ตอน 122: 121-Unworthy Vessel
[Yesterday's Chapter]
Tsuji's eyes widened in alarm. "Tobe, no. We can get you help. We came with some medical-nins—"
Tobe interrupted, his voice gentle but firm.
"Tsuji," Tobe said, his gaze steady despite the pain etched into his features. "Toda... he gave his life to buy me time. I had to make sure it wasn't in vain. I had to protect our home, our people. And now... my journey ends here."
Tsuji's eyes shimmered with unshed tears as he looked at his friend, his comrade. "Tobe, please. There must be another way."
Tobe smiled faintly, a bittersweet expression. "You've always been a good friend, Tsuji. Promise me you'll take care of the village. Make sure Toda's sacrifice is honoured."
With that, Tobe dug into his eyes with trembling fingers, removing both of his eyes. "This," he said, holding them blindly, "You should have it."
Tsuji's eyes widened. "Tobe, you can't be serious—"
"I'm not going to survive this, Tsuji," Tobe interrupted his voice firm despite his weakening state. "But you can. With my Mangekyo, you'll have the strength to protect the village and carry on our legacy."
This wasn't a spur of the moment decision by Tobe. The only other person that he would have given his eyes to in a heartbeat was already dead.
Since he was not a social butterfly, the candidates left were only four of five. Up on the list was Renjiro, his squad mate who through his brother had gotten closer during the last couple of months.
The other person was Azumi his young sister who was already a genin. He contemplated hard on this decision, and when Tsuji arrived, he made up his mind.
While giving his sister his Mangekyo would help her in her shinobi path, it would also similarly hinder her path. The Uchiha always had to live a restless life, always looking over their shoulders.
With such a versatile Dojutsu, it was normal for there to be cases of people targetting them for their eyes, like what Ohashi was planning on doing to Renjiro. It was basically a double-edged sword.
So adding the burden of a Mangekyo on top of that would not guarantee the rich, peaceful and fulfilling life that he wanted Azumi to live.
Renjiro was also a good candidate to give the eyes to, but despite them being friends, Tobe always felt something was wrong with the boy.
It was not in a bad way, but Tobe could always tell that something was weighing down on him. What he was he did not know, and from the look of things he would never know. Likewise, he did not want to add to his burdens.
'Also with his talent, I wouldn't be surprised if he also awakened his Mangekyo. With how he is secretive, he might have already done it under our noses.' Tobe thought when he was making up his mind.
This only left Tsuji, a friend who he and Toda had grown up with. Tobe took him showing up as the strings of fate backing his decision.
Tsuji hesitated, his heart aching with the weight of the decision. But he saw the resolve in Tobe's eyes, tor rather felt it since the very eyes were in Tob'es hands.
With a deep breath, he nodded. "Alright, Tobe. I promise I'll use your gift to protect everyone."
With a final nod, Tobe's hands which were still keeping him in an upright position gave out, and he sank to the ground, his strength finally leaving him.
He felt a deep sense of peace, knowing he had done all he could. His vision blurred as darkness began to close in, the pain in his eyes fading to a dull throb.
As he lay on the ground, Tobe's last thoughts were of his brother, their shared dreams, and the bond that had carried them through so many battles. He had fought bravely, as Toda had, and now it was time to rest.
'I thought it would be longer, but I guess I'll join you, Toda. I just hope Mother and Azumi will be fine.'
Tsuji knelt beside him, holding Tobe's hand as his friend's breathing grew shallow.
Tobe's eyes closed, a final tear slipping down his cheek. His body went still, a quiet calm settling over him. The battle was over, and Tobe had given everything to protect those he loved.
With a heavy heart, Tsuji gently lifted Tobe's body and stored it in a similar scroll as Tobe did to his brother. The feeling was the same since he too lost a friend who had become a brother.
While Tsuji was still grieving and vowing to keep his promise to Tobe, he did not know that there were a pair of eyes that were witnessing what was happening.
The eyes belonged to a figure that embodied the duality of nature itself. His appearance was striking, with his body divided into two distinct halves, one black, the other white.
The black half of the figure remarked, "He awoke the Mangekyo at such a you age, he was barely over fifteen years old."
On the other hand, the white half of it replied, "Yes, he was truly talented only second to our Lord. But it would be a disgrace if such eyes would get into the hands of an unworthy vessel."
Together, Black Zetsu and White Zetsu came to an unspoken understanding and made their move.
A couple of hours from now, when Sinoda, Fujioka and the rest of the team would search for their missing allies, they would stumble upon Tobe, Toda and Tsuji's bodies somewhere in the destruction. Only Toda's body would be fortunate enough to still have its eyes there.
Despite all this, it would still be considered normal and speculated that some Kurogane clan members might have overpowered them and stolen their eyes. After all that was not strange at all.
With that another mangekyo holder of the Uchiha clan would finish his story in the sea of life without his due credit.
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Back in the village as the first rays of dawn cast their gentle glow upon the village, Renjiro was already awake. His mind was already consumed by thoughts of his ongoing training. He was still working on mastering the wind style Rasengan.
However, as Renjiro delved deeper into his training, he quickly found himself facing unexpected challenges and setbacks.
'I thought once that I mastered the jutsu that making it throwable would be easy. With the number of times I have tried this, I am even beginning to wonder whether it was indeed throwable or if I was just high when I saw that.'
Clearing his mind, Renjiro decided to try again. Holding out his palm, a familiar sight began to manifest in the palm of his hand—a Rasengan, its core swirling with the telltale blue hues of concentrated chakra.
But as he continued to infuse it with his wind Chakra nature, a subtle shift began to occur, the vibrant azure of the Rasengan giving way to a shimmering lime green.
With each passing moment, the transformation intensified, with the surrounding wind involuntary coalescing around the chakra.
With a determined flick of his wrist, Renjiro threw the Rasengan, or at least he tried to.
As it soared towards its intended target, a sense of unease gripped Renjiro's heart, a gnawing doubt that lingered on the edges of his consciousness.
And then, in an instant, the Rasengan faltered, its trajectory faltering. With a sense of dismay, Renjiro watched helplessly as the once-potent sphere of chakra dissipated into nothingness.
'It dissipated just like before. I remember there were three variations of this variation which was already weird. Maybe I should try focusing on the other variations?'
Renjiro shrugged, making progress at a snail's speed was frustrating, to say the least.
"After I complete it, I'll just wait for Tobe and Toda to arrive, so that I can ask Toda how he got a summon. From the way he was talking about it, it seemed powerful, I would not mind seeing it." Renjiro muttered as he continued with his training.
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