The scroll that Yusuke gave to Orochimaru contained the White Zetsu's head that he had cut off in the Land of Rain. For Orochimaru, a giant in the field of biological science, it was very valuable for research.
Orochimaru put away the scroll and asked ominously, "Now that the cursed seal is complete, Yusuke-kun, which village's jinchūriki are you going to start with to take the Yin Release chakra from the Tailed Beast within them?"
Yusuke's gaze was calm, "Don't worry about that. I already have a target."
Meanwhile, on a training ground in the Uchiha clan territory, Shikaku had just finished guiding Itachi and Izumi in their ninjutsu training. The three of them were chatting.
"Shikaku-senpai, what jutsu are you best at?" Izumi asked curiously.
Shikaku grinned with pride, "My best jutsu isn't really a jutsu. It's senbon. In terms of using senbon, I'm definitely the best among my peers!"
Izumi's big eyes twirled, and she smiled, "Senbon is also a type of ninja tool. I bet Shikaku-senpai, you're not as good as Itachi in using ninja tools!"
Shikaku couldn't stand being underestimated, "Impossible. I admit that Itachi is a rare genius, but I don't believe that he can surpass me in using ninja tools."
Izumi tilted her head slightly, "How about we make a bet? Itachi is good at kunai. He'll do a demonstration first with kunai. If Shikaku-senpai can imitate it with kunai or senbon, you win. Otherwise, you lose. How about it?"
Shikaku didn't care, "Alright, that's settled. If you win, Shikaku will buy you three-colored dango for a year!"
"Shikaku-senpai, maybe we shouldn't do this." Itachi was very kind.
Shikaku waved his hand, confident, "Itachi, just go ahead. I'm sure I can imitate it."
Since Shikaku said so, Itachi didn't say anything more. He casually took out three kunai and threw them. Then, he took out three more kunai and threw them. The second group of kunai hit the first group before they reached their target, changing the flight path of the first three kunai. In the end, all six kunai hit the bullseye of each target.
This wasn't actually Itachi's highest level of skill. After learning how to use ninja tools from Shisui for a while, Itachi could perform even more precise micromanipulation.
Shikaku's eyes widened in disbelief. The senbon in his mouth, which he hadn't been biting, fell out and pierced his instep.
"Ah!" Shikaku cried out in pain, clutching his foot.
"Shikaku-senpai, you should try too," Izumi said with a genuine smile, looking at Shikaku with anticipation.
Shikaku shook his head and sighed wryly, "Forget it. I lost."
Sighing, Shikaku secretly groaned:
"Three-colored dango for a year for two kids. That's a lot of money. My already thin wallet is going to get even thinner."
"We were just joking with you, Shikaku-senpai. You've been helping us train for so long, and we haven't thanked you yet. Let's treat you to three-colored dango today!" Izumi said happily, looking at Shikaku, who looked bitter.
Seeing Izumi, who was clever but also kind and understanding, Itachi smiled slightly. Shikaku also breathed a sigh of relief. He felt a little embarrassed and scratched his head.
At that moment, a voice came, disrupting their plan to go eat three-colored dango together, "Itachi-sama, the clan leader asked me to tell you to go to the hospital as soon as possible."
Looking at the Uchiha clan member who had come to deliver the message, Itachi asked, "Did Father say what it was about?"
The messenger replied, "Madam is about to give birth."
Hearing that his mother was about to give birth, Itachi apologized to Izumi and Shikaku and rushed to the hospital. Their plan to go eat three-colored dango together was naturally canceled.
When Itachi arrived at Konoha Hospital, Mikoto had successfully given birth. In the private room at Konoha Hospital, Mikoto was holding a crying baby, and Fugaku was standing beside her.
"Mother, I'm sorry I'm late." The door to the ward opened, and Itachi walked in.
"Itachi, it's a boy. You have a little brother," Mikoto said with a gentle smile. Then she turned to Fugaku, "You've kept this secret for so long. Can you tell us the baby's name now?"
Fugaku bent down, took the baby from Mikoto's arms, held him up, and said in a joyful voice, "Sasuke, Uchiha Sasuke."
Mikoto was surprised, "It's a good name, but..."
Fugaku smiled, "Yes, it's the name of the Third Hokage's father. I already talked to the Third Hokage-sama, and he agreed."
Fugaku raised Sasuke, who was still a baby, in his arms. The bright sunlight outside the ward shone in, landing on Sasuke's small body.
"Sasuke, don't let this name down. Be a man!" Fugaku's voice was full of expectation.
After saying this, Fugaku laughed happily.
Looking at Sasuke in his father's arms, Itachi made a silent vow in his heart. No matter what happened in the future, he would take care of his little brother, even if it meant sacrificing everything!
