Father and Son's Duel

To this day, Itachi still clearly remembered that day when his mother was very silent and depressed, and his older brother held his small hand tightly.

"Father! What kind of thinking leads you to take a five-year-old child to the battlefield!" Yu's expression was quite calm, so calm that Itachi, sitting to the side, felt extremely uneasy.

He wanted to break free from his brother's hand, but no matter what, he couldn't pull away.

"What do you know? This is the fate of the Uchiha clan!" Fugaku glanced indifferently at Yu, who was sitting opposite him.

"Heh, only the weak talk about fate. The strong believe that my life is determined by me, not by the heavens. I will absolutely not let someone as young as Itachi go to the battlefield. Itachi! Hide behind your brother. Today, this incompetent father won't be able to take you away from me!"

Itachi looked at his brother, who had turned his head to look at him. He didn't understand why he had stood there blankly and hidden behind his brother at the time; it seemed to be because his brother's eyes appeared to be burning with flames, very scorching and full of anger.

From childhood until now, it seemed to be the first time he had seen his calm and composed brother show such an angry look.

"Hmph! You, who never train properly, how can you talk about being strong? This is nothing but the wild talk of a child!" Fugaku's expression turned stern in an instant.

He had prepared to give up on this eldest son because, until now, he hadn't even mastered the most basic Three Body Technique of a ninja, far from being comparable to Itachi.

Although he felt a little disappointed by this, he also felt a tiny bit of relief that his eldest son couldn't be a ninja. After all, in this era, not being a ninja might just be a stroke of luck.

"Father, then let us test it and see if I am just talking wildly!"

Hearing Yu's firm words, Itachi's small body trembled slightly. He was very moved, yet also very worried. Although he knew his brother wasn't weak, that was his father!

The current Clan Head of the Uchiha, the strongest existence.

"Brother, I am willing..."

"Itachi! Are you sure you want me to be a failure of an older brother!"

Itachi swallowed the rest of his words, his eyes staring blankly at the brother who was stubbornly shielding him.

For the first time, besides the pressure of his father's expectations, he felt a sense of peace from being protected.

"Yu, are you sure!" A flash of astonishment and surprise crossed Fugaku's eyes.

Mikoto, standing to the side, wanted to reach out and grab Fugaku's hand, but in the end, whether out of trust in Fugaku or her habitual reverence for the head of the household, she didn't know.

She pulled back her half-extended hand, only looking at Yu, who was shielding Itachi, with a face full of concern.

"There is nothing I wouldn't dare to do. Itachi is my younger brother; isn't it only right for an older brother to protect his younger brother? Even if there is a powerful enemy in front, if you want to hurt Itachi, then you will have to step over me!"

Itachi suddenly felt a wet drop sliding down his cheek; it was salty, yet very comforting.

"Then let's test your mettle! Yu, anyone can talk big!"

After saying this, Fugaku turned and walked to the backyard training ground without hesitation.

Yu handed Itachi over to his mother, who had been watching him with concern, and gave her a reassuring look.

Mikoto opened her mouth, wanting to persuade her eldest son that there was no need for this.

However, seeing Yu turn around so firmly, she withdrew her words once again.

At this moment, saying anything was redundant. Since things had reached this point, she could only trust her husband; after all, Yu was his son!

"Yu, bring out your true strength, or else take back your big words." After speaking, a powerful aura radiated from Fugaku's body.

Itachi, standing at the doorway with his mother, instantly felt a sense of breathlessness, his spine involuntarily hunching slightly. And what kind of immense pressure is my brother, who is facing Father directly, bearing right now?

Itachi stared blankly at his brother's still-upright figure, suddenly feeling as if his brother had become much taller.

A blaze of fire soared from Yu's body, illuminating the dark sky. Reflected on Itachi's face, it felt so warm and scorching.

Standing in the center of the flames, his brother looked like a fire spirit born from the fire itself, with orange-yellow flames swirling around his body like a fire dragon.

Seeing this scene, Itachi's young face froze in shock. "Is this Brother's strength!"

Fugaku's pupils shrank slightly. He couldn't believe that the eldest son he usually looked down upon could possess such powerful Fire Style.

Moreover, these flames circled his eldest son's body without harming his flesh; what powerful control this was.

"Yu, it seems Father has underestimated you all this time. Haha! Let Father test your true strength!" Fugaku went from being silent and surprised to becoming incomparably excited.

