Chapter 6: White Fang Is a Hero

The attack was imminent, but Obito remained unflustered.

If this had been the old him, he might not have been a match for Nagano.

But now?

Having mastered a Genin-level of taijutsu, he could only think of one thing:

All of you here are nothing but kids.

I could take down any one of you with a single punch!

Of course, exceptions had to be made for Kakashi and Guy.

The thought flitted through his mind as he faced the incoming punch.

Stepping forward, Obito deftly sidestepped and grabbed Nagano's arm. In one swift motion, he spun around, twisted his shoulder, and sent the boy flying over with a clean shoulder throw.

"Ah!"

A girl gasped.

In her mind, it should have been Obito who hit the ground. But to her surprise, it was the class bully sprawled out on the floor instead!

Nagano sat there, momentarily dazed.

What just happened?

He had launched a confident attack, only to be subdued by the class's so-called "loser" in a single move. Anger surged up from his chest, his face turning red all the way to his neck.

Obito, the eternal failure, dared to humiliate me?

He scrambled to his feet, glaring at Obito with fury in his eyes.

"That was just a fluke! You caught me off guard. Now, I'll show you the difference between us!"

Obito smirked, unimpressed. To him, these threats were nothing more than a typical tantrum from an elementary schooler.

Yet, the tone in Nagano's voice reminded him of an old man ranting about the "good old days."

Fueled by anger, Nagano seemed to regain his composure. He circled Obito cautiously, searching for an opening.

The teacher watched from the side and sighed inwardly. Truth be told, Obito's earlier victory had been a surprise. But now that Nagano was serious, the teacher figured Obito wouldn't stand a chance.

He discreetly approached, prepared to intervene once Obito inevitably got knocked down.

However, as Nagano circled, no openings appeared. His steps faltered when he accidentally stepped on a small indentation in the ground, nearly losing his balance.

Obito didn't hesitate and charged forward.

But in that instant, Nagano stabilized himself and smirked.

"I baited you into this! You're finished, loser—"

SLAP!

A crisp sound echoed across the training ground.

Nagano froze, one hand covering his cheek.

Obito chuckled.

"You thought I'd fall for that? Please. While you were thinking two steps ahead, I was already on step five."

He moved closer, casually brushing off Nagano's attempts at intimidation.

"Don't underestimate us 'losers,' idiot!"

Obito gave him no chance to recover. Seizing the moment, he unleashed a relentless flurry of punches, all while shouting incomprehensible phrases.

Even the teacher had to step in.

"Cough, cough. Obito, that's enough."

Reluctantly, Obito withdrew, glancing at Nagano sprawled on the ground. Then he looked at the crowd of classmates, all staring at him as if seeing him for the first time.

He cleared his throat and decided to say something profound.

"I know most of you think that a shinobi who breaks the rules or fails a mission is trash."

"But someone who doesn't value their comrades is worse than trash."

"White Fang of Konoha is a true hero!"

The declaration left Kakashi visibly shaken. His expression softened as he looked at Obito, a rare flicker of admiration in his eyes. Above his head, an invisible dialogue box seemed to appear: Favorability +1.

Obito smirked inwardly. If earning Kakashi's favor meant taking this stand, it was totally worth it.

From the crowd, a chubby boy who was friends with Nagano Ha shouted,

"But he sacrificed the village's interests for just a few people! How can that be praiseworthy?"

The murmurs of agreement rippled through the group as all eyes turned back to Obito.

He snorted.

"And those 'few people' weren't our fellow villagers? Let me ask you this—if it were your parents on that mission, would you still speak so easily about 'sacrificing' them?"

The boy's face turned pale.

"I… I…"

He wanted to argue that the village came first and that parents were secondary, but the thought of his own parents stopped him cold.

Obito sighed, his voice tinged with disappointment.

"See? It's easy to stay rational when it doesn't involve you. But if it were your loved ones, what choice would you make?"

The crowd fell silent, many lowering their heads in shame. They couldn't deny it; if their own families were at stake, they might have chosen just like White Fang did.

Obito shrugged.

"I'm not saying White Fang was entirely right. But he wasn't wrong either. What he did was only human."

The teacher was the first to clap, his expression thoughtful.

Was this truly the same "failure" he always knew? Obito's words carried a depth that felt… out of place.

Meanwhile, Obito, standing there in his black training clothes, tried hard to strike a wise and mysterious pose. Unfortunately, with his bruised and swollen face, he just looked ridiculous.

The class burst into laughter. Now this was the Obito they knew.

Nagano had already stood up, his face dark with embarrassment.

"Mocking White Fang was my mistake," he admitted reluctantly. "But don't think this settles the score. We'll deal with this later!"

With that, he slipped into the crowd, vanishing from sight.

The teacher sighed, briefly considering making them shake hands and reconcile. But one glance at the shoe prints on Nagano's face made him reconsider. This was probably beyond his ability to fix.

"Alright, next pair, who's up?"

The sparring matches continued, but Obito hummed cheerfully as he strolled toward the restroom.

A little while later, after freshening up, Obito washed his hands at the sink.

Suddenly, a familiar bowl-cut figure emerged from the restroom.

"Obito! Did you also… uh, miss your aim?" Guy laughed heartily.

Obito blinked. "What? No!"

Guy splashed some water on his face and grinned.

Obito let out a boisterous laugh.

"Haha, Guy, I didn't think you'd outdo me."

"…What?!"

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