An emotionally stable Uchiha

A Konoha Barbecue restaurant.

Shinji had never expected this. He had meant to go home and rest, only to be dragged here.

Shisui had expected it even less. He had already gone to bed... yet after several twists and turns, he had still been forcibly dragged here.

Shisui looked rather listless.

The warm room, the meat sizzling with fat on the grill, the aroma filling his nose, his companions laughing and joking around him—all of it should have felt cozy, but he was in no mood to appreciate it.

He just wanted to sleep.

"Haah..."

Thinking of his woes, Shisui let out a sigh.

"What are you getting all sentimental for? Today's our reunion. I know you're tired, but put that on hold and perk up!"

Shinji patted Shisui's shoulder as he ate his Barbecue.

Shisui rolled his eyes.

Then he suddenly said, "That man earlier was ANBU. I've seen him before. He wore a different mask, but his build was exactly the same. He's from the Nara Clan..."

"No, you've mistaken him for someone else."

Shinji smiled and clinked glasses with his companions as he said, "Their uniforms might look the same, but they don't belong to the same department."

Shisui froze. "You mean...?"

"Mm."

"Shimura Danzō? Why would he...?"

Uchiha Izumi timidly edged closer.

Shisui stopped talking.

Izumi lifted her cup, her face flushed. "Lord Shinji, would you have a drink with me?"

"Oh, Izumi. Of course, but no alcohol for you!"

"Y-yes!"

Shinji smiled and drained his shochu.

Unlike Shisui, he paid no mind to Uchiha Izumi's presence and said calmly, "He doesn't need a reason. If you had a bigger reputation and were stronger than me, you would've been the assassination target today. So you must never tell anyone about your eyes."

"That's just..." Shisui clenched his fists, overcome by a sense of helplessness. "How can they be so unreasonable?!"

"Reason?"

Shinji laughed. "Flowing Fire! Flowing Fire? Stop fooling around! Tell Shisui what reason is!"

"Huh? Me?"

Flowing Fire's cheeks were flushed from drinking, and even his gaze was hazy.

"Yes, you, the musclehead. Tell Shisui what reason is!"

"Your fists, obviously! Whoever has the bigger fists is right!" Flowing Fire lived up to expectations, rolling up his sleeves to reveal his forearms, thick with knotted muscle.

His face brimmed with pride.

"Flowing Fire! Those muscles are nothing! Look at mine!" Chiba proudly tugged his sleeve aside to show off his pectorals.

Then Kika slapped him under the table, her face full of contempt. "Idiot! Izumi's still young. Don't make her lose hope in men!"

"Hahahaha!"

Everyone roared with laughter.

Blushing, Izumi huddled beside Shinji and giggled breathlessly.

Shisui smiled too. "This is nice..."

Shinji turned his head. "What did you say?"

"I said, this is nice. Everyone... Shinji, wouldn't it be wonderful if everyone in the Uchiha Clan could always be this happy?"

Shinji placed a piece of marbled pork belly in Shisui's bowl. His gaze swept across Ryuka, Kika, and the others, his smile growing wider.

"Soon. Soon."

"Ugh—I drank too much last night!"

Shinji stretched and rolled out of bed. He sniffed, then paused.

The smell of cooking?

"This won't do. I leave the battlefield, come back to the clan compound, and lose even the most basic vigilance. That's inexcusable."

Step, step, step.

Yawning as he headed downstairs, Shinji spotted the figure bustling in the kitchen and narrowed his eyes. "Well, well! Our little genius is back."

"Nii-san!!!"

Uchiha Nobihi poked his head out and said happily, "Go wash up first. The food's almost ready!"

"Oh, no hurry."

Shinji picked up an apple from the coffee table, took a bite, and leaned against the doorframe. "I heard you went on a mission with the Clan Head's son. Back so soon?"

"...Yes." Nobihi fell silent for a moment, then nodded.

"What mission?"

"Uh, just a simple B-rank mission." Nobihi scratched his head, but the desire for praise was written all over his face.

He was still just a child...

Shinji quietly sighed. "How many tomoe does he have?"

"..." Nobihi stopped moving, then said hesitantly, "Nii-san, that's someone else's secret. I should keep my friend's secrets. I can't tell you!"

"Oh!"

Shinji smiled gently. "All right, then. Let me ask something else. Have you awakened your Sharingan?"

"Yes!"

Nobihi perked up, turned to face Shinji, and confidently revealed his... Two-Tomoe Sharingan.

"Tch!"

Shinji rolled his eyes, turned away, and sat on the couch to switch on the television. "Stop showing off. You're not even qualified to be cannon fodder on the battlefield!"

