"I'm here to see the elder."
Yayoi said it casually. There was no need to explain further; they knew each other well enough.
Did you think I wouldn't recognize you without that orange cat?
Uchiha Eita!
As the old man who guarded the Security Force office, Eita had known Yayoi for ages. They saw each other all the time.
Naturally, he had no reason to suspect Yayoi.
"I see. Go on in."
"Thanks, Uncle Eita."
Yayoi walked past Uchiha Eita and murmured as they brushed shoulders.
"Someone's following me."
Eita's lazy expression vanished after Yayoi passed. A red gleam flashed in his eyes.
"Go on. This is the Uchiha Clan Territory. You don't need to worry."
As Yayoi walked down the dark street, his face turned grim.
This has gone too far.
Danzo, that old bastard, had already turned the laboratory in his house upside down.
If not for that, he wouldn't have had to come to the Uchiha Clan Territory almost every day.
But the more often he came, the more Danzo suspected him, and the more closely Danzo watched him.
It was a vicious cycle with no way out unless one of them died.
And now, Danzo had even sent someone to test him inside the Uchiha Clan Territory.
The Uchiha Clan was at the height of its power. Even Danzo didn't dare offend it lightly.
But Yayoi lived in a remote corner of the territory, which gave Danzo room to maneuver.
That was why Danzo had grown bolder and bolder.
At first, he had watched Yayoi for only a few days. Then he had someone check on him every day after he left the Uchiha Clan Territory.
Now he even dared watch him inside it.
Damn it. Enough was enough.
Yayoi had two ways to break the deadlock.
One.
He could confront Danzo openly: report it to the Uchiha Security Force, have them catch a few Genbu agents, and use the Uchiha Clan's influence to pressure Danzo.
The odds of success were high.
Two.
He could move into Yan's house and renovate it.
His Word Spirit tests had stabilized by now, and he could move part of the testing to his old basement.
That would also solve the surveillance problem perfectly, though it might look as if he were living off Yan.
Yayoi considered himself a technical specialist who earned his keep through mutually beneficial work.
But living together—and in the woman's house, at that—was more than he could bear.
What he really couldn't bear was the way the other Uchiha would look at him. Wouldn't that make him a son-in-law living off the Uchiha Clan?
If word got out, Shengshu and Tsunade would absolutely make fun of him.
At the thought of it, Yayoi shook his head like a rattle.
He could practically see Tsunade laughing at him.
Yayoi had reinforced the laboratory. He kept important documents and items in scrolls stored at Yan's house.
He had hidden instruments such as microscopes in a compartment inside one room. The equipment left in plain sight made the place look like a blacksmith's workshop.
He had also set a simple trap.
If anyone opened the door, the entire laboratory would explode, leaving nothing inside.
If Genbu wanted to keep watching him, they wouldn't openly break with him.
But when Yayoi returned that day, he saw that someone had bypassed his laboratory's defenses.
A figure wearing an intricate mask stood in the darkness, holding something. The instant Yayoi came back, their eyes met.
At the sight of Yayoi, the figure tried to flee without a word.
Yayoi didn't hesitate. He threw a Kunai with an Explosive Tag attached.
Boom!
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
Yayoi's eyes lit up. He made a token Hand Seal, but secretly drew on the power of the Wind King Eye.
A gale formed in an instant. As the storm took shape, sharp Wind Blades slashed toward the masked ninja.
"Fire Release Chakra conversion!"
Fire-nature chakra surged through Yayoi's body.
Fire Release Chakra spread through the wind conjured by the Wind King Eye, and the surging Wind Blades burst into flame.
Yayoi's fire set the masked ninja's clothes alight.
"Ugh."
A muffled groan of pain escaped the ninja. Yayoi flung a Kunai into the ninja's arm, pinning him hard against a tree.
The flaming Wind Blades were formidable too. They burned every document and object the masked ninja had been carrying.
"Spy! You're not getting away!"
At Yayoi's shout, the masked ninja struggled against the tree in pain, but the next wave of Wind Blades engulfed him.
"Uesugi Yayoi, stop at once."
A voice rang out. Yayoi ignored it and kept moving.
"We're ANBU!"
A blast of wind canceled out Yayoi's Wind Blades.
Such powerful chakra. A Jonin.
Yayoi looked away from the half-dead masked ninja and up at another one in the tree.
"What kind of ANBU goes through my house and loots it? He even bypassed the defenses I set up.
"You call him ANBU? No. Don't be fooled. He's a spy stealing village secrets."
With the evidence destroyed, Yayoi eased up a little, though he still glared darkly at the other masked ninja.
He wanted an explanation.
