Naruto: Strength Through Teaching

After a week of constant training, Obito often found himself pondering three questions: 

"Where do I come from?" 

"Who am I?" 

"Where am I going?"

It wasn't that Obito wanted to abandon his ninja path, but contemplating these three questions felt easier than tackling the exam papers set by Mutsuki.

Currently, Obito's limit was ten problems a day; beyond that, he could only scribble nonsense.

Although his Breathing Technique was steadily improving, even on his best day yesterday, he only managed to solve fifteen problems. This meant that no matter how diligently he worked each day, he couldn't keep up with his accumulated debt, as the extra problems would keep piling up.

"So this is the life a Chunin has to face? Is there a Genin exam? I want to go back to being a Genin." Obito felt that being a Genin didn't seem too bad.

"No such exam exists, Obito. What are you thinking?" Rin laughed at Obito's words and couldn't help but say.

Exams have always been for promotions; there's no such thing as a demotion exam.

Obito looked at Rin with a gloomy expression. Rin was the only one among Mutsuki's disciples who didn't have to undergo problem-solving training.

If it were anyone else, Obito would definitely drag them down with him.

"Anyway, Yumi-sensei hasn't set any time limits for you, so you can take your time," Rin gently reassured him.

"Rin-chan, you wouldn't understand this kind of suffering," Obito sighed.

Although there were no time limits, just thinking about the nearly one hundred unsolved problems weighing on him gave Obito a headache.

He didn't even have the energy to compare himself with Kakashi; his only goal was to master Constant and completely end this painful problem-solving training.

Not just Obito, but Guy was also being thoroughly worn out. He and Obito were truly comrades in misery, as this training was a dual assault on both their bodies and minds.

The body was fatigued from maintaining the Breathing Technique for so long, and returning home to tackle more problems only added to the mental strain.

This double torment brought about an intense focus in their training; at that moment, they were desperate for progress, eager to escape the sea of suffering.

Another week passed, and Obito became the first to maintain the Breathing Technique throughout the entire training period, with the other disciples quickly reaching the standard as well.

"Is it finally coming to an end? These days of suffering!" Obito clenched his fists, his face filled with excitement, even happier than when he became a Chunin.

"Having successfully completed such grueling training, youth is going to be even more vibrant!" Guy gave himself a thumbs up.

"Still a little short," Kakashi exhaled lightly. He felt that the gap between him and that transparent world was only a piece of paper away, but that piece of paper was a bit hard to break through.

"Don't relax yet; we need to spend more time training." Ever since the Chunin exam, Shisui had been filled with a sense of urgency.

Mutsuki adjusted his glasses with a gentle smile and said, "End? No, the second phase of training has just begun."

Since the training for the disciples was intended to be hellish, it naturally wouldn't end so simply. This time, he aimed to elevate their Breathing Technique to the Proficient level to enhance their self-defense capabilities.

Each level of the Breathing Technique represented a qualitative leap; once they reached the Proficient level and mastered Constant, Obito and the others would essentially gain a permanent enhancement buff, which would also improve their training efficiency.

"The goal of the second phase is to maintain the Breathing Technique even while sleeping."

Upon hearing Mutsuki's words, Obito was stunned, thinking he had misheard. However, seeing the puzzled expressions on the others' faces confirmed to him that he hadn't.

"How can you maintain the Breathing Technique when you're unconscious while sleeping?" Obito asked in confusion.

In Obito's mind, the Breathing Technique was essentially a form of Ninjutsu, just a very special kind; he couldn't understand how one could use Ninjutsu while sleeping.

"Can you breathe when you're asleep?" Mutsuki didn't directly answer Obito's question but instead countered with a question of his own.

"Of course you can; not breathing would lead to death," Obito replied immediately.

Although his knowledge wasn't extensive, he understood this basic fact.

"Since you can breathe, why can't you use the Breathing Technique?" Mutsuki said leisurely.

Following this line of thought, Obito realized there was no flaw in it.

"You can use Shadow Clones to supervise yourselves. If you sleep without maintaining the Breathing Technique, a Shadow Clone will immediately strike to wake you up."

"To avoid situations where you hesitate to take action, you can switch Shadow Clones and have the other person's Shadow Clone supervise you. Additionally, the clone will wake you up and each time means another four problems to solve," Mutsuki detailed the specific rules.

After Mutsuki finished speaking, cold sweat trickled down Obito's forehead. Although Mutsuki wore a gentle smile and the weather was warm, Obito felt a chill that he couldn't shake off.

He felt as if he was already facing the arduous days ahead. While the previous phase of training and problem-solving was exhausting, lying down in bed at the end of the day had still been quite comfortable. The second phase, however, would be different; even sleeping would require training, or else he wouldn't be able to sleep well.

"Is it that Yumi-sensei is too disappointed with our progress in the Breathing Technique?" The harshness of the training even caused Kakashi to self-reflect.

