After enduring a rather lengthy and intense lecture from Hashirama, Madara finally conceded, sighing dramatically, "Alright, alright, I am sorry. It's my fault."
I slowly emerged from the lingering shock of the near-death experience and the sudden change in their dynamic. "Okay," I said, a little breathlessly, "as long as you are more careful in the future, we'll call it even."
Hashirama let out a massive sigh of relief, the tension visibly draining from his shoulders. His brow furrowed in curiosity, and he suddenly asked, "But seriously, how did you bounce it back? That was a massive Fireball Jutsu!"
Madara, still looking a bit sheepish, nodded his head in agreement. "I thought you were absolutely going to be burnt to a crisp," he admitted, his voice a little strained. "How did you survive that, let alone repel it?"
Hashirama instantly erupted, turning his attention back to Madara and launching into another spirited lecture about recklessness and the sheer power of that particular jutsu. I couldn't help but smile, a genuine, warm feeling spreading through me as I watched their familiar, chaotic interaction.
They both stopped mid-argument, noticing my reaction, and looked at me. I chuckled lightly. "You two are both genuinely hilarious," I said, shaking my head.
"If you want to know how I did it, I will show you... tomorrow. Right now, I'm weak. I have next to no chakra left."
Madara scoffed loudly, crossing his arms. "You are too weak, even for a civilian," he sneered, his arrogance immediately returning. "We have fifty times more chakra than you, easily."
Hashirama quickly stepped in, placing a hand on Madara's shoulder. "Don't mind him," he said kindly. "Take a rest. We will meet here daily, so you can easily find us tomorrow."
I met Madara's challenging gaze, and the smile faded from my face. "Yeah, I'm not born into a privileged clan," I replied, my voice steady and level.
"Where I come from, we don't know if we will survive tomorrow or not, let alone afford to waste energy on training."
At my blunt words, Madara actually sighed, a strange look of understanding crossing his face.
Hashirama, however, looked at me with a profound sense of pity. "If you're okay with it," he offered softly, "as a form of compensation for nearly killing you, I will teach you the basic chakra extraction method and some ninjutsu."
My pride flared up. I looked him straight in the eye and firmly refused. "I appreciate the offer, but I don't need pity from others. Especially not from ninjas."
Hashirama awkwardly scratched the back of his head, visibly embarrassed by my rejection.
Madara scoffed again, though his tone was less overtly dismissive this time. "We're not pitying you, weakling," he interjected. "You are too weak, that's a fact. We're just giving you a chance to be strong."
Hashirama quickly jumped on the opening Madara had provided. "How about this, then?" he suggested, his face lighting up. "We become friends first, and then I teach you as a friend? No pitying involved."
I paused, thinking over the offer. It was a golden opportunity, exactly like the beginning of their story.
After a moment, I agreed. "Okay," I said, extending my hand towards them.
"I am Ishiki."
Hashirama immediately grasped my hand, his grip firm and warm. "I am Hashirama," he announced with a wide grin. "And he," he gestured to Madara, who merely gave a curt nod, "is Madara."
We formally introduced ourselves, though they notably kept their clan names a secret. This detail jogged my memory: they became friends in secret without knowing they were from the enemy Senju and Uchiha clans.
Hashirama then motioned for me to sit down by the riverbank. Without wasting a moment, he began to help me unlock my chakra.
He gently poured his own vast reserve of chakra into my body, explaining the paths and flow, and instructed me to remember the feeling and practice refining it.
It became clear very quickly that I possessed minimal natural talent in the ninja way. Even with Hashirama's guidance and assistance, it took an arduous amount of time before I finally managed to successfully refine a small, pitiful amount of chakra.
I let out a heavy sigh. "It won't be a problem," I muttered to myself. "I have the Doraemon props. With them, I'm stronger than any ninja."
As I was formulating my next strategy, the transparent blue screen of the System Panel opened before me again.
Name: Ishiki
Age: 12
Chakra: 6/6
Strength: 3
I observed the screen with a growing sense of satisfaction. My max chakra had increased by 1 point. This was progress.