Uchiha Toru's expression shifted slightly at once. He straightened up immediately and bowed deeply.
"Great Elder."
Shin-chan tilted his head and looked at the old man.
Great Elder?
That was one very old grandpa.
The old man walked over slowly, his gaze settling on Shin-chan.
"And this is?"
"He... he's my classmate," Uchiha Toru answered, sounding a little nervous. "Nohara Shinnosuke."
The Great Elder said nothing. He simply looked at Shin-chan.
Shin-chan looked back at him.
They stared at each other for two seconds.
Then Shin-chan raised a hand and waved at him. "Hello, Grandpa."
Uchiha Toru's whole body stiffened.
The Great Elder's steps paused too. Looking at the child in red waving at him, a strange expression appeared on his face.
"What did you call me?"
"Grandpa." Shin-chan blinked. "Aren't you Toru's grandpa?"
The Great Elder fell silent for two seconds. Then the corner of his mouth moved, though it was hard to tell whether he wanted to laugh or not.
"Come here."
Shin-chan walked over and looked up at him.
The Great Elder's gaze fell on those clear eyes and he asked, "You want to learn Fire Style?"
"Yeah!"
"Why?"
"Because it looks cool."
Shin-chan answered as if that were only natural.
The Great Elder gave a short laugh, whether amused or not was hard to tell. "In that case, I'll teach the two of you."
At the side, Uchiha Toru was completely stunned.
The Great Elder hadn't personally taught the clan's children in years.
"What are you standing there for?" The Great Elder glanced at him. "Come here."
Uchiha Toru hurried over and bowed respectfully.
"Thank you, Great Elder."
"That's enough." The Great Elder waved a hand, then looked at Shin-chan. "You too. Come here and stand properly."
Shin-chan obediently stood in front of him.
The Great Elder raised his hand and formed the Snake seal.
"There are many basic hand seals for Fire Style, but the Great Fireball Jutsu uses Snake, Ram, Monkey, Boar, Horse, Tiger."
He slowed the movements and demonstrated each one. "Did you see them clearly?"
Uchiha Toru nodded. He had learned this jutsu long ago, and the seals were already second nature to him.
Shin-chan tilted his head and tried copying them.
"Like this?"
The Great Elder's eyes widened slightly.
This child memorized it after seeing it once?
"Next is chakra flow." The Great Elder continued teaching. "Concentrate chakra in your throat. But don't lock it there. Make it flow."
Shin-chan closed his eyes and muttered to himself, "Concentrate in the throat... make it flow..."
A few seconds later, he suddenly opened his eyes.
"Is it kind of like when you want to fart but hold it in?"
The Great Elder froze.
Uchiha Toru looked horrified. "Shin-chan, what are you even saying?"
"Isn't it?" Shin-chan tilted his head. "That's what it feels like to me."
The Great Elder looked at him and couldn't help smiling. "You really do have a unique way of understanding things. But chakra flow does feel a little like... well... holding something in."
At this point, Uchiha Toru had no idea what to say anymore.
"Alright, now both of you try." The Great Elder stepped back two paces.
Uchiha Toru nodded and walked to the middle of the training ground. Taking a deep breath, he formed his seals.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
A burst of flame shot from his mouth and formed into a complete fireball in midair before slowly dissipating.
Breathing a little hard, Uchiha Toru turned to look at Shin-chan.
Shin-chan stood there awkwardly fumbling through the hand seals.
Snake, Goat, Monkey, Boar, Horse, Tiger.
Then he took a deep breath too, puffed out his cheeks, and shouted,
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Pfft.
A tiny flame popped out of his mouth, like the flame of a candle. It wobbled a little, then went out.
Shin-chan looked at the vanished little flame, disappointed. "It's not like Toru's Fire Style. Why is it so small?"
The Great Elder was caught off guard too, then smiled. "For a first try, being able to breathe out fire at all is already very impressive."
"But it's tiny..."
"Who breathes out a huge fireball on their first try?" The Great Elder glanced at him. "What, do you think you're a genius?"
Shin-chan tilted his head and thought about it. "Aren't I?"
The Great Elder choked on that for a second.
At the side, Uchiha Toru said quietly, "Shin-chan, succeeding on your first try is already amazing. I practiced for a long time before I could even produce a puff of smoke."
Shin-chan blinked and looked at Uchiha Toru.
"Really?"
"Really."
Then Shin-chan looked at the Great Elder.
The Great Elder nodded. "He's telling the truth."
Shin-chan thought about it, then suddenly smiled.
"Then I guess I really am pretty amazing."
"Don't get cocky," the Great Elder said. "Try again. Concentrate your chakra a little more."
Shin-chan nodded and tried again.
This time the flame was bigger, about the size of a fist.
The third time, it got a little bigger again.
The fourth time, he was already breathing out a stream of flame nearly half a meter long.
Uchiha Toru stared in shock.
He had trained for so long, and even now could only produce a proper fireball, but Shin-chan had been at it for how long...?
"One more time," said the Great Elder, his expression calm.
Shin-chan took a deep breath and ran through the hand seals smoothly.
Then a stream of fire burst from his mouth, more than a meter long, exploding in the air.
Uchiha Toru's mouth dropped open.
The Great Elder's brows lifted.
Shin-chan stared at the flames, stunned himself. Then he turned to the Great Elder, eyes shining.
"Grandpa, does that mean I've already learned it?"
The Great Elder was silent for two seconds, then smiled. "Child, you have great talent."
Shin-chan proudly swayed his head.
"But," the Great Elder added, "talent is not everything. You still have to practice. Keep practicing."
Shin-chan's face fell a little.
"I still have to practice..."
"Of course." The Great Elder stood up. "But that's enough for today. If you keep going, your throat won't be able to take it."
Shin-chan touched his throat.
It did feel a little dry.
The Great Elder turned to Uchiha Toru.
"Toru, your problem is that you think too much. You might get better results if you relax a little. Stop thinking about how you absolutely must succeed."
Uchiha Toru froze, then bowed deeply.
"Thank you for your guidance, Great Elder."
The Great Elder waved a hand and walked away a few steps, then stopped and turned back to Shin-chan.
"Your name is Shin-chan?"
"Yeah."
"Come visit when you have time."
Shin-chan blinked. "Really?"
"Really." The Great Elder nodded. "The gates of the Uchiha clan are not always closed."
Then he slowly walked away.
Shin-chan watched his back and tilted his head. "Toru."
"Yeah?"
"That grandpa actually seems pretty nice."
Uchiha Toru was silent for two seconds before answering softly, "Yeah... maybe he is."
The sun slowly sank lower.
In a residence deep within the Uchiha district, the Great Elder sat in the corridor, his eyes directed toward one corner of the courtyard.
"You can come out now."
From the shadows, a figure slowly stepped out.
Young. Serious. Dressed in Uchiha clan robes.
~~~
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