In this world, every elite ninja had hands stained with blood. Sometimes, life was simply something that could be placed directly on a balance scale.
Just like the death of Neji Hyuga's father, Hizashi Hyuga, in the original story: Konoha High Command had tacitly agreed that someone from the Hyuga Clan had to die to give Kumogakure an explanation. In the end, Hizashi Hyuga had died in Hyuga Hiashi's place.
Although the Hokage wielded considerable power, changing rules passed down from the previous generation truly required the unanimous approval of Utatane Koharu, Mitokado Homura, and Danzo of the Council of Elders.
For a moment, the atmosphere fell silent.
Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo stared at each other. This time, however sharp Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression became, Danzo remained composed, calmly holding the upper hand.
Finally, Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep breath and addressed Uya first.
"Uya, you may leave for now."
"Yes."
Only after Uya left did Hiruzen Sarutobi turn to Danzo, his face filled with anger.
"Danzo, are you trying to drive that child Uya to his death for your own selfish desires?!"
"Sarutobi, you can't make accusations like that. I simply don't want to see you make careless mistakes as Hokage. As your adviser, I have a duty to ensure you make the right choice." Danzo stood there with an indifferent expression.
At that moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi wanted nothing more than to slam the desk and openly fall out with Danzo, but he could not do that. Giving Danzo something to use against him would be no good.
Danzo had coveted the Hokage position for a long time.
"The Shinobi World is growing more and more chaotic. The Second Shinobi World War already seems imminent. Danzo, I can allow you to do other things, but I will not allow you to undermine Konoha's foundations!"
"Uya is nothing but a child from another village. What qualifies him to be one of Konoha's foundations?!" Danzo sneered. He was not Hiruzen Sarutobi; he would never place any trust in a child like Uya.
Or rather, Danzo would not completely trust even those around him.
"You..."
Hearing Danzo bring up Uya's origins again, Hiruzen Sarutobi faltered once more.
Watching Hiruzen Sarutobi's reaction, the corners of Danzo's mouth rose into another faintly mocking smile.
"Relax, Sarutobi. Perhaps that young genius Uya can defeat Uchiha Kan outright. That would be a win-win situation. Not only would it prove his talent, but it would also help us deal a harsh blow to the Uchiha Clan's arrogance."
Danzo's flippant remarks very nearly sent Hiruzen Sarutobi into a complete rage.
Defeat Uchiha Kan? What a joke!
Even among chunin, Uchiha Kan was an elite.
No matter how talented Uya was, defeating an ordinary chunin in two months would already be inconceivable.
Defeating an elite chunin was simply nonsense!
An elite chunin was an elite ninja whose abilities in every aspect had reached the peak of chunin level, second only to a jonin.
In great clans like the Uchiha Clan and the Hyuga Clan, once someone advanced to chunin, their Byakugan or Sharingan would firmly place them among the elite chunin.
Of course, unlike the Hyuga Clan, not every member of the Uchiha Clan possessed the Sharingan. But Hiruzen Sarutobi knew... Uchiha Kan had the Sharingan!
That information was on record!
Reaching the peak of chunin level in every aspect made someone an elite chunin.
On that foundation, surpassing chunin level and reaching jonin level in one particular aspect, or mastering a certain forbidden or secret technique, qualified someone as a special jōnin!
After that, reaching jonin level in every aspect made someone a full-fledged jonin.
Reaching the peak of jonin level in every aspect made someone an elite jonin!
The ninja's path had to be walked one step at a time.
Leaping an entire rank out of nowhere was extraordinarily difficult, and Uya had already made that leap once by gaining a kekkei genkai.
Making another leap immediately afterward was nothing short of a fantasy!
"The Uchiha Clan... Danzo..."
Having left the Hokage's office, Uya was now walking along Konoha's streets, an unusual light flickering in his eyes.
It really did feel strange.
Danzo, who had always upheld the will of the Second Hokage Tobirama Senju, who hated the Uchiha Clan most and tried every possible means to suppress them, had actually taken a stance partly on the Uchiha Clan's side this time to oppose Hiruzen Sarutobi.
It had to be said that this had once again deepened Uya's understanding of the darkness within Konoha's ruling ranks.
Right now, he seemed to be caught in the middle, the most important piece.
But in reality, whether he was there or not did not matter at all.
This affair had essentially become a contest of strength between three forces: Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo, and the Uchiha Clan.
He simply happened to be at its center.
To Uya as he was now, any one of those three great forces was an insurmountable chasm.
"Strength is still what matters most."
Clenching his fists, Uya lowered his head and murmured.
If he wanted to control his own fate, his only option was to desperately increase his strength.
"Whew..."
Taking a deep breath, he slowly calmed his thoughts. The hurdle Uya had to clear now was Uchiha Kan!
Although Uya was already quite strong and felt confident he could put up a fight even against a chunin, he knew full well that Uchiha Kan's strength would definitely not be as simple as an ordinary chunin's.
He was most likely an elite chunin, and might even possess the Sharingan!
His current strength was not enough to defeat Uchiha Kan. He had to open the second gate of the True Eight Gates Released Formation.
Without encountering any obstacles along the way, Uya returned home.
He resumed his training.
At home, he kept doing push-ups and squats, sweat dripping constantly from his entire body. Only when he had nearly lost all feeling throughout his body did Uya go to sleep.
When he woke the next morning, Uya considered how he should train that day.
He had already broken the wooden post and needed to make a new one.
But even if he made another, it would not last long. Even if he did not deliberately use the Power of Tremors, it would still seep out as he punched continuously and his arms grew numb.
The wooden post would be easily damaged.
Making one out of stone would be troublesome, so he might as well find a rocky outcrop to train against.
As it happened, Uya also felt that he should not deliberately suppress the Power of Tremors while training. Ideally, every punch should carry it.
Constantly using the Power of Tremors would burden his body, but precisely because it imposed that burden, it was another form of training.
Keeping his body in a constant state of vibration would temper it well, surely making his training twice as effective with half the effort.
Stepping out of his home, Uya glanced at Konoha's bustling streets and headed toward Hokage Rock.
He remembered that in the original story, Pain's battle with Naruto in his Nine-Tails form had taken place somewhere near hilly terrain.