Is this the strength Yu has been hiding!

"Fire Style, Great Fireball Technique!"

A massive fireball erupted from Fugaku's mouth, the scorching temperature instantly drying out the nearby earth.

Watching Fugaku perform hand seals and spew flames, the corner of Yu's mouth curled into a smile.

"Is Fire Style really such a cumbersome thing!"

"Fire Style Technique!" In an instant, Yu's figure vanished from where he stood. When he reappeared, it was as if he had merged into the massive fireball; he instantly passed through the scorching sphere and appeared in the air one meter above Fugaku.

"Fire Dragon Claw!" Yu's right hand formed a claw shape and pressed down slightly. The surrounding flames seemed to be guided by something, and the massive fireball was quickly drawn away, forming a giant fire claw in the shape of Yu's hand, which he slammed down toward Fugaku.

"What! A ninjutsu without hand seals!"

A flash of incredulous shock crossed Fugaku's eyes, but it was too late for him to think.

The giant claw, glowing with blue flames, had a scorching temperature that had almost ignited the hair and clothes on his body.

Fugaku's eyes instantly revealed the Three Tomoe form. "Body Flicker Technique!"

"Boom!" The giant claw struck the ground, leaving a massive, charred claw print on the training ground, with wisps of blue flame rising from the cracked earth.

"Fire Style, Fire Dragon Jutsu!" Appearing behind Yu, Fugaku quickly formed several hand seals in less than a second. A massive fire dragon spiraled into the sky, instantly lunging toward Yu, who had not yet had time to turn around.

However, seeing Yu standing still with his back to the fire dragon as if he hadn't reacted at all, the over-excited Fugaku felt a sudden surge of panic.

"Yu, dodge!" After shouting, Fugaku used Instant Flash to dash toward Yu, intending to use his own body to block the incoming fire dragon for him.

Yet, the distance was too close; even with Fugaku's speed, he could only watch helplessly as the fire dragon closed in on Yu's back.

In that instant, the spirits of all three people in the courtyard were stretched to the breaking point.

However, the explosion of the fire dragon that they had imagined did not occur. As the fire dragon touched Yu, the flames maintaining its dragon shape instantly dissipated, turning into countless sparks that filled the air and lingered for a long time.

As Yu flicked his fingers, the sparks flowed like water under his command, rapidly converging onto his palm to form a massive sphere.

At this moment, Yu looked like a god holding up the sun, gazing calmly at the anxious-looking Fugaku.

A gentle smile finally appeared on his silent face.

"Father, do you still want to test me?" Yu's voice revealed a hint of lightness amidst its calmness. Although his father was rigid and chauvinistic, he had to admit that he loved him.

Fugaku stared blankly at Yu, who was holding the large fireball, his emotions shifting in a complex mix.

There was worry, excitement, and also a trace of gratification.

"Yu, is this a new Kekkei Genkai..." Fugaku asked uncertainly.

"Hmm! I'm not entirely sure myself, but if it's fire, it's generally hard for it to hurt me!" After saying this, Yu manipulated the fireball, constantly changing its form in his hands.

One moment it transformed into a lifelike fire dragon, and the next into a flaming lotus flower, as if he were a divine messenger controlling fire.

This scene, falling into Fugaku's eyes, made him believe once more that his eldest son had definitely awakened another Kekkei Genkai besides the Sharingan.

However, thinking of today's events, Fugaku immediately put away his shock and regained his composure.

"Hmph! Don't think you're all that just because you've awakened a Kekkei Genkai. A ninja's methods are more than just ninjutsu! You must train hard in the future! If it weren't for the fact that I used Fire Style, I don't know how worried your mother would have been today given your current taijutsu."

"Yes, yes!" Yu dissipated the flames in his hands. For the sake of his well-behaved younger brother, he didn't want to refute this rigid father anymore, but the necessary words still had to be said.

"Then, about Itachi..."

"Hmph! That's enough!" After saying this, Fugaku waved his hand and left the training ground.

"Sharp tongue, soft heart," Yu muttered in a low voice.

Fugaku's body paused as he reached the gate, and a faint, imperceptible smile appeared on his poker face as he stood with his back to Yu.

This scene was caught exactly by Mikoto and Itachi.

Mikoto also revealed a gentle smile from the bottom of her heart.

It was also this scene that etched the mark of his brother's immense power onto Itachi's young heart.