Uchiha Tianxiong returned home and locked himself straight in his bedroom.
Then, he eagerly opened the book given to him by Uchiha Tunan.
Inside were detailed notes on the key points of the theory classes taught at the Ninja Academy, all neatly organized and summarized.
Uchiha Tianxiong, who usually couldn't sit through a theory class to save his life, easily absorbed the material. Stroking the rough pages, he muttered, "The paper quality of this book is really terrible."
Turning the page, he found two pages stuck together. Uchiha Tianxiong put his finger in his mouth, licked it, and then rubbed the pages apart to continue reading.
Meanwhile, back at home, Uchiha Tunan walked straight into the kitchen, lifted the lid of a pot, and turned on the gas stove.
Uchiha Tunan expressionlessly stared at the transparent liquid in the pot, watching it gradually evaporate away as the temperature rose.
"In this weather, natural evaporation should take about three days. There's not enough time; I still need someone to distract attention."
Uchiha Tunan narrowed his eyes, turned off the heat, rinsed the pot a few times, and then filled it with water.
He turned and opened the refrigerator to find it packed with vegetables and various wild herbs.
Uchiha Tunan took out several kinds of wild herbs and vegetables, and put them into the pot to boil.
These vegetables and wild herbs would be his food for the next few days.
Eating them was the safest course of action.
The next day, as soon as Uchiha Tianxiong woke up, he felt a splitting headache.
"Not enough sleep, I suppose. It must be because I stayed up late reading last night."
After some thought, Uchiha Tianxiong decided to go back to sleep. Skipping a day of class was no big deal anyway; there wasn't much new knowledge left for graduating students to learn.
By dusk, at the training ground on the north side of the clan land, Uchiha Tianxiong dragged his exhausted body forward.
He had already promised that brat yesterday that he would guide his training at the training ground today.
As a member of the Uchiha Clan, one had to keep their promises.
"Cough, cough..." Uchiha Tianxiong sat down on the grass and looked around in confusion.
"That brat still isn't here. Maybe the teacher kept them late after class."
On the other side, in the training ground on the northwest side of the clan land, Uchiha Zhexu was training frantically.
Suddenly, Uchiha Zhexu heard a movement behind him, stopped his movements immediately, and turned around.
He saw Uchiha Tunan standing there with a blank expression, looking around as if he had lost his way.
"Brat, what are you doing here?" Uchiha Zhexu asked coldly.
Uchiha Tunan looked as if he had been startled by the other's expression, and said weakly, "I'm looking for Tianxiong-san."
"He's not here. Get lost."
Uchiha Tunan turned to leave, muttering a quiet "Tch~" under his breath.
However, it was perfectly picked up by Uchiha Zhexu's ears. Instantly wearing a chilling look, he said, "Brat, do you want to die?"
Uchiha Tunan shuddered all over and stammered, "Why are you acting so fierce? You can't beat Tianxiong-san, so why take it out on me?"
Uchiha Zhexu smiled, looking down at Uchiha Tunan from on high. "You're saying I can't beat him?"
"Tianxiong-san already told me. Your theoretical scores are high, but in terms of actual strength, you're no match for Tianxiong-san at all."
"Is that what he told you?"
"Hmph." Uchiha Tunan let out a huff as if venting his frustration and turned around to run.
Behind him, Uchiha Zhexu's face had darkened completely.
At the northern training ground, Uchiha Tianxiong had just finished some warm-up exercises when he felt his entire body go weak and sore.
"Looks like I'm sick. Is it a cold from staying up late?"
"Tianxiong-san!" In the distance, Uchiha Tunan came running over at full speed.
Uchiha Tianxiong's lips curved slightly upwards, but he quickly wiped away the smile. Looking at Uchiha Tunan, who had run up to him panting heavily, he said coolly:
"You're late."
"I went to the wrong training ground just now. Sorry to have kept you waiting." Uchiha Tunan bowed respectfully.
*Whoosh!*
A kunai plummeted from the sky and planted itself right at Uchiha Tianxiong's feet.
"Who is it?!" Uchiha Tianxiong shouted sternly, looking up at the tree.
"Tianxiong-kun, I usually prefer not to bother with you, but that doesn't mean you can provoke me."
