One year later, at the Konoha Ninja Academy.
"Wherever the leaves dance, the flames will burn. The shadow of fire will illuminate the village, and new leaves shall sprout…"
On the stage, Minato Namikaze seemed fully immersed in his speech, his words echoing the rhetoric of the Third Hokage.
In the audience, Yun rubbed his eyes. Izumi had been far too excited about the school opening and had made a racket all night, so they didn't get much sleep.
Yun glanced into the crowd behind him.
With her signature red hair, Kushina Uzumaki was holding almost one-year-old Naruto in her arms. The two, mother and child, gazed at Minato on stage with gleaming eyes.
On the other side stood Mikoto Uchiha, the widow of the late Uchiha clan head, cradling one-year-old Sasuke while casting a worried glance at her other son, the aloof, dark-haired boy standing among the new students: Itachi Uchiha.
"Sigh…"
Yun let out a sigh. In the original timeline, Itachi had awakened his two-tomoe Sharingan at age eight after witnessing his teammate's death at Obito's hands. Yet here he was, barely five years old, already bearing the same eyes.
In the past year or so, this mentally unwell kid seemed to have been dragged into an existential dread, often muttering philosophical nonsense to himself.
All it took was Obito's influence to change so much. Who knows how Naruto and Sasuke will turn out?
His clone "Ku" still hadn't acquired a medium to reach Obito. Without Kakashi's Kamui as support, Obito, who had grown more cautious, was no easy opponent.
And with his current six-year-old body, chakra capacity was still a major limiting factor. The number of times he could use Flying Thunder God was very limited. Clearly, red hair doesn't always mean Uzumaki lineage.
Also, where exactly was that cave where Uchiha Madara died? In a few years, he'd have to coax the location out of Kakashi. That cave couldn't be far from where Rin had died. He had to find an opportunity.
The enrollment speech finally ended with most of the new students dozing off, and Yun left the field with Izumi. Classes officially started tomorrow, and he still didn't know the Shadow Clone technique.
'What a Headache!'
He remembered Itachi using the Shadow Clone technique in first grade. Was it taught by Shisui or the now-deceased Fugaku?
Should he ask Shisui for help?
…
"Big brother, Mom said to bring back some tri-color dango for lunch."
"I remember. Let's go to the dango shop first, then head home for lunch."
Yun nodded and held Izumi's small hand, walking toward the shop.
Truthfully, Yun didn't like sweet stuff, but little Izumi did, so their mother often asked her to buy some.
The family's finances had improved quite a bit over the past year. His clone Ku, had "died" three times outside, and with money from the underground black market, he had done his share of robbing the rich to feed the poor, himself.
"You bastard! There's clearly less pork loin today!"
"And the sake too! No flavor at all! Am I wrong?"
Smack!
The loudmouth was slammed to the ground. Three men pinned his arms behind his back and yanked him to his feet.
"You just called us bastards?"
"Are you saying a mere drunkard civilian like you has the right to insult the Uchiha?"
"You'll regret this once we get you into the Police Force!"
…
The commotion drew Yun's attention. He saw three men with Uchiha fan emblems on their backs pinning a drunkard to the ground.
They were from the Police Force. The drunk had clearly had too much; his face was red and his speech was slurred. His claim that the sake was flavorless was clearly nonsense.
As the three Uchiha officers dragged him away, the surrounding civilians began to murmur.
"They're arresting him just for being drunk? That's too much…"
"Everyone knows if you get taken in by the Uchiha, you won't get out without paying."
"He's kind of pitiful. I heard he had a son who finally became a ninja, but died recently during a mission outside the village. Even the chunin team leader didn't come back. They say something unexpected happened."
"Shh! Quit talking. There are still Uchiha around. Do you wanna end up in lockup too?"
…
"Sigh…"
A helpless sigh came from beside him. Yun turned and looked, "Shisui-senpai, just got back from a mission?"
Shisui gave a small nod.
"The tensions keep growing," Shisui murmured, then smiled at Yun and Izumi. "If you're free this afternoon, meet me at Training Ground Four. Itachi will be there too. I've got gifts for you both, since you're starting school."
Upon hearing that Itachi would be there, Izumi's eyes lit up, and she nodded rapidly. "I want to come too! Did you prepare a gift for me, Shisui-nii?"
Shisui chuckled. "As for your gift, Izumi, let Yun bring it back for you. You're still too young."
Izumi immediately puffed her cheeks. "But big brother is only a tiny bit older than me! How am I too young? And—"
Tap.
Before she could finish, Yun lightly flicked her forehead and tied her loose hair into a ponytail. "Be good. You've got school tomorrow."
She fell silent instantly and obediently held Yun's hand.
After saying goodbye to Shisui, Yun took Izumi home.
Since Fugaku's death nearly a year ago, the Uchiha hadn't elected a new clan head. The hawk and dove factions constantly bickered during clan meetings, nearly coming to blows every time.
As the Uchiha's top prodigy, Shisui now held considerable influence at these meetings, but he was still slightly outmatched by the two old fossils.
Age was a hard barrier.
Fugaku's death had altered the trajectory of the Infinite Tsukuyomi's "ideal future," but if Shisui could secure leadership…
And then there was that old bastard, Danzo the scheming snake. With both the Third and Fourth Hokage still alive, he'd retreated into his shell, making it harder to decapitate him.
The time was almost here. If all went well, he would soon have both Speed and Power.
"Big brother… why don't you like Itachi?"
Izumi's voice rang out beside him.
Yun glanced at her and replied, "Humble, kind, gentle, and the new Uchiha prodigy. A lot of girls probably like him."
"But because of these same reasons, in Itachi's mind, some things lose their importance. He spends his days pondering lofty questions—life and death, the meaning of being a shinobi, the purpose of the village."
"His mind is so high in the clouds, blind to reality. That's a common flaw among shinobi in this world."
"Izumi, someone who appears humble but mentally floats above others isn't right for you. Liking someone just because others do is just childish infatuation. Though in this world, 'childhood' ends awfully early…"
Izumi stared blankly, not really understanding, but she still felt her brother was saying something profound.
Nod and smile!
School starts tomorrow. Starting school with Itachi, she was really looking forward to it.
Yun looked at the girl beside him and sighed, saying no more.
'If that lunatic doesn't have an episode, he's actually alright. Should I kill him before he unlocks Mangekyō?'
'Wait, that would make me a sis-con, wouldn't it?'
Shaking off the messy thoughts, Yun looked into the distance. One month left before the second opening of the Intelligence Trading Hub.