In an era like this, spending three full years at the Academy was already a long time.
Students from every clan gathered on the Academy's training ground.
Many parents were there, giving their children reminders and warnings.
Quite a few children had come alone.
Those who came alone either had parents away fighting on the front lines or had already lost them in battle.
War was cruel.
You could tell just by looking into their eyes which children's families had been ravaged by war.
The eyes of those who had endured war and suffering had long since lost the innocence of childhood.
They were filled either with boundless ambition or with overwhelming hatred.
Fortunately, none of the three—Chiba, Koizumi, and Itachi—was like that.
Koizumi was carefree and innocent, perhaps never having given war a thought. After seeing war, Itachi went around talking about "the meaning of life" all day, with a trace of solemnity beneath his melancholy. As for Chiba, no one could see his eyes.
Chiba brought Koizumi over to meet Itachi.
Their reunion drew quite a few curious looks from those around them.
One was a young boy with deep nasolabial folds and an unmistakable air of maturity.
The other was a blind boy, leaning on a cane, who radiated a murderous aura just by standing there.
The Uchiha genius and the blind Uchiha.
They were two well-known figures in the Uchiha Clan.
The former had always been the child other people's parents held up as an example.
The latter was the subject of endless conversation over meals.
Though the two seemed to belong in completely different worlds, they had somehow become a pair.
It was quite intriguing.
"I brought you some dango!"
As soon as they met, Chiba handed Itachi a package.
Inside lay five skewers of dango.
Dango wasn't just a favorite among young girls. Itachi was quite fond of it too.
Koizumi blinked curiously at the sight.
"So the clan head's genius likes sweets too."
It was the first time anyone had said that to him.
Itachi seemed a little embarrassed and lowered his head.
But his hands were honest: he took out a skewer and put it in his mouth.
Itachi didn't need to answer.
From the speed at which he polished off one dango after another, Koizumi could tell he liked sweets too.
Once Itachi had finished all the dango, the area suddenly fell quiet.
They looked toward the direction where the silence had begun.
A figure slowly walked up onto the platform.
"Lord Hokage... he's here!"
At that moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen looked just like a kind old man from next door, smiling warmly.
Perhaps to make himself seem more amiable, he had a pipe clenched between his lips. Since the crowd was made up of children who had yet to enroll, he hadn't lit it.
If an expression could cloud a person's judgment, then Sarutobi Hiruzen's smile was the perfect disguise.
The children below seemed excited to see the Hokage they had long admired.
The admiration in their eyes was impossible to hide.
Sarutobi Hiruzen looked over the crowd with a kindly smile.
"You... are all the future of Konoha!"
"Today, we welcome another annual enrollment ceremony!"
"Before classes officially begin, I'll be giving you your very first lesson! It's called... the Will of Fire!"
"Wherever the leaves dance, the fire will continue to burn. The fire will keep lighting the village and help new leaves sprout."
"Young people are the hope of the future. The older generation must trust them and protect them. The sacrifices of the older generation are not meaningless; they will inspire the young to become pillars who can shoulder the future."
"That is how I understand the Will of Fire!"
"Right now, you are still tender shoots, and you need us older people to protect you!"
"But one day, you will grow. Then the future will be yours to create and protect!"
The annual "brainwashing" was an indispensable part of the ceremony.
You didn't have to be outstanding, and you could be slow-witted by nature, but... you had to be loyal and obedient.
No politician in a position of power liked being betrayed.
Chiba understood Sarutobi Hiruzen's actions.
If he were in the same position, Chiba would probably do the same.
No one knew what darkness and cruelty lay beneath Sarutobi Hiruzen's hypocritically kindly face.
But who cared?
The children below were listening with rapt attention.
The admiration shining in their eyes for the Hokage grew even stronger.
At that moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen's seemingly wandering gaze fell on Chiba and Itachi, intentionally or otherwise.
So this was that child from back then?
Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled and beckoned the two over.
"Uchiha children... come over here!"
Every eye immediately turned to them.
Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled and patted both of them on the head, his manner kind and warm.
"Most of you have probably heard about what happened five years ago... This is the blind child from the Uchiha Clan."
Itachi suddenly looked up at Sarutobi Hiruzen beside him, thoughtful.
What was the Hokage doing?
"I know people in the village have said unkind things about him, but in my eyes, whether they're Uchiha children or children from another clan, they're all children of Konoha. We're one family!"
"The Uchiha Clan has never been special. This child is a victim too, and I hope you'll treat him as an equal!"
Whether intentionally or not, Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at Itachi as he said this.
The Hokage was so benevolent.
Chapter 9
Those words seemed to be meant for Itachi.
That was right. The Uchiha Clan had never been special.
The Uchiha were part of Konoha too. They should all have been one group...
While Itachi was lost in thought, Chiba suddenly reached up and flicked him on the forehead, right in front of everyone.
"Itachi, what are you... thinking about?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen noticed the look in Itachi's eyes.
A smile appeared on his face.
What a fine look.
For a moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen seemed to see a familiar figure in Itachi.
Those two who looked beyond the Uchiha Clan to all of Konoha.
Kagami Uchiha and his successor, Uchiha Shisui.
This was a very good start.
Seeing Itachi's change in expression, Chiba sighed.
Could he really be swayed that easily?
"Lord Hokage, may I... ask a question?"
Chiba stepped forward, coming to stand before Sarutobi Hiruzen.
With both hands resting on his cane, he stood quietly. The contrast between them was striking: one was tall, the other short.
"Uchiha child, what do you want to say?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen still wore a smile.
"Five years ago, when the Uchiha Clan was subjected to gossip because of me, why didn't you stand up and say that the Uchiha were never special?"
Did he feel wronged?
Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled.
The child was undoubtedly talented, but he was still a little childish.
"Idle chatter over a meal doesn't count as gossip. Since Konoha is one big family, this kind of thing can happen within any clan, and everyone can just laugh it off!"
"As for why I'm bringing it up now, it's because you're at the center of those conversations. The adults know where to draw the line, but the children at the Academy don't. I'm doing this for your own good!"
This was all for his own good.
Chiba wondered how Sarutobi Hiruzen could have such thick skin and still say that.
Sarutobi Hiruzen had overestimated his own charisma.
He had also underestimated how well Chiba knew him.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's speech eventually came to an end.
Unlike Koizumi, who was a little excited to have received special attention from the Hokage, Itachi simply stared blankly at Chiba.
He knew his close friend.
Normally, Chiba was quiet. He wouldn't ask questions just because of a few words from the Hokage.
Besides, Itachi knew that Chiba had never cared about the so-called gossip in the village.
And then there was the fact that Chiba had suddenly flicked him on the forehead.
"Chiba, were you... trying to tell me something just now?"
"Look around you."
Chiba felt his way forward.
Itachi glanced around.
The strange looks hadn't diminished after the Hokage spoke. If anything, there were even more of them.
--Why should a blind Uchiha get Lord Hokage's attention?