Obito's Public Humiliation

Obito stared fixedly at Uchiha Beiying before him.

Hideki had wanted to encourage Obito. Against an enemy like this, he absolutely could not think about running, because he would not outrun them.

But seeing Obito's imposing manner, Hideki chose to keep quiet instead.

Come to think of it.

Although Obito was the dead last in their class, ranking at the bottom in both academics and combat lessons.

Most of that was because of Kakashi... Obito challenged Kakashi in every combat class without fail, rain or shine, so his current record was zero wins and nine losses.

"Buy me some time, please!"

Hideki was not the one who said that, and even he was startled.

He glanced at Obito and realized that Obito seemed a little different today.

Could his Uchiha bloodline have awakened?

That shouldn't be...

Hideki was thinking that, but his body had already moved.

Talking was useless. Trusting his fists was more reliable than running his mouth!

Hideki kicked off with both legs and charged forward, but just as he was about to reach them, he suddenly pulled something from his pocket.

It was light and small. Clutched in his hand, he threw it straight at them!

"You didn't get blown up last time! This time, I'll blow up both you and your cousin!"

Hideki shouted.

"It's an Explosive Tag!"

Uchiha Beiying immediately howled. The light was too dim for him to see what Hideki had thrown, but he was already jumpy from the slightest scare and instinctively assumed it was an Explosive Tag.

"Calm down!"

The Uchiha wearing a forehead protector barked coldly. He flashed forward, and in an instant, the object was already in his hand.

It really did feel like an Explosive Tag!

But the texture was off. It was a little too small, a little too thin. The Uchiha looked closely and saw the words printed on it: Ichiraku Ramen 20% Off Coupon.

"Tch!" The panic in this Uchiha's eyes instantly turned to disdain, though there was still a trace of lingering fear.

To be fair, if an Explosive Tag had gone off in such a cramped space, no one would have been able to avoid it.

Besides, he had been wondering all along. Something like an Explosive Tag should not have been accessible to brats this age.

That was why he had dared to catch it one-handed.

"Cousin..."

Uchiha Beiying had already covered his ears. Who knew why he covered his ears when facing an Explosive Tag.

But at that moment, Uchiha Beiying looked at his cousin with sheer worship in his eyes.

"Don't make such a fuss next time. Don't forget your surname. As an Uchiha, why are you acting so timid? What kind of Uchiha does that make you?"

"You're right, Cousin. You're freaking awesome!" Uchiha Beiying nodded repeatedly, then looked provocatively at Hideki.

Having someone powerful to lean on really was nice!

But right then.

Obito, whom everyone had been ignoring, spoke up.

"Hideki, get down!"

Hideki immediately dropped flat!

He already roughly knew what Obito was about to do.

About three weeks ago, the two of them had disagreed over training the Rasengan.

Don't misunderstand. It was not some lofty disagreement over training methods. Obito was not qualified for that.

It had taken Obito a full ten days just to barely gather chakra in his palm. Forget a water balloon—he could hardly even maintain it.

So Obito decided to temporarily give up training the Rasengan.

Maybe that buzz-cut ninja had just been fooling them?

Some hand-signless ninjutsu, just a ball of chakra—how powerful could it be?

He might as well properly train his Fire Release: Great Fireball!

Hideki had tried to persuade him then, but Obito had already made up his mind, so Hideki could not say much.

Besides, practicing the Great Fireball was good too. At the very least, Obito could figure out what chakra actually was.

From that day onward, aside from class, the two of them had barely interacted.

After Hideki had roughly mastered the Rasengan, he began going to Konoha Hospital to try his luck.

As for Obito, he began painstakingly studying the Great Fireball!

At that moment!

Obito held his breath and focused, forming hand seals steadily. Every seal was perfectly standard!

He slowly mobilized his chakra. There was none of the fierce, violent explosiveness of Fire Release ninjutsu; he sought only stability and steady progress!

"That seal is... Impossible!"

Even Uchiha Beiying's cousin was shocked. He had not mastered that technique until his third year!

Could this brat actually be a genius?

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

Obito took a deep breath. He was finally ready!

Hideki shielded the back of his head. He did not want to become the second Minato.

Hideki could not help feeling somewhat moved.

Obito, had he finally grown up?

And the next moment.

