Sasuke's Family

For Naruto, this was a perfect day.

He had reignited Rock Lee's fighting spirit and helped Sasuke better understand his own ambitions.

More importantly, he had displayed his strength and the Will of Fire.

He believed his standing in the Third Hokage's eyes had risen again.

Inside the Hokage's office.

"Naruto's Taijutsu is remarkably good. At such a young age, he is already training while wearing so much weight. His determination to grow stronger cannot be ignored."

The Third Hokage puffed on his pipe, shifting his gaze away from the crystal ball with a thoughtful expression.

Contact between the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and the Uchiha Clan was not good news.

The Uchiha Clan had always been a prominent family that Konoha's upper ranks longed to control.

Their Kekkei Genkai, the Sharingan, was even regarded as Konoha's greatest Kekkei Genkai.

Yet while powerful, the Sharingan was also known as an evil Kekkei Genkai. It required the stimulation of life-and-death experiences to awaken, while the Mangekyō Sharingan supposedly required one to kill a blood relative to develop.

All of this draped the Uchiha in a veil of bloodshed and cruelty.

Then there was the fact that their ancestor, Madara Uchiha, had founded Konoha alongside the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, only to eventually descend into darkness.

Many villagers therefore defined the Uchiha as symbols of darkness and bloodshed.

They were deeply wary of them.

Meanwhile, Konoha's upper ranks, led by the Third Hokage, had used political maneuvering to force the Uchiha into a remote district and placed them in charge of the thankless Konoha Military Police Force.

Over time, the friction between the Uchiha and the other villagers only grew worse.

That was why the Uchiha were so unwelcome in Konoha.

For the Third Hokage, they had to prevent the Uchiha from growing any stronger.

They could not allow the Uchiha to gain Naruto's friendship.

Otherwise, unforeseen complications might arise.

At that thought, the Third Hokage frowned deeply.

At the top, one could not simply suppress others blindly. One had to weigh the balance.

Just as he had permitted Root to be established. Though it had divided his authority to some extent, it had also given him another department to handle dirty work.

"We'll observe for now. Naruto, who has inherited the Will of Fire, may be able to assimilate Sasuke."

"Make Sasuke love Konoha as deeply as his brother Itachi does."

The Third Hokage muttered to himself.

Meanwhile, shortly after Sasuke returned home, he received some friendly concern from his family.

The moment a certain brother-obsessed man saw Sasuke's bruised and swollen face, his expression changed instantly.

Boiling killing intent brewed in his heart.

The Uchiha Clan might not be welcome in the village, but they had not fallen so low as to be bullied.

Who was it?

Who had hurt my little brother?

Yet in an instant, he returned to his usual gentle smile and stepped forward to ask Sasuke, "Sasuke, why are there so many injuries on your face?"

Sasuke touched one of his wounds and immediately grimaced in pain. "I sparred with Naruto today, but the gap between us was a little big, so I kept losing."

"But it's fine. With Naruto's guidance, my Taijutsu has been steadily improving."

"Naruto is really nice. He patiently let me practice against him."

"Naruto Uzumaki." Itachi Uchiha narrowed his eyes, his gaze turning unfriendly.

"I didn't expect Naruto to be so talented that even Sasuke was no match for him." Fugaku Uchiha wore a thoughtful expression.

It seemed Naruto had most likely inherited his father Minato Namikaze's talent.

If so, Konoha would probably keep an even tighter grip on him.

At that thought, Fugaku's eyes darkened.

For the Uchiha, this might not be a good thing.

He was worried that Konoha would use Naruto as an excuse to make trouble for the Uchiha again.

Fugaku sighed.

The Uchiha Clan's endurance through all their constant concessions was nearly at its limit.

If this continued, rebellion would be inevitable.

"Enough talking. Dinner is ready, so go wash your hands first." Sasuke's mother, Mikoto Uchiha, emerged from the kitchen and said gently.

The family gathered around the table, and Sasuke continued recounting every detail of his training that day.

From his Taijutsu to his Ninjutsu.

"Sasuke, you even used the Great Fireball?" Not only Itachi, but even Fugaku looked utterly incredulous.

Sasuke's control over Ninjutsu was still unstable, but even so, the Great Fireball's power was not something a five-year-old child could block.

When they heard that Naruto had split the fireball apart with a single slash, their expressions became even more horrified.

"Naruto Uzumaki's Taijutsu and swordsmanship may already be at Genin level." Itachi Uchiha exchanged a glance with Fugaku and nodded slightly.

He decided to observe Naruto closely over the next few days.

"Naruto said that without effort, talent will only go to waste. So I'll work even harder. Mother, from now on, I want to train with Naruto and Rock Lee every day. I can't lose to them." Sasuke was brimming with fighting spirit.

Naturally, Fugaku wholeheartedly approved of Sasuke's decision.

He had always believed that Sasuke had lived too comfortably under his brother's protection.

This was good. After suffering a setback and understanding the hardships of commoners, Sasuke would surely be able to go further in the future.

Night fell.

Mikoto had just finished clearing the table when Sasuke, having only just eaten, dragged Itachi into the courtyard for extra training.

In his words, the gap between himself and Naruto was too great. He might not even be a match for Rock Lee. He had to work harder. He could not lose, because he was a proud Uchiha.

Watching Sasuke's figure in the courtyard, Mikoto Uchiha looked somewhat wistful. She washed the dishes with a complicated expression, seemingly lost in thought.

Fugaku Uchiha came up behind her and said quietly, "The relationship between the Uchiha and the village is getting increasingly tense. As the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Naruto will definitely be kept under the Third Hokage's control. We cannot change Naruto's situation."

"I know, but he is still Kushina's child. If the village did not treat us with hostility, at least we could give Naruto a decent life instead of letting so many people hate him like they do now." Thinking of her late friend, Mikoto silently shed tears.

Fugaku sighed.

"This cannot be changed. As long as the Third Hokage's faction exists, the Uchiha will never have a day to rise." He muttered to himself.

Since the Third Hokage had taken power, Konoha's founding clans and top combat forces had declined at an astonishing rate.

In just over a decade, even the Uchiha had fallen into an unprecedented crisis.

"Does the Uchiha truly have a tomorrow in Konoha?" Fugaku's eyes were filled with struggle.

Where leaves dance, fire endures without end.

Naruto set down Will of Fire, propped up his chin, and sank into thought.

He had been studying the Will of Fire that had sustained Konoha until now.

As the saying went, know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated in a hundred battles.

Naruto tried to analyze the ideals of Konoha's upper ranks through the Will of Fire.

Through repeated investigation and exploration, Naruto discovered something.

After the Third Hokage took power, the Senju Clan, Konoha's founding clan, gradually declined and was even wiped out during the Ninja Wars.

The Uchiha Clan, which stood opposed to the Senju Clan, was now in a dire situation as well.

They had been relocated to a remote area. Though they controlled the Konoha Military Police Force in name, their reputation and status within Konoha had continued to decline.

"First, eliminate the most threatening Senju Clan. Then divide the Uchiha. Though they control the Konoha Military Police Force, what they actually handle is a mess of trivial, offending duties. Use the Uchiha's pride to create conflict between them and the villagers, weakening the Uchiha's power at its root."

"Perhaps within the next few years, the Uchiha will also suffer Clan Annihilation for one reason or another."

Naruto looked deeply wary as he reached a conclusion.

"This is definitely not something a single Hokage could accomplish. The Third Hokage must have an extremely important helper. What is that helper's attitude toward me?"