The disciples all sensed that the intensity of this training was at an all-time high, but no one raised any objections. They quickly completed the Shadow Clone assignments as Mutsuki had requested.

Kakashi and Obito swapped Shadow Clones for supervision, while Guy, who couldn't use Shadow Clones,so Shisui's clone supervised him, and Mutsuki's Shadow Clone was assigned to supervise Shisui.

On the first night of the second phase, as Obito lay comfortably in bed, ready to sleep, he noticed Kakashi's Shadow Clone sitting in the room and immediately remembered the Breathing Technique.

"I absolutely cannot give Kakashi the chance; this guy might go hard on me." Obito became alert, constantly reminding himself to maintain the Breathing Technique.

However, the first time was always bound to be a bit painful. Even though Obito had prepared himself mentally before sleeping, he forgot to maintain his breathing when he dreamt of going on a date with Rin in a sea of flowers, overwhelmed by excitement.

"Rin-chan, I…" In his dream, looking at the shy Rin, Obito's eyes sparkled with excitement.

Just as Obito was about to take her delicate little hand, a sharp hand chop struck his chest, and instantly the sea of flowers vanished. Before Obito's eyes was the dark, lifeless bedroom, and the bashful Rin had disappeared, leaving only Kakashi, expressionless and masked, in a striking pose.

"Damn it, I was so close!" Obito glared at Kakashi, filled with fury, wishing he could use a fire fisy to smash Kakashi into oblivion right then and there.

"Four problems," Shadow Clone Kakashi said flatly.

Upon hearing the word "problems," Obito instantly calmed down and became aware again that he was in training.

"Breathing Technique, Breathing Technique, Breathing Technique must not stop," Obito kept silently repeating in his mind as a reminder.

Before falling asleep again, Obito encouraged his Shadow Clone in his heart.

"Come on, other me, don't let Kakashi have it easy!"

One's own suffering is certainly uncomfortable, but seeing a brother succeed can be even more distressing.

For Obito, the worst news right now might be that Kakashi was smoothly progressing in his training without being woken up.

However, Obito was clearly overestimating Kakashi; even Kakashi couldn't complete such an intense training perfectly on the first try. Otherwise, Mutsuki's punishments would have been meaningless.

"The Academy should completely abolish theoretical exams; this theory is quite harmful!" The adult version of Obito, wearing a ceremonial robe and a conical hat, expressed his reform proposal for the Academy in the conference room.

Meanwhile, the adult version of Kakashi sitting next to him sighed, lamenting how exhausting it was to assist the Hokage. Not only did he have to deal with various major issues, but he also had to find ways to prevent the Hokage from making foolish decisions.

Bang!

Shadow Clone Obito noticed Kakashi's Breathing Technique rhythm becoming increasingly chaotic and immediately brightened up, delivering a punch to Kakashi.

"Thank me, my original, for I've avenged you," Shadow Clone Obito said with a smug smile.

Although he couldn't know what was happening with the original Obito, he certainly knew himself; the original must be getting beaten up by Kakashi's Shadow Clone.

"Kakashi, are you alright? If not, I can ease up a bit and let you rest for a while," Obito's Shadow Clone said with a chuckle.

"No need," Kakashi replied after letting out a long breath.

Although the training was tough, it wasn't meaningless; he could gain the strength to protect his comrades through this training.

Moreover, Kakashi also knew that Obito wouldn't really ease up; he was just engaging in some light banter. If he agreed, Obito would definitely have further mockery lined up for him.

Kakashi quickly adjusted his breathing and prepared to sleep, but before he dozed off again, he couldn't help but recall that strange dream he had just experienced.

"If that guy became Hokage, it might really turn out like this." Remembering Obito's silly antics in the dream, Kakashi's lips curled up slightly.

It was no surprise for Kakashi that Obito would do something like that, after all, this was Uchiha Obito, the one who could ace a theoretical exam with single-digit scores and end up dizzy and mumbling nonsense from solving too many problems.

Kakashi shook his head internally. With Obito in his current state, it was impossible for him to become Hokage.

Currently, Konoha generally believed that the Fourth Hokage would emerge from among the Sannin; whether it be Orochimaru, Jiraiya, or Tsunade, each had many supporters.

The Fourth Hokage was out of the question, and the Fifth was even more unlikely. Kakashi thought the Fifth Hokage should be Minato or Mutsuki.

Even by the time the Sixth Hokage came around, Kakashi didn't believe Obito could become Hokage. Compared to Obito, Shisui was more suited for the role. While Obito had strength, becoming Hokage required more than just power; one couldn't have shortcomings in other areas either.

In fact, Kakashi felt that if he put in some effort, his chances should be greater than Obito's, but he had little interest in the position of Hokage.

While contemplating the possibility of Obito becoming Hokage and maintaining the Breathing Technique, Kakashi drifted off to sleep again.

That night, Mutsuki's four disciples were unable to have a complete dream.

---

Don't forget to check out my patreon where you can read up to 50 advanced chapters https://www.patreon.com/CrazyNinja