Guy is embarrassed… He has performed better than he thought he would in this Chunin Exams, and while he aims to win more fights, this isn’t so bad either… He has no regrets over losing to Obito, as he has managed to showcase his every ability… He even gets an applause from the Third Hokage!
Meanwhile, Obito just returns to his compatriots… Rin high-fives him, while Kakashi simply hums in acknowledgment, but Obito swears… it definitely is more of an eye-roll.
“Meh,” Kakashi supplements as he casually pores over the fights from his perch.
Obito watches the following fights for the preliminaries— the only notable fights in this preliminaries are Obito VS Guy, and Anko VS Hayate… in a surprising upset, Hayate wins against Anko.
After the preliminaries, Team Minato gathers together from the ground floor while the Third Hokage stands on the terrace, an elevated place to look over them. “You have done well, but the Chunin Exams are not yet done!”
The Third Hokage continues, “For those who wish to show more of their abilities and ensure their ranking advancement, the Finals for the Showdown Test will be your stage to show your individual combat prowess. The finalists are— Kakashi Hatake, Asuma Sarutobi, Hayate Gekko, Ibiki Morino, and Obito Uchiha… For today, we will have one final fight… Please, Minato-san.”
Minato Namikaze takes a step forward. “The exams have been divided namely into the Written Test, Survival Test, and the Showdown Test. Today, we had the Pre-showdown Test where 10 Genins competed to see which are of the best stock among your generation. The Genins will be given a whole month to train themselves. For those who had lost, don’t lose hope as you could still apply for a Wild Card match prior to the Showdown Test a month from now on…”
Taking over after Minato is the Third Hokage, “For those who had passed their Chunin Exams, you would know as early as tomorrow 6:00 am. However, I advise you not to surrender your matches a month from now on even if it is confirmed you’d rise to the Chunin rank. A lot of influential people would be watching from the minor to major office posts of the Land of Fire not to mention Special Rank Jonins and various branches of special divisions of Konoha from Anbu, the Police Department, Interrogation Force, etc.”
The news of a Wild Card match sparks a flicker of hope in the eyes of those who didn't make it to the finals. But more than that is the fact that, except for the Third Hokage, other people from higher on the ladder will be watching the match too. The Third Hokage's words echo in the minds of the defeated, urging them not to lose faith.
As the Hokage wraps up, Kakashi casually remarks, "Well, looks like the real fun is about to begin. No room for mistakes in the finals."
Obito smirks, "You better not mess it up, Kakashi. I am going to kick your ass."
Kakashi responds with a nonchalant wave, "I never mess up."
The group disperses, each member heading in different directions to prepare for the intense month ahead. The Third Hokage becomes a witness to their separate journeys, as they strive to push their limits and shine in the upcoming Showdown Test.
“Now, wouldn’t this just be great?” Minato remarks as he runs after his charges, taking his role as their sensei in great strides.
However, before he can happily go on his way, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen stops him. “We need to talk,” In his hands are a pile of documents. “It is about Orochimaru…”
While shit is about to get turned over from behind the scenes, Obito goes home straight and hugs his grandma. He boasts about his exploits during the Chunin Exams and happily proceeds to shower his grandma with affection. “Hey, grandma! Guess what I did? I think I have a good shot at becoming a Chunin!”
"Chunin? Ah, I am sure you actually mean Hokage, right?" Obito's grandmother, sitting in her cozy rocking chair, looks up from her knitting with a warm smile. "Oh, my dear Obito, I'm so proud of you! Tell me everything! What happened at the Chunin Exams?"
Obito excitedly plops down on the couch next to her, a gleam of accomplishment in his eyes. "You won't believe it, Grandma! I faced tough opponents, executed flawless jutsu, and even managed to impress... Kakashi! his eye-roll is definitely a compliment, I am sure of that... That bastard can be tsundere sometimes, but sheesh... It is a lot of fun. I can't wait to see the look on everyone's faces when they announce the results!"
"How about Rin? Did you manage to impress her this time?" She teases, to which Obito takes in great strides no longer being shy about it.
And on, and on, and on.
A month from now on, the Showdown Test will then commence.
But before that, Obito has to ensure that his plans for a certain someone work. And also... he has to deal with the smuggled thumb of the First Hokage he has in his possession.
If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
Under the dense canopy of the ancient forest, Obito kneels, his Sharingan activated. He focuses his chakra, performing the hand signs with precision. A swirl of dark energy envelops the air, and Tobi materializes with a maniacal laughter that echoes through the trees.
Tobi is literally laughing his knockers off, "Ah, Obito! You always have the most entertaining plans. What mischief are we up to now?"
Obito smirks and holds out the stolen Thumb from Orochimaru's lab, a sinister gleam in his eye. "This, my friend, is the key to our rapid advancement not in rank, but for power. I want you to possess a Shadow Clone while I cultivate this Thumb with my chakra."
Tobi tilts his head, intrigued. "What's the master plan?"
"For the next month, I'll be pouring my chakra into this Thumb, attempting to mold it into something extraordinary. A weapon, preferably. Meanwhile, you'll be training using the Shadow Clone: Alter Ego. We need to quickly increase our strength."
