"Your aim with kunai is decent..."
"But you must understand, your enemies are not stationary targets. Accuracy alone isn't enough; you must also predict the direction they will dodge."
"If you can't anticipate your enemy's reaction, what's the point of throwing a kunai? Are you just hoping they'll stand still and let you hit them?"
"Your brother Itachi's kunai skills are famous. He can make kunai collide in mid-air to change their trajectory."
"When you use Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu, you can't even see where your enemy is. You don't stop the technique until they're right on top of you."
"Do you think your enemy will wait for you to finish your jutsu before they make a move?"
"A Fireball Jutsu isn't better just because it's bigger or lasts longer. The key is to grasp the right timing and opportunity to release it."
"Uh-huh, uh-huh."
Sasuke nodded repeatedly. The more he listened, the more sense it made. Real combat and training were two completely different things.
So all this time, my brother was just playing games with me.
"When should you throw a kunai? How will the enemy dodge? Should you follow up with more kunai to create an opening, or use a Fireball Jutsu to force them into a trap?"
"There is one thing you must understand."
Kawasaki raised a single finger.
"The Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu, which all of us Uchiha can use, is primarily for restricting an enemy's movement or using the flames to conceal yourself for an attack."
"Very few shinobi have actually been killed by a Fireball Jutsu."
"Yes, Master! I understand now!"
Sasuke finally realized just how much he still had to learn.
Kawasaki gently poked Sasuke's forehead. "You can't control your own power at all right now..."
"When you can use your jutsu freely and your kunai can hit a moving target, I'll teach you the next steps."
"Also, you are forbidden from using the Uchiha style of taijutsu until you've awakened your Sharingan."
"I know, Master. You like to poke my forehead, just like my brother," Sasuke muttered.
With that, his bond with Kawasaki seemed to grow a little closer.
"Mastering all of your own skills is a necessary path for the strong."
"Sasuke, you want to become strong. Every time you learn a new skill, you must master it completely before you can use it in a real battle."
"Otherwise, your own techniques are very likely to backfire on you."
"Yes! Master!"
Seeing the now obedient and attentive Sasuke, Kawasaki's heart filled with affection. It didn't matter how much of his advice Sasuke remembered, as long as he was no longer so arrogant and became more down-to-earth, his future accomplishments would be even greater.
"Alright, the Academy starts tomorrow. Go get yourself ready..."
"You're almost six. Your brother graduated from the Ninja Academy at seven, you know."
"Don't worry, Master. I'm Itachi's little brother. I can graduate early, too."
Sasuke's face beamed with confidence.
But Kawasaki waved his hand dismissively.
Itachi had graduated early because of wartime demands and an urgent need for manpower. Back then, anyone who could throw a kunai and use the Body Replacement Technique could be sent to the battlefield, let alone a genius like Itachi.
"The Ninja Academy is a good place to build your foundation. You also need to learn how to interact with people there. Good teamwork and communication are mandatory lessons for you."
"Why don't you try to get first place at the Academy before you talk about graduating early."
"I'll definitely get first place, Master!" Sasuke said with determination.
…
On the border of the Land of Fire, the travel-worn Uchiha contingent was about to enter the Land of Sound. The long journey had left everyone exhausted.
Itachi decided they would rest and regroup before pushing deeper into the Land of Sound.
The many Uchiha shinobi quickly took camping supplies from their storage scrolls and began setting up tents. They used Water Style to procure water and Fire Style to start a fire. The more agile members went hunting in the surrounding area, while others gathered firewood and prepared cooking utensils. Everything was done in an orderly fashion.
Before long, a few team members returned with a deer and a wild boar, more than enough to feed them.
Itachi took out the plan Kawasaki had given him earlier and began to study it.
Shisui sat down beside him.
Itachi looked up and asked, "Has your visual prowess recovered?"
Shisui nodded. "Using Kotoamatsukami on so many people for the first time... I thought I'd exhaust the power in both my eyes. I didn't expect to still have one left."
"Senior Kawasaki likely calculated this. We'll save the remaining use of Kotoamatsukami for our time here."
Shisui followed Itachi's finger as it pointed to the mission file. He saw a familiar name on the list: Orochimaru.
…
The Konoha Ninja Academy had started.
This year's class was particularly eye-catching. Why? Because the heirs of nearly all the major ninja clans were enrolled in this cohort.
Among them, the two most dazzling kids were Naruto and Sasