"Yemu Hyuga!!!"
Sasuke Uchiha roared as he charged forward.
Hatred filled Sasuke Uchiha's eyes, as though he already saw Yemu as Uchiha Itachi.
"Still fighting for it, huh, Uchiha Sasuke?"
Yemu Hyuga shook his head helplessly.
Even White Mask wasn't this competitive.
Naturally, he wasn't going to hold back.
On the contrary, giving Uchiha Sasuke a beating would only help him grow faster.
With that thought, Yemu Hyuga advanced instead of retreating, kicking up a cloud of dust beneath his feet.
His speed was so ferocious that even with his Sharingan activated, Sasuke Uchiha couldn't track him.
All Sasuke saw was Yemu vanishing, followed by a barrage of straight punches slamming into his abdomen.
The blows kept him suspended in midair for several seconds.
"Ooh, ooh, ooh~"
Sasuke Uchiha let out a series of strange monkey cries in midair.
Then Yemu Hyuga stopped punching.
Sasuke Uchiha fell freely, dropping straight to the ground.
Smack!
Sasuke couldn't fight for anything anymore. Even moving was difficult now.
"Sasuke-kun!!"
Sakura Haruno looked panicked.
She rushed desperately toward Sasuke Uchiha, who lay on the ground.
She had thought Sasuke Uchiha could defeat Yemu Hyuga, but forget winning-this had been practically a complete rout.
"No way. He got beaten that badly?"
Choji Akimichi ducked his head and hid behind Shikamaru Nara.
He couldn't help imagining himself in Sasuke's place.
Ino Yamanaka shook her head inwardly, feeling a little regretful.
From this day on, Yemu Hyuga was unquestionably the strongest student in their year.
"Whoa, that guy's that strong?"
Naruto Uzumaki appeared beside the Ino-Shika-Cho trio.
As for why...
Compared with the other students...
Only Choji and Shikamaru were usually willing to play with him.
Neji Hyuga narrowed his eyes slightly.
His mind was filled with the scene of Yemu's fight with Sasuke.
He imagined himself in Sasuke's place and realized he wouldn't have fared much better.
There was no helping it. Unlike Sasuke, he had some idea of the tip of the iceberg that was Yemu Hyuga's strength.
Never mind them-Neji felt that even Iruka-sensei might not be a match for Yemu.
"Are you all right? Do you need me to call a medical ninja?"
Yemu Hyuga walked over to Sasuke.
He held out his hand to him.
"Get lost!!"
Sasuke Uchiha shoved Sakura Haruno away from his side.
Sakura Haruno was utterly bewildered.
Seriously?
I didn't even say anything. Why are you telling me to get lost?
Under Sakura Haruno's stunned gaze, Sasuke Uchiha took Yemu Hyuga's hand and stood up, forming the Seal of Reconciliation as he did.
"Next time. Next time, I definitely won't lose to you!"
Sasuke Uchiha spoke firmly.
Then he dragged his aching body away, pushing through the crowd as he headed into the distance.
As for Sakura Haruno...
Sorry, but he, Sasuke Uchiha, didn't associate with weaklings.
Weaklings would only slow his progress toward becoming stronger.
"Sasuke Uchiha!! What are you doing? Why are you treating Sakura like that?"
Naruto Uzumaki came over to Sakura Haruno.
He tried to help her up.
Only for Sakura Haruno to swat him away without mercy.
That dramatic scene...
Made Yemu Hyuga's expression stiffen slightly.
All right, all right.
You've shown me an entire gut-wrenching teen drama in just a few minutes, huh?
"Yemu, are you all right?"
Seeing Yemu Hyuga approach, Qingxue Uchiha tilted her head curiously.
She had clearly noticed how many of the girls around them looked at Yemu Hyuga with a sparkle in their eyes.
Especially Ino Yamanaka of the Yamanaka Clan.
Qingxue Uchiha could tell that she wanted to come over and talk, too.
