"Yami-sama, I overestimated myself."
An hour later, Kisame lay helplessly on the ground, Samehada beside him having shrunk to half its original size.
He didn't even have the strength to lift a finger. The last thirty minutes had been pure torture.
Yami didn't use any other techniques. Just like Kisame, he stuck to Water Release, kenjutsu, and trap techniques.
But Kisame lost miserably in all three.
His proud Water Release was worthless before Yami.
Samehada could absorb chakra, but its absorption efficiency was limited. In the end, it couldn't keep up with Yami's overwhelming chakra output.
As for kenjutsu and taijutsu, Samehada was a heavy blade that relied on brute force, but Kisame's strength and coordination were inferior to Yami's. His speed and swordsmanship were completely outclassed, and he ended up with his face swollen from all the kicks.
Though the fight lasted an hour, only the first fifteen minutes were competitive. The rest was a one-sided beatdown.
"You're not bad. Pretty durable."
After moving around for a bit, Yami felt much more relaxed.
He tossed two soldier pills to Kisame and waited for him to recover a little before asking, "Well, do you think I'm qualified to be your boss now?"
"It's my honor."
Kisame grinned. "With that overwhelming Water Release just now, you should be the Mizukage, not some puppet under Uchiha Madara."
"Uchiha Madara?"
Yami waved his hand. "The masked man's real identity is Uchiha Obito."
Kisame was stunned.
Uchiha Obito?
Who the hell was that?
He had worked in Anbu for years and seen plenty of intel from other villages, but he had never heard that name.
"You're saying Uchiha Obito disguised himself as Madara and controlled the Fourth Mizukage? Is this some kind of Konoha conspiracy?"
"As a reward for joining the organization, I'll answer one question for you."
Yami raised three fingers. "Is this the one you want answered?"
"No, I'll figure that out myself." Kisame shook his head.
If he couldn't track down the identity of a man after knowing the name, then he wasn't worthy of being a shinobi. He wasn't about to waste such a precious opportunity.
After some thought, Kisame finally decided.
"Tell me about the Akatsuki organization and Obito's reason for having me join."
Yami looked at him with approval.
As expected of a true shinobi, he asked a valuable question. "The leader of Akatsuki is Pain, but in truth, Pain is just a puppet controlled through the Rinnegan."
"The real mastermind behind the scenes is Nagato, the owner of the Rinnegan."
Kisame's eyes widened slightly.
He had heard of the legendary eyes of the Sage of Six Paths.
"Then between Obito and Nagato..."
"They're partners who are mutually wary. But both share the same goal—collecting the Tailed Beasts."
"Obito had you join Akatsuki to pair up with Uchiha Itachi and keep an eye on him."
Kisame nodded. Obito had told him the same thing.
He was clear on what his role was.
"Come to think of it, Uchiha Itachi is an old acquaintance of mine."
Yami suddenly smiled. "When you're out on missions with him, help him out and try to make him use the Mangekyō Sharingan less. Don't let him die just yet."
"He's your friend?" Kisame asked honestly.
Yami glanced at him. This honest man had everything except emotional intelligence.
"Not a friend. I just need him to act in a scene I want to watch later."
This time, Kisame couldn't understand. But he also realized that the relationship between the two was probably complicated.
After answering Kisame's questions, Yami left.
Kisame continued on to the Land of Rain and quietly began investigating Uchiha Obito along the way.
But unless he went to Konoha himself and did a deep dive, no one really cared about a Chūnin from the Uchiha clan who had died years ago.
Kisame, frustrated by the dead ends, thought he could investigate more later. But after being "teased" by Yami, he developed a strange quirk. Not knowing the truth started making him feel extremely uncomfortable.
In the end, he couldn't take it anymore. He completed two missions to earn another question opportunity and sent a scroll to ask Yami.
When Yami saw the scroll from Kisame, he was a bit confused.
So this guy has OCD?
It was just some info about Obito. Yami didn't mind and answered directly.
Kisame responded: This is just a one-time thing. It won't happen again.
Upon reading the answer, Kisame let out a gasp.
He hadn't expected that the man who had stirred up Kirigakure and unleashed the Nine Tails on Konoha turned out to be... a lovesick man?
Konoha—no, the Uchiha clan really was full of talent.
His future partner Uchiha Itachi was even more unstable.
A few days later, Kisame arrived in the Land of Rain and successfully joined the Akatsuki organization.
Due to Orochimaru's betrayal, Sasori and Itachi were both temporarily without partners. But since Sasori felt Kisame lacked any artistic sense, Kisame successfully became Itachi's new teammate.
Before he met his new partner, Obito came to find him.
"Did you run into any trouble on the way?"
"No."
Kisame, carrying Samehada, replied casually, "Just some Kirigakure Anbu, but I sent them packing."
"Oh, and when I passed through the Land of Fire, I ran into the famous Copy Ninja, Hatake Kakashi."
Kisame noticed that when he mentioned Hatake Kakashi, the masked man's breathing paused for a second.
The change was subtle and quickly disappeared.
"Copy Ninja? He's just a guy who got the Sharingan by luck. He only knows how to copy basic jutsu and has no clue what that eye is really capable of."
After his sarcastic remark, Obito asked offhandedly, "Did you kill him?"
"Of course not. His teammates weren't weak, and I didn't want to cause a big scene. So I just met him and left."
That wasn't a lie. Kisame really did run into Kakashi—but didn't fight him and got tossed aside.
"Hmph."
The masked man's pace quickened. "Next time you meet, just kill him."
"That was my plan."
Kisame grinned wickedly. "His Sharingan looks fun. I was thinking of snatching it and implanting it in myself."
Uchiha Obito: "...."
What the hell is wrong with this guy? Why is he targeting the Sharingan?
