Kakashi patted Arata's shoulder, then walked to the edge of the lake.
He stood there silently for a moment before saying,
"Tell me, Arata—do you think I gained my reputation in the ninja world just because of my Sharingan?"
Arata stepped beside him, eyes reflecting the rippling water.
"Of course not," he said. "You must have a powerful jutsu that complements it. No jōnin would rely on just a bloodline limit alone."
Kakashi's single visible eye curved slightly. "You're right. I developed a technique once… a dangerous one. Before I had the Sharingan, it was nearly suicidal to use. But with the eye's aid, it became one of the deadliest jutsu in my arsenal."
He paused, lost in old memories. Back then, when he first created Chidori, its speed and intensity made it almost impossible to control without the ability to read enemy movements. One mistake, and the user would be cut down before the strike ever landed.
Kakashi sighed softly. "If not for a dear friend who entrusted me with this eye, I wouldn't have survived long enough to master it."
The Sharingan drained him constantly, but it had also saved him countless times. His keen instincts and battle intellect balanced the cost, allowing him to wield it as both a weapon and a burden.
Arata glanced at the scarred jōnin, his gaze calm.
Kakashi thought he saw curiosity in that look and chuckled. "You want to know who gave me this eye, don't you?"
He wouldn't normally share that kind of story, but Arata wasn't just another student. He was someone Kakashi had already decided to personally mentor—someone he regarded with the same importance as the students who would one day change the shinobi world.
Arata hesitated, then nodded. "Yeah… I'd like to know."
Kakashi sat down by the lake, patting the spot beside him. "Sit."
Once Arata joined him, the older man began to speak quietly.
"After I graduated from the Academy, I was so young that I couldn't even work properly with my teammates. It took until my classmates from the same year graduated before I finally found a squad that could function."
He gave a faint, self-deprecating smile. "In a sense, I wasn't really ahead of anyone. I was just… early."
Arata stayed silent. He had expected a training lecture, not a glimpse into Kakashi's past. The fact that Kakashi was opening up like this spoke volumes about the trust between them.
"This eye," Kakashi continued softly, touching the scar across his left eye, "was a gift. From my friend—Uchiha Obito."
He told Arata the story then: of the mission in Kannabi Bridge, of Rin, of the collapse, and of the moment Obito entrusted him with his eye before being crushed beneath the rocks.
Arata listened quietly. He already knew fragments of that tale, but hearing the full story in Kakashi's own voice gave it weight.
When Kakashi finished, he stared down at the water, his tone low.
"This eye is more than just a tool. It's a reminder… of the people I couldn't protect."
He turned to Arata. "Promise me something—whatever happens, protect your friends. Don't make the same mistakes I did. Losing them… hurts more than death."
There was no lecture in his tone this time—only sincerity.
Arata nodded silently. He didn't need to say anything. Kakashi could tell he understood.
Then, with a quiet breath, Kakashi stood up. "Alright. Enough gloomy stories. You probably want to know why I chose to teach you Chidori, right?"
Arata blinked. "Isn't it too dangerous for someone without a Sharingan?"
Kakashi smirked faintly. "That's what I thought—until I tested you."
He placed a hand on Arata's shoulder again. "Your dynamic vision is exceptional—far sharper than most. Last night, when we sparred, I realized your perception of motion rivals even a Sharingan's."
"Chidori demands speed and vision beyond normal human limits. You can handle both."
Arata nodded. "Still… it must be incredibly difficult to master."
Kakashi's expression turned serious. "You're not wrong. It's an A-rank technique. Without perfect dynamic vision, it's essentially S-rank—nearly impossible to use safely. Before you learn it, your speed and body control must be honed to the limit."
He folded his arms. "It also consumes a lot of chakra… though in your case, that's not exactly an issue."
Arata tilted his head. "Not an issue?"
Kakashi nodded. "Your chakra levels are already at the upper jōnin range. With your reserves, you could fire Chidori at least ten times in a day. I can manage about twenty… which means your chakra is roughly half of mine."
Of course, Kakashi didn't realize that Arata's reserves had already doubled again.
"Raikiri—the Lightning Cutter—uses even more chakra than Chidori," Kakashi added. "I can only use that one four times a day."
Arata listened intently without interrupting once.
Kakashi smiled faintly. He was pleased—really pleased—with Arata's focus. The boy wasn't distracted, arrogant, or careless. He absorbed every word.
"You already meet every requirement—dynamic vision, physical speed, chakra control," Kakashi said at last. "You don't need more basic training. We can start immediately."
"I'll explain the principles of Chidori. Once you grasp them, I'll eventually teach you its evolved form—Raikiri."
Kakashi began to describe the technique's mechanics: how chakra must be focused and compressed into the hand, how it's nature-transformed into lightning, and how it's released in an instant burst during a high-speed thrust.
It was a complex, dangerous art that few could even understand, let alone execute.
Most genin—or even chūnin—would have been lost after the first few sentences.
After ten minutes of explanation, Kakashi stopped and looked at Arata.
"If you didn't catch that, don't worry," he said kindly. "This jutsu isn't easy to comprehend on the first try."
Arata looked up calmly. "I understand it."
Kakashi blinked. "...What?"
"To prove it," Arata said, "let me break it down."
He then dissected every principle of Chidori—chakra concentration, nature manipulation, velocity synchronization—with such precision and clarity that Kakashi was left speechless.
It was as if Arata had been studying the jutsu for years.
Kakashi finally exhaled a long, stunned breath.
"If I didn't know for a fact that I've never taught you this before… I'd think you'd been using Chidori for decades."
He stared at Arata, genuinely astonished.
"You… really understood it in one go."
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