Uchiha Fugaku

Uchiha En looked rather grim.

After all, faced with the open provocation of a child barely five or six years old, his patience had almost reached its limit.

Even so, anger had not completely robbed him of reason. Konoha's rules had already been broken, but Uchiha En and the other Police Force members still did not dare use ninjutsu against Liumu.

If they were caught fighting with fists and feet, all they would get was a few days in solitary confinement, along with a scolding.

But if they used ninjutsu inside the village...

Uchiha En could not shoulder that responsibility.

Still, did Liumu truly have something to rely on, or was he simply young and ignorant, daring to confront dozens of Uchiha Police Force members and provoke them so brazenly?

Had the influence of Jiraiya, who backed Liumu, really intimidated the Uchiha Clan to this extent?

No, certainly not.

The Uchiha Clan's captain was Uchiha Fugaku. He was considerably senior to even Jiraiya, and there was no need for him to allow Liumu to act so outrageously just for the sake of so-called courtesy.

But just then, Liumu suddenly spoke.

"Did your Sharingan only teach you how to put up with things?"

The Sharingan was the symbol of the Uchiha Clan, as well as their pride. The disdain on Liumu's face now thoroughly enraged everyone.

Almost without waiting for Uchiha En's order, several clan members stepped forward, their faces murderous.

"That's right. That's more like it." Noticing their movements, Liumu beckoned and replied, "Come on, then. Don't make me look down on you."

"Brat, I'll make you pay for your arrogance today."

On the steps, a man from the Police Force fixed him with a sharp gaze, his hands rapidly forming hand seals...

"Ryu, stop!"

An immense surge of chakra instantly rippled through the crowd. By the time Uchiha En reacted, a low hum had already stirred through the air.

"Fire Release: Fire..."

"Fire, my ass!"

With a sharp smack, Liumu, who had been standing outside the entrance, somehow appeared before the steps. Before his opponent could finish unleashing his ninjutsu, Liumu scattered the chakra he had gathered with a single slap.

As for the ninja who had just been about to use ninjutsu, Liumu's slap sent him flying into the arms of his companions behind him, while that side of his face rapidly swelled at a visible rate.

"Get him! Get him!" Uchiha En shouted. "I'll take responsibility for what happens today. Bring him back. I'll interrogate him myself."

The Police Force existed to maintain order in the village. If Liumu was taken back by him, the so-called interrogation's findings would essentially be whatever he decided.

Liumu had destroyed Madara Uchiha's stone statue. They could claim that Liumu was actually a spy from another village, tasked with stirring up conflict between Konoha and the Uchiha Clan.

Liumu had injured members of the Uchiha Clan. They could also claim that Liumu had defected, and that the Uchiha Police Force had discovered his actions, leading to a physical confrontation.

Even if Liumu had done nothing at all, they could still frame him-for example, by forging a secret letter from the enemy, thereby establishing his identity as a rogue ninja.

Thus, as soon as Liumu entered the Police Station, a hefty false charge would already be pinned on him.

By then, even Jiraiya would be unable to prove his innocence.

As for the Third...

The Uchiha's position in Konoha was like one village under two administrations. The Uchiha Clan fell under Konoha's jurisdiction, but in private, the Uchiha actually possessed administrative authority of their own.

The Third could investigate and offer suggestions, but the Uchiha could choose not to listen.

Liumu understood this well, but he was not someone who would let others push him around.

Watching the Uchiha clan members swarming him from all sides, Liumu curled his open hand into a fist, bent forward, and crouched. In an instant, an intense killing intent erupted, enveloping everyone around him.

Wind howled, and dust billowed...

"Serious Series: Consecutive..."

"Stop!"

Just as Liumu was about to throw that earth-shattering punch, a fierce cry rippled through the air, and a pair of deep Three-Tomoe Sharingan instantly appeared in everyone's minds.

With a loud bang, a cloud of white smoke suddenly erupted between Liumu and the Uchiha clan members. Then a tall figure slowly emerged from the smoke.

"Captain!"

"Captain!"

"Captain!"

At the sight of the newcomer, the Uchiha clan members immediately stood at attention and greeted him.

Uchiha... Fugaku!

Liumu's gaze sharpened slightly as he looked at the newcomer, immediately recognizing him. Watching him walk closer, Liumu slowly straightened and gradually reined in his killing intent.

"You're Liumu, aren't you?"

Smiling kindly, Uchiha Fugaku bent down and said softly to Liumu, "I've read your file, but I never expected you to become this skilled in just a year."

Uchiha Fugaku laughed heartily and turned toward his subordinates. "See that? This is what happens when you don't train properly. Now a youngster has put you all to shame. Do you feel embarrassed yet?"

A ninja's life was bitter. No one knew where they would be when they next awoke. They might even fall asleep and never open their eyes again.

The saying that life and death were determined by fate did not suit their profession. On the contrary, whether they lived or died depended not on their allotted fate, but on the supreme abilities gained through arduous training, day and night.

Ninjutsu, genjutsu, taijutsu-even taking just one of these to its pinnacle would leave a vivid mark on one's history as a ninja.

No one knew the extent of Uchiha Fugaku's abilities.

Even Liumu had only read plenty of other people's theories on websites before.

Looking at this enigmatic man standing before him now, Liumu felt something he could not quite describe...

What was it?

Liumu could not work it out for the moment.

But Uchiha Fugaku's arrival brought the fight to an end. Moreover, under his personal protection, not only was Liumu not held responsible for destroying Madara's stone statue, he was even escorted back to the village.

"Captain! Why? Are we really..."

Inside the Police Force office.

Uchiha En questioned the captain before him in bewilderment, but before he could finish, a single piercing look from the other man stopped the rest of his words cold.

Fugaku rose, walked to the window, and looked at the clan members drilling in the clearing below. He said calmly, "At five, he graduated early from the Ninja Academy after passing Jiraiya's assessment. After only a year of traveling, he returned and entered this year's Chunin Exams straightaway. If all goes well, he'll make history!"

As Fugaku spoke, he glanced at En beside him and let out a deep sigh.

"What you've seen is far from the full extent of his strength."

At this point, Uchiha Fugaku slowly closed his eyes, recalling the aura Liumu had radiated before his arrival...

Bone-chilling and staggering. That was...

Killing intent!

He was only a six-year-old child, at an age when he should have been innocent and carefree. How could he possess such an aura?