Lord Orochimaru's Invitation

"Lord Orochimaru, what do you mean by this?" Yusuke asked coldly, watching Orochimaru suddenly attack him.

Yusuke didn't believe Orochimaru would turn against him here. After all, his strength was no weaker than Orochimaru's now, and fighting him wouldn't serve any purpose.

Orochimaru stopped attacking. He put on a little show, swallowing the Kusanagi Sword and sliding it back into his stomach.

"Yusuke, the Cursed Seal contains half of the Nine-Tails' Yin Release Chakra, doesn't it?"

"I went to see the Fourth Hokage's son. The Eight Trigrams Sealing Style on his stomach contains only half of the Nine-Tails' Yang Release Chakra."

"I'm very curious how you managed to get your hands on half of the Nine-Tails' Yin Release Chakra from the Fourth Hokage and his wife on the night of the Nine-Tails Incident."

Orochimaru stared intently at the Yin-Yang Cursed Seal on Yusuke's left chest, asking with keen interest.

The Yin-Yang Cursed Seal had become much clearer now that it contained the Nine-Tails, unlike when it had first appeared and looked so faint.

Seeing that Orochimaru had discovered his secret, Yusuke replied calmly, "It was just a coincidence. You're not planning to tell the Third Hokage about it, are you?"

Orochimaru laughed, his hoarse voice deeply unpleasant.

"Lord Orochimaru, keep your voice down. Your experiments have been making too much noise lately, and I don't want anyone finding out that I've been associating with you so closely," Yusuke said evenly.

Orochimaru stopped his unsettling laughter and looked at Yusuke. "Yusuke, this village isn't the place for people like us."

"How many talented people have been held back by the so-called Will of Fire and the so-called bonds?"

"Come with me and leave the village. I've already found a suitable base. If we develop forbidden techniques together, I'm sure we can rise above the ordinary ranks of shinobi and reach a transcendent realm!"

As Orochimaru spoke, he spread his arms, as if gazing into the future.

"Of course, don't worry. With your strength and talent, you won't be my subordinate. We'll be equals."

Orochimaru looked at Yusuke earnestly, waiting for his answer.

"Sorry, but I have no intention of leaving the village." Yusuke didn't even consider Orochimaru's offer. He turned it down decisively.

Yusuke hadn't expected Orochimaru to seek him out this time to invite him to defect from the village.

Orochimaru's invitation had been sincere, and he'd offered Yusuke an equal partnership. But Yusuke still had too many people in the village he couldn't leave behind. He couldn't simply walk away on his own.

Hearing Yusuke's answer, Orochimaru looked deeply disappointed. "Yusuke, so you, too, can't escape the entanglements of the mundane world?"

"If that's the case, perhaps your strength will never advance beyond this point."

"A person's potential determines how far they can go!"

As he spoke, Orochimaru's body gradually turned into an illusion and slowly disappeared into the air.

"Yusuke, I'll be staying in Konoha for a while. If you change your mind, there's still time!"

Yusuke shook his head at the spot where Orochimaru had disappeared, then turned and slowly headed toward the Uchiha Clan's compound.

If I had no ties holding me back, perhaps I really would have worked with Orochimaru to pursue the purest form of power.

Yusuke couldn't help thinking.

Three months passed in a flash.

After Yusuke defeated Shisui in their earlier match, his reputation within the Uchiha Clan reached its peak. After all, the shinobi world was one where strength spoke for itself. Even many clan members who had once resented Yusuke had begun treating him with respect.

At the same time, no one in Konoha was unfamiliar with the title "Flame Tachi." Many people from Konoha had watched Yusuke's battle with Shisui, and rumors of his strength had grown almost unbelievable.

Shisui's reputation had also risen after his defeat by Yusuke. He had displayed strength close to Kage Level during the match. Though Yusuke had beaten him, no one considered him weak.

With two powerful shinobi, "Flame Tachi" and "Body Flicker Shisui," in its ranks, the Uchiha Clan had regained some of the prestige it had lost in recent years. At the same time, the other shinobi clans had grown wary of them.

Nothing major happened in Konoha during this period, and the villagers were busy rebuilding the village.

The only major news was that Jiraiya, one of the Sannin, had returned to the village to take charge. His presence reassured the villagers, who had just endured the disaster of the Nine-Tails Incident.

Konoha Hospital, in the ward where Fourth Hokage Namikaze Minato was staying.

Jiraiya looked at his unconscious student lying in bed, his heart heavy with guilt.

"If only I'd been in Konoha back then. Minato wouldn't have had to bear so much pressure and end up like this," Jiraiya sighed.

"Lord Jiraiya, this isn't your fault. No one could have expected the Nine-Tails to suddenly attack the village," Kakashi said, trying to comfort him.

"Let's hope we can find Tsunade soon. If she were here, she'd definitely be able to wake Minato. Once he's conscious, we'll be able to find out what really happened that night."

At Jiraiya's words, Kakashi furrowed his brow. "Do you mean there's more to what happened that night?"

Jiraiya nodded firmly. "That's right!"

"With the strength Minato and Kushina had, they shouldn't have been unable to handle a single Nine-Tails. There's more to this than meets the eye!"

Jiraiya analyzed the situation with a serious expression.

After they finished discussing Minato's injuries, Kakashi asked, "By the way, Lord Jiraiya, the Third Hokage has sent the Fourth Hokage's child to an orphanage. Would you like to go see him?"

