Awkward Encounter

"Ninjutsu involving mechanical devices relies too heavily on external objects. While it forms its own school of thought and has many aspects worth learning from, it ultimately puts the cart before the horse." Uchiha Yusuke shook his head and continued, "Only one's own power is truly worth relying on."

"Uchiha Yusuke, you are quite right; we are indeed kindred spirits. I am currently researching a very interesting ninjutsu. If I succeed, it will allow humanity to break through the shackles of life," Orochimaru said.

He then looked at Uchiha Yusuke with a fanatical expression and continued, "This will grant people endless life and time to study all the ninjutsu in the world, reaching the realm of the extraordinary!"

Hearing Orochimaru describe the technique, Uchiha Yusuke guessed it was the Living Corpse Reincarnation.

This technique was indeed a genius concept, and in Uchiha Yusuke's eyes, Orochimaru, who could conceive of such a jutsu, was an unparalleled talent.

Although the technique had significant flaws, compared to the benefit of eternal life, they were hardly worth mentioning.

Of course, while the Living Corpse Reincarnation gave Orochimaru a near-immortal body, it also greatly reduced his resistance to genjutsu.

Every time he used the Living Corpse Reincarnation, Orochimaru's mental strength suffered a qualitative decline, which left him with almost no power to fight back when facing someone as skilled in genjutsu as Uchiha Itachi.

"Master Orochimaru, I just can't seem to perform the Hidden Shadow Snake Hands technique correctly. Could you practice with me again and help me see where the problem lies?" Just then, a young girl's voice rang out.

A girl of about ten with a round face walked in, her hair tied in a high ponytail, dressed somewhat like a tomboy.

This girl was none other than Mitarashi Anko, Orochimaru's only disciple in Konoha at the moment.

Uchiha Yusuke's brows furrowed slightly. With his keen eyesight, he noticed from a distance a black curse mark on the back of Mitarashi Anko's neck—it had to be Orochimaru's Heaven Curse Seal.

Although the Heaven Curse Seal could grant a ninja immense power when activated, it also had major drawbacks. The longer the user utilized it, the greater the damage to their body, and the backlash from excessive use would plunge the user into extreme pain.

"It's you again, you jerk. Why do you keep pestering Master Orochimaru?" After walking closer and seeing Uchiha Yusuke sitting opposite Orochimaru, Mitarashi Anko puffed out her cheeks in anger.

Uchiha Yusuke remained expressionless, though he felt quite helpless regarding the hostility Mitarashi Anko displayed.

He knew that Mitarashi Anko was very dependent on Orochimaru, and seeing him frequently discuss ninjutsu with her master, she had never been fond of him.

"Lord Orochimaru, since this technique is already complete, I won't disturb you any further." Uchiha Yusuke stood up to take his leave.

Orochimaru nodded and said, "Very well. There was actually something else I wanted to discuss with you, but there is no rush. Let's talk again after the successor to the Fourth Hokage is confirmed."

"The Fourth Hokage will definitely be you, Master Orochimaru!" Mitarashi Anko clenched her small fist, full of confidence. In her heart, Master Orochimaru was the greatest ninja, and no one could compare to him.

Uchiha Yusuke actually quite liked this energetic little girl, though she didn't care much for him. Abandoning the thought of reaching out to pinch her round cheeks, Uchiha Yusuke formed hand seals with his left hand, and his body transformed into flames and vanished.

"Hmph, that Uchiha Yusuke is always taking up your time, Master Orochimaru. You don't even have time to teach me ninjutsu anymore," Mitarashi Anko complained.

Orochimaru patted Mitarashi Anko's head and said slowly, "Uchiha Yusuke is a true genius. I don't even know how far his strength will reach in the future." As he spoke, Orochimaru's gaze was deep, as if he were contemplating something.

Leaving Orochimaru's gloomy laboratory, Uchiha Yusuke decided to take a rare moment to relax.

He had originally planned to spend the entire day researching the Fire Illusion Crow Technique with Orochimaru, but he hadn't expected Orochimaru to have already finished it himself, giving Uchiha Yusuke some unexpected free time today.

Strolling slowly through the streets of Konoha, Uchiha Yusuke enjoyed the rare leisure.

Although his reputation in the village wasn't small—everyone knew of the genius ninja nicknamed the Flame Tachi—his appearance lacked any particularly striking features that made him instantly recognizable, unlike Kakashi's white mop of hair or the Fourth's vibrant yellow locks. Therefore, unless they were ninjas who knew him, not many people recognized him.

As he walked, a sign written in calligraphy caught Uchiha Yusuke's eye. Looking at the elegant characters for "Pin-Chun Tea House" on the sign, Uchiha Yusuke decided to go in and sit for a while.

"One oolong tea, please." Uchiha Yusuke entered the teahouse and found a seat by the side.

"Coming right up, Ninja-sama, here is your oolong tea." Before long, a girl wearing an apron brought the tea to Uchiha Yusuke's table.

The girl was about ten years old, with long, light gray hair tied into two braids that rested on her shoulders, making her look quite mischievous. Her round face was lightly dusted with freckles, and her smile was very infectious, as if it could make anyone who saw it feel happy too.

"Thank you." Uchiha Yusuke took the oolong tea.

"Wait, you seem to be the 'Flame Tachi', Uchiha Yusuke-sama, right?" The girl suddenly said with pleasant surprise when she saw him.

Uchiha Yusuke was slightly surprised that this teahouse server would recognize him. He nodded and smiled, "Yes, how do you know me? I don't think I've seen you before."

