Naruto: Legend of the Skylark

While Hibari headed out to 'hunt bears' with little Tsunade, Hiyoko ambled to Tobirama's room. He composed himself slightly, then knocked twice. Without waiting for a reply, he pushed the door open and entered.

Just as Hibari had expected, Tobirama was already engrossed in his research, writing and drawing at his desk. Without even lifting his head, he said, "You're early today."

Hiyoko chuckled, "Well, Tsunade stirred me awake bright and early."

Tobirama didn't think much of it and simply said, "Look through some books first. I'll finish this, then I'll take your measurements..."

Actually, Tobirama didn't check Hibari's body every day; it was usually every three to five days.

So Hiyoko hadn't expected Tobirama to suddenly want to take his measurements today. He was, after all, a shadow clone. Even if he was special, he wasn't the original, so his body data would definitely be somewhat different.

"Ahem, Tobirama-jiisan, why the sudden measurement today? Don't you usually only do it every three to five days?" Hiyoko asked, feeling a bit guilty.

"There's no fixed schedule for this sort of thing. I measure when needed; isn't that normal? What's wrong?" Tobirama asked without looking up.

"Cough, cough, cough. Oh, my throat hurts a bit," Hiyoko feigned. He then paused and quickly continued, "I think I caught a cold today; I'm not feeling too well. How about we measure another day? Otherwise, any deviation in the data wouldn't be good."

Tobirama looked up at Hiyoko with some surprise. He then said, "You, catching a cold? I've never seen you sick in all your life. Perfect, this will be new data, all the more reason to measure!"

Hearing this, Hiyoko quickly said, "I was just worried you'd be too tired, Tobirama! It's good to take a break. We've gone all these years; I'm not in a hurry..."

Tobirama frowned slightly this time, scrutinizing Hiyoko. Then, he suddenly reached out and poked Hiyoko's chest with a finger, making him stumble back two steps. Hiyoko clutched his chest, wincing slightly, and looked at Tobirama in utter surprise.

"Tobirama-jiisan, what was that for?" Hiyoko asked, bewildered.

Tobirama finally relaxed his brow and said, "I thought you learned the Shadow Clone Jutsu and sent a clone to fool me. But it doesn't seem that way now..."

After speaking, Tobirama stood up, grabbed Hibari's shoulder, and said, "What are you dawdling for? I knew something was fishy about you today. Stop talking nonsense and lie down for me..."

"Tobirama-jiisan, Tobirama-jiisan, please let me explain!" Hiyoko cried out, struggling violently as Tobirama pressed him onto a bench.

"No need for explanations. I'll measure it myself; then I'll know everything!" Tobirama said confidently.

Then, the chakra in his hand skillfully seeped from 'Hibari''s shoulder into Hiyoko's body. Tobirama's expression then became somewhat strange, followed by intense confusion.

"Huh? What's going on with you today?" After a moment of confusion, Tobirama's expression changed. He suddenly clamped down on Hiyoko's movements, his eyes burning with anger as he said in a low voice, "Who are you? Why are you disguised as Hibari? Where is he?"

"Ow, ow, ow..." Hiyoko cried out indignantly, pinned down by Tobirama.

Before he could explain, the door to the room was pushed open again. Hashirama's figure walked in. Seeing Tobirama and 'Hibari,' he said with some surprise, "Hmm? When I just came over, I clearly saw you, Hibari, leave with Tsunade. How did you get here in a blink of an eye? Did Tobirama teach him the Flying Raijin Technique?"

"He's not Hibari. It's someone who has transformed into Hibari and came here to deceive me. I must say, the resemblance is uncanny. If I hadn't checked his body, he truly would have fooled me," Tobirama said in a low voice, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

Upon hearing this, Hashirama's expression also darkened. His aura surged, pressing down on Hiyoko, and he said, "Insolent wretch, what do you want?"

Since he had personally seen Hibari and little Tsunade leave home earlier, and now heard his brother Tobirama speak like this, Hashirama didn't suspect a thing and immediately believed him.

Feeling the oppressive force of two of the shinobi world's top powerhouses, Hiyoko cursed Hibari countless times in his heart. 'Try to fool Tobirama-jiisan's eyes, he said! Well, I fooled them for less than a minute before Tobirama exposed me!'

"I'll talk, I'll talk, is that not good enough?! It's really not a transformation jutsu, Tobirama-jiisan, Hashirama-jiisan, I am Hibari, or you can call me Hiyoko!" Hiyoko dared not continue his charade and quickly blurted out.

