Standing Up for Someone!

Kushina had still been hesitating, but the moment she heard what Uchiha Mikoto said, she changed her mind. She grabbed Li's hand and said breezily, "I already introduced myself earlier, so you should know my name. Since you're so sensible, I'll make an exception and be your friend!"

Hearing Kushina's haughty tone, Li smiled faintly and nodded. "Then can I call you Kushina from now on?"

"Mm, we're friends, after all. What else would you call me?" Kushina nodded, unconcerned.

Seeing the two of them holding hands and seeming reluctant to let go, Uchiha Mikoto immediately lost her temper. She yanked hard on Li's hand and snapped, "Let go! Why do you keep holding my big brother Li's hand?"

Kushina seemed to take Uchiha Mikoto's challenge personally. She puffed out her cheeks and stubbornly retorted, "I'm not letting go! Li is my friend. What's wrong with holding hands?"

"I said let go!" Uchiha Mikoto was so angry that her eyes reddened. She was just short of starting a fight.

"I'm not letting go!"

"Let go!"

Kushina was small, but surprisingly strong. She kept tightening her grip until Li felt his hand was about to swell up. He was just about to stop them from arguing when Uchiha Fugaku, who had been watching from the side, tugged at his clothes. Li turned and saw Fugaku repeatedly signaling to him.

"Is something wrong?" Li couldn't figure out what Uchiha Fugaku was trying to say, so he asked.

Fugaku had no choice but to stand and address Kushina. "Ahem. Kushina, could you let go of his hand? I have something to discuss with Li."

At that, Kushina glared at Uchiha Fugaku, assuming he was there to pick a fight. But when she saw that he was one of Li's clanmates—and someone she didn't know—her expression softened a little. She let go of Li's hand, lifted her chin, and said, "Since you're so polite, I'll lend Li to you for now!"

Uchiha Fugaku's mouth twitched at that, and Li was left speechless. What did she mean, "lend him to you"? When had things gotten to this point? Uchiha Mikoto was even angrier, baring her teeth. She had grown up with Li and Uchiha Fugaku. Who could be closer to Li than she and Fugaku? Hearing Kushina speak as if she and Li had such a close relationship made her furious.

Once they were outside the classroom, Uchiha Fugaku pursed his lips and complained, "Li, my father has recognized you as the Uchiha Clan's number one genius. Getting so close to someone from another village like that makes our clan look bad, doesn't it? I think you should stop getting close to that Kushina Uzumaki. Besides, can't you see Mikoto doesn't like it?"

So that was what Uchiha Fugaku wanted to say. Li shook his head and glanced at him. "Fugaku, if anyone else said something like that to me, I'd beat him until he was crawling. Don't ever say that again, understand? Especially not in front of Kushina!" Back when he'd watched Naruto, Kushina and Konan had been his favorite characters. But in his previous life, they had only been fictional, no matter how much he liked them. He still had to get on with his real life. Now, though, he had come to this world, and Kushina was alive and right beside him. He wouldn't let this chance slip away, and he wouldn't allow anyone to insult the person he liked.

"Li, you... If my father finds out, he'll definitely scold you!" Fugaku hadn't expected Li to react so strongly. With no other option, he brought up his father.

"Fugaku, I mean what I said. It applies to everyone, even Uncle Hao. My life is my own, and so is my choice of friends!" Li said coolly. Then, without another glance at the stunned Uchiha Fugaku, he went back into the classroom. By then, Uchiha Mikoto and Kushina's "battle" had more or less ended. They were both slumped over their desks, resting. Apparently, arguing took a lot of energy.

After class, Uchiha Fugaku went home alone instead of following Uchiha Mikoto as usual. Li knew he had gone to complain to Uchiha Hao. That was how children were: they couldn't keep anything to themselves and ran to their parents with every problem. Li didn't care. Every injustice came from a lack of strength. But he already had power, and with his Sharingan, even Uchiha Hao wouldn't be able to restrict him too much.

Li and Uchiha Mikoto headed home together, while Kushina went alone. They lived in different places, so they didn't walk together. But after leaving the school gates, Li heard an argument coming from the bushes nearby.

"You bunch of jerks! You think I'm afraid of you just because there are more of you? Go ahead and try me! I'll take you all on!"

At the sound of that voice, Li's expression darkened. It was Kushina. Without waiting for Uchiha Mikoto, he rushed into the bushes and saw two or three male students surrounding Kushina and mocking her. One of them was pulling her hair.

"You bunch of jerks! Who said you could touch her?" Li strode forward and grabbed the boy who was yanking Kushina's hair. The boy released her in pain, then burst into tears.

"Uchiha Li, let him go right now, or we won't go easy on you! Don't think we're afraid of you just because you're the top student. There are three of us. You think you can take all three of us at once?" A slightly chubby student stepped forward and pointed at Li, speaking menacingly.

At that, Li flew into a rage. His black eyes turned crimson in an instant, and a single Tomoe appeared in each pupil. He turned and fixed the chubby boy with a cold stare. "Why don't you say that again?"

The two who hadn't fought felt as if they'd fallen into an icy pit. They were terrified by Li's strange eyes. They had never heard of anyone's eyes changing color, much less forming a Tomoe. They were only children; they'd never even heard of the Sharingan.

"It's a monster!"

The two cried out in terror and ran off. Li shoved away the boy who was crying in pain. He didn't even bother to threaten him—the boy simply turned and ran.

"Big brother Li... the Sharingan!" Uchiha Mikoto pointed at Li's eyes, too shocked to speak.

Li froze, then realized what had happened. He'd been so angry that he'd revealed his Sharingan without even noticing. Seeing Uchiha Mikoto's stunned expression, Li felt helpless, but he wasn't too concerned. He'd planned to tell Uchiha Hao about awakening the Sharingan in a little while, in order to gain more freedom and other benefits. This had just happened a little earlier than expected.