Under the "Elite Policy" (IV)

"Young Master Kagami, you held that stance so steadily! My legs felt like they were about to break just watching, but you didn't budge!"

"Exactly! Young Master Kagami must have built a solid foundation from childhood. Unlike certain people..." The child speaking cast a pointed glance toward the edge, where Yutian sat alone, silently massaging his calves.

Kagami accepted an exquisite waterskin from one of the children and leisurely took a sip. He did not respond to their flattery, merely saying, "Father said that without a firm foundation, anything you learn later will be in vain." His tone was mild, but he made the message perfectly clear: "My father is an elder, and my upbringing is simply superior to yours."

The children nodded repeatedly in agreement.

Yinglang did not join them. He took out his own waterskin, walked beneath a tree at the edge of the training ground, and sat against its trunk, drinking in small sips. His gaze swept seemingly casually across the grounds, taking in every little circle and subtle attitude.

The hundred "Elite Seeds" had already clearly divided themselves into ranks. A group of children from good families, or eager to attach themselves to someone influential, gathered around Kagami. Others came from ordinary backgrounds but truly had talent and stubborn personalities. Uchiha Honoikazuchi, for instance, who had earned full marks in the Taijutsu assessment, sat alone on the other side, silently wiping his kunai without sparing the commotion a glance. Most were children drifting along with the crowd, still unsure where they belonged.

Yutian, however, was in a category of his own. He had been invisibly isolated. No one approached him, and they even avoided meeting his eyes whenever possible. It was as though the label of "servant's son" he bore could spread to them.

As the break neared its end, a voice in one of the little circles around Kagami suddenly grew louder. A chubby child pointed toward Yutian and deliberately raised his voice.

"Hey, tell me, how can someone who only just got his surname bestowed on him have the nerve to train with us? Has he ever even touched a kunai before? He'd better not throw it and hit his own foot!"

Low laughter broke out. Quite a few children looked at Yutian, their eyes eager for a show.

Yutian stopped massaging his legs. He raised his head and looked at the chubby child, his face expressionless and his lips tightly pressed together. He said nothing, simply watching him.

The chubby child grew a little uneasy under his stare, but with numbers on his side, he puffed out his chest again. "What are you looking at? Am I wrong? Isn't your dad just a horse keeper? Can you even ride? If you can't, you can beg me to teach you. My family's stables-"

"Enough." A calm voice interrupted him.

Everyone turned toward the voice. It was Kagami. He set down his waterskin, brushed nonexistent dust off his clothes, and stood. His gaze passed over Yutian as though looking at an insignificant object, then settled on the chubby child. His rebuke carried a trace of impatience. "The training ground is a place to train, not to show off your mouth. If you have time for that, you'd be better off thinking about whether you can hit the target during throwing practice."

It sounded as though he was upholding fairness, but the disdain in his tone hurt more than the chubby child's blunt insults. He was not speaking up for Yutian. He merely felt the "noise" lowered his own standing, and took the opportunity to display his "superiority."

The chubby child sheepishly shut his mouth.

Without looking at anyone else, Kagami walked straight toward the center of the training ground to prepare for the next exercise. His followers hurried after him.

Tetsu Uchiha came over as well and began explaining how to grip a shuriken and apply force. The children lined up again and collected wooden shuriken for practice.

Practice began. Most of the children's throws went awry; misses and weak throws were everywhere. With a stern face, Tetsu Uchiha corrected their stances one by one.

Kagami did well. His stance was correct, his release smooth. His wooden shuriken whistled through the air and thudded into the target. They did not sink deep, but his accuracy was decent. Every time he hit, a few quiet cries of "Nice!" rose beside him. His face showed little satisfaction, as though this was only natural.

When Yutian's turn came, many eyes focused on him. He drew a deep breath and followed the stance Tetsu Uchiha had taught him, twisting his waist, extending his arm, and snapping his wrist-the wooden shuriken left his hand, traced a low, flat arc, and smacked against the edge of the target. It bounced once and fell to the ground.

"Pfft..." Someone failed to hold back a laugh.

Tetsu Uchiha walked over, looked at the target, then at Yutian's slightly flushed face and faintly trembling hands-it was unclear whether from nerves or lingering tremors from holding the horse stance earlier-and frowned. "Your release is too stiff. Keep your wrist loose. Again."

Pressing his lips together, Yutian retrieved the shuriken and took his stance again. His second throw still went wide, but it landed closer to the bull's-eye than the first.

"Your wrist! I told you to keep your wrist loose! Do you think you're throwing a stone?" Tetsu Uchiha's voice was stern.

On the third try, the shuriken finally stuck into the target with a thunk. It was shallow, but at least it did not fall. Sweat had already appeared on Yutian's forehead.

Tetsu Uchiha said nothing more and moved on to the next child.

