First Arrival in the Iron Country

Three days later, a carriage left Konoha. Uchiha Yo sat on its roof, watching Konoha's gates recede into the distance. He silently swore to himself, When I come back next time, let's see how much I still resemble my former self!

The carriage traveled slowly along the road to the Iron Country. Uchiha Yo noticed that his father, usually so talkative, had been silent the entire way. At first, he thought his father was upset because he had learned that his son had nearly been played to death by his own older brother. But as they continued, he realized something was off. His mother seemed to be growing more and more domineering. She had always been imposing at home, but this time, her presence felt even more overwhelming.

Since the Uchiha had just wiped out the valley, they did not encounter a single fool looking for trouble along the way. Even some fierce-looking people would immediately scurry far away upon recognizing an Uchiha carriage. Several groups of bandits even came out to guide them, hoping the carriage would leave their territory as quickly as possible.

Once they entered the Iron Country, Uchiha Yo took in the customs and sights along the way. He felt that outside Konoha, the farther one traveled toward the borders, the poorer things became. Many samurai walked about the Iron Country, and they all moved aside when they saw the carriage. Though they belonged to a different system from ninja, they were not idiots. Provoking the Uchiha for no reason was obviously an incredibly brainless thing to do.

Unable to contain his curiosity any longer, Uchiha Yo asked, "Mother, why doesn't Grandpa live with the clan? Why did he come to the Iron Country?" His mother's answer was simple. "To nurture his sword. It's been five years, and he hasn't returned even once." "Then what's wrong with Father? He hasn't been talking much," Uchiha Yo asked. His mother smiled. "You'll have to ask him." Uchiha Yo hurried over to the handsome uncle and asked, "Father, why haven't you said much the whole way?" The handsome uncle gave a bitter smile. "You'll understand when you meet your grandfather..." "If you don't want to go, you can go back. No one forced you to come," Uchiha Ran shot back. "No, I wanted to see Father-in-law too. Besides, I can't live without you," the handsome uncle hurriedly said in a flattering tone.

They arrived at a wooden courtyard with excellent scenery. It stood beside a lake, backed by mountains and facing the water—a fine location indeed. Father suddenly tightened his grip on the ninja sword at his waist. A middle-aged man emerged from a thatched hut. Upon seeing the Uchiha crest on the carriage, he said, "I am Haruki, a samurai of the Iron Country. You must be Senior Fuken's family. Senior is fishing at the center of the lake. He should be back soon." Following Mifune's pointing finger, they saw a row of bamboo rafts on the water. One person sat on a raft in a straw rain cape, holding a fishing rod, with a fish basket behind him.

Uchiha Yo felt that his grandfather resembled one of those reclusive masters from the past. The sight before him reminded him of terms from his previous life: harmony between man and nature, or the highest goodness being like water. The bamboo raft began moving toward them. When it neared the shore, an old man rose to his feet and vanished in an instant. Father drew his sword, and a crisp clang rang out. Father staggered several steps back before steadying himself. The old man held a fishing rod, wore a straw rain cape, and carried a fish basket on his back. "You've improved a little, but you're still as useless as ever. It'd be strange if you could make any real progress trapped in that cage called Konoha." He then said to the middle-aged samurai, "Haruki, we have guests at home today. Come back another day." The samurai bowed, turned, and left. Before long, he was out of sight.

The old man shook his head as he looked at Mother, then pointed at Father. "This useless thing still only knows how to move his mouth. You just had to like that mouth of his. He can't even block a fishing rod. You've suffered, Ranran. Back then, I promised your mother I'd find you someone strong, but you insisted on choosing this smooth-talking fool. If you regret it, I'll cut him down and find you another one."

Uchiha Yo was dumbfounded. He finally understood why Father had been so unhappy. Who could possibly be happy in his place? While Uchiha Yo's thoughts ran wild, the old man's hand somehow landed on his head. "Yo, you've grown taller. You look just like your uncle did when he was young. Oh, Grandpa caught a good fish for you. Have your mother cook it for you later. Have you been training properly? That title of youngest genin is fucking useless. A ninja's worth ultimately comes down to strength. There's no use talking about anything else. Don't learn from your father. He's practiced with a blade for half his life, yet he can't even block a fishing rod. He's hopeless. He's even forgotten how to hold a sword. But you're a good seedling. I was the one who told Ranran to bring you here this time. If you stayed in Konoha, those people who only know how to scheme against one another would teach you crooked. What use is scheming before absolute strength? Powerful people like Hashirama Senju and Uchiha Madara never needed to use their brains. If you refused to submit, they'd beat you flat. If you still refused, they'd let you go, catch you again, and beat you some more. Our ancestors were even worse—if you refused, they'd slaughter your entire family, block the entrance to your village, and tell you all to come at them together if you had anyone capable. Did they need schemes? How could you scheme against that? Our clan is a ninja clan. Strength is the foundation. Those people used to understand the need to train diligently, but the moment they gained high positions, they forgot what gave the Uchiha our status today. It wasn't playing mind games with others. It was won through the blades in our hands and bloodshed."

Mother linked her arm through the old man's and said, "All right, why bring that up the moment we arrive? We haven't seen each other in years. I missed you too. Yo, hurry and call him Grandpa. Let's get inside. We've been traveling for so many days. Mom will cook the fish, and our family can have a proper reunion dinner." Uchiha Yo quickly said, "Grandpa, I'm starving. How about we eat first? We've been in the carriage all day, and I'm exhausted." As he spoke, he grabbed his grandfather's other hand and pulled him toward the house. Watching the three head inside, the handsome uncle wore a bitter smile as he followed behind them, walking toward the house step by step.