Value

Katsuo was simply too dazzling, far beyond his peers.

Whether in talent or mentality, someone like him made Uchiha Feng place the second great bet of his life!

The first had been twenty years ago, when he had chosen between the Patriarch, Uchiha Madara, and the Great Elder, Uchiha Sou.

That time, he had abandoned his faith and pride, choosing stability and prosperity.

Back then, Uchiha Madara had been too extreme and arrogant, seeking to break away from Konoha in the Land of Fire and stand independent of the Five Great Nations.

He believed that the Uchiha Clan needed no allies. With the strength of the clan alone, they could still stand proudly at the pinnacle of the ninja world.

He had wanted to lead the clan away from Konoha, only to be stopped by a few questions from the Great Elder.

"Patriarch, under your leadership, our Uchiha Clan may indeed stand proudly in the ninja world—but what about the future? The Mangekyō Sharingan is too difficult to awaken. In the past several hundred years, only you and the late Lord Izuna have possessed it! What happens when you are no longer here, Patriarch?"

"Without the power of the Mangekyō, can the Uchiha Clan continue standing firm in the ninja world? Think of the immense Five Great Ninja Villages. Our power does not merely make them afraid—it also breeds their greed! When that time comes, will our eyes still belong to us? What will protect our lives, the lives of our parents, wives, and children, the lives of our brothers and sisters? Will we rely on the heavens to bestow another Mangekyō upon us?"

"Rather than become homeless rats wandering between great nations, we would be better off relying on Konoha and becoming tigers feared by all!"

"Patriarch, have you considered the future of the Uchiha? Have you heard the Uchiha's longing for stability? The Uchiha are Konoha's foremost clan now, and they will remain so in the future, won't they?"

Faced with Uchiha Sou's challenge, Uchiha Madara gave a disdainful smile, his laughter filled with unmistakable mockery.

"Tigers crouching beneath Konoha's shade? Konoha's foremost clan? Hahaha... Hahahaha!"

As he laughed, Uchiha Madara gradually turned serious. His pair of Eternal Mangekyō stared coldly at every member of the clan.

"You? All of you... no one is willing to leave? No one is willing to come with me???"

Wherever Uchiha Madara's gaze fell, the clan members there lowered their heads, not daring to meet his eyes.

Only a handful were willing to continue following him, yet the proud Uchiha Madara rejected them!

"Hahaha!!! Good. I do not need anyone standing behind me!"

Uchiha Madara looked desolate.

"Izuna, I cannot fulfill the promise I made to protect the Uchiha Clan. The clan members I wanted to protect... no longer trust me..."

Uchiha Feng had agreed with the Great Elder, Uchiha Sou, and reality had proven that his choice had been correct.

After all, look at the Uzumaki Clan, which had recently been wiped out, and think of the Uzumaki Clan during the Warring States era.

The Uzumaki Clan not only possessed powerful physiques, terrifying vitality and Chakra reserves, and generally long lifespans, but their Sealing Techniques were also unmatched in the world. Most importantly, they had been extremely low-key, essentially staying out of worldly disputes and rarely active in the ninja world.

Yet they still could not escape destruction!

The facts proved that it was difficult for a clan to survive in the ninja world by relying on its own strength alone!

When news of the Uzumaki Clan's destruction arrived, Uchiha Feng could not help but feel fortunate about his decision back then!

However, in recent years, he had discovered that the Uchiha Clan was also in grave danger! This was not alarmism—he had already begun to see the warning signs!

He saw the Uchiha declining by the day. Perhaps the Uchiha Clan was not far from its downfall!

He discovered that not only had the Uzumaki Clan been destroyed, but even their old rivals, the Senju Clan, had already declined!

The arrogant and blindly overconfident Uchiha Clan, the Uchiha Clan lacking a soul and faith, the internally rotten Uchiha Clan, the Uchiha Clan severely excluded and suppressed by Konoha's higher-ups—was its destruction and decline truly still far away???

How could the Uchiha be saved?

