Three Years

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

Three years was not a long time, yet quite a few major events had occurred in the shinobi world.

A localized war broke out between Sunagakure and Iwagakure; Sunagakure's hero-ninja Pakura suddenly vanished, with outside speculation that she had died in battle against Iwa-nin.

The Fourth Kazekage traveled to the Nara Desert to capture the One-Tail, Shukaku, and sealed it inside his own son, Gaara. However, word from those in the know claimed that the Shukaku the Fourth Kazekage caught was far smaller than a normal tailed beast, for reasons still unknown. Some experts analyzed that this might be because tailed beasts had developed reproductive capabilities during their evolution, and what the Fourth Kazekage captured was not the true One-Tail Shukaku, but its offspring.

An unknown mysterious organization appeared in the shinobi world, whose members specialized in accepting all kinds of high-reward bounty missions. No matter the task, they could complete it almost one hundred percent of the time, drawing the attention of many factions.

Rumors circulated that in many small ninja villages with powerful Kekkei Genkai, a mysterious figure with long black hair and pale skin had appeared, specifically abducting talented youths or children. Relevant departments in various villages began organizing forces to search for this mysterious person's whereabouts.

These were the major events that had drawn attention in the shinobi world over the past three years.

Meanwhile, Yusuke was in his spiritual world, battling the personified Ryujin Jakka.

Yusuke had now grown to a height of 1.85 meters, his build straight and sturdy, no longer appearing slightly thin as he had in his youth.

Ryujin Jakka's manifestation still looked exactly like Yusuke, both wielding long blades blazing with fierce flames as they attacked each other. Not far from them, the Nine-Tails watched their duel, trembling on the sidelines.

After three years of training, Yusuke's soul power was no longer what it used to be. He could now persist in the spiritual world for nearly an hour fighting Ryujin Jakka in his Shikai form.

At this point, Yusuke could control the release of his Reiatsu, using it to intimidate opponents. If an enemy had weak mental strength, speaking under Yusuke's Reiatsu would become extremely difficult; in severe cases, they might even suffer a complete mental breakdown.

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

"Your blade lacks ferocity—how can you bring out my Ryujin Jakka's true power like this?"

Although Yusuke could now trade blows with Ryujin Jakka, unlike three years ago when he could only parry without any offense, his performance still failed to satisfy Ryujin Jakka.

Their exchange was as fast as lightning; wherever the blade light flashed, the area was filled with crimson flames.

After blocking Yusuke's slash with his sword, Ryujin Jakka used the recoil force to leap back and create distance.

"Training for today is about done. Try the power of Bankai!" Ryujin Jakka said to Yusuke.

Yusuke nodded. Following the Bankai method Ryujin Jakka had taught him, he controlled his Reiatsu to seal all the flames on the blade into the weapon in his hand.

The flames that had been coiling around Yusuke's body and the surface of his weapon rapidly sank into the blade of the longsword, the entire edge gleaming with a crimson luster.

What Yusuke was now unleashing was one of Ryujin Jakka's Bankai forms: "Goka no Ken." This Bankai form was the ability Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni had used before mastering the Bankai "Zanka no Tachi."

Goka no Ken's ability was to seal all flames into the Zanpakuto, unleashing a violent burst of fire upon striking, burning whatever it hit to ashes.

A flash of fire flickered in Yusuke's eyes as he swung Goka no Ken toward Ryujin Jakka. But Ryujin Jakka frowned, thrusting his longsword forward, the tip precisely tapping against the blade of Yusuke's Goka no Ken.

With that single tap from Ryujin Jakka's sword tip, the Reiatsu in Yusuke's Goka no Ken suddenly destabilized. The sealed flames burst out from the blade in an instant, reverting it back to its Shikai form.

"Failed again," Yusuke sighed, looking at the longsword in his hand.

Ryujin Jakka sheathed his weapon, his expression serious. "Yusuke, do you know why you still can't master Bankai?"

"It's not just a matter of Reiatsu control. More importantly, you haven't grasped the 'Will of Fire'!"

Hearing the words "Will of Fire," the muscles in Yusuke's face twitched involuntarily. Although he knew the "Will of Fire" Ryujin Jakka spoke of was not the same as the one passed down through Konoha's generations, the feeling was still very strange.

"Without the momentum to charge forward without hesitation, nor the dominance to claim the world as your own—how can you bring out my true power?"

"Think carefully about what I've said!" Ryujin Jakka's body turned into a flame and slowly vanished, leaving Yusuke deep in thought.

After pondering for a long time, Yusuke looked at the towering Ryujin Jakka standing in the spiritual world, piercing heaven and earth, and couldn't help but smile bitterly to himself: "The momentum to charge forward without hesitation and the dominance to claim the world as your own? Easy to say, but truly achieving both is no simple task."

