The Old Man's Strategy Succeeds

Indra walked straight to the courtyard gate, pushed it open, and went inside.

"Mikoto, I'm coming in." He strode into the house naturally, as though he had returned to his own home.

Hearing his voice, Uchiha Mikoto immediately came to greet him. "Good morning, Indra. Breakfast is ready~"

A sweet smile rested on Uchiha Mikoto's face. With a pure white apron tied around her waist, she looked like an adorable little cook.

As soon as Indra entered, he saw a spry old man sitting on the sofa and drinking tea.

Seeing that Indra had come again, the old man wore a kindly expression.

"Back again, little Luo."

"Hehe~ Grandpa Ryoshi, I'm here to mooch another meal."

"That's fine. You can come every day if you want."

Uchiha Ryoshi stroked his beard, his eyes full of amusement.

In truth, he had already come to regard Indra as his own grandson.

Seven years ago, his son and daughter-in-law had died in battle, leaving behind only his granddaughter Mikoto.

Mikoto had been deeply traumatized by the incident, but as her grandfather, he had not known how to comfort her.

It was only after Indra appeared that Uchiha Ryoshi clearly noticed the smiles on his granddaughter's face becoming more frequent.

From then on, he had wholeheartedly accepted Indra.

Yet whenever he thought of the war still raging outside, Uchiha Ryoshi could not help but let out a deep sigh.

He worried that something would happen to Indra and Mikoto. However, as a member of the Uchiha Clan's council of elders, he could only involve himself in Uchiha matters and had no way to interfere with the village's arrangements.

Indra had yet to awaken his Sharingan. If he went to the battlefield, what would happen then?

While Uchiha Ryoshi was worrying, Indra shamelessly leaned closer.

"Grandpa Ryoshi, do you have any way for me to learn ninjutsu?"

"Oh? Aren't the things your parents left you enough?"

Uchiha Ryoshi looked at Indra in confusion. Genin simply did not need to learn many ninjutsu, because even if they knew them, they would not be able to use them.

Usually, the number of ninjutsu a ninja could master did not exceed ten.

Only a Ninjutsu Professor like the Third Hokage was proficient in all five elemental styles and had mastered over a thousand ninjutsu.

Uchiha Ryoshi had helped sort through Indra's parents' inheritance. The D-rank Body Flicker Technique and the C-rank Great Fireball Technique were enough for him to learn until he became a chunin.

Before Uchiha Ryoshi could offer a reminder, a scarlet single-tomoe Sharingan appeared in Indra's eyes.

"I awakened it yesterday, Grandpa Ryoshi. My chakra reserves have increased quite a bit.

Before I go to the battlefield, I want to make more preparations."

Staring at Indra's single-tomoe Sharingan, Uchiha Ryoshi's eyes immediately lit up. "Good! It's good that you awakened it!!"

The Uchiha Clan had only a little over a thousand members in total, and only slightly more than two hundred of them were ninjas. Of those, even fewer had awakened the Sharingan.

Indra's awakening meant that his aptitude was already among the very best in the Uchiha Clan.

As long as one awakened a single-tomoe Sharingan, reaching elite genin strength was practically guaranteed.

With a two-tomoe Sharingan, one could even contend with a special jonin.

Uchiha clansmen with three-tomoe Sharingan were elites even among jonin!

Both Indra and Mikoto had awakened their Sharingan, and with Lady Tsunade's protection, their chances of surviving would be greatly increased.

Happy for them, Uchiha Ryoshi kindly patted Indra on the head.

"Whatever you want to learn, Indra, Grandpa can teach you."

"That's great!"

Indra could not hide his excitement and enthusiastically hugged Uchiha Mikoto beside him.

After all, obtaining ninjutsu was far more difficult than it seemed.

The vast majority of ninjutsu were kept in the hands of the major clans, and unless the ninja learning them was a genius among geniuses, it was difficult to even get started without someone else's guidance.

There were conditions for acquiring ninjutsu within the Uchiha Clan as well.

Normally, one had to make contributions to the clan before exchanging them for the corresponding ninjutsu.

Now that Uchiha Ryoshi was personally teaching him, Indra had directly bypassed a whole pile of cumbersome procedures.

At that moment, Mikoto's little face was flushed red in Indra's embrace, but she did not struggle and appeared very obedient.

She wore a gentle smile as she looked at Indra affectionately.

Seeing Indra happy made Mikoto's heart feel sweet as well.

After some consideration, Indra did not ask Uchiha Ryoshi to teach him too many ninjutsu.

He understood that trying to learn too much at once would only leave him unable to master any of it, so he chose only the three most useful ones.

