Meeting Hiruzen Sarutobi

Lu Mingfei stood in the rain. His school uniform was soaked through in an instant, but he didn't care.

He tilted his head slightly, as if sensing his surroundings.

The shadows that had surrounded him shrank back, trembling, and vanished into deeper darkness, as if they had never been there.

It was as though a hazy veil had been drawn over the world.

Now, that veil had been swept away, and the world had become crystal clear.

Nibelungen had vanished completely, and the three men and the car had returned to the real world.

Then he turned, walked over, opened the car door, and climbed back into the rear seat.

He laid Murasama across his knees, as casually as if he had only stepped out for a moment in the rain.

Chu Zihang and Chu Tianjiao were both stunned.

They couldn't believe Lu Mingfei had taken care of Odin all by himself.

Chu Tianjiao especially... He'd thought he'd prepared a pretty cool last speech, only to find that he wasn't needed at all.

Even if I survived, what was the point of all that keeping my head down?

Chu Tianjiao's mind was in a daze. He climbed into the car on his own and looked at Lu Mingfei in the back seat, his expression a complicated mix of shock, awe, realization, and bitterness... until, at last, a ridiculous sort of relief settled over him.

From now on, it seemed the suffocating nightmare wouldn't come back.

He glanced at Murasama on Lu Mingfei's knees. His lips moved, but in the end, he said nothing.

Du Yang handed Murasama back to the front seat and set it beside Chu Tianjiao. Then he said:

"Uncle Chu, here's your sword. I cleared away the debris ahead, so the road should be open. Keep driving."

Chu Tianjiao drew a deep, long breath, as if trying to put all his doubts to rest.

He nodded without asking a thing, took Murasama back, and returned it to its place.

"Zihang, you brat, get in the car already."

Only then did Chu Zihang climb into the car, looking dazed and strangely, blankly foolish.

Then Chu Tianjiao pressed the accelerator.

The Maybach's engine growled to life again. It picked up speed, charging toward the road ahead.

But inwardly, he muttered:

"Hybrids, Dragon Kings, Kassel College... What a terrifying monster I ran into today."

He was almost looking forward to the day the Hybrids and Dragons ran into a monster like Lu Mingfei.

It seemed the balance of the entire world was about to be overturned.

"Wait. Was his name Lu Mingfei?"

Chu Tianjiao suddenly realized, and the corners of his mouth lifted.

If that was the case, things were getting more and more interesting.

The Naruto world.

Hidden Leaf Village, Hokage Building.

Smoke curled through the top-floor office.

Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi sat behind the broad desk, smoking.

Recent events had been increasingly beyond his expectations.

He should have met with Uchiha Fugaku a few days ago, but the Uchiha Clan Head had postponed their meeting, claiming to be ill.

That was, in fact, to be expected...

The Uchiha Clan was restless, and they might well turn against him.

They were making moves in secret, so a delay was only natural.

But if Fugaku failed to show up, it would be an open breach, a sign that he had no regard for the Hokage. Then Hiruzen would have no choice but to let Danzo make his move.

Fortunately, word had come from the Uchiha Clan that Fugaku would come to see him today.

Hiruzen's stated reason for the meeting—discussing the Military Police Force's work—was merely an excuse. His real purpose was to sound Fugaku out and see whether there was still any room to salvage the situation.

Reports from Anbu showed that the Uchiha Compound had loosened security on the surface but tightened it beneath, with patrols clearly increased over the past few days. There had been no major movements, however.

That unnatural calm only made Hiruzen more uneasy.

Danzo had urged him several times, insisting this was a prelude to an imminent Uchiha attack and demanding that they strike first.

Even so, Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi continued to hold out hope.

So Hiruzen had arrived early to wait, and had summoned most of Anbu's fighting force. It was as secure as things could get.

Speak of the devil.

When someone knocked and, after being granted permission, opened the office door, the figure who entered made Hiruzen's fingers pause around his pipe.

The visitor wasn't Uchiha Fugaku.

The one leading the group was an elderly man with a stooped frame and snow-white hair. He wore the dark traditional garb of the Uchiha, deep wrinkles carved across his face, but his eyes remained sharp. His steps were slow but steady.

Hiruzen recognized him: Uchiha Qiantang, one of the few remaining elders of the Uchiha Clan. He was of an extremely senior generation and had already been active during the Second Hokage's time. In recent years, he had kept a low profile and rarely involved himself in clan affairs.

If Uchiha Setsuna had been a hawk, then Uchiha Qiantang was a dove.

What made Hiruzen's gaze sharpen was that Uchiha Qiantang hadn't come alone.

Three young Uchiha followed behind him.

The one on the left was tall, with a stern face and eyes like a hawk's. He was Uchiha Yashiro, a veteran squad leader in the Military Police Force, known for his hardline methods and impressive strength. He was one of Fugaku's most loyal supporters, but now his face was expressionless.

The one on the right was lean and compact: Uchiha Inabi, also an elite member of the Military Police Force, known for his quick wits and skill in intelligence analysis.

Those two were among the Uchiha Clan's elite jōnin, second only to Uchiha Fugaku and Itachi.

The young man standing in the middle, half a step behind Uchiha Qiantang, was unfamiliar.

Hiruzen's gaze fell on him, and he couldn't help frowning.

As Hokage, he vaguely remembered the young man. His name was Uchiha Du Yang, one of the Uchiha Clan's rising talents. But his strength had only just reached the level of an upper-rank ninja.

Anbu had been considering recruiting Uchiha Du Yang and continuing his training.

He wore ordinary Uchiha clothes and stood respectfully. Yet behind his lowered eyelids, a glint occasionally flashed in his eyes when he looked up.

Hiruzen frowned because, though Uchiha Du Yang had some ability, his record was unremarkable and he wasn't particularly well-known. Why would he be accompanying a clan elder?

After all, this meeting was with the Hokage, and they were here to represent the Uchiha Clan.

Yet here he stood, behind Uchiha Qiantang, present at this meeting.

"Hiruzen." Uchiha Qiantang stopped and explained in a hoarse but clear voice, "Clan Head Fugaku truly couldn't come."

Hiruzen set down his pipe and asked bluntly, "Why not?"

Uchiha Qiantang answered honestly, "Because our clan head is dead."

"What?!"

Even Hiruzen Sarutobi, with all his composure, couldn't keep his pupils from contracting. Shock showed on his face.

Fugaku was dead!

Wasn't he the one planning a rebellion? How could he have died so inexplicably before the rebellion even began?

Uchiha Fugaku had been a Kage Level ninja, and he had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan. What kind of person could have killed him?

What on earth had happened within the Uchiha Clan?

When the Uchiha themselves admitted that their clan head was dead, countless Anbu Ninja hidden in the shadows were shaken.