3rd pov
The teen walked down the long and dark hallway, all the way to the last door at the end. Inside the room was large testing tubes filled with some type of liquid, a medical chair, tables completely covered in papers and test tubes, and a person within it, working on his latest project. The scene was nothing new to the man, as he has been here for the past three years.
"I see you've found the time to make it here, come sit." He didn't say a word and silently sat on the chair. He has been in this chair many times for one thing or another, and each time was always someh thing for him to become stronger than before.
"What is it this time?" The teen wondered. Sometimes these things are requested from hims of but they rarely are given to him without prior knowledge. "Oh it's something new for each of you. This will give you an immunity to poison to a certain extent. Your tolerance will build up over time and gas form is the easiest poison to conquer." The snake man answered. His body has become drastically different as the years went on. Paler skin, more snake like than before and an actual snake attached to him from behind.
"Fine then." The Uchiha sat through the painless process and before he knew it, the man was done.
"Alright it's done." Sasuke sat back up and started walking towards the door. He was about to leave but Kabuto had a message to give him.
"Before you go, you and the others should start preparing to leave. Tobi wants you guys to start participating with the rest of the Akatsuki, but you specifically he said be ready for another fight. He expects better results from the last spar you two had."
The teen took a quick pause to process this information before leaving. He walked back to his own room while flashback from the first time they sparred flooded his mind.
He remembered when the man showed little effort, didn't take it seriously, and was unaffected from his Amaterasu. Just the thought of it made Sasuke annoyed. This time will be different. This time...he will take me seriously.
Everyone got packed and followed Kabuto to the new hideout the Akastuki made. It was smaller than the last but it didn't matter to them. Only a few of the official members were there along with Tobi and their indifference towards the teens showed that things haven't really changed.
"My, it seems you guys grew up quickly. Well anyways let's get down to business. Sasuke, I'm sure Kabuto has informed you in advance about what we're about to do. Follow me." The Uchiha's walked out in silence. The others were a little invested in what was about to go down and decided to follow them but by the time they were all outside, the two were gone.
"How did they leave so fast?" Suigetsu questioned.
"Sasuke's chakra isn't too far away. They went in that direction." She pointed east and the three of them and Kabuto followed the girl to their location.
"Alright, we should be free of any distractions from here but they'll find us at some point. Let's get things started shall we?" He didn't ready himself and Sasuke took this opportunity to strike first. It was a quick step assassination move but it was going to take a lot more than that to bring Tobi down.
"Relax Sasuke. Don't be in such a rush and think wisely about your decisions." He threw the teen's hand back and created some distance between each other. The boy appeared to calm down and re-examined his plans. He took out his sword and focused on kenjutsu first.
He shunshined right behind the man but he dodged every swing with little effort. Let's see how you deal with this. Sasuke added lightning to his sword, making more dangerous swings and discharging it to increase his range.
Creative. The older one thought mid dodging. He knew he would have to go into the offensive at some point and rile Sasuke up to see more from him. "Fire Style: Flame Dance Bomb." This was a great long range, vast covering jutsu that was hard to get away from. After the flames died down the skeletal form of Sasuke's first form susanoo could be seen.
Tobi noticed his mangekyo even more than before and saw something different. They were more black than red unlike others would've been. He didn't know if this meant anything but now wasn't the time for that. The others were approaching closer to the scene and the feeling of ominous chakra grew larger by the minute.
What is this dark feeling? It feels so cold and destructive. Karin analyzed. Her prowess with chakra sensory has come a long way to where she could determine the basic personality or skills of a person based by it. As they were coming up to the clearing where they were fighting, the feeling of chakra began to rise.
Once they got there they couldn't believe their eyes. All three years they've gone on secret missions with Sasuke and they've never seen such a thing. It looked almost inhuman to them like a monster taking over their host, but that was just the opposite. The Uchiha was in complete control of everything he did.
Sasuke charged at him with more confidence in his abilities now than before. He's practiced using this whenever he was alone and achieved some mastery over it. He swung multiple punches at the man but it wasn't enough to do anything to him. In fact his opponent still looked like he was just toying around.
"Just how long are you going to dodge and evade my every move?" The teen wondered.
"Remember Sasuke this is about you, not me. This is just a test to see how much you've grown and I'm using as little energy needed to observe you moves and actions. If you were to bring on a challenge, then I'll try just as hard to match you at a bare minimum." This isn't what the boy wanted to hear and his opponent knew that well. Sasuke wanted to know more about him just like everyone else, but none of them will ever be satisfied with the little display he's willing to show.
That should be enough to strike a nerve. If need be I'll have to use my mangekyo sharingan but everyone has seen a few of my tricks with it at some point in time so it won't be anything new. No matter how much you try Sasuke, you won't get to see what you want to know from me.
The teen's built up rage was enough to form the second stage susanoo, which looks more monstrous than the last. You could tell the defense significantly increased than the previous one so this was going to prove to be a challenge, or so they thought.
