Two weeks had passed since Naoki had first established synchronized chakra circulation between his bodies. The passage of time in Konoha was deceptive; the sun rose and fell upon the same red-tiled roofs, and the river that cut through the market district gleamed with its usual morning serenity. But for Naoki Uchiha, time had ceased to move at a human pace.
Now, it multiplied.
Beneath the ordinary rhythm of the village, under the soft hum of life above, the secret underground laboratory pulsed with an unrelenting tempo , the sound of a mind dividing itself perfectly between two vessels.
The dawn began in silence. The main body stood in the compound courtyard, bathed in early sunlight filtering through the maple leaves. His movements were slow, deliberate , the precise kata of Uchiha-style taijutsu, adapted and optimized. Each strike carried a quiet, geometric beauty.
At the same time, far below the surface, the clone performed the same movements , only inverted, deconstructed. Its motions were slower, emphasizing balance, torque, the interplay of chakra within muscle fibers.
The goal was not strength. It was understanding.
Every day began like this , a mirrored practice that dissected technique into theory and sensation, dividing labor between instinct and calculation.
The main body focused on application; the clone analyzed structure.
By evening, both minds would share the data seamlessly, merging into a single, composite memory.
Naoki's calculations had become almost sacred.
After ten cycles of dual practice, the results were undeniable. Where a single body required nearly three weeks to achieve basic chakra synchronization with a new jutsu, two bodies , operating in parallel, completed the process in eight days.
Seventy-two percent faster.
Naoki's quill moved smoothly across his logbook. The ink shimmered faintly with chakra, stabilizing against degradation.
Training Log – Dual Cycle 14:
Parallel execution of taijutsu + chakra reinforcement routines successful. Data merge achieved without conflict.
Calculated gain: 72% reduction in proficiency time.
Noted phenomenon: no divergence in skill imprint, confirming consciousness singularity.
Revised principle: individuality of clones unnecessary; optimization achieved through pure unity.
He paused, fingers lingering on the last line.
The original "Character Note" , the idea that a clone could develop unique quirks, divergent thought patterns that might add creativity to the process , had been deleted. Permanently.
He had confirmed what instinct had whispered: as long as they shared a single consciousness, individuality was illusion.
No quirks, no emotions, no instability.
Only continuity.
The clone was no longer an "other." It was him, a second pair of hands executing a single will.
Weeks had passed, each sunrise brought refinement. The main body, stationed aboveground, handled his daily duties with quiet precision. On paper, Uchiha Naoki was an unremarkable Chūnin of the Police Force's Sealing Division , a specialist occasionally consulted for complex tag failures or document preservation cases.
His colleagues called him "Bookworm Naoki," with affectionate exasperation. To them, he was mild, methodical, dependable.
None imagined that while he drank tea in the Police office, another version of him, identical and unseen, was beneath the earth deciphering the architecture of chakra networks at a cellular scale.
The parallel existence was nearly seamless now.
While the main body conducted investigations, the clone refined the Chakra Extraction Seal, testing variant matrices and monitoring chakra stability through glass phials lined with reactive symbols. The data flowed both ways , a constant, silent current of shared thought.
Yet, progress was not without its shadow.
The main body began to feel the strain first. A dull fatigue clung to his limbs even after rest, as though every nerve was being asked to carry double weight. His vision blurred at the edges during long seal transcriptions.
The clone, however, remained pristine , its muscles firm, its chakra fresh, its reflexes undiminished. It was a new vessel, untainted by exhaustion.
During one evening synchronization, as the two bodies met in the lab, Naoki ran a diagnostic.
The results were clear. The neurological load , the mental cost of maintaining parallel focus , was borne disproportionately by the original. His brain tissue exhibited subtle chakra congestion, an echo of overuse.
Observation: The central nervous system is the limiting factor in dual operation. Clone's neural pathways exhibit low strain due to recency of activation.
