In a secluded corner of Konoha Ninja Academy, Obito Uchiha felt his stomach drop. He pressed his back against the wall as Youyu staggered toward him, swaying slightly with a bottle in one hand and a sword in the other.
"Youyu... w-what are you doing?" Obito stammered, already regretting every decision that had led him to this moment. He had genuinely thought his suffering was over. There had been no surprise ambushes lately, no sudden sword swings. He had dared to believe that maybe—just maybe—Youyu had grown bored of tormenting him. But here they were again.
"Relax... relax..." Youyu slurred, eyes half-lidded and unfocused. "Today's special. I've made the perfect preparations. A
Guaranteed high-level loot!"
Obito had no idea what that meant, but it sounded horrifying.
"Youyu, I swear, I didn't do anything!" He raised his hands in surrender, hoping to talk his way out of whatever insanity was about to unfold.
"You think I don't know that?" Youyu scoffed. "That's the problem! I've cut you
and gotten
I thought about it... and I figured it out!"
"You... figured out what?"
"I wasn't drunk enough."
Obito's stomach twisted. That was the
"Youyu, we're here!"
Hope surged in Obito's chest as he turned toward the source of the voice. Rin Nohara and Kurenai Yuhi approached, and for a brief moment, he thought he had been saved.
"Rin! You came to rescue me!" Tears of relief welled in his eyes, his suffering finally at an end.
Rin tilted her head in confusion. "Ah? No, you misunderstood, Obito." She smiled sweetly. "Youyu asked me to be here. He was worried that if he got
, he might actually kill you."
Obito blinked, his relief shattering like glass. "What?!"
"I've been learning medical ninjutsu, so I can patch you up
"
His
Kurenai clasped her hands together, forming a seal. The world blurred around Obito, colors twisting in unnatural patterns as a heavy fog settled over his mind.
"A genjutsu?" he realized with mounting horror.
They had planned for this. They had prepared for this exact moment.
This wasn't a
This was a
"Youyu, go a little lower. If you cut too high, you'll miss the best loot!" Rin instructed, adjusting Youyu's arm.
"Ah, right, right," Youyu muttered, nodding in drunken agreement.
"Youyu, keep it within three centimeters of depth. Any more, and the
might get too long," Kurenai added.
Obito was in hell.
"You guys are insane!" he whimpered, his voice breaking.
"Shh, don't move!" Rin chided, tapping his forehead. "If you keep squirming, Youyu might
"
"I—I didn't even move!"
"You're breathing too loudly. It's distracting me," Youyu grumbled, shifting his grip on his sword.
"You're the one who's swaying!" Obito shouted, panic rising.
"Alright, time to roll the dice!" Youyu grinned and raised his sword.
A moment later, the sound of steel slicing through fabric rang through the air.
Obito
Rin tapped her chin. "Huh... this cut seems a little off."
"You missed the loot again?" Kurenai sighed.
Youyu frowned, shaking his head. "Why the hell do I keep getting nothing?!"
Obito, clutching
, let out a strangled sob. His sleeve had been sliced clean off, and a thin but deep cut ran along his arm.
"WHY IS IT ALWAYS ME?!"
"Alright, I'm done here," Youyu muttered, flicking the blood off his blade before sheathing it. "Rin, patch him up. I gotta drink more—clearly, I wasn't drunk enough."
Obito nearly collapsed.
"Patch him up?" Kurenai smirked. "He's covered in bandages
He's basically a mummy at this point."
"You should be grateful, Obito," Rin reassured him while applying fresh bandages. "I'm getting
of medical ninjutsu practice thanks to you!"
"WHY WOULD THAT MAKE ME GRATEFUL?!"
Youyu stretched, sighing. "No rewards again... maybe next time, I should go
Obito turned
"NO. NO MORE NEXT TIME. WE'RE DONE. THIS IS OVER. FOREVER!"
"Yeah, yeah," Youyu waved dismissively, already staggering away with Rin and Kurenai at his sides.
Obito dropped to his knees, staring blankly ahead. "It's over... it's finally over..."
The other students
as they passed,
Obito sat there for a long time, hugging his knees, waiting for his soul to return to his body.
At the front of the classroom, Tanaka cleared his throat, forcing a smile that barely hid his growing exhaustion. "...And that concludes today's lesson."
The class remained silent.
He was
Tanaka exhaled slowly, resisting the urge to collapse onto his desk. He had made a mistake—a
mistake.
For a brief moment, he had genuinely believed that Youyu was
He had
to think that things were stabilizing. That he could finally regain some
Then he saw Obito, freshly bandaged, slumped in his chair like a
Tanaka had
His gaze shifted back to Youyu, watching the empty bottle roll out of his sleeve and hit the floor.
His hands trembled.
"Um... Kurenai, Rin, can you wake him up?"
The girls exchanged looks before Rin stepped forward and
"Youyu-kun," she whispered.
A
was her only response.
Kurenai sighed, leaning closer.
"...There's sake in the teacher's lounge."
Youyu's eyes
"Who?! Where?!" He shot up, fully alert.
Rin chuckled. "Class is over, Youyu."
He
Obito
"YOU'RE DRINKING AGAIN?!"
"Of course," Youyu scoffed. "I gotta train."
"HOW IS THAT TRAINING?!"
The classroom emptied
Everyone who valued their
got out of there
Tanaka buried his face in his hands.
He needed a vacation.
1,022
Rin sees this as
Tanaka thought he could
He was
Youyu's