High up in a lush, leafy tree, the figure of Uchiha Zhexu emerged, looking down at Uchiha Tianxiong with unmistakable arrogance.
"Let's duel! Show me your recent progress."
As soon as the words fell, Uchiha Zhexu leaped down, charging at Uchiha Tianxiong with a kunai in hand.
"Damn it," Uchiha Tianxiong cursed inwardly, raising his kunai to block.
*Clang!*
Uchiha Tianxiong felt an irresistible, overwhelming force slam into him, forcing his body back several steps before he barely managed to steady himself.
If I weren't sick, how could I ever let you be this arrogant?
With sweat beading on his forehead, Uchiha Tianxiong raised his head and glared angrily at Uchiha Zhexu in the distance.
*Swish, swish, swish~*
Several kunai were thrown, colliding with each other in mid-air to alter their trajectories and disrupt Uchiha Zhexu's judgment.
*Ding, ding, ding~*
Yet, the scene that unfolded before him instantly left Uchiha Tianxiong frozen in place.
Uchiha Zhexu simply raised the kunai in his hand and deflected every single incoming projectile with pinpoint precision.
"You haven't even activated your Sharingan. In my eyes, you're just trash too."
Uchiha Zhexu flashed a single-tomoe Sharingan, a victor's smile blooming on his face as his gaze drifted slightly toward Uchiha Tunan, who had been standing frozen to the spot all along.
In Uchiha Tunan's eyes, one could see worry, disbelief, and a trace of disappointment...
Uchiha Tianxiong also noticed Uchiha Tunan's expression, and his heart gave a sudden thump as a strange feeling welled up from deep within him.
"I am not trash! I am not trash! So what if you have the Sharingan?!"
Uchiha Tianxiong roared, straightening his posture. His eyes had already turned crimson, and a single tomoe spun rapidly within them.
His hands rapidly formed hand signs.
"Oh? He's awakened it." Uchiha Zhexu paused slightly, realizing the other was preparing to release a Grand Fireball.
The corner of his mouth ticked upward as his hands blurred into phantoms, simultaneously beginning to weave hand signs.
Then let's clash jutsu.
"Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique!" (Both said simultaneously)
However, at the crucial moment, a sharp, excruciating pain wracked Uchiha Tianxiong's body, and the flow of chakra inside him abruptly stalled.
*Boom—* A massive fireball erupted from Uchiha Zhexu's mouth, completely obscuring his vision.
Oh no!
With a ferocious expression, Uchiha Tianxiong tried to dodge, only to find a searing pain in his chest, as if being torn apart by thousands of ants. The world spun before his eyes, and he lost consciousness.
The fireball struck home, followed by the heavy sound of a body hitting the ground.
"Substitution Technique? Where is he?" Uchiha Zhexu frowned as he looked at the burning log on the ground, scanning his surroundings.
Not here.
Not here either.
Suddenly, Uchiha Zhexu caught the scent of roasted meat, and his heart sank.
"Murder!" Uchiha Tunan screamed at the top of his lungs, turning on his heel and sprinting toward the clan land.
"Impossible, how could he die this easily?" Uchiha Zhexu muttered in disbelief.
He knew Uchiha Tianxiong's strength well; without activating their Sharingan, the two of them were evenly matched, let alone today when the other had actually awakened the Sharingan.
Why was he so weak today? Could it be that he himself had become too strong?
No, it must have been that the other made a mistake with his hand signs, failed to release the Grand Fireball, and was stupid enough not to dodge.
That was the only possible explanation.
Uchiha Zhexu suddenly recalled the terror of ANBU and the severity of the clan laws, and a shudder ran through his entire body.
He couldn't let word of this get out. If it got out, he would die!
With a savage expression, Uchiha Zhexu glared at Uchiha Tunan fleeing toward the clan land, raised his kunai, and gave chase at full speed.
Fleeing for his life, Uchiha Tunan felt a surge of power rise within him, and his eyes narrowed slightly.
The next moment, Uchiha Tunan's eyes turned blood-red, and a single tomoe outside his black pupils slowly spun.
Power was truly an intoxicating thing.
"Why is this brat running so fast?" Uchiha Zhexu's face turned ugly.
They were almost at the clan land; he couldn't let him get away.
Uchiha Zhexu's Sharingan spun rapidly as he sprinted while weaving hand signs with both hands.
