Konoha’s Black Plague

Obito vs. Bai Ye

"You lost miserably."

Bai Ye gently rubbed Yuyan's head, comforting her. Though their match hadn't reached a formal conclusion, the outcome was decided from the first exchange. The disparity in strength was unmistakable.

"Hmm."

Yuyan acknowledged her shortcomings without protest—a rare occurrence. She was visibly frustrated.

She had mentally prepared herself for a loss to Kakashi, but she hadn't expected to be overwhelmed so thoroughly. It felt as though her every thought had been read, and the opponent could formulate a counter-strategy on the fly.

"In that last exchange, when you spun and struck at Kakashi's lower abdomen, you could have leapt back and used your Shōten (Vacuum Palm) to attack from a distance. With Kakashi's reflexes, he likely would have dodged, but it would've prevented you from becoming so passive."

Bai Ye, who had been observing from the sidelines, calmly analyzed the match, pointing out the flaws in her approach.

"And the move you used earlier—Kaiten, right? If you had used that when I approached from behind instead of attacking directly with Gentle Fist, I might've taken a serious hit. I wasn't expecting you to know that technique."

Kakashi, who had walked over, added his own thoughts. The force of the Kaiten had surprised him, and he wasn't confident he could have escaped unscathed had he been unaware of it.

Yuyan took mental notes of everything they said. She knew her battlefield awareness was still immature, and she was doing her best to absorb their experience.

Her goal wasn't always to win—she understood that in real missions, sometimes survival and delaying the enemy was the best outcome. Learning to handle superior opponents would help reduce the burden on her comrades in the future.

---

"Bai Ye! Let's fight!"

As the three of them reviewed the earlier battle, Obito suddenly leapt in with a bright grin, confident he could handle Bai Ye easily.

Bai Ye immediately suspected Yue had stirred the pot. She stood off to the side, both hands covering her mouth, her shoulders shaking as she stifled her laughter. She had likely told Obito about her own loss to Bai Ye.

Now Obito was full of bravado. He had no idea Yue had set him up. Bai Ye considered whether he should go easy on him—he didn't want to crush Obito's dreams too hard.

"You Uchiha are always so hot-blooded. Must be a challenge dealing with you," Hizashi Hyūga remarked from nearby, amused.

"Maybe so," Minato added, watching with a warm smile. "But because of Obito, Kakashi's changed a lot since last year. Back then, he never even acknowledged his teammates."

It was true—Kakashi had once been all about the mission, cold and aloof. Now, though they bickered constantly, Obito's presence had drawn him out of that shell.

---

"Hey, what's the meaning of sticking your sword in the ground? You looking down on me?"

Obito scowled when he saw Bai Ye plant his Zanpakutō into the dirt. It felt insulting, like Bai Ye didn't even think he needed a weapon to fight him. Obito, after all, was a Uchiha—how could he allow such disrespect?

But he hadn't considered a simple truth: if Bai Ye had truly been the weakest in the class, how had he received approval for early graduation?

"It's just for decoration," Bai Ye replied smoothly. "Carrying it around is a hassle—it's too heavy."

A lie, of course, but Bai Ye's poker face didn't betray him. He was wearing weighted gear under his clothes, and the sword's weight had nothing to do with anything. Still, it sounded convincing.

Obito walked over and tested the sword's heft. It was heavy. He reluctantly accepted the explanation, though the sight of Yue and Yuyan barely containing their laughter set off alarm bells in his head.

"This idiot…" Kakashi muttered, pulling down his forehead protector to hide his face. He couldn't believe this was one of his teammates.

"Do your best, Obito~!" Rin called out cheerfully. Her encouraging voice made Obito's heart race and reignited his fire. With blazing determination, he charged at Bai Ye.

---

"Yue," Yuyan asked in a low voice, "how many moves do you think Bai Ye will need to beat Obito?"

Yue smirked. "If he's serious? One."

Yuyan blinked in disbelief, but Yue's expression was dead serious. She knew Obito's limits, and encouraging him to fight Bai Ye had been too fun to pass up.

Rin, overhearing them, began to worry. She hadn't expected Obito to win—but to hear the gap was that big?

---

Obito approached with caution. He wasn't dumb—he didn't want to go straight into melee. Drawing three shuriken with his left hand, he threw them in a line meant to restrict Bai Ye's options for dodging.

But to Bai Ye, the attack was sluggish—almost insultingly so.

He didn't move. He stood perfectly still, watching.

Obito hesitated. He had prepared his Great Fireball Technique to follow up the moment Bai Ye dodged. But the other boy just... stood there.

As the center shuriken closed in, Obito activated the jutsu anyway, launching a massive fireball.

Just as the shuriken was about to strike, Bai Ye casually raised his right hand.

With a flick, he caught the spinning shuriken on the tip of his index finger.

"Hadō #8: Seki."

A small, glowing shield manifested in front of his chest, just large enough to deflect the worst of the incoming flames.

Obito's eyes widened. A wall of light had suddenly formed in front of Bai Ye.

Realizing his jutsu might be blocked, Obito poured more chakra into the flames, intensifying them.

The shield cracked.

Cracks spread across the surface, weakened by the growing inferno, and with a final shatter, the barrier broke.

The fire engulfed Bai Ye completely.