"Judging by your appearance, you must be the blind boy from the Uchiha Clan, right? Yesterday... where did you take Kurenai?"
"You'd better explain everything, clearly and honestly!"
"I'm Kurenai's teammate. Yesterday, she used a Shadow Clone to pass along a message saying we had a mission."
"But the truth is, we didn't have a mission at all."
That was why she had come here.
Uzuki Yugao was a ninja who had been on the same team and in the same class as Kurenai Yuhi.
From Chiba's memories, the two of them shouldn't have been in the same graduating class.
But in this era of war, it wasn't unusual for ninjas from different classes to team up.
Some graduated early, while others graduated late.
Talented ninjas who graduated early might be teamed up with people from the class before them.
Uzuki Yugao's face was wary and hostile, and all that animosity was directed at the blind boy leaning on a cane.
The Ninja Dog beside the girl bared its teeth at Chiba, as if ready to attack at any moment.
As Kurenai's teammate, Uzuki Yugao had spent all night searching for her after learning she'd gone missing the previous evening.
She had even borrowed a Ninja Dog from the Inuzuka Clan to help with the search.
It wasn't until morning that Uzuki Yugao found Kurenai Yuhi in the Uchiha Forest.
But at the time, Kurenai Yuhi had been walking alongside Uchiha Chiba.
That was highly unusual.
How could Kurenai Yuhi have any connection to the Uchiha Clan, let alone to the blind Uchiha from the rumors?
She also knew that Konoha hadn't been particularly safe lately.
More and more children had been disappearing from the village, and the disappearances were happening more frequently.
Something was definitely stirring in the darkness.
She was afraid Kurenai Yuhi would become one of them.
"Is that so? I think you'd be better off asking her about it in person."
"She's already gone home, hasn't she?"
"Besides, I'm just a student at the Ninja Academy, while she's a Genin who graduated a long time ago. I shouldn't pose any threat to her."
"You might not, but... Kurenai came from the Uchiha Clan!"
At that, Chiba's eyes narrowed slightly.
He couldn't just let that remark pass.
"Lots of children have gone missing from the village lately... Do you have anything to do with it?"
"Save your pointless sense of justice!"
Leaning on his cane, Chiba spoke calmly.
"If you really want to burn off all that pent-up energy, go find yourself a man instead of making wild accusations here!"
The instant she heard those words,
Uzuki Yugao thought she must have misheard.
Go find herself a man?
What a vulgar thing to say.
"Uchiha brat, you'd better not make me angry. I only want to know why Kurenai didn't come home last night. If you start making personal attacks, that's another matter."
"So that's your excuse for running your mouth about the Uchiha Clan?"
"Even the Hokage wouldn't dare say something like that without evidence. What makes you think you can?"
"Do you know what it means to slander the Uchiha Clan? I suggest you think carefully before you speak."
This was no exaggeration.
No matter what the relationship between the Uchiha and Konoha was like,
on the surface, the Uchiha were still Konoha's largest clan.
They were also a pillar of strength in the Third Shinobi World War.
Even Sarutobi Hiruzen wouldn't dare act recklessly at a time like this.
In the original story, people only tried to move against the Uchiha during peacetime.
Yet Uzuki Yugao had immediately made this about the Uchiha Clan.
Chiba wasn't sure whether to call her clever or foolish.
"I'd heard that the Uchiha had their own honor and pride. Now I see it's true."
"I was wrong to make wild guesses, and I'm willing to apologize."
"But I can't pretend I didn't hear what happened to Kurenai—or what you just said to me."
As she spoke, her gaze fell on Chiba's cane.
She knew there was a sword inside it.
Uzuki Yugao had heard about Chiba's clash with Asuma from Kurenai Yuhi.
"The sword hidden in your cane... it's not just for show, is it?"
"I advise you not to do this," Chiba said calmly.
As he spoke, he glanced toward the place where he'd left the dumplings.
They hadn't cooled completely yet. He still had time.
"If you were an ordinary ninja, the worst you'd suffer is the humiliation of losing."
"But if you're a swordswoman, it's not that simple. You might even lose the ability to hold a sword."
"What you're doing is foolish, but it would be cruel if it left you with a lasting trauma."
Unfortunately, Uzuki Yugao didn't seem to take Chiba's words to heart.
It made sense. Before seeing it for herself,
who would ever think much of a blind boy?
"Draw your sword. If I win, you tell me what happened."
"If you win, I'll leave on my own!"
At that, Chiba remained expressionless.
"Is that so? Then you'd better pray you're mentally tough enough!"
"More importantly, I'm in a hurry!"
"So I won't be going easy on you!"
Chapter 25
A cool breeze brushed past their sleeves.
The air was filled with the fresh scent of morning dew.
Before drawing her sword, the purple-haired girl sent the Ninja Dog at her side away.
She had borrowed it from the Inuzuka Clan.
Now that she'd found the person responsible, Uzuki Yugao naturally sent it back.
All she had to do now was defeat the Uchiha boy in front of her.
Uzuki Yugao herself wasn't quite sure what had made her draw her sword against a blind five-year-old boy.
Perhaps she wanted to uncover the truth behind Kurenai Yuhi's disappearance the day before, and protect her teammate from harm.
Or perhaps, after hearing Kurenai Yuhi talk about how Chiba had easily defeated Asuma at the Dumpling Shop with his incredible swordsmanship, Uzuki Yugao had begun to long for a match against him.
She couldn't explain her reasons. She was a complicated person herself.
But she knew that now, she had to give her full attention to the person in front of her.
Not just for Kurenai Yuhi, but for herself, too.
She was a swordswoman as well.
As a student of Konoha-Style Swordsmanship, she trained hard every day. Her primary goal was to take her swordsmanship to the next level.
Challenging her limits was the best way to break through a bottleneck.
She had never considered herself a genius. She was simply the most diligent one.
Back when she was still at the Ninja Academy, she'd met someone she could consider a rival.
A swordsman named Gekko Hayate.
Like her, he had inherited Konoha-Style Swordsmanship.
Uzuki Yugao respected his skill.
Their countless matches had helped both of them improve their swordsmanship.
But after Gekko Hayate began to reveal his feelings for her, however subtly, Uzuki Yugao stopped asking him to practice with her.
It wasn't that she disliked him. It was just that, at least for now, constantly surpassing herself was her top priority.
And now her opponent was Uchiha Chiba.
A man who had inherited the swordsmanship of Marine Admiral Fujitora Issho.
The fighting spirit radiating from Uzuki Yugao made Chiba realize what she wanted most deep down.
Only a swordsman could understand another swordsman.
"I see. So you're... someone with this kind of ambition," Chiba said calmly.
He stood before Uzuki Yugao, both hands resting on his cane.
As unmoving as a mountain.
"I don't think your questions about what happened to Kurenai Yuhi are just an excuse."
"But your ambition doesn't lie."
The instant she heard that, Uzuki Yugao's pupils shrank.
Were her questions about what happened to Kurenai Yuhi just an excuse?
Uzuki Yugao couldn't admit that.
But as Chiba had said, deep down, she had an almost uncontrollable desire to cross swords with an opponent who was also a swordsman.
In this age of ceaseless war, who wasn't a little crazy?
If it made her stronger, what was wrong with going a little crazy?
At that thought, Uzuki Yugao smiled.
"Sure enough, swordsmen can understand one another!"
"You're wrong," Chiba said calmly.
"Swordsmen can understand one another, yes, but... only when they meet as equals!"
"I simply saw right through you!"