"Runtu, Runtu."
"How did you make this joint? This material is different from my kunai?"
"Runtu, Runtu, if you have any leftover scraps..."
"Could you help me forge a ninja sword?"
"Kunai would work too."
Sasuke squatted in front of the blacksmith shop, chattering away, asking if it was 'cool' and if it could help him make something, clearly showing that he highly regarded this soul pet skilled in blacksmithing.
Of course.
Under Sasuke's careful observation, Runtu's skills were far superior to Kaito's.
The working puppet dog had just begun to shape its body when it had to endure this kid buzzing in its ear for over an hour, prompting the recently awakened soul pet to finally speak up.
"Get lost."
Runtu raised its puppet arm and pointed at Kaito not far away, indicating the noisy kid should hurry up and go to his brother.
Sasuke didn't feel the slightest bit angry at its words; instead, he tentatively asked, "If I get lost..."
"Can you help me forge a weapon?"
He really loved the weapons Runtu was making, especially that metallic sheen filled with murderous intent. Sasuke could hardly imagine how powerful he would be with such a weapon.
"Get lost!!"
Runtu had just learned to speak, and though it didn't say much, one word was enough to express its anger.
Realizing he was being a nuisance, Sasuke reluctantly walked away from the blacksmith shop, but he still kept glancing at the materials in Runtu's hands.
He knew... those things must be Chakra Metal!
So strong! I want it!
After walking several meters, while watching Runtu forge, Sasuke happened to catch a glimpse of Kaito training.
It was nothing at first, but the two flashes of red he caught in his peripheral vision made Sasuke jump.
"Uchiha Kaito!!!"
"When did you activate your Sharingan!?"
Sasuke was a hundred percent sure that what he had just seen was the Sharingan, and it was a double tomoe at that.
Thinking about how he had been showing off to Kaito about his own eye activation these past few days made him feel like he wanted to die.
That annoying guy...
Is he messing with me!?
Clang—
Kaito flicked his wrist, quickly putting away the scroll Shisui had given him, and looked up, pretending to be confused, his tone quite firm as he said, "No."
"You saw it wrong."
The Body Flicker Technique recorded in the scroll was Shisui's signature move, which must be used in conjunction with the Sharingan.
Kaito had gotten a bit carried away and was about to try it when he suddenly realized that Obito was still nearby.
Not wanting to cause trouble for this kid, he didn't want to tell Sasuke about his training task.
After all, he was preparing to destroy the Shinobi World.
It was better not to let the fool know about such things.
Lest in the future, Sasuke come running to him saying something like, 'How difficult it is... how difficult it is...'
"Tch! You liar!!" Sasuke was grinding his teeth, feeling that Kaito getting stronger was even more painful than being killed.
Sometimes, the bond between brothers is like this; Kaito's failures made him feel bad, but the other's successes made him even more anxious.
"Go play with Runtu; I don't have time to hang out with you right now."
Kaito said this and turned his back to Sasuke, using Shisui's Body Flicker Technique to disappear from the spot before Sasuke could react.
"Uchiha Kaito! I'm never talking to you again!"
Sasuke now felt that guy was becoming increasingly annoying.
That broken thing hammering away was annoying too!
The puppet dog's body took three days to complete, made entirely of Chakra Metal, with three red orbs the size of marbles, shimmering with a golden sheen and exuding a faint green chill.
It really did look somewhat like a mechanical dog.
Moreover, Runtu was equipped with two steel cables inside, which could be fired outward while also allowing for mid-range displacement.
Especially in a Shinobi World where one had to rely on climbing trees to get around, its combat capabilities were maximized.
Its effectiveness was roughly similar to Spider-Man's web-slinging and the ODM gear from Attack on Titan.
In terms of combat ability, it was quite impressive, especially since it was made entirely of Chakra Metal; Runtu could easily take down some small fry.
As for intelligence...
Kaito felt this soul pet could easily outsmart his brother Obito.
"Runtu, stay home and study the 'Secret Weapons Manual'; I'll go outside and bring back some textbooks for you to learn."
After patting Runtu, who was obediently reading in front of the books, Kaito happily slung his backpack over his shoulder and left the house.
Runtu looked down at the book in front of it, then up at the direction of the door. After a long while, it finally let out a single word.
"Dog!"
Sasuke had been sulking for several days and had already gone to school, making it hard for Kaito to talk to this kid.
In these three days, he had learned Shisui's Body Flicker Technique quite well, but to unleash the same level of power as Shisui, he still needed to activate his Sharingan to the three tomoe level.
Currently, Kaito could only manage to create ten shadow clones while using the Body Flicker Technique.
He still couldn't produce a dense swarm of clones like Shisui.
As for Genjutsu, he could say it was just enough to get by.
Counting the Fire Release he was currently learning, with the double tomoe Sharingan enhancing his Chakra limit, he could now release all the Fire Release techniques he had learned.
During the day, with the Chakra recovery boost from the "Guardian Deities," Kaito felt he could easily transform into a mobile artillery platform.
Despite the jokes in his past life about Fire Release not being lethal, it must be said that in this world, Fire Release still belonged to the high-damage ninjutsu category.
At the very least, when a normal person faced a Fire Release technique, one shot would send them straight to meet the Sage of Six Paths.
For long-range attacks, he had special weapons enhanced with Fire Release and shuriken, while in close combat, his taijutsu was average, but with the Sharingan's enhancement, it was still decent. Even if he couldn't win, he could escape using the Flying Thunder Dog.
Under normal circumstances, he could also use Shisui's Body Flicker Technique for taijutsu combat.
His control abilities were limited, but temporary blindness could be counted as one.
This ability had an unexpected effect when first encountered, and the sunflower also had healing capabilities.
As long as he avoided rainy days and nights, Kaito felt that as long as the opponent couldn't instantaneously kill him, he still had a fighting chance.
As Kaito walked down the street, lost in thought, he unknowingly turned into a flower shop in the mountains. He hesitated for a few seconds at the door before deciding to buy two bouquets for peace of mind.
"Ah?"
"Kaito, what brings you here?"
Ino, who was helping her mother organize potted plants, immediately put down her work when she saw Kaito walk in, quickly wiping her hands on her apron and fixing her slightly messy hair.
Kaito was a bit surprised to see the girl; he remembered that Sasuke had left for school early that morning.
"Ino? Aren't you supposed to be at school today?"
Pfft—
As if she had heard something funny, Ino covered her mouth and chuckled, "Today is Saturday; Kaito, it's been a while since you've been to school."
In the past week, Ino hadn't seen Kaito at all, not even his shadow clone in class.
Sasuke had gone to school three days ago.
But whenever Ino asked Sasuke, the response was either a cold grunt or "It's none of your business, you blonde."
Plus, there had been a lot of rumors about the Uchiha clan lately.
Ino was quite worried about Kaito's situation.
"Strange..." Kaito frowned and muttered, but he was actually thinking about his foolish little brother. Finally, he pointed to the flowers beside him.
"Can you help me get a few bunches of white chrysanthemums?"
Ino nodded, her heart conflicted for a long time before she finally mustered the courage to ask, "Is it... is it for mourning the deceased again?"
Kaito took out a stack of cash and placed it on the counter, receiving the white chrysanthemums. He looked down seriously for a few seconds before replying.
"To honor the ancestors."
Ino: ??