Choosing a Path

The Old Lady was about to head home, but after lifting her foot, she had no idea where to step.

Her eyes were filled with confusion as she murmured, "Where is my home? Why can't I remember?"

Uchiha Aozora hurriedly comforted her. "It's all right. Konoha's streets really are hard to remember. It's normal to get lost."

"Try to think carefully. Is there anything distinctive near your house?"

Comforted by Aozora, the Old Lady calmed down considerably and slowly began to recall.

"Anything distinctive? I remember there was a large locust tree near my house. Every autumn, its leaves would drift down like golden butterflies fluttering through the air. Saburo loved running circles around that tree when he was little."

"A large locust tree? I'll ask around for you."

With that, Uchiha Aozora walked over to Sosuke and Yuichi and told them his guess.

"Amnesia?" Sosuke and Yuichi looked at each other.

"Yes. As the name suggests, people with this illness are prone to forgetting memories. She may have forgotten many things by now, leaving her with only a few of her most precious memories," Aozora explained briefly.

"Because she has lost so many memories, her personality may now be like that of a child's. You can't reason with her; you have to go along with her and coax her.

"Now, the Old Lady has agreed to go home, but she has forgotten where home is. She only remembers a large locust tree in front of her door.

"She's dressed neatly, so her family must be fairly well-off. And her son once attended the Ninja Academy. There can't be many places that meet all those conditions."

Uchiha Yuichi laughed heartily. "Aozora, you're pretty good."

Uchiha Sosuke gave him an approving look as well. "Well done. There really aren't many places like that. I remember Chunin Kamikawa Ken has a large locust tree in front of his house nearby."

"Then lead the way, Brother Sosuke. I'll go explain it to the Old Lady."

After saying a few words to the Old Lady, Aozora led her after Uchiha Sosuke toward Chunin Kamikawa Ken's residence.

Once the Old Lady left the intersection, traffic returned to normal.

Yet Uchiha Aozora saw the disappointment on the faces of the onlookers, and his understanding of the relationship between the Uchiha Clan and the village deepened further.

Before they had walked far, the three of them, along with the Old Lady, ran into Kamikawa Ken, who was searching for someone.

Kamikawa Ken was startled and hurried forward. "Sirs from the Konoha Military Police Force, has my mother done something wrong?"

Uchiha Sosuke said coldly, "Your mother has amnesia. She blocked the intersection beside the Ninja Academy and obstructed traffic."

Upon hearing this, Kamikawa Ken immediately apologized. "I'm sorry. I'll take my mother home at once."

Uchiha Sosuke led Kamikawa Ken before the elderly woman and said, "Ma'am, go home with your son."

The Old Lady looked at Kamikawa Ken. "He isn't my son. Little Ken is clearly only ten years old."

Kamikawa Ken gave a bitter smile. "Some time ago, I was deployed to support the Kumogakure Border. When I came back, I discovered that my mother no longer remembered me."

Sosuke nodded in understanding. After handing the elderly woman over to him, he said, "Your mother has lost her memories. Take good care of her from now on. Don't let her disrupt public order again."

"Understood. Thank you for your trouble, sirs."

After thanking the three of them, Kamikawa Ken finally managed to coax and cajole the elderly woman away.

Watching the mother and son walk away, all three of them felt happy. Uchiha Aozora felt even more refreshed, every cell in his body brimming with joy.

Because new droplets had appeared in the Heavenly Book again.

While Aozora grinned foolishly, Sosuke withdrew his gaze from the departing mother and son and said gratefully, "Aozora, it was fortunate that you were here!"

Yuichi added, "Yeah, we owe it all to Aozora this time. Otherwise, faced with an amnesiac old woman like that, Sosuke and I wouldn't have known what to do."

Then he casually asked, "By the way, Aozora, which family are you from? How come I've never seen you in the Clan Compound?"

Aozora's attention was still focused within his mind. Hearing that, he answered instinctively, "My brother is Shisui."

"Uchiha Shisui?"

The two repeated in surprise.

Aozora was pulled back to reality by their startled voices and confirmed, "Yes, my brother is Uchiha Shisui."

Sosuke's expression merely turned complicated, but Yuichi's gaze toward Aozora was no longer friendly. There was even a trace of resentment in his eyes.

He directly sneered, "So you're that traitor's younger brother!"

Yuichi was about to continue, but Sosuke immediately stopped him, shouting, "Yuichi, shut up."

Seeing this, Aozora thought, Shisui is that unwelcome among the Clan Members? They're even calling him a traitor.

After calming Yuichi down, Sosuke turned and looked seriously at Aozora. "I don't know whether your brother has told you this, but the village has begun to regard our clan with suspicion."

Uchiha Aozora remained silent.

Uchiha Sosuke did not wait for his answer and continued, "Perhaps it is too early to tell you these things, but you have already become a ninja. Sooner or later, you will have to make a choice."

"Faced with the village's suspicion and suppression, there are different views within the clan."

"Some want to curry favor with the village. Some want to show the village strength. Others want to let time erase the suspicion."

Hearing this, Aozora suddenly asked, "Sir Sosuke, what do you think?"

Uchiha Sosuke froze for a moment, confusion appearing in his eyes. Only after a while did he answer, "I don't know.

"But I do know that once the seed of suspicion has been planted, time will not strip it of its vitality. It will only allow it to take root and sprout.

"The Uchiha must do something, but I know that neither appeasement nor intimidation is a good method.

"As long as the village does not trust us, no matter what we do, it will be futile. At most, everything we do can only delay the day's arrival."

After saying that, a bitter smile appeared on Sosuke's face.

At that moment, Yuichi interjected, "It isn't futile. As long as an Uchiha becomes Hokage, the problem will be solved."

Uchiha Sosuke glared at Yuichi, making him fall silent, before saying, "What Yuichi mentioned is one view within the clan. Your brother Shisui holds another. Until the very end, no one has the right to judge who is right or wrong.

"No one will force you to make a choice now. But once you become a Chunin, you must make one.

"For now, take a good look at Konoha. Take a good look at the Uchiha.

"I hope you can find a new path."

After saying that, Uchiha Sosuke took Yuichi back to the Konoha Military Police Force.

Watching Uchiha Sosuke walk away, Aozora felt deeply shaken.

He had once believed that the Uchiha Clan was made up of nothing but arrogant, cold-hearted people, but Sosuke's words made him realize that this had all been a stereotype given to him by anime.

Was the Uchiha Clan made up only of arrogant and conceited ninjas?

No. Even if the Uchiha Clan possessed a special bloodline, they were not all cut from the same cloth.

They had different ideas, different convictions, and different personalities.

There were surely those among them who loved peace, those who were calm and wise, and those who simply wished to live in peace and contentment.

Unfortunately, because their emotions were stable, such people often progressed slowly in strength within the Uchiha Clan. Some had not even awakened the Sharingan.

In the Shinobi World, strength determined status. They had neither strength nor status and could only be swept along by the current, eventually rushing toward the Dead Sea.

"Maybe... I should save the Uchiha Clan?"

"There are bad people among the Uchiha, but most of the clan are ordinary people. They're innocent."

"Besides, that would be a huge amount of merit!"

Uchiha Aozora murmured softly.

Originally, he had only wanted to preserve his brother's life, but now a new thought had taken root in his heart.

But if he wanted to realize that thought, he needed greater strength.

"Ah, Danzo isn't the only one who wants to destroy the Uchiha Clan!"

Life was hard. Aozora sighed.

Exhausted in body and mind, Uchiha Aozora went home, casually made something to eat, then fell into a deep sleep.