"Little Sasuke, my sister brought you candy, do you want some?"
Kurozawa Ren looked toward the center of the training field where Uchiha Fugaku and Itachi stood facing each other. At that moment, Izumi Uchiha leaned over, pulled out a few candies from her pocket, and crouched down to hand them to the little boy beside her.
Because Kurozawa Ren often emphasized his close relationship with Itachi, Izumi had taken a liking to him and frequently brought him small treats.
"Thank you, Sister Izumi."
Ren smiled sweetly and took the candy from her hand.
To be honest, when he first began pretending to be a young child, it felt unnatural. But now, he had fully adapted.
"You're such a good boy. Next time, big sister will take you out for Ichiraku Ramen!"
Izumi smiled warmly as she affectionately ruffled Sasuke's hair.
At that moment, Fugaku and Itachi were beginning their match in the center of the field, prompting both Izumi and Ren to watch the duel seriously.
"Go ahead—attack me with your full strength!" Fugaku beckoned to Itachi with confidence.
Itachi nodded silently. He reached into his ninja pouch and withdrew several shuriken, taking three in each hand and throwing them in staggered succession.
As soon as the six shuriken left his hands, they arced toward Fugaku's vital points with pinpoint accuracy.
"Shuriken, huh? The accuracy is commendable—but a predictable path won't strike down your opponent," Fugaku said calmly.
Just then, Itachi hurled a seventh shuriken. It was faster than the previous six and collided mid-air with one of the earlier projectiles.
Upon impact, the two shuriken altered their paths. The redirected shuriken then struck the others, further changing their trajectories into more unpredictable, sharper angles.
Fugaku gave a slight nod of approval. Then he stepped forward and, with a kunai in hand, ding-ding-ding, either deflected or dodged all seven incoming shuriken with precise, subtle movements.
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
Just as Fugaku finished neutralizing the shuriken, a massive fireball roared toward him.
Ren, watching from the sidelines, was stunned by Itachi's hand seal speed. To his eyes, it was a blur—only the afterimages of his fingers could be seen.
"Itachi-kun is amazing!"
Izumi's eyes were wide with astonishment. For someone like her, who hadn't even mastered a single ninjutsu and was only moderately skilled with shuriken, Itachi's level seemed like something from another world.
Still, Fugaku was in no danger. He formed hand seals swiftly, calmly matching Itachi's attack with his own.
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
The two fireballs collided and canceled each other out in a burst of smoke and embers. Fugaku had deliberately held back, fearing he might injure Itachi if he fought seriously.
Even so, Fugaku had yet to launch a single attack; he remained solely on the defensive.
From within the smoke, a figure suddenly burst forward, kunai in hand—it was Itachi Uchiha.
Smack!
Itachi leapt up with a spinning kick, which Fugaku blocked with his forearm. In the next instant, Itachi drove his kunai forward in a thrusting motion.
Clang!
Fugaku parried with his own kunai, then grabbed Itachi's wrist and tossed him away. As Itachi flew through the air, he flung another shuriken from his pouch mid-flight.
Fugaku easily evaded it—yet the airborne Itachi burst into a puff of smoke.
Shadow Clone Technique.
Fugaku raised a brow. He hadn't taught that technique to Itachi yet.
Did he learn it from Shisui?
That seemed likely.
Just as Fugaku turned to reassess the battlefield...
"Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique!"
A blast of heat surged from behind, and a dragon-shaped flame surged toward his back.
"That's a B-rank ninjutsu..." Izumi murmured, completely stunned. She already knew Itachi was a prodigy, but she hadn't expected that at only seven years old, he'd already far surpassed the Genin level, even before graduating from the Academy.
Ren observed their battle with great focus. He estimated that his current strength—without drawing his Zanpakutō—was slightly below Itachi's. The latter's battle intuition and tactical creativity were on a different level, effortlessly weaving together feints and openings.
However, once he used his Zanpakutō, or donned his Hollow mask, Ren was confident that even an advanced Itachi would not be able to match his raw power.
In the center of the field, Fugaku suddenly appeared behind Itachi and tapped him on the head with the blunt end of his kunai.
Itachi froze. He had lost.