Tobi grins beneath his mask, excited by the prospect. "Sounds like a recipe for chaos and power, just the way I like it. Let's get started, Obito!" It sounds weird but Obito to some extent feels when Tobi is smiling despite the mask covering his face,
First, Obito summons a Shadow Clone. “Shadow Clone Jutsu,” And just like that another Obito stands before them. Tobi rubs his hands like some wily merchant and then possesses the clone.
With a nod, Obito begins channeling his chakra into the stolen Thumb.
As the chakra flows into the severed Thumb of the First Hokage, the ancient wood seems to resonate with the energy. Tobi, now possessing the Shadow Clone, stretches and flexes, eager to start his own unconventional training.
Obito instructs, "Tobi, I want you to focus on re-mastering the basics – taijutsu, ninjutsu, and genjutsu.. I'll be channeling my chakra into this Thumb to create a powerful weapon… Ah sheesh, this is a more difficult job than I imagined, maybe if I know the Mystical Palm Heart Technique…"
Tobi, adopting a mock-serious demeanor, salutes. "Understood, Commander Obito! I shall re-train your muscle memories, but don’t expect to really improve by leaps and bounds since Shadow Clone Training won’t really condition your muscles."
As Obito delves deeper into the mysterious process, Tobi engages in rigorous training sessions— he performs dazzling shurikenjutsu, and various taijutsu. The forest becomes a battlefield, echoing with the clash of jutsu and the thuds of taijutsu. Tobi, fueled by Obito's chakra, pushes his limits until he goes puff.
Days pass, and Obito notices subtle changes in the Thumb. The chakra infusion is gradually transforming into a pulsating, leafy substance. He whispers to himself, "This is working better than I expected."
Meanwhile, Tobi, in the midst of a fierce sparring session with his own… er… shadow, calls out, "Obito, this is insane! I can feel the power surging through me. Look, look, have you heard of Shadow Boxing? I am doing it, I am doing it!"
Obito knows what Tobi is talking about. In terms of physical ability, he has not improved much, but when it comes to reaction time, he has improved a lot. If only Tobi could do the chakra infusion towards the Thumb so that Obito can train himself from the ground up… as in for real!
And then a month later, Obito has managed to create a weaponized version of the First Hokage’s cells… At first, he is thinking of creating a sword. Obito is basically a Weapons Master, and he has experience with all kinds of weapons from orthodox and unorthodox.
The Uchiha has its own kenjutsu, and it would have been perfect if not for the impossibility of the task at hand to begin with. When Obito has come to realize shaping the Thumb into a Sword is unrealistic, he decides to mold it into a mask reminiscent of Tobi’s mask but that fails too.
So, Obito comes to a compromise again, and the result—
“Haha~! HAahAHAHAH!! FUUUCK THAT’s FUNNY AS HELL!” The result is Tobi laughing his ass off at the final product. “What is this twig? No, no… This is a stick! What are you going to do with it? Stab people with a stick? Huff… Hahahah! Kakakakak! I am going crazy, this has been the best laugh I had since I was born!”
“No~ooo,” Obito frowns, his eyes quivering in embarrassment. “This is a wand! Like the wands from the Shinto Shrines or the stories about Evil Sorcerers… you know? A wand!? You should know it, we share the fucking same memories!”
Tobi doesn’t stop, “Yeah, do the Shinto wands look like this? It should have two zigzag paper streamers on the sides… This wand of yours is just a slightly pointy stick! Kehahaha!”
In Obito’s hand is a wand (you’d find in Harry Potter’s hands, and not in Obito’s), and this wand looks like a simple slightly sharp twig, but don’t be mistaken for this wand has been shaped from Hashirama Senju’s Thumb finger.
Obito pockets the wand and performs a series of hand seals.
Snake + Ram + Hare + Dog
It is the Wood Release: Wood-Dragon Technique.
Tobi jeers at Obito since nothing is happening. “Faiiilure! Back in my days, we could cast jutsus without hand seals. And if we really need to do hand seals, we use both hands and feet! Hahahaha! Obito, Obito! Your wand is a failure!”
As usual, Tobi is being an asshole, but Obito just ignores him.
Obito grabs the wand to check it, but then all too abruptly being summoned from its pointy tip is a serpentine wooden dragon, and it crashes into the trees, more trees, and even Tobi’s Shadow Clone which gets destroyed with ease.
After a second of silence and two when the wooden dragon has dissipated, Tobi reappears. He phases from the ground and stands before the destruction that the wooden dragon has left. “That’s…”
“What?” Obito grins, “A wand?”
“Yeah, that is indeed a fucking wand… but wait, wouldn’t it be an annoyance if you have to perform hand seals and then grab the wand?” Tobi reasonably argues. “It is impractical too since it messes your chakra flow…”
Obito shrugs, and performs a zero hand seal jutsu, “Wood Release: Cutting Technique!” He swings his wand, and a dark wooden blade-like extension erupts from the wand. It has become a sword for a few seconds, and the result— more trees have fallen down, except this time, it has come from a sharp, nice, and clean cut.
“That, my good sir is indeed a fucking wand!” Tobi dramatically rolls on the ground, “Emotional Damage!” He adds as he wackily runs over the destroyed part of the forest, reveling in the destruction that Obito has left.
Now that a month has passed, it is time for Obito to conduct his ninja business, and go bag himself the Chunin qualifications so that he advance without trouble… "But first, but first... How should I mess up with Orochimaru?"