Warm sunlight spilled across my face, coaxing me awake far more gently than usual. I stretched with a long, satisfied groan, my body sinking deeper into the thin bedding.
"That… was the best sleep I've had in months," I mumbled to the empty room.
It felt like my soul had dipped into warm water and come back rejuvenated.I blinked toward the window. Shadows were short. The sunlight was high.
"…Wait. It looks like afternoon already."
I shot upright.
"I'm late!"
The realisation jolted me into motion. I scrambled out the door and sprinted toward the riverbank, weaving between trees, lungs burning, heart pounding.
As I burst through the last row of foliage, I spotted two familiar silhouettes sitting peacefully near the water.
I cupped my hands around my mouth.
"Hashirama! Madara! I'm here!"
Hashirama's face lit up with his usual sunny smile. Madara, of course, turned slowly with an expression that said my existence personally inconvenienced him.
"You are late," he grumbled, his tone low and annoyed.
I laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of my neck."Sorry. I had… a very good sleep after a long time, so I overslept."
Their expressions softened unexpectedly, almost like pity, or maybe concern. For a moment, the air grew too heavy.
Hashirama, never one to allow awkwardness to linger, clapped his hands loudly.
"Alright! That means you must practice harder today to improve your chakra!"
I nodded. "Okay. But before that,"
Both boys leaned forward as I continued:
"Yesterday, I said I would show you a magic trick… and explain how I bounced back Madara's Fireball Jutsu."
Their eyes immediately sharpened with interest.
I turned toward Madara, the unwitting volunteer of the demonstration.
"Just like yesterday, use a Fire jutsu on me."
Hashirama stepped in at once. "Eh? Is that really okay?"
I puffed out my chest dramatically.
"Don't worry, Hashirama. Madara's fire won't even touch me."
Madara scoffed loudly."You got lucky yesterday. Don't become a burnt fish today."
He cracked his knuckles and began forming hand seals with the confidence of someone born to wield fire.
I, meanwhile, opened my system panel discreetly and summoned the Reverse Cloak.
The dark fabric materialised into my hand in a shimmer of futuristic energy.
Both boys froze.
Hashirama leaned forward, eyes wide."H-How did you pull that out of thin air!?"
Madara's brows shot up too, his usual stoic facade cracking with surprise.
I grinned smugly."Oh, don't be shocked by this. There's more to come."
Then I pointed forward.
"Madara, do it!"
Madara finished the final seal.Chakra surged.Heat warped the air.
Katon: Fireball Jutsu!
A massive orb of flame roared across the ground toward me, faster and hotter than yesterday's.
My heart hammered, but I raised the cloak confidently.
At the exact moment of impact,
WHOOOSH!
The fireball folded, reversed, and shot backwards with perfect and terrifying precision.
Madara leapt aside with a startled grunt as the reflected attack scorched past him.
Silence fell.
Both boys stared at me, stunned into immobility.
Hashirama whispered first."…How did you do that?"
Madara narrowed his eyes. "It's the cape, isn't it?"
I nodded.
"Yes. This is its ability. Any attack that touches it will bounce back."
Their fascination deepened.
Hashirama, unable to contain his curiosity, reached out.
"Can I try it?"
I blinked.
Honestly, I wasn't sure if props could be used by others. But I wanted to test it too.
So I handed it over.
"Sure. Let's see."
Hashirama's eyes sparkled with childlike excitement as he gripped the cloak. He grasped the technique almost instantly.
"It's responding to me! Madara, again!"
Madara didn't hesitate.
Fireballs flew.Hashirama batted them back one by one, laughing proudly.
Madara dodged each one, shouting insults and yelling for Hashirama to "stop playing around!"
They looked like two kids with a brand-new toy…Because, well, they were two kids with a brand-new toy.
But watching them,
A pang hit me.
Jealousy.
They had chakra in abundance, a birthright I lacked.They could use the cloak freely.I had barely managed a single use before running nearly empty.
And then another thought struck me,
What if they decided to keep my gadgets?
My heart skipped.
I immediately opened my system panel again and scanned the props.
There,A Recall function.
I tapped it.
FWIP,
The cloak vanished from Hashirama's hands mid-swing.
Madara had just launched another fireball.
With the cloak gone, Hashirama nearly took the hit. Madara dodged narrowly, flames scorching the air behind him.
Madara rounded on me, eyes blazing hotter than his jutsu.
"What the HELL was that!?"
I raised my hands quickly.
"SORRY! My mistake!"
He did not look convinced.
His temper flared. Mine bubbled right back.
I pointed at him with mock bravado."Take it as my revenge for yesterday. Now we're even!"
That was the spark that lit the powder keg.
Madara exploded.I retaliated.Insults filled the air, sharp and childish.
"You weak twig!""You pine-haired brat!""Your hair looks like a burnt broom!""At least mine isn't old man white!"
Hashirama sighed deeply… then sat down cross-legged nearby.
He didn't intervene this time.He simply watched our quarrel unfold with the resigned acceptance of someone who knew this was our new default state.
"Here we go again," he murmured, amused.
And thus,Madara and I began our second verbal war of the morning.