Saving the Uchiha clan starts with becoming the clan leader.

What kind of monsters are these?!

The newly hired young teacher sighed in despair.

Yakumo had no idea how he managed to control Kiba Inuzuka with genjutsu. His intuition told him that even he himself probably couldn't withstand this unpredictable genjutsu. He was a Chunin, after all, so how could he be no match for a group of students?

just,

The teacher's mood quickly shifted from helplessness and sighs to numbness and despair.

Uchiha Fujika and Tsuchigumo Hotaru took to the field one after another, almost completely crushing their opponents. The strength they displayed had completely surpassed the young teacher's definition of a student. The battle class ended, and the young teacher, whose worldview had been shaken, silently returned to his office and began to isolate himself.

Fortunately, the senior instructor in charge of him was a man named Iruka, so it seemed unlikely that the ninja academy would reduce its teaching staff so easily.

······

As the sun sets,

It's been quite a while since the ninja academy let out.

However, the students did not plan to go home early. The ninja academy did not have any clubs or similar things, but there was never a shortage of diligent people on the training grounds. Especially in recent years, the boy in the green bodysuit had almost become a regular sight on the training grounds.

Of course, most students aren't actually that diligent.

The boys went to the bookstore together to stand and read the free comics. Although they were not short of money, it would be very embarrassing if their mothers found out about some of the comics they brought home. The worst thing was that his sister found his favorite collector's edition... This left Sasuke with a nightmare that he still can't get over. Even his brother, who loved him the most, did not speak up for him in front of their father.

after that,

After much painful reflection, Sasuke decided to move his base to Naruto's house.

But even Naruto's house wasn't safe, as Jiraiya always took things without asking. Looking at the treasured item, soaked with saliva and something else entirely, Sasuke once again felt the world's deep malice towards him.

From then onwards,

The boys gave up buying comics.

I've mastered the art of '蹭' (蹭, meaning to take advantage of or take advantage of someone else's success).

"Boys are such a bunch of idiots. What's so interesting about those comics? I don't understand what's going on in their heads." Passing by the bookstore, I could see Naruto, Sasuke, Kiba, and others standing in front of the bookshelves through the glass window.

Teng Hua glanced disdainfully at the sneaky boys.

"Alright, Fujika, forget about those idiots, let's hurry up! If we're late, the movie will start." Yamanaka Ino nudged Fujika.

"It's all because Ino wanted to eat fried meat patties, wasting so much time."

"What does this have to do with me? Sakura, didn't you just eat two fried meat patties too?"

"W-what?! I didn't eat that much, you shut up, you wild boar!"

"A broad forehead!"

"Well Boar!"

The girls were making so much noise that even the boys who were gathered to appreciate the art noticed the commotion outside.

"Ugh! Ino and Sakura are arguing again!"

Kiba Inuzuka sighed as if it were commonplace.

Isn't this just commonplace? Similar arguments have played out far too many times at school.

"Women... are such a hassle."

Nara Shikamaru let out a sigh filled with weariness.

"That's why comics are better; women and all that stuff are just trouble."

Sasuke, who was suffering from harassment by fans, sighed sincerely.

Naruto scratched his face and chose to remain silent, not joining in his friends' complaints.

The perspective shifts to outside the bookstore, where the arguing girls are surprised to find that Yakumo, who usually acts as the mediator, seems completely oblivious to Sakura and Ino's quarrel, standing there blankly, gazing at the park at the other end of the street.

"Yakumo?"

Fujika looked at her friend, who was lost in thought, and called out to her, but received no response. Helpless, she could only reach out and poke her arm again. "Yakumo, are you still thinking about what you said before? What? Do you still feel like someone is watching you?"

As she spoke, she carefully looked around, but didn't see anything unusual.

"do not know."

Yakumo gently shook his head.

The feeling of being constantly on someone's back disappeared, but it also convinced her that it was no illusion. It might have been an illusion at the ninja academy, but the same feeling returned after she came outside. What does that mean? There's no need for further explanation.

"this?"

Fujika's eyes widened; she didn't know either, she didn't know what was going on with Yakumo.

"Maybe I'm being too sensitive! I'm sorry, Ino, Sakura, and Hinata, I'm not feeling well today, so I won't be going to the movies." Yakumo suddenly said, causing Ino and Sakura, who were arguing, to stop and look at each other in bewilderment.

The shy, glaring girl also looked puzzled.

"Ah! I remember this morning my brother told us to go to his office after school. I almost failed the last exam, and I'm going to get a scolding again." Fujika suddenly changed her mind.

"...You two, Ino, Sakura, Hinata, it looks like we can't go to the movie today. We'll go together next time, and Yakumo and Fujika will treat us then." Helpless, Tsuchigumo Hotaru could only step in to smooth things over, glaring at Fujika. If you're going to make an excuse, at least come up with something plausible!

"It's okay, we can make another appointment next time."

"Goodbye."

The girls dispersed.

