"Hey! You little brat, let go of that girl! Let me handle this!"
Shiranui Itsuki leapt out from behind the trees, righteous fury blazing in his eyes as he glared at a completely bewildered Uchiha Daiyu.
It took the boy a moment to process what was happening.
"You… you blind or something?!" Daiyu yelled. Clearly, Tsunade was the one holding him by the collar and delivering the blows. And yet, here was this audacious little civilian glaring at him!
"And you, damn commoner! How dare you talk back to a great Uchiha like me?"
Ah… pride really was hereditary in the Uchiha clan.
Itsuki scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Great Uchiha, huh?"
The clan had been constantly ostracized by Konoha since the battle at the Valley of the End, clinging to delusions of grandeur, blind to reality—and eventually destroyed by their own prodigy, Uchiha Itachi. Tragic, inevitable…
Itsuki's gaze softened slightly as he looked at Daiyu. Poor kid. He probably wouldn't have a happy ending either.
"You… you commoner! Don't you dare look at me like that!"
The Uchiha weren't used to pity, let alone being pitied. Daiyu's pride felt utterly shattered.
"Alright, alright, I get it, Little Daiyu."
Itsuki's tone softened as he spoke, his eyes affectionate. He could tell this kid probably had a rough road ahead.
"Aaaah!" Daiyu shrieked, nearly losing his mind. "Put me down, Tsunade! I'm going to teach this insolent civilian a lesson!"
Even beaten to near incoherence, Daiyu could not tolerate the humiliation inflicted by a mere commoner.
"Fine!"
Unexpectedly, Tsunade actually let go, stepping aside with a leisurely grace.
"This is… interesting."
Tsunade's eyes locked onto Itsuki. This was the first time she'd witnessed something like this—a commoner staring down an Uchiha, and the kid looked even smaller than her!
The moment Daiyu hit the ground, he roared and charged at Itsuki: "You brat! I'll show you what happens when you insult the Uchiha!"
Instinctively, Itsuki flicked his sleeve. The spatial kunai almost leapt into action. But he stopped himself just in time.
With his current strength, a thrown spatial kunai would have destroyed Daiyu in an instant. Sure, the Uchiha were doomed decades later, but killing this boy now? Like crushing an ant.
"…Better stick with a stone," Itsuki muttered.
He bent down, picked up a pebble, and flicked his wrist. Daiyu didn't even react before the tiny stone—barely the size of a thumb—struck the pressure point just above his knee.
"Ah…"
Daiyu's legs buckled. He tumbled across the ground like a rolling gourd, spinning several times before landing face-first in the dirt right in front of Itsuki. Knocked out cold.
Poor kid… first, Tsunade had mercilessly beaten him, and now Itsuki had humiliated him mercilessly as well. Maybe passing out was a blessing in disguise.
Itsuki exhaled softly. Bullying children isn't exactly my style.
Tsunade's eyes widened in surprise. Slowly, she lowered her hands. Clearly, she hadn't expected a civilian dressed like this to have such tricks up his sleeve.
Best of all… she didn't have to intervene.
When it came to the Uchiha's honor, Daiyu would handle the rest himself.