Chapter 13 – it's Obito

Early morning, at the Shimura residence.

"Bleh!"

A mouthful of blood sprayed out as Takeshi flew through the air, tracing an arc before slamming into the courtyard wall—once again cracking it.

Old Konoha mornings always started this way—Jonin beatdowns.

Seeing Takeshi lying unconscious, Yamanaka Akira immediately ran over to begin treatment.

Takeshi, who had nearly walked hand-in-hand with his mother to the Pure Land, opened his eyes under Akira's care.

"Not bad. You actually made me use my fifth move. Take a break."

Glancing at the blood on the ground, Aburame Ryoma offered Takeshi a rare compliment before stepping aside and standing motionless.

"You guys are just abusing a child..."

Even though he'd been praised, Takeshi didn't feel happy. Clutching his stomach, he curled up on the ground like a shrimp.

The wounds could be healed, but the pain didn't go away.

If he didn't want to be one-sidedly beaten like this, he had to figure out his opponent's attack pattern.

Come on, Takeshi. Use that brain of yours that's been gathering dust for who knows how many years.

Hmm... Ryoma's moves were always the same: punch first, then elbow, followed by a kick, another kick, and finally a knee strike...

Wait—I got it!

A flash of insight hit Takeshi. If he just did this, then that, and then this and that... wouldn't he be able to dodge all five moves?

"This is my desperate struggle to survive!"

With that thought, strength surged through Takeshi's body. He shot up and charged at Aburame Ryoma so fast that even Yamanaka Akira was startled.

And then—

...

On the streets of Konoha, people were curious about the limping boy holding his stomach as he hobbled past.

It was a clear truth: a child who hadn't even attended the Ninja Academy couldn't beat a Jonin, even one who used predictable moves.

Not to mention, he wasn't a genius like Kakashi.

Clutching his aching stomach and wincing in pain, Takeshi tried to recall the location where Kakashi usually trained.

Once the training time ended, both Ryoma and Akira—those beasts—disappeared without a trace. That old geezer Danzo hadn't been seen since Takeshi opened his eyes.

After lying on the ground to rest for a long while and seeing that no one was coming to check on him, Takeshi finally limped out of the house.

Speaking of which, why didn't his house have a lock? Was Konoha's security really that good?

Thinking of that unlocked front door, Takeshi couldn't help but grumble in his mind.

As he got closer to where Kakashi usually trained, the number of pedestrians dwindled—until there were none.

This should be the place, right?

Takeshi asked himself uncertainly.

Everything in Konoha looked more or less the same.

"It's so quiet... not a single person from Konoha on the street..."

Though feeling a little uneasy, Takeshi reminded himself that as the son of that old fossil Danzo, there should at least be a van-load of Anbu watching him from behind, so he pushed on bravely.

"Hey, you bastard, can you even call yourself an Uchiha anymore?!"

A brash voice rang out. It definitely didn't sound like Kakashi, so Takeshi decided to ignore it.

"Damn it! So what if I am? I'll become Hokage and carve my goggles and Sharingan onto the Hokage Rock!"

Another voice sounded, full of stubborn resolve.

Ah, Hokage, huh. Can't believe someone still buys into that dream these days.

Hearing the voice, Takeshi began to mutter internally.

"Hokage is about neither strength nor perseverance. It's about bloodline—just bloodline."

Wait... goggles? Sharingan?

Didn't expect that idiot to actually be an Uchiha, haha... ha?

Suddenly realizing something, Takeshi stopped rubbing his stomach and quickly followed the direction of the voices.

Soon, in a clearing, he found the source.

Three boys wearing clothes emblazoned with the Uchiha clan crest had surrounded another boy wearing goggles.

The goggle-wearing boy sat collapsed on the ground, face bruised and clearly roughed up.

"Hey, isn't that Obito? Probably is. He's the only one in the Uchiha clan who still babbles all day about becoming Hokage."

"Why would an Uchiha even want to be Hokage? Guess you're still just a kid—don't even know how biased the village higher-ups are against you guys."

"You guys are bullying him way too much. No wonder you all ended up... well, this is just karma catching up in your youth."

Takeshi played the role of a spectator perfectly, watching the scene unfold with great interest. He completely forgot about looking for Kakashi.

Meanwhile, unaware that a little sneak was hiding in the bushes, the bullies continued:

"Hahaha, Hokage? You? You're dead last! You'll probably never awaken your Sharingan in your entire life!"

"Exactly! Living with some old lady—forget Hokage, you'll be lucky to graduate from the Academy!"

"Hmph! If you know what's good for you, just stay at home. Don't even think about going to the Academy. Otherwise, I'll beat you every time I see you!"

The boy who seemed to be the ringleader punched Obito square in the face again, knocking his goggles askew.

"You bastard!"

Obito, finally provoked, was about to fight back—only to be pinned down by the other two.

"Three on one? That's so dishonorable. And how can you hit someone in the face? Even Ryoma doesn't hit me in the face."

Seeing Obito's bruises becoming symmetrical, Takeshi subconsciously rubbed his own stomach.

"What are you doing?"

Kakashi's voice suddenly whispered beside his ear, scaring Takeshi so badly that he stumbled out of the bushes.

"Who's there?!"

The bullies turned around and saw Takeshi clutching his belly and groaning.

"You?"

The Uchiha ringleader looked at Takeshi, then at the tall grass that could easily conceal a person. Seeing his awkward pose...

The Uchiha boy pinched his nose.

"I wasn't pooping in there!"

Also realizing what they were thinking, Takeshi shouted in panic.

But from their expressions, he was sure none of them believed him.

Even Obito scrunched up his little face. If his hands weren't pinned, he'd probably be holding his nose too.

"I said I wasn't pooping! I was—I was—I was here to save him! You jerks, ganging up on one person, what kind of strength is that? Let him go!"

To preserve his reputation, Takeshi had to make up a halfway reasonable excuse for being there.

"Save him?"

Not smelling anything foul, the Uchiha boy kicked Obito again.

"You're friends with this loser? Let me give you a piece of advice: stay away from idiots like him, or you'll catch the stupid."

----------------

Pls Drop some Power Stones

+100 chapters and support me on Patreon(.)com/Jixo