"Naruto?" Jiraiya's lips curled up slightly. "Of course I want to meet him. Let's go now."

"Hm? Is this your book, Lord Jiraiya?"

Just as they were about to leave, Kakashi noticed a book with a pink cover on the cabinet beside the Fourth Hokage's bed.

Jiraiya grinned proudly. "I wrote it myself. I've just finished the first volume! You can have this copy. I'm sure a real man like you will enjoy it!"

Kakashi thanked him and picked up the book to take a look. The words Icha Icha Paradise on the cover caught his eye.

It looks like a heartwarming book! Kakashi thought, slipping it into his flak jacket.

"By the way, Lord Jiraiya, there are some things about my training I'd like to ask you. They're about my Sharingan."

"Sure. We can talk as we go."

Not long after Jiraiya returned to the village, it was time for a new class to begin at the Ninja Academy. Izumi and Itachi were both old enough to enroll.

Kabuto was two years older than them, but Yusuke had him sign up as well. After a while, he could apply for early graduation, officially becoming a Genin through the village's regular process.

On the first day of school, many people gathered outside the Ninja Academy. Besides the new students, most were parents accompanying their children.

Since Izumi and Itachi were starting in the same class, Yusuke, Uchiha Hazuki, and Uchiha Fugaku and his wife all came to see them off.

Watching Izumi standing among a group of children, Yusuke couldn't help sighing. "Little Izumi's growing up so fast."

Uchiha Hazuki smiled beside him. "You're something else. You look at your little sister like a father watching his daughter."

Yusuke was only fifteen, but he was a transmigrator, and his actual mental age was even greater than that of his mother, Uchiha Hazuki.

Hadn't Yusuke doted on Izumi like a father spoiling his daughter all these years?

Yusuke smiled. "They say an older brother is like a father. What's so strange about that?"

At the enrollment ceremony, the Third Hokage gave a speech himself. He spoke about Konoha's history and the glorious deeds of the previous Hokage, with particular emphasis on the Will of Fire. Once he finished, the ceremony was over.

The new students began their most basic shinobi lessons, while their parents gradually left the Ninja Academy.

Six months after enrolling, Izumi, Itachi, and Kabuto all applied for early graduation. They had already trained under Yusuke for quite some time and had met the requirements.

Izumi and Kabuto stayed by Yusuke's side to continue their training. Yusuke didn't feel comfortable letting Izumi go out on missions, while Kabuto was his most capable assistant in developing ninjutsu. Though still young, Kabuto was already able to help Yusuke quite a bit.

Itachi, meanwhile, wanted to gain experience through real missions, so he joined a standard four-person shinobi team.

The team was led by the jonin Mizunuki Yuki. Besides Itachi, it had two Genin who were two years ahead of him: Izumo Tenma and Inari Shinji.

Itachi went on many missions with the team. At first, he didn't really fit in, but as the missions piled up and became increasingly difficult, he and his three teammates grew more and more in sync. They became friends as well.

But their good fortune didn't last. During an escort mission, Itachi's team was attacked by a mysterious assailant. Their jonin leader, Mizunuki Yuki, and Genin Izumo Tenma were killed, while Genin Inari Shinji was seriously injured.

The mysterious attacker didn't seem to want to harm Itachi, and he escaped the battle with only minor injuries. But the deaths of his leader and teammate shook him deeply, and he successfully awakened his Sharingan.

Standing before the graves of his leader and teammate, Itachi found himself questioning the meaning of life once more.

When he had returned to the clan after failing his first mission, his father hadn't cared at all about the deaths of his teammates. He had only praised Itachi for awakening his Sharingan at such a young age.

Now, Itachi felt a deep knot of anguish in his heart.

"Itachi, I didn't expect you to have to face the grief of losing comrades at such a young age."

With a sigh, a voice sounded behind Itachi.

Recognizing the familiar voice, Itachi turned to look at the person who had arrived.

"Sensei, what are you doing here?"

Yusuke stepped closer, patted Itachi on the head, and smiled. "You're a good kid, but you're too sentimental and you worry about too many things."

"Sensei, have you ever lost comrades on the battlefield?" Itachi looked up at Yusuke.

"Of course. I saw too much of it during the Third Shinobi World War. After a while, you go numb, and nothing really affects you anymore." Yusuke gazed into the distance, as if recalling the past.

Yusuke consoled him. "There's no use being sentimental. Treasure the people around you and work hard to grow stronger. Only then will you be able to change your fate."

Itachi fell silent for a long while. Then he suddenly asked Yusuke, "Sensei, which do you think is more important: the village or the clan?"

"I thought you'd keep that question bottled up forever."

Yusuke smiled and sat down on a nearby stone step. He gestured for Itachi to sit beside him.

"So, Itachi, which do you think is more important?"

Itachi hesitated for a moment before answering, "I think the village should be more important."

Yusuke wasn't surprised by Itachi's answer. In the original story, Itachi had chosen to destroy his clan for the sake of the village.

"If one day the village and the clan had an extremely serious, irreconcilable disagreement, would you sacrifice your entire clan for the village?"

Itachi froze at Yusuke's question. He didn't know what choice he would make in that situation.

Yusuke patted Itachi on the shoulder and asked with a smile, "Have you heard of the Trolley Problem?"

"The Trolley Problem?"

As always, thanks for your support! It's 33 days until I start updating twice a day!

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