The resolution of the elders' opinions was swift as lightning, taking less than ten minutes before everything was settled.
At this moment, Uchiha Hirotomo slowly spoke up, "Since no one has any objections, I hereby officially declare Uchiha Ryun as the sixth elder of our Uchiha clan!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the room fell into silence, followed by a burst of enthusiastic applause and cheers.
However, Uchiha Hirotomo remained unaffected by the lively atmosphere. He continued, "Additionally, the Hokage has specifically instructed me to bring Uchiha Ryun to an important meeting. Therefore, I ask everyone to please make way." After saying this, a faint smile appeared on Uchiha Hirotomo's face.
Hearing this, the crowd and the elders did not hesitate at all. They quickly moved aside, clearing a wide path. Uchiha Ryun walked steadily at the front, while Uchiha Hirotomo followed unhurriedly behind him.
The two gradually walked away until their figures disappeared at the edge of the clan grounds.
After they left, the previously quiet crowd erupted into chatter, with people whispering and discussing among themselves.
"Brother, for some reason, I feel like Uchiha Ryun's face seems familiar," the Fifth Elder frowned slightly, turning to the Great Elder with a thoughtful expression.
The Great Elder smiled faintly, stroking his beard as he replied slowly, "Fifth, when that incident happened, you were still young, so it's normal for you to forget. In truth, Uchiha Ryun's appearance bears an eighty percent resemblance to Lord Madara from back then. Not only that, but his extraordinary talent and the unique aura he exudes are practically identical to Lord Madara's." At this point, the Great Elder couldn't help but laugh heartily.
The Fifth Elder nodded slightly in agreement, his weathered face showing a trace of nostalgia. His thoughts were instantly pulled back to his childhood, when he was only five or six years old. By chance, he had once caught a glimpse of the legendary Madara Uchiha.
Though much time had passed, the shock of that fleeting encounter was deeply imprinted in his young heart.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere elsewhere was somewhat heavy.
"Ryun, was your earlier action a bit too harsh?" Uchiha Hirotomo frowned slightly, sighing deeply before looking helplessly at the cold-faced Uchiha Ryun beside him.
Uchiha Ryun snorted, his eyes revealing a hint of chill. "Hmph. Some people, after willingly acting as others' lapdogs for so long, can even cruelly kill their own clansmen. For such trash, I think my methods were already quite merciful."
Hearing this, Uchiha Hirotomo could only nod helplessly, hesitating before saying, "Sigh... The Fourth Elder, he..."
However, before he could finish, Uchiha Ryun suddenly stopped walking, his lips curling slightly into a faint smirk. "What? Clan Head, are you planning to use this opportunity to teach me a lesson?"
Faced with Uchiha Ryun's question, Uchiha Hirotomo quickly waved his hands, shaking his head repeatedly. "No, no. Let's go. Right now, attending the meeting is more important!"
In his heart, offending such a rare genius within the clan over a misbehaving Fourth Elder was simply not worth it.
After receiving his answer, Uchiha Ryun gave a slight nod, and the two continued walking toward the Hokage Building.
Along the way, they passed by many other clan heads and elites, exchanging nods or brief greetings.
Among them were Tsunade, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and the heads of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio. Additionally, there were two others—their pupils were white.
Uchiha Ryun narrowed his eyes slightly, his thoughts racing rapidly.
After a brief consideration, he came to a conclusion. The shorter man was most likely Hyūga Hiashi, given his status as the eldest son of the Hyūga main family. As for the taller, dignified elder beside him, there was no doubt it was his father, though his exact name remained unknown for now.
At this moment, Uchiha Hirotomo followed Uchiha Ryun's gaze. When he saw the Hyūga father and son, a faint smile appeared on his face as he softly explained, "Ryun, those two over there—the older one is the current head of the Hyūga clan, Hyūga Sekijō. And the young, handsome man beside him, if I'm not mistaken, should be his eldest son, Hyūga Hiashi."
Uchiha Ryun nodded lightly in acknowledgment, then let out a soft hum in response. Afterward, he turned to Uchiha Hirotomo and thanked him.
With that, the two walked side by side toward the Hokage Building, where an important meeting awaited them.
Tsunade had initially been disinterested—having to attend a meeting so early in the morning was annoying. But when she saw Uchiha Ryun, her eyes lit up, and she walked over to him.
With a smile, she lightly patted Uchiha Ryun's broad, sturdy shoulder and said cheerfully, "Hey, Ryun! What a surprise to see you here!"
Uchiha Ryun had been focused on something else, but the moment he heard that familiar voice, he immediately snapped back to attention. The corners of his lips curled slightly as he replied softly, "Yeah, quite a coincidence, Tsunade."
Beside them, Jiraiya's eyes nearly popped out of his head upon hearing their exchange. He stuck out his tongue in shock and disbelief.
What did I just hear? "Tsunade"? What's going on here? He quickly turned to Tsunade, hoping for an explanation.
Tsunade's fair face instantly flushed slightly, like a ripe apple. Strangely, she showed no signs of anger, instead appearing somewhat shy and embarrassed.
At that moment, Jiraiya felt as if a knife had stabbed his heart, a sharp pain spreading as if a deep crack was slowly forming.
Meanwhile, Orochimaru narrowed his snake-like eyes and let out a soft chuckle. He patted Jiraiya's shoulder teasingly and said, "Alright, stop spacing out. The old man is still waiting for us."
Then, he glanced at Uchiha Ryun with an unreadable, amused smile, as if pondering something inscrutable.
Standing among the crowd, Uchiha Hirotomo was completely stunned by what he was witnessing.
He never would have imagined that the meticulous Uchiha Ryun from last night had such a close relationship with the noble Lady Tsunade—so close that he could casually call her by a nickname.
Tsunade's face remained slightly flushed, but within seconds, she turned to Uchiha Ryun and said, "Let's go. This must be your first time attending a meeting, right? Just remember to listen more and speak less, Ryun. The meeting will be over before you know it."
Uchiha Ryun smiled and nodded. "Got it."
With that, the two walked side by side into the Hokage's office, leaving Uchiha Hirotomo alone in the hallway, questioning his life.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
📖 Like the story? Read 120 chapters ahead!
🔗 patreon.com/atomelectron
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━