The white light gradually dissipated, and Obito saw the image of a drastically changed Charmander.
Charmeleon's skin was different from the orange of its Charmander days, now leaning more towards fiery red. Its previously short limbs had grown larger and stronger, with sharp claws sprouting from its hands and its mouth becoming pointed like a beak.
However, what surprised Obito the most was the horn-like protrusion on the top of Charmeleon's head, which he thought was quite cool.
"Is this Charmander?" Nohara Rin was a bit uncertain.
She had seen Charmander in the morning, and even if it grew quickly, it shouldn't be this exaggerated. Previously, Charmander was about 0.6 meters tall, but now Rin estimated Charmeleon to be over a meter.
Kakashi couldn't quite understand what was going on either. It was clearly Obito's Charmander, but in a flash of white light, it seemed to have secretly grown for two years.
Kakashi looked at Mokgetsu with inquisitive eyes.
This was the Ninja Beast Egg Mokgetsu had given them, so Mokgetsu would most likely know the reason.
"This is evolution," Mokgetsu explained.
"When certain creatures grow to a certain extent, their appearance changes dramatically, like a caterpillar forming a chrysalis and then emerging as a butterfly."
"Your ninja beasts have similar abilities. After evolution, they become much stronger, and their appearance may change to some extent."
Kakashi could understand but not fully comprehend.
He knew about insects forming chrysalises and turning into butterflies, but why would a creature like Charmander have anything in common with a caterpillar?
"So you're saying Charmander is stronger now?" Obito extracted the key information, his expression becoming excited.
Even though he didn't know what happened, he felt as if his Charmander suddenly had the results of two years of rigorous training.
"Yes, you could say that," Mokgetsu nodded.
Not only did it gain more skills and become stronger physically, but in terms of Chakra, Charmeleon's Chakra surged at the moment of evolution.
"What will Mei's evolution look like?" Nohara Rin asked curiously.
She imagined applying the changes from Charmander to Charmeleon to Feebas, realizing that it didn't quite align.
"The change will be significant, not less than a caterpillar forming a chrysalis and becoming a butterfly," Mokgetsu didn't disclose all the information, thinking it was best for Rin to raise Feebas in her current state.
"I see, I really look forward to it." Rin's eyes sparkled brightly as she smiled.
This seemingly radiant smile deeply attracted Obito, who promptly patted his chest and said:
"Rin, let's work hard together. Mei will definitely evolve soon. Charmander and Mei hatched together, and since Charmander has evolved, Mei should be close too."
Kakashi shook his head, thinking that the difficulty of evolution should vary among different ninja beasts. He was the first to hatch, and by Obito's logic, his Rockruff should evolve first.
"Char!" Charmeleon bent its arms, feeling the sudden increase in its strength.
Then, it turned its gaze to Obito. The inherently mischievous Uchiha brat dared to trick it like this; it couldn't tolerate it any longer.
"Char-char!" Charmeleon suppressed its inner rage and conveyed its request to the nearby translator.
"Everybody, clear the area! Charmeleon is about to settle the score with Obito," Zorua jumped onto Shisui's shoulder and quickly shouted.
Kakashi immediately flashed away, having felt something off about Obito from the beginning.
Yamato saw Kakashi leave and followed suit.
Shisui silently retreated to the side with Zorua to observe the situation.
When Rin saw everyone dispersing, she too moved to the side.
While Obito hadn't yet realized what was happening, the clearing was left with just him and Charmeleon alone.
"Char!" Charmeleon opened its mouth slightly, spewing wisps of flames to enumerate Obito's offenses.
"It's one thing to frequently misinterpret my thoughts, but to use genjutsu to deceive me, Obito, you are gravely in error!"
"Three months by the east of the river, and three months by the west, don't underestimate the young dragon!"
Bam!
Shisui hugged Zorua and karate-chopped its head forcefully, saying speechlessly, "Have you been reading ninja novels lately? Stop putting words into Charmander's mouth."
"Don't underestimate the young dragon, indeed. That doesn't sound like Charmander at all."
"Hehe, it's just that the atmosphere fits," Zorua rubbed its head against Shisui, chuckling.
"I indeed made a mistake using genjutsu." Obito admitted that he might have gone a bit overboard in training.
"But I was doing it for your own good. After all, it seemed like the same amount of training time, but you got a better workout."
Obito sincerely spent a long time contemplating before coming up with this hypnotic training method.
"Roar!" Charmeleon let out a dissatisfied cry.
Obito's hypnosis couldn't alleviate its physical fatigue.
"Words are useless. Feel my flames," Zorua continued translating.
"Are you sure you want to challenge me? I won't hold back in a fight," Obito didn't think a ninja beast only a few months old could give him trouble.
Charmeleon nodded. If it didn't give Obito a beating, it wouldn't feel content.
Maybe Obito's intentions were good, but Charmeleon hoped Obito wouldn't act on them.
"He's not very bright, but that guy sure can fight." Zorua looked at Charmeleon and reminded, as if asking the imprisoned dragon if it could win.
"Whirr!"
Charmeleon's nostrils flared with white smoke as it returned a confident expression.
The helpless Charmander has died; now, taking the stage is Charmeleon with formidable power!
"Given your young age, you can make the first move," Obito offered Charmeleon a chance to attack first.
Charmeleon didn't stand on ceremony and immediately activated its inner Chakra to unleash its skill.
"Smoke Screen!"