Tuesday.
While teaching Class 2-A, Kitazawa kept an eye on Hyuga Neji.
On the surface, Neji looked the same as usual—but every now and then, a flicker of inner conflict or deep thought would flash in his eyes.
After class, Neji didn't come to talk.
Kitazawa wasn't surprised.
Some things can't be figured out overnight.
He headed over to the training grounds, then walked by the school's artificial lake.
Sasuke, Hinata, and the others were steadily improving—nothing needed his attention for now.
Just as Kitazawa was about to resume his Wind Release training, something clicked in his mind.
He looked over at Sasuke.
He'd been so focused on Hinata's mission lately that he'd almost forgotten—
He had a mission involving Sasuke, too.
[Help Sasuke defeat Neji.]
[Reward: One-Tomoe Sharingan.]
To Kitazawa, Sharingan and Byakugan were functionally the same. He couldn't use them publicly for now—but "for now" didn't mean "forever."
Once he was powerful enough, neither clan could stop him.
But that wasn't the real takeaway here.
His system was called: "Strongest Hokage System."
So, what does "strongest" really mean?
Not Uchiha Madara.
Not even Hashirama Senju.
The goal was the Ōtsutsuki.
With both Sharingan and Byakugan showing up as mission rewards, it was clear—
He was meant to collect all jutsu and bloodlines and go from "local ninja" to "intergalactic threat."
Bottom line: he needed that Sharingan.
But here's the problem—
Could Sasuke, even with a one-tomoe Sharingan, beat Neji?
Kitazawa wasn't confident.
Then again, Neji was still a kid. Eight now, since his birthday was July 3rd, and today was September 2nd.
"Yo, Sasuke."
Kitazawa called him over.
If everything went as expected, Neji would be starting special training with him soon.
That meant his power would skyrocket—and if Sasuke wanted to win, he'd need a head start.
"Yes, Kitazawa-sensei."
Sasuke stopped his training and approached.
"You watched Hinata and Neji spar yesterday, right? What did you think?"
"They're strong," Sasuke said calmly, with quiet confidence. "But give me a little time—I'll beat them with my Sharingan. I've already seen through their techniques."
Kitazawa was a bit surprised.
So that's why Sasuke didn't make a move yesterday—he was analyzing, thinking about how to counter Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms.
"But what if they improve again before you do?" Kitazawa smirked. "Then what?"
Sasuke froze.
He hadn't thought about that.
To him, there shouldn't be much growth in such a short time. But if the Gentle Fist added even two extra strikes, that could throw him off.
Losing like that? He couldn't accept it.
"Do you have a plan, Sensei?" Sasuke asked, eyes lighting up.
Of course he did.
"You need to use another strength of the Sharingan," Kitazawa said. "Genjutsu."
Illusion techniques—kind of underwhelming in the late game, but devastating in early- to mid-stage fights. Especially as a first-strike surprise.
Worth mentioning: in the original timeline, Sasuke barely used genjutsu.
He leaned more toward Madara's style—flashy ninjutsu, genjutsu only as a backup.
Itachi, on the other hand, was all about genjutsu.
Kitazawa figured it wasn't just a personality thing—
Sasuke probably never got the chance to learn Sharingan genjutsu after the massacre.
"But a one-tomoe Sharingan can't cast genjutsu directly," Sasuke said, a little frustrated.
"True," Kitazawa nodded. "But it can boost regular genjutsu and make it stronger."
He wasn't surprised Sasuke didn't know that.
What Sasuke meant was the "pure" eye-genjutsu—just looking someone in the eye and trapping them, even taming tailed beasts in the late game.
But Kitazawa was referring to genjutsu techniques that could be enhanced by the Sharingan—
Things like Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes or Genjutsu: Unknown Fire.
Regular ninja couldn't use those without the eye.
"I get it now!"
Sasuke perked up. "I'll go home and get Dad and Itachi to teach me!"
Kitazawa couldn't tell if he was more excited about the plan, or just the idea of spending time with his family.
Probably both.
Double the motivation.
Honestly?
Changing a character's fate like this—it was kinda fun.
"Starting today, you don't need to come to class anymore," Kitazawa said. "Train up, and when you're ready, I'll set up a spar with Neji."
