The arrogant Uchiha

Meanwhile, Uchiha Yan returned to the clan grounds with a smile, holding a Lightning Clone scroll he had just gotten from Kakashi.

"Hehehe... With the Lightning Clone, I can do all sorts of things. Little Shisui, are you ready?"

Before he knew it, Uchiha Yan had arrived at Fugaku's house. He did not want to come here either, but unfortunately, his own home had been destroyed, and Fugaku had yet to arrange another place for him, so he could only live under someone else's roof.

"Huh?"

The moment Uchiha Yan stepped inside, he saw a figure both familiar and unfamiliar. Wasn't that Shisui Uchiha?

"Shisui, you're here too! Is school over?"

"Hello, senior!"

"Senior Yan, you're back!"

Uchiha Yan casually tossed his ninja tool pouch into the living room, then lay flat on the floor.

"Itachi, why haven't I seen Sasuke today?"

"He's sleeping!"

Uchiha Itachi and Shisui looked at Yan's languid posture, then exchanged glances.

"Senior, are you really that tired? Or did something happen?"

"Not too bad! What were you looking at just now? You didn't even notice when I opened the door."

Hearing this, Shisui Uchiha placed a book in Yan's hand.

"Senior, did you write this for Itachi? Can we cultivate Haoran Qi by doing what the book says?"

"Hmm?"

Uchiha Yan glanced at the book and spoke in an indifferent tone.

"If you can live up to even one line, you're practically a god. Take the investigation of things mentioned in here, for example.

"Investigating things means tracing how something came about, from beginning to end. That alone is beyond an ordinary person."

"What do you mean?"

"You're trash!"

"Huh?"

"You're a traitor to the Uchiha!"

"Senior, what are you saying? Why are you insulting me out of nowhere?"

"Your whole family is trash!"

"Uchiha Yan, I challenge you to a duel!"

Uchiha Yan sat up, looking perfectly relaxed. "Getting angry is exactly right! Did you notice yourself getting angry just now? Do you know why you got angry? Do you know how to handle a situation like this?"

"Uh..."

Shisui shook his head. "I didn't notice! Senior, did you say that on purpose just to make me angry?"

"Obviously! I insulted your whole family, so you got angry. What should you do the next time someone insults you like that?"

"Pretend I didn't hear it?"

"What an idiot! Obviously, you beat him until he doesn't dare insult you anymore!"

At this point, the corners of Uchiha Yan's mouth slowly lifted.

"Let me ask you another question. If Itachi wiped out the Uchiha Clan one day, what would you do?"

"Senior, that could never happen!"

"Anything can happen. I'm asking you what you would do!"

Shisui Uchiha lowered his head and sank into thought, giving no response for a long time.

"Heh..."

Uchiha Yan chuckled. "Stop thinking! The moment you start weighing the pros and cons, it's no longer self-cultivation or Accumulated Righteousness. You can't nurture Haoran Qi that way.

"Self-cultivation means noticing your own thoughts the instant something happens. If the thought is evil, don't act on it. If the thought is good, act on it.

"And don't ask what good and evil are. Your soul will naturally tell you. The problem is that you'll unconsciously find excuses, imagine evil deeds to be good ones, and even call yourself righteous.

"This is especially likely to happen after awakening the Sharingan. That's also where the Uchiha Clan's arrogance comes from."

At this point, Uchiha Yan raised his right hand and pointed at Shisui, his expression turning serious.

"You're only nine, yet you're thinking about questions only adults would consider. This is the downside of the Sharingan."

"Senior, aren't you doing the same thing?"

Before Shisui could speak, Itachi had already spoken up. "Senior, aren't the things you're talking about also things only adults would think about?"

"That's because I had someone to teach me. I grew up in Genjutsu.

"I may only be twelve, but I spend every night in a Genjutsu world. Strictly speaking, I'm already in my thirties."

Shisui covered his eyes, looking thoughtful.

"Senior! Isn't that a good thing?"

"Nothing in this world is simply good or bad. It depends on how you see it!"