"Lighting Style: Kirin." Luckily the fire jutsus created enough heat to form rain clouds for this jutsu. Lighting gathered at the palm of his hands all the way up to the sky, creating an creature shaped lighting bolt. It crashed down on the man in an instant, and the electricity surged through the land from the intensity.
As the light cleared away, Tobi was nowhere to be seen until he warped himself right behind Sasuke. The sudden sense of chakra made the susanoo strike on instinct and actually landed a good hit on him. It knocked the Uchiha back a few feet, but he continued going about unfazed by everything that just happened.
"Just how did he do that? The leader isn't even trying to fight Sasuke even with all the power he's letting off in the fight." Jugo questioned. His other teammate seemed to have the same thoughts going through his head, but Karin was on a totally different page. She knew was happened.
Without my sensory abilities, I would be asking that same question, but I saw everything go down. The leader became intangible the moment the jutsu hit him, then somehow was able to teleport out of sight. Once the jutsu ended, he teleported back and tried attacking from behind. My question is, what kind of ability do you have to able to accomplish such things? Sasuke doesn't look like he can continue for much longer as well.
The Uchiha's chakra was decreasing at a fast rate for keeping up his susanoo, but he had to give it all that he had. He couldn't give up now, or how would he ever become strong enough to take down The Sins? He kept on throwing punch after punch, hoping to get some sort of unusual reaction out of the man. Sasuke kept thinking back to earlier moves and techniques that weren't effective, until one popped into his mind.
Wait a minute, I wasn't able to land a single punch on him this entire time, so how did my susanoo hit him when he was behind me? What was different that time? How was I able to punch him?
Sasuke now has something in mind, but he needed his opponent to make the first move. The teen continued on with his attacks with the susanoo and the older kept dodging like he hoped.
"Fire Style: Blast Wave." An enormous amount of fire completely engulfed the susanoo but this was the chance Sasuke was waiting for. While he performed the jutsu, the teen rushed straight towards him despite the intensity. What went unnoticed by everyone was the slight shift in hand signs, which changed the flame color to green for some odd reason. It was questioned by everyone but each were too busy focusing on Sasuke, who made it through the flames and landed a solid punch.
So that's it. He can't perform jutsus and be intangible at the same time. That could also extend to if I try attacking the second he attacks me, he'll either turn intangible or I hit him before he does so. It'll be difficult, but my timing has to be perfect.
Before he made his next move, his susanoo lowered back down to its base form. He was running out of chakra fast. He had one more attempt to try before his chakra runs out. Sasuke let the susanoo disappear completely so he could use the last bit of his strength. He went with quick stricking taijutsu moves, and occasionally he would make contact with Tobi when he blocked, but not every time.
It was risky but he didn't give this a second thought. The last time the older Uchiha made contact with Sasuke, performed one last jutsu. "Amaterasu." Tobi wasn't fully prepared to see these flames being used again, and that mistake had him caught within them. Sasuke moved back to increase the amount on the man and quickly put out the flames his hand had from having contact with him.
That should do the trick.
He was hoping that would've done the trick but the man emerged from them just like last time. Nothing has changed. Sasuke was infuriated by this and tried attacking again out of pure anger. Tobi just stood there, not moving or looking to dodge in any way. The teen rushed to him but midway there, he froze in his tracks and the feeling of pain coursed through his body. His eyes began to bleed, as if he was crying blood and he fell to ground, slowly losing consciousness.
"You should know when to stop when you hit your limits. I will say you did really well today, much better than when you first got here. Though I say this, keep in mind that there will no other spar after this with me so heed these words well. Next time, don't overwork yourself in a battle you won't win." He began walking away, leaving the tired and in pain Uchiha where he was without another word.
"Sasuke!" Karin was the first one to rush out of her place and dashed straight to him. She rolled up her sleeve and placed it near his mouth where he knew to just bite down. He did so with hesitation or regard for how hard he bit. She winced at the pain but bared it for him.
After a few seconds, Sasuke released her and got up and walked away without speaking to the people who showed up behind him.
"I didn't know Sasuke was that strong. To think he was capable doing this much just after three years." Jugo thought out loud.
He's right. His chakra and growth has dramatically increased much better than all of us combined. Everything he did was beyond what a normal ninja can learn or even a prodigy. So just how did he do it? The female teen worried for her crush. She begins to notice the subtle but important changing details in not just his skills, but his character as well.
Sasuke walked right into the cave where only a few members were standing around. He looked to see Tobi walking into his own room and decided to follow him. Right as he approached the door and turned the knob, the man walked right out in front of him. "Oh, did you need something?" Tobi proceeded to lock his door and walk towards the study room at the end of the hall.
He soon noticed his door and the study was the only one with an outdoor lock. All the rest have door locks on the inside, so what made these so special? Even if someone wanted to break in, you would think there would be more security on it then. He made to the room when he dropped his thought and walked inside, where a lot of things were different from the last time he was inside three years ago.
"Now, what do you want to talk to me about?"
"Why didn't you train me when you first brought me here?" Sasuke's had this question for a while but never had the chance to ask. Tobi sat down on top of his desk and only stared sat the teen for a small second.
