Fixing the blackboard was physical labor.
Kamiki held a hammer and nails in his hand, a wooden board clamped between his teeth, looking like a skilled carpenter.
"Hey, Kamiki, do you really not need my help?" Naruto hovered around nearby, holding a can of paint, eager to give it a go.
"No need," Kamiki mumbled indistinctly. "That paint of yours only comes in one color. It will turn the blackboard orange, and Iruka Sensei will kill us."
Naruto sheepishly put down the paint bucket and squatted on the ground to watch Kamiki hammer the nails.
"Um... Kamiki."
"Hmm?"
"Thanks." His voice was very small, about the same as a mosquito flapping its wings.
Kamiki didn't stop the work in his hands, just hit the nail hard with the hammer.
"Thanks for what. I did it for full marks."
"Hehe." Naruto scratched the back of his head, grinning foolishly. "Anyway, that Nine-Tails you transformed into was too cool! Those teeth, those claws, and that aura! I want to learn too!"
"Then you have to learn not to waste Chakra on that pervy Transformation Jutsu first."
The blackboard was fixed. Although it was a bit crooked and the seams were obvious, at least one could write on it.
Kamiki dusted off his hands.
"Tomorrow is the Clone Jutsu exam," Kamiki said, looking at that crooked blackboard, seemingly talking to himself.
Naruto's face instantly collapsed.
"Clone Jutsu... that's the hardest one. Every time, I can only create a very ugly white noodle man."
"Then practice," Kamiki threw the hammer into the toolbox. "Practice until you don't die from it."
...
That night. Kamiki's house.
The room was very small, with only a bed, a table, and a trash can full of instant noodle cups.
Kamiki sat cross-legged on the bed.
Nothing special happened at the Third Hokage's place, he just asked a few casual questions about daily life, gave some living expenses, and incidentally checked his bone structure.
He was testing him.
Kamiki pretended to be very well-behaved. For someone who had seen the script, playing a child with a bit of talent but no schemes wasn't hard.
Now, the problem was tomorrow's exam.
Clone Jutsu.
E-rank Jutsu. Creating illusions without substance to confuse the enemy.
Kamiki tried it once.
"Clone Jutsu!"
Poof.
A burst of smoke.
Next to him appeared a... how to say it, a grotesquely shaped person.
Facial features twisted, body like an uninflated balloon, limply falling to the ground.
As expected.
This body's fine control of Chakra was simply disaster level.
Kamiki sighed.
If the normal way didn't work, then he could only take that road.
Just like Transformation Jutsu. Since he couldn't control the amount well, just pile up the amount.
As long as there is enough Chakra to fill the "illusion" and turn it into a "solid body," then fine control isn't needed.
Like molding clay figures. Only when there isn't enough clay do you make figures missing arms and legs. If there is so much clay there's nowhere to put it, wouldn't it be fine to just pile up a solid one?
This is pragmatism.
Kamiki closed his eyes and began to mobilize the Chakra in his body.
That warm water feeling appeared again.
But this wasn't enough.
He needed more.
He began to imagine. Imagine compressing this stream of water, compressing it again, until it became a solid.
...
The next day.
The atmosphere in the classroom was more tense than yesterday.
Although the big commotion Kamiki caused yesterday made everyone look at him with new eyes, it also made everyone realize that the graduation exam wasn't a joke.
Iruka walked in sporting two dark circles under his eyes. It seemed he didn't sleep well last night.
"Today we test Clone Jutsu."
Iruka didn't even bother with nonsense and started roll call directly.
"Uchiha Sasuke."
Sasuke walked onto the platform.
"Clone Jutsu."
Without any wasteful movements, his hand seals were so fast they were a blur.
Poof poof.
Two identical Sasukes appeared on the left and right sides. Posture straight, eyes cold.
Perfect.
"Full marks." Iruka nodded.
Sasuke released the Jutsu and looked specifically at Kamiki when walking back to his seat. That was a provocation.
Next came a string of failures and passes.
When Naruto went up, the whole class went quiet.
"Clone... Jutsu!"
Naruto held his breath until his face was red, then let out a loud shout.
Poof.
A white, mushy thing appeared on the ground, looking like a sticky rice ball that had been left out for a few days.
The whole class roared with laughter.
Iruka covered his forehead.
"Fail! Next, Kamiki!"
Kamiki stood up.
He practiced all night yesterday. Although he didn't sleep well, his spirit was unexpectedly high.
He walked to the front of the podium.
Everyone was staring at him. Everyone was expecting what kind of show this guy, who produced the Nine-Tails yesterday, could pull off today.
"Kamiki, today is Clone Jutsu, not Transformation Jutsu." Iruka specifically reminded him. "You only need to create an afterimage like you, don't give me any of that flashy stuff."
