Chapter 34: A Phantom and a Puddle
The most broken abilities born from the Mangekyo Sharingan, in Shinra's opinion, belonged to Uchiha Shisui and Obito. One could overwrite a person's will, the other granted dominion over space itself. They were truly monstrous powers.
"I wonder if the system can identify the abilities of these Mangekyo," Shinra mused. Acting on the thought, he willed himself into the system's mental space.
Without bothering to call out to the silent system, he pulled up his own status panel. He scanned the list and found Mangekyo Sharingan listed under the [Equipment] column.
So it's classified as equipment? I suppose that makes sense. It's not an innate ability of mine.
He focused on the entry and, in the bottom corner, spotted a line of incredibly fine print he'd once stumbled upon: 'System Introduction'. He still didn't know why the system made it so small; if not for his Tenseigan's sharp vision, he would have never noticed it.
Clicking on it, a new window appeared, detailing the abilities of this specific pair of Mangekyo.
One was Amaterasu.
Seeing this, Shinra almost laughed. This technique had a fearsome reputation—the 'strongest physical attack', an 'unavoidable flame'. Yet its track record was embarrassingly poor, having famously failed to kill a single major target. It was all hype.
The other ability, however, was far more intriguing.
Phantom Body: Can separate an undetectable phantom with 80% of the user's strength. The phantom and the main body can swap positions during combat.
Now that's a useful skill, Shinra thought, impressed. It was like having a perfect, controllable clone. The only drawback was the massive chakra drain; once his reserves were depleted, the phantom would vanish.
Satisfied, he exited the system space just as the aroma of dinner wafted from the kitchen. If he stayed in there any longer, Mikoto would start to worry.
After the meal, Shinra watched in mild astonishment as Mikoto, instead of relaxing, immediately retreated to her room to train.
"She's always trained diligently, but never this intensely," he murmured to himself, puzzled.
He didn't realize that witnessing his overwhelming power during the confrontation with Uchiha Kagami had been a profound wake-up call for her. A fierce determination had ignited within Mikoto to bridge the gap, to ensure she wouldn't be left too far behind. Her talent was considerable; she had awakened her Sharingan over a year ago, a fact only Shinra knew. She had confided in him that it happened the day her grandfather, her last living relative, passed away. The emotional trauma had been the catalyst. It was an early awakening, but given her talent and the circumstances, it was entirely plausible.
With Mikoto now dedicated to her training, Shinra found himself at a loose end. Boredom quickly set in, so he decided to train as well.
His own training methods had evolved. Instead of grueling calisthenics, he now used the Tenseigan's gravity control. By increasing the gravitational pull on his own body, he could strengthen his physique comprehensively and efficiently, even fortifying his internal organs. He left ninjutsu practice to his Shadow Clones; the arsenal he had was already mastered. The Tenseigan's ocular abilities required no practice, only sufficient chakra to fuel them.
His current focus was on Armament Haki, Observation Haki, Chakra Refinement, mastering the Spark-Spark Fruit, and honing his swordsmanship. Practicing with a sword also served as an excellent full-body workout, killing two birds with one stone. Mastering the Spark-Spark Fruit's light cohesion and power was a more nuanced challenge, one he decided to table for the moment.
The only downside to possessing so many abilities was the sheer volume of things to practice. Without his monstrous talent, it would have been an impossible task.
The two-day holiday ended, and school resumed. During the useless morning lectures, Shinra tuned out and focused on refining his chakra. In the afternoon practical sessions, he would usually separate himself from the group, slowly and methodically practicing his forms with a specially crafted short sword. He longed to wield Ryūjin Jakka, but he was still too short; trying to use the full-length Zanpakuto would look utterly ridiculous.
"Hey, Shinra, you swing that sword so slowly," Nawaki called out, strutting over. "Even a civilian could dodge that. It's useless. I don't know why you bother every day."
"Haha. You just don't get it, Nawaki," Shinra replied with a knowing chuckle. The reason for the slow, deliberate movements was the immense gravitational force he was exerting on his own body. If he released it, Nawaki wouldn't even be able to see his swings.
"What's there to get? So mysterious. Well, let me tell you, I've learned a ninjutsu! A real one!" Nawaki declared, puffing out his chest with pride.
"What? Nawaki learned a ninjutsu already?"
"As expected of the Senju clan heir! He's amazing!"
Nawaki hadn't bothered to lower his voice, and the excited whispers of their classmates filled the training ground.
"Oh? What ninjutsu?" Shinra asked, genuinely curious.
"I'll demonstrate!" Nawaki said, his desire to show off overpowering all else. "It's really powerful, so everyone stand back!"
"Nawaki, you know we're not allowed to use ninjutsu on the grounds without permission," Nara Shikaku interjected, dousing the excitement with cold logic.
"It's quite alright," a new voice said. Teacher Ueno Kuri walked over, a small smile on his face. "I'm here to supervise. Go ahead, Nawaki. Let's see what you've learned."
Nawaki's face lit up. This was his moment! He strode to an open area, held his hands in a seal, and began his sequence. The speed of his hand signs, however, was painfully slow, a clumsy, turtle's pace.
"Water Style: Water Turbulence!" he shouted.
A spurt of water shot from his mouth. The crowd of watching students fell silent, a collective bead of sweat appearing on their temples. He had indeed used the jutsu. But the stream was so pitifully small it would have struggled to drown an ant. If the ant was feeling particularly unlucky.
"Nawaki... are you sure that was Water Style: Water Turbulence," Shinra asked, his voice laced with mock sincerity, "and not the legendary 'Water Style: Spitting Technique'?"
Another student piped up, "Sensei Ueno, will we be learning this? Can this even hit anyone?"
Nawaki's face turned a brilliant shade of crimson. He wished a hole would open up and swallow him. The humiliation was absolute.
"Th-that was a bad try! I did it perfectly yesterday!" he stammered in defense, his hands frantically forming the seals again to prove himself.
But panic made him sloppier. This time, he didn't even produce a trickle. It was worse than the first attempt.