The air suddenly turned scorching hot. Obito wildly poured out his chakra. A whole month of effort would finally be proven today!

Aren't there a lot of you? Didn't you call your cousin? Doesn't your cousin have a forehead protector?

Come on! Let's hurt each other!

Madness filled Obito's eyes as the blazing fireball directly... disappeared.

Well, he did not have enough chakra, and his inner monologue had been too long, causing him to miss the final release timing by half a second.

The ninjutsu activation failed.

Obito's Great Fireball...

Misfired.

"Uh..."

Hideki waited for quite a while, yet he never saw the Uchiha Fire Release that supposedly could not burn anyone to death.

Even the Uchiha before them, each of whom had been frightened witless by Obito's momentum, froze in place.

"Pfft—Hahahahahaha!"

Mocking laughter erupted one after another. There was no need to add any further insults; the humiliation was already overwhelming.

Hideki silently stood up, looked at the dumbfounded Obito, and sighed.

As expected of you, Obito.

Go evil. Destroy the world. I support you!

Hideki took a deep breath, then silently looked at the group of Uchiha before him, who were laughing so hard they could barely breathe.

"Obito, buy me some time... My turn."

Chakra surged in his palm.

It condensed into a sphere and spun rapidly at the same time!

Obito recognized it at a glance. He immediately forgot all about whether he had just humiliated himself and simply widened his eyes!

Though it was a little smaller, it was absolutely identical to what Senior Minato had used that day!

The Rasengan!

"A meaningless trick."

Uchiha Beiying's cousin noticed Hideki's movement, his face full of disdain.

He did not make threats or mock him.

Though the difference in their strength was plain to see, the Uchiha Clan's pride made this Uchiha with a forehead protector want only to end this farce quickly.

Whoosh!

With a flash, a straight punch shot toward Hideki's lower abdomen!

Hideki's gaze turned cold.

But in the next instant, Obito appeared, crossing both arms to block the punch. Yet he was forced back repeatedly, ending up in front of Hideki.

"Hiss—!" Obito sucked in a sharp breath. It hurt like hell!

But he believed in Hideki!

His Great Fireball had failed, but Hideki's Rasengan would definitely work!

"Don't think you can do whatever you want just because you're wearing a forehead protector... Lord Obito is gonna beat the crap out of you!"

After howling to bolster his own courage, Obito actually charged again!

"You're courting death!"

That Uchiha ninja was only eleven or twelve himself. Having been toyed with repeatedly by two brats, he was already burning with rage.

Seeing Obito rush over, he raised a leg and kicked out!

The kick was powerful and heavy, striking Obito square in the face. Combined with Obito's charging speed, it instantly kicked his face into a grotesque expression. Blood gushed from his nose as he flew backward!

"Cousin, you're freaking awesome! Beat this disgrace to the Uchiha to death!" Uchiha Beiying cheered loudly from behind.

And Hideki.

He watched Obito collapse to the ground, utterly bedraggled, yet still struggle to get back up.

Hideki wanted to go help him, but the chakra had already condensed in his hand. Giving up now would mean all his efforts had been wasted.

"Damn it... I used the Mystical Palm Technique too much today!"

Hideki cursed inwardly.

He had practiced too many times at Konoha Hospital, and he did not have much chakra left now!

It was simply not enough to condense a Rasengan that could remain stable!

At that moment, Hideki desperately mobilized his chakra.

But chakra was energy produced by every cell in the human body. Overusing it would trigger the body's self-protection mechanism.

Adults might be able to force more out through sheer willpower. Hideki had lived two lives, and his soul was strong enough as well.

But the problem was that he was too young. Even if he squeezed himself dry, he could not extract much.

"Damn it...!" Hideki gritted his teeth.

Just then, Obito, who had staggered to his feet, suddenly looked at Hideki, grinned, and gave him a thumbs-up.

"Don't worry, Hideki, I... I'm fine!"

It was obvious that Obito had reached his limit. Even standing was difficult, and he could not even keep himself steady.

That Uchiha ninja was still closing in.

It was as if he were imitating an adult—the slower he walked, the more imposing he seemed.

"Obito..."

Hideki froze.

A moment later, however, his gaze gradually turned icy, and a streak of madness suddenly surfaced!

"I can only gamble on it!"