My brother is called Uzumaki Naruto

"Chirp, chirp~ Chirp, chirp, chirp~"

In the training grounds behind the Hidden Leaf Village, a small figure sat cross-legged beneath a large tree, eyes closed in meditation. Around him, various birds fluttered and chirped—sparrows, swallows, and magpies filled the air with their sounds. Some even perched directly on his shoulders and head.

That small figure was Namikaze Yue. Ever since Kushina had given him the scroll on Kagura Mind's Eye, he had come here daily to meditate and study the technique. It had been a week now.

Yue had already grasped most of Kagura Mind's Eye. At first, when he activated it, he could only sense a five-meter radius around himself. However, after five days of training, that range had expanded dramatically—to a hundred meters.

Initially, Yue had planned to pause his training, but then he accidentally discovered something unusual. When he fully immersed himself in the Kagura Mind's Eye state, he would sense something… peculiar.

In this state, not only could Yue perceive the chakra of others, but he also seemed to attract small animals for some unknown reason. Every time he emerged from his meditation, he found himself surrounded by birds, squirrels, and other creatures.

He had no idea why this was happening. He had even asked Kushina and Minato about it the night before, but neither of them had an answer.

At the moment, however, Yue paid no attention to the chattering animals. His entire focus was on his sensory perception through Kagura Mind's Eye.

In his awareness, tiny glowing dots were scattered densely throughout the forest, like fireflies in the dark, constantly shifting and moving.

For the past two days, Yue had tried to interact with this energy. However, while he could sense its presence, he had no way of affecting it.

An Unusual Warning

"Hm?"

Something disturbed Yue's concentration. He frowned slightly, then opened his eyes and looked up at a small bird in the air, a puzzled expression on his face.

He then reactivated Kagura Mind's Eye, this time searching for someone.

"Is that… Itachi?"

After a brief scan, Yue detected Uchiha Itachi about a hundred meters away, positioned behind him and just out of his normal line of sight.

His confusion deepened.

"Were those birds… warning me that someone was approaching?" Yue found the idea incredible. Had training Kagura Mind's Eye somehow allowed him to understand bird language?

"It's been a while, Yue. What are you doing?"

Itachi had walked up to Yue, noticing that he was staring at the flock of birds that had just flown away. He looked puzzled.

Last time, he had been the one lost in thought while watching some birds. Now, was it Yue's turn?

"Itachi, do you know if anyone in the shinobi world can understand animal speech?"

"I only know that the Inuzuka Clan can communicate with their ninken. Other than that, I'm not sure."

Yue was familiar with the Inuzuka Clan—a family specializing in working with ninja dogs, using them to enhance their combat strength.

"Never mind, it's nothing important. So, what have you been up to lately?"

Yue figured that overanalyzing things wouldn't help. Shinobi techniques rarely followed scientific principles; he would have to figure things out on his own.

"I've been training with my older brother. Also, yesterday, my father taught me a jutsu—the Great Fireball Technique. Do you want to learn it?"

Itachi had no reservations about sharing techniques with Yue, especially since Yue had taught him many practical taijutsu moves in the past.

"A Fire Release jutsu, huh? Show me."

At Yue's request, Itachi performed the technique, forming a series of hand seals before exhaling a fireball about fifty centimeters in diameter. Yue watched in fascination.

"Snake, Ram, Monkey, Boar, Horse, Tiger…"

Yue carefully noted Itachi's hand seal sequence. He had studied seals last year and had been curious about why they were named after the twelve zodiac signs. He still hadn't figured out the reason.

Following the sequence, Yue slowly formed each seal. His speed was much slower than Itachi's—he had never specifically trained in seals before, as most basic jutsu required only a single hand seal.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

A fireball erupted from Yue's mouth—twice as large as Itachi's.

Itachi was momentarily speechless. His father, Fugaku, had praised him as a genius just yesterday, but compared to Yue…

Yue examined the fireball he had just released, feeling dissatisfied. He attempted it again, this time channeling nearly half of his chakra.

This time, Itachi had to shield his eyes and step back several paces from the sheer intensity of the flames. Once Yue's jutsu dissipated, Itachi looked at the scorched ground before him, falling silent.

"I used about fifty times more chakra, but the power only increased threefold… That's a terrible efficiency. It seems brute force alone won't enhance jutsu effectiveness—chakra control is key."

Yue compared the results of both attempts and concluded that he needed to focus more on precise chakra control.

Meanwhile, Itachi, standing behind him, looked somewhat dazed. He glanced at Yue, then at the scorched earth in front of him, and sighed.

"You really are something else…"

To be honest, spending time with Yue was a humbling experience for Itachi. Yue was more insightful, requiring Itachi to ask for advice on many things. Yue's taijutsu was superior, and every sparring session left Itachi covered in bruises. And now, Yue had even bested him in ninjutsu.

But Yue didn't concern himself with Itachi's thoughts. He had already "discouraged" plenty of people before. Growing up, he had always been the kid that parents compared their children to…

"This jutsu has too many limitations, though…"

Techniques like the Great Fireball and the Wind Release jutsu that Minato had demonstrated before were effective for ambushes, disruption, and fighting groups. But Yue had a perfectionist streak—he felt these techniques were too easy to dodge.

For instance, against someone like Namikaze Minato, hitting him with such a technique would be nearly impossible—unless Yue first landed a kunai in Minato's knee.

"Do you have any other jutsu?"

"No, but my brother taught me how to raise a ninja beast. That, I can't share with you."

"Got it. By the way, why are you out here so late today?"

"I was just passing through and decided to check if you were around. Also, congratulations—your father will be the Fourth Hokage early next year."

"Thanks… It's getting late. I should head back."

"Yeah, me too. See you."

With that, the two parted ways, each heading home.

During dinner, Yue recounted his experiences with Kagura Mind's Eye to Minato and Kushina. Kushina didn't quite understand, but Minato fell into deep thought.

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