Ziyun immediately recognized that fiery red hair. She was the protagonist's mother, Kushina Uzumaki.
"You're that genius from Hidden Cloud Village, Yeyue Ziyun, right? I heard about you and Mikoto."
"I'm telling you, I don't care what kind of genius you are. If you hurt Mikoto later, I'll give you a serious beating."
When Kushina saw Ziyun, she raised her little fist and spoke threateningly.
She had come to help Mikoto vent her anger.
"As expected of the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero. All right, I'll go easy on her," Ziyun said with a smile.
"Damn it, who told you that name?"
At the words "Red Hot-Blooded Habanero," Kushina raised her little fist and strode menacingly toward Ziyun.
She hated it when people called her that nickname.
At the Ninja Academy, anyone who dared say those words would get a beating from her.
"With that blood-red hair of yours, aren't you called the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero?" Ziyun asked in return.
"You said it again! I'll beat you to death!" With that, Kushina swung her little fist at Ziyun.
Ziyun didn't dodge. He simply placed a hand on Kushina's head.
As a descendant of the Yeyue Clan from Hidden Cloud Village, Ziyun had naturally inherited the clan's sturdy physique and build.
Though only ten years old, Ziyun was already 1.65 meters tall.
Kushina, meanwhile, was only a little over 1.1 meters tall.
Because Kushina was so small, her arms simply weren't long enough to reach Ziyun.
The adorable height difference, combined with Kushina's flushed little face, made for such a harmonious scene that even Mikoto couldn't help laughing aloud.
"Hmph, I'll forgive you since you made Mikoto laugh!"
Seeing Mikoto smile, Kushina stopped being angry and let Ziyun off.
After all, Mikoto had cried all night, and her eyes were still a little swollen.
"Haha, then thank you for being so magnanimous," Ziyun said with a smile.
There were no little girls as cute as Kushina in Hidden Cloud Village, so Ziyun couldn't resist teasing her.
"Hmph, as long as you know. You don't look like a bad guy, either."
Seeing Ziyun's harmless smile, Kushina relaxed.
She believed Ziyun wouldn't kill Mikoto.
"All right, Mikoto, I'm going to test my new Ninjutsu soon, so make sure you cooperate with me."
After joking around with Kushina for a while, Ziyun turned his gaze to Mikoto.
"Mm, I will."
With Kushina keeping her company, Mikoto didn't feel as miserable as she had the day before.
It wouldn't be bad to stay in Konoha and keep Kushina company from now on.
"Then let's begin. I mainly want to test my speed. Activate your Sharingan and see if you can follow me."
Ziyun explained his purpose.
That was right. He mainly wanted to test whether the Sharingan could follow his lightning speed.
After all, Ziyun suspected that his opponent at the upcoming trial would most likely be Uchiha Fugaku.
Judging by their ages, Fugaku was Konoha's most outstanding genius in this age group.
And given what Danzo and Hiruzen Sarutobi were like, only someone from the Uchiha Clan could do such a thankless job well.
"So that's all? Then why did you say someone might die?"
Mikoto was at a loss for words.
Ziyun had said someone might die that day, and he had really frightened her.
"I only said that to vent my anger. That's what you get for casually testing me with Genjutsu."
Ziyun's explanation was half true and half false.
Of course, he wouldn't tell Mikoto that he had said it to aggravate the conflict between the Konoha High Command and the Uchiha Clan.
Hearing Ziyun's words, the Anbu watching from the shadows couldn't help frowning.
If that was all, wouldn't Uchiha Mikoto survive?
Then what excuse would they have to kill Yeyue Ziyun?
No, he had to report this to the Lord Hokage.
Ziyun then sensed that one of the presences watching him from the shadows had disappeared.
Konoha, the Hokage's office.
"Did a little brat make a fool of me?"
After hearing the Anbu's report, Hiruzen Sarutobi frowned, and Chakra involuntarily leaked from him.
It seemed he had been too hasty. He hadn't expected a little brat like Yeyue Ziyun to pull one over on him.
As a result, the conflict with the Uchiha Clan had come out into the open yesterday. It wasn't worth it.
And if Uchiha Mikoto didn't die at Yeyue Ziyun's hands, Konoha wouldn't have a legitimate reason to send a group to surround and kill him.
"Hmph, Hiruzen, have you lost your mind? Does it matter whether Uchiha Mikoto dies at Yeyue Ziyun's hands?"
"As long as she dies, isn't that enough? It doesn't matter who kills her. Everyone just has to believe Yeyue Ziyun did it."
At that moment, Danzo, who happened to be in the office, couldn't help letting out a cold snort.
"R-right! Danzo, thank goodness you're here!"
Danzo's reminder made Hiruzen Sarutobi see the light.
That was right. It didn't matter in the slightest who killed Uchiha Mikoto.
What mattered was that Uchiha Mikoto died, and Yeyue Ziyun had used her to test his Ninjutsu before her death.
That way, even if Yeyue Ziyun jumped into the Yellow River, he wouldn't be able to wash himself clean.
It seemed that when it came to scheming Konoha's people to death, he wasn't even half as good as Danzo.
"He's so fast!"
"Even my Sharingan couldn't follow him. That's incredible!"
At Konoha's training ground, after a round of "sparring," Uchiha Mikoto and Kushina Uzumaki both looked at Ziyun with stars in their eyes.
He was incredible.
Yeyue Ziyun looked to be only around ten, yet he was as fast as lightning. He truly deserved his reputation as Hidden Cloud Village's number one genius.
Even the Anbu watching from the shadows were astonished by the speed Ziyun had displayed.
Even as Jonin, they couldn't keep up with that speed at all.
If they encountered Yeyue Ziyun on the battlefield, those Jonin all felt they would be no match for him.
It really was as the Lord Hokage had said. Given time to grow, a genius like him would undoubtedly be a major threat to the village!
What they didn't know was that Ziyun was still holding a trump card in reserve. He hadn't shown his top speed.
After gaining the Uzumaki Sage Body, Ziyun had been able to train without restraint.
As a result, his speed had improved rapidly and was already approaching Enel's speed in the original story.
In the current Shinobi World, the only person who could probably keep up with Ziyun was the Third Raikage with his Lightning Release Chakra activated.
Of course, there might also be Madara Uchiha, who was still alive and hiding somewhere in the Shinobi World.
But once Ziyun advanced another step and truly transformed into lightning, neither the Third Raikage nor Madara Uchiha would be able to keep up.
By then, perhaps only Space-Time Ninjutsu would be able to keep up with Ziyun.
But by then, Ziyun might have gained a new ability, mightn't he?
After all, it would be more than ten years before Minato Namikaze made a name for himself. Ziyun felt he would have grown up long before then.
"So the Sharingan really can't keep up with my speed."
Ziyun then looked at Mikoto.
When he saw Mikoto nod, Ziyun nodded in satisfaction.
That way, he no longer had to fear Uchiha Fugaku's Sharingan.
"All right, in that case, we're even. Neither of us owes the other anything. You can go wherever you want now, Mikoto."
Ziyun then waved his hand, indicating that his experiment was over.
"Really? That was quick."
Hearing Ziyun say that, Mikoto felt a little disappointed for some reason.
It felt as though her task was complete and she had no further use.
"How about this? There are still two days until the trial. Be my guide for those two days, Mikoto."
"Konoha is much more prosperous than my village, and I'd like to get a good look around."
Perhaps sensing Mikoto's disappointment, Ziyun spoke up of his own accord.
As a man, how could he let a girl make the first move?