Unfortunately for her, a few threatening looks from Qingxue had somewhat curtailed her efforts.
"I'm fine. Let's head back."
Yemu Hyuga glanced behind him. Not far away, Sasuke Uchiha shoved Sakura Haruno aside again, while Naruto Uzumaki followed the two, loudly complaining.
He didn't pay much attention to the three youngsters.
Everyone had their own life.
And he felt that his own life seemed pretty good right now.
Putting those scattered thoughts behind him, Yemu Hyuga left the academy with Qingxue and Hinata and stepped onto Konoha's streets.
The setting sun hung like a curtain, its dusky golden light falling over the three of them and casting three long shadows across the ground.
Several more days passed.
The village's ninja gradually recovered from the horrifying news of the Uchiha Clan's annihilation.
Fortunately, thanks to Yemu Hyuga's advance warning, Qingxue Uchiha showed no sign of grief.
Perhaps it was just as she had said: she had no real attachment to the family she had transmigrated into.
Yemu Hyuga didn't know what mistreatment Qingxue Uchiha had suffered within her clan, nor did he ask too many questions.
All they needed to do now was live well in the present.
As for the past, they could let it turn into bubbles of memory and scatter on the wind.
That morning...
Yemu Hyuga was buying breakfast when several masked ninja blocked his path.
Yemu Hyuga calmly stared at the ninja wearing animal masks.
He knew what they wanted. After all this waiting, Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi had finally made his move.
That meant Uchiha Itachi probably hadn't told them everything about his abilities.
Otherwise, given Hiruzen Sarutobi's usual ways...
He would probably have had Yemu hauled in a week ago.
And studied his eyes together with Danzo.
But Uchiha Itachi wouldn't do that.
Yemu Hyuga was certain of that.
That was also why Yemu Hyuga had dared to demonstrate his Turning Eye abilities in front of Uchiha Itachi.
After all, Uchiha Itachi's close friend Shisui Uchiha had trusted Konoha far too much.
In the end, Danzo had ruthlessly stolen his eye.
To avoid repeating that mistake, Uchiha Itachi naturally wouldn't give the Third Hokage an honest account of Yemu's precise abilities.
Or of the Tenseigan, which was even more powerful than the Mangekyō Sharingan.
"Yemu Hyuga, Lord Third Hokage would like to speak with you. Please come with us."
Faced with the request from the Anbu, an organization directly under the Third Hokage...
Yemu Hyuga feigned surprise and made his way to the Konoha Central Building.
"Lord Third Hokage is inside. You may go in."
The Anbu Ninja brought Yemu Hyuga to the door of the Hokage's Office.
At first...
Yemu Hyuga had thought the Third Hokage merely wanted to assess his talent and strength, and decide whether he was worth special cultivation.
After all, the Hyuga Clan had never produced any Kage Level powerhouse.
Not to mention that he was a member of the Branch Family, with a restricted Byakugan.
But very soon...
As Yemu Hyuga opened the wooden door and entered the Hokage's Office...
The pressure hit him instantly.
Seated directly before him was the Third Hokage, wearing his ceremonial hat.
As he looked at Yemu Hyuga, his stern expression quickly shifted into a friendly smile.
Beside him...
Was Danzo, nearly half his body wrapped in bandages, with ruthlessness lurking in his eyes.
And that wasn't all.
Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu of the Konoha High Command were there as well.
But what drew Yemu Hyuga's attention most was the blond, middle-aged man in the corner.
If Yemu Hyuga remembered correctly, this man was the Yamanaka Clan Head, Ino Yamanaka's father, Inoichi Yamanaka.
His intelligence analysis skills ranked among the very best in the Shinobi World.
If he recalled correctly, the Head of the Konoha Anbu Interrogation Department was an expert from the Yamanaka Clan.
All right, all right. Planning to gang up and interrogate me, are you?
What exactly did that oh-so-filial son Uchiha Itachi tell you people??
Before you continue