Kaito Akaden (Kaito)

Chapter 10: bell test

A tremendous fireball exploded in the middle of the training field, and a billowing cloud of smoke rose into the air. Minato swiftly leaped back, his feet skidding on the ground as the smoke began to clear. The bell on his waist jingled as he was assailed by yet another fireball, this time coming directly from the front. With remarkable agility, Minato vaulted onto a nearby tree, effortlessly avoiding the smaller fireballs that emanated from the large one. He gracefully shifted his body, dancing around the threats with ease, before swiftly hurling a barrage of shuriken towards the source of the fireball. The shuriken peppered the area where Obito stood, missing him by a mere millimeter and causing him to plummet from the tree he had been perched on.

As Obito landed on his backside and looked up, he saw Minato standing atop another tree. Minato declared with confidence, "You're done, Obito."

"Darn it," Obito muttered in frustration as he sat on the ground a short distance away. Rin, seizing the opportunity, sprung a trap that sent a massive tree trunk hurtling towards Minato. In a desperate move to conceal his presence, Obito threw a smoke bomb. However, Minato effortlessly evaded the incoming attack and silently commended Rin's strategy, thinking to himself, "Nice strategy."

Rin, alert and supportive, pointed out, "Obito, they're at two o'clock."

"Right," Obito replied, swiftly running through a series of hand signs before releasing another colossal fireball towards the direction Rin had indicated, exclaiming, "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" Minato effortlessly dodged it and reappeared behind them.

Minato commented, "Hmm, almost had me there."

"But, sensei, how did you..." Rin began, her initial shock giving way to resignation as both she and Obito sighed in defeat. "We blew it again," Obito grumbled.

Minato thought to himself, "You've grown strong, both of you, and I'm impressed with your teamwork." He now contemplated the next step. Suddenly, a shuriken came hurtling towards him. Minato skillfully deflected it, thinking, "What timing." Just as he had that thought, Kakashi emerged from the side and attempted to slash at Minato, who effortlessly evaded the attack.

"Kakashi!" both of Minato's students exclaimed, surprised to see him openly attacking their sensei. As Kakashi continued his relentless assault, Minato adeptly evaded and deflected all of his attacks.

"Sensei, today's the day I win," Kakashi declared confidently as he pressed on with increased ferocity.

Minato, with a serious expression, asked, "You've been biding your time, was that your strategy?"

"No, it would be too hard to fight you while watching over those two," Kakashi replied, revealing his true intentions. Realizing Kakashi's plan, Minato acknowledged, "That's why you were waiting for me to defeat them..."

Kakashi then sprung a trap, causing the ground to explode with paper bombs. It seemed as though the explosion had consumed Minato, but he reappeared on a tree branch with hardly a scratch. As soon as he reached the branch, he was faced with a volley of shuriken, which he deflected with grace. At that moment, Kakashi materialized behind him, attempting to kick him, but Minato swiftly blocked the attack. Kakashi continued to engage Minato in a bout of taijutsu, but Minato effortlessly evaded all of Kakashi's moves. During this exchange, Kakashi was briefly able to touch the bells.

"Not bad, Kakashi, but not enough to beat me," Minato said with a smirk after pushing Kakashi away.

"I'm not through yet, sensei," Kakashi retorted, disappearing in a puff of smoke, revealing himself to be a shadow clone.

"A shadow clone," Minato remarked with a smile, standing confidently.

"This isn't complete, but..." Kakashi said as he formed hand signs, channeling chakra into his hand, generating lightning. "Now, I'll finish this," Kakashi declared.

"I told you, didn't I? You can't beat me," a voice came from behind Kakashi, who turned only to find Minato standing behind him, a kunai poised at his neck. "You lose, Kakashi."

"Wow... What incredible speed," Kakashi muttered, looking back at the spot where Minato had previously stood. "I'd already consider you Jonin-class, but you're not ready," Minato stated as he stood there.

"I was so close," Kakashi growled in frustration. Soon, Rin and Obito joined them, and as Minato concluded the bell test. As the bell test was concluded Me and Kushina made our way over to the team with the lunch she had prepared for us.

"Good that you actually hit me," Minato said, his gaze fixed on his sleeve, where a small cut had appeared.

"Ohh, hitting sensei! That's amazing, Kakashi," Rin exclaimed, her eyes locked on Kakashi.

Kakashi, however, seemed somewhat disappointed with his performance as he replied, "It was only one hit. It isn't all that praiseworthy."

Obito, feeling a bit left out as Kakashi received all the attention, whined to Rin, "I could do it too, you know." Kushina playfully placed the food basket on his head and asked with a grin, "Nice timing, right?"

Rin, delighted to see Kushina, exclaimed, "Kushina, yaaah!"

"Wow, Tou-chan, you're so cool," I chimed in as Kushina chatted with the others. Hearing my words, Minato smiled and replied, "Well, I did train a lot to be this strong. And if you continue to train as you are, you will surpass me in no time."

Kushina, with her warm and encouraging spirit, asked them all, "Are you all doing your best?" To which Minato responded, "They're doing great. We were just about to take a break."

"That's good to hear. Here's lunch," Kushina offered, presenting the meal she had prepared. "Here's your order; it's Kushina's special!"

"Alright, I love the food you make, Kushina. Thanks," Rin expressed her gratitude, and Kushina couldn't help but coo, "You're so cute, Rin. You're such a good girl, you know."

Obito, on the other hand, turned his nose up in an attempt to distance himself. Seeing his reaction, Kushina couldn't resist teasing him, "Let me get this straight: I take the time to bring lunch all the way out here to you guys, and that's the kind of thanks I get from you, hmm?"

Obito tried to maintain his indifference, retorting, "Hey, I didn't ask you to do that! I'm not even hungry." However, his stomach had different plans and growled loudly, embarrassing him.

As we settled down to enjoy Kushina's specially prepared lunch, the atmosphere became more relaxed. The food was a testament to her culinary skills, and I couldn't help but savor each bite. It was moments like these that made me appreciate the bonds we shared as a team and as friends.

Rin, always the cheerful one, broke the silence as she commented, "You know, Minato-sensei, it's moments like these that make all the hard work worth it."

Minato nodded in agreement, a contented smile on his face. "You're absolutely right, Rin. Training is essential, but so is taking the time to enjoy the company of friends."

Obito, who had initially been sulking, seemed to brighten up a bit. "Yeah, you guys are lucky to have each other. I guess I'm lucky too," he mumbled, his usual cocky demeanor softened by a hint of vulnerability.

Kushina, ever perceptive, reached over and tousled Obito's hair playfully. "Of course, you're lucky, Obito. We're all here for each other, no matter what."

As I observed this interaction, I couldn't help but reflect on my own thoughts. I had never gotten too close to Obito, knowing what he would ultimately become. But witnessing him now, I struggled to reconcile the idea that this Obito would one day become the masked man. He seemed so weak, so far removed from the power that the masked man had displayed. Hashirama's cells and his Mangekyo Sharingan were incredibly overpowered, and without those boosts, it was hard to imagine Obito achieving even a fraction of what the masked man had accomplished.

Was Rin's death the sole catalyst for Obito's transformation, or had Madara played a more significant role in his descent into darkness? These questions had haunted me for some time, and observing Obito in his current state only deepened the mystery. It was difficult to fathom how someone with such he could fall so far.

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