Shin, Whom Even the Sage of Six Paths Could Not Save

"It was a teammate..."

Shin voiced a bold guess. "Only a teammate could make a battle-hardened ninja like Senior Kagami lower his guard..."

"And afterward, the real culprit could still cover up the cause of death."

After taking a deep breath, Fugaku finally calmed down somewhat. "Shin, this is a serious matter. Do you have any evidence?"

"Evidence? Unless the killer was an idiot, how could he have left any behind?"

"But one thing was certain: he must have always been especially hostile toward the Uchiha Clan. That was the killer's arrogance..."

"He believed he had done everything flawlessly. That kind of foolish arrogance..."

With a grave expression, Shin patiently continued explaining. "It exposed his treacherous, suspicious, and ruthless nature."

Treacherous referred to his ambush on Kagami Uchiha.

Suspicious meant that even after cleaning up the traces, the killer had still concealed the truth from Konoha.

And ruthless was his motive.

Of course, Fugaku understood all that.

Shin's hints could only go this far. Saying any more would cause serious trouble.

Other than the Konoha Pot King, who else could the killer be?

With Root behind him, the Pot King was, in Konoha of this era, a figure below one man and above ten thousand.

If this were spoken aloud, no one would believe it.

No matter his motives, Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi could not possibly make a move against the Uchiha.

Even if Shin's grandnephew would later slaughter the entire clan, wouldn't Konoha's other ninja clans consider the reasons behind it?

That was why the Pot King and the two advisers had been drawn in to take the blame.

As for Uchiha Itachi, his overwhelming popularity had led AB to forcibly whitewash him, leaving his story riddled with holes.

He had looked at Sasuke with a crazed laughing expression, yet that had ultimately been whitewashed as acting.

In the end, the Uchiha Clan gained the legend of the Four Laughing Legends, and it even became a fine tale.

So in the end, the Third Hokage's and Itachi's dark histories could only be carried by these Pot Kings.

(Naruto is a hot-blooded manga. Overinterpreting it still has to follow the basic law.)

"Brother Fugaku, that's as far as my guess goes. From here on, we can only hope the killer exposes himself..."

"I'll go see whether Mother has finished making lunch." After explaining all the key points to Fugaku, Shin no longer paid attention to his hesitant expression.

Could he change the Uchiha Clan's fate of annihilation?

He had a clear understanding of the situation. At worst, he could personally teach his grandnephew and Shisui in the future.

He refused to believe those two could still be forcibly brainwashed by the Will of Fire.

For now, this was still far from enough.

"Mother, is lunch ready?" Shin put on an innocent, cheerful expression again.

After pretending to be a child for five years, handling such a minor scene had already become second nature to him.

After turning around, Aoko felt that her younger son seemed rather preoccupied.

Sure enough, it was easy to let something slip before someone equally skilled at acting.

She looked Shin over from every angle.

The sight made Shin's scalp tingle, and he did not dare meet her eyes.

Aoko could tell with certainty that he was hiding something.

"Did you do something bad? The last time you looked like this was when you secretly took the clan's ninja technique scroll."

Panicking inwardly, Shin realized that Mother really was more formidable.

Ever since he was little, none of the little things he had done had escaped her notice.

"What should I do? Could it be the conversation I just had with Brother Fugaku..."

"No! I was worried Anbu might be nearby, so I deliberately kept my voice down..."

"Or did the nonsense at school spread that quickly..."

After considering the possible reasons, Shin came up with a response.

He put on a flattering smile and showered her with praise. "Mother truly has piercing insight. You even saw through this tiny secret in my heart..."

"My admiration for you is like the surging river, endless and unceasing..."

Aoko scooped up five-year-old Shin and wore a gentle smile.

She exposed the little thought in his heart. "Dear Shin, don't try to change the subject."

In Shin's eyes, that smile was not gentle at all.

What she meant was clearly, "Tell your mother the truth right now."

Shin trembled in Mother's arms.

Unable to face his mother's gaze, he sincerely hoped someone would come rescue him immediately.

Uchiha Clan Grounds.

Chiken, who had just finished the clan meeting, was in quite a good mood.

Because one of the two children entering school today was his troublesome younger son.

As Chiken Clan Head walked home, someone suddenly pulled him into a side path.

Looking up, he discovered it was the father of the other child who had enrolled today.

Mikoto's father looked left and right outside the path. After confirming no one was around, he said he wanted to tell Chiken a "big secret."

It was about his younger son, Shin.

At first, Chiken thought Mikoto had been "bullied" by his younger son, and that her parent had come to complain.

But when Mikoto's father truthfully recounted Shin's performance at school today, Chiken exploded.

Trembling all over, he thanked Mikoto's father, then rushed home like the wind.

"Uchiha Shin!"

A loud roar rescued Shin from Aoko's arms.

After getting down from his mother's embrace, he saw his old father, panting heavily while glaring furiously at him.

Although Aoko did not know what could have made her husband this angry,

her maternal instincts still made her step in front of her son. "What's wrong, dear? What did Shin do to make you so angry?"

"He's just a child. Don't scare him."

"I'm scaring him? Look at your son. Does he look scared?" Ignoring Aoko before him, Chiken raised his hand to strike Shin, who was hiding behind her.

"Not even the Sage of Six Paths can save him today, I said it!"

"Go on, hit him! Hit him!"

Aoko lifted her chin. Her aura instantly changed from her usual gentle manner, directly crushing Chiken's momentum.

Shin stared blankly from behind her.

It was the first time he had learned that Mother could unleash such an imposing presence.

Even Fugaku, who had come in to watch the show after hearing the commotion, froze on the spot.

Chiken was now in a difficult position.

If he hit Shin, life would definitely be difficult afterward.

If he did not, could he still call himself the head of the household?

So after weighing the pros and cons, he ultimately decided to back down.

After calming himself slightly, he recounted everything he had heard about Shin, embellishing it generously along the way.

Listening to this third-hand, heavily embellished "truth" from his father, Shin could not help rolling his eyes internally.

Had he ever wanted to become the Ninja Academy's principal?

He merely wanted to have the final say at the Ninja Academy in the future.

Thinking about it that way, it did not seem entirely wrong?

Meanwhile, Aoko grew happier and happier as she listened, and her expression became proud.

She felt there was clearly nothing wrong with her younger son.

Listen to that—he had "beaten up" the young master of the Senju Clan and declared he would be the school boss. What an honor.

Chiken was simply making a mountain out of a molehill.

She turned to Shin and felt increasingly pleased with her younger son, who had inherited her excellent genes.

"Shin, you've truly brought honor to the Uchiha! Don't worry about the school matter. Your father will settle it perfectly for you!"

Aoko's smiling face made Chiken feel utterly helpless.

His child was clearly challenging the school's authority. How had it become bringing glory to the Uchiha in his wife's words?

Looking at the mother and son before him, he felt the disparities of this world.

Fugaku felt even more helpless. Whenever he made even the slightest mistake, the family would lecture him for half the day.

He had always been so diligent and conscientious, so why did the same thing become a good deed when it came to his younger brother?

He now seriously suspected that he had been picked up somewhere.

What happened to treating everyone equally and not playing favorites?

"Mother—no, Mother, the important thing is that I can't stay at school anymore. I want to drop..." Shin had not finished speaking when he was fiercely glared at.

He could only force the word "out" back down his throat.

With a smile on her face, Aoko gently asked him a soul-searching question. "Dear Shin, what exactly do you want to drop?"