The Blind Swordsman of the Uchiha Clan Chapter 3

"Are you referring to Chiba-kun?"

Fugaku nodded.

"He's still the same. No matter how hard I try, I can never catch up to him!"

Fugaku seemed to understand the reason.

"Is that so? Then perhaps he will be your friend and rival for life!"

"If you have the time, you can invite him over to our home as a guest."

"I understand, Father!"

Uchiha Chiba—Fugaku had a deep impression of him.

The Uchiha clan producing a blind man had caused a greater impact on the Uchiha than one might imagine.

Having founded Konoha alongside the Senju clan, no one could overshadow the brilliance of the Uchiha.

Yet, to be too brilliant is, in the end, to be too sharp.

When one occupies a high position, no one wants an individual or a clan to become powerful enough to overshadow their master.

The last brilliant clan, the Senju, had already fallen.

Would the Uchiha be next?

Fugaku did not know, nor was he certain.

However, the mere birth of a blind man leading to public opinion that damaged the pride and honor of the Uchiha clan was undoubtedly a warning bell for them.

It was a signal, a reprimand, and an invisible contest.

Before dawn had even broken, Chiba awoke from his slumber.

What he could see before him was a blurred silhouette.

He knew that Koizumi, that little girl, had snuck into his bed again last night.

Whenever their parents were away on missions, she would always use fear as an excuse to crawl under his covers.

He had grown used to it.

Gently stroking Koizumi's cheek, Chiba smiled.

A life like this, perhaps, wasn't so bad.

It was just that he didn't know how long it could last.

He tidied up slightly before heading out, leaning on his cane.

Daily mission: swing the blade 1,000 times. Reward: 0.1% template.

Although it was only 0.1%, that was 0.1% of the peak combat power of the One Piece world's Admiral, Fujitora Issho, and he could obtain it simply by swinging his blade 1,000 times.

It was almost too easy.

Heaven knows if the daily missions will change in the future.

Naturally, Chiba would not pass up any opportunity to become stronger.

Because the darkness of Konoha is something an ordinary person could hardly imagine.

Chiba knew exactly how many geniuses the darkness of Konoha had swallowed.

The Senju and Uchiha, Hatake Sakumo, the Legendary Sannin, Namikaze Minato...

This darkness had caused Konoha to fall from the strongest of the Five Great Nations to the very bottom.

One has to say, the Konoha F4 Group are, in a sense, quite the "talents."

Drawing his cane-sword, Chiba began to slash at the empty air.

Every time, he used his full strength, carving blade-lights into the air.

This cane-sword was forged using money left by his father combined with subsidies from the Uchiha clan; it was, so to speak, the "best" sword in the whole village.

It could absorb chakra nature transformations to unleash different types of slashes.

However, the current Chiba had no need for that yet.

As sweat poured down, Chiba finished his daily mission and washed up, only then did Koizumi wake up, rubbing her sleepy eyes.

Seeing Chiba leaning on his cane with the bathroom still filled with steam, she let out a yawn.

"Chiba-niisan, you snuck out to train again..."

"Didn't I tell you there's an entrance ceremony today and that you should take a day off?"

Koizumi's feigned anger seemed rather cute in Chiba's eyes.

He smiled and patted Koizumi on the head.

"In that case—"

"As compensation... I'll treat you to dango this morning!"

Sweets have always been a young girl's favorite.

In her spare time, eating a couple of skewers of Leaf Village dango was Koizumi's greatest joy.

"Alright then, Brother Chiba, you said it yourself—"

Chiba nodded with a smile.

"That's right, dango, all you can eat!"

Although the dango shop in the Leaf wasn't as famous as Ichiraku Ramen, for those with a sweet tooth, it was an irresistible temptation.

Because they arrived early, it didn't seem crowded. Chiba and Koizumi found a quiet spot and sat down.

The shop was filled with all sorts of people. There were ninjas returning from missions and ninja students about to head to school.

However, their attention was, to a greater or lesser extent, focused on Chiba.

