Chapter 130 — The War is Coming
"Let's check your Nature Transformation under Flame Breathing. Use a bit more chakra," Mugetsu said after thinking for a moment.
Obito nodded, adjusted his breathing, and entered the Flame Breathing state. He inhaled deeply, drawing in a large amount of oxygen, then gathered chakra in his throat. In the next instant, he unleashed a massive burst of flames.
There was too much power. The uncontrolled fire scattered wildly in all directions. Mugetsu quickly used Water Release to prevent the forest from catching fire.
Shisui quietly observed. Knowing Obito well, he could clearly feel the improvement in his chakra's Nature Transformation.
Only rapid progress could make the flames so difficult to control. If Mugetsu hadn't intervened, Obito might have burned himself.
"Teacher Mugetsu, eating spicy food really speeds up training!" Soaked from head to toe, Obito was still beaming.
He was convinced his progress had surged because of Mugetsu's cooking yesterday.
After all, the day had been normal—nothing unusual except for the meal.
"What did you do after training yesterday when you went home?" Mugetsu asked.
He didn't believe it was the food. If cooking could cause such a jump in proficiency, the effect would've shown right away—not only after Obito went back. Cooking illusions had no delayed effect.
"I didn't do much. Just went home, practiced Flame Breathing for a while, and then… suddenly made progress," Obito replied after thinking.
"Tell me in detail," Mugetsu pressed.
"On the way back, Rin encouraged me, and then we agreed—"
"You can skip that part."
"After parting with Rin, I saw a grandma who had fallen, so I carried her to the hospital… and then a bunch of little things like that. Mostly helping elders."
"And after getting home, I practiced for a bit, started feeling warm, and then… this happened."
"I see. Your actions and mindset must have aligned with Flame Breathing's nature," Mugetsu concluded.
Obito's personality was naturally suited to Flame Breathing—enthusiastic, cheerful, and quick to help those in need. His heart burned as brightly as his flames.
"Shisui, you should eat more spicy food too. Your Breathing Technique will improve as fast as mine," Obito said, eager to share his 'secret.'
"…Is it really because of spicy food?" Shisui sounded doubtful.
It wasn't that he thought Obito was lying—Obito wouldn't lie about something so important. But after hearing their exchange, it seemed more likely there was another reason.
"Enough talking. Let's eat," Mugetsu said, handing them their lunch boxes.
Spicy food might not guarantee rapid progress, but it couldn't hurt.
Shisui opened his box to find several large peppers neatly arranged. He hesitated. Was he supposed to eat them straight?
"There's meat inside," Mugetsu reminded him.
Shisui took a bite. Sure enough, the peppers were stuffed with meat—but the meat itself was laced with chili powder, making it even spicier than the peppers alone. Still, the taste was excellent.
After dropping off their meals, Mugetsu went to deliver food to Guy. His lunch was beef stew with potatoes.
A quick appraisal showed Guy's proficiency had increased by one point, reaching twenty.
[It seems it wasn't stuck—just difficult to raise, so the progress was slower.]
At this pace, Mugetsu wasn't worried about Obito's training anymore. Unless Guy had a sudden breakthrough, Obito's proficiency would surpass his in a month, giving him an edge in raw strength.
When afternoon training ended, Mugetsu told Shisui and Obito to head home together.
Today, Shisui's Flame Breathing proficiency had risen from fifteen to sixteen—a steady gain.
If he could progress as quickly as Obito, that would be ideal. But if not, Shisui's self-discipline would carry him forward.
"Overall, you're doing well, but there are things you can learn from Obito," Mugetsu told him.
He wanted Shisui to be more cheerful and optimistic. In the original events, Shisui rarely appeared outside of flashbacks, and for him to ultimately sacrifice himself to awaken a friend's Mangekyo… Mugetsu doubted such a person could be entirely stable.
This world had its share of broken souls, but he didn't want his disciple to become one.
Shisui nodded thoughtfully, deciding to observe Obito closely on the way home. If Obito consistently progressed faster with such a secret technique, then there had to be a reason.
"Rin, did my shadow clone do anything weird at the Academy?" Obito asked.
"No, it was just like you," Rin said with a smile.
"That's good. I was worried it might ruin my image there."
Watching this, Shisui noted that Obito clearly enjoyed talking to Rin. He'd asked a pointless question just to keep the conversation going.
That day, they didn't meet anyone in need, and made it home without delay.
The next morning, they met for training in the South Border Forest.
On the way to breakfast, Obito helped a grandma, and Shisui noticed how he smiled afterward.
When they reached the forest, Shisui stopped paying attention to him and focused on his own training. He'd continue his observations in the afternoon.
But this time, things weren't as simple. They met an old man carrying a large sack, headed to visit his daughter in Konoha.
The sack wasn't much for a ninja, but when they reached the address, they found she had moved. Not wanting the man's gift to go to waste, Obito went door-to-door asking for information until they finally found her. By then, it was already dark.
Shisui now understood why Obito's arrival time at the forest varied. Encounters like this could easily delay him.
"Thank you so much! These aren't much, but please take some," the old man said, offering them part of his sack's contents.
"No need, Grandpa. You would've found them eventually," Obito replied with a simple smile, waving him off.
Refusing the reward, Obito and Shisui returned to the Uchiha compound and went their separate ways.
Lying in bed, Shisui found himself replaying the events of the past two days, recalling everything about Obito.
