[Brother's Approval]

Akimichi Choza stood to the side, explaining to Choji, "This is your new brother. He has been in the Land of Rain until now..."

Akimichi Choji didn't have any objections to suddenly having a new, cheap brother; perhaps it was because his mother had passed away many years ago, and the two of them had always lived as father and son.

The Akimichi Clan were all carefree, big-hearted, and stout-natured people.

A sudden thought popped into his head: Did my wish come true? Can I keep eating forever?

He still couldn't stop thinking about the meal Denji had cooked at noon.

Once Choza finished speaking, Choji asked, "Alright, so what are we eating tonight?"

The Uchiha compound was quiet and peaceful in the evening; the Night of the Massacre had not yet occurred.

Smoke from cooking fires rose in wisps from the roofs of every residence.

In Sasuke's kitchen, Uchiha Mikoto was wearing an apron, busy at the stove.

Outside the window, the sky was growing dark.

Steam rose from the dining table.

The miso soup in the pot bubbled away, the savory aroma of kombu and bonito flakes mingling together, drifting in thin ribbons to fill the entire room.

Sasuke sat cross-legged at the low table in the living room, where several dishes had already been laid out.

Two saury fish lay side-by-side on a long platter, their bodies grilled to a golden, slightly charred crisp, oil seeping from their bellies and glistening under the light. The chilled tofu was sprinkled with finely chopped scallions and bonito flakes, and the pickled vegetables were sliced thin and arranged on a small plate. The miso soup was still steaming, and the white rice, served in black lacquer bowls, was distinct and fluffy.

Because his brother, Uchiha Itachi, had rarely come home for dinner lately, Sasuke looked very happy.

Itachi sat across from him, his black hair draped over his shoulders. He had already changed out of his Anbu uniform and was wearing casual Uchiha attire.

His movements were gentle as he lifted his teacup for a sip, his gaze resting on his younger brother's face with a kind of gentle patience.

"Brother," Sasuke suddenly spoke up, a hint of pride hidden in his tone, "I gained a deeper understanding of the Will of Fire at school today."

"Oh?" Itachi set down his cup. "Tell me about it."

Sasuke straightened his back. Confident, he recited what he had heard at school, omitting the part about the Land of Rain and phrasing it according to his own understanding.

To his surprise, Itachi remained silent for a long time.

Then, he looked at Sasuke's face—those black eyes reflecting his own image, clean, bright, and without a trace of impurity.

"This isn't something you thought of yourself, is it?"

Itachi smiled warmly. "Who gave you this inspiration?"

Sasuke's face turned bright red, and he stammered, unable to speak.

"The person who said this must have walked through the rain and experienced some truly terrible things.

That is something you do not possess, Sasuke."

Sasuke opened his mouth to retort, only to find he had no words.

The "Will of Fire" speech he had just given was indeed obviously not something he could have come up with on his own.

"Who is the person who said this?"

"A... Akimichi Denji." Sasuke's voice was muffled.

"Akimichi Denji..." Itachi repeated the name, searching his memory, thoughtful. "The Akimichi Clan, is that the child who returned from the Land of Rain?"

He was now an Anbu captain, and the Anbu monitored the entire village; they were the first to react whenever there was the slightest disturbance.

He had naturally heard about Akimichi Choza bringing back the son who had been left behind.

"That's right, he came from the Land of Rain."

Sasuke replied.

"Sasuke, that's good. You did well!

The path of a ninja is about constantly finding role models, learning from them, and becoming stronger.

You can take Denji as a role model.

Try to learn something from him."

Itachi dotingly patted Sasuke's head, though his eyes hid a bottomless worry.

The conflict between the clan and the village was intensifying day by day. He was maneuvering between them, hoping to help his clansmen integrate into the village and embrace the Will of Fire.

But there were still too many hawks in the clan who stubbornly believed that the power of the Uchiha was invincible, and that they could use force to oppose the entire village and restore the glory of Uchiha Madara.

If only the people in the clan could also possess this kind of Will of Fire.

If possible, he hoped Sasuke could get along well with the village and not be influenced by the hawks.

"Brother, he's a new transfer student; he doesn't even know the Three Basic Jutsu! What am I supposed to learn from him?"

"Sasuke! It is not just powerful ninjutsu that makes a powerful ninja.

Truly powerful ninjas are those who persist in their own ninja way within their hearts; that is the seed of strength.

And Denji already possesses that seed."

Sasuke felt resentful, but he had always been obedient to his brother, so he could only pout and say, unwillingly:

"Understood, Brother!"

[Wish Completed: Brother's Approval]

The Uchiha family was reunited, happy, and complete.

In the Akimichi clan courtyard, the evening breeze blew gently.

Looking at the notification that suddenly popped up on the system, Akimichi Denji was stunned for a moment; he remembered this wish belonged to the brother-obsessed Sasuke.

Yet, he simply couldn't figure out what the completion of this wish had to do with him.

Could it be because I am a chest-obsessed person too?

Unable to make sense of it, Denji decided not to dwell on it.

Akimichi Choza looked at Denji; his son had dragged him to the courtyard, saying he wanted to share his progress.

In his view, this was a good thing—his son had made progress, was taking the initiative to share his training results, and was seeking praise.

It showed trust in him, and no matter how small the progress, it was worth encouraging.

Even if it was just the basics, he should provide full affirmation.

Akimichi Choza was very confident in his parenting experience. He had raised Choji, and although that kid didn't have much to show for himself besides eating and sleeping—at least he had a good personality, was optimistic and cheerful, and hadn't gone astray.

Now Denji was back too; although he had missed the companionship of the past few years, there was still time.

Akimichi Choza was extremely confident and had already begun thinking about how to phrase his encouragement to Denji without letting him get too carried away.

He even started imagining the slightly embarrassed smile that might appear on Denji's usually tense little face after hearing it.

"I have already mastered the Chakra Refinement Technique."

"That's great, show your old man!"

Denji shook his head: "I am already performing it right now."

Then, Choza's smile froze.

Being able to refine chakra without needing to sit cross-legged, calm his mind, or form hand seals meant that Denji's mastery of the Chakra Refinement Technique had reached a very high level—at least that of an elite chunin.

One had to know that ordinary clansmen had to go through a year or two of hard training before they could let the Chakra Refinement Technique run subconsciously.

And it had only been one day since he taught Denji the Akimichi Clan Chakra Refinement Technique.

He had never witnessed such a fast speed of mastery.

Akimichi Denji did not have sensory abilities like the Byakugan, so he could only reach out and place a hand on Denji's shoulder, discovering that Denji's body was indeed subconsciously running the Chakra Refinement Technique, already absorbing chakra continuously.

Moreover, this speed was not the speed of an ordinary clansman.

This meant that Denji was extremely compatible with this Chakra Refinement Technique.

The refinement technique passed down through their Akimichi clan was different from ordinary ones and was better suited for members of the Akimichi clan.

In other words, the stronger the Akimichi bloodline a clansman had, the faster their refinement speed would be.

This refinement speed was rare even within the clan; it was likely approaching the speed of their ancestors.

As expected of my seed!

"Not bad, just like your old man, I also mastered it to this level in one day. It seems you have fully inherited my world-shaking wisdom!"

But he still had to warn him against arrogance and impatience, and not to be complacent.

Akimichi Denji continued: "But I feel it is different from what you told me."

"How is it different?"

"It seems there is a new ninjutsu?"

Listening to Denji's ambiguous answer, Choza became curious: "Demonstrate it for me."