Chapter 26

Chapter 26

Arriving at the familiar Uchiha clan training grounds, the small forest.

"Fugaku-nii, I'm here," Haneda called out to the woods.

Unlike the last time, Fugaku quickly jumped down from a tree.

"Oh, Haneda. I don't see Kakashi with you today?" Fugaku smiled.

"Relax, he stayed at school, going over some sealing techniques," Haneda waved his hand dismissively. Getting a model student like Kakashi to skip class with him had been asking too much.

"By the way, Fugaku-nii, are we training genjutsu or fire style today?"

"Aren't you still working on shadow clones?" Fugaku asked in return.

Hearing the mention of shadow clones, Haneda thought to himself, "Could Fugaku-nii have finally figured it out?"

"Shadow clones aren't that hard. I'll practice them tonight. You mentioned yesterday that you'd teach me some genjutsu, right?"

"I see…"

Fugaku thought for a moment, recalling something his father had said, then replied, "I'll teach you two practical Uchiha genjutsu today: *Kasegui no Jutsu*, a form of the hypnotic eye, and *Magen: Kyō Tenchi-ten*, the illusion reflection technique."

*Kasegui no Jutsu* and *Kyō Tenchi-ten*?

A flash of excitement crossed Haneda's eyes. These were the techniques that had been used to defeat both Orochimaru and Kurenai in one blow!

"Both of these genjutsu require the use of the Sharingan to cast. Since you've already awakened yours, I'll teach you," Fugaku said. "Once you've mastered these two techniques, you'll have no real weaknesses in genjutsu and can handle most shinobi."

As he spoke, Fugaku activated his three-tomoe Sharingan.

With just a glance, the genjutsu took hold.

In an instant, Haneda found himself trapped in a mental world.

Thick, iron stakes pinned down his arms and legs, rendering him completely immobile.

Ouch!

With just eye contact, the genjutsu had taken control. This was the power of the Sharingan?

Haneda's body trembled slightly as the intense, real pain seemed to torment his soul.

"Feel it well. This is one of the Uchiha clan's prized techniques, a high-level use of the hypnotic eye that most people never encounter," Fugaku's voice echoed as his image appeared before Haneda, his three-tomoe Sharingan rotating eerily.

"Can you sense it? The manipulation of ocular power."

"This mental world is entirely of my creation. Here, all your freedoms are stripped away."

Fugaku slowly approached Haneda, looking down at him coldly. "You're trying to break free, aren't you?"

"Unfortunately, in my world, unless someone else intervenes, you have no chance to escape."

Fugaku's calm voice echoed in his ears as Haneda opened his own single-tomoe Sharingan.

But…

In front of a three-tomoe Sharingan, a single tomoe was simply too weak.

The pain and the inescapable despair—Haneda could now understand the helplessness and fear that Orochimaru must have felt when facing the legendary fight against Itachi.

Suddenly, the four massive stakes disappeared, and Haneda's vision returned to the small forest.

The green trees, the chirping of birds, the fresh scent of grass…

Everything felt so real again.

Haneda collapsed weakly to the ground, feeling utterly drained. His limbs, in particular, throbbed with the phantom pain of having been surgically tormented.

"This is your first time experiencing a false illusion. Your body just hasn't adjusted yet. Go through it a few more times, and you'll get used to it," Fugaku said as he approached and patted Haneda on the shoulder with a smile.

"Huh? More?!"

Haneda said, somewhat alarmed.

The realness of the pain felt like being tortured—it wasn't something he wanted to experience again anytime soon.

At this moment, Haneda looked at Fugaku, and the more he looked, the more Fugaku resembled a devil walking the earth…

Seeing Haneda's young face, Fugaku chuckled. "This is all part of the clan's training program. Most Uchiha don't even get this kind of personal tutoring from a Jonin."

"Not to mention, to learn these two techniques, you'd normally need to make a considerable contribution to the Uchiha."

"You should count yourself lucky, Haneda."

Hearing this, Haneda finally understood why Fugaku had decided to teach him these new genjutsu.

It seemed like the reward for bringing Kakashi to the clan had arrived.

And there was another hidden reward—one less tangible but even more significant: the Uchiha now regarded him with greater importance.

This unseen reward wasn't just based on his talent but also the political influence of his bond with Kakashi.

Realizing this, Haneda's lips curved into a slight smile, and he asked, "Fugaku-nii, how long will it take to learn these two genjutsu?"

Fugaku held up one finger and smiled. "With the talent you've shown in genjutsu, the first one will take about a week, the second at least a month."

"A week? About the same as the shadow clone…" Haneda thought to himself.

Pushing himself up from the ground, he said, "Let's get to it, Fugaku-nii. I'm feeling pretty motivated right now!"

…

After a full morning of training, Haneda felt like his body had been completely drained of all its energy, like something had gone wrong inside him. He rested through the entire afternoon just to recover somewhat.

As a result, his planned training session with Uncle Sakumo for the afternoon didn't happen.

Just as Haneda was about to sit down for dinner, a shadow suddenly appeared above him, startling him.

"Let's have a youthful showdown, Haneda!!"

It was Guy, hanging from the ceiling, his unmistakable bowl cut shining brightly as he stared down at Haneda.

"Nope, I'm busy," Haneda said flatly.

Haneda was someone who valued his personal space, and having someone sneak into his house without warning only annoyed him. Adding to that his exhaustion, there was no way he was up for a sparring match.

He set down his chopsticks, walked over to the door, and opened it. "It's not polite to enter someone's home without permission, Guy."

"Alright, I'll challenge you again next time!" Guy, undeterred, gave him a thumbs-up with an exuberant grin, full of youthful spirit.

That smile almost gave Haneda chills.

He quickly checked Guy's favorability rating toward him.

'121!!!

What?!'

He'd been left speechless by this turn of events. Did childhood friendships really lose out to sudden bonds like this? When did this happen?

Watching Guy walk out the door, Haneda silently pieced together the situation. He finally understood what had happened.

It had started that very morning when he agreed to Guy's duel.

In just a single morning, Guy's favorability toward him had skyrocketed by over a hundred points!

The only downside was that he hadn't unlocked the Eight Gates Formation, though he did gain Guy's summoning turtle and the Konoha Whirlwind, Konoha Great Whirlwind, and Konoha Strong Whirlwind techniques.

The first was one of the few ninjutsu Guy actually used, while the others were part of his iconic taijutsu style.

"Once Guy sets his sights on someone, he won't leave them alone," Haneda mused.

"Whatever. First, let's eat dinner and then take a bath…" Haneda thought to himself as he quickly finished his meal.

After a bit of time spent reviewing the two genjutsu scrolls Fugaku had given him, he finally headed off for a well-deserved bath.

***

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