The Uchiha clan crest, the iconic black blindfold, and the cane used for navigation—everyone recognized Chiba at first glance.

He was that blind man from the Uchiha clan. The very person who had sparked the rumors that spread the pride and glory of the Uchiha clan far and wide.

Feeling the gazes around him, Chiba's expression remained calm. Koizumi, however, was somewhat displeased, her brows furrowing.

"Brother Chiba, I think next time we should just buy the dango and eat at home!"

She couldn't stand those looks.

Chiba rarely ventured out of the Uchiha compound, but even so, he had grown accustomed to such stares.

"It's fine, Koizumi. Wouldn't it be a pity to let these looks ruin the delicious dango? They aren't worth it!"

That's right, they weren't worth it.

Koizumi giggled, watching the dango being served, and swallowed hard. Sweets always had a way of captivating young girls.

Nearby, another beautiful figure was also drawn in by the sweets. Of course, a pretty girl always has one or two suitors by her side.

Needless to say, this was true for Kurenai Yuhi, who had been a beauty since she was a child. Among her suitors, Asuma Sarutobi had [defeated] all his rivals. This wasn't because he was particularly outstanding, but because everyone knew his father was the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Being the son of the Hokage was both dazzling and pathetic. It was dazzling because he was the son of the [strongest Hokage in history]; people always envied those second-generation elites born with a silver spoon in their mouths. It was pathetic because Asuma's life was full of setbacks.

In his youth, he was unruly and even clashed with Sarutobi Hiruzen, eventually leaving the Leaf Village to wander. After he had his fill of wandering, he seemed to understand the so-called "King," though no one knew how he managed to woo such a beautiful woman, rushing to Kurenai Yuhi and having a child with her.

In the end, before the child was even born, he died in style during a battle against the Akatsuki. His death wasn't exactly tragic, but it was rendered quite moving by the original story.

It was a pity that at that critical juncture, everyone wanted to see Naruto take on the Akatsuki, making Asuma's death seem somewhat insignificant. Everyone was shouting about how miserably Neji died, yet no one remembered Asuma.

Even more ridiculous was that the child was jokingly referred to as Mirai Uchiha; those who didn't know better might think Asuma had been cuckolded by Shisui.

Watching Asuma fawning over Kurenai like a lapdog, Chiba knew that the current Asuma was still just an unruly second-generation official.

"Kurenai, I passed the Chunin Exams! I'm a Chunin now!"

Showing off one's strength in front of a woman is a common tactic to attract them. However, girls have always been more mature than boys.

To Kurenai Yuhi, Asuma's behavior at this moment seemed somewhat childish and ridiculous.

She merely offered a formulaic smile and spoke.

"Is that so? Then congratulations to you, Asuma!"

"To celebrate me becoming a Chunin, today's dango is on me, Kurenai!"

Asuma sat down next to Kurenai with practiced familiarity and continued.

"This Chunin Exam felt easier than I imagined. I'll definitely be the fastest ninja of this generation to become a Jonin."

"Really? I heard that Kakashi already has the qualifications to be promoted to Jonin. Are you sure you can surpass him?"

The indifferent tone left Asuma speechless.

Kakashi Hatake was an absolute genius of his generation.

He had become a Chunin at six and had long possessed the strength of a Jonin; it was only due to his age and lack of experience that he hadn't been promoted yet.

With the tempering he received during the Third Great Ninja War, his promotion to Jonin was merely a matter of time.

"Regardless, I am already a Chunin."

Asuma appeared somewhat irritable. Seeing Chiba at the table nearby, he seemed to find an excuse to alleviate his embarrassment.

"Kurenai, do you know about the blind man from the Uchiha clan?"

"I haven't seen him, but I've heard of him."

"He's right at the table next to us. Kurenai, you have to admit, he's an Uchiha who relies on eyes, yet he was born blind. The Uchiha clan really is laughable!"

Asuma's voice was not particularly loud.

However, Chiba and Koizumi were sitting at the table right next to them, so they could naturally hear everything.