Chapter 39: The Contest Between Speed and Perception

Obito was feeling somewhat irritated.

If Kakashi didn't participate, then winning first place would be meaningless to him.

What Obito wanted was to defeat Kakashi in front of Rin, regain his honor before her, and secure the first position. Without Kakashi, winning first place wouldn't bring much joy to Obito.

His obsession with winning the Youth Ninjutsu Competition was entirely provoked by Kakashi.

Back then, in front of Rin, Kakashi forcefully secured first place, overshadowing Obito's scores and turning his championship declaration into a joke.

Obito had kept this incident in mind, but until now, he couldn't win.

Now that he possessed the ability to win against everyone, he discovered that his opponent had already withdrawn, leaving Obito quite displeased.

"No, I must make Kakashi participate in the competition!" Obito thought more and more that a competition without Kakashi was simply unacceptable.

"Maybe I can ask Kakashi after school if he has any thoughts about participating," suggested Rin.

"I can go with you. It's been a while since we've seen Kakashi," added Obito.

Although the three of them had a good relationship, their opportunities to meet had decreased since Kakashi graduated. As students, Rin and Obito had to go to school every day, while Kakashi, as a ninja, had missions to attend to.

"Alright," nodded Obito, thinking that Rin's idea was a good one.

Before the end of the school day, Obito took a day off with Mutsuki and decided not to visit Mutsuki's place today. Instead, they would first address the matter with Kakashi.

After school, Rin and Obito went directly to Kakashi's house.

Kakashi's home was not in the main city area but in the suburbs adjacent to it. Although not as bustling, it lacked the congestion of the main city.

Rin and Obito had visited Kakashi's home before and had even been invited in for a meal.

As they saw the large flat-roofed house coming into view, the two knew they had arrived.

The two were in luck; today, Kakashi didn't have a mission. When they arrived at Kakashi's house, he was practicing in the yard.

Kakashi held a silver-white Chakra short blade, effortlessly severing the head and limbs of a straw dummy in just two or three strokes. Upon seeing his friends, Kakashi let out a gentle breath and re-sheathed the Chakra short blade on his back, asking, "Why have you come?"

"It's been a while since we played together. We all missed you, so we came to find you," Rin said with a smile, being polite.

Obito, however, wasn't as tactful as Rin. He asked straightforwardly, "Kakashi, the Youth Ninjutsu Competition is about to start. Do you want to sign up?"

"The Youth Ninjutsu Competition?" Kakashi thought for a moment, recalling it as a casual competition he used to participate in when he was still in school. "Not interested," Kakashi replied nonchalantly. In his view, such competitions were meant for kids, and the first prize was just a slightly fancier Kunai.

Even back in ninja school, he only participated out of boredom, let alone now. Obito's face drooped; Kakashi's refusal was too resolute.

"Why? You participated before, didn't you?" Obito persisted, unwilling to give up. He genuinely wanted Kakashi to join the competition.

"Back then, I was still an Academy student. Now, I'm already a Chunin," Kakashi pointed to the ninja headband on his forehead.

Obito felt Kakashi was implying something. He was a student back then, and he still is a student now.

"Whether you are a Chunin or not, it doesn't matter. There's no age limit anyway," Obito continued.

"Do I have to directly say that I'm not interested in these childish pretend games?" Seeing Obito persisting, Kakashi spoke ruthlessly.

Obito blushed a bit. Pretend games? It's the Youth Ninjutsu Competition!

"I'll participate in the competition. Kakashi, are you afraid of losing to me?" Obito, now a bit agitated, also began to take a more aggressive stance.

"Lose to you? Have you ever won against me?" Kakashi said emotionlessly.

"I... I..." Obito frantically searched his memories and shockingly realized that he had indeed never won against Kakashi. Faced with this frustrating fact, Obito couldn't help but blush again.

"Don't get too proud, Kakashi. I'm different now than before," Obito said, hands on hips, trying to assert that he had changed significantly.

Kakashi scrutinized Obito, with his goggles and athletic outfit, a silly grin on his face, hands on hips. That goofy charm was just too much.

"Haven't noticed," Kakashi honestly remarked.

"Damn it!" Obito couldn't hold back.

"You guys, even after finally meeting, you're still the same as before," Rin said, watching the scene with a hand covering her mouth, lightly laughing.

This scene had probably played out in front of Rin countless times. Obito loved to challenge Kakashi, but in the end, it was always Obito who ended up at a disadvantage.

Obito took a deep breath, calming his emotions momentarily. Suddenly, he remembered his sensei, Mutsuki.

"If it were Yumi-sensei, what approach would he use?" Obito pondered.

To make him practice more seriously, Mutsuki had him do an additional task for every time he got hit. While the training was challenging, the extra tasks were even more unpleasant. So, to minimize the discomfort, Obito practiced more seriously to reduce the number of hits.

"Weighing the options..." Obito suddenly had a revelation and came up with an idea.

"Kakashi, you said I can't beat you, right? How about a little wager?" Obito provocatively smiled.

Kakashi's expression remained unchanged as he calmly responded, "Are we betting on who comes first in the competition? Do you think I'd fall for such an obvious provocation?"

Participating in such a meaningless competition was not worth it; he'd rather spend his time reading.

"Of course not. Since you think you're so skilled, how about testing whether your perception is faster or my speed?" Obito suggested.

"If you win, I won't bring up the competition again, and you get five free bowls of ramen on me. If you lose, you just have to participate in the competition," he added.

As long as Kakashi didn't agree, Obito would continue pestering him to participate in the Youth Ninjutsu Competition. Eventually, Kakashi would naturally agree to this simpler and quicker challenge.

Kakashi didn't immediately agree but asked, "How exactly are we going to compete?"

Obito plucked a leaf from a tree beside Kakashi's house and placed it in his palm, saying, "It's straightforward. I'll rapidly switch the leaf between my left and right hands, and in the end, you just have to guess which hand the leaf is in. Simple, isn't it?"

After considering it, Kakashi thought Obito's hand speed couldn't possibly surpass his eyesight, so he agreed.

Knowing Obito's temperament, he might keep bothering him into the night. It was better to use this simple challenge to show Obito the difference between them.

Obito pushed his hand speed to the extreme, rapidly moving the leaf between his left and right hands. After about five minutes, he finally stopped.

"Right hand," Kakashi directly pointed to Obito's right hand.

"I really don't know where you got that courageous spirit to challenge me with this," Kakashi expressed some disappointment.

He thought Obito's hand speed would be faster, but it turned out that the leaf never left his line of sight. Upon hearing Kakashi's words, Obito burst into laughter and asked, "Kakashi, are you sure it's this hand, and once confirmed, you can't change it?"

"Trying to deceive me? It's the right hand; go ahead and open it," Kakashi didn't change his mind despite Obito's laughter. He just felt that Obito was bluffing.

"Then, I'll open it." Obito slowly opened his right hand.

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