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Chapter 80 is out on patreon
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The two strongest members of the Uchiha clan's new generation wrestled gracelessly on the floor, employing every dirty trick in the book, no different from street thugs in a brawl.
It was unclear how long they fought, but eventually, both exhausted every last bit of their strength. With two loud thuds, they collapsed onto the wooden floor, faces bruised and swollen, gasping for air.
Uchiha Madara touched his nose. A sour ache mixed with an indescribable sensation welled up, causing tears to flow uncontrollably from his eyes.
"My nose is broken!" Because of the break, his voice sounded a bit strange.
Xuan hummed smugly, believing he had won. At least his nose wasn't broken, although his left eye had taken a solid punch and was already swollen shut.
"You deserved it!" Xuan retorted.
Uchiha Madara didn't take the bait. He sighed and said, "But seriously, you're really heaven-defying, kid. One unseen Ninjutsu after another. Like that one that turns you into crows, or that Chakra ball... and especially that teleportation Jutsu you used yesterday. That was truly incredible. If it were me yesterday, I probably wouldn't have lasted three seconds.
"By the way, I almost forgot. Father asked me to tell you to go to his room. There's a clan meeting later; I have to go too."
Madara spoke calmly, but his words made Xuan frown slightly. There seemed to be a deeper meaning behind this.
Suddenly, Xuan connected the dots. He began to understand why the clan had chosen to use him as bait. With the Uchiha's strength, there were plenty of ways to surround the enemy quietly without resorting to such a tactic.
Perhaps using him as bait was convenient, but there was likely another reason: the clan was testing him. The clan didn't trust him—or rather, didn't fully trust him.
As for the reason for this distrust, it was almost certainly related to these Ninjutsu. It made sense; if anyone suddenly started using Ninjutsu that had never been recorded in the clan's history, people would take notice. Even if you claimed you invented them yourself, you were just too young. Did you really think everyone was stupid? Did you think you were the reincarnation of the Sage of Six Paths?
Xuan sat up, resting his chin on his hand in thought. He asked, "What about Hyuga Tamamo and the others? Were they killed yesterday? Was that Kage-level powerhouse Hyuga Ten'nin?"
Madara also sat up. "Kage-level powerhouse?" He paused for a moment before realizing Xuan meant a Clan Head-level fighter. He shrugged. "No, it was another old immortal from the Hyuga clan. On the surface, the Hyuga only have two Clan Head-level powerhouses: their leader, Hyuga Ten'nin, and their Great Elder, Hyuga Kamimune.
"As for Hyuga Tamamo, she was rescued. But one of their three Elite Jōnin died, another lost an arm, and the last one was heavily injured. Even that old immortal Hyuga Kamimune was beaten by Father until he vomited blood, though I don't know the extent of his injuries."
Xuan digested this news, analyzing it piece by piece. The amount of information was significant. Hyuga Kamimune definitely hadn't just arrived last night; he must have been lying in ambush. And his uncle's swift reaction yesterday suggested he hadn't been ignorant of the situation either.
"These great clans of the ninja world really can't be underestimated," Xuan sighed internally. Sweeping away his depression, a smile appeared on his lips. This makes things interesting.
Uchiha Madara stood up and began using Chakra to heal the injuries on his face. Their fight had been purely physical; although they looked scary, they were just superficial wounds. Chakra could easily heal them without leaving a trace.
"You should hurry up. Don't keep Father waiting. I'll be heading to the clan meeting in a bit."
Xuan also stood up, using Chakra to disperse the bruised blood around his eye. He grunted, "Got it."
Saying this, he walked out the door and headed toward Uchiha Tajima's room, thinking along the way about how to explain the Ninjutsu he knew.
To establish a firm foothold in the Warring States era, various resources were essential: land, food, population, ninjas, financial power, and so on. But none of these compared to the two most critical resources. Only by possessing these two could a clan become a first-rate power.
The Next Generation and Knowledge.
The importance of the next generation went without saying; only with enough children could a clan prosper and pass on its legacy.
Knowledge was harder to define, but for ninja clans, "knowledge" meant Ninjutsu.
Therefore, all clans placed extreme importance on Ninjutsu. Except for their direct lineage, they rarely taught outsiders, especially high-ranking techniques.
Yet Xuan was only five years old. In his last battle with the Hyuga Jōnin, he had revealed unseen techniques like the Crow Clone and the Rasengan. No wonder the clan was suspicious.
For those two Jutsu, he could still insist that he was a genius and created them himself. But how could he explain the Flying Thunder God Jutsu he displayed yesterday?
Claim it was his own creation too? Don't joke. Even Xuan wouldn't believe that excuse.
Lost in these thoughts, he arrived outside Uchiha Tajima's door without realizing it.
Pushing these messy thoughts to the back of his mind, he opened the door and stepped in. Seeing Uchiha Tajima kneeling at the table, he quickly stepped forward and performed the proper etiquette for greeting an elder. "Uncle!"
Uchiha Tajima, serious as always, nodded once. "Sit."
Xuan knelt down in seiza extremely uncomfortably. In front of this old-fashioned Clan Head, he didn't dare be too presumptuous.
Tajima pulled out a pouch and a longsword from underneath the table and placed them on top. "You did well this time. This is your mission reward."
Xuan opened the pouch and glanced inside. It was filled with silver coins, the common currency of the Warring States period. He didn't count them, simply tucking the pouch into his robe before picking up the longsword.
He drew it slightly. A cold light flashed instantly, sharpening the gaze of anyone who looked at it. The blade was about three cun wide (approx. 10cm), thin and light—a rare, high-quality sword.
"This sword is called Ama-no-Kumo (Cloud of Heaven). It is a replica of the legendary artifact, the Kusanagi Sword (Sword of the Gathering Clouds of Heaven). Although it is only a replica, it is still a rare sharp weapon. I saw you've been using kunai and lacked a handy weapon, so I'm giving it to you as a reward."
Xuan sheathed the sword. "Thank you very much."
Uchiha Tajima poured two cups of tea, pushing one toward Xuan. "I heard about your performance last night. For the Uchiha clan to produce a genius like you is a joyous matter for everyone. However... where did you learn those strange Ninjutsu? You must give an account. As far as I know, you haven't left the clan grounds in all these years, so encountering some fortuitous opportunity is out of the question."
"Here it comes!" Xuan lifted the teacup slightly to hide his expression, contemplating his explanation.