7.Mirror

Chapter 7: Shadow Shenanigans and Clone Confusion

Sora, the self-proclaimed Crimson Prankster of Konoha, stood in his secret training ground, a look of intense concentration on his face. After weeks of hilarious failures and questionable successes (he still couldn't explain the chicken-laying incident), he had finally cracked the code of the Shadow Clone Jutsu.

"Alright, System," Sora grinned, cracking his knuckles dramatically. "Let's see what this bad boy can do!"

[Shadow Clone Jutsu Unlocked]

[Current Limit: 5 Clones]

[Warning: Excessive use may result in headaches, memory overload, and spontaneous dad jokes]

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Sora called out, his hands forming the seal. With a series of satisfying 'poofs', five identical redheads appeared, each sporting the same mischievous grin as the original.

"Gentlemen," Sora addressed his clones, pacing back and forth like a general before his troops, "Today we embark on Operation: Abuse the System!"

The clones saluted, barely containing their giggles.

"You," Sora pointed to the first clone, "will be our intel gatherer. Go forth and eavesdrop on unsuspecting chunin! But remember, if anyone offers you candy, just say no!"

The intel clone nodded seriously before disappearing in a blur of speed (and a faint cry of "But what if it's really good candy?").

"You two," Sora turned to the next pair, "will practice genjutsu on each other. And no cheating by pretending the other guy's illusions worked just to be nice!"

The genjutsu clones high-fived before settling into a fierce staring contest, occasionally giggling as they tried to convince each other that the sky was actually made of jello.

"You," Sora pointed to the fourth clone, "get to be our medical expert and memory master. Study those scrolls as your existence depends on them... which, technically, it does!"

The medical clone saluted before diving into a pile of scrolls, muttering something about "stupid expensive prank point prices" and "Who needs sleep anyway?"

"And you," Sora grinned at the last clone, "lucky number five, you get to spar with me!"

The sparring clone cracked its knuckles, mirroring Sora's grin. "Bring it on, handsome!"

As the other clones set about their tasks, Sora and his sparring partner squared off. "Remember," Sora warned, "no hitting the face. I've got a reputation as the village's most dashing prankster to maintain!"

The clone rolled its eyes. "You do realize we have the same face, right?"

"Details, details," Sora waved dismissively. "Now, let's dance!"

What followed was less of a sparring match and more of an elaborate game of "Ninja Twister." Sora ducked and weaved, his body contorting in ways that would make a Yoga master jealous.

The clone aimed a kick at Sora's head, which he dodged with a Matrix-worthy backbend. "Ha!" Sora taunted, grabbing the clone's leg. "You'll have to do better than—"

His victory speech was cut short as the clone hurled a barrage of rubber ducks at point-blank range.

"Seriously?" Sora sputtered, spitting out a mouthful of feathers. "Rubber ducks? That's just fowl play!"

[Pun Quality: Improving]

[Duck Dodging Skills: Needs Work]

Determined to end the match, Sora tensed his arm and hurled the clone into the air. "Time for some aerial acrobatics!"

The clone, however, had other ideas. It pulled a storage scroll from its bracer, summoning a conveniently placed log to use as a shield against Sora's kunai barrage.

"Oh, come on!" Sora groaned. "Since when do I carry around emergency logs?"

The clone landed gracefully, using the log as a springboard. "Since always, duh! Don't you remember packing them this morning?"

Before Sora could argue about the logistics of log storage, the clone hurled the wood at him. Sora leapt back, just in time to avoid the log's sudden and explosive transformation into a glitter bomb.

"Glitter?" Sora coughed, trying to blink the sparkles out of his eyes. "That's just... that's just evil. I'm so proud of me!"

As the glitter settled, Sora noticed the clone had vanished. His eyes narrowed. "Oh no, you don't. I know all your tricks because they're my tricks!"

Remembering his training, Sora leapt into the air, hurling a kunai at the ground beneath him. "Beneath!"

Sure enough, a hand erupted from the earth, only to be dispelled by the well-aimed kunai.

Sora landed with a triumphant grin. "Ha! Take that, me! I win!"

His victory was short-lived, however, as he felt the cold press of metal against the back of his neck.

"You were saying?" his own voice quipped from behind him.

Sora's jaw dropped as the memories from the dispelled clone flooded his mind. The hand he'd hit wasn't his sparring partner at all, but a shadow clone of the shadow clone. The real clone had been using the Chameleon Jutsu to hide in plain sight.

"I... but... you..." Sora sputtered, before finally managing a coherent thought. "Okay, that was pretty awesome."

The victorious clone beamed before dispelling itself, leaving Sora alone with his thoughts and a hefty dose of humility.

"Well," Sora sighed, brushing glitter off his clothes, "at least no one else saw that."

Little did he know, two very interested parties who really have are a lot of time to spy on a kid, had been observing his training session.

From his crystal ball in the Hokage Tower, Hiruzen Sarutobi chuckled, puffing on his pipe. "My, my. It seems our young friend is full of surprises. Kakashi, what do you make of this?"

Perched in a nearby tree, Kakashi Hatake lowered his ever-present Icha Icha book, his visible eye crinkled in amusement. "Maa, Hokage-sama, I'd say we have a prodigy on our hands. A very... unconventional prodigy."

"Indeed," Hiruzen nodded. "His use of the Shadow Clone Jutsu is impressive for one so young. And that Chameleon Jutsu... I don't recall that being in the Academy curriculum."

Kakashi eye-smiled. "Oh, I'm sure he just... picked it up somewhere."

Back in the clearing, blissfully unaware of his audience, Sora was interrogating his remaining clones.

"Okay, intel team, report!" he demanded of the first clone, who had just returned looking suspiciously sticky.

"Well," the clone began, "I have good news and bad news. The good news is, I gathered lots of valuable information on village security. The bad news is, I may have accidentally started a village-wide rumour that the Hokage Monument is actually cake."

Sora blinked. "How did you... you know what? I don't want to know. Genjutsu team?"

The two genjutsu clones were still locked in their staring contest, one convinced the other had turned into a talking pineapple, while the other was trying to explain that no, the ground wasn't actually lava.

"Right," Sora sighed. "Moving on. Medical team?"

The medical clone looked up from its scrolls, dark circles under its eyes. "Did you know that the human body contains enough bones to make an entire skeleton?"

Sora facepalmed. "That's... technically correct, I guess. Anything useful?"

The clone nodded enthusiastically. "Oh yes! I've developed a foolproof method for memorizing large amounts of information quickly!"

"Great!" Sora perked up. "What is it?"

"No idea," the clone shrugged. "I forgot."

As Sora contemplated the logistics of banging his head against a tree without dispelling his clones, a new notification popped up:

[Shadow Clone Training Complete]

[Intelligence +2]

[Chaos +100]

[New Skill Unlocked: Accidental Misinformation Spreading]

"Well," Sora sighed, looking at his ragtag group of clones, "I guess that's progress. Sort of."

As he dispelled his clones, absorbing their memories (and developing a sudden craving for pineapple), Sora couldn't help but feel a sense of accomplishment. Sure, things hadn't gone exactly as planned, but when did they ever?

As the sun set on another day of chaotic training, Sora headed home, already planning his next great prank.

***

Thank you for sparta55,shoval_picu, darklive and Kay_smiles101 for giving Powerstones to this book.

***

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Disclaimer = My update schedule is 1 chapter per day for now and the word length of this additional chapter is around 1200 words(which is true for most of the chapters till now), I am trying to make some long chapters, so a chapter around 2400 words will be considered 2 additional chapters according to the above scheme.