A Master and Student's Showdown at the Training Ground

At the Uchiha Training Ground, blades whistled, fists and feet crossed, and the clang of steel rang out without pause.

Uchiha Shingetsu held a long sword nearly as tall as she was, her gaze fixed on Madara Uchiha standing before her as she tried to find any weakness.

Unfortunately, although Madara merely stood with his arms folded, assuming neither an offensive nor a defensive stance, his simple presence radiated an oppressive power.

A cold, mocking smile shone in his pitch-black eyes. Chilling chakra coiled across the empty training ground. He had yet to strike, but his sheer presence was enough to make anyone shrink back in fear.

People often called this terrifying man an Asura, and their fear was not without reason.

Shingetsu drew a deep breath, forced herself to ignore those icy eyes, and gathered chakra beneath her feet.

As dark clouds gathered overhead and blotted out the sunlight, Shingetsu pushed off in that instant when light turned to shadow, lunging forward with the Body Flicker Technique. Her gleaming sword tip aimed at a vital spot on Madara's body, she thrust straight at him.

"Hmph."

Madara Uchiha gave a disdainful snort. Just before the blade could pierce him, he moved sharply, reaching his right hand beneath its edge at an awkward angle and clamping down on Shingetsu's wrist.

His iron strength forced Shingetsu to stop. The tip was a hair's breadth from his vital point, yet it could advance no farther. Faced with this disadvantage, Shingetsu refused to retreat. She abruptly twisted sideways and kicked at his head, but Madara avoided her attack with a slight tilt of his head.

Madara hauled up Shingetsu's immobilized right hand and yanked her into the air. Her little body whipped upward, throwing her completely off balance, before he slammed her hard toward the ground!

From beginning to end, Madara Uchiha had not moved from his spot. Forget his Sharingan-he had not even used his full strength in Taijutsu. In fact, he had utterly overpowered Shingetsu using only his right hand.

The Asura of the Ninja World truly lived up to his name. Only by facing him in person could someone understand just how staggering that overwhelming power really was!

"Is this all my student is capable of?"

Displeasure flickered across Madara's face. His fist shot out, driving mercilessly into Shingetsu's stomach and sending her flying.

With a pop, the girl's body was replaced by a wooden log, which slowly fell to the ground. Shingetsu suddenly appeared behind Madara. This time, her sword aimed at his heart as she thrust with blinding speed!

Madara spun around and unleashed another vicious punch, striking Shingetsu squarely in the face.

Yet the instant his fist connected, Shingetsu vanished in a cloud of smoke. Dozens of identical Shingetsus appeared around him immediately afterward. They swarmed him, some climbing onto his body to restrict his movements, others launching sneak attacks amid the chaos, and still others simply stabbing at him with swords. The scene descended into confusion, their chattering voices overlapping until the once-quiet Uchiha Training Ground sounded like a bustling market.

Having inherited Tōka's Senju of the Forest bloodline, Shingetsu possessed a truly, truly, truly impressive amount of chakra. The Uchiha Clan already had far more chakra than Shinobi born to civilians or ordinary Shinobi Clans, but they still fell far short of the Senju Clan, who were said to have inherited the Sage Body.

For instance, Shingetsu's feat of creating dozens of clones in an instant left even Madara Uchiha marveling. He certainly had not possessed that much chakra when he was five.

Not bad. Now that's more like my student.

Madara smiled faintly, feeling rather pleased. But soon, anger began rising in him again. Countless Shingetsus shrieked and shouted beside his ears, their voices like flocks of sparrows descending on grain laid out to dry. The infernal din bored into his ears, grating on his nerves.

Madara could hardly tolerate this. A vein immediately bulged on his forehead, and he casually drove a fist full of fury and force into one Shingetsu, bursting her into smoke on the spot. Punch followed punch, his hammerlike fists smashing her clones one after another. In an instant, the Shingetsus crowding the training ground dwindled to ten, then five, until only one remained!

"Shingetsu, as punishment for slacking off, tomorrow's training-no, all your training this week-will be doubled!"

Madara firmly pinned the final Shingetsu. Looking at his student, who kept struggling despite her defeat, and recalling the underhanded tactic that had nearly deafened him, he curled his lips in delight. A faint smile touched his brows as he decided then and there to teach this devious little brat a lesson she would never forget.

Staying up all night on missions is perfectly normal for a Shinobi, isn't it? For the next week, you're going to get a proper taste of how cruel the Shinobi world can be.

"I won't let you!"

Shingetsu's eyes widened in horror. She shouted in defiance, then slammed her head toward Madara Uchiha.

Madara deftly turned aside to avoid the headbutt. At the same time, he tightened both arms around Shingetsu as she tried to escape, locking her firmly against him and robbing her of all movement. Yet at that moment, Shingetsu, who should have been distraught and indignant, secretly revealed a smile of certain victory.

The dark clouds dispersed, and a gentle breeze stirred. A leaf blew loose from the large tree shading the training ground, drifting in a lazy spiral through the air until it floated behind Madara Uchiha.

Not good!

A powerful sense of danger surged through Madara. He twisted around sharply, just in time to see the airborne leaf transform into Shingetsu. Long sword in hand, she coated its blade with Fire Release and streaked past at tremendous speed. The gleam of her sword mingled with dazzling Fire Release chakra, tracing a brilliant, firework-like blaze through the air.

This was the swordsmanship passed down through generations of the Uchiha Clan-Uchiha Style: Flame Leaping Sword!

At the same time, the clone in Madara's arms suddenly exerted herself, clinging to him like an octopus and restricting the movement of his waist, while the real Shingetsu seized her opening and accelerated to her maximum speed.

