"Is that what you think?" The Third Hokage exhaled a puff of smoke. "You have a point, but Sasuke and Yashui are both still children. Besides, ever since I adopted him, Yashui has become Sarutobi Yashui. He no longer has to bear that shameful surname."
"Mm..." Asuma stopped walking. "Dad, you can see me off here. Next time, let's have a proper drink, just the two of us."
"Very well." The Third Hokage smiled from the heart. "Watching my son grow up makes this old man feel his age."
"You're still young. You have to stay healthy and keep serving as Hokage until my son grows up." Asuma asked tentatively, "Dad, are you hiding something about Yashui again?"
"Nothing, nothing." The Third Hokage turned and left. "I'm old, and it's about time I went to bed."
Asuma stood where he was, watching the Third Hokage head home.
The next day, after getting up, Yashui didn't go to school as usual. Instead, he went to the Uchiha Clan compound, hoping he could find Sasuke there.
The world of Naruto really was a hassle. Its technology had developed in a wildly uneven way. It had Western-style decor and electricity, and even computers and telephones—but no cell phones.
If there were cell phones, he could just exchange numbers with Sasuke and find him right away. Then he wouldn't have to go through all this trouble searching everywhere, worrying that Sasuke might not be there.
When Yashui arrived at the Uchiha Clan compound, the gates stood open. Although the Third Hokage had once ordered that outsiders weren't allowed to enter the Uchiha Clan's compound without permission, plenty of children who had never heard of how fearsome the Uchiha were played freely on Uchiha Clan land.
Sasuke didn't seem to mind. As long as the children didn't enter his house, he let them come and go as they pleased across Uchiha territory.
Watching the children play seemed to remind Sasuke of the Uchiha Clan's former glory.
"Sasuke." Yashui suddenly appeared in his line of sight.
"Oh, it's you, from the Sarutobi Clan." Sasuke called Yashui "from the Sarutobi Clan," as if he wasn't particularly interested in Yashui's name.
"I might graduate in a month, just like you," Yashui said. "I applied for early graduation. If we're lucky, we'll graduate in the same class."
"Is that so?" Sasuke thought of another genius who had graduated early—Uchiha Itachi. His gaze grew noticeably fiercer.
"If you don't need anything, go home. I still have to train alone." With that, Sasuke stood up and headed for the Uchiha Clan training ground.
"Sasuke, I'd like to learn some Fire Release from you," Yashui said suddenly.
"Fire Release? Don't you already know it?" Sasuke left without even looking back.
Yashui knew the previous owner of this body could use Fire Release, but the current Yashui couldn't. To avoid relying too much on certain "cheats," Yashui hadn't used his Sharingan again, either.
Disappointed, Yashui went alone to the public training ground near the school, planning to practice there.
At that moment, a pair of eyes beneath a mask watched Yashui from nearby.
This was Zhi of the Konoha Anbu.
"To: Lord Danzo:
The target has been in frequent contact with Sasuke Uchiha, and his physical reflexes have improved far beyond what they used to be. They are much like those of an Uchiha who has awakened the Sharingan. However, the target is wearing sunglasses, so I have been unable to confirm whether he has awakened it. To ensure there are no surprises, I can begin attempting 'recovery' immediately. —Zhi"
After writing the report on a scroll, Zhi tied it to a pigeon's leg, then vanished from the spot.
Yashui was a little lost. Although he'd planned to train, he had no idea what he should practice. Even if he didn't train at all, he was still completely confident he could pass the graduation exam.
"No, no. When did I become someone who trains just to pass an exam? I train to get stronger." Over the past couple of days, the Sharingan had spoiled Yashui. Whenever something came up, his first thought was to rely on his eyes.
If Yashui wanted to get stronger, he first had to learn not to rely too much on those eyes.
Just as Yashui was about to begin practicing, he suddenly sensed a killing intent coming from behind him.
Yashui immediately rolled forward, then turned to look behind him.
"Is nobody there?" Yashui shook his head. Maybe he was just too tense. Just as he let out a sigh of relief, a mask appeared right in front of him.
The mask was only a few centimeters from Yashui's face, almost pressed against it.
"Anbu?" Yashui was so startled he fell to the ground. It took him a moment to react.
Remembering the Anbu who had tried to kill him last time, Yashui knew this one must have the same goal!
"Not bad reflexes. But you're still too slow." The Anbu slowly reached for Yashui's glasses and knocked his sunglasses to the ground.
"Come on. Show me your eyes." The Anbu stepped closer, one step at a time.
Yashui could tell this Anbu was in an entirely different league from the previous one. The killing intent alone made that clear.
"If he wants to, he can kill me anytime!" Yashui realized there was no point fighting him. This wasn't the kind of opponent someone at Yashui's level could beat.
The Anbu took another step closer. Yashui was already so frightened by the killing intent that he couldn't move a muscle.
"I can't move... What do I do? Ask a passerby for help..." Yashui looked toward the main road. It was a workday, and everyone was busy going to work. The road was practically deserted, with only a few children playing now and then.
"What are you doing to my student?" A figure suddenly appeared in front of Yashui, blocking the Anbu's path.
The air seemed to freeze. The only thing that seemed to fill it was the Anbu's overwhelming killing intent.
A few seconds later, the Anbu picked up the sunglasses from the ground. "His glasses fell. I was picking them up for him. That's all."
At the same time, the immense killing intent vanished.
"Is that so? Then thank you. Please give me the glasses and leave at once." The teacher took them.
"Then I'll be going." The Anbu turned into a cloud of smoke and disappeared from the spot.
As soon as the killing intent faded, Yashui began gasping for air. The pressure it had caused made him forget how to breathe.
"Thud!" The teacher who had just stepped in for him also sank to the ground. His face was deathly pale, and cold sweat poured off him. Fine threads of blood seeped from the fist he had clenched tightly.
Yashui walked over to the teacher and got a clear look at his face. He wore a ninja uniform and had a scar over ten centimeters long across his nose. He was Umino Iruka.
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