Uchiha Yashiro's face showed regret.
He said slowly, "That guy is the culprit behind the Nine-Tails Incident. He's the one who framed our Uchiha clan. It's a real pity he got away. Still, Ryosuke, I didn't expect you to hide so deep and be this strong. Join our Uchiha hardliners."
Ryosuke countered, "Didn't you say last time we had nothing to talk about?"
Yashiro's expression turned awkward—he really had said that. "I didn't know how strong you were. What you proposed was too bold; we need to plan long-term."
Ryosuke rolled his eyes. 'Plan long-term?' In the near future the conflict between the Uchiha and Konoha's top brass would explode. In the elders' eyes, the clan's image wasn't something that could be changed so easily. A clash was inevitable—unless the Uchiha were willing to be the top brass's dogs. And even then, someone like Danzō would never spare them.
All the more when the Uchiha held Konoha's true lineage—while the so-called Konoha F4 were a bunch of deadweights dragging the village's fighting strength straight down.
Ryosuke looked at Yashiro and replied, "Let's wait and see—'plan long-term,' like you said."
Right now the only thing to do was keep leveling up. He had merely gained a way to respond to the threat of extermination. That fight with Obito had been a bit hair-raising; if he were strong enough, it wouldn't have gone like that.
Yashiro hurried to say, "Of course."
The stance alone showed Ryosuke was thinking from the clan's side. "Planning long-term" worked for him too. As impressed as he was now, if Ryosuke wanted to start an all-out fight with the Konoha leadership tomorrow, it would be a nightmare. He should report this to the clan head.
Elsewhere, ANBU also picked up the incident and rushed to the Hokage's office to report it to the Third.
Hiruzen leaned back in his chair when he heard. The masked man had fought Uchiha Ryosuke… It looked like they really had wronged the Uchiha; they weren't the masterminds of the Nine-Tails Incident. Back then, it was Danzō's scheme—and his tacit approval.
The Uchiha had been growing stronger and stronger, geniuses popping up one after another, even eyeing the Hokage's seat. Barring them from the position wasn't just his teacher Tobirama's caution; Hiruzen himself had no desire to see it happen. If an Uchiha became Hokage, where would that leave him? He had no intent to retire.
He sighed inwardly. He hadn't expected another powerhouse to emerge among the Uchiha—Ryosuke again. The kid had already dared talk back to the Hokage.
Right now, the clan's two great prodigies, Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi, were in his ANBU, getting the Will of Fire gently poured into them. Progress was excellent; his image loomed large in their minds. They listened.
If he could pull Uchiha Ryosuke into ANBU, he was confident he could brainwash him too. The boy was a bit rebellious, but worth a shot.
That afternoon, Ryosuke went straight to the clan head's home; Fugaku happened to be in.
Seeing him, Fugaku was delighted. "Ryosuke, Yashiro already told me—you did great. To injure that masked man badly is a breath of relief for the Uchiha."
"I'm planning to report this to the Third Hokage. It should be enough to clear our clan of suspicion."
He was genuinely happy—the clan had produced such a genius. Wounding the masked man would restore the Uchiha's reputation.
Ryosuke frowned. Fugaku still didn't grasp the crux of the clan's conflict with Konoha's leadership. The Nine-Tails Incident had always been just a pretext to suppress the Uchiha.
He said evenly, "Clan Head, that may not be wise. If we bring this up, the leadership will likely suspect the Uchiha are colluding with the masked man and use it as another excuse to press us down."
Fugaku knit his brows. "Impossible. They wouldn't be that foolish. If we were colluding with him, why would we hit him so hard?"
Ryosuke replied, "Precisely because they know that, they'll use it to suppress us anyway. Even pushed to the outskirts, we're still Konoha's strongest clan. That threatens their power."
Fugaku's excitement guttered. As clan head, he understood that all too well; he'd only hoped the leadership would recognize the Uchiha's loyalty. The Nine-Tails had ravaged the village—the village was the Uchiha's home too; why would they attack it?
He looked at Ryosuke. "You're perceptive. I'll reconsider. So—what brings you here?"
Ryosuke smiled. "To have a spar with the clan head, of course."
Fugaku blinked. In the past he wouldn't have bothered; the gap between them would've been too large. Now was different.
"Ryosuke, if you could beat the masked man, even I might not be your match."
"It's not certain. That masked man only looked invincible because of a special ability."
"What ability?" If the man had escaped, then getting the intel now would help them deal with him next time.
Ryosuke laid out what he knew and how to counter it. "He can make himself intangible to avoid attacks and can also suck others into a different space—but when he does, he has to be tangible. If you hit him the moment he materializes, you can nail him."
Fugaku was stunned. Intangibility and solidity—space-time ninjutsu. Not easy at all; like Minato Namikaze using Flying Thunder God to stride across the shinobi world. Managing to injure the masked man only proved Ryosuke's strength further.
Curious now about the boy's true level, he said, "Ryosuke, then let's have a proper spar."
"All right."
They headed to the open ground behind the compound—empty and perfect for a bout. Fugaku remained confident in his own power; the young man before him was clearly a master as well. Only a real fight would show their depths.