Three Years

In the blink of an eye, three years had passed.

Three years wasn't a long time, but plenty of major events had taken place in the Ninja World.

Sunagakure and Iwagakure had fought a localized war. Pakura, Sunagakure's hero, had suddenly disappeared, and outsiders speculated that she might have died in a clash with Iwagakure's ninja.

The Fourth Kazekage had traveled to the Nara Desert, captured Shukaku, the One-Tail, and sealed him inside his own son, Gaara. However, word from those in the know claimed that the Shukaku the Fourth Kazekage had captured seemed far smaller than a normal Tailed Beast. The reason remained unknown. Some experts theorized that Tailed Beasts had developed the ability to reproduce as they evolved, and that the Fourth Kazekage hadn't captured the real One-Tail, Shukaku, but his son.

An unknown, mysterious organization had appeared in the Ninja World. Its members specialized in taking on high-paying bounty missions, and they could complete almost any task with near-perfect success. This had attracted the attention of many factions.

Rumors circulated that in many small ninja villages with powerful Kekkei Genkai, a mysterious pale-skinned man with long black hair had appeared. He abducted talented youths and children, and the relevant departments in each village had begun organizing forces to find him.

These were the major events that had attracted the most attention in the Ninja World over the past three years.

At that moment, Yusuke was fighting Ryujin Jakka, who had taken human form, in the Mental World.

Yusuke was now 1.85 meters tall, with a sturdy, upright build. He no longer looked quite as slender as he had in his youth.

Ryujin Jakka's human form still looked exactly like Yusuke. Both wielded long swords wreathed in roaring flames as they attacked each other. Not far away, the Nine-Tails watched their battle, trembling.

After three years of training, Yusuke's soul had grown far stronger. He could now fight Ryujin Jakka in Shikai form in the Mental World for nearly half an hour.

Yusuke could now control the Reiatsu he released and use it to intimidate opponents. If someone had weak mental strength, it would become extremely difficult for them even to speak under the pressure of his Reiatsu. In severe cases, they might suffer a complete mental breakdown.

"Not enough. Your Reiatsu needs to be even stronger!"

"Your sword lacks spirit. How can you bring out the full power of my Ryujin Jakka like that?"

Yusuke could now hold his own against Ryujin Jakka, unlike three years ago, when he could only defend himself and never counterattack. Even so, his performance clearly still wasn't good enough for Ryujin Jakka.

The two moved as fast as lightning. Their blades flashed, filling the surrounding area with scarlet flames.

After blocking Yusuke's strike, Ryujin Jakka used the force of the impact to leap backward and open some distance between them.

"That's enough training for today. Let's test the power of Bankai!" Ryujin Jakka said.

Yusuke nodded. Following Ryujin Jakka's instructions on how to perform Bankai, he controlled his Reiatsu and sealed all the flames on his blade into the weapon in his hand.

All the flames that had surrounded Yusuke and covered his weapon quickly sank into the blade of his long sword, which gleamed scarlet.

What Yusuke had just performed was one of Ryujin Jakka's Bankai forms: Goka no Ken. It was the Bankai ability Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni had used before mastering Zanka no Tachi.

Goka no Ken sealed all the flames inside the Zanpakuto. When the wielder swung it, the flames erupted with devastating force, burning whatever they struck to ashes.

A flash of fire passed through Yusuke's eyes as he swung Goka no Ken at Ryujin Jakka. Ryujin Jakka frowned, thrusting his long sword forward and precisely touching the side of Yusuke's blade with its tip.

At Ryujin Jakka's touch, the Reiatsu in Yusuke's Goka no Ken suddenly destabilized. The sealed flames gushed back out of the blade in an instant, returning it to its Shikai form.

"I failed again." Yusuke looked at the long sword in his hand and sighed.

Ryujin Jakka put away his weapon and said gravely, "Yusuke, do you know why you still haven't mastered Bankai?"

"It isn't just a matter of controlling your Reiatsu. More importantly, you haven't grasped the 'Will of Fire'!"

At the words "Will of Fire," Yusuke's facial muscles twitched involuntarily. He knew that the Will of Fire Ryujin Jakka meant wasn't the same as the one passed down through Konoha's generations, but it still felt strange.

"You have neither the momentum to press forward without hesitation nor the overwhelming confidence that none can rival you! How could someone like that unleash my true power?"

"Think carefully about what I've said." Ryujin Jakka's body turned into a stream of flames and slowly vanished, leaving Yusuke lost in thought.

After a long while, Yusuke looked at Ryujin Jakka, towering through the heavens and earth in the Mental World, and couldn't help but smile wryly. "The momentum to press forward without hesitation and the confidence that none can rival you? It sounds simple, but actually doing it is far from easy."

Outside the Fourth Hokage's hospital room, Itachi and Izumi waited quietly.

Itachi and Izumi had just turned ten. But in the world of Naruto, many children their age were already working, and quite a few ninja sent out on missions were just as young.

