10 Chapter 10

Uchiha Obito desired to have friends and hoped to train and progress together with them. However, the appearance of Obito's uncle disrupted everything, making the atmosphere tense. Many of the words Obito had prepared in his heart became irrelevant in the face of the ironclad reality.

No matter how he explained, faced with the solid facts, everything seemed pale and powerless.

It was a situation only the Uchiha clan could create, where even outsiders passing by the house would get slapped. Only someone like Obito could pull off such a thing.

Maybe the Obito from before wasn't like this, and they had their reasons for doing what they did. However, many people didn't bother to understand the reasons; they only cared about the results.

For example, Kakashi, whose perception of the Uchiha had now turned negative.

Of course, Kyomu was an exception.

But even Obito could sense that Kakashi was deliberately keeping his distance, perhaps not because of Obito himself, but because of his clan.

Seeing Kyomu silently sitting on the side, Rin didn't know what to say. She just stayed by Obito's side, carefully tending to the bruises on his face.

Kakashi had been relentless in his attacks...

But this was also related to Obito's determination not to admit defeat, willingly enduring the blows even when he knew he couldn't win.

Glancing at Obito and Rin on the side, Kakashi shifted his gaze, finally landing on Aragami Kyomu.

"Today, no matter what, you won't refuse to spar with me, right?"

"Of course."

Kyomu nodded, took a few steps back, creating distance between him and Kakashi.

Seeing this, Kakashi's previous displeasure vanished, replaced by excitement.

Finally, he could engage with Aragami Kyomu!

"Best of three, rock-paper-scissors," Aragami Kyomu suddenly proposed.

"Huh?" Kakashi thought he misheard, "What did you just say? Say it again!"

"Best of three, rock-paper-scissors."

Kakashi pulled the corner of his mouth, "Kyomu, are you playing dirty again? Don't forget I ignored the warning and went to save you just now. In terms of both reason and emotion, you can't treat me like this!"

"That's why I set the rule of best of three, rock-paper-scissors. This way, we can spar for a longer time," Kyomu shrugged, indicating that he did his best.

"You call rock-paper-scissors sparring?"

"Getting physical, like this." Kyomu gestured, making a move with his hands. "See, is this not physical enough?"

Smack.

Kakashi slapped his forehead in disbelief. He couldn't believe it.

Taking a deep breath, Kakashi pulled Kyomu to the side, away from the curious eyes of Obito and Rin.

"Keep it quiet, come quietly," Kakashi compromised, though his face showed some reluctance.

Kyomu didn't mind. He casually played three rounds of rock-paper-scissors with Kakashi.

One win, two losses; Kyomu lost.

"Kakashi, you're really strong!" Kyomu's voice was loud, "I didn't expect you to be so proficient in rock-paper-scissors. I can't beat you."

Tired, destroy.

Kakashi didn't want to talk, turned around to look at Obito and Rin, who were watching them with interest, and suddenly blushed.

"I'm going home," Kakashi found an excuse to leave, "And tomorrow, I might not come."

Leaving these words behind, Kakashi quickly departed, leaving behind Kyomu, who seemed indifferent, and Obito and Rin, who looked somewhat disappointed.

"Kyomu, do you think Kakashi..."

"You're overthinking it." Kyomu interrupted Obito, "He won't take tonight's incident to heart, let alone hold any grudges against you. Kakashi is genuinely concerned about his own strength. After all, he was weak and helpless at that time, completely suppressed."

Although the strength was mismatched, it clearly stimulated Kakashi.

"So, just wait and see. Kakashi will enter a state of intense training in the future, without paying much attention to us."

Obito nodded, looking hopefully at Kyomu. "What about you? Will you still come over to train with me in the future?"

"As for me... I can occasionally come over to take a nap, as long as your uncle won't drive me away again."

"He won't. I'll talk to him." Obito's eyes lit up, "You're just finding a place to sleep, it won't be a problem."

That's hard to say.

Kyomu doubted in his heart, but on the surface, he still managed to maintain some face. "I'll wait for your good news."

"Okay, that's settled." Obito approached Kyomu, "So... are we friends now?"

"If you think so, then we are."

Obito smiled, but the bruises on his face made the smile look a bit painful.

Seeing the somewhat ridiculous Obito, Kyomu shook his head, patted his shoulder, "My friend, I'm going home now. See you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow."

Obito watched Kyomu leave and then prepared to personally escort Rin back home.

It had to be said that Rin's treatment was not the treatment friends should give each other.

...

On the way home, Kyomu lowered his head in contemplation, holding a few small stones he had picked up along the way.

Suddenly, he flicked his finger, and three small stones shot out. They flew a distance, collided with each other, changed their trajectory, collided again, and continued flying forward for another distance before undergoing the third collision.

When the third collision was complete, the practice came to an end.

"Without the power of the Sharingan, reaching this level is already the limit." Kyomu shook his head, "And this is just a simple modification of the trajectory of thrown objects. Many unique Uchiha throwing techniques can't be used at all.

As for Uchiha fluid arts, it's even more exaggerated. It's impossible to play without the Sharingan, without that gene..."

He smiled bitterly, "Today's plan is a failure. Even if I absorbed and improved some techniques from Uchiha's flowing throwing technique that I can use, it's impossible to completely replicate it. But I did learn a few Fire Release jutsus, not a complete waste."

Back home, Kyomu cooked something to fill his stomach, prepared a bento for the next day, and then cleaned up before getting ready for bed.

"I still have quite a bit of this month's stipend left. Tomorrow, after school, I'll go to the ninja tool shop and get some tools for self-defense."

Lying in bed, Kyomu contemplated the events of tomorrow, "And I don't need to go to the training ground near Uchiha's residence. It's better to pretend to be weak and learn from others at the public training ground. It's safer."

With the decision made, Kyomu fell asleep in an instant. Meanwhile, Kakashi, who had returned home early, was still training diligently.

Today's events were a disgrace to Kakashi, and only by working even harder to improve his strength could he possibly redeem himself.

But during the breaks in his training, Kakashi couldn't help but unconsciously think of Kyomu, the seemingly lazy person who was anything but simple.

"Kyomu, you clearly have that ability and talent, but why are you hiding it? Or is it all just my imagination..."

At the same time, someone else pondered the same question: Uchiha Obito.

Recalling his uncle's simple analysis of Aragami Kyomu's strength tonight, he couldn't sleep, tossing and turning in bed.

"Kyomu, are you really as my uncle said, overpowering me in real strength and slightly surpassing Kakashi? If that's the case, how did you do it?"

With questions and confusion in his mind, Obito considered many possibilities, but in the end, he couldn't resist the drowsiness and slowly closed his eyes.

This answer may never be revealed.

(End of Chapter)