He knew this ninja was stronger than the first. Killing him would take time, and that could bring more "ANBU" running.
"ANBU business. We suspected you were hiding dangerous materials in your house," the masked ninja in the tree said coldly.
"I suspect he's a spy."
"He isn't."
They stared at each other in silence.
The standoff lasted a full three minutes before Yayoi finally backed down. He couldn't take down this newcomer quickly.
If they fought, it would be hard to end things anytime soon.
As for the masked ninja who had ransacked his house, Yayoi had already crippled him.
Why did he think I was wasting time standing here?
The instant the Wind Blades surrounded the man, Yayoi had aimed for his vital organs.
He might look all right for now, but his organs were beyond saving. He probably wouldn't live much longer.
Still, some information had likely been exposed.
"Danzo!"
Yayoi suppressed his fury as he returned home and saw his laboratory turned upside down.
Equipment lay scattered, the room was a mess, and papers littered the floor.
Fortunately, the intruders had come and gone in a hurry. They had taken the Mercury and Pure Gold, though. There must have been another person who had escaped before Yayoi could catch him.
There hadn't been much of either left, but it still enraged Yayoi.
Once I complete the genes, I'll destroy any chance you have of becoming Hokage.
Yayoi's red-gold Golden Eye blazed, his rage almost tangible.
It was the first time he had been truly furious since arriving in the world of the Hokage.
Someone had raided his home. Fortunately, he had noticed something was wrong and prepared a backup.
I hope the hidden door is intact.
Yayoi walked toward the thick stone wall inside the room and stopped beside a faintly green stone. His Golden Eye flared.
Under that commanding pressure, the green stone lit up. Invisible Wind Element gathered around it until enough had accumulated.
Yayoi directed it to press a switch. Something clicked, and he pushed the stone wall open.
Beyond it lay an even smaller secret room containing Yayoi's equipment and instruments.
It also held manuscripts he needed to keep. Some were outside as well, but he had no time to search the wrecked room.
Besides, any useful information out there had probably already reached Danzo.
But Yayoi was too cautious to give Danzo anything he could use against him.
The manuscripts outside concerned Yayoi's research on Shengshu's cells. Danzo probably knew more than they contained.
And Yayoi had registered that project, so Danzo couldn't use it against him.
Still, he probably couldn't stay here.
Yayoi wouldn't give Danzo a chance to catch him out. He might have to carry out plan two alongside plan one.
He didn't dare stay another night. Yayoi packed his things and placed the prototype he had made in a wooden box.
Taking every document from the secret room, he hurried through the night to the home of Yan's Second Grandfather.
He couldn't take it anymore. Danzo was going to get him killed.
He couldn't stay in this wretched place. Never had Yan's Second Grandfather seemed so kind and approachable to him.
"Forgive me for visiting so late."
"Child, what happened?"
Uchiha Enichi was puzzled by Yayoi's polite manner, but he kept his expression composed.
"Nothing. I just came to have a chat."
"Heh."
Enichi understood. Something had happened that Yayoi needed his help with.
Otherwise, the boy would never have come.
After what Enichi had done to him last time, would he really dare come back without a reason?
Enichi didn't believe it. He knew exactly what this little fox was like.
Judging by how hurried Yayoi looked, something really had happened.
"Yan lent me money before, and you're her elder. Of course I'd want you to see the results."
As Yayoi spoke, he handed Enichi the wooden box.
"This is a weapon I made. I brought it especially for you."
"How thoughtful. You're a good boy."
Enichi chuckled, curious to see what Yayoi was after.
He merely smiled at the claim that Yayoi had made a weapon.
The boy was only a child, after all. He had probably made something to play with.
But when Enichi saw the sword inside the box, he couldn't take his eyes off it.
Sharp. Light. Enichi could easily see the qualities the Uchiha prized in it.
He had seen countless swords in his life, but never one like this.
Enichi took the sword from the box and channeled chakra into it. At once, the entire blade seemed to awaken.
In an instant, Prototype No. 1 gave off a visible sharpness several times greater than before.
A faint breeze seemed to ripple along its blue-gray blade.
It was like a gust ready to cut through anything and split it in two.
"A fine sword. I can't accept it. Keep it for Yan."
Enichi put the sword back in the box, his voice tinged with regret.
He couldn't take such a treasure. What use was a sword to an old man?
It was better left to his granddaughter. It could help keep her safe.
"Yan doesn't need it. This sword is for you."
Yayoi put a hint of meaning into his words.
Enichi froze for three seconds, then picked up the sword from the box.
Thanks to Fanxing Jianzheng Suiyue for the vote.
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