Hearing Hiyoko's words, Tobirama's expression grew even more perplexed. His own investigation had many questionable points. Firstly, the chakra was indeed Hibari's chakra, which he was familiar with. All other aspects were also very similar. It was only some internal inconsistencies that made him feel something was off. Connecting this to Hibari's evasive behavior earlier, he had suspected something bad and restrained the boy.

But now, hearing what he said, it seemed there was some unknown inner truth?

"What 'Hiyoko'? Hibari is Hibari. Explain yourself clearly!" Tobirama chided.

Then, Hiyoko quickly spilled everything about the shadow clone, though he didn't mention anything about Devil Fruits, blaming everything on 'unknown circumstances.'

After listening to Hiyoko's explanation, Tobirama was stunned for a moment, but he wasn't so easily convinced. He said, "You can say anything with no proof. How about this? You say you can use Hibari's ninjutsu, so show us the jutsu Hibari created himself right here!"

Hiyoko quickly said, "You mean the Rasengan? I'll show you right now. Tobirama-jiisan, please release me first..."

Upon hearing Hiyoko accurately say the words 'Rasengan,' Tobirama was already beginning to subtly believe his words. After all, there were indeed some unexplainable things about this boy Hibari. Calling it 'extraordinary talent' wouldn't be wrong. If he had indeed created such a bizarre clone, it didn't seem entirely impossible.

Furthermore, this boy's words, actions, and even personality were identical to Hibari's. Without a thorough examination, it would be impossible to tell the difference, which made Tobirama believe his words even more.

After all, aside from a clone, even if an ordinary person could transform into Hibari, wouldn't their behavior still be a bit awkward?

Thinking this, Tobirama first glanced at Hashirama. Their eyes met, and then Tobirama slowly released his grip, saying, "Begin your performance."

Hiyoko first rubbed his shoulder, which Tobirama had almost crushed, then dared not delay, fearing that these two powerful figures might ruthlessly 'eliminate' him.

So, Hiyoko quickly extended his hand, and with a surge of chakra, immediately formed a Rasengan.

"See? I told you! I am Hibari! You two still doubt me; it breaks my heart. Can't you even recognize your own grandson?" Hiyoko said, somewhat aggrieved.

Seeing this, Tobirama finally completely believed what the boy said. However, just to be sure, he still asked, "Then tell me, when was the last time Hibari wet the bed?"

Hiyoko's face instantly turned crimson upon hearing this. He quickly said, "Absurd! I've never wet the bed in my life! Even if you're my Tobirama-ojii, you can't make up such things about me!"

Hearing this, Tobirama finally showed a smile and said, "It seems you're telling the truth, kid!"

Hashirama also withdrew his imposing aura and said with a chuckle, "This kid's got some tricks up his sleeve! To create a clone so indistinguishable from the original is truly interesting!"

Dispelling the Rasengan in his hand, Hiyoko grumbled, "I already told you, it's an anomaly. We don't even know ourselves why this happened."

Tobirama first glared at Hiyoko, then said, "As for this matter, when Hibari returns, I'll listen to your full explanation. For now, you stay here and read your books!"

After speaking, without waiting for Hiyoko to say anything, Tobirama looked at Hashirama again and asked somewhat perplexed, "Anija, what are you doing here?"

Normally, Hashirama wouldn't come to a place he wasn't interested in to find Tobirama, unless something important had happened, which was why Tobirama was so puzzled.

"Ah, it's like this. Yesterday, I heard you talking about how Hibari bought books for the village children, didn't I? That gave me an idea. When I went to the capital city before, didn't we see schools that taught knowledge there? I was thinking, why don't we open a school in the village too, to teach the children some basic knowledge? Look, you two don't let me take little Tsunade out all the time, so why don't we send little Tsunade to school too, to interact more with her peers?" Hashirama quickly explained.

Hibari had previously discussed things like the shinobi system with Tobirama. So, when Hashirama brought this up, Tobirama was somewhat intrigued. Setting up a simple small school to teach basic knowledge could also serve as a small test for the various clans in the village...

Thinking this, Tobirama turned to look at Hiyoko and said, "You stay put today, don't run around. Just stay here and read your books. Your Hashirama-ojii and I have something to discuss."

After speaking, he looked at Hashirama again and continued, "The implications of this matter are significant, Anija. Come with me; we'll go to the Hokage Residence and call Sasuke too. I can explain everything to you there."

-------

Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over to my Patreon ——— patreon(.)com/PrimalDemon [remove the parentheses ( )]