"Granny, is the hot water ready yet?"
Obito had just cleaned the dirt off his body, only to find the bathwater in front of him was ice cold.
"Granny?" He called out again, but no one responded.
Obito immediately sensed something was wrong.
He cautiously stepped out of the room, only to catch a whiff of a nauseating scent—blood!
"Oh no!"
He dashed into the small storage hut, only to find Granny lying on the floor in a pool of blood.
"No way!"
His eyes flared crimson with fury. But before he could react, a sharp shuriken sliced through the air toward him.
[Ninjutsu - Shadow Shuriken Technique!]
Countless shurikens rained down on Obito from above, exactly like the attack at Kannabi Bridge.
"You guys—who are you?! Why would you harm my family!" Obito's Sharingan activated instantly, dodging the deadly assault!
He was stronger than before, but still no match for them.
"Didn't expect this kid to be such a handful," a group of masked men wearing cat-like Anbu masks crouched on the rafters.
Anbu!
Obito recognized them instantly—elite ninja who rarely ever left missions to the shadows.
Cat-faced masks meant Anbu members, and judging from their uniforms, these were actually elite-level Anbu ninja—the kind usually composed of Tokubetsu Jonin.
Why would the Anbu attack a member of the Uchiha clan?
Obito was deeply puzzled, but the enemy gave him no time to think.
[Fire Release - Great Fireball Technique!]
A massive fireball came barreling toward Obito.
[Fire Release - Firefly Fire Jutsu!]
Obito quickly retaliated, but as a Genin, despite being born of the Uchiha Clan with powerful chakra, he still couldn't withstand attacks from trained Anbu operatives.
"Peng!"
His heavy body flew backward instantly, covered with numerous burn marks.
"Dammit!"
Rolling over, Obito sprang up and sprinted outside. Right now, he simply couldn't handle them— even with two more years of training, he still wouldn't stand a chance.
"My teacher! Right, my teacher will definitely help me!"
Instinctively, he thought of Ye Liang, who had taught him everything.
In moments of crisis, people always remember those most important to them. For Obito, besides his Granny, there wasn't anyone else left in the world—he truly relied on Ye Liang.
"Do you really think you can run away?"
The group of Anbu sneered coldly before charging toward Obito Uchiha.
But just then, Granny—who had been lying motionless in her own blood—slightly opened her eyes.
"Don't... don't even dare touch my grandson!" Her voice was weak and trembling, her body on the verge of death, yet for her grandson, she struggled to open her eyes once more.
[Amaterasu!]
She cried out weakly.
A pair of bright crimson eyes suddenly unfolded, immediately followed by an endless sky filled with black flames—those dark flames were real, not some genjutsu trick or ordinary fire jutsu.
"What the hell is this?!"
Caught completely off guard, the Anbu operatives were instantly enveloped in dark flames, igniting Obito's entire house in the process.
"Granny!"
Obito clearly saw all of this unfold, but the black flames spread across the house in an instant— engulfing both the Anbu agents and his own Granny.
"F***!" He slammed his fist into the ground and darted out of the village once again!
Meanwhile.
Shisui Uchiha stood silently before Fugaku Uchiha.
"Itachi, if you won't do it, then I'll have to take action myself." Fugaku remained motionless, clearly caught in Shisui's genjutsu.
Beside Shisui stood Itachi, his expression indifferent, evidently resolute.
"I'll handle it myself."
"Fine. After all, it's your own family."
At that moment, from behind a nearby closet, a pair of pitiful eyes watched the scene in terror.
"No! Don't hurt Father! Brother, what's wrong with you?!" The owner of those eyes gazed desperately at Itachi outside but dared not step forward—Shisui stood beside him.
His name was Sasuke, Itachi Uchiha's younger brother and second son of Fugaku Uchiha. During the most critical moment earlier, Fugaku had hidden him inside the family closet.
"It must be this man controlling my brother! How could Itachi ever turn against his own family?!" He glared hatefully at Shisui Uchiha, who had already noticed him.
"Itachi, I promised you—I won't kill any innocent person, but now, you must make the right choice!"
"I understand," Itachi said heavily, nodding before slowly reaching his hand toward Fugaku Uchiha.
"No!" Sasuke's heart leapt into his throat!
Whoever you are, please—save my father!
Just then, an extremely piercing dragon roar echoed straight toward the Uchiha clan hall.
"What's happening?" As soon as Shisui reacted, he saw how the shrine's ceiling collapsed under the impact of a blazing fire dragon!
[Fire Release - Dragon Missile Technique!]
A loud voice rang out from outside, followed by a white figure riding atop the fire dragon, soaring into the Uchiha shrine!
"It's Ye Liang!"
Shisui immediately recognized this person!
Previously, Danzo had constantly ordered him to deal with this man, so Shisui remembered him well.
"Itachi, don't do anything reckless! Danzo isn't exactly a good guy—he's a manipulative idiot! Put down that shuriken; that's not right!" Ye Liang lectured solemnly while stepping protectively in front of Fugaku Uchiha, his expression mixing disappointment with high hopes.
"Who are you? And why do you know me?" Itachi's eyes showed slight alertness.
As if I wouldn't recognize you!
You're none other than Itachi Uchiha—the legendary genius everyone wants on their side!
Of course, Ye Liang only thought this inwardly.
"Cough cough... I heard about you from the Third. He spoke highly of your talents, saying they could accomplish something great!"
"You can do anything else, so why would you listen to that idiot Danzo? Put that weapon down—it's the wrong path!" Ye Liang continued talking as he stepped before Itachi, gently lowering the hand that held the weapon.
"There, that's better. Can't we handle things peacefully for once?"
Itachi frowned slightly but hesitated to attack Ye Liang after hearing mention of the Third Hokage.
"Just who exactly do you think you are?! This is Anbu business. If you have complaints, go discuss them with Danzo directly—just don't interfere with our operation!"
Shisui Uchiha, standing beside them, said in clear displeasure.
Seeing that the other party was Ye Liang, he didn't immediately attack—not out of loyalty to Hiruzen Sarutobi, but simply because it was Ye Liang standing there, someone he couldn't hope to defeat.
"Hmm? Danzo? Hmph, do you think I need to report every decision to that old man before acting? The fact that I haven't gone after him over the Ibiki incident already shows plenty of courtesy."
"But you still can't—!"
"Get lost!"
Ye Liang suddenly pulled out a token.
"I am an advisor of Konoha. Who are you to question me?"
Shisui fell silent at once.
At this moment, Fugaku Uchiha also awakened from the illusion.
Still stunned, he scanned the area—and saw Ye Liang right in front of him.
"You... You're Lord Ye Liang!" he said gratefully, looking toward Ye Liang at once.
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