Namikaze Mirai: I Have a Dream (Please Follow)

Namikaze Mirai: I Have a Dream... (Please Follow)

A dense forest lay before them, surrounded by all kinds of training targets. Judging from the marks on them, they were used quite frequently.

"Itachi, have you really made up your mind?"

Beneath the trees, Uchiha Shisui looked solemnly at Itachi standing across from him.

"Brother Shisui, there's no need to persuade me anymore. I've already made up my mind."

Itachi's expression was exceptionally serious.

It was rare for Uchiha Shisui to see such earnest determination on Itachi's face.

"The Hokage is really looking forward to having you join him..."

Still unwilling to give up, Shisui made one more bitter attempt.

Even now, he could not understand it. He had merely gone away on missions for a few months.

Yet when he returned, Itachi, who had always stood on the same side as him, had changed so drastically. He had almost failed to recognize that the boy with tear troughs before him was the close friend with whom he had once discussed life countless times.

At the mention of the Hokage, a trace of melancholy appeared in Itachi's eyes.

Once upon a time, like Shisui standing before him, he had believed that their Hokage would change the situation of both the village and the clan.

But reality always disappointed people.

During Namikaze Mirai's time back in the village, Itachi had clearly seen the incompetence and weakness of the Hokage he had once revered.

How could the village possibly be governed well with a Hokage like that?

"Brother Shisui, do you still remember Naruto?"

"I do. Why?"

Shisui was confused.

Naruto was the Fourth Hokage's son, wasn't he?

Why had Itachi suddenly brought him up? "The Fourth Hokage sacrificed himself to save the village, yet Naruto, the son of a hero, was treated that way! Brother Shisui, do you really think such a Hokage is worth following?"

"Enough, Itachi!"

Shisui cut him off.

He could not understand why his friend Itachi would speak of the Hokage with such disrespect.

"The Third Hokage must have had his reasons for doing that!"

"Have you forgotten what the Hokage expects of you, Itachi? You're a genius who possessed the mindset of a Hokage at only six years old!"

Itachi looked at Shisui as well, the man he had once regarded as both a role model and a goal.

Faced with Shisui's furious rebuke, Itachi did not argue back directly.

Instead, he answered calmly.

"Brother Shisui, it was only after meeting Teacher Mirai that I understood how foolish I had been. Now, I want to walk an entirely new path."

The two stared into each other's eyes.

Neither could find the close friend with whom they had once discussed life in the other's gaze.

It was as though a crack had opened between them.

This was where they had met, and where they would ultimately become strangers.

"Brother Shisui, I've said everything I wanted to say. Please tell the Hokage that Itachi has let down his expectations."

With nothing more to say, Itachi turned and left.

Shisui watched Itachi's retreating figure, watching his close friend gradually become a stranger.

His gaze was complicated.

Uchiha Training Ground.

Looking at the clan members filling more than half the training ground, Uchiha Fugaku turned to Namikaze Mirai beside him with a headache.

"Mirai, what are you planning to do by selecting these young clan members?"

He could not make sense of Namikaze Mirai's intentions.

Yesterday, Namikaze Mirai had suddenly approached him and Uchiha Setsuna, saying that he wanted to select a group of young Uchiha Clan Members.

Following his request, Fugaku and Setsuna had quickly gathered these clan members.

After all, the Uchiha Clan was now practically bound together with Namikaze Mirai.

They naturally took his opinions seriously.

"Of course, it's to form the Uchiha Imperial Guard!"

Namikaze Mirai grinned.

"The Uchiha Imperial Guard???"

Fugaku was dumbfounded. Even Uchiha Setsuna beside him stared at him with a face full of astonishment.

He knew what the Military Police Force was, but what was the Guard Corps? "The Guard Corps is a unit established to protect Uchiha glory. Every member must possess formidable strength and the willingness to sacrifice themselves on the battlefield for the Uchiha!"

Namikaze Mirai explained with a smile.

"This..."

Uchiha Fugaku and Setsuna exchanged glances, each seeing the same astonishment in the other's eyes.

Why was Namikaze Mirai forming a Guard Corps when he had nothing better to do? "The Military Police Force's duty is to maintain order within the village, while the Guard Corps exists to defend Uchiha glory!"

Upon hearing Namikaze Mirai say the word "glory," the Uchiha standing before him began breathing heavily, their emotions surging.

The glory of the Uchiha.

Just thinking of those words made their blood boil! "Mirai, isn't this a little inappropriate?"

Uchiha Fugaku felt a splitting headache coming on.

He understood less and less what Namikaze Mirai was trying to do. "Fugaku, don't you think this world has remained unchanged for far too long?"

Namikaze Mirai turned and smiled at him.

"From the Uchiha, to Konoha, to the Five Great Nations, and then the entire Ninja World, this world has always operated without change, as though following a preset program."

"If it keeps going on like this, how boring would that be?"

"So, I have a dream."

"It starts with the Uchiha, then Konoha, then the Land of Fire, and finally, changing the entire Ninja World!"

Namikaze Mirai flashed a brilliant smile.

"Fugaku, don't you want to take part in this thrilling transformation? The future is in your hands!"

Fugaku was still hesitating, but Uchiha Setsuna beside him was already too excited to speak.

A figure appeared in his mind.

Senju Hashirama.

Though he was a member of the Uchiha Clan, he had to acknowledge Senju Hashirama's greatness.

He was the legendary ninja who ended the chaos of the Warring States era and created the One Country, One Village System.

In Namikaze Mirai, he saw that man's shadow.

Perhaps one day, Namikaze Mirai might become someone like him! He had to seize the future!

With this decaying, aging body, he would catch up to the winds of that transformation.

The blood of the Uchiha youths standing before them had already begun to boil. Pair after pair of red eyes opened, and their breathing grew ragged.

Namikaze Mirai had painted a vast blueprint for them.

A completely different world would be born through their hands!

What could be more exciting than that? Next door, Sarutobi Hiruzen was still racking his brains over how to weaken their influence, while Namikaze Mirai was already considering how to change the world!

"So, young men, do you want to board the ship bound for a new world?"

"Yes!"

Namikaze Mirai's smile became even brighter.

"Being loud alone is useless. Now, show me your strength!"

Silver Magnetic Fluid rose from below and covered Namikaze Mirai's body, while crackling Blue Lightning Arc swirled around him.

If he wanted to persuade this group of Uchiha, empty promises alone would not be enough.

Namikaze Mirai understood that clearly.

His resounding voice echoed through the Training Ground.

"Come at me together! Prove your strength to me!"