https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-441-The-Byakugan-and-the-World-of-Transparency/12558572/
Chapter 440: The Unfeeling Uchiha
Chapter 440: The Unfeeling Uchiha
After Itachi recovered from his injuries, since Deidara and the others had already returned to Konoha, Mu Yue assigned Itachi to a new team.
Itachi had no objections. With his current strength, it was indeed insufficient to wander the battlefield alone.
"You must be Uchiha Itachi, joining our team. I'm Takaki Nobutsugu, the team leader, and a special jonin-level ninja, specializing in Fire Release." Takaki introduced himself after noticing Itachi's arrival.
Even though Itachi was only temporarily joining, self-introduction was an essential step.
It wasn't for ceremonial purposes, but to establish a basic understanding of each other before battle, ensuring better coordination, or at the very least, not hindering one another.
"So, he's the famous Uchiha Itachi," Takaki's disciples curiously stared at Itachi, a name that had become renowned recently.
Even the Konoha ninjas in the rear knew of Kakashi's team's achievements, and Takaki's disciples, being on the battlefield where the encounter took place, were naturally even more informed.
All the Konoha ninjas on that battlefield had heard of Mu Yue's strength and the genius of Kakashi's team.
"So young, he's really only eight years old. I wonder how he trained to possess the strength to face the Ninja Blade Magicians at such a young age?"
"Could it be that the Ninja Blade Magicians aren't as strong as the legends make them out to be? This Uchiha Itachi doesn't seem that powerful either."
Takaki's disciples couldn't help but whisper among themselves after catching sight of Itachi.
Itachi didn't seem too extraordinary, giving off a quiet and reserved impression.
"I'm Uchiha Itachi, a chunin-level ninja, skilled in Fire Release and Genjutsu," Itachi introduced himself concisely, revealing his specialty in ninjutsu.
Takaki nodded and turned to his three disciples.
"I'm Kobayashi Kenji, a chunin-level ninja, able to use Wind Release ninjutsu."
"I'm Uesugi Toru, a chunin-level ninja, specializing in Fire Release ninjutsu."
"I'm Miyashita Yuki, a chunin-level ninja, capable of using some basic medical ninjutsu."
Takaki's disciples introduced themselves one by one.
"To better coordinate during missions, I need to understand your abilities through a practice match. However, as we have a mission soon, let's keep it brief," Takaki said after some thought.
Usually, Takaki would have his disciples test new members, but since Itachi was the renowned Uchiha genius, Takaki decided to take on the task himself.
To be honest, Takaki wasn't confident in defeating Itachi. After all, even eight of him would only be able to flee from the Ninja Blade Magicians, whereas Itachi's team had emerged victorious.
"Please go easy on me," Itachi nodded in agreement, as this was also his intention.
"Sensei Takaki, let me do it! You can observe more closely from the side," Uesugi stepped forward eagerly.
He was usually the most outstanding member of the team, and he wanted to test himself against a true genius.
"Even if he started training at three years old, he would have trained for a maximum of five years. I've been a ninja for more than five years, so I shouldn't lose too badly," Uesugi thought to himself.
Uesugi didn't have the confidence to win, but he believed he could hold his own.
"Are you sure?" Takaki didn't agree immediately.
He knew Uesugi's abilities all too well. While Uesugi was exceptional among chunin, that was the extent of it. He and Itachi, a super genius, were on entirely different levels.
"Yes, it's rare to meet a genius like Itachi. I want to test my own abilities," Uesugi explained.
"Alright, then you can go ahead," Takaki agreed after some consideration.
He wanted to use this opportunity to teach his slightly arrogant disciple a lesson.
If one had such an attitude during a mission, they would easily end up dead.
"Begin!"
With Takaki's signal, Itachi and Uesugi leaped into action.
Shing!
Uesugi ran while drawing shuriken from his ninja tool pouch, throwing them at Itachi.
Itachi's expression remained unchanged as he also threw shuriken.
Clang!
Their shuriken clashed and fell to the ground.
"Even his basics far surpass those of ordinary people," Takaki observed, nodding internally.
On the surface, their shuriken exchange seemed like a draw, but Itachi had waited for Uesugi to finish throwing before releasing his own, perfectly intercepting all of Uesugi's shuriken. This displayed Itachi's exceptional shuriken-throwing skills.