Obito froze, then stared at Kisame through the single eye in his mask. "Don't you know? Because Kakashi isn't an Uchiha, his chakra levels dropped dramatically after transplanting the Sharingan."
"Having a three-tomoe Sharingan would only be a burden for you."
"Doesn't matter."
Kisame shrugged. "I heard that eye was a keepsake from his best friend. That makes it even more worthwhile to take."
"As for chakra, that's the one thing I'm never short on. No need to worry."
Who the hell is worrying about you... That's MY eye!
Mine!
"Do whatever you want."
Obito was so furious he opened a spiral in Kamui space and began to vanish, leaving one last warning.
"Don't forget your mission. Keep an eye on Uchiha Itachi for me. Figure out the limits of his ocular power."
Obito wasn't about to reclaim the eye he gave Kakashi as a gift. But if Kisame ended up taking it, he wouldn't mind at all.
No matter how it turned out, he wouldn't lose anything, and might even benefit.
So he let it go.
Kisame kept walking. He appeared calm, but deep down, he was filled with strange joy.
So this is the thrill of watching others flounder in confusion while you know the truth?
It's really... addictive.
...…
Otogakure.
Orochimaru and Yami had just completed an experiment.
A perfectly healthy person was turned into a five or six-meter-tall tree in just three days, with lush foliage and branches.
Orochimaru shook his head regretfully. "The activity and erosion rate of the cells is too high. The inhibitor we developed isn't effective enough."
"If we increase the dose, the Hashirama cells die completely. It's a real dilemma."
This was the biggest issue with Hashirama cells. They were far too wild to control.
How wild were they?
Even though Senju Hashirama was long dead, his cells remained alive and could still reproduce through cultivation. So Orochimaru had no hesitation doing these experiments—he could always grow ten more samples.
Yami also frowned.
He wondered if the Hashirama cells in his own body were this wild. He didn't feel anything unusual and could extract chakra with no issues.
"Take your time, Orochimaru-sensei. I believe you'll succeed one day."
"Oh?"
Orochimaru caught on quickly.
"Yami-kun, are you planning to..."
"Yes. I'm leaving."
Yami didn't hide it. "Lately, Orochimaru-sensei has been too guarded around me. Since I can't learn anything more, there's no reason to stay."
"You're straightforward, as always."
Orochimaru didn't expect Yami to just say it out loud. Since the tacit understanding was exposed, he stopped pretending.
"Honestly, your progress frightens me. If I don't keep a few cards hidden, I might become completely useless to you."
Orochimaru admitted his fear.
He had spent decades accumulating knowledge, yet Yami had mastered 80% of it in just one year.
If that continued, Yami might soon surpass him completely.
He couldn't accept that. Even if Yami threatened him again, he wouldn't teach him more.
"Let me sign the Ryūchi Cave scroll, and I'll leave immediately."
Yami was just as direct, stating his final condition. He had no intention of killing Orochimaru after everything. The man had taught him earnestly for months, and Kabuto was still learning in secret. He could continue squeezing value out of them slowly.
After thinking for a moment, Orochimaru summoned the Ryūchi Cave scroll.
Yami signed it while trying to suppress his disgust. With that, his final goal here was achieved.
"Yami-kun, unlike other Summoning contracts, your first use will reverse-summon you to Ryūchi Cave. Only by gaining the snakes' recognition can you summon them in battle."
"So be prepared before going. And don't provoke the three snake princesses. Their experience is... extensive."
Orochimaru wasn't suddenly being kind. He was just afraid Yami would come looking for trouble later if he wasn't warned properly.
"I understand, Orochimaru-sensei. I'll wait for you in Konoha."
"I have no interest in returning to that place."
Orochimaru chuckled. "That decaying village holds no value for me."
Yami didn't buy his act. "You're building a village and learning Impure World Reincarnation just to give the Third Hokage a proper funeral, aren't you?"
The smile on Orochimaru's face froze.
"Hurry it up. Don't wait until I lose patience. Deal with the Old Man first, or you won't get another chance."
Orochimaru's snake-like eyes flickered strangely. "Yami-kun is also interested in the Hokage position?"
"Not really."
Yami shook his head. "I just don't like anyone ordering me around."
"If I don't take that position, then no one else is qualified. So I will take it."
"That's reasonable."
Orochimaru nodded. He understood Yami's perspective.
A bunch of mediocre people holding back the world's progress, trying to suppress the truly strong.
If Sarutobi Hiruzen hadn't chosen Minato back then, Orochimaru wouldn't have withdrawn from the Hokage selection.
"I'll contact you when I return to Konoha. Please look forward to it."
Under Orochimaru's gaze, Yami activated Flying Thunder God and disappeared.
"Space-time ninjutsu is so troublesome... Looks like we need to add space-locking research to our agenda."
Back in Konoha, Yami went to Root to retrieve a death row prisoner and some experimental Hashirama cells.
Orochimaru had hidden something from him, so why should he reveal all his progress?
While there wasn't much advancement with Hashirama cells, Yami had made significant progress with Impure World Reincarnation.
Not in combat power, but in soul retention.
In a secret underground lab, Yami performed Impure World Reincarnation.
The rogue shinobi screamed in agony, his body crumbling into paper scraps before reassembling into a new form.
The man's body was full of cracks. His eyes remained closed for nearly half a minute before slowly opening.
Unlike the living, the reanimated have inverted eye colors—dark sclera and light pupils.
The man had snow-white hair and wore traditional Sengoku-era armor. He stared at Yami.
"Impure World Reincarnation? You actually used such a Forbidden Technique... boy, is Konoha facing some emergency?"
Yami smiled faintly. "Greetings, Second Hokage. Konoha is thriving. I simply need your help with a personal matter."
(To be continued.)
***
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