Konoha’s Black Plague

Future

"Is Bai Ye okay? Isn't that a bit reckless?"

Yue watched as Bai Ye's figure was completely engulfed by flames, her expression filled with worry.

"This idiot lectured me just now, but his performance turned out to be even worse," Yuyan muttered. Despite the harsh words, her face betrayed her concern.

Kakashi was slightly speechless. That guy's temperament... is he trying to act like Guy-sensei already? Even standing still to take an enemy's jutsu—what kind of strategy was that?

From a distance, Hizashi Hyūga understood what Bai Ye was trying to accomplish. He was curious—What will become of the boy after taking a hit like that?

The intense chakra forming the Great Fireball Technique distorted the air, making it difficult even for the Byakugan to clearly see through the flames.

Minato Namikaze had originally prepared to intervene and rescue Bai Ye. However, seeing that Hizashi remained calm and motionless, he hesitated. He chose to wait and observe. What kind of method is this kid relying on to endure such an attack?

Obito, panting heavily after releasing the Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique, wiped sweat from his brow. Whether from chakra exhaustion or the heat of his own flames, he wasn't sure. The scorched earth before him, visibly sunken from the heat, made him nervous.

Did I overdo it...?

Obito feared that Bai Ye had truly been injured—maybe even seriously. Anxiety crept in.

Finally, as Obito's chakra dissipated, the flames began to fade. The center of the blast zone showed the most damage. The earth was cracked and blackened. But at the center...

Bai Ye stood tall.

His arms were crossed in front of his head in a defensive posture. His clothes were burned to tatters. His forearms, in particular, showed signs of serious burns. The ground within two meters of him had been scorched clean—except for the very spot under his feet.

"Huff..."

He exhaled deeply, taking nearly ten seconds to fully release the breath. His complexion began to recover.

The worst part of being engulfed in flame hadn't been the heat—it was the suffocating lack of oxygen. Maintaining chakra flow to defend his body while enduring a vacuum-like environment had drained him.

Clang—!

The weighted gauntlet on his right arm, scorched and warped by the heat, finally gave way. The metal cracked and fell apart, crashing to the ground and kicking up dust.

Obito watched, stunned. Bai Ye looked burned, but his breathing was more stable than Obito's own. These injuries were surface-level. Minor, even.

And most shocking of all—he'd been wearing weights during the entire fight.

Obito's confidence wavered. Bai Ye had stood still and tanked his most powerful jutsu—and survived. If Bai Ye took the initiative to attack, Obito might be taken down in a single blow.

But what frustrated him more than Bai Ye... was Kakashi.

Kakashi had easily defeated Yuyan earlier, and Bai Ye had just overwhelmed him—Obito—with sheer toughness. The gap between us is on a completely different level...

"Obito," Minato said gently, seeing the boy's dejection. He ruffled Obito's hair. "You've practiced that technique well. Bai Ye isn't some nobody—he's a genius. Even the Third Hokage speaks highly of him."

"Yeah," Rin chimed in, stepping beside him. "Even if Bai Ye started off behind, he worked his way to this level. You've gotten stronger too, Obito. Don't forget that."

Bai Ye didn't offer any comfort. He didn't need to. He knew who Obito would become. He'll be a boss-level villain in the future. No way is this kid fragile.

As a former fan of Naruto, Bai Ye had always liked Obito. But now that he was in the world himself, he hadn't decided if he would intervene in the coming Third Great Ninja War.

Too much interference could stop Naruto and Sasuke's growth, he mused. If both of them end up weak, that'll be a disaster.

Not to mention the final boss, Kaguya Ōtsutsuki. Could Madara alone really handle her?

And if Madara still chose Obito as his successor, Bai Ye wasn't confident he could save him. At most, he could try to help at Kannabi Bridge. But beyond that? If Madara used more insidious methods—genjutsu, manipulation, blackmail—there wasn't much he could do. He couldn't guard Obito 24/7.

For now, he let Yue tend to his wounds. Honestly, he wanted to refuse. But when faced with her big, watery eyes... he caved.

White steam rose from Bai Ye's burnt skin as his High-Speed Regeneration activated. Judging from the current rate, he wouldn't take long to fully recover.

That had been the point of the test—to measure the limits of his Bleach-based technique, Hadō #8: Rebuke, and his body's regeneration.

Dispersing Rebuke across the body had weakened its power. It was better suited for concentrating chakra to defend specific areas.

As for regeneration—he suspected his physical constitution had been enhanced again. Even taking a direct hit from a Great Fireball, the damage was much lighter than expected.

Recovery speed is excellent. If it's just minor damage like this, I can recover quickly without even draining my stamina.

This opened up new tactical possibilities—injury-trading, overwhelming pressure, and calculated risk in battle.

"Bai Ye," Obito suddenly declared, "you're the second person after Kakashi that I need to surpass!"

Bai Ye smirked. "Then how about you start by buying me a new shirt?"

Obito groaned. He opened his coin pouch and began counting. There goes half a month's mission earnings...

For now, Bai Ye didn't think too far ahead. He was happy to befriend Obito. After all, in a few years, his evolving Zanpakutō might make him a monster in his own right—and at that point, all problems would be trivial.

Everyone gathered around Bai Ye, chatting about his unusual physique. Eventually, attention turned to Yue and Rin—still the only two who hadn't fought yet.

The two girls glanced at each other.

"I'm not going to fight Yue," Rin said quickly. "I specialize in medical ninjutsu."

She'd heard Yue was the strongest kunoichi in their class—on par with Kakashi, maybe stronger. Rin knew her role was support, and a match would only end one way.

"I don't think there's any point in fighting either," Yue replied softly. Like Rin, she was kind-hearted by nature. If she hadn't been born into the Uchiha clan, she might not have become a shinobi at all.