"Because I thought it would be good for yourself to still train around kids your age and form a skillful team. Everyone in the Akastuki has one other partner to work with on assignments and missions, but you four weren't ready for that so you had to learn and grow up helping each other out."
"That still doesn't fully answer the question." He kind of already figured that much, but that didn't mean the man couldn't help every now and then.
"Fine then since you really want to hear more. You weren't and still aren't my main priority. I have a reason for why I brought each of you into this group and yours has yet to come. Even if I were to train you, you still would end up how you are now so there wouldn't be much of a difference. Right now, your powers are at a point to where you can't get any more powerful without a certain thing, and until you obtain it, you'll just stay how you are now." Sasuke didn't show it, but his words pissed him off a bit. Right now just showed his very best, which was more than how it was before the test began and it still wasn't enough.
Just how long will I have to wait until I get my revenge? How much stronger do I have to become until I can take them down completely?! He gripped his hands together into a fist, and this didn't go unnoticed by Tobi.
"What is it? What is that object I'll need to obtain to get stronger? I'll find it immediately." The vibe Sasuke was giving off felt sinister. Even after fighting to his absolute limit, he wanted to get any chance to become stronger. This confidence was only backed up by pure revenge and darkness.
"I won't tell you until I deem you ready. If I were to say, you would just rush off without listening to anyone around you. Just a bit of patience until your time comes."
"It's been three years! How much longer until I can finally get back at them for what they've done?! If I don't do it now then-"
"Sasuke!" This was one of the few times Tobi has really raised his voice in a conversation. Even Sasuke was taken back by this, but mainly because his KI was released. The man sighed and calmed down before speaking again.
"I know you're impatient, but you're rushing to your death. Might I remind you of the people you're trying to face and the very likely possibility they became stronger as well. Some could still be stronger than you. If I were to tell you and you rush right there, I bet you wouldn't even know where to start first, none the less successfully retrieve it. You will wait until further instructions from me before acting on your own. End of discussion."
Sasuke still had a lot more to say, but things could go badly real quick if he were to continue. Right now, he didn't know the power level of his enemy or of the man in front of him so it was best to leave it at that.
Tobi watched as Sasuke didn't move when the conversation ended. He waited for the slightest hint of an upcoming attack but saw him silently turn back and out the door.
That kid is becoming more uncontrollable by the minute. Even so, his darkness has increased beyond my imagination, and that was the main thing I was looking for. Now I just need that one thing to push him off the edge while making himself stronger at the same time. Then, I'll be sure everything will fall into place from there on out. Oh, that reminds me.
Tobi walked out of his office and noticed the other four inside the cave. He spotted the particular man that he needed to talk to. "Kabuto, a word." He waited for the snake of a man to enter his office. Though he's occasionally dropped by to talk to him, he'll never get over the drastic change in not just appearance, but also personality. It was slowly becoming more unstable.
"That was an interesting spar you had with Sasuke. His skills has really come a long way."
"Hn. I've noticed that, which leads me to this question. Just what type of things did you perform on him, and the rest of the group for that matter?" Kabuto's smug smile faded to a poker face. He didn't think he would ask such a question, especially knowing who he used to work with.
"Oh come on, you know they needed a little boost to help get stronger faster. All I did was give something here and there to help their fighting chances." He tried defending but didn't know if the Uchiha was buying it or not.
"Just a little boost? What you gave them, especially Sasuke, was more than that. When I fought him, I noticed chakra reserves have increased at least ten fold since last time. No matter how strong you are, unless you train with some type of trick to gain chakra, that type of thing doesn't happen just within a few years. Doesn't matter if he's a talented Uchiha or not, something like that isn't natural."
"It's fine. Everything turned out all right for him, and I stopped with that a long time ago. It was just a thing I gave them every once in a while until I stopped two years."
"Is that so? Then how is he immune to poison?" This took Kabuto by surprise while trying to figure out how and when he found out. There's no way he found out about that test. There was no trace of poison in the spar, and there couldn't have been any other way for him to find out.
"You see, when we were sparring I noticed the unnatural amount of chakra he possessed so I wanted to see what else you gave him. That one jutsu I had where it changed colors, that was for a reason. The slight shift in hand signs released a poisonous gas in the fire, but even with his susanoo he would've still suffered the effects, unless he was immune. Now you say you stopped two years ago, but poison immunity isn't something you can give to someone of young age because of the effect it could have on their developing body, so it must've been recent." There was a spike in chakra and KI from Tobi, who slowly approached Kabuto.
"This will be the first and last threat I give you. Don't give Sasuke any other type of experiments, I don't care what benefits come with it. I don't need his mental state starting to slip, if it already hasn't already." He walked right past him and out the door, leaving Kabuto to his ever so wicked thoughts.
Don't think you'll be running everything to the very end. Once I set my plan in motion, you won't be able to fight your way out of it, no matter what you're capable of. Soon you'll see that you were nothing more than a helping hand in my next steps to complete power.