"Nii-san! How could you..." Nobihi bit his lip, looking hurt.

"Get back to cooking!"

"Oh..." Nobihi turned away dejectedly.

"By the way, have you sparred with Uchiha Itachi? Who's stronger?"

Nobihi paused, then stammered, "Well... I might be a year older than Itachi... but I'm no match for him at all. Don't worry, though. I'll train twice as hard and become a stronger ninja than him!"

Shinji took a bite of his apple. "Is the gap that big?"

Uchiha Nobihi sounded dispirited. "I don't know, but I always feel like he's going easy on me, making it look as if we're evenly matched."

"So young... and already so calculating. You really do reap what you sow. Don't learn from him, or you'll end up going to extremes and obsessing over things."

Shinji scoffed.

Nobihi scratched his head. "Nii-san, Itachi means well. He's just being considerate of my feelings. We're good friends! And he really respects you in private. Once, while we were chatting, he suddenly said, 'If only I could be as strong as Big Brother Shinji...'"

"Oh?"

Shinji frowned. "Are you brainless? That's enough to make you think he respects me? Do you even understand him?"

"If he really considered you a friend, would he hide his strength while sparring with you?"

"Nii-san!"

Nobihi suddenly widened his eyes, trying to express his resolve by raising his voice and defend his friend.

Shinji found the whole thing tiresome and waved a hand. "Suit yourself. But if you can't beat him with two tomoe, doesn't that mean he has at least three?"

"Nii-san!!!"

The Hokage Building.

Hiruzen Sarutobi quietly puffed on his pipe.

Danzo sat opposite him, looking impatient. "If you have something to say, say it! Don't waste my time!"

"Tell me again what you think of Shinji Uchiha."

Danzo froze.

Hiruzen had summoned him first thing in the morning, and he had assumed the man intended to call him to account. Had Hiruzen finally come around...?

"My opinion hasn't changed. Shinji Uchiha is a hypocritical, evil brat. I've watched him for a long time. His public conduct might be flawless, but he's revealed one fatal weakness!"

"Oh?"

Hiruzen looked up. "Go on!"

Danzo sneered. "He's hardly ever paid attention to his younger brother, from childhood until now. In recent years, I've studied quite a few Uchiha..."

"What are you studying the Uchiha for?"

Hiruzen frowned. Seeing Danzo freeze, he casually waved a hand. "Never mind, never mind. Continue."

Danzo quietly clenched his fists. "According to my research, the Uchiha Clan's power seems to come from intense, profound emotions."

"The bonds between parents and children, for instance, or between siblings. Their love runs incredibly deep, but once they suffer a blow, their personalities change drastically."

"At the same time, their eyes change, granting them greater Ocular Power!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked puzzled. "I understand all that, but we're discussing Shinji Uchiha! You call him a hypocrite and say he has a fatal weakness. Is that simply because he's cold toward his brother, unlike most members of the Uchiha Clan?"

"What does that prove?"

Danzo's eyes widened. "Isn't that enough?!"

"He greets strangers and villagers with smiles, constantly asking after their well-being, yet he leaves his own younger brother in Uchiha Fugaku's care without a thought. He spends years away from the village without even writing to ask how the boy is doing. Isn't that a glaring contradiction?"

"Doesn't that prove he's a heartless, disloyal, hypocritical brat who puts on an act, appears righteous in public, but secretly wins people over, has no loyalty or affection, and harbors ulterior motives?!"

"Besides! Shinji Uchiha's parents died on the Night of the Nine-Tails, yet his emotions have remained utterly stable all these years. What a terrifying disposition!!!"

Hiruzen tapped the table. "Danzo, don't bring that up again!"

"..." Danzo frowned.

Then Hiruzen Sarutobi looked him straight in the eye. "When you say ulterior motives, what do you mean?"

"The Hokage, of course! He wants to become Hokage!" Danzo blurted out.

Then...

He stared at Hiruzen Sarutobi in disbelief.

"You..."

"...Danzo, I thought these years in Root would help you settle down. I never imagined you'd become this extreme, this narrow-minded!"

Danzo stood frozen, listening blankly.

Extreme?

Narrow-minded?

Me?

Just because I mentioned the Hokage position?

Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head. "All right, leave for now. I'll think it over."

"...Hiruzen, I hope you haven't forgotten one thing... On the Night of the Nine-Tails, I may have carried it out, but you gave the order to surround the Uchiha. We both bear responsibility for killing that brat's parents. Do you really think someone as intelligent as him won't figure it all out?"

Danzo finished speaking.

He gave Hiruzen Sarutobi—his former companion—a long, penetrating look.

A glint of grim resolve appeared in his clouded old eyes.

Then he turned and left.