The Hyuga Clan

In reality, he had been secretly monitoring the Uchiha for a long time, though he was hindered by the fact that it was the Uchiha Clan's sphere of influence.

He hadn't managed to infiltrate much, but now that he possessed these products, he could infiltrate further; the Uchiha Clan would have no secrets before his eyes!

Orochimaru paid no mind to what Danzo Shimura was thinking; his gaze pierced through the dim room, seemingly landing on Uchiha Shimizu.

An Uchiha who did not worship the Sharingan, but instead pursued the power of medical ninjutsu—what was his motive?

He truly was a peculiar Uchiha. What kind of change would this wind bring to Konoha?

Orochimaru's eyes flickered as he contemplated something.

Hokage Building, Hokage Office.

Hiruzen Sarutobi puffed on his large pipe while looking at the report in his hands.

The entire room was shrouded in mist, thick with the smell of tobacco.

"Hiruzen, the Uchiha have been showing less and less regard for the village lately. This matter must be put on the agenda!"

Danzo Shimura squinted at Hiruzen Sarutobi with a cold face; he detested the smell of smoke.

Years ago, Danzo had advised Hiruzen Sarutobi to stop smoking, arguing that it was not something a ninja should do.

The scent of smoke would reveal one's position!

"Danzo, the Uchiha are also members of the village."

Hiruzen Sarutobi took a drag from his pipe and tapped it gently against the desk.

The so-called "agenda" referred to placing surveillance within the Uchiha Clan.

"Hmph."

Danzo placed a report on Hiruzen Sarutobi's desk.

He had never expected Hiruzen Sarutobi to easily agree to this matter; he was currently more focused on something else.

"Transfer this person to Root."

Hiruzen Sarutobi frowned slightly upon hearing this and picked up the report.

It contained the file of a Ninja Academy student: Uchiha Shimizu.

"A medical ninja?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi scanned it briefly; the file recorded Uchiha Shimizu's talent in medical ninjutsu in great detail.

"What is the issue with this child?"

"I want to cultivate him into a second Uchiha Kagami."

Danzo's only visible eye stared intensely at Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Since Hiruzen Sarutobi would not agree to him placing surveillance devices within the Uchiha Clan, he would cultivate a mole instead!

"Enough, Danzo. This child cannot join Root."

In fact, Hiruzen Sarutobi had been keeping an eye on Uchiha Shimizu for some time.

Those capable of becoming medical ninjas generally possessed a heart dedicated to saving lives.

Amidst the generally cold and gloomy hearts of the Uchiha, such a sunny individual was truly rare. If guided properly, he might well serve as a bridge to ease tensions between the village and the Uchiha.

"Hiruzen, do you not trust me?"

Danzo's brows furrowed, a hint of anger rising.

No matter what he did, Hiruzen Sarutobi always stood in his way.

Did he think he wanted to do this? Everything he did was for the sake of the village, to bring the village to the peace he envisioned!

"Enough, Danzo. I am the Hokage."

Hiruzen Sarutobi picked up his large pipe and took a puff.

He was perfectly clear on what kind of schemes Danzo was hatching.

Regarding the matter of Uchiha Shimizu, he had other arrangements; he could not allow Danzo to mess things up.

"Hiruzen, you will regret this!"

Danzo Shimura slammed the door as he left. Having failed to achieve either of his goals, his dissatisfaction with Hiruzen Sarutobi grew even deeper.

If things had been done according to his ideas, the village would surely be better off.

He was the one who had inherited the Second Hokage's philosophy; it was only because he had been one step too slow that Hiruzen Sarutobi had ascended to the position.

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed softly.

His old friend was too extreme. Root was supposed to be a part of the Anbu, yet it had been completely turned into Danzo's personal fiefdom, where every member was branded with the Cursed Seal of Individual Curse Eradication.

He could let past matters slide, but now, regarding the Uchiha Clan, he had to be extremely cautious.

He looked out the window toward the Hokage Rock, lost in his memories.

Ninja Academy.

"Hey, Inuzuka Shi, don't you think Kurenai has been acting strange lately?"

Asuma Sarutobi whispered.

He kept glancing at Kurenai Yuhi, who was practicing ninjutsu ahead of them, terrified of being overheard.

"What's different about her?"

A small black puppy lay on Inuzuka Shi's head, tongue lolling out to cool off.

Inuzuka Shi, the master, wiped the sweat from his forehead.

The sun was scorching today, and since it was finally a free-period class, he naturally wanted to rest properly.

"Haven't you noticed? Kurenai seems to be preoccupied with something every day, and sometimes she even looks conflicted."

"Is that so?"

Inuzuka Shi had vaguely known for a while that Asuma Sarutobi cared about Kurenai Yuhi, and this comment was practically an admission.

Who else would spend every day obsessing over a little girl?

Inuzuka Shi casually hummed in agreement with the young master's remarks, just killing time.

Under the blistering sun, many students chose to cool off in the shade of the trees.

Shimizu was among them.

He leaned against a tree trunk, eyes closed to rest.

After returning from Nonou Yakushi's place yesterday, he had found a piece of chakra test paper to determine his own chakra nature.

As he channeled his chakra into it, the white paper first crumpled into a ball and then burst into flames.

This result meant that Shimizu possessed both Fire and Lightning chakra natures.

Chakra test paper reacts differently depending on the nature of the chakra:

Fire causes it to burn, Wind causes it to split down the middle, Lightning causes it to wrinkle, Water causes it to become damp, and Earth causes it to crumble.

A ninja can possess up to seven natures, with the minimum being none at all.

Chakra natures are divided into the five elemental releases: Lightning, Fire, Wind, Water, and Earth.

There are also the two special natures: Yin and Yang.

Standard chakra test paper can only detect the five elemental natures.

Yin and Yang are special natures that cannot be tested this way and require specific, specialized chakra test paper.

Shimizu pondered his upcoming training plan.

Having a Fire nature was easy to manage; the Uchiha Clan were experts at playing with fire, and he only needed to follow the established curriculum to learn the clan's inherited ninjutsu.

As for Lightning Release, the Uchiha Clan had very few records of it.

Relying on his own development would take too much time; his best option was to rely on the Simulator.

Shimizu cast a calm, unobtrusive glance at Kakashi, who was training alone. Currently, the Simulator could only simulate three years at a time.

Kakashi was six years old now, and it would take another six years for him to develop Chidori; there wasn't enough time.

While Shimizu was lost in thought, it was soon time for school to end.

His supply of Military Ration Pills at home had run out, and he planned to go restock.

"Natsu, look, that's one of the Uchiha."

As Shimizu walked down the street, whispers directed at the Uchiha could be heard from time to time.

These were harmless enough; it was normal for the Uchiha, who managed the Konoha Military Police Force, to attract some resentment.

However, the situation would only escalate, and the relationship between the other villagers and the Uchiha would only become truly irreconcilable after Danzo began spreading rumors.

Danzo wasn't spreading rumors yet, and he had no reason to move against the Uchiha.

He would have to wait for the Night of the Nine-Tails; that would be the moment Danzo chose to strike.

"The Clan Head said you shouldn't say things that are detrimental to unity."

"What's the big deal? The Clan Head also said that the Uchiha are a naturally evil clan."

Hyuga Tetsu looked indifferent.

He didn't want to lose face in front of his crush.

"Sigh."

Hyuga Natsu shook her head, feeling quite helpless.