Naruto: Kakashi of the spider sage

The air in the chamber was thick with silence as Kakashi slowly descended to the ground, his new tattoos glowing faintly before fading into his skin. The Spider Sage's many eyes narrowed as he observed Kakashi's transformation. Something caught his attention—a peculiar detail that made his grin falter for the first time.

"Kakashi," the sage said, leaning forward with a seriousness that was rare for him. "Your Sharingan… it's gone."

Kakashi's eyes widened, and he instinctively brought a hand to his face, as if to confirm the sage's words. He blinked rapidly, disoriented by the unfamiliar sensation of light in both his eyes.

"What do you mean, gone?" Kakashi asked, his voice strained.

The sage didn't respond immediately. Instead, he tilted his head, his fingers twitching slightly as he raised a hand to Kakashi's face. Kakashi stiffened at the sudden closeness, but the sage's focus was elsewhere. His clawed fingers hovered near Kakashi's right eye, then stopped.

"Relax," the sage muttered absentmindedly. "I'm not going to pluck it out... tempting as that may be."

Kakashi relaxed slightly, but his unease remained. The sage narrowed his gaze further, concentrating. "Hmm…" he mused, "there's something... unusual here. Your Sharingan isn't 'gone' exactly. It's… dormant. But why?"

After a few moments of silence, the sage stepped back, his many eyes flickering as though lost in thought. "Tell me," he said abruptly, his voice sharp. "When you absorbed the nature energy earlier, did you feel an imbalance in your chakra?"

Kakashi hesitated, trying to recall the chaotic moments during his transformation. "Now that you mention it… yes. It felt overwhelming, like I couldn't keep everything in balance."

The sage grinned, though there was a hint of triumph in his expression. "Aha! That's what I thought. The Sharingan has always been a drain on your chakra, hasn't it? Even in your most rested state, it takes its toll. When you absorbed nature energy, it compounded the imbalance since your chakra reserve iteslf is always not full. My guess? The residual venom from the Modifier Spider acted as a safty switch. It didn't just flood your system with nature energy—it targeted your Sharingan specifically."

Kakashi frowned. "That doesn't make any sense. Why would it—"

"Because your Sharingan is a foreign element in your body," the sage interrupted. "It's not part of your natural chakra flow. It's a grafted ability, tied to another person's genetics. And, while that has its advantages, it also makes it a weak link when dealing with something as pure as nature energy."

Kakashi's confusion deepened. "So, what are you saying? The Sharingan is… broken?"

"Not broken," the sage corrected, his grin returning. "Just... switched off. Or maybe 'sealed' is a better term. But here's the fun part—it's not gone forever. There's a concentrated amount of nature energy in your eye right now, acting like a switch. That means, theoretically, you can learn to turn it back on using nature energy."

Kakashi blinked. "Turn it back on? How?"

The sage chuckled. "That's on you to figure out. I don't have a Sharingan, so I can't exactly guide you there. But I'll give you some advice: start small. Since the residual venom acted as the catalyst, try controlling the leftover nature energy from it first. And don't rely on your Sage Mode. When your body is flooded with nature energy, it'll be like searching for a needle in a haystack. You need precision, not power."

Kakashi absorbed the information, nodding slowly. Despite the sage's casual tone, the implications of this revelation weighed heavily on him. The Sharingan had been both a gift and a curse, a constant reminder of his past and a source of his strength. Now, it was a puzzle he'd have to solve anew.

The morning mist hung in the air as Kakashi stood across from the Spider Sage in their usual sparring ground. After six months of grueling training, his body had adapted to the Spider Sage's unique style, and he could hold Sage Mode for nearly 15 minutes, pushing an hour on rare occasions. Despite his progress, he knew there was still much to learn.

The Spider Sage cracked his knuckles, his many eyes fixed on Kakashi. "From now on, our sparring sessions will focus solely on improving your taijutsu and some of your ninjutsu."

Kakashi adjusted his stance, a bead of sweat rolling down his temple. "What about meditation and chakra control?"