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

Itachi and Izumi were now just ten years old, but in the world of Naruto, many youths this age were already working, and quite a few ninjas on missions were this young.

A year ago, Izumi had passed the Chunin Exams and been promoted to chunin. Both were now wearing Konoha chunin uniforms, but the emblem on the back was not the red swirl symbol—it was the Uchiha Clan's crest.

After three years of growth, both had changed significantly.

First was their appearance: not only had they grown taller, but the childishness on their faces had faded considerably. Itachi's face even bore deep nasolabial folds, giving him an inexplicable air of weariness.

(The two lines beside Itachi's nose are sometimes called nasolabial folds or tear troughs; in this text, they are treated as nasolabial folds.)

Both now wore their hair in a single ponytail, but Itachi's ponytail was positioned lower, lying flat against his back, while Izumi's was higher, giving her a spirited and heroic look.

At that moment, the door to the Fourth Hokage's room slowly opened, and Kabuto and Kakashi walked out.

Kakashi was the same age as Yusuke and now looked much like his appearance at the start of the original series. However, he still carried a short sword on his back, clearly not having abandoned the Hatake Clan's swordsmanship.

Kabuto still wore the black round-framed glasses Yakushi Nonō had given him, along with his Konoha chunin uniform. His face now bore more composure, without the cunning shown in the original story.

"How was today's treatment?" Izumi asked.

She and Itachi had accompanied Kabuto here. Since returning to Konoha over a year ago, Kabuto had been treating the Fourth Hokage daily, using gentle chakra to slowly stimulate the Fourth's brain nerves.

Kabuto shook his head. "It will still be some time before the Fourth Hokage awakens. His brain nerves are gradually regaining vitality, but he shouldn't wake up in the short term."

"Moreover, even if the Fourth Hokage regains consciousness, his body hasn't moved for so long. He'll need a fairly long recovery period to restore his original strength."

Kakashi said gratefully, "A longer time is fine. As long as the teacher can recover, that's enough. I'll have to trouble you to keep up the effort."

Kabuto quickly waved his hand. "Kakashi-senpai, you're too kind. This is simply what I should be doing."

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

Since all three had become chunin, they had formed a three-man squad and carried out missions in Konoha. Their skills were outstanding, and they performed excellently on many tasks, earning considerable fame within the village.

After picking up their mission and leaving the Hokage's office, they happened to run into Danzo heading toward it. The atmosphere immediately turned tense.

Since the Uchiha Clan relocated to the outermost area of Konoha three years ago, their relations with the various factions within the village have grown increasingly tense, and their relationship with Danzo could only be described as hostile.

Under the tacit approval of Konoha's higher-ups, Danzo continuously allied with various clans to suppress the Uchiha Clan. However, most members of the Uchiha Clan refused to accept this oppression, resisting on multiple fronts and sparking several serious incidents within the village.

Not only did most of these incidents end in failure for the Uchiha Clan, but with Danzo's covert manipulation, they also greatly tarnished the clan's reputation within the village.

As the situation grew more dire, the radical faction within the Uchiha Clan began harboring many very dangerous ideas. The clan head, Uchiha Fugaku, who belonged to the moderate faction, could no longer suppress the radicals.

Ever since witnessing the duel between Yusuke and Shisui three years ago, many Uchiha members regarded Shisui as a powerhouse on par with the Sannin, and Yusuke, who had defeated Shisui, was naturally considered even stronger. With Shisui, Yusuke, and the unassuming clan head Uchiha Fugaku, the Uchiha Clan's top-tier combat strength had become nothing to scoff at.

Now, among Konoha's higher-ups, the Third Hokage and Danzo were both growing old, the Fourth Hokage lay unconscious on his sickbed, and the Sannin, who possessed top-tier combat power, had all left the village.

With this shift in balance, the radical faction of the Uchiha Clan naturally felt that the clan's top-tier strength had surpassed that of Konoha's leadership. Yet, despite their power, the clan's rights and influence within the village were shrinking. This led to growing dissatisfaction among many Uchiha members toward the current clan head, Uchiha Fugaku.

With a gloomy glance at Itachi and the other two, Danzo recognized them as the rising stars who had recently made a name for themselves in Konoha. However, since all three were disciples of Uchiha Yusuke, they were merely enemies to be eliminated in his eyes.

Out of respect for hierarchy, Itachi and the others bowed to Danzo, but he did not respond.

Watching Danzo slowly enter the Third Hokage's office, Itachi's brow furrowed involuntarily. He had a vague feeling that something major was about to happen.

"Itachi, what are you thinking about? We should get going." Izumi tugged at Itachi's sleeve when she saw him standing still.

Itachi snapped back to reality with a slight smile. "Sorry, I was just spacing out. Before we leave the village, I want to stop by the nursery to check on Sasuke."

As always, thank you for your support!!!

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