The moment Dodai saw Minato, he realized the plan had failed. He immediately retreated with the one remaining jōnin.
Minato grabbed Yūto and the Elder by their shoulders, instantly activating the Flying Thunder God Formula.
Their figures flickered, and the three were back at the Konoha camp. Yūto stumbled, caught his balance, and immediately roared for Rin: "Hurry, save the old man!"
Rin knelt beside the Elder, the green glow of medical ninjutsu rising from her hands. But after only a brief examination, her expression changed. His internal organs were all shattered, and his chakra pathways had been scorched by Lightning Release.
She bit her lip and shook her head. "There's nothing I can do..."
The Elder suddenly opened his eyes, his charred hand clutching Yūto's collar tightly. "You little brat..."
He coughed up bloody foam, yet his eyes were frighteningly bright. "That girl Tsukimi... I'm leaving her to you."
"Don't talk, old man!" Yūto's voice trembled.
"Listen!" The Elder's nails dug into Yūto's flesh. "The Uchiha... must produce a Hokage..."
His throat rasped like a broken bellows. "It's your job... to raise one..."
Before his words had faded, his hand suddenly fell limp.
Raindrops struck the old man's unclosed eyelids, like the rain on the day Madara Uchiha had saved him sixty years ago.
Even before his death, the Elder had not forced Yūto to become Hokage. Perhaps he had not wanted to put too much pressure on him.
Yūto knelt in the muddy water, staring at the Elder's charred face, and suddenly felt something shatter in his chest.
He remembered how, when he had first transmigrated, all he could think about was how to die and return.
But now, the old man would never call him a little brat again, nor kick him away on the battlefield.
When the medical team came to collect the body, Yūto suddenly pressed his hand against the Elder's forehead protector.
"Actually, I..."
Yūto tied the forehead protector back around his own head. Even in the rain, his three tomoe felt a little hot.
Rin's voice came from a distance, calling him over to have his wounds bandaged. Yūto wiped his face, only to discover his hand was covered in tears.
The Corpse Collection Site.
Yūto stood silently before the Elder's body, rain dripping from the ends of his hair.
He looked up at Minato, his voice hoarse. "I want to take the old man back to Konoha."
Minato gazed at the smoke of battle that had yet to fully disperse in the distance. After a moment's thought, he nodded. "Kumogakure suffered heavy losses. They won't attack again anytime soon. Go."
Yūto knelt and formed hand seals, a low roar rolling from his throat. "Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!"
A scorching fire dragon surged from his mouth, instantly engulfing the Elder's body.
Watching the fire before him, Yūto recalled what the Elder had once told him. During the Warring States era, on Uchiha battlefields, clan members would always burn the bodies of their fallen comrades.
It was both to prevent enemies from desecrating their remains and because the Uchiha's Fire Release could reduce their comrades to ashes in the flames, returning them to the glory of the Uchiha.
"Old man, you always said the Uchiha's flames would never go out..."
Yūto clenched his fists. The heat of the flames seared his face, yet it could not compare to the pain churning in his chest.
When the flames died out, he carefully gathered the Elder's ashes and placed them in the porcelain jar he had prepared.
As his fingertips touched the charred fragments of bone, he seemed to hear the Elder's angry scolding: "You little brat, what's taking so long!"
Yūto secured the porcelain jar at his waist, then turned and set off toward Konoha.
Rain soaked his forehead protector. He raised a hand to wipe away the water and looked toward Konoha. "This time... I'm taking you home."
Two days later.
Yūto's heavy footsteps fell on the stone-paved road at Konoha's entrance. Two days and nights of travel had left him covered in dust.
At the entrance to the clan grounds, a familiar figure was anxiously looking around. It was Tsukimi.
"Yūto!"
She waved from afar and jogged toward him, a delighted smile on her face.
But as she drew closer and saw his scarlet Three-Tomoe Sharingan clearly, her smile instantly froze.
"Your eyes..." Tsukimi reached out with aching concern, her fingertips lightly touching the corner of his eye. "It must have been so hard on the battlefield, wasn't it?"
Yūto did not answer. He only looked at her silently, his throat feeling as though something had blocked it.
Seeing his silence, Tsukimi frowned slightly, a note of complaint in her voice. "Honestly, Grandpa promised he'd take care of you, but he still let you..."
Her voice gradually faded, because the look in Yūto's eyes made her uneasy.
"Yūto?" she called tentatively, her heartbeat quickening for no clear reason. "Where's Grandpa? Why didn't he come back with you?"
Yūto took a deep breath and finally spoke, his voice hoarse. "...I'm sorry."
Tsukimi's pupils abruptly contracted, and her fingers unconsciously tightened around his sleeve. "What do you mean?"
"The Elder... died in battle saving me."
The air seemed to freeze for an instant.
Tsukimi's expression shifted from bewilderment to shock, then crumbled as tears instantly spilled out. "That's impossible... Grandpa was so strong. How could he..."
Yūto had no answer. He could only reach out and pull her into his arms.
Tsukimi pounded his chest with her fists, crying, "You're lying," but in the end, she buried her face against his shoulder and sobbed aloud.
After an unknown length of time, Tsukimi's sobs gradually subsided.
She raised her head, her eyes red, yet she stubbornly bit her lip. "When Grandpa... died, was he brave?"
Yūto nodded, his voice low but firm. "He killed two Kumogakure jōnin single-handedly."
The corners of Tsukimi's lips lifted slightly. Though her tears were still flowing, a trace of pride entered her eyes. "That's good, then... Grandpa didn't sacrifice himself for nothing."
Yūto froze.
He had thought Tsukimi would break down, resent him, or even demand to know why he had not been the one to die.
But she was actually smiling?
At that moment, the killing intent deep in his heart spread like wildfire.
Kumogakure... had to pay.
Standing beside him, Tsukimi saw the change in Yūto's expression, her eyes filled with worry.
"I'll definitely kill Dodai."
Tsukimi grabbed his arm, her fingers trembling slightly. "Yūto, Grandpa is already gone... I only want you to stay alive and well."
Yūto was silent for a moment before finally nodding. "Yeah. I will."
Though Yūto had agreed aloud to Tsukimi's request, he had never abandoned the thought of revenge.
Inside the Uchiha's Konoha Military Police Force headquarters, Fugaku was handling paperwork. He looked up as Yūto entered, his brows furrowing slightly. "Yūto? Why are you back?"
"The Elder died in battle." Yūto cut him off, his voice frighteningly calm.
Fugaku's pen stopped, his pupils abruptly contracting. "...What?"
Yūto looked straight at him and recounted the battle word by word: Dodai's ambush, the Elder's desperate resistance, and that final, hopeless fight.
After listening, Fugaku remained silent for a long time before slowly closing his eyes. "The Elder lived up to the glory of the Uchiha. He was a true Uchiha."
"I'll go to the battlefield myself later." Fugaku opened his eyes, three tomoe slowly rotating in his scarlet pupils. "What about you? What do you intend to do?"
"Revenge." Yūto's answer was crisp and decisive.
Fugaku stared at him, his tone serious. "Dodai is Kumogakure's commander. He'll certainly have elite guards protecting him, and he may even set new traps."
Yūto did not answer immediately. His gaze settled on the Uchiha Clan Crest on the headquarters wall, and he sank into thought.
Before you continue