Naruto: The Shadow of Uchiha

The Eighth Elder wore a regretful expression as he exhaled slowly.

"That man… he's the true culprit behind the Nine-Tails' attack. It was because of him that our Uchiha clan was framed," he said bitterly.

"It's a shame he managed to escape."

Then, his eyes turned toward Ryosuke, glowing with newfound admiration.

"But Ryosuke, I must admit—I never expected you to be hiding such strength. You should join the Uchiha clan's radical faction."

Ryosuke raised an eyebrow, responding dryly,

"Didn't you tell me last time there was nothing for us to discuss?"

The Eighth Elder's expression turned awkward. He had said that.

"Well… I didn't know how strong you were back then," he mumbled.

"What you said before was a little too bold—it needed careful consideration."

Ryosuke rolled his eyes.

Careful consideration? In the near future, tensions between the Uchiha clan and the Konoha leadership would erupt completely.

Given how the higher-ups viewed the Uchiha, reconciliation was impossible.

A clash was inevitable.

Unless the Uchiha clan was willing to grovel like dogs for Konoha's upper brass—which even then wouldn't spare them from Danzo's schemes.

And besides, the Uchiha were Konoha's true foundation. The so-called "Konoha Four" were little more than deadweight, their mismanagement leading the village's combat power into sharp decline.

Looking at the elder, Ryosuke replied flatly,

"Let's wait and see. Like you said—'careful consideration.'"

For now, his priority was still increasing his strength.

He had finally reached the point where he could barely defend against the threat of the Uchiha Massacre.

His earlier battle with Obito had been dangerously close. If he were stronger, things wouldn't have been so tense.

The Eighth Elder nodded eagerly.

"Of course."

That reply alone confirmed to him that Ryosuke now stood with the clan.

"Careful consideration" was enough.

Even though he now deeply respected Ryosuke's power, if Ryosuke had suddenly declared open war against the village elders, it would've been a massive headache.

Still, this matter had to be reported to the clan head.

Meanwhile, the Konoha Anbu had also caught wind of the skirmish and immediately reported it to the Third Hokage.

Hiruzen Sarutobi leaned back heavily in his chair as he listened.

That masked man had fought Uchiha Ryosuke?

So the true mastermind behind the Nine-Tails incident might not have been the Uchiha after all…

Back then, it was Danzo who pushed the narrative—and Hiruzen had let it happen.

The Uchiha had grown too strong. Talents emerged rapidly from their ranks, and they even began eyeing the Hokage position.

Preventing an Uchiha from becoming Hokage was not just the advice of his mentor, the Second Hokage—it was a sentiment Hiruzen himself agreed with.

If the Uchiha ever rose to power, where would that leave him?

He had no plans to retire.

He sighed inwardly.

Who would've thought another such powerful Uchiha would emerge—Ryosuke, no less.

This was the same Ryosuke who had dared challenge him directly before.

Currently, Konoha's top two Uchiha prodigies—Shisui and Itachi—were already part of the Anbu and being carefully "indoctrinated" in the Will of Fire.

That was progressing well. In their eyes, Hiruzen was a towering figure of trust.

If he could just bring Ryosuke into the Anbu too…

Perhaps even he could be "re-educated."

But Ryosuke was wild, headstrong.

Still… worth a try.

That afternoon, Ryosuke made his way to the Uchiha clan leader's residence.

Uchiha Fugaku happened to be home. Seeing Ryosuke arrive, his expression brightened.

"Ryosuke, the Eighth Elder already told me. Well done!" he praised.

"You seriously injured that masked man—you've brought honor to the Uchiha clan."

"I've already reported it to the Third Hokage. This should be enough to clear the suspicion placed on us during the Nine-Tails incident."

He genuinely looked proud to see such a talent emerging from the clan.

Ryosuke's expression darkened slightly.

It seemed even the clan head still didn't fully grasp the core of the conflict between the Uchiha and the village leadership.

In truth, the Nine-Tails incident had only served as an excuse for the higher-ups to suppress the Uchiha.

Ryosuke responded calmly,

"Clan Head… I'm not sure that's a good idea."

"If we bring this up, the Konoha leadership might suspect us of being in league with the masked man. They'll just use it as another excuse to suppress the clan."

Fugaku frowned.

"That can't be… They can't possibly be that foolish."

"If we were colluding with that man, why would we attack him so fiercely?"

Ryosuke explained coolly,

"It's precisely because they know the truth that they'll keep using it as a reason to press down on us."

"Even after moving our clan to the outskirts, we're still the strongest in Konoha."

"We threaten their power. That alone is reason enough."

Fugaku's enthusiasm began to fade.

As clan head, of course he understood these things.

He had simply hoped that, just maybe, the higher-ups would one day recognize the Uchiha's loyalty.

After all, the Nine-Tails had destroyed their village too. Why would they do that to their own home?

Looking at Ryosuke, he sighed.

"You're sharp. I'll reconsider this matter carefully."

"But tell me—why did you come to see me today?"

Ryosuke smiled.

"I wanted a friendly spar with the Clan Head."

Fugaku blinked.

Under normal circumstances, he would've dismissed the idea outright.

What did he have to gain from sparring with someone so much younger?

But now… things were different.

"Ryosuke, if you were able to injure that masked man, you may very well be stronger than me already."

Ryosuke shook his head.

"Not necessarily. That masked man only seemed invincible because of his unique abilities."

Fugaku leaned forward with interest.

"What abilities?"

Since they hadn't managed to capture the masked man, gathering intel was critical. Understanding his technique could give them an edge next time.

Ryosuke explained everything he knew.

"His ability allows him to become intangible to avoid attacks—and also to absorb others into a separate space."

"But during the absorption process, he has to become tangible. That's the window to strike."

Fugaku's eyes widened in shock.

Intangibility and spatial absorption? This was advanced space-time ninjutsu.

"Just like the Fourth Hokage's Flying Thunder God… terrifying."

The fact that Ryosuke had managed to counter that was proof of how formidable he'd become.

Now Fugaku was even more curious about Ryosuke's strength.

"Very well, Ryosuke. Let's spar."

"Gladly," Ryosuke replied.

The two headed toward the empty training grounds behind the Uchiha compound.

The area was wide and deserted—perfect for an intense match.

Uchiha Fugaku was confident in his own power.

But standing across from him, Ryosuke radiated the calm intensity of a true warrior.

Only through real combat could they truly gauge each other's strength.

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