Aotian's Family Banquet

Evening, Hokage Office.

Compared to the bustle of the day, the Hokage Building was exceptionally quiet at dusk. Under the setting sun, only the countless "shadows" lurking in the dark kept the Hokage company in silence.

Suddenly, a figure intruded into the Hokage Building at an inappropriate hour, marching toward the Hokage Office with an aggressive aura. Upon recognizing the visitor, the Anbu lurking in the shadows actually tacitly allowed the behavior.

Bang!

The door to the Hokage Office was shoved open roughly, and the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, inside appeared slightly surprised.

"Danzo? Why are you here? You didn't even notify me in advance."

As he spoke, the Third Hokage made a gesture to pour tea for Danzo.

But as brothers of several decades and comrades who had experienced life and death together, how could Danzo not understand that Hiruzen was playing dumb?

"Stop acting the fool! It's long past closing time; you intentionally didn't leave because you knew I would come."

Hiruzen remained unbothered, sitting comfortably behind his desk, and asked, "What brings you here this time? Is the progress of Root not going smoothly?"

The thoughts that had been muddled by his old friend's deflection instantly cleared. Danzo slammed the Guidance Outline onto the desk.

"Hiruzen, look at this! Look at what this Uchiha brat has written!"

"To so recklessly place the clan above all else—where does he put Konoha Village?"

The Third Hokage flipped through Lihuo's book nonchalantly, but Danzo could tell that Hiruzen was, in fact, not unfamiliar with its contents.

After reading, the Third Hokage merely smiled.

"This kid really has some ideas. A few months ago he was clamoring to be Hokage, and now he wants to care for the Uchiha."

Seeing that his old friend still failed to realize the gravity of the situation, Danzo was so angry he hopped on the spot.

"Sarutobi Hiruzen! The content of this book is detrimental to the village. It was printed by the Uchiha Hawk Faction. If this kind of publication circulates throughout the entire Uchiha clan, do you know what will happen!"

Hiruzen stopped speaking and instead fell into deep thought.

Seeing that his ideas seemed to be accepted by the Hokage, Danzo prepared to add fuel to the fire.

"This Uchiha Lihuo! This child has the ambitions of a wolf; he cannot be kept. It would be better to hand him over to Root..."

"Enough. There is no need to worry about the matter of Uchiha Lihuo. Several months ago, I already sent Orochimaru to investigate in secret," the Third Hokage interrupted.

"What! Orochimaru isn't coming to Root to conduct experiments, and it's all for... for a mere greenhorn!"

"You yourself said it, this child is quite extraordinary," the Third Hokage hinted, though he did not elaborate.

Danzo froze for a moment, then spoke loudly, "I don't care what you think; the publication must be banned, and Uchiha Lihuo must be under the supervision of Root!"

Sensing that Danzo remained stubborn, Hiruzen sighed slightly.

"Danzo, I am the Hokage."

As soon as these words were spoken, Danzo was so enraged he turned beet red. All the events of the past rushed back like a tide, and he walked toward the door in a fury.

"Hiruzen! You will regret this!"

The Third Hokage, upon hearing this, smiled dismissively.

"Danzo, with your temperament, you are destined never to be Hokage."

"The Uchiha are currently harboring long-standing grievances; blocking is not as effective as dredging. If I were to ban the publication rashly, it would only invite accusations of pettiness."

"You must know that solving a problem is often much harder than solving the person who points it out."

"As long as I make Uchiha Lihuo's heart lean toward the village, even if he truly is a wolf with real ambition, he will be firmly tethered to the village."

Thinking of this, Hiruzen couldn't help but laugh out loud. Suddenly, as if he had thought of something, he stopped.

"I heard Nara Lujing is going to host a banquet for Uchiha Lihuo. Why not take this opportunity to win him over?"

With that thought, Hiruzen immediately raised his hand slightly, and a shadow darted out from a blind spot.

"Yue, go retrieve an A-rank genjutsu scroll and send it to Nara Lujing. He will understand what I mean."

"Also, tell Orochimaru to continue observing Uchiha Lihuo. He may strike to test him when necessary!"

Yue left without a sound, and Sarutobi Hiruzen prepared to head home. At this moment, Lihuo was training at the training ground with Guy and Kakashi.

"Why do you think Aotian's dad wants to find me?" Lihuo sat on the ground, panting, clearly having gone through brutal training.

"How would I know? Maybe he found out you beat his son, so he's setting up an ambush to jump you?"

Having spent more time with Lihuo, Kakashi had also become sharp-tongued.

"Why worry so much? Youth is about charging forward. You won't get anywhere if you hesitate like that."

The youth-obsessed idiot offered his own perspective.

"Forget it, forget it. It's really hard on me to ask two guys with zero emotional intelligence like you."

"I should keep training!"

A few days later, Uchiha Lihuo returned to school, and the promised Uchiha family banquet was held that evening.

Therefore, Lihuo had inquired about Uchiha Ting's preferences early on and bought a gift; since an elder had invited him to dinner, showing up empty-handed would have been a breach of etiquette.

