Chapter 9
A year had passed since Yuri began his rigorous and secret training under Yamada Keuchi. What started as simple healing exercises and chakra control lessons evolved into a far more complex and intensive form of instruction. Gone were the days of sparring with Itachi or tossing shuriken under the warm glow of sunset. Yuri had submerged himself fully into the shadowy teachings of a retired ANBU operative. He'd exchanged casual drills for practical, near-lethal conditioning, and in doing so, Yuri became sharper.
Yamada noticed.
The once-curious orphan boy, with a creepy smile and a sharp gaze, was now moving like a true shadow, without wasted motion. It was during one of their late-night training sessions in the woods behind the village that Yuri brought up something unexpected.
"Yamada-san," Yuri said while sharpening his kunai, "do you know the Shadow Clone Technique?"
Yamada, who had just finished resetting a series of trap wires, raised an eyebrow.
"Of course I do," he said, his voice low. "Why?"
"I want to learn it," Yuri replied. "I think it will help with my training—and with missions. I also have a theory about its utility in knowledge retention."
Yamada studied the boy carefully. Yuri was only nine years old, yet he spoke like a seasoned shinobi. And truth be told, Yamada had been impressed for months now. He'd noticed that Yuri's chakra pool was abnormally large for someone his age—not on the scale of an Uzumaki, but enough to handle jutsu that many genin couldn't dream of.
So he taught him.
Shadow Clone training was brutal. It drained chakra quickly and left Yuri panting on the ground in more than one session. But he persisted. He wanted to learn how to control not just the number of clones, but also the exact output of chakra used. He began experimenting—two clones, five clones, ten. Training one in anatomy, one in target practice, one in chakra control, one in stealth, and another in terrain reconnaissance. He was effectively living multiple lives at once. And every clone that dispersed gave Yuri memories, knowledge, experience. It was painful and dizzying at first, but he adapted.
Eventually, even Yamada seemed hesitant to push the boy any further.
"You're not like the others," he muttered one evening. "You're not supposed to be this… composed."
"Maybe it's because I'm not like the others," Yuri answered.
One day, after a particularly complex set of exercises using clones to mimic enemy combat scenarios, Yuri approached his instructor at the academy.
"I want to apply for early graduation sir," he said plainly.
The instructor blinked. "You? Shinto Yuri?"
Yuri gave a nod.
The instructor scratched the back of his head and smiled. "To be honest, I thought you'd ask the same day Itachi did. But you didn't. I wondered about that. What changed your mind?"
Yuri looked down the hallway, where a younger class was filing into the lecture hall.
"I'm done preparing."
That was all he said.
The early graduation test was standard—clone technique, transformation, and shuriken throwing. Yuri performed each flawlessly, without any mistake. The instructor handed him a forehead protector and said, "Come back tomorrow, same time. You'll meet your squad."
Yuri left the building and headed straight for the library. It felt appropriate to tell Yamada first.
Yamada congratulated him with a proud but reserved nod. He then disappeared briefly into the library's back room and returned holding a cloth-wrapped object. Inside was a gleaming tanto, clearly well-maintained despite its age.
"This belonged to me when I was younger. Light, durable, forged in iron sand. I was saving it… but I think you'll make better use of it."
Yuri accepted the blade, bowing his head slightly. "Thank you, Yamada-san."
From there, Yuri made his way to Ichiraku Ramen. Naruto was helping Teuchi behind the counter, his face lighting up the moment he saw Yuri walk in. Teuchi greeted him warmly, and the tiny shop soon buzzed with energy as they shared a simple but joyous meal. It was one of the rare moments Yuri allowed himself to relax, to smile without it being calculated.
The next day, Yuri returned to the academy for the final formalities. The instructor pointed him toward Training Ground No. 8, where he would meet his new team.
He expected to see three others—two genin and a jonin, the standard structure.
But the only person there was a tall woman with obsidian hair tied into a long braid, dressed in jonin gear. Her Uchiha crest was emblazoned on her shoulder.
She smiled kindly. "You must be Shinto Yuri. I'm Uchiha Kaname, your jonin sensei."
Yuri blinked, confused. "Am I the only one?"
"You are," Kaname said. "You've been placed in a special arrangement—solo genin training. Direct apprenticeship. You're advanced enough that the Hokage approved it."
Yuri nodded slowly. That made sense. He'd always trained alone anyway.
Kaname's demeanor was gentle, soft-spoken, but Yuri wasn't fooled. She moved like a predator, her steps silent, her posture always guarded. He'd seen killers before. Kaname was one.
Their first mission wasn't a D-rank. There were no pet rescues or weed-pulling assignments. Instead, it was a C-rank delivery to the Fire Daimyo's palace—an important scroll that required fast, discrete delivery.
They departed the next morning.
Yuri noticed that Kaname never once glanced over her shoulder to check on him. She simply moved, expecting him to follow, and he did. They crossed rivers, moved through dense forests, and scaled hills without incident.
But when bandits emerged from the treeline outside a mountain pass, Kaname gave a slight tilt of her head.
Yuri understood.
He moved like a mist, silent and vicious. Two of the bandits never saw the senbon coming. A third tried to flee, but Yuri intercepted him with a precise strike to the throat using the tanto Yamada gave him.
The forest was quiet again.
Kaname turned to him slowly. "No hesitation. That's rare in someone your age."
Yuri wiped the blade clean and sheathed it. "I was trained well."
He didn't mention that even he was a little shaken by how easy it was. Not physically. Mentally. It didn't feel wrong. If anything, it felt… normal. Natural.
And he knew. Deep down, he was changing.
He remembered a thought he'd had years ago—the suspicion that inheriting Illumi's body might also mean inheriting parts of his personality. Cold, calculating, emotionless.
He didn't know whether to be grateful or afraid.
The mission concluded without further complications. The scroll was delivered, the Fire Daimyo's attendant gave them a polite nod, and they returned to Konoha under the evening sky.
Yuri didn't say much on the way back, and neither did Kaname.
But before they parted ways at the village gate, she turned to him and said, "You're dangerous, Yuri. I hope you stay on our side."
Yuri smiled, that familiar, unreadable smile. "I'm on my side, Kaname-sensei. But that doesn't mean I'll betray yours."
She watched him walk off into the village, the fading sun casting long shadows behind him.
And she scoffs, and said " That's what make you dangerous Shinto"
Chapter End.