Uchiha Feng felt that the best solution was to cultivate another "Uchiha Madara" for the Uchiha Clan!

The Uchiha desperately needed a hero, desperately needed a figure who could serve as their soul, and even more desperately needed a shared faith!

There were too many people in power within the Uchiha Clan now. There were no fewer than six elders, with the various factions openly and secretly fighting one another, each acting independently. Though the Uchiha were numerous, they had never been able to unite as one.

Uchiha Feng felt that the Uchiha Clan only needed one voice!

Uchiha Katsuo might become the master of that voice in the future!

As long as he grew smoothly and did not die young, the future Uchiha Clan would surely have a place for him beneath its skies.

Uchiha Feng firmly believed it!

"You haven't returned to the clan this past month, have you?"

Katsuo nodded. "It's too remote. Inconvenient."

He had no intention of telling Uchiha Feng about Uchiha Kari. He wanted to slaughter him with his own hands!

He felt that dealing with a Chunin with a Double Tomoe Sharingan would not take him long. One or two years should be enough!

"Fine..."

Uchiha Feng nodded.

"Do you have any other requests?"

Katsuo grinned when he heard that. It seemed this Third Elder of the Uchiha Clan had already seen his value and decided to place his bet on him!

"Um... could you lend me eight hundred thousand or a million Ryo to spend?" Katsuo asked shamelessly.

"???"

"Are you robbing me? Or do you think I run a bank... You open your mouth and ask for eight hundred thousand or a million??? Besides, what does a little brat like you need so much money for?"

Uchiha Feng was stunned for a moment before bursting out in agitation. Although he handled matters like clan registration and property and possessed considerable wealth, with a net worth of tens of millions or more.

Katsuo was asking for eight hundred thousand or a million in one breath. Did he really think money was not money... Besides, he was curious what this brat wanted so much money for.

Katsuo fell silent.

Although he could support himself by hunting now, slaughtering and cleaning prey, cooking meals, making jerky, and so on took too much time...

If possible, he wanted to spend that time training.

"I must have owed you little bastard in my previous life. You're here to collect a debt!"

Seeing Katsuo remain silent, Uchiha Feng rubbed his temples and cursed. Then he shot him a fierce glare, flicked his sleeve, and left.

Watching Uchiha Feng's retreating figure, Katsuo bowed and called out loudly.

"Thank you!"

After parting with Uchiha Feng, he returned to his camp. After hastily eating something, he began his nighttime training again.

He felt that while his physical condition could keep up with ordinary children his age, compared to top students like Fugaku, he was still far behind.

The greatest reason Fugaku and the others had lost so miserably today was their mentality!

At the end of the day, they were merely a group of five- or six-year-old brats. Dealing with them could not have been easier.

Of course, if he had not learned the Phoenix Sage Fire Technique and had relied solely on hand-to-hand combat, he would have been beaten miserably!

Even Uchiha Fugaku alone would have been enough to beat the shit out of him.

He did not know any so-called taijutsu at all. What he practiced was merely basic physical conditioning.

When fighting hand-to-hand, all he could rely on was the keen reflexes brought by his powerful spiritual strength.

Taijutsu required someone to teach it, and it was something one figured out through battle after battle.

As Katsuo knew from his previous life, Konoha's two most representative forms of taijutsu were the Gentle Fist and Strong Fist.

The former, Gentle Fist, required the Byakugan's cooperation. It was a form of taijutsu centered on attacking the chakra pathways and internal organs, with the Hyuga Clan being its most representative practitioners.

The latter, Strong Fist, focused on causing fractures or external injuries. At present, Tsunade was one of its more representative users.

As for Guy? He had not even been born yet...

"I wonder whether Old Duy has mastered the Eight Gates yet at this point. I should look for him when I have time, get acquainted with him, and preferably become sworn brothers or something!"

Katsuo muttered to himself. He greatly coveted the Might family's Eight Gates Formation, even though the conditions and price of using it were exceptionally harsh.

As Katsuo trained while lost in thought, a ninja from the Uchiha Clan appeared beside him.

He was a Jonin!