Uchiha Style Swordsmanship was already renowned for its swiftness. With Shingetsu concentrating all her chakra into her feet and blade, she moved so fast that the naked eye could no longer follow her. At this moment, she held the advantage!

Victory or defeat would be decided in a single instant!

Boom-

After the enormous explosion, a deep crater scarred the Uchiha Training Ground. Madara Uchiha had kicked the long sword out of Shingetsu's hands, and now held her arms locked as he pinned her firmly to the ground.

As expected, Shingetsu had lost to Madara. But in truth, she had not entirely lost.

"Master, you moved."

Shingetsu looked down at the ground. Madara Uchiha was no longer standing in his original spot. According to their wager, Shingetsu would win if he moved or used any part of his body other than his right hand.

In that exchange, Madara had broken both conditions, so this was Shingetsu's complete victory.

"That's right. You won."

Madara nodded, released Shingetsu, and pulled her up from the ground. The Uchiha Clan Head, whom outsiders saw as cold as an iceberg, now wore a warm, reassuring smile. He was clearly very happy.

"Hehe!"

Shingetsu grinned from ear to ear. Granted, she had only defeated the right hand of Madara Uchiha... while he refrained from using ninjutsu and restricted his Taijutsu to her level. But who was Madara Uchiha? One of the strongest men alive, standing shoulder to shoulder with Hashirama Senju! She could brag about this for the rest of her life!

Just look at Kakuzu. He had bragged for years about throwing a kunai at Hashirama. She, Uchiha Shingetsu, had actually beaten one of Madara's hands. Surely she could boast about that until the day she died?

But soon, she recovered from her elation and shook her head, dismissing her hard-earned victory.

"If you'd used your Sharingan, Master, you would definitely have seen through my little tricks. This isn't a victory worth being proud of."

Sitting on a chair beside the training ground, Shingetsu touched her black eyes, no different from an ordinary person's. Then she thought of the Sharingan, with its flashy, over-the-top coolness, and boundless longing welled up inside her.

Now that my surname is Uchiha, wouldn't failing to awaken my eyes be an insult to the name? Whenever she thought of the Sharingan's supreme power and gloriously over-the-top appearance, Shingetsu wished she could awaken one-tomoe today, two-tomoe tomorrow, and pilot a Gundam the day after.

Piloting a Gundam was a woman's dream. And this was a Susanoo Gundam-who wouldn't want to pilot one?

At that thought, Shingetsu gazed longingly at Madara sitting beside her.

"Master, when will I awaken my eyes?"

"There's no hurry. I didn't awaken mine until I was in my teens."

Madara Uchiha was not worried in the slightest. He himself had been among those in his clan who awakened their eyes late, but that had never stopped him from trouncing everyone who awakened theirs before him.

If anything, he hoped Shingetsu would awaken her eyes a little later.

The Sharingan was indeed a blessing of their bloodline, but it was also a cursed power. The day Madara obtained it was the day he broke with Hashirama in his youth. Even now, that heart-rending, suffocating pain still seemed to stir deep within him.

First, the conditions for awakening the Sharingan had to be understood: one, possessing the Uchiha Clan's bloodline; two, experiencing an extreme emotional upheaval, specifically gaining love and then losing it. The general process involved losing teammates, family, or loved ones.

Next, consider Uchiha Shingetsu's current circumstances: both parents alive, a wealthy family, no siblings killed in battle, no falling-out with a dear friend, and a ridiculously powerful master protecting her. Her only worry in life was that Madara would beat her if she failed to finish her training.

Look at that. What a happy life-she practically did not seem like an Uchiha at all. If she could still awaken the Sharingan under these conditions, where was the justice in that?

Happiness was such a precious treasure. Everyone sought it, yet so few obtained it.

Madara quietly looked at Shingetsu. If she knew that obtaining the Sharingan would mean losing her happiness completely, would she still crave that power so much?

My student can become a top-tier fighter even without awakening the Sharingan.

So let that moment come a little later.

Madara reached out with his large hand and stroked Shingetsu's head. Her fine, soft hair felt like tender grass in spring, wonderfully pleasant beneath his palm.

"As a reward for your victory, is there anything you want?"

"Master, I want to go play in the village!"

Shingetsu blurted out her answer. Ever since her birth, she had been confined to the Uchiha Clan Compound and had never wandered around Konoha itself.

Her foolish father, Hōkaku, never dared let her leave the Uchiha Clan Compound. He could hardly help it. Even when Shingetsu stayed obediently within the compound, Tōka dared come over to steal the child. If Shingetsu accidentally wandered into Senju territory, Tōka probably would not bother stealing her—she would simply snatch her away in broad daylight!

"Sure. Let's go."

Madara agreed without a second thought and headed straight out of the compound with Shingetsu. He was not Uchiha Hōkaku. He had no fear of Senju Toka coming to steal her. Whoever came, he would knock them flying. It was that simple.

But before he had taken more than two steps, something soft bumped into his calf. Madara raised an eyebrow and looked down to find Shingetsu hugging his leg. When she saw him looking at her, she stretched out both arms to be picked up, blinking her beautiful eyes and giving him a sweet, wheedling smile.

"Master, carry me!"

That voice, as sweet and sticky as melted malt candy, startled Madara once again. Apart from his younger brother, no child had ever dared show him such bold affection.

Still, when it was Shingetsu, it did not seem so strange.

Madara crouched down and scooped Shingetsu up with practiced ease. The girl clung to him like a koala, happily wrapping her arms around his neck, and the two strode out of the Uchiha Clan Compound together.