The Ninja Academy.
At the school gates.
A large crowd had already gathered, including village elites and members of ninja clans.
Uchiha Fengyao was among them.
But everyone kept their distance from Feng Yao, whether deliberately or otherwise. The ninja clans were better about it; their prejudice against the Uchiha was not as strong as the villagers'.
Feng Yao sneered and paid them no mind.
As long as they did not provoke him, he had no interest in bothering with them.
He simply leaned quietly against a large tree, with a swing hanging beneath its branches.
The oppressive aura radiating from him made everyone pale in alarm.
That was an aura only the truly powerful possessed!
For a time, the atmosphere grew oppressive, and the village elites and ninja clans went on full alert.
Kakashi, who was watching from the shadows, hurriedly sent someone to the Hokage Building to inform the Third Hokage.
"You're saying Uchiha Fengyao is at the Ninja Academy..."
The Third Hokage frowned. His first thought was that Uchiha Fengyao might be planning to control the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Naruto Uzumaki, again!
That put him on high alert.
The pressure Uchiha Fengyao had put on him last night had been far too great.
But after calming down and thinking it over, the Third Hokage decided that Naruto Uzumaki probably was not Uchiha Fengyao's target.
Otherwise, he would not have let Naruto Uzumaki go last night.
From the Third Hokage's dealings with Uchiha Fengyao so far, he did not seem to be one of those impulsive, thoughtless Uchiha.
Still, they had to take the necessary precautions. What if Uchiha Fengyao really had changed his mind?
"Send more men, and make sure Kakashi keeps his eyes on Uchiha Fengyao!"
"Also, if Uchiha Fengyao's target is Naruto Uzumaki, recover Naruto immediately."
"Yes!"
The Anbu wearing a dog mask used the Body Flicker Technique and rushed over.
"What's the situation?"
Kakashi looked at the newcomer.
"Lord Third has sent reinforcements, but we are to hold our positions. If Uchiha Fengyao's target is the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, recovering the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki takes priority!"
Kakashi nodded in acknowledgment.
He continued watching Uchiha Fengyao, his expression complicated.
With just a single action, this man had mobilized the village leadership.
It would have been a lie to say he was not angry that the man had taken his close friend's Sharingan.
But Kakashi bore Uchiha Fengyao no resentment. On the contrary, he felt some admiration for Feng Yao.
How could he fail to see the split between the Uchiha and the village? He asked himself honestly: if he were the Uchiha Clan Head, he would have had no idea what to do except wait for death.
Yet Feng Yao, a boy of fourteen, had awakened the Mangekyo. His forcefulness, decisiveness, and resolve had left a deep impression on Kakashi!
Losing the Sharingan had both advantages and disadvantages for Kakashi.
Because of what had happened with the Sharingan last night, the Third Hokage had sent someone to implant a new eye for him.
Although he had lost the boost in strength the Sharingan provided,
the drain on his chakra had stopped.
Without Uchiha blood, he could not deactivate the Sharingan the way other Uchiha could.
His Sharingan had therefore remained active, constantly consuming his chakra.
Now that he no longer had the Sharingan, his chakra had instead surged dramatically...
Time passed quickly.
Classes at the Ninja Academy ended!
The oppressive atmosphere finally dissipated.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
The ordinary people in particular had thought a huge battle was about to break out. They had been terrified, afraid they would get caught up in it.
The parents hurried to collect their children and left as quickly as they could.
The children, delighted that school was over, knew nothing of the oppressive atmosphere from earlier.
Among them, a blond child with six whisker marks on his face watched enviously as the children around him were taken home by their families.
He knew nothing of what had happened last night and simply thought he had gone to bed early.
When the Third Hokage had asked him about last night that morning, he only remembered doing something in bed, and then he had probably gone to sleep... he supposed.
The Third Hokage had sighed at that.
Naruto's failure to remember last night saved him some explaining.
The Third Hokage had then encouraged Naruto with talk of the Will of Fire and the villagers' acknowledgment before leaving.
Elsewhere, Sasuke was feeling rather down, because his older brother, Uchiha Itachi, had left the village that morning to atone for his sins.
He could not understand why his older brother had betrayed the village.
Feng Yao spotted Sasuke at a glance, along with His Highness Naruto.
Seeing both of them standing in the crowd, Feng Yao could not help feeling a sense of destiny about the pair.
Naruto left the crowd and walked toward the swing where he usually sat, amid looks of disgust and indifference, along with curses directed at the demon fox.
Naruto had long since grown used to those looks, under the Third Hokage's brainwashing... no, under the influence of his words.
Although he felt hurt and wronged, Naruto believed it was because they did not acknowledge him.
As long as he became Hokage, everyone would acknowledge him!
He looked toward the swing, which usually drew no attention, only to find an older boy standing beside the large tree, watching him calmly.
Naruto looked at this older boy and thought he seemed a little familiar, but he simply could not remember him.
In Feng Yao's eyes, he saw none of the disgust, indifference, or even resentment with which the villagers looked at him.
For some reason, that stirred a long-absent sense of anticipation in Naruto.
He felt a flicker of apprehension.
Still, he mustered his courage and slowly sat down on the swing, pretending not to care, without saying a word.
Meanwhile, Kakashi, the Anbu, and the ninja from the clans were already extremely tense, afraid Uchiha Fengyao would attack the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
Feng Yao had noticed these people long ago; he simply could not be bothered with them.
Feng Yao looked toward Sasuke, but Sasuke had not noticed him.
Feeling rather low, he walked along by himself.
"Sasuke!"
Feng Yao called out to Sasuke and waved.
Hearing him, Sasuke turned toward Feng Yao and said in surprise, "Big Brother Feng Yao!"
Seeing that this older boy was family to that stuck-up Sasuke, Naruto felt envious. If only he had a family too...
"Huh, the dead last..."
Sasuke had also spotted Naruto on the swing.
The two of them occasionally fought in class, and now, unable to stand the sight of each other, they both turned their heads away.
"Hmph..."
Looking at the pair, Feng Yao marveled that they really were the crown prince and crown princess; they already had a connection at this age...
He put on a timely show of surprise. "Oh, you two know each other..."
Sasuke nodded and said proudly, "Of course. His name is Naruto Uzumaki, and he's the dead last in our class. I'm number one!"
Naruto would not accept that. He bristled and snapped, "Who are you calling dead last? I'm the man who's going to become Hokage! One day, I'll catch up to you!"
"Oh, so your name is Naruto Uzumaki. Becoming Hokage takes a lot of hard work. You'd better give it your all..."
Feng Yao looked at Naruto and smiled.
Naruto froze for a moment, looking at Feng Yao's gentle smile.
It felt as though this older boy really did not dislike him...
"Hahaha! Thanks, big brother! I'll definitely work hard!"
Sasuke curled his lip and said haughtily, "You're just the dead last. Say that after you manage to beat me!"
"Aaah! You stuck-up Sasuke! I'm definitely going to beat you!"
Before you continue