"Are you ready?"
"W–wait! Ryan… are you sure this won't go wrong?"
"Sasuke, we already did all the safety tests. Relax."
"O–okay… but can you at least summon the sunflowers first?"
Around eight in the evening, Uchiha Ryan kept his promise and took his little brother out for Lightning Release training.
However—
There was a small problem.
Ryan realized, rather belatedly, that his theoretical knowledge of Lightning Release was… lacking.
The Uchiha clan specialized almost exclusively in Fire Release. Even within Konoha, Lightning Release cultivation methods were rare. Before heading out, Ryan had asked Fugaku about it, and his father had only nodded, saying he'd look into it—but that it would take time.
Sasuke, however, couldn't wait. His desire to grow stronger was burning hot.
Coincidentally, Ryan had gained a bit of inspiration from Cloud Village's Lightning Release concepts. So after informing their parents, he brought Sasuke to a secluded area outside the village—a lone utility pole standing abandoned in the dark.
After a series of voltage safety tests, Ryan came to a conclusion:
In this shinobi world, bodies reinforced by chakra could safely endure around 90 volts.
Far stronger than ordinary people from his previous life.
Once the testing was done, Ryan immediately tied Sasuke to the utility pole and pulled down two exposed wires from above. To avoid causing trouble—or reversing anyone's electricity meter—he had deliberately chosen a remote, unused pole slated for removal.
"This… does seem safer," Ryan muttered.
His appearance at the moment was nothing short of bizarre. To avoid suspicion, he'd wrapped several sunflowers around his body—just like Sasuke had earlier—and wore thick insulated gloves on both hands.
He set the wires down, opened his inventory, and summoned his left and right guardians.
Bound to the pole, Sasuke stared at the sparking wires in Ryan's hands and swallowed hard.
His resolve to train was firm—nothing could stop his pursuit of strength.
But being electrocuted?
Yeah… that was terrifying.
Ryan tightened his grip on the wires and said seriously, "Sasuke. Are you ready?"
Sasuke swallowed again. "Ryan… are you sure this is how Cloud Village trains?"
"I—I feel like something's not right…"
Ryan's expression shifted.
Of course he couldn't just explain that Lightning Release chakra stimulated cells and enhanced the body. If he did, Sasuke would definitely start asking endless questions.
As for whether it would work…
Honestly, Ryan didn't know either.
But at the very least, this would increase Sasuke's tolerance to Lightning chakra—making future Lightning Release techniques easier to learn.
As for danger?
That hadn't really crossed his mind.
Shinobi bodies were tough. And besides—he had healing light orbs.
"Sasuke, there's nothing wrong with this," Ryan said solemnly.
"If you want to master Lightning Release, you have to experience being struck by lightning first."
Sasuke stared at the crackling wires, his heart pounding.
"…But when we trained Fire Release, we didn't burn ourselves," he muttered.
"And Water Release doesn't mean soaking in water… Wind Release doesn't mean climbing a mountain to get blown off…"
Ryan: "..."
Sasuke had a point.
An annoyingly logical one.
After a moment of silence, Ryan glanced up at the moon.
"So? Are you training or not? If not, I'm going home to sleep."
"If you're scared… then forget it."
At this point, even if Sasuke wanted to back out, he couldn't bring himself to say it.
"I—I'm not scared at all!"
He squeezed his eyes shut, clenched his jaw, and tensed his entire body. For just a second, Ryan felt like he was interrogating a criminal rather than training his brother.
High up in a nearby tree, Kakashi watched the scene in silence.
He had followed the brothers ever since they left home.
At first, he thought Ryan truly had a Lightning Release technique to teach Sasuke. As one of Konoha's few Lightning specialists, Kakashi was genuinely curious.
But—
What he was witnessing now completely shattered his expectations.
Tying someone to a utility pole.
Electrocuting them.
Was this… training? Or torture?
Kakashi couldn't understand it.
But he was deeply impressed.
After a long pause, he muttered,
"…These two have something wrong with their heads."
"This is way too reckless."
With a sigh, Kakashi vanished from the treetop, rushing toward the Uchiha compound. He needed to find Fugaku and make sure this didn't escalate.
At this rate, he was genuinely afraid the brothers might kill themselves—and he'd have no idea how to explain that to the Third Hokage.
Once Kakashi left, Ryan finally began the special training.
He instructed the sunflowers to monitor Sasuke closely. If anything went wrong, they were to immediately release healing light orbs.
"I'm starting."
Ryan tightened his grip and decisively connected the wires.
Bzzzt—! Crackle!
The moment the circuit closed, a violent current surged through Sasuke's body. Sparks flew as his entire frame convulsed violently, his screams tearing through the night.
"AAAAAH—!!"
The smell of burnt hair spread instantly.
Under the electric current, Sasuke's hair stood straight up, forced into something resembling a Super Saiyan transformation.
Whether he got stronger was uncertain—but he definitely looked powerful.
Ryan stared unblinking, ready to order healing at the slightest sign of danger.
About ten seconds later—
BOOM!
An arc of electricity burst from the pole, exploding outward in a shower of sparks.
In that instant, every streetlight in Konoha went out.
Televisions died mid-sound. Dogs barked wildly. Villagers rushed outside in panic as the village was swallowed by sudden darkness.
ANBU and Root shinobi mobilized simultaneously, converging toward the Uchiha district.
Inside the Hokage Tower, the Third Hokage stepped onto the balcony, hands clasped behind his back. He gazed at the moon and spoke gravely to the two figures behind him.
"Itachi…"
"Has your father—"
"Made his move?"
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