At this moment, they split into two small groups: one consisting of Ino, Sakura, and Hinata, and the other consisting of Fujika, Yakumo, and Hotaru. After parting with smiles, they headed in different directions: one to the movie theater, and the other to the Hokage Building.

······

"Why would you deliberately reveal your aura?" Black Abe didn't understand, staring blankly at the swirling mask. "Aren't you just alerting them? If Uchiha Munegen is on guard, it won't be so easy to use them!"

"We need to put some pressure on Uchiha Mugen."

"what?"

"I've already said that I'm just trying to give Uchiha Munegen something to do and put some pressure on him. Konoha will probably undergo a major change soon. Some things are hard to stop, but... we can't let him have it so easy. Anyway, I don't have anything to do lately."

After hearing the last sentence, Black Zetsu was speechless.

I thought this guy had some earth-shattering plan, but it turns out he was just bored. What a waste of people's time and emotions.

but,

Not necessarily. Even he couldn't fully grasp Obito's plans. Fortunately, no matter how much Obito struggled, he couldn't escape the pre-drawn circle.

[293. Chapter 291 The story doesn't necessarily have to wait until Naruto graduates to begin]

While Fujika, Yakumo, and Hotaru were barging into Sogen's office, our Hokage's assistant was secretly... well! He wasn't doing anything bad; he was just discussing with his secretary, Kabuto Yakushi, and the deputy head of the police department, Arashiyama Uchiha, whether or not to raise the village's security level.

Although the news of the Fifth Hokage's temporary blindness was kept tightly under wraps,

But you can't hide fire with paper.

Especially the Hokage, who is the backbone of the village, is under the spotlight. If he doesn't show up for a long time, it will definitely cause problems. If Akimichi Torifu hadn't taken sick leave more than once in the past few years, the village might have been in turmoil long ago. But even so, it's impossible for things to continue like this forever.

However, before the final decision is made, we need to be wary of those with ulterior motives causing trouble.

"Yakumo, Fujika, and Hotaru, you all..."

Zongxian looked at the girls rushing into the office with a puzzled expression.

Speaking of,

These girls barged in without knocking; it must have been Fujika who did it. Yakumo and Hotaru would never do something like that.

"Brother, Yakumo is being followed!!" Before Zongzhen could finish speaking, Fujika shouted urgently.

"what?"

Zongxian was stunned.

"what?"

Even Yakumo was stunned by this astonishing statement. His eyes widened as he stared incredulously at the back of Fujika's head, subconsciously wondering whether he should give his friend a chop to the neck.

"Yakumo, someone's following you?" Uchiha Arashiyama, sitting on the sofa, frowned. "If I remember correctly, the person in charge of security around the Ninja Academy is Tekka. It seems that his abilities still can't match Inahi's. Personnel adjustments, hmm..."

Uchiha Arashiyama pondered, a personnel storm already raging in his mind.

He was pondering how to adjust the personnel within the police department. Currently, the work of the police department was basically controlled by Uchiha Arashiyama. Apart from the title of department head, all other powers had been handed over to Arashiyama by Sogen.

"Dare to follow my disciple? I didn't expect there to be such a bold guy in Konoha. Really... I'd like to see just who this guy is."

Zongxian couldn't help but laugh.

To be honest, the laughter made the pharmacist who was serving hot tea to the girls shrink back. He thought to himself that Lord Zongxian's murderous aura was truly terrifying, but... something felt off. His intuition told him that something was amiss.

The subsequent changes proved that his intuition was quite accurate.

"Eh? Um, Master, no, don't listen to Fujika's nonsense, it's not what you think at all." Seeing that his master and the others had misunderstood, Yakumo finally snapped out of his thought about "whether to give his bad friend a chop to the neck" and hurriedly explained.

"I wasn't being followed. I just felt like someone was watching me from the shadows. First at the ninja academy, and then shortly after I left after school, I felt a similar gaze, like someone was standing in the stands looking down on me..."

"Isn't this stalking?"

After hearing Ba Yun's explanation, Uchiha Arashiyama became even more confused.

"I already said no."

The girl was extremely distressed, and she just couldn't explain it to herself!

"It's not necessarily Yakumo."

Hotaru Tsuchigumo, who had been silent until now, spoke up, “However, Yakumo has the most acute senses among us. Even Ino and Hinata are not as sensitive as Yakumo without actively using secret techniques and activating their Byakugan. So, I think that if someone is really following us, it may not be targeting Yakumo.”

That's exactly what I mean!

Yakumo nodded repeatedly in affirmation.

"I felt like I was being watched twice, once at the Ninja Academy and once at the bookstore entrance. On both occasions, it wasn't just Fujika and Hotaru, but also Hinata, Ino, and Sakura. Oh, and Naruto and Sasuke were also nearby. I couldn't be sure which of us was actually being watched."

"Also, not the Anbu who were following Naruto, but I sensed something in their gaze... how should I put it! It wasn't murderous intent, but it wasn't anything good either... malice, well, malice is a more accurate word to describe it."

Finally, Yakumo added one more sentence.

—It might not be Yakumo!

This seems to have made things more complicated.