"Huh? Why Neji? Why not Hinata?"
Sasuke's logic was simple: fight the strongest.
"They're about equal," Kitazawa replied casually. "You'll fight both eventually—Hinata at the monthly exams."
"Oh… I get it," Sasuke nodded.
He realized Kitazawa wanted him to beat both of them.
If two Hyuga prodigies lost to him, the Uchiha clan's reputation would skyrocket.
Neji first. Time to settle the score from last semester.
"I'm off then, Sensei!"
He ran home, genuinely happy.
He hadn't expected to get personal training from both his father and brother after summer break.
…
"You're home early?"
Uchiha Mikoto looked surprised. It was still two hours before noon.
"Kitazawa-sensei told me to come home!"
Sasuke made sure to drop the name she trusted.
"Then he must've given you something special to work on," she smiled. "What is it?"
"He said I should learn genjutsu from Dad and Itachi!"
"That much, huh?"
Mikoto's tone softened. "Don't push yourself too hard."
Seven years old, juggling Fire Release and now genjutsu—tough schedule.
But if Kitazawa arranged it, she wouldn't interfere.
"Don't worry!"
Sasuke grinned proudly. "I awakened my Sharingan at six—I'm a genius!"
Itachi had always been his benchmark. But this? This was something Sasuke had done first.
He awakened at six; Itachi, eight.
…And yeah, he was starting to get a little full of himself.
"Stay humble," Mikoto said, ruffling his hair. "You still struggle to stay top of your class."
"…Tch."
Sasuke pouted. He couldn't argue—especially after watching Neji and Hinata spar.
"Your brother should be home for lunch," Mikoto added.
"Seriously?! Let's go!"
Sasuke lit up.
Mikoto smiled warmly—he was so easy to read.
…
Lunchtime.
"I'm home," Itachi said, pushing the door open.
He blinked when he saw Sasuke.
Weird—Sasuke usually stayed at school during lunch.
"Onii-san!"
Sasuke ran up to him. "Teach me genjutsu!"
"…Aren't you learning Fire Release?" Itachi asked, amused. "Genjutsu's way harder, y'know."
"I'm not scared!" Sasuke lifted his chin. "I'm an Uchiha—I'll get it!"
"True," Itachi chuckled. "But you should still pace yourself."
Like Mikoto, he thought Sasuke was a bit young to be piling on so much at once.
"If I don't learn genjutsu, I won't be able to beat Neji or Hinata."
Ah. So that's what this was about.
"They're tough," Itachi nodded. "They've already mastered the Sixty-Four Palms."
"That's why I need to beat them," Sasuke said. "To prove Uchiha is the strongest clan!"
"There's no need for that," Itachi said seriously. "Uchiha and Hyuga—we're all part of Konoha. Sparring is just healthy competition."
He didn't want Sasuke to become like Fugaku—obsessed with Uchiha pride.
"Yeah, yeah, I get it," Sasuke muttered. He didn't care about all that. He just wanted to win.
"Alright then," Itachi smiled. "I'll teach you. I know a bit about Gentle Fist too—I'll show you how to counter it."
…
Meanwhile, at a quiet corner of the Ninja Academy—
A massive crowd of Naruto clones were running drills, loud and chaotic.
Kitazawa glanced over and looked away.
He pulled out a shuriken, faced a nearby tree, and poured Wind chakra into the blade.
Then, with a strong flick, he let it fly.
The spinning shuriken whirred through the air, surrounded by an invisible edge of wind chakra.
It hit the tree and carved a shallow dent.
"Man… Without proficient Wind chakra nature transformation, this stuff takes forever."
He missed the days when genjutsu and medical ninjutsu came to him like second nature.
But Wind Release? A whole different beast.
Good thing his chakra control was top-tier—otherwise it'd be even slower.
B-rank and A-rank techniques weren't easy.
Even someone like Kurenai still hadn't mastered her A-rank Bringer-of-Darkness.
Sasuke and Naruto were outliers. Plot armor plus monstrous talent.
Most 17-year-olds were still genin or just reaching chūnin—
Even the talented ones, like Kurenai.
