— What the hell is this place?
— Your mind, isn't that obvious? Where else could you find a place as disgusting as this?
Yashin reached down to grab one of the countless skulls half-submerged in the water.
— My mind, huh? I thought it would be way worse. Do you spend all your time here? Now I get why your attitude is total shit.
— Cut the sarcasm, scum.
Disgusted by his counterpart's smugness, the voice—or rather, Yashin's double—walked to the edge of the sewer where they were trapped, before sitting down.
— So, how and why the hell did you bring me here?
— You're so patient. Your self-control has really improved.
— Answer the damn questions.
— Questions… even in front of me, you still use the ways of the weak. Before you almost killed yourself, you would have started with an attack, but now… questions.
Yashin said nothing; however, his expression grew colder and colder with every word that came out of his counterpart's mouth.
— The 'how' is none of your business, and the 'why'… well, what else could it be? I'm going to kill you before you keep wasting time and humiliating me even further.
— A miserable personality made up of repressed impulses trying to take control. Next time you should think of a better joke. Anyway, hurry up and let me out, before my damn bodily functions shut down.
— Instead of worrying about the useless body you built, you should be thinking about how to survive.
— I wonder if by tearing you apart I'll be able to return.
Before Yashin's words had finished, his chakra—which had remained as still as the stagnant water beneath his feet—flared, and the skull he'd been holding in his hand shattered into countless Lego-like pieces.
From a distance, his double simply smiled before blinking right next to Yashin. There was no hesitation on either part as their elbows collided midway.
Their dark eyes locked for several seconds, until a new slash attempted to sever Yashin's head.
Like his double, he simply vanished from his position only to reappear a few steps away an instant later.
Neither of them attacked again. Instead, Yashin began to examine his body and the surroundings, while his double smiled smugly once more.
— No fatigue or chakra depletion. This place is pretty good.
— Isn't it? What do you say? Aren't you interested in staying here?
— … So, what is your true purpose?
— I already told you. You know full well that lies are beneath me.
— Even so, killing me or killing yourself, or taking the other's place, is practically impossible.
— I have nothing to lose by trying. I've put up with you for far too long. Still, it's a shame…
During their brief encounter, both had realized that no matter how much they beat or destroyed the other, this space—and therefore themselves—would remain exactly as it was at the beginning.
The intact skulls on the ground and the lack of any tears in their clothes were proof enough of that.
— Anyway, what was all that shit today about?
— What do you mean?
"Your antics with that brat during the fight and with that other useless pig."
Instead of rushing to answer, Yashin bent down again to pick up another skull.
"Why didn't that brat stay down even after I dislocated his jaw?"
"Huh? Maybe he was good at taking hits. Who cares?"
— A talent like that emerges after killing and devouring your brother. Don't you think that's too much of a coincidence?
— What? Do you feel like cannibalizing your sister to see if that increases your power? Although I still don't understand where that crazy idea came from, this time I completely agree.
— For what? For a measly and uncertain increase in my stamina? The only reason I wasted so much time in that fight, to the point of running out of energy, was to see if there was something more; however, you saw it yourself. Besides, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I long ago abandoned the idea of consuming my own blood for a measly increase in power.
Once again, he unleashed his chakra, this time to tear the remains in his hands to pieces until they ceased to exist.
But even though it vanished for a moment, the skull's hollow eyes locked onto him from a distance once again.
— How embarrassing, having to share space with someone so lacking in resolve. I actually liked you better before you got sick. Even though you were a lunatic at times, at least you had some guts. Anyway, what about that other matter?
— A decoy to get close to the Akimichi?
— Why didn't you just offer him a blowjob? I'm sure the fatso would've gladly accepted. Besides, what was the point of revealing that you're capable of using the Aburame's kikaichū?
— … None. I just wanted to do it.
— What… what the hell…? Even though we're supposed to be the same person, I don't get you. Forget what I said before. Even if you don't have the guts, you're still a lunatic.
A hollow laugh escaped from deep within Yashin.
— A lunatic… actually, it's this world that seems more deranged to me.
— What?
— A society that promotes violence, that allows the heirs of nobles to be bullied by mere civilians just to build their character, that lets the children of the former Hokage be treated like trash for political convenience, that encourages competitiveness and unrealistic dreams like becoming Hokage, to the point where brats trample over each other if you're considered less capable than everyone else, or worse yet, don't share the same dream.
— I mean, I'm not surprised you talk like a bitch, but since when do you care about shit like that?
— … Since never, I guess. Still, it sucks to realize that no matter where I am, this kind of trash is always going to be around.
— You…
Before his double could voice his complaints, Yashin's icy voice cut him off.
— I'm sick of it.
Confused, he stared at that expressionless face for several seconds.