Fleeing ahead, Uchiha Tunan perceived the other's actions. With his back to his pursuer, his hands blurred into afterimages, and he began weaving hand signs as well.
As soon as the final sign was completed, Uchiha Tunan whipped around and shouted:
"Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique!" (Both said simultaneously)
Vaguely, Uchiha Zhexu caught sight of the single-tomoe Sharingan in Uchiha Tunan's eyes, alongside a Grand Fireball roughly the same size as the one he had cast.
Nani?!
*Boom—*
The two fireballs crashed into each other, completely blinding Uchiha Zhexu's vision.
The next instant, several kunai pierced through the flames, heading straight for Uchiha Zhexu.
Moreover, these kunai collided with one another mid-air, altering their trajectories and throwing off Uchiha Zhexu's judgment.
Damn it, this brat actually knew Tianxiong's routine, and even threw them better than Tianxiong did!
With no time to dodge, Uchiha Zhexu raised his kunai to hack away the incoming projectiles.
Yet, one kunai came from his visual blind spot, slicing a gash across his thigh.
I'm injured!
How could this be? Is there really such a genius in this world?
Enduring the pain in his thigh, Uchiha Zhexu stared in disbelief at Uchiha Tunan, who stood expressionless on a branch ahead.
From his vantage point above, Uchiha Tunan said coldly:
"Zhexu-kun, I never expected that upon seeing Tianxiong-san awaken his Sharingan and fearing he would surpass you, you would actually resort to killing him.
Do you know that Tianxiong-san is like a brother to me? Now that I have awakened the Sharingan, I will personally avenge Tianxiong-san."
Without missing a beat, a massive framing accusation was dumped squarely onto Uchiha Zhexu.
Believing himself to be the one who had killed Uchiha Tianxiong, and being an Uchiha who disdained sophistry, Uchiha Zhexu spoke in a chilling tone:
"Brat, even if I killed that fellow by mistake, the only ones who can judge me are the clan elders. In my eyes, you're still just trash."
Uchiha Tunan slowly raised his kunai, pointing it at Uchiha Zhexu.
"A first-year student like me certainly wouldn't be a match for Zhexu-san, but Tianxiong-san is someone I cherish. I will do everything in my power to avenge him, even if it means certain death."
The next moment, the tomoe in Uchiha Tunan's eyes spun, and he leaped down, charging at Uchiha Zhexu.
*Ding, ding, ding...*
Because of the injury to his thigh, Uchiha Zhexu's mobility was impaired, leaving him no choice but to stand his ground and take the blows head-on.
Finding his attacks blocked, Uchiha Tunan stepped back two paces.
The next instant, a puff of white smoke billowed, and three Uchiha Tunan leaped out from the mist, charging at Uchiha Zhexu from three separate directions.
The Clone Technique, huh? Which one is the real body?
Uchiha Zhexu's tomoe spun as he narrowed his eyes to scrutinize them.
This one isn't it...
Hm?
This shadow on the ground...
There's someone above!
Uchiha Zhexu snapped his head up to see a figure already soaring high into the air, hands rapidly weaving hand signs.
So that's it. He wanted to use the three clones to distract my attention and then burn me to death with a Grand Fireball?
"Brat, your tricks are still too green," Uchiha Zhexu roared with a ferocious grin, his hands forming signs even faster.
"Fire Release: Grand Fire... ugh..."
*Splat.*
A kunai drove deep into Uchiha Zhexu's abdomen.
"You..." Uchiha Zhexu stared in disbelief at Uchiha Tunan right before him, and slowly sank to his knees.
"Enough." A deep, stern voice rang out.
The Great Elder of the Uchiha clan, along with a group of Uchiha clansmen, appeared all around them.
The Great Elder looked at the single-tomoe Sharingan spinning in Uchiha Tunan's eyes, a flicker of appreciation crossing his own, and said in a deep voice: "What is going on here?"
The expression on Uchiha Tunan's face shifted as if performing mask-changing art: first blankness, then as if recalling something, his expression turned to one of terror and grief.
Finally, as if he had found something to lean on, two lines of clear tears welled up, and his face twisted with sorrow: "Tianxiong-san..."
As soon as the words left his lips, his entire body went limp, and he fainted from exhaustion.