"Jin! What are you and Sasuke yelling about?!"
Crash!
With an exasperated shout, Fugaku flung open the door and strode out.
BOOM!
At the same time, thunder rumbled overhead, growing ever louder.
The signs of an approaching storm were unmistakable.
"It's going to rain? You'd better grab your raincoat and get ready for school."
Fugaku glanced up at the sky, then asked in puzzlement,
"Where's Sasuke? He was yelling just now. Where'd he run off to?"
At that, Jin pointed upward.
In a quieter voice, leaving out a few words, he said, "He said he wants to be the king of the Uchiha Clan!"
If Sasuke had heard that, he'd definitely have asked: What happened to 'Lightning King'?
Unfortunately, Sasuke hadn't heard.
Only Fugaku had.
As soon as he heard those words, his pupils dilated.
Then a cruel smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.
He grabbed the "Seven Wolves" from nearby and ground out each word through clenched teeth:
"Good, good, good. He wants to be king of the Uchiha?"
"His father hasn't even stepped down yet, and he's already trying to take the throne?"
"What a wonderful son I have!!"
Rumble!
Right then, lightning struck!
Just as expected, it hit the very top of the tree!
Right where a little boy stood, one hand pointed at the sky.
"Argh! That lightning... feels kinda electrifying... But I'm going to be... the Lightning... King..."
That was all Sasuke managed to say.
The next second, he fell, smoke pouring from his mouth.
His legs twitched now and then.
Electricity continued to crackle across his body.
Zzzzt, crackle.
Fugaku's face darkened. Muttering He's my own son to himself, he reached out and caught him.
He only let out a small sigh of relief after confirming Sasuke had merely been knocked unconscious.
Right then, the word "king" reached his ears.
That only made his face darker.
"Good, good, good. When you wake up, your father will make sure you get to be king!"
Jin quietly pressed himself against the courtyard wall, not daring to say a word.
He glanced at the unconscious Sasuke and sighed:
The Heir Dispute has always been like this.
Time flew by. Before long, it was morning.
With Uchiha Sasuke awake, the Uchiha District once again became "lively."
"Ahhh! Mother, why didn't you wake me?!"
"I'm going to be late! I'm going to be late!"
"Damn legs! Move faster!"
After a chaotic scramble, Sasuke shot off toward school.
There weren't many people on the road. In fact, there were hardly any.
He soon made it to the Ninja Academy without a hitch.
Just before stepping inside, he abruptly stopped and composed himself.
He straightened his sleeves, slipped his hands into his pockets, turned his head with a slight scowl, and walked in at an unhurried pace.
"Huh, Sasuke, why are you so late today? Did you oversleep?"
"Hmph. If my father hadn't insisted, I wouldn't have come."
Sasuke glanced at the person and said disdainfully,
"The things you learn at home are far better than what they teach at the Ninja Academy."
The passing girls saw this and swooned all over again:
"Wow, just like you'd expect from someone of the great Uchiha Clan!"
"He's so handsome! And rich, too..."
"But... why was he still wetting the bed this morning? Would a boyfriend like that wet the bed every day? I can't decide whether to say yes to him..."
"If it's Sasuke, even wetting the bed is adorable."
W-w-wetting the bed?!
Crack.
Sasuke's step faltered.
His mind went blank as if he'd been struck by lightning. His eyes flew open, and he stared at the girl in disbelief.
His lips trembling, he asked, "W-w-who's spreading such nonsense?"
"Oh, your big brother Itachi."
BOOM!
It was as if the lightning-struck part of his head had really started hurting.
His head throbbed like it was about to split open.
"Damn you, Jin! I'm going to—kill you..."
Smack!
Before he could finish, a blond brat slapped the words right out of him.
"Yo, Sasuke, you're late today!"
Naruto, dressed in his orange outfit, gave him a slap and then bounced back to the classroom.
Sasuke was left standing there, his eyes unfocused.
"That kid... surely he didn't really get fried by lightning?"
From a distance, Jin watched the scene and sighed.
Getting struck by lightning really wasn't a good thing.
"Still... we've talked about everything we needed to today. Time to leave."
With that thought, he took a small step.
He left behind a clone, while his real body headed straight out of the school.
The success rate for copying through conversation still wasn't high.
He could feel the immature Wood Release Power inside him relentlessly corroding his body.
It was like a slow-acting poison that made him kill himself.
It consumed the active cells in his body.
Or rather, it made his cells keep dividing.
There was only one outcome if this continued: his cells would finish dividing ahead of time, shortening his lifespan.
It was hard to say whether the First Hokage's death had anything to do with overusing Wood Release, or whether it was caused by injuries from his battle with Madara.
Or maybe Kishimoto's original setting had simply been flawed, and later additions had left a plot hole.
But there was no doubt that Wood Release was no ordinary power.
And the Wood Release he had now was incomplete.
"I wonder how many Wood Release Cells Danzo managed to get his hands on when Orochimaru defected five years ago..."
"If he still has First Generation Cells... could I take them for myself?"
With that thought, he stepped over the wall of the Ninja Academy.
As for leaving through the front gate?
What kind of good kid skipped school by walking out the front gate?!
But the moment he got outside, he sensed that something was wrong.
Somewhere, somehow, a gaze seemed to be fixed on him!
Like a snake lurking in the darkness, ready to strike at any moment.
"At a time like this, someone watching me so openly..."
Jin grinned, stretched, and the joints throughout his body popped and crackled.
"So you've finally noticed, Danzo!"
Unlike the Anbu, who merely kept records as a formality, the Root Ninja were nothing less than an extension of Danzo's will.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that if Danzo wanted the Hokage dead, Root's members would feel the same murderous intent.
And they would act on it without hesitation!
As it happened, Danzo harbored deep hostility toward the Uchiha.
He coveted the Uchiha's Dojutsu, yet feared their power.
And as a nobody from the Uchiha Clan, Jin had almost no ties to anyone in the village.
So the only ones who could be watching him with such predatory intent were Danzo's Root members.
"But it took him this long to notice something was off? Pot Kage's reaction time is terrible..."
He lifted his foot and headed straight for the tree he'd sensed.
The outer wall of the Ninja Academy was deserted.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
His wooden sandals clicked against the stone path.
The masked Root member in the tree frowned without thinking.
His hands quietly formed a seal.
The next second, he sprang into action. "Wood Release: Silent Killing Bind!"
A line of trees burst from the ground and lunged toward Jin, wrapping around his body.
Like a cage, they held him fast.
"Hmph. You really let your guard down, kid."
"Once I capture you, Lord Danzo will let me leave..."
The Root member slowly stepped out. A gleaming "Kinoe" was marked on the hem of his clothes.
After his last mission had failed, and after coming into contact with Kakashi, all he wanted now was to get out of Root as soon as possible.
He wanted to return to an ordinary life.
That was why he'd risked taking on this mission to capture a member of the Uchiha Clan inside the village!
Unlike the man, who was visibly relieved, Jin's eyes lit up the moment he saw the Wood Release!
They shone!
The Wood Release I've been longing for—it's right here!
The next second, he called out, "Hey, mister, want to chat for ten minutes?"
Before you continue