"It really is 'Flame Tachi'-sama! I saw you fighting a weirdo in a green bodysuit before, and after asking around, I found out who you were. Don't look at me like I'm just a temporary server here; I'm a student at the Ninja Academy, and I'll definitely become a powerful ninja in the future!" The girl's eyes lit up, as if she were imagining herself becoming a ninja admired by everyone.

Uchiha Yusuke rubbed his forehead helplessly; it must have been when Might Guy suddenly challenged him to a duel and started fighting without a word, and someone must have seen it.

Uchiha Yusuke offered the girl a few words of encouragement, and she went off happily to continue serving tea.

Watching the girl's busy figure, Uchiha Yusuke couldn't help but shake his head. In the cruel world of Naruto, being a ninja was the most dangerous profession, but Uchiha Yusuke would never use danger as a reason to persuade others to give up their dreams.

Uchiha Yusuke sat in the teahouse for a while when a few familiar figures entered. It was Kakashi, Asuma, and Kurenai. The three of them saw Uchiha Yusuke sitting in the teahouse, nodded to him in acknowledgment, and then sat down on the other side of the room to chat.

Uchiha Yusuke wasn't close with them; although he knew who they were, they had no private interactions. At this point, Kakashi was already a Jonin, while Asuma and Kurenai were still Chunin.

As the three of them chatted, Asuma pulled a cigarette and a lighter from his pocket.

Seeing this, Uchiha Yusuke was speechless. Wasn't this guy only fourteen? Though he looked much older than that.

Kurenai nudged Asuma with her elbow and pointed to the "No Smoking" sign on the teahouse wall, forcing Asuma to put the cigarette away with a sigh. Kurenai was truly one of the beauties of Konoha; although she wasn't very old, she had already grown into a very beautiful young woman.

Just looking at their appearances, Kurenai with Asuma really did give the impression of a flower planted in cow dung.

"You're the same age as that guy over there, and you both became Jonin at the same time. Who is actually stronger?" Asuma suddenly leaned toward Kakashi and whispered, his eyes stealing a glance at Uchiha Yusuke.

"That's right, we're all very curious about that," Kurenai added, looking interested.

Kakashi had a listless, dead-fish expression as he said indifferently, "Who knows about such boring things? Maybe he's stronger."

Hearing Kakashi's answer, Asuma was very dissatisfied and rolled his eyes. "What's that supposed to mean? Can't you be serious for once? I think if you actually tried, you'd definitely be better than him."

"Shh, keep your voice down. It would be very rude if he heard you," Kurenai said hurriedly from the side.

As for their conversation, with Uchiha Yusuke's hearing, he naturally caught most of it, but he didn't care. Right now, he just wanted to clear his mind and enjoy the cup of tea in his hand.

"That bastard Uchiha Yusuke, skipping the clan meeting again! He has absolutely no respect for the family. If I get the chance, I'm definitely going to teach him a lesson!" Just then, a somewhat irritable voice rang out from behind the curtain at the teahouse entrance.

The people in the shop looked toward the sound, only to see four men dressed in the dark, high-collared, round-necked outfits characteristic of the Uchiha clan walking in. The one who had spoken was the leader.

"Yeah, that so-called 'Flame Tachi', it's just a nickname those second-rate ninjas gave him. He really thinks he's something special," the Uchiha clan member on the left said, his face full of indignation.

"Alright, alright, calm down. Maybe Yusuke really had an urgent matter to attend to. There's no need for you to—" another Uchiha clan member beside him, looking like a real pushover, smiled and tried to mediate.

However, before he could finish his sentence, he stopped with his mouth hanging open. Because he saw Yusuke, who had skipped the clan meeting citing an "urgent matter," sitting leisurely in the teahouse drinking tea.

At this moment, Yusuke also looked at the group with a hint of awkwardness, especially the clan member who had just spoken up for him. Someone was trying to smooth things over for him, and he had just slapped them in the face in real-time. It was truly embarrassing, truly embarrassing.

"Uchiha Yusuke, you skip the clan meeting only to hide here and drink tea? Today, I, Uchiha Tatsuya, am going to show you what's what!" The Uchiha clan member named Tatsuya, upon seeing the relaxed Yusuke, flew into a rage.

Before his voice had even faded, Uchiha Tatsuya charged straight at Yusuke. The good-natured man who had been speaking up for Yusuke wanted to stop him, but it was already too late.

However, before anyone in the teahouse could react, the Uchiha clan member named Tatsuya, who had just charged at Yusuke, was sent flying backward at an even faster speed, soaring straight out past the curtain at the entrance of the teahouse.

"Tatsuya!" another Uchiha clan member exclaimed, then turned toward Yusuke and began forming hand seals.

"Fire Style: Great Fire—"

However, before he could finish the seals, he felt a blur of motion before his eyes, and Yusuke was already standing directly in front of him.

At this moment, Yusuke firmly gripped the fingers he was using to form the seals, interrupting the Great Fireball Technique he had been preparing to cast. He stared in shock at Yusuke, who had suddenly appeared before him, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"We're still inside a teahouse, you know," Yusuke said coldly. Then, with another kick, he sent the man flying out of the teahouse as well.

Just then, a gust of wind struck at Yusuke's neck; the last Uchiha clan member to enter the teahouse had also launched an attack on him.

Yusuke casually blocked the attack with his hand and turned to look at his opponent, who happened to be looking right back at him.

A perfect opportunity! Seeing Yusuke lock eyes with him, this Uchiha clan member felt a surge of secret delight.