Conclusion: To maintain indefinite dual-state, main body must undergo rejuvenation protocols , physical strengthening, chakra purification, and circulatory rebalancing.*
Naoki set down his pen, rubbing his temples.
His mind was sharp as ever, but his body lagged behind. Years of late nights, of long sealing sessions and deliberate self-control, had accumulated into quiet erosion.
If this imbalance continued, he realized, the main body might collapse long before his research reached its apex.
He glanced across the lab, where the clone stood silently, awaiting instruction. It was unsettling, at times, to look into his own eyes and see neither will nor emotion, only purpose.
He exhaled slowly. "You will handle the next test cycles. I will begin physical restoration."
The clone bowed wordlessly.
Parallel Training: Refinement and Resistance
Thus began the new phase , dual training for mutual optimization.
While the clone practiced chakra molding techniques and refined Fūinjutsu constructs, the main body turned inward, retraining his physical foundation from scratch.
Mornings were spent in solitude, in the Uchiha training yard , rows of silent wooden posts beneath the shadow of old plum trees. Taijutsu forms became meditation. He focused on the subtleties of breath, muscle contraction, the rhythm of his own pulse aligning with chakra flow.
By contrast, the clone's day unfolded in the sterile light of the lab. It crafted micro-seals, tested flow ratios, and fed data into the primary terminal. The seal-engraving machine, modified from old Root components, hummed softly , a quiet heartbeat of forbidden science.
The difference between them grew visible.
The main body became steadier, movements smoother, chakra control refined through constant recalibration.
The clone became more precise, its understanding of theoretical constructs unmatched.
Two streams, one current.
After six full dual-training cycles , roughly forty-two days , Naoki performed a comprehensive merge. The two consciousness threads aligned perfectly, experiences integrating without resistance.
For the first time, the sensation of oneness was complete. The data merged, memories intertwined, every discovery and every exertion folded into one seamless whole.
It was like inhaling after weeks of shallow breaths.
He calculated the outcome with detached satisfaction.
Overall proficiency gain: 67.4% reduction in learning duration for new ninjutsu and sealwork.
Neural fatigue accumulation: 11%.
Physical strain (main body): Moderate.
Psychological stability: Unchanged.
The results were beyond even his initial projections. He had turned what was once a linear process , the slow accumulation of skill , into an exponential curve.
"Efficiency multiplied," he murmured, eyes half-lidded in thought. "Human limitation… transcended through symmetry."
But the faint ache behind his eyes reminded him of the cost still unpaid.
That evening, the main body returned to his apartment on the quiet eastern edge of the Uchiha compound. The streets were dim, painted in the orange hues of sunset. Families were settling in for dinner; children laughed near the training yard, wooden shuriken clattering softly against targets.
Inside his modest quarters, Naoki prepared tea, the faint aroma of roasted barley filling the room. He had grown to value these small human rituals , anchors of normalcy amid his secret complexity.
Then, a knock at the door.
He turned, senses sharpening instinctively. On the wooden threshold lay a folded envelope, its paper thick and embossed with a scarlet wax seal. The mark was unmistakable , the insignia of the Konoha Military Headquarters.
Naoki's expression remained calm, but beneath the stillness, his pulse quickened. Few within the Police Force received direct correspondence from Headquarters , fewer still at his rank.
He broke the seal. Inside was a neatly folded letter written in formal script:
To Uchiha Naoki, Chūnin of the Konoha Military Police Force,
By order of the Third Hokage's Office and the Military Intelligence Division, you are to report to the Tactical Sealing Operations Hall at first light tomorrow. Classified reassignment under wartime restructuring.
Naoki reread the lines twice, expression unreadable.
After a long pause, he folded the letter precisely and set it on his desk. His gaze turned toward the window, where the moon had begun to rise , pale, indifferent, eternal.
"Change is approaching," he said softly, his reflection flickering in the glass.
Beneath the floor, the clone stirred, sensing the thought as his own.
And in that moment, both minds , separated by layers of stone and silence , looked toward the same future.