— I've had enough of the fraud that I suppose was my past life. Politics, influence, authority, lies. Just thinking about it turns my stomach. I made it to the top, and so what? In the end, I died vaporized by the damn explosion of an atomic bomb dropped by some terrorist sons of bitches from another continent.
The water beneath Yashin's feet began to boil.
— All my power, my money, businesses, achievements, women, and children; everything went down the drain from one moment to the next, and then what? Instead of simply disappearing, I wake up in a damn world I always considered fiction, unable to remember even who I was, because my entire past life seemed to have been thrown into a shredder with countless other pieces of crap before I got here. How else would a son of a bitch have time to be a damn politician, a neurosurgeon, a cannibal, a wrestler, and who knows how many other things? Tell me, what reason do I have to act sensibly if everything is a damn mess?
Yashin's fists clenched as his chakra began to stir, amplifying those emotions, but in the end, it only made him feel even more repulsed.
And his double's mocking laughter only served to intensify that feeling.
"Seriously? Is that your damn problem? Not remembering and having lost whatever it is you once had? What's next? Whining about having a big forehead and pink hair? You faggot. Instead of whining like a bitch, you should be getting stronger so you don't have to crawl around on all fours all day."
The laughter turned exasperated. And the multitude of skulls, whether scattered or piled up, began to show cracks.
— Shit. If it bothers you so much, why didn't you do something to kill yourself as soon as you were born, instead of hatching a plan to reach the top of this fucking fictional world?
— Maybe because I had the same idiotic mindset you have now. Get stronger, reach the top, conquer the world—and then what? Masturbate and ejaculate on everyone's faces to prove I'm the best while I wait bored for the equivalent of a nuclear bomb to wipe me out again? When I arrived in this world, I didn't even think about it, but after nearly dying, I realized my life was going to be just as ridiculous as the last one.
— No. You should think about being the damn nuclear bomb, you brainless moron.
— And die of boredom?
— That would be better than being a mere cowardly bitch.
— You have no idea how glad I am not to be such a simple-minded jerk like you.
— You have no idea how glad I am not to be a spineless wimp like you.
The voices fell silent; yet the silence was far from settling in. Countless cuts began to tear through the surroundings.
Skulls, walls, the submerged floor.
But no attack reached the figures standing upright in the midst of that disaster.
— So, what was it that changed?
For the first time, the double's voice seemed to contain something more than mere mockery and contempt.
— … You don't know, do you? I wonder if at that moment you and I also stopped being the same person.
— What the hell are you talking about now?
— That even though we share the same body, memories, and experiences, we often don't even reach the same conclusions. The consequences of a hormonal disability go far beyond simply staying alive.
For example, your restraint.
Neither calm nor restraint—his tolerance was a simple disability, a consequence of his chakra being unable to keep pace with all the stimuli he received.
After all, between recognizing the stimulus and becoming aware of a reaction, to actually moving to produce a response, a great deal was inevitably lost.
Even his anger felt artificial.
He recalled the first days of school, when he saw Hyuga stalking the blond boy—how she hid behind walls, how she always followed him with her eyes, how, day after day, she wasted her time doing nothing, overcome by her cowardice.
Compared to the irritation he'd felt then or in other moments leading up to his breakdown, his present state felt far too artificial.
— But you already know that. Even so, your simplistic thinking never seemed to be affected by the imbalances in my body.
— Of course. I'm not some fickle sissy.
— No, you're not. Maybe you're the original, and I'm nothing more than a defective copy produced by this body.
— …
— I'm really fed up. Actually, if you have any way to take control, I wouldn't mind swapping places with you. What do you say?
— …
— I guess that's a no. What a shame.
— …
— Well. Don't worry. Even though I've wanted to die for a long time, there are still a few somewhat interesting things keeping me from sending it all to hell.
Absurd, trivial things like annoying his sister, or wasting time with that brat Shino and even his family. Mundane things he doesn't remember having in his previous life, but which now often managed to stir something inside him and capture his interest.
— And, well, if at any point I decide I've had enough, rest assured I won't leave quietly. At the very least, I'll make it interesting.
— … You and I are definitely not the same person anymore. Now, get out of my sight.
His voice no longer held a trace of his usual sarcasm or contempt.
That tone reflected nothing more than simple indifference.
Unable to bear watching Yashin's placid smile any longer, the double extended his arm and pointed his index and ring fingers forward.
— Kai.
The invisible slash reached Yashin in an instant; however, he had already dodged far more dangerous attacks.
This time should be no different.
Nevertheless, his body and chakra remained motionless, even after the slash passed right through him.
From the waist to the shoulder, his body began to split apart as blood slowly oozed out.
Even so, there was no sign of pain.
Only a twisted smile that remained even after his body fell to the ground.