"Hahaha! That was an excellent fight, my son!" Fugaku laughed with pride and ruffled Itachi's hair.
"Father, just now, you...?"
Itachi was confused. He knew his attack had left an opening—yet Fugaku had still somehow appeared behind him in that critical moment.
"Just a simple genjutsu combined with Body Flicker," Fugaku explained.
"But I didn't see you make any hand signs."
Ren, standing nearby, had caught the subtle motion. Just before the Dragon Fire Technique had been unleashed, Fugaku had slightly raised his finger—using it as a one-finger genjutsu trigger. Then, in a seamless instant, he had used the Body Flicker Technique to appear behind Itachi.
"Some techniques, like the Body Flicker or low-level genjutsu, don't always require full hand seals if mastered. That illusion merely shifted your perception slightly. Once you get good enough, even a finger movement can be enough to trigger it. I'll teach you in time," Fugaku said.
Itachi nodded, finally understanding.
"Now then, Sasuke, let's see how your recent training has paid off."
Having sparred with Itachi, Fugaku turned his hopeful eyes to his younger son. He already knew Itachi's potential—but now, seeing Sasuke begin training so early, he couldn't help but harbor similar expectations.
Even if Sasuke's talent didn't quite match Itachi's, he hoped the gap wouldn't be too wide.
Ren stepped forward toward the training ground's center.
"Father, some of the abilities I've been cultivating may take a bit longer to prepare," Ren said with a childlike tone.
"That's fine. Take your time. I'll wait here." Fugaku replied casually.
Ren grinned inwardly. This was the perfect opportunity to test out some of the Kido spells he had recently been practicing.
He took a stance in the middle of the field, lifted his right palm, and began to chant:
"Ye lord! Mask of flesh and bone, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Truth and temperance, upon this sinless wall of dreams unleash but slightly the wrath of your claws! Hadō #31: Shakkahō!"
As Ren finished the chant, a bright red orb formed in his palm.
It's working!
Ren felt his spiritual energy flowing smoothly. The red orb launched from his palm, flying straight toward Fugaku.
Though smaller than a standard Fireball Jutsu, it flew far faster and closed the distance in a blink.
So fast!
Fugaku's eyes narrowed.
But he wasn't flustered. He sidestepped, and the red orb blasted into a tree behind him, piercing a hole through its trunk.
Ren was elated. This was his first post-30s Kido to manifest successfully, and the destructive force was more than acceptable.
Time for the next one...
"Bakudō #30: Shitotsu Sansen!"
Three golden beams shaped like fangs formed mid-air and shot toward Fugaku, pinning him to a wall in a binding triangle.
"Hadō #4: Byakurai!"
A white bolt of lightning erupted from Ren's fingertip, zapping toward the immobilized Fugaku.
Fugaku clicked his tongue and substituted instantly, narrowly avoiding the lightning strike.
"Hadō #4: Byakurai!"
Ren repeated, hurling another bolt toward where Fugaku reappeared.
Fugaku blinked away again. Concerned about being hit, he continued dodging Ren's bombardments, looking slightly flustered for the first time in the entire training session.
Eventually, Ren's spiritual power ran out.
"Hahahahaha! That's my son!"
Fugaku roared with laughter, patting Sasuke on the head as he turned back toward Ren, eyes full of admiration.
"What kind of ability is that? It resembles ninjutsu, but there's no hand-sealing involved."
"It's a unique energy system I discovered myself. I call it... Ghost Path—Kido."
"Ghost Path...!? Are you saying you created your own kekkei genkai?" Fugaku asked, astonished.
"Kind of, yes. But please call it 'Kido,' not ninjutsu."
"Creating a bloodline-limit technique at just two years old... Truly unprecedented!" Fugaku exclaimed.
"Sasuke is also strong. I must become stronger to protect my little brother!" Itachi silently swore to himself.
Izumi looked at the loving family and suddenly became pensive.
If I'm not strong enough... will I be left behind from his world...?
Afterward, Fugaku provided guidance to Itachi on his genjutsu refinement and taught Ren a few training methods, although he had the feeling that Ren's so-called Kido surpassed ordinary ninjutsu. Even Izumi, listening from the side, gained some insight into her own training.