Yinglang stood a few places behind Yutian. When his turn came, he picked up a wooden shuriken, weighed it in his hand, then assumed a slightly awkward but roughly correct stance and threw it with a grunt. The shuriken wobbled through the air and barely stuck into the lower edge of the target, threatening to fall.

"Not enough strength. Your stance is correct. Practice more." Tetsu Uchiha glanced at it and offered that assessment without saying anything else. In his view, a five-year-old who could manage that much was already doing "all right."

"Oh," Yinglang replied, then ran to retrieve his shuriken. As he passed Yutian, he did not stop, only dropping a very quick, very quiet remark. "Lower your wrist three inches. Don't rush to put force into it."

Yutian's body gave an almost imperceptible jolt. He neither looked up nor answered.

The morning's basic training ended in monotony and exhaustion. Once dismissed, the children left in twos and threes, arranging to eat together or complaining about the grueling training.

Kagami left surrounded by those children, talking and laughing. From beginning to end, he did not spare Yutian or Yinglang another glance.

Yinglang packed his things and walked over to Yutian. Yutian still stood where he was, looking at the target with a wooden shuriken embedded in it, his eyes somewhat vacant.

"Let's go, Yutian," Yinglang called to his older companion.

Yutian came back to himself and looked at Yinglang. His lips moved as though he wanted to say something, but in the end he merely nodded. "Mm."

The two walked out side by side. Leaving the training grounds, they followed the Naka River toward the center of the clan's territory. The autumn wind blew across the river, carrying moisture and a biting chill.

"The way he taught you to apply force suits people with long arms and some prior training," Yinglang suddenly said, his voice low, as though talking to himself, yet also as though addressing Yutian. "You haven't grown into your height yet, and your arms lack strength. Copying it exactly will make your wrist stiffen. Lower it three inches and let your waist and abdomen help drive it. It'll be smoother."

Yutian's steps faltered, and he turned to look at Yinglang. Yinglang did not look at him, only at the winding dirt road ahead.

"...Thank you," Yutian said quietly.

"Don't thank me," Yinglang said evenly. "I recommended you for admission. The better you train, the better I look. If you make a complete mess of it, when people laugh at you, they'll laugh at my poor judgment too."

Yutian fell silent for a moment, then nodded. "I understand."

"There's a theory class this afternoon, right?" Yinglang asked.

"Yes, in the side hall of Naka Shrine."

"Listen carefully. Anyone who can teach theory has at least some genuine knowledge. Write down what you don't understand and think it over yourself tonight, or... ask me if you get the chance." Finishing, Yinglang stopped at the fork in the road. "I'm going back to Elder Xuan's place. You..."

"I'm going to the dormitory the Clan Academy assigned me," Yutian finished for him.

"Mm." Yinglang waved and turned down the other road.

Yutian stood at the junction, watching the child who was more than a head shorter than him, yet whose back was unusually straight, gradually walk away and disappear around an alley corner. He clenched his fists. His palms were still a little red and hot from the morning's training, but some of the confusion and tension he had felt upon first entering the training ground seemed to have scattered with the wind.

He turned and walked toward the Clan Academy dormitory. His steps were considerably steadier than when he had arrived.

Meanwhile, on a hillside not far from the training ground, two figures emerged from behind a tree that had lost most of its leaves.

Yuanguang Uchiha stood with his hands behind his back, watching his son Kagami recede into the distance surrounded by the others, his face expressionless. Beside him stood a tall, thin, middle-aged clansman, one of his trusted aides.

"Young Master Kagami carried himself very composedly today. He has something of your bearing in your younger days," the aide said quietly.

Yuanguang gave an almost imperceptible snort. "Composed? He's a long way from that. Nothing but children's games." He paused, his gaze shifting toward the fork where Yinglang and Yutian had parted, his eyes deepening. "That servant's son... Uchiha Yinglang recommended him?"

"Yes. Elder Xuan approved it personally. He got in after going through the motions."

"That old bastard Xuan..." Yuanguang's voice turned cold. "He picked up some stray boy and treats him like a treasure, and now he's sticking his hand into this too. A servant's son deserves to call himself an Uchiha? Deserves a place among the elite? He really is getting worse with age."

"Then... shall we arrange something to make that boy recognize the difficulties and back out?" the aide ventured.

Yuanguang fell silent for a moment, then shook his head. "No hurry. Xuan is watching. If we act openly, we'll give people grounds to criticize us. Besides..." A smile devoid of warmth curved his lips. "Let Kagami handle it. 'Sparring' and 'guidance' between children of the same age couldn't be more normal. Let that servant's son understand that some circles aren't places you can squeeze into just because someone recommended you. Once he hits a wall, he'll know it hurts, and he'll know which corner to crawl back into."

"Young Master Kagami, he..."

"Kagami is my son," Yuanguang interrupted, his tone filled with unquestionable arrogance. "He knows what to do. You only need to... arrange a little 'special attention' for that servant's son at the right time. Extra practice, for instance, or opportunities to spar with Kagami and the others. Understand?"