A Spar with the Clan Leader

After Yusuke finished forming the Hand Seals, the flames he breathed out underwent a qualitative change, turning crimson.

This was a Fire Release technique that Yusuke performed by channeling the power of Ryujin Jakka within him. Its flames were far more powerful than ordinary fire. In the blink of an eye, they swallowed Uchiha Fugaku's Great Fireball Technique, then engulfed Fugaku himself.

"Father!" Itachi cried out from the sidelines.

But he soon relaxed when he saw Uchiha Fugaku go "poof" and turn into a log. The log was then reduced to ashes in the flames.

Clearly, Uchiha Fugaku had used the Substitution Technique just in time to evade Yusuke's attack.

Yusuke quickly put away the flames, then suddenly crossed his arms in a defensive stance at his side, just in time to block a powerful whip kick from Uchiha Fugaku, who had appeared out of nowhere.

The force behind Fugaku's kick was immense, and the impact sent Yusuke staggering several steps backward.

Having seized the advantage, Uchiha Fugaku pressed forward and launched a series of fierce attacks.

Neither of them used weapons. They fought hand to hand, trading attacks and blocks in a pure Taijutsu match. They moved at incredible speed, and every blow carried tremendous force. Clearly, both were skilled Taijutsu experts.

A shinobi of a certain rank could never be weak in Taijutsu.

Without sufficient physical conditioning and reflexes, they would be unable to deal with the ever-changing techniques used by shinobi of different specialties.

The Uchiha Clan possessed the Sharingan, which greatly enhanced their dynamic vision. Its members also placed great emphasis on training their bodies; otherwise, they would never be able to adapt to the visual strain caused by the Sharingan's heightened perception.

After trading attacks for a while, the two had gained a general sense of each other's Taijutsu abilities.

During the fight, Yusuke noticed that Uchiha Fugaku no longer seemed as irritated with him as he had at the start. Instead, he seemed almost impressed. But with the fight moving so quickly, Yusuke had no time to dwell on it.

Suddenly, Uchiha Fugaku changed his move mid-fight. He leaped up and brought his foot down hard toward Yusuke.

Yusuke raised his arm to block. Fugaku used the force of the kick to leap backward and upward, forming Hand Seals as he performed another technique.

"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson!" Uchiha Fugaku spat out more than a dozen flames. At the same time, he swept his right hand, sending more than a dozen rapidly spinning shuriken into the flames. Wrapped in fire, they shot toward Yusuke.

Facing the oncoming Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson, Yusuke quickly formed Hand Seals. A purple barrier, as translucent as glass, appeared in front of him.

"Scorch Release: Single Purple Flame Array!"

The flaming shuriken struck the purple barrier before Yusuke, raising a cloud of thick black smoke. A sizzling sound rang out, like red-hot iron plunged into cold water, and then they vanished completely. The intensely hot purple flames had clearly burned them to nothing, without leaving so much as a scrap behind.

Yusuke had developed the Scorch Release: Single Purple Flame Array based on the Four Purple Flame Array that Orochimaru had provided. Yusuke had taught Orochimaru the technique, but Orochimaru had never been able to use it.

The reason was that Orochimaru could not independently change Fire Release into Scorch Release. Yusuke, on the other hand, could use the power of Ryujin Jakka, the Zanpakuto within him, to transform fire into flames.

Uchiha Fugaku was well-traveled and recognized that the purple barrier would not be easy to break through. He circled around it and attacked Yusuke from the side. This time, Fugaku had a kunai in his hand. His thrust pierced straight through Yusuke's chest.

But Fugaku felt no resistance, as if his attack had not struck a real body. He immediately realized that Yusuke had somehow evaded the blow.

The Yusuke before him began to split apart into a flock of crows, each wreathed in crimson flames. Together, they flapped their wings and surged toward Uchiha Fugaku.

Fugaku retreated, swinging his kunai to drive the crows away.

However, when his kunai pierced them, Fugaku realized that the crows had no physical forms either. But the flames clinging to their bodies had set the wide sleeve of his kimono on fire.

Fugaku swung his kunai and cut off the burning sleeve. With his extensive combat experience, he immediately realized that these crows were no ordinary Clone Technique. They were clones combining illusion and elemental Chakra.

"Impressive, Uchiha Yusuke. Let's see what other tricks you can show me." Uchiha Fugaku praised him inwardly, but kept his expression unchanged. He rapidly formed Hand Seals, and the Three-Tomoe Sharingan in his eyes slowly turned.

"Body Bind Technique!"

Dozens of iron spikes suddenly appeared, pinning the flying crows in place. Every crow caught by a spike froze instantly.

Gradually, all the crows disappeared, and Yusuke's figure slowly reappeared. A few iron spikes were pinning his body as well, and he seemed unable to move at all.

"To think you used an illusion to defeat an illusion. No wonder you're the clan leader. I thought the Fire Illusion Crow Technique was nearly impossible to counter, but you broke it so easily." Yusuke spoke to Uchiha Fugaku, unable to move.

His expression remained calm, but his voice was full of admiration.

