After the Rift, a New Game

The air seemed to freeze, leaving only Ling's ragged breathing and Kakashi's blade-sharp gaze.

"What... was that just now?" Kakashi's voice was low and hoarse, carrying an unprecedented gravity. Each word fell like a cold pebble into a deathly still pool.

Ling's mind raced, fear and quick thinking clashing wildly. I absolutely cannot admit it had anything to do with space! The implications are too serious. It would lead straight to Tobirama and the Flying Thunder God-a line I must never cross!

His face instantly filled with lingering fear, bewilderment, and a trace of exhaustion from overtraining. His voice trembled, on the verge of tears. "I... I don't know... My chakra... suddenly just... went out of control... It was so scary... It felt... felt like it was going to cut me apart too..."

As he spoke, he held out his slightly trembling hands. His palms still bore the fine, overlapping scars, old and new, left by countless failed attempts at training. Most had come from genuine practice, and now they made perfect props. He stared in terror at the spot where the rift had appeared, as though still shaken by it.

A flawless performance: a frightened child who had lost control and understood nothing of his own power.

Kakashi stared hard into his eyes, as if searching those obsidian-black depths for the slightest trace of a lie. Ling maintained the Ice-Breath Concealment Technique with all his strength, suppressing even his mental fluctuations to those of a startled bird. He let only genuine exhaustion and lingering fear show.

Silence. Suffocating silence.

The last rays of sunset swept across Kakashi's eyes. Their sharpness and shock slowly faded, replaced by a deeper, unreadable mix of emotions. Had he believed Ling's explanation? Or had he merely buried his deeper suspicions?

At last, he moved. He bent down, picked up the fallen Icha Icha Paradise, and brushed off the dust. Some of his usual lazy drawl returned, though a barely perceptible tension remained. "Your chakra control isn't good enough, and you rushed into combining its natures. Losing control and suffering a backlash happens all the time. As long as you're not hurt."

With those casual words, he attributed that fleeting spatial fluctuation to "a backlash from losing control of chakra."

Ling felt a little reassured, but he dared not relax completely. He remained seated on the ground, looking thoroughly shaken.

"Don't push yourself past your limits when you train." Kakashi stepped forward and offered his hand.

Ling hesitated, then took his hand and stood. Kakashi's palm was a little cold, its hard calluses formed by years of gripping kunai.

"Thank you, Mr. Kakashi... I... I'll be careful from now on..." Ling said quietly, still keeping his head lowered.

Kakashi said nothing more. He merely glanced at Ling again, his gaze lingering briefly on the scars on his palms, then turned and went back inside.

That night, Kakashi did not read his novel. Instead, he retired to his room early and shut the door firmly.

Ling returned to his own room as well, his back already soaked with cold sweat.

[That was close.] Tobirama's voice carried a trace of lingering unease. [I never expected an accidental release of energy to touch the spatial barrier... It was almost negligible, but that kind of fluctuation could never come from ordinary ninjutsu. That kid Kakashi definitely grew suspicious.]

"Did he believe me?" Ling asked urgently.

[Believe you? Someone who grew up steeped in the Anbu like him never fully believes anything.] Tobirama sneered. [But he has no evidence, nor can he understand where that momentary fluctuation came from. If he's setting this aside for now, he either thinks you have immense potential you can't control and need to be observed, or... he's already reported it and is waiting for instructions from higher up.]

Ling's heart rose into his throat again.

[There's no need to panic.] Tobirama changed tack. [Fortune and misfortune go hand in hand. This accident carried enormous risks, but it may also bring an opportunity.]

"An opportunity?"

[The 'potential' and 'danger' you displayed have already gone beyond the scope of an ordinary 'genius.' That will force the Konoha High Command, especially the Third Hokage, to reassess your value and how to handle you. Simple surveillance and control may no longer be enough. They'll either choose deeper 'investment' and 'guidance,' or...] Tobirama paused. [But given Monkey's temperament, the former is more likely. He'll be even more determined to keep you firmly in his grasp and turn you to his own use.]

Just as Tobirama predicted, the atmosphere at the Hatake Residence changed again the next day.

Most of the watchful eyes that had lingered around the residence's perimeter quietly disappeared. Only the bare minimum remained, their observation seemingly no more than routine.

That afternoon, an Anbu ninja appeared soundlessly in the courtyard, handed Kakashi a sealed scroll, and vanished in an instant.

After reading the scroll, Kakashi fell silent for a moment, then called Ling over.

"Starting tomorrow, you can go to the village's Ninja Tool Shop and use this allowance to buy some basic training tools." Kakashi tossed Ling a small iron token bearing a flame emblem. There seemed to be a special chakra mark on it. "Just tell the clerk what you need."

Ling caught the token, a jolt running through him. Tobirama spoke. [This is... a Hokage Direct Supply Requisition. It means your training resources have officially been incorporated into the village's supply system.]

"Also," Kakashi continued, his tone as flat as ever but leaving no room for argument, "every three days, I'll make time to give you a lesson. If you have any questions about your training, you can ask me then."

Ling froze. Kakashi was going to teach me formally? He'd given me pointers before, but regular, scheduled instruction meant something entirely different!

"Thank you, Mr. Kakashi!" Ling immediately put on an expression of "delight" and "gratitude."

Kakashi waved a hand, signaling that he could go train.

As Ling turned to leave, he could not keep the corners of his mouth from lifting slightly.

Tobirama was right! There really was opportunity hidden in danger! One accidental "loss of control" had actually earned me more official attention, steadier resources, and a more reasonable arrangement for instruction! This would be an enormous help in concealing my secret training under Tobirama while accelerating the growth of the strength I showed openly!

Of course, the price was deeper suspicion and closer attention from Kakashi and the Third. Every step from now on would require even greater care, as though he were treading on thin ice.

A new game had already begun.

He tightened his grip on the iron token, feeling the cold metal against his skin.

It was both a resource and a shackle.

But he had no choice. He could only strive to grow stronger within this game, until the day he could break every shackle and take control of his own fate.

The blade of faint light had emerged; the first traces of a space-rending rift had appeared.

His path as a ninja had finally reached its first true milestone.