[Uchiha-style Swordsmanship], [Phantom Body Flicker Technique], [Hell Viewing Technique]

Every Uchiha clansman who had awakened their eyes was, in fact, a decent swordsman.

Thus, the Uchiha Clan had long since developed an excellent set of swordsmanship techniques.

The Sharingan's exceptionally powerful dynamic vision, combined with exquisite swordsmanship, made them unstoppable on the battlefield.

Strictly speaking, the [Phantom Body Flicker Technique] was a genjutsu. The Uchiha Clan could use the Sharingan's ocular power to create multiple phantoms.

It was said that once mastered to a profound level, the phantoms would not vanish when attacked and could even assault opponents alongside the original body.

The [Hell Viewing Technique] could make opponents see the images they feared most, striking at their minds.

One swordsmanship set and two genjutsu techniques could strengthen his close-combat ability, increase his control capabilities, further make up for his weaknesses, and expand upon his strengths.

Indra's choice also earned Uchiha Ryoshi's approval.

"Use a wooden sword to practice today. Later, I'll ask someone to buy you a chakra blade from Cat Granny."

Cat Granny was the owner of the Uchiha Clan's dedicated weapon shop and maintained a symbiotic relationship with the Ninja Cat Clan.

Once Uchiha Ryoshi finished speaking, his gaze abruptly turned incomparably sharp.

The instant he gripped the wooden sword, his entire aura changed.

Indra's heart skipped a beat as his one-tomoe Sharingan spun rapidly.

"Grandpa Ryoshi, go easy—"

Before Indra could finish, a fierce slash suddenly descended.

He hurriedly raised his sword to meet it, and the two wooden swords collided.

Bang!

The jarring force traveled down the blade, numbing Indra's tiger's mouth and nearly making him lose his grip on the wooden sword.

The moment he revealed an opening, Uchiha Ryoshi's wooden sword shot out like a spear, striking precisely between Indra's brows.

Thud!

Indra felt a sharp pain in his forehead, and his entire body instantly fell backward.

Seeing this, Uchiha Mikoto, who had been watching from the side, immediately reproached him, "Grandpa~ Go easier on him."

Before Uchiha Ryoshi could speak, Indra interrupted, "It's fine. Grandpa Ryoshi knows his limits."

He flipped back to his feet and gripped his wooden sword once more.

Seeing the fervor in Indra's eyes, Uchiha Ryoshi smiled back. "Now that's more like it."

Uchiha Mikoto had no choice but to let it be.

As Uchiha Ryoshi's granddaughter, she had long since learned everything she was supposed to learn.

She simply went out to consult Teacher Tsunade and, while she was at it, asked for leave on Indra's behalf.

At that moment, only Indra and Uchiha Ryoshi remained in the open space of the courtyard.

"Remember the arc and force behind my swings."

"Your movements must be precise, but they must also be steady!"

"You must also grasp the timing for concentrating chakra, or the angle of your slash will shift slightly."

Uchiha Ryoshi taught him every detail, while Indra gradually went from passively taking blows to barely holding his own.

Indra's improvement was one factor, but the larger reason was that Uchiha Ryoshi had expended too much stamina.

Watching Indra get back up yet again, Uchiha Ryoshi frowned.

Wasn't this kid's energy a little too abundant?

To make sure Indra was not just forcing himself to endure, Uchiha Ryoshi examined his body.

He should have been covered in bruises, but he was completely unscathed. His skin was still unbelievably pale, as though he had never been hit at all.

"This recovery ability is far too outrageous?!"

Uchiha Ryoshi could not help but exclaim.

Indra's lips curved upward. This was the divine power of the Horse Talisman!

The facts proved that his strategy of outlasting the old man had been a great success.

When Indra's wooden sword struck Uchiha Ryoshi's wrist for the first time, the latter finally could not hold on any longer and collapsed onto the ground.

Uchiha Ryoshi repeatedly waved his hand. "I can't go on. I need to rest. I can't compete with a young man like you anymore."

"Hehe~ Grandpa, let me give you a massage."

Putting on a concerned expression, Indra secretly activated the Horse Talisman and the Dog Talisman while massaging Uchiha Ryoshi's shoulders and legs.

Uchiha Ryoshi, who had been panting heavily, instantly revived on the spot.

Even the old hidden injuries lingering in his body were completely healed at this moment.

"What's going on? I suddenly feel so much lighter, and I've got a lot more strength!"

Before Uchiha Ryoshi, who had risen and swung his arms around, could even finish being surprised, Indra leaned in.

"Since you're so full of energy, Grandpa Ryoshi, teach me for a while longer."

"...All right."

Uchiha Ryoshi gave his god-grandson several more surprised looks, but ultimately didn't think too much about it. He got up and continued the lesson.