Izumi had passed the Chunin Ninja Exams a year ago and become a Chunin. Both of them now wore Konoha Chunin uniforms, but instead of the red spiral, the backs bore the Uchiha Clan crest.

Over the past three years, both of them had changed a great deal.

The first changes were in their appearance. They had both grown considerably taller, and much of the childishness had faded from their faces. Deep smile lines had appeared on Itachi's face, giving him an inexplicably world-weary air.

(The two lines beside Itachi's nose are sometimes described as smile lines and sometimes as tear troughs. In this story, they're treated as smile lines.)

They both wore their hair in single ponytails, though Itachi's was tied lower, with his hair lying close against his back, while Izumi's was tied higher, giving her a dashing, spirited look.

Just then, the door to the Fourth Hokage's room slowly opened, and Kabuto and Kakashi came out.

Kakashi was the same age as Yusuke and now looked much like he did when he first appeared in the original story. But he still carried a short sword on his back, clearly unwilling to give up the Hatake Clan's swordsmanship.

Kabuto still wore the black, round-framed glasses Yakushi Nonō had given him, along with a Konoha Chunin uniform. He seemed more composed now, without the slyness he had displayed in the original story.

"How did the treatment go today?" Izumi asked.

She and Itachi had come with Kabuto. Ever since returning to Konoha more than a year ago, Kabuto had treated the Fourth Hokage every day, gently stimulating his brain and nerves with Chakra.

Kabuto shook his head. "It'll still take some time before the Fourth Hokage wakes up. His brain and nerves are gradually recovering, but he probably won't regain consciousness anytime soon."

"Besides, even if the Fourth Hokage regains his senses, his body hasn't moved in so long. He'll need quite a lengthy recovery period before he can return to his former strength."

Kakashi said gratefully, "I don't mind how long it takes. As long as my teacher recovers, that's enough. I'll be counting on you to continue taking good care of him."

Kabuto hurriedly replied, "You're too kind, Kakashi-senpai. It's only right that I do this."

After saying goodbye to Kakashi at the hospital, Itachi, Izumi, and Kabuto headed to the Hokage Office to pick up a mission.

Ever since all three had become Chunin, they had formed a three-person squad and carried out missions in Konoha. They were exceptionally capable and had performed brilliantly on many missions, earning themselves quite a reputation in the village.

After accepting their mission and leaving the Hokage's office, the three happened to run into Danzo, who was on his way there. The atmosphere immediately turned awkward.

Ever since the Uchiha Clan had moved to the outskirts of Konoha three years ago, relations with the village's other factions had grown increasingly tense. Their relationship with Danzo, in particular, could only be described as hostile.

With the Konoha High Command's approval, Danzo had continually joined forces with various clans to suppress the Uchiha Clan. But many Uchiha refused to accept the mistreatment and fought back on every front, provoking quite a few serious incidents in the village.

Most of those incidents ended in defeat for the Uchiha Clan. On top of that, Danzo had secretly fanned the flames, greatly damaging the clan's reputation in the village.

As the situation grew more and more dire, many members of the Uchiha Clan's Radical Faction had begun entertaining some extremely dangerous ideas. Even Uchiha Fugaku, the clan's more moderate leader, could barely keep the radicals in check.

Ever since witnessing the duel between Yusuke and Shisui three years ago, many Uchiha had considered Shisui a fighter on par with the Sannin. And since Yusuke had defeated Shisui, he was naturally even stronger. Add Shisui and Yusuke to their clan leader, Uchiha Fugaku, who rarely showed his abilities, and the Uchiha Clan's top-tier combat strength was not to be underestimated.

Meanwhile, among Konoha's leaders, the Third Hokage and Danzo were both already very old, the Fourth Hokage was still unconscious in his hospital bed, and all three Sannin with top-tier strength had left the village.

With their strength rising as Konoha's declined, the Uchiha Clan's radicals naturally believed that their clan's top fighters had surpassed the Konoha High Command. Yet despite the clan's strength, its power and influence in the village continued to shrink. This had also led many Uchiha to grow dissatisfied with their current clan leader, Uchiha Fugaku.

Danzo glanced at Itachi and the others with his sinister eyes, recognizing these rising young talents who had recently made a name for themselves in Konoha. But all three were students of Uchiha Yusuke, so to him, they were simply enemies who needed to be eliminated.

Out of courtesy, Itachi and the others bowed to Danzo, but he didn't respond.

As Danzo slowly entered the Third Hokage's office, Itachi frowned without realizing it. He had a vague feeling that something big was about to happen.

"Itachi, what are you thinking about? We should get going," Izumi said, tugging at his clothes when she saw him standing motionless.

Itachi came back to himself and smiled faintly. "Sorry, I got distracted. Before we leave the village, I want to stop by the academy and see Sasuke."

Thanks, as always, for your support!

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