari finally understood: his Shadow Clone Technique had really created something extraordinary.

He couldn't help feeling a little pleased. Having a clone like this would make everything more convenient. In a fight, it would be the perfect weapon for catching people off guard!

But his smile lasted barely two seconds before his face fell. The technique had drained all his chakra in one go. Did that mean the Multi Shadow Clone Technique was out of the question forever? Unless... he was willing to risk his life? That would be ridiculous!

And if he used this Shadow Clone in a real fight, his chakra would be drained on the spot. Wouldn't that leave him like meat on a chopping board? What a damn useless technique!

At the thought, all his earlier excitement vanished, leaving him with a bitter feeling.

He looked at the clone before him and spoke with a dejected expression. "Do you realize that you've just made two of my techniques useless?"

"What do you mean?" The Shadow Clone raised an eyebrow, baffled.

"Think about it," Hibari explained. "You drained all my chakra the moment you appeared. Do I have any chance of using the Multi Shadow Clone Technique now? And in a real fight, would I dare use this Shadow Clone? If I did, I'd..."

The Shadow Clone furrowed his brow too. "Oh, you're right! That's a serious problem!"

But then his eyes shifted, and he spoke again. "Maybe there's another possibility. Think about it: the Human-Human Fruit can't create an unlimited number of clones like me, can it? I'd guess there can only be one of me.

"Your chakra should've recovered a little by now, right? Why not... try creating another one? Then we'll know for sure."

Hibari's eyes lit up. That was the great thing about creating a clone of himself: the guy was just as clever as he was, almost as smart as the original.

Hibari was in good shape, and his chakra recovered quickly. He didn't have much left at the moment, but the Shadow Clone Technique didn't require a lot of chakra to begin with. All he needed was enough to divide it into two equal portions.

Of course, a smaller amount of chakra meant a weaker clone. But Hibari didn't care about that right now. He just wanted to test his theory.

No sooner said than done. Hibari formed the Hand Seals and gathered what little chakra he had, then called out, "Shadow Clone Technique!"

This time, there was no sluggish feeling. With a soft poof, another figure identical to him appeared beside him.

Seeing this, Hibari's grin spread, and he burst out laughing. "Hahahahaha! I knew it!!!"

But before his laughter could fade, he saw the special Shadow Clone who'd appeared first swing a fist into the second clone's stomach. The second clone took the blow and vanished in a puff of white smoke.