"I won't let that day come!"
Youhu's answer dispelled the last trace of doubt in the Third Hokage's heart.
The Third Hokage seemed to be asking whether Youhu would stand with the village or the clan if conflict broke out between them.
But in reality, the Third Hokage was testing Youhu.
If Youhu answered that he stood with the clan, the Third Hokage would feel that it was only natural.
Although Youhu had been educated at the Ninja School since childhood, Uchiha blood flowed through his veins. If conflict broke out between the village and the clan, it was perfectly normal for him to stand with his bloodline clan.
After all, which ninja from a Ninja Clan in the village wouldn't look after his own clan?
But regardless of whether it was understandable, the Third Hokage definitely wouldn't recruit an Uchiha who yearned for his clan as a subordinate. That was to prevent his Anbu from falling into disorder if conflict truly broke out one day.
If Youhu answered that he stood with the village, the Third Hokage would only think him hypocritical and cold-blooded.
A ninja who could even abandon his clan would abandon the village sooner or later. Such a person was an unstable bomb to both the Uchiha and Konoha, and could explode at any moment.
By comparison, Youhu's current answer greatly satisfied the Third Hokage.
He wouldn't abandon the village or give up on the clan. Instead, he would work to prevent conflict from breaking out between them and help the Uchiha Clan integrate into Konoha's larger family.
With that thought, the Third Hokage reached out to Youhu and invited him:
"Youhu, are you willing to leave the Guard Division and make a contribution toward repairing the rift between the Uchiha and the village?"
Is he inviting me to join the Anbu?
Can I really join the Anbu this easily? Though Shisui's process for joining the Anbu seemed to have been about the same.
Youhu was slightly stunned, then nodded. A look of yearning appeared in his eyes. "If it can repair the rift between the clan and the village, I'm willing to join the Anbu and contribute to this cause."
"I never said you could join the Anbu directly..."
"I can't join the Anbu directly?" Youhu's expression dimmed, but then he thought of something and hurriedly said, "That means I have a chance to join the Anbu. Hokage, what do I need to do to join?"
"Don't worry. It's only a small matter..."
"The rumors in the village started spreading from you in the first place, so you can be responsible for dispelling them. As long as you clarify the rumors, you can join the Anbu."
The Third Hokage smiled inwardly. He still had some charisma after all—he could make a young Uchiha submit so casually. However, he hadn't really intended to make Youhu do much. A simple rumor clarification would be enough.
The strength of a Chunin was still too weak, after all.
"So it was only rumor clarification..."
Youhu pretended to sigh in relief and walked toward the office door. "Hokage, I'll go to the entrance of the Hokage Building right now and admit my mistake in front of everyone."
"As long as I explain everything clearly to everyone who passes by, I can surely clear your name, Hokage."
"Then go do it..."
"Wait. What are you going to do?"
The Third Hokage watched Youhu leave. Just as he was preparing to wait for good news, he suddenly realized something. He hurriedly used the Body Flicker Technique to appear beside Youhu and blocked his path.
"Hokage, I'm going to dispel the rumors."
Youhu looked puzzled and said, utterly confused, "Hokage, do you think there's something wrong with that?"
"You..."
The Third Hokage was at a loss for words. He couldn't tell whether Youhu was playing dumb or was genuinely too naive.
You were going to stand at the entrance of the Hokage Building and tell everyone that he, the Third Hokage, had no relationship whatsoever with Uchiha Fugaku, and that he was completely innocent where Shimura Danzō was concerned.
Wouldn't that deliberately make people speculate?
If none of this had happened, why were you trying to dispel the rumors? And why have an Uchiha youth do it? Who knew whether you had threatened the Uchiha in private?
But if he didn't dispel the rumors and simply let them continue spreading...
It would seem as if he, the Third Hokage, tacitly approved them. Who knew where they might spread next?
When he imagined the Daimyo of the Land of Fire and the Tsuchikage of Iwagakure coming to question him after learning about this, the Third Hokage felt that his lifelong reputation had been completely ruined.
Now he was truly caught between a rock and a hard place.
Youhu was shocked by the Third Hokage's speed. One second, the Third Hokage had still been sitting on his chair; now he was blocking Youhu's path. Is this the Body Flicker Technique of the older generation?
Or did he unleash unprecedented speed because this involved his reputation and dark history?
However, rumors weren't something that could be solved by dispelling them. Pretending nothing had happened or creating a bigger incident to divert attention was the best course of action.
He was determined to claim the Deception Points from this lie.
Looking at the flustered Youhu before him, the Third Hokage sighed softly.
"You don't need to dispel the rumors anymore. Join the Anbu like everyone else by passing the Normal Assessment. Come to the Hokage Building tomorrow morning, and I'll have someone assess you."
"Yes, Hokage!" Youhu said loudly.
Just then, a guard from the Hokage Building pushed open the office door, his face filled with urgency.
"This is bad, Hokage! Guard Captain Fugaku has brought a group of Guard Division members downstairs. They want us to hand over the imprisoned Uchiha. Otherwise..."
Halfway through his sentence, the guard noticed Uchiha Youhu inside the room, and his expression became strange.
The Hokage really did imprison an Uchiha? Is the village about to erupt into a Civil War today? Will I die in the civil war? I'm still young—I don't want to die this soon.
Youhu noticed the guard's expression and raised a hand in greeting. "This is a misunderstanding. I don't think I've been detained."
After hearing that Fugaku had brought people to storm the Hokage Building and demand someone, the Third Hokage's expression instantly darkened.
He was the Hokage and had merely summoned a village ninja. Yet the Uchiha dared to come to the Hokage Building to demand someone. Were they planning to launch an armed coup next?
After snorting coldly, the Third Hokage looked at Youhu and said with considerable displeasure:
"Youhu, you caused this incident. Come downstairs with me and explain yourself. If you don't make things clear, don't even think about joining the Anbu. And don't even think about becoming a Jonin in the future."
"Understood, Hokage."
Youhu also felt that something was strange. He had merely been summoned by the Third Hokage. Did the Uchiha really need to make such a huge fuss over it?
And as far as he remembered, he was practically invisible within the Uchiha Clan.
Aside from making some bold suggestions last night, he had no presence at all.
A dozen seconds later, Youhu and the Third Hokage walked out of the Hokage Building together and faced the aggressively advancing Guard Division.
When Youhu saw Tiehuo behind Fugaku, along with the look of grim determination on Tiehuo's face, he immediately understood everything.
So this was the big mess you made for me, you little punk.
The Third Hokage stared gravely at Fugaku, while Fugaku looked equally wary. The atmosphere between the two sides was extremely tense.
Before long, as time passed, the ninjas working near the Hokage Building arrived one after another, gathering to watch the standoff between the Third Hokage and the Uchiha Guard Division.
The Anbu who secretly arrived went even further and surrounded the area.
The atmosphere grew increasingly tense, reaching the point where a fight could break out at any moment.
Youhu knew he couldn't remain silent any longer. He left the Third Hokage's side, jogged to a spot in front of Fugaku, and shouted, "Fugaku Clan Head, this is just a little misunderstanding."
"Hokage summoned me to clarify the relationship between you two."
Before you continue