Itachi, as if anticipating this move, slightly turned his body to dodge the incoming fist.
Takaki's attack missed, and he immediately took a step back and kicked out at Itachi with his leg. But Itachi also took a step back, causing Takaki's attack to miss again.
Takaki pushed his body to the limit, unleashing a rapid series of fierce attacks, yet he couldn't even touch the hem of Itachi's clothes.
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
Seeing that his taijutsu wasn't working, Takaki created some distance and performed hand seals to use a fire-style jutsu.
"Teacher Mu Yue's ninjutsu," Itachi said, a little surprised.
Previously, when Mu Yue's attribute had changed to teaching, she had developed five D-rank ninjutsu, and later she had created corresponding upgraded versions, with the Fire Style: Grand Fireball Justu being one of them.
"Fire Style: Grand Fireball Jutsu!"
Itachi also performed hand seals and used a fire-style jutsu, but to prevent hurting his teammates, he intentionally reduced the amount of chakra used, thus weakening the power of the Grand Fireball.
"So, this is the gap between me and a true genius," Takaki thought to himself, amazed by the power of Itachi's fireball.
He had practiced fire-style jutsu for quite some time, and even before the fireballs collided, he could tell that Itachi's fireball was far superior to his own.
Boom!!
The two fireballs collided, and without exception, Itachi's Grand Fireball devoured Takaki's fireball.
Although his fighting spirit had been almost completely eroded, his training as a ninja urged him to dodge.
Whoosh!
Just then, Itachi, who had not taken the initiative to attack until now, made his move. Holding a kunai, he used the Body Flicker Technique to rush forward.
By the time Takaki reacted, the gleaming kunai was already pressed against his neck.
"So fast!" Takaki's pupils dilated in shock.
He had thought he could hold on a little longer, but he never expected Itachi's Body Flicker Technique to be so swift.
Itachi silently put away his kunai. This had been a practice spar, and it was over as soon as it had begun.
In truth, if Itachi had used his full strength from the start, he could have taken down Takaki in an instant. But to understand his new teammate's abilities and to give him some face, Itachi had held back for a few moves before showing his true prowess.
"You're a bit out of your league, Takaki," Kobayashi couldn't help but tease.
On the surface, it had looked like a back-and-forth spar, but in reality, as soon as Itachi took the initiative to attack, Takaki was instantly defeated.
"Your strength truly lives up to your reputation," Miyashita said, astonished by Itachi's display of power.
Hearing about something and seeing it with your own eyes were two different things, and the image of an eight-year-old child dominating a sixteen-year-old Chunin was incredibly striking.
At this moment, Takaki didn't respond to his teammates' banter. The only thought running through his mind was, "How is he only eight years old?"
Takaki conceded that Itachi's fire-style jutsu was superior, after all, geniuses were known for their natural talent in ninjutsu.
But Itachi's taijutsu seemed to surpass common sense. How could an eight-year-old body possess such physical strength?
"Could he have started training in the womb?" Takaki wondered.
His train of thought was interrupted by a hand on his shoulder. It was his teacher, Takaki Nobutsugu.
"Now you know the strength of a true genius. You still have a long way to go," Takaki Nobutsugu said, giving his slightly dazed disciple a pat on the shoulder.
Without waiting for Takaki to respond, he turned to Itachi. "Itachi, do you need a rest before we continue, or shall we start now? This guy's level is too low, and I'm guessing you've been holding back to avoid hurting him."
Takaki had been defeated too quickly, so his teacher needed to step in to gauge Itachi's abilities.
"Let's continue now," Itachi agreed.
The fight against Takaki had barely taken any effort, so naturally, Itachi didn't need a rest.
Takaki rubbed his shoulder where he'd been patted, sighed, and moved to the side to watch the upcoming battle. The only sore spot from the fight was from his teacher's pat on the back—how ironic!
"Teacher Takaki is a Special Jonin, after all. He probably won't be as easy as I was," Takaki thought to himself, predicting the outcome of the upcoming battle.
A Special Jonin was still a Jonin, and there was a noticeable gap between them and Chunin. Takaki believed that his teacher would be able to bring out Itachi's true strength.
However, something unexpected happened. The overall rhythm of the battle between Itachi and Takaki Nobutsugu was not much different from the previous fight.
