Chapter 70: Thunder shatters darkness

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Hatake Kakashi couldn't hold back his frustration.

"You two can talk all you want, but why drag me into it?" he thought. He could even picture these two youths pestering him in the future.

"And why do they have to speak so loudly so I can hear?" Annoyed, he started swinging his sword faster.

Just then, Uchiha Obito arrived, a bit later than usual. He looked around, noticing someone was missing. Realizing it, his face lit up.

"Asuma hasn't shown up yet! This time, I'm not the last one here!"

No one understood how annoyed he felt whenever he was called out for being late, especially when he'd been helping an old man. No one liked being late repeatedly—Obito included.

Kakashi, already irritated by Yuichi Yuuki and Might Guy, glanced over and said, "Asuma's the last one today. But you're late every single day."

Kakashi's words struck like a dagger. Obito's face turned red with frustration. "Darn you, Kakashi! Today, I, Obito, will teach you a lesson!"

Kakashi merely chuckled, which made Obito even angrier. "I've disliked you since our first day of school!" Obito declared, rolling up his sleeves. "Let me, Obito, see what's so great about you!"

It wasn't so much that he hated Kakashi—it was more that he felt insecure. From the very beginning, he'd noticed that Rin treated Kakashi differently. It made him feel threatened.

"Bring it on, last one!" Kakashi taunted.

"Stop calling me that!" Obito shouted, charging at him. Kakashi, anticipating his move, met him with a wooden sword.

Yuichi Yuuki and Might Guy, along with Kurenai, paused their training to watch. Though they trained together frequently, Obito and Kakashi didn't often fight each other. After a brief spar at the beginning, they mostly stuck to individual practice.

"Obito, go for it! Kakashi, you too!" Might Guy cheered, but neither fighter acknowledged him.

When Kakashi swung his sword, Obito's eyes darted, and he rolled out of the way just in time to avoid the blow.

"He dodged?" Kakashi raised an eyebrow, surprised. Last time, he'd struck Obito easily and assumed it would be the same today.

"I guess I'll have to take this more seriously," he thought, though he still wasn't giving his all.

"You jerk, I'll show you the Uchiha's Fire Style!" Obito shouted, quickly forming hand signs. "Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!"

As he gathered chakra in his throat, Kakashi narrowed his eyes, tensed, and dashed forward before Obito could complete his technique.

Kakashi's speed wasn't quite that of the Body Flicker Technique, but it was fast enough that Obito couldn't react in time. Just before the fireball could be released, Kakashi struck him in the chest, sending him tumbling to the ground. The jutsu was interrupted, leaving Obito coughing up smoke.

"Cough, cough!" Obito sputtered, black smoke rising with each cough.

"Darn you, Kakashi! That was a sneak attack!"

Kakashi merely scoffed and walked away. Seeing them finished, Yuichi No. 2 ran over with a medical kit.

"Stop talking; you've strained your throat," he said, popping a small pill from the kit into Obito's mouth. "The Nara clan's cough pills work wonders for throat injuries."

This was Yuichi's second shadow clone, which he'd named Yuichi No. 2. Yuichi No. 1 was focused on chakra control practice and merely glanced over at No. 2 before resuming his own training.

While Yuichi No. 2 was mostly working on Chidori, he had essentially mastered it; he only needed to condense lightning chakra to make it look convincing.

Feeling grateful, Obito looked at Yuichi No. 2 with misty eyes. "You're really kind!" he said hoarsely.

"Young man, you still have much to learn." Yuichi No. 2 responded, then focused his chakra into his right arm, converting it entirely to lightning chakra. The training ground was filled with bright, flashing light, even in broad daylight.

Obito, still lying on the ground, looked up in awe, momentarily speechless.

Such immense chakra, Kakashi thought, watching from the sidelines. And this is just a shadow clone.

The amount of chakra from a single shadow clone was staggering. Kakashi couldn't help but feel a bit envious. Even if he used up all his chakra, he doubted he could match this display.

While Kakashi watched in silence, Yuichi No. 2 spoke up.

"Darkness covers everything, yet I am the dawn, shattering the night with thunder!"

"Lightning Flash!"

"Ohhh!" Obito, despite his hoarse voice, let out a howl. "So cool!"

But before he could fully admire the moment, the shadow clone dispersed in a puff of smoke.

Back at Might Guy's side, the original Yuichi Yuuki felt a sudden rush of memories from his clone. "I… sigh." He started to say something but stopped, sighing instead.

It was his first time seeing a shadow clone disperse after depleting its chakra. It made him wonder if his clones acted too freely when left on their own.

After thinking it over, Yuichi came to a conclusion.

"Shadow clones… they're all just fools who completely let loose when separated from me."

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