After carefully observing him, Shisui truly felt that Obito was a very unusual Uchiha—so different from the rest that he almost didn't seem like one at all.
Most of the time, Obito acted carelessly. Even though he was already considered exceptional among his peers, he could still trip or bump into things just by not paying attention while walking.
On top of that, Obito rarely hid his emotions; almost everything he felt showed plainly on his face.
And when it came to noticing those in need of help, Obito's awareness was unmatched. He could pick up on things Shisui himself wouldn't have noticed.
After three days of watching him, Shisui went to find Mugetsu.
"Teacher, if Obito's Breathing Technique improves because of his enthusiasm for helping others, then I don't think I can learn it. I just… can't genuinely search for strangers in need like he does," Shisui admitted honestly.
He didn't reject the idea of helping people, but he couldn't reach the same level of sincerity as Obito.
Mugetsu smiled at his words, ruffling Shisui's hair with a light chuckle.
"You can learn from Obito, but there's no need to copy him. Perhaps your heart is kinder than you think."
He didn't know exactly what the two had been doing, but he could see that while Shisui's Flame Breathing progress wasn't as fast as Obito's, it was far from slow.
…
By noon on Monday, Mugetsu received word of another Jonin meeting.
Since it was being held at the Ninja School, he went alone this time.
Minato and Kushina had arrived earlier. When Mugetsu stepped into the meeting room, they were already inside.
He walked up to greet them.
"It's only been a few days, and they're calling another meeting?" Kushina said with mild exasperation.
Mugetsu just smiled without joining in the complaint. There were too many people here, and some things were better left unsaid. Unlike him, Kushina had a special status—she could get away with grumbling or even cursing without much consequence.
Last time, Mugetsu had briefly met some of the Jonin. This time, he spent the moments before the meeting quietly getting more familiar with them, exchanging only a few words.
When everyone had arrived, the Third Hokage explained why a second meeting was happening so soon.
"The Hidden Cloud Village of the Land of Lightning has declared war on us," he announced gravely.
"Hidden Cloud? But aren't they already fighting the Hidden Sand in the Land of Wind?" one Jonin said in surprise.
Even without the Third Kazekage, the Hidden Sand still had its foundations as one of the Five Great Villages. Kumogakure couldn't defeat them in the short term.
For them to now declare war on Konoha as well, there was only one explanation—they intended to fight on two fronts, attacking both Konoha and Sunagakure at the same time.
"Those damn Cloud barbarians! They really deserve to die!" Kushina spat without restraint.
Mugetsu wasn't surprised. In the future, Konoha would be attacked by all four great villages. This was just the second declaration of war—the actual fighting hadn't even begun.
He could guess at Kumogakure's reasoning.
Before the Kazekage's disappearance, they'd already had friction with Konoha, showing their interest in the village. But with the leaderless Sand as an easy target, they struck there first.
If Iwagakure hadn't declared war on Konoha, Kumogakure might not have done so either—not until they'd gained a clear advantage over the Sand.
But with Iwa moving against Konoha, the situation changed. Even if Kumogakure fought on two fronts, Konoha would have to do the same.
Would the Third Raikage think Kumogakure weaker than Konoha under equal pressure? Of course not. And without that confidence, they wouldn't be so aggressive.
Mugetsu figured the Raikage's plan was to wear Konoha down while still fighting the Sand, crush the Sand first, then sweep through Konoha, and finally turn on Iwagakure to dominate the continent.
It was a bold idea, but they overestimated themselves—and underestimated both Konoha's strength and Iwa's ambition.
From what happened later in the war, it was clear Ōnoki was just as ambitious. Without the Third Raikage's ferocity, many Kumogakure ninja would have died encircled by Iwa.
"We should immediately send spies to disrupt their operations against the Sand," Danzo said.
As long as the Sand could hold enough of Kumogakure's forces, Konoha wouldn't be under as much pressure from two fronts.
Nara Shikaku frowned in thought. Compared to Iwa, it was actually easier for Kumo to attack Konoha—either by entering from the Land of Hot Water to the northeast, or the Land of Rice Fields to the north.
The Land of Hot Water's ninja forces were weak, and the Land of Rice Fields had no ninja village at all.
That meant Konoha would have to defend a huge stretch of land, with all areas bordering those two nations needing protection.
"We need to stop Kumogakure from defeating the Sand and strengthen our border defenses," Shikaku said, agreeing with Danzo. If Kumo freed its forces to fully attack Konoha, the consequences would be dire.
The mood in the room was heavier than at the last meeting. Many Jonin wore grim expressions.
"Hidden Sand and Kumogakure are already fighting, and Iwa will soon be at war with us too. The Third Shinobi World War might be about to begin," Minato said quietly after the meeting ended.
He'd been on countless missions, but he'd never experienced a world war. When the Second Shinobi World War ended, he was still at the Academy.
Even from written records, he could feel its cruelty—countless ninja dead, even Kage killed in battle.
Kushina, with her special status, would definitely be sent to the battlefield if the war escalated. That was what worried Minato.
"Those Cloud barbarians really love stirring up trouble," Kushina muttered, clearly displeased.
But she wasn't thinking about herself—she was remembering her own homeland, destroyed by war. The memory of her country and village perishing in chaos was still vivid.
[Obito's training mission, student exam rewards, Class 1 Grade 1 improvement rewards…]
Mugetsu silently thought of the rewards within his reach.
War was closing in, and his current strength wasn't enough to protect himself in such chaos.
And this was only the beginning.
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