In terms of taijutsu, Takaki Nobutsugu still couldn't gain any advantage over Itachi and was even forced to retreat.
When it came to fire-style jutsu, Takaki Nobutsugu was once again suppressed by Itachi, and in the end, his fire jutsu was devoured by Itachi's.
The fact that Takagi Shinji lost in the ninjutsu clash proved that he was inferior to Shizumi in his training with fire-style jutsu.
"Teacher Shinji..." Kobayashi Kenji stared, dumbfounded, at Takagi Shinji, whose back was drenched in sweat.
As their mentor, Takagi Shinji was the Jonin they interacted with the most, and it was shocking to see their teacher being beaten to a sweaty mess by an eight-year-old child.
Fortunately, Shizumi kept in mind the rule of stopping at the right moment, and he voluntarily stopped when he felt he had understood enough, thus saving some face for Takagi Shinji.
Whether it was due to overexertion or Shizumi's fire-style jutsu's high temperature, Takagi Shinji's face turned slightly red.
"He's monstrously powerful," Takagi Shinji exhaled, thinking to himself.
Although he had expected Shizumi to be strong, the actual battle still surprised him, and he felt like he was facing a truly capable special Jonin.
The experienced Takagi Shinji could sense that Shizumi had held back, as a full-powered attack would have injured him.
"It's a good thing to have such a strong teammate," Takagi Shinji comforted himself.
Indeed, it was a bit embarrassing. He had just reprimanded his disciples, and now he himself had been thoroughly defeated.
And so, Shizumi joined Takagi Shinji's small team and began his new mission life.
Although they were all teammates, Shizumi could clearly feel that he hadn't blended into the team dynamic, and the three members seemed to have a subtle sense of estrangement towards him.
Shizumi hadn't experienced this feeling in a long time; only when he went out with the elders of the Uchiha clan did he feel this way.
After entering the Ninja Academy, most of his time was spent training with Mu Yue, and naturally, he spent most of his time with Mu Yue and her disciples, so he never encountered such a situation.
This feeling made Shizumi a little uncomfortable, as he hadn't done anything detrimental to the team.
Shizumi had a vague idea of the reason, but he couldn't be completely sure.
Subsequently, Shizumi didn't let the subtle sense of estrangement isolate him from the team; he continued to be himself.
During a slightly dangerous mission, Shizumi used his Sharingan to deal with an ambushing enemy, preventing Kobayashi Kenji and Miyashita Yuki from getting injured.
After this mission, the subtle sense of estrangement disappeared.
"Shizumi, thank you so much. If it weren't for your quick action, we would probably be bedridden for a while," Kobayashi Kenji expressed his gratitude.
"It seems not all Uchiha are unfeeling... Ouch!"
Miyashita Yuki smiled and elbowed the tactless Kobayashi Kenji, then apologized to Shizumi, "Sorry, Kenji isn't good with words. Please don't mind him, Shizumi."
Through their interactions, they could tell that Shizumi wasn't a cold-hearted person, but as far as Miyashita Yuki knew, the Uchiha ninjas had a strong sense of clan identity, and she worried that Shizumi might be unhappy because of Kobayashi Kenji's comment.
"I don't mind," Shizumi shook his head.
If someone were to badmouth the Uchiha clan, he would indeed be unhappy.
However, was Kobayashi Kenji really badmouthing them? Not necessarily.
Based on Shizumi's understanding of his clan, there were indeed some people who didn't care about those outside the Uchiha clan.
Apparently, Shizumi had guessed correctly. The reason the team members didn't immediately accept him wasn't because he had defeated Uesugi Toru and Takagi Shinji, but because of his surname—Uchiha.
Because he was a temporarily assigned Uchiha ninja to the team, the three members naturally had a slight sense of estrangement at the beginning.
Shizumi even believed that the team leader, Takagi Shinji, might feel the same, but since he was older, he was better at hiding it.
"I must change the image of the Uchiha clan in Konoha," Shizumi reflected deeply, realizing the importance of having a good reputation.
Not all Uchiha could prove their true character through actions like Shizumi and improve their relationships.
Many Uchiha members carried an air of superiority as the strongest clan, and if outsiders showed signs of estrangement, they would respond with even stronger aloofness.
Even if they realized it was a misunderstanding, their pride might prevent them from bothering to explain.
(End of Chapter)
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