To make Shisui regard him as a spiritual mentor, Uchiha Yan decided to hit him with something big, regardless of whether he could understand it.

"The Sharingan is the eye that reflects the heart. Awakening the Sharingan means you've lost something, and that something was very important to you.

"Loss breeds resentment. Resentment strengthens your sense of self, and a stronger sense of self makes you fear loss.

"As this cycle repeats, the Sharingan grows stronger and stronger. That's why, as long as clan members who have awakened their eyes live long enough, most will reach Three-Tomoe.

"The stronger your sense of self, the more readily you feel pain, and the more readily you resent others.

"Of course, that's only how most people behave. A small minority will blame themselves and shoulder responsibilities that aren't theirs.

"When they can no longer bear those responsibilities, people like that often choose to run away!

"Both are manifestations of a stronger sense of self, and both are drawbacks brought on by awakening the Sharingan.

"The younger you awaken the Sharingan, the more dangerous it is. It forces your sense of self and mind to grow before they're ready. Once you grow up, not only will you have mental problems, but your body will develop problems too."

Uchiha Yan was telling the truth. The Uchiha's series of actions in the plot were, in fact, all attempts to escape reality.

If a child like Uchiha Itachi could see the problem, could Uchiha Fugaku really not see it? He was merely running away, unwilling to shoulder his own responsibilities.

Shisui Uchiha's suicide was even more clearly a sign of a mental problem. After returning to the clan, he could have led the Uchiha Clan straight to Danzo to settle the score, yet he feared the Uchiha Clan would rebel because of it.

In the end, he still underestimated the Uchiha and overestimated Konoha.

Watching the two boys lost in thought, Uchiha Yan slowly stood up.

"Stop thinking! Read the book I wrote carefully and understand it. You'll naturally understand once you're older.

"You're still young. Your thoughts are far too childish, and none of them reflect the truth!"

"Yes, senior!"

The two agreed outwardly, but no one knew what they really thought, and Uchiha Yan did not care.

He was merely baiting the hook, getting them to regard him as a mentor. Once Shisui awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, he could talk Shisui into casting Kotoamatsukami on him.

"Itachi, is there anything to eat? I'm hungry!"

"Yes!"

"Tap, tap, tap..."

Uchiha Itachi hurried into the kitchen and soon returned with a rice ball, placing it on the table.

Looking at the seaweed-wrapped rice before him, Uchiha Yan felt he was not that hungry after all. He might as well eat a Soldier Pill.

"Itachi! This is too good for me. Keep it for yourself! I'll go buy some groceries instead."

"Senior, don't you like it? Mom's rice balls are really delicious!"

"How could you not like your own mother's cooking? Forget it. I'm not talking about this anymore. I'll buy the groceries myself."

With that, Uchiha Yan waved at the two boys and headed outside.

"Senior, you haven't taken your ninja tool pouch. What if you run into danger?"

"Shisui! Read more books and stop imagining things all day!"

Compared with Uchiha Yan's ease after returning home, Hyuga Taichi had a much harder time.

As soon as he returned to the clan, Hyuga Hiashi summoned him. That indifferent gaze filled Taichi's heart with resentment, but he dared not make a single move and could only kneel obediently.

"Taichi, did this trip to the Land of Rain go smoothly?"

"Yes! Everything went smoothly!"

"How did Kakashi treat you? And how did he treat Uchiha Yan? Did he teach you anything about carrying out missions?"

"He gave Uchiha Yan a Lightning Clone ninjutsu scroll and taught me a few things to watch out for during wartime."

"Good!"

Hyuga Hiashi nodded in satisfaction. "Kakashi is the Fourth Hokage's student. The Third Hokage assigned Uchiha Yan to Team Kakashi because he wants to ease relations with the Uchiha.

"You were sent to Team Kakashi in the hope that you would build a good relationship with Kakashi. You must never let arrogance make you disappoint the Third Hokage and Kakashi.

"By the way, how strong is Uchiha Yan? Has he awakened his Sharingan?"