Sarutobi Yashui

"It seems you've practiced quite hard; get some rest early." After Sarutobi Yashui entered the house, the Third Hokage offered a greeting before walking back to his study.

"Yes, understood." Sarutobi Yashui returned to his room, guided by hazy memories. He could sense that the Third Hokage had already noticed the injuries he sustained during the fight.

The room was just as it had been before; he hadn't gone to the wrong place. This was the home of the Third Hokage, so it was no wonder that the Anbu operative hadn't dared to act rashly.

Once inside the room, Sarutobi Yashui immediately drew the curtains and locked the door. He then proceeded to examine his injuries.

Although he hadn't suffered any direct hits during the recent skirmish, the repeated physical strikes had caused significant strain on this young body. His limbs were likely suffering from varying degrees of muscle tearing.

After a brief self-examination, Sarutobi Yashui was relieved to find that he hadn't sustained any serious damage.

Already exhausted, Sarutobi Yashui tidied up the slightly cluttered room before collapsing onto the bed and falling fast asleep.

That night, an Anbu operative wearing an animal mask approached a one-eyed man.

"Lord Danzo, we have discovered the corpse of 'Ye'. He died from poisoning, and it appears to be a suicide. However, two sets of footprints—one fresh, one old—were found near the body. One set came from the direction of the Third Hokage's residence, while the other led toward the outside of the village."

"We found no further tracks outside the village, so we conclude that 'Ye' reached the location of his death from the direction of the Hokage's house. Additionally, two of his kunai were perfectly clean, without a single fingerprint. Clearly, someone killed him."

The one-eyed man known as Danzo stepped into the moonlight. "'Ye' was a ninja skilled in tracking. Once he enters combat, even a Genin could easily defeat him; this is nothing to be surprised about. His mission was to monitor every move of Sarutobi Yashui. If he hadn't awakened the Sharingan before becoming a Genin, he was to eliminate Yashui. If he had awakened the Sharingan before becoming a Genin, then he was to 'reclaim' those eyes."

"Are you implying that the killer of 'Ye' is related to the Uchiha clan?" the Anbu asked.

"Leave this matter to me. Starting today, you will replace 'Ye' and complete his unfinished mission. From now on, your codename shall be 'Zhi'." After saying this, Danzo waved his hand.

Upon receiving Danzo's order, "Zhi" vanished instantly.

Danzo smiled to himself in the room. "Two remnants of the Uchiha clan, are there? Sasuke has already been promised to Orochimaru, so he cannot be killed. But getting rid of Yashui is still possible... at the very least, let me prune a future threat to the prosperity of Konoha."

The next morning, an annoying alarm clock rang incessantly.

"An alarm clock... right, at this age, I should be attending the Ninja Academy. How nostalgic, going to school and all that..." Sarutobi Yashui turned off the alarm, got up, and began to dress.

Yesterday's battle had indeed placed a heavy burden on his body; after a night of rest, his limbs still ached, and even putting on clothes felt like a monumental struggle.

Once he was finally dressed, Sarutobi Yashui picked up his schoolbag and walked into the living room.

As soon as he entered, he saw Konohamaru enjoying his breakfast.

"Good morning, Brother Yashui." Konohamaru greeted him politely.

"Morning." Sarutobi Yashui was startled for a moment before returning the greeting. He then remembered that Konohamaru's surname was Sarutobi and that he was the Third Hokage's own grandson. Since he was currently living in the Sarutobi household, it was only natural to have interactions with the Sarutobi clan.

He then spoke to the Third Hokage, who was sitting at the table: "Good morning, Grandfather."

"Oh, Yashui... come here, I have a small gift for you," the Third Hokage said with a smile.

Sarutobi Yashui walked over, and the Third Hokage pulled a pair of sunglasses from his pocket and handed them to him. "You must wear these sunglasses every day from now on; this is a token of my care."

"Sunglasses?" Sarutobi Yashui was confused.

Regardless, since the Third Hokage had given them to him, he decided to accept them.

Sarutobi Yashui went to brush his teeth and wash his face. In front of the mirror, he inspected the sunglasses; they appeared to be ordinary plastic, showing no signs of anything unusual. Only then did he put them on.

Looking at himself in the mirror, he realized he looked quite dashing in them, though his vision was slightly dimmed.

"Sharingan!" Sarutobi Yashui tried activating his Sharingan. After doing so, his vision became slightly clearer.

Behind the sunglasses, it was impossible to see whether his eyes were activated. Realizing this, he understood that the pair the Third Hokage had given him were tinted darker than standard sunglasses.

"I'm heading out!" Sarutobi Yashui left the house and headed for the Ninja Academy.

At first, he was worried about not knowing the way, thinking he might need to follow other students. But once he stepped onto the road, he instinctively knew exactly where the school was located.

This was the same as when he had suddenly learned the Clone Technique and the method for hiding underground yesterday. It was knowledge that had surfaced the moment he used the Sharingan.

Upon arriving at the Ninja Academy, Sarutobi Yashui took his books out of his bag. Every single notebook was inscribed with the name "Sarutobi Yashui" in large characters.

He didn't know what time period this was, and none of the surrounding students were people he recognized. The only person who seemed slightly familiar was Iruka, who was teaching the Transformation Technique on the podium.

The boring class made him start to wonder: what kind of person was the original Yashui?

The original Yashui had known about the high-level order to exterminate the Uchiha clan, yet he lived in the home of the Third Hokage, a high-ranking official of Konoha. Judging by the attitude of the Hokage and Konohamaru toward him this morning, it seemed the original Yashui had been quite courteous to the Sarutobi clan.

To harbor such deep hatred and yet remain patient in front of one's enemy for so long—even among adults, few could achieve this. Based on this alone, the original owner of this body seemed quite mature.

Clearly, the original owner did not possess the "Will of Fire" promoted in the main story; he had been thinking of revenge for the Uchiha clan. Both in heart and body, he was an Uchiha through and through.

In the blink of an eye, the school day was over.

During class, Sarutobi Yashui had flipped through a few pages of the textbooks. He already had some knowledge of the subjects from the anime, and he made sure to note down anything he didn't know, treating it as filling in the gaps.

These subjects included not only ninjutsu-related knowledge but also a vast array of mathematics, physics, chemistry, and geography. This knowledge was intended to help ninjas complete their missions more effectively. Consequently, the depth of the material was limited, likely equivalent to the level of a middle school student.