But as Itachi made this vow, a little girl's innocent and lovely smile flashed through his mind.
Izumi returned home and saw that her brother, Yusuke, was also there, which was rare. She asked happily, "Brother, why are you back so early today?"
Yusuke smiled and waved to Izumi. Izumi ran over. Yusuke reached out and patted Izumi's head, "I've been busy developing an important jutsu recently. I haven't had time to spend with you. I'm really sorry. Let's go out to eat with Mom tonight."
Izumi said happily, "Great! I want to eat yakiniku today!"
"Okay, you can eat whatever you want." Yusuke pinched Izumi's cheeks, which were still slightly chubby, then asked curiously, "Why are you back so early today? Usually, you hang out with Itachi for a while after training."
"Today, Itachi's mom gave birth. Itachi is going to have a little brother or sister soon. I'm really looking forward to it. I really want a little brother or sister too," Izumi said with envy.
Hearing Izumi's words, Yusuke thought to himself.
"Sasuke has already been born. It seems like Naruto will be born soon. I need to make some preparations in advance. If possible, I hope I can help the Fourth Hokage couple survive this Nine-Tailed Fox incident."
Yusuke admired the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. He was a commoner who became the CEO of Konoha without relying on any cheat codes. He also won the heart of a beautiful and wealthy woman from the Uzumaki clan, making him a model of success for commoners.
Minato himself could also be considered a perfect man. He was outstanding in terms of strength, talent, personality, and appearance.
"Hopefully, I can arrive before you use the Shiki Fujin!"
After completing the development of the "Two-Yi Seal," Yusuke released Shikaku Nara and resumed responsibility for training his disciples and his little sister, Izumi, in ninjutsu.
Guy, on the other hand, loved the feeling of being a teacher and begged Yusuke to allow him to continue guiding the children in taijutsu. Yusuke, of course, was "happy to help."
He couldn't refuse a friend's request!
"Yusuke-sensei, have you heard the rumors about you and Shisui recently?" One afternoon, after finishing their ninjutsu training for the day, Yusuke was strolling through the snack street with Kabuto, Itachi, and Izumi when Itachi suddenly asked.
Yusuke nodded, "I've heard them. It's obvious that someone is deliberately spreading these rumors. Their goal is probably to sow discord within our Uchiha clan."
"They're spreading rumors that I'm the strongest ninja in the clan and that Shisui is the most talented. This will create competition between me and Shisui and also make the clan leader wary of us."
"I don't know Shisui very well and haven't talked to him about this yet. But I've already talked to the clan leader. He doesn't care about it and said he'll talk to Shisui and ensure that the clan stays united."
After hearing Yusuke's explanation, Itachi felt a little reassured, "I'll talk to Shisui about it too."
Yusuke patted Itachi on the shoulder, "Thanks. I'm not trying to compete with Shisui for these titles."
At this time, Yusuke, Fugaku, and Itachi didn't know that the purpose of these rumors, besides sowing discord among the top ninjas in the Uchiha clan, was also to set the stage for Shisui to challenge Yusuke and make Shisui the rightful "Strongest Uchiha Ninja" and "Most Talented Uchiha" after winning. It has to be said that the Third Hokage was a very cunning old fox!
In the teahouse, Yusuke gently took a sip of oolong tea. His old friend, Shikaku Nara, was sitting opposite him.
"Yusuke, why are you suddenly so enthusiastic? You're either treating me to tea or treating me to dinner. You should know that I, Shikaku, am not someone who craves food!" Shikaku asked curiously.
"Waiter, please bring another plate of sakura mochi, a plate of yōkan, and four strawberry daifuku!" Before Yusuke could answer, Shikaku ordered another round of snacks without any hesitation.
Yusuke's eyelids twitched, and he smiled, "Of course, I'm just thanking you for helping guide my disciples in ninjutsu a while back."
Shikaku frowned slightly, "But you've already thanked me five times."
For some reason, he felt like there was something fishy about the man opposite him.
After all, among their peers, Yusuke was the most formidable. No one had ever gotten the better of him.
Yusuke took a slow sip of tea and glanced at the new Hokage guard armband on Shikaku's arm. He said calmly, "Congratulations on officially becoming a special Jonin and becoming the Fourth Hokage's personal bodyguard."
Shikaku smiled, "It took me a long time to become a special Jonin. I'm still not as good as you, Yusuke. The rumors say that you're already the strongest ninja in the Uchiha clan."
Yusuke waved his hand, "I don't know where those rumors came from. I'm actually worried about them."
"By the way, I'm going on a secret mission starting tomorrow. If you want to treat me to tea again, you'll have to wait a while," Shikaku continued.
Hearing Shikaku's words, a glint of light flashed in Yusuke's eyes. He thought to himself, "Here it comes!"
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