Following Aotian to his home, Lihuo was instantly taken aback by the mansion before him.

"Damn, Aotian, you didn't say your house was this big! Not bad, you rich snob."

"Of course, Boss! Don't you know who my dad is?"

Having let go of his inner turmoil, Aotian had become much more cheerful.

"If you want one, I can have one sent to you," a middle-aged man's voice sounded from behind Lihuo, full of vigor and exceptionally steady.

"That would certainly be nice," Lihuo said happily, before freezing in place.

"Dad, why did you come out?" Aotian asked joyfully.

"Naturally, I came to see what the Uchiha Clan's newest genius is like," Uchiha Ting said with a smile.

At this moment, Lihuo, whose toes were curling in embarrassment, finally regained his composure.

"Hello, Uncle. I am Uchiha Lihuo. I was a bit presumptuous just now, and I truly apologize. This is a gift for you; I hope you will accept it."

Seeing that the gifts Lihuo had brought were all things he liked, Uchiha Ting was overjoyed.

He has strength, character, and manners; he hardly seems like an Uchiha. This boy is truly extraordinary, he thought to himself.

Out loud, however, he said, "Truly, heroes are born in youth. Come, come, let's go inside and sit."

With that, he led the way into the house.

Only then did Lihuo realize that when Uchiha Ting had been standing behind him earlier, he hadn't sensed him at all.

First Teacher Oshima, then Aotian's father—why are they all so good at hiding their true depths?

Inside the house, the three of them took their seats as host and guests and began to exchange simple pleasantries.

The conversation was nothing more than checking backgrounds and sharing experiences; much of it was meaningless small talk.

After three rounds of drinks and five courses of food, the meal began to draw to a close.

Yet, Lihuo subconsciously felt that this dinner might not be so simple.

"Little Lihuo, in your opinion, which is more important: the village or the clan?" Ting suddenly asked. Although he reeked of alcohol, his eyes remained perfectly clear.

Before coming, Lihuo had learned from Aotian that Uchiha Ting was a powerful elder of the Hawk Faction, possessing immense political acumen and ruthless methods.

He understood that this question was the true purpose of the banquet.

"I was born into the Uchiha Clan. It was the uncles and aunts of the Uchiha Clan who raised me; they are the people closest to me."

Seeing that Lihuo did not choose to answer the question directly, Ting was not annoyed; instead, he thought even more highly of the boy.

"To be honest, I don't know how to play those word games. I only have a heart of sincerity!"

"For that reason, I personally funded the printing and distribution of your work to more Uchiha youths."

"I hope Little Lihuo doesn't mind my good intentions."

Hearing Ting's words, Lihuo's heart turned cold. This wasn't just polite talk; it was a calculated move.

You don't want to pick a side? Then I'll pick one for you.

It wasn't hard for Lihuo to imagine what other factions would think once they saw the Uchiha Hawk Faction listed as the publisher.

Undoubtedly, Lihuo had been half-bound to the Hawk Faction's warship.

Before Lihuo could overthink it, Ting followed up with another question.

"If two factions were to emerge within the clan—one favoring the interests of the clan, and the other favoring the interests of the entire village—how would you deal with them?" The previously tipsy Ting suddenly radiated an imposing aura.

In Ting's mind, a boy of this age would usually hesitate when faced with such a question, and combined with this overwhelming pressure, it would be easy to catch him off guard.

But this time, Lihuo shed his previous hesitation and spoke clearly.

"Regardless of whose interests they are, as long as they harm innocent people, I will fight them to the bitter end."

Hearing this answer, Ting was surprised. He was shocked by Lihuo's decisiveness and felt that Lihuo was hinting at something.

Satisfied with the answer, Ting waved his hand and activated his Secret Technique: Money Scatter.

He not only covered all of Lihuo's training expenses but also promised a fixed monthly supply of cultivation resources and silver.

"Elder Ting, you know that I have some savings of my own..."

"Does Little Lihuo mean..."

"I hope to improve my strength."

"Hahaha!" Lihuo's insatiable greed did not irritate Ting; instead, it put him at ease.

He knew that the Uchiha Clan never lacked geniuses; what they lacked were those who possessed talent and knew how to utilize it.

Moreover, cultivating an outstanding Uchiha talent was, both publicly and privately, beneficial to the clan.

"I will give you a scroll for an A-rank ninjutsu as well."

Hearing this, Lihuo could not help but be overjoyed.

Truly a wealthy patron; their generosity was simply extravagant. Lihuo thanked Ting and accepted the offer.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Lihuo took his leave at an appropriate moment.

On the way back, Lihuo could not help but think to himself.

It is certain that as my strength grows, I have already caught the eye of many important figures. Contact with them is only a matter of time.

I must improve my strength as quickly as possible; after all, power is the greatest capital.

Upon returning home, Lihuo was surprised to see a key lying quietly on his desk.

The address on it was for the most prosperous area of the Uchiha Clan Grounds. It seemed this was an additional gift from Ting.