Scared Back a Small Step (Seeking Follow-Up Reads!)

Konoha's bustling city center, the Sarutobi Clan Estate.

Whoosh, whoosh...

Two figures moved purposefully through the night, rapidly using the Body Flicker Technique towards a certain location, soon arriving at a spacious, empty mansion.

"What is it?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi, dressed in his pajamas, hurried out from inside the estate. His sharp gaze landed on the two Anbu members before him, instantly making them tense. Fine beads of sweat appeared on their faces beneath their masks.

This was Konoha's current Hokage—Hiruzen Sarutobi!

At this time, he was in his prime, not only holding a high position but also reaching the peak of his strength. Every word and gesture revealed the imposing aura and presence of a 'Hero of the Shinobi'!

"Hokage-sama, Chuunin from the Hyuga and Uchiha are fighting deep in the outer perimeter of the Forest of Death..."

One of the Anbu members, under Hiruzen Sarutobi's intense gaze, quickly spoke.

Upon hearing that it was the Hyuga and Uchiha, Hiruzen Sarutobi frowned, then quickly said, "Tell me the important information immediately!"

"Yes, Hokage-sama!"

The Anbu member responded and quickly summarized the information about the Hyuga and Uchiha in the Forest of Death, then waited for Hiruzen Sarutobi's decision.

Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't say anything after listening. In less than a minute, he changed into plain clothes in his room, then gave instructions to the two Anbu members before instantly disappearing into the silent night sky. The speed at which he activated the Body Flicker Technique was so fast that the two Anbu members couldn't react at all; Hiruzen Sarutobi's figure had already vanished from their sight.

The two Anbu members exchanged a glance, both shaking their heads helplessly. They had thought that advancing to elite Chuunin would bring them one step closer to Kage-level strength, but they realized that the gap between them still seemed so distant…

"Alright, now that we're done sparring, I should head back, lest you Hyuga can't afford to lose and complain to the Hokage-sama about us Uchiha..."

Uchiha Shinji clapped his hands, saying this sarcastically. He didn't care about the reactions of the two Hyuga Chuunin and turned to leave, leaving them frustrated and helpless. They wanted to complain to the Hokage about the Uchiha, but doing so would be tantamount to admitting that the Hyuga Clan was inferior to the Uchiha Clan. Therefore, such matters could not be spread, as it concerned the overall honor of the Hyuga Clan.

Thus, any 'incidents' where the Hyuga and Uchiha secretly clashed were tacitly kept secret by both sides, instead holding their breath and waiting for the 'next' 'encounter'. This was why Shinji dared to 'attack' his fellow Konoha comrades from the Hyuga so blatantly…

Seeing Uchiha Shinji actually leave, the two Hyuga Chuunin could only take several deep breaths to ease their frustrated mood, finally calming down after a long while.

"We should go find Lord Yuzuru!"

One of the Hyuga said.

"Mm."

The other Hyuga companion nodded and immediately used the Body Flicker Technique to leave, heading towards the Hyuga Clan Estate. Although they hadn't stopped Uchiha Shinji for much time, Yuzuru's speed with the Body Flicker Technique was enough for him to leave the Forest of Death and return to the Hyuga Clan Estate.

This was also why the two Hyuga Chuunin didn't seem too worried when they saw Uchiha Shinji leave…

"Little brat, I've finally caught you!"

At this moment, Uchiha Shinji landed in front of Yuzuru, blocking his path out of the Forest of Death.

Seeing this, Yuzuru couldn't help but frown, a look of surprise on his face. Although the two Chuunin dispatched by the clan head to protect him weren't that strong, they shouldn't have failed to hold him back for even a few minutes, right?

"Don't worry, my Shadow Clone is holding them back. The time we have now is enough for us to 'play'..."

Shinji seemed to have discerned Yuzuru's thoughts and explained to him. When he used the Great Fireball Technique to create a surge of heat and dust, he took the opportunity to use the Shadow Clone Technique to perform a 'golden cicada shedding its shell', using the Shadow Clone to confront the two Hyuga Chuunin while his main body quietly followed Yuzuru.

"There are hidden cameras set up by the village here."

Yuzuru didn't respond to Shinji's words but instead pointed to the nearby trees, calmly saying.

The Forest of Death was often used by the village as a training ground for the Chuunin Exams. To observe the candidates' behavior and reactions in real-time, many cameras were naturally left behind as a means of monitoring.

"..."

Shinji was choked by Yuzuru's words. He hadn't expected Yuzuru to say something like that.

"Don't think that you can use your Byakugan to observe these hidden cameras and then use them to escape."

Shinji slowly walked towards Yuzuru, saying softly, "Unless you can withstand my Three-Tomoe Sharingan's genjutsu!"

Uchiha Shinji never had any malicious intentions towards Yuzuru. He only had one goal in finding Yuzuru, and that was to 'teach' him a good lesson. Of course, it wasn't just to avenge Akeshi; it was also to understand more about Yuzuru's strength.

As the saying goes, 'know yourself and your enemy', then you can 'win every battle'.

To ensure that Akeshi surpasses this kid from the Hyuga family in the future, he had to know the limits of his strength!

Of course, in this process, giving him some 'lessons' was naturally a matter of course…

A scarlet light 'burst forth' from Shinji's pupils, instantly falling into the depths of Yuzuru's eyes, enveloping him in a Sharingan genjutsu, causing him to fall into a daze.

"How could a mere six-year-old brat withstand my Three-Tomoe Sharingan..."

Before Shinji could finish the word 'genjutsu', he saw a flash of sapphire blue light in Yuzuru's Byakugan. Then, he instantly regained consciousness and stared at him with a gaze so cold that it lacked human emotion. That chilling gaze actually made him subconsciously take a small step back!

Uchiha Shinji, who possessed the strength of a Jonin, was naturally not a rookie ninja. He was an elite ninja who had experienced the baptism of blood and war. If it weren't for the Konoha higher-ups controlling the number of Jonin in the Uchiha Clan, he would have been promoted to Jonin long ago with his strength, and wouldn't have been stuck with the title of 'Chuunin'.

But it was this elite ninja who had experienced blood and war who was just scared back by the gaze of a six-year-old first-year ninja academy student, even if it was just a small step!

"How is this possible?"

Uchiha Shinji felt humiliated, so the three tomoe in his eyes spun rapidly, and Dōjutsu Power surged out madly, launching the Sharingan genjutsu at Yuzuru aga