Kamiki nodded.
"Understood. An exactly identical me."
He took a deep breath.
Hand seals.
This time the seal changed.
Not the basic gestures like Ram - Snake - Tiger.
But hands crossed, fingers locked into a cross shape.
Iruka froze for a moment.
This seal...
Why does it look a bit familiar?
"Clone Jutsu!"
Kamiki shouted low.
The Chakra inside his body rushed out like a reservoir opening its gates.
Bang!
Smoke exploded.
Not that light white smoke, but a shockwave carrying air currents.
When the smoke cleared.
Two Kamikis stood on the podium.
Exactly identical.
Even the wrinkles on the clothes and that lazy vibe in the eyes were completely consistent.
"Does this count as a clone?" Kiba curled his lip in disdain. "Looks about the same as Sasuke's."
But Iruka didn't speak.
He stared at those two Kamikis, frowning tightly.
Something was wrong.
Ordinary Clone Jutsu is the refraction of light and shadow, it is an illusion. Since it is an illusion, there shouldn't be a sense of weight.
But with these two Kamikis standing there, the floor seemed to sink a little.
Iruka couldn't help but reach out his hand, wanting to poke that clone.
Just at the moment his finger was about to touch.
That clone suddenly raised his hand and slapped Iruka's hand away with a Pa.
A crisp sound.
That was the sound of flesh colliding.
The class was dead silent.
Iruka froze. His hand was still in mid-air, a stinging pain coming from the back of his hand.
"Has... has a solid body?"
Iruka's voice was trembling.
Sasuke suddenly stood up, knocking his chair over. His Sharingan hadn't awakened yet, but he could feel the reality of that clone.
Clone Jutsu can only create illusions.
This is common knowledge for ninjas.
Unless...
Unless it is that Jutsu.
That Jutsu only Jonin can master, even listed as B-rank difficulty or higher.
Shadow Clone Jutsu.
"Kamiki..." Iruka swallowed his saliva. "Just now... that clone hit me?"
Kamiki looked innocent.
He exchanged a glance with that clone.
The clone spoke: "The teacher wanted to poke me, I subconsciously blocked. This is legitimate self-defense."
Two voices. Overlapping together.
"You can talk?!"
Ordinary clones are mute, have no thinking ability, and only stand there stupidly.
This clone not only has a solid body but can also talk back?
Kamiki scratched his head (both the main body and the clone scratched their heads at the same time).
"Teacher, you said to create an 'exactly identical' me. If it's a dummy who only stands there, then it's not like me."
Kamiki explained very seriously.
"I feel ordinary Clone Jutsu is too fake, those phantom images are obviously deceiving. So I improved it a little."
"Improved?" Iruka felt his brain wasn't enough to use. "How did you improve it?"
"Just stuff a bit more Chakra in." Kamiki gestured. "Like stuffing a duck. As long as you stuff enough, the empty becomes solid. This is called quantitative change causing qualitative change."
"..."
Iruka felt his chest was a bit tight.
Stuff a bit more Chakra?
Easy for you to say!
To distribute Chakra evenly in an instant and maintain the stability of the solid body requires extremely high Chakra control and a massive amount of Chakra!
"This is... Shadow Clone Jutsu." Iruka finally said that name.
"Oh, so this is called Shadow Clone." Kamiki looked like he suddenly realized. "Sounds a bit more advanced than Clone Jutsu."
Is that just a bit more advanced?!
That is a required course for Jonin! That is a god-tier skill used for reconnaissance and combat!
Sasuke stared dead at Kamiki.
Yesterday was the Nine-Tails transformation, today is the Shadow Clone.
This guy who has always been the Dead Last, exactly how much has he hidden?
He seriously doubted if this was still the Dead Last he knew before.
He unconsciously clenched his fists.
"Alright." Kamiki waved his hand.
Poof.
That clone turned into a puff of smoke and disappeared.
A memory flowed back into Kamiki's mind. That was the tactile sensation of the clone hitting Iruka's hand just now.
"Teacher, is this full marks?" Kamiki asked.
Iruka took a deep breath, trying hard to calm his mood. He felt he had received more scares in these two days than in the past ten years.
"Full marks."
Iruka wrote a heavy stroke on the report card.
"By the way, Kamiki."
"Hmm?"
"Next time don't hit the teacher. This is for respecting the teacher."
"Okay, teacher. Next time I'll tell him to be gentler."
"..."
Naruto in the back row watched this scene, his eyes looking like they were on fire.
Solid clone!
So cool! If he knew this too, it could help him do homework! And help him line up to buy ramen!
"Kamiki!" Naruto shouted in his heart. "I want to learn this! Must learn!"
How is this a Dead Last?
This is simply a god carrying him to victory.