The Body Bind Technique holding Yusuke was actually an illusion. The spikes pinning him down were not real, either. Only Uchiha Fugaku, who had cast the technique, and Yusuke, who had been caught in it, could see them. It appeared to Itachi, watching nearby, that Yusuke was simply standing still.

"Yusuke, you truly are the most outstanding genius in our clan. At such a young age, you've reached this level without even relying on the Sharingan. And in this spar, you never drew your sword, despite being known as the Flame Tachi. That means you must still have something left in reserve," Uchiha Fugaku said.

Fugaku's expression had softened. He no longer looked as stern as he had when they first met. Instead, he gazed at Yusuke with admiration.

As far as Uchiha Fugaku was concerned, he had already won the spar. Whether Yusuke had refrained from using his sword out of consideration for the spar or out of overconfidence, he was now firmly under Fugaku's control and could no longer continue fighting.

Besides, Uchiha Fugaku himself had not even used his greatest trump card!

"I haven't held your conflict with Tatsuya and the others against you. I only wanted to test your strength just now. I already had a fairly high estimate of your abilities, but it seems I still underestimated you," Uchiha Fugaku continued.

Watching Fugaku speak so confidently, Yusuke understood what he was thinking. Fugaku believed Yusuke was now powerless to resist, so he was speaking to him from the position of a victor.

Seeing that Yusuke remained silent, Uchiha Fugaku furrowed his brows slightly. "Young man, don't let one defeat weigh on you. Victory and defeat are commonplace in battle, and your opponent was the leader of the Uchiha Clan, after all!"

"Clan Leader, sorry. I was just wondering if this spar is over," Yusuke replied.

At that, Uchiha Fugaku actually laughed. "What do you think?"

"If it isn't over, I may have to draw my sword." Yusuke looked at Uchiha Fugaku, his expression calm.

"Ten Thousand Things, Ashes to Ashes!" Ryujin Jakka, Shikai!

Before he had even finished speaking, Uchiha Fugaku saw a flash of fire in Yusuke's eyes. The powerful Fire Release Chakra within him surged out of control, and in an instant, he broke free of Fugaku's Body Bind Technique.

What drew Uchiha Fugaku's attention most was the magnificent long sword, now wrapped in flames, in Yusuke's right hand.

Yusuke swung Ryujin Jakka. Its flames traced a crimson arc through the air, like a splendid trail of fire.

Seeing this, Uchiha Fugaku was stunned. He couldn't help but sigh, "You truly live up to the name Flame Tachi. The younger generation is impressive."

After deactivating his Sharingan, Uchiha Fugaku habitually tried to slip both hands into the wide sleeves of his kimono. Then he suddenly realized his left hand had met empty air: his right sleeve had been burned away by the Fire Illusion Crows.

With a wry smile, Uchiha Fugaku sighed again. "I never expected this. I really didn't. By the rules of a spar, I suppose I lose, since I've lost a sleeve."

Seeing that Uchiha Fugaku no longer intended to fight, Yusuke put away his Zanpakuto, Ryujin Jakka.

Before the fight, Yusuke had not known what kind of shinobi Uchiha Fugaku was. But after their clash, he realized that Fugaku's greatest strength was probably Genjutsu.

The Body Bind Technique he had used was not a high-level illusion, yet Fugaku had wielded it with astonishing skill. Not only had he used it to counter Yusuke's Fire Illusion Crow Technique, he had also managed to restrain Yusuke completely.

If Yusuke did not have Ryujin Jakka, he would not have been able to break the technique in a short time with his current abilities.

Of course, when Yusuke said it was impossible to break, he did not mean the technique itself. More importantly, it depended on the person performing it. If Kurenai had used the same Body Bind Technique, she would probably have struggled even to restrain him for an instant.

Yusuke shook his head. "You're joking, Clan Leader. I've already used all the tricks I have, too. I'm not arrogant enough to think I can defeat the leader of the Uchiha Clan at my current level."

Yusuke was not just being modest. He knew that Uchiha Fugaku had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan. If Fugaku used the strange and unpredictable abilities of the Mangekyō Sharingan, Yusuke would indeed be unable to withstand them as he was now.

Uchiha Fugaku nodded in satisfaction. "Yusuke, this isn't the place to talk. Let's go sit down in the reception room."

Fugaku was now very pleased with this astonishingly talented young man, who was also neither arrogant nor impatient. Even the way he addressed Yusuke had grown more familiar.

The three of them went to the reception room. Uchiha Fugaku and Yusuke sat facing each other, while Itachi brought over another cushion and sat beside Fugaku.

The spar between Yusuke and Uchiha Fugaku had given Itachi his first glimpse of a fight between high-level shinobi.

With his innate talent for combat, he felt a longing stir within him.

Just as boys on Earth dreamed of becoming martial heroes or superheroes, most boys in the Naruto world dreamed of becoming powerful shinobi.

Looking at Yusuke's composed face, so mature despite his youth, Uchiha Fugaku spoke slowly. "The clan is facing all sorts of difficulties right now. I believe that, as a jōnin, you can already feel it."