"Still important, of course," the sage replied, waving a clawed hand dismissively. "But you need experience in combat—real, instinctual fighting. I don't know if I've told you this before, but our Sage Art, despite being absurdly difficult to learn…" He trailed off, scratching his chin thoughtfully.

"Go on," Kakashi said, raising an eyebrow.

"Well," the sage continued, "not now, obviously, since you more or less cheated and skipped a few years of the process—"

Kakashi's stare turned flat, his patience already thin.

"—you get what I mean," the sage said quickly, grinning. "As I was saying, our Sage Art is considered the strongest. But it's... different. Unlike others, we don't rely on flashy jutsu or complex chakra nature transformations. No fireballs, no walls of ice, no fancy lightning tricks."

"Sounds boring," Kakashi quipped, his Sharingan flickering faintly as he prepared for an inevitable attack.

"Boring?" The sage let out a barking laugh. "I'll have you know, our Sage Art is like a fresh sashimi made from the best fish in the world—plain, but perfect. No soy sauce, no wasabi. Just raw, unmatched quality."

Kakashi's eye twitched. "Are we still talking about Sage Arts?"

"Of course!" the sage snapped, though his grin never faltered. "What I mean is that our strength lies in simplicity. Speed, senses, and ridiculous super strength. Together, they make us nearly invincible in one-on-one, two-on-one, or even three-on-one fights. That's why we're feared."

"'Nearly' invincible," Kakashi noted, skeptical.

"Well, yes," the sage admitted with a shrug. "Obviously, not you yet. You're still a kid. Plenty of people could beat you. But that's why we're training."

Kakashi sighed but didn't argue. The Spider Sage always had a way of simultaneously inflating and deflating his ego in the same breath.

The sparring session began as it always did—with the sage on the offensive. His movements were fast, almost impossible to track. Kakashi relied on his heightened senses and newfound instincts to dodge, deflect, and counterattack. Despite his improvements, the sage still had the upper hand.

"Faster, Kakashi!" the sage barked as he launched a sweeping kick. Kakashi ducked just in time, countering with a spinning strike that the sage easily deflected. "Don't think! Move!"

Kakashi gritted his teeth, his muscles burning with exertion. Each session pushed him to his limits, but he could feel himself growing stronger with every blow exchanged.

After hours of sparring, the sage finally called for a break. Kakashi collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily.

"You're improving," the sage said, standing over him with a satisfied grin. "Not good enough to beat me, of course, but progress is progress."

"Thanks," Kakashi muttered, too exhausted to put much sarcasm into his tone.

The sage sat cross-legged beside him, his expression turning thoughtful. "By the way, Kakashi, there's something we need to discuss. The second level of Sage Mode."

Kakashi sat up slightly, his interest piqued.

"Don't get too excited," the sage warned. "You're nowhere near ready for it. But you should know what it entails. To reach the second level, you need to awaken a new ability: web projection."

"Web projection?" Kakashi repeated, confused.

The sage nodded. "Yes. You'll need to awaken the dormant organs in your body that allow you to produce and shoot webs, just like a spider. It's not something that comes naturally, even to someone with your talent. The only way to achieve it is through meditation—deep meditation. You'll need to focus on the modifications in your body and push them to their limits."

Kakashi frowned. "So... no sparring?"

"Oh, you'll still spar," the sage said with a wicked grin. "But we're rearranging your schedule. Morning cardio and physical training will come first, followed by sparring. Then meditation will take up the rest of your day. If you want to unlock those web-shooting abilities, you'll need to dedicate yourself completely."

"Sounds fun," Kakashi said dryly.

The sage chuckled. "Don't worry. It'll be painful, frustrating, and probably maddening. But hey, that's what you signed up for, right?"

Kakashi didn't bother replying. He simply lay back on the ground, staring up at the cavern's rocky ceiling. His journey was far from over, but he was determined to see it through—no matter how insane his teacher was.