Kitazawa snapped back to focus.
He still had plenty of time to master four Wind Release techniques.
…
Afternoon.
After hours of training, Kitazawa returned to his office, drained.
Time to rest.
But first—he had work to do.
Specifically: drafting a student council proposal.
He planned to model it off a university council from his past life, using just enough formal wording to pass—
Like, say, "Promoting the Will of Fire during extracurricular hours."
But Hiruzen wasn't dumb.
He'd immediately realize that the student council was a micro‑version of Konoha itself.
And whoever became student council president?
They'd have a natural advantage competing for Hokage someday.
After all, the council would consist of clan heirs and standout civilian students.
Kitazawa figured Hiruzen would pick Naruto for the role.
But for the sake of his mission, he had something sneakier in mind:
Convince Hiruzen to test-run the student council first.
If it worked—make it permanent. If not—cancel it.
And during the trial? Kitazawa would serve as acting president.
…
Two days passed in a flash. It was Friday.
Sasuke's absence hadn't caused much of a stir.
Only Naruto and Sakura asked—when they heard he was in "special training," they relaxed.
Then—knock knock.
Kitazawa looked up from his draft.
Tsunade walked in.
Wait. When did she learn to knock?
He stood up and followed her to the couch.
"I looked into Nonō's situation," she said, flopping down. The whole sofa trembled.
"What'd you find?" Kitazawa asked, eyes half-joking.
"You were right," she said, annoyed. "Danzo's still up to his crap. Using the orphanage to blackmail Nonō into working for Root."
"If it's just the orphanage, Hiruzen can handle it," Kitazawa said.
"It's not just the orphanage," Tsunade replied. "He took the talented orphans and funneled them into Root. A bunch of them died in their 'tests.'"
Ah yes, the infamous Root death matches.
Sai and his brother Shin were victims of that—Shin let himself be killed so Sai could win.
That memory eventually helped Sai rediscover his emotions—and even led to him marrying Ino.
"The best of them was Yakushi Kabuto," Tsunade added. "Nonō's adopted son. He's not in the village anymore. Only Danzo and Root know where he is."
Even with her network, Tsunade couldn't get anything from Root.
Those guys weren't human anymore—they didn't care about relationships.
"We need Kabuto's location," Kitazawa said. "Root falls under Anbu technically. Anbu should be allowed to investigate."
"Yeah…" Tsunade stretched and stood. "Guess we'll have to ask the old man for help."
Hiruzen was still the Hokage.
Even if Tsunade could handle this alone, going behind his back wouldn't solve anything.
Plus, with his backing, Danzo wouldn't dare retaliate publicly.
"At least this way, Danzo can't go after Nonō or Kabuto again."
"I'm coming with you," Kitazawa said.
"Of course you are," Tsunade gave him a look. "You're the one who started this."
"You'll protect me, right?" Kitazawa said with a grin. "I wouldn't dare go against Danzo by myself."
"Oh yeah?" Tsunade laughed. "And yet you dared to meddle with Nonō's business?"
"That's because I've got you," Kitazawa said seriously. "Besides the Hokage, you're the only one who can handle Danzo."
"Cut the smooth talk," she said, rolling her eyes. "Hiruzen trusts you. Danzo won't dare touch you."
"I trust you more, Tsunade-sama."
"You've got guts," she muttered, then added, "Too bad you're pledging loyalty to the wrong person—I'm not interested in being Hokage."
"This isn't about that," Kitazawa said as they walked. "It's just because you taught me medical ninjutsu."
"…Hmph."
Tsunade fell silent.
…
They reached the Hokage's office.
"You two invent another jutsu again?" Hiruzen asked when he saw them.
"Nope," Tsunade said, tossing a scroll onto his desk. "I'm here to get you to deal with Danzo."
Hiruzen blinked, then opened the scroll.
It was all there—Danzo's manipulation of the orphanage, and his coercion of Nonō and Kabuto.
"Danzo's gone completely off the rails…"
Hiruzen's brow furrowed.
The orphanage was a village-run facility—not Root's territory.
Danzo had stepped way out of line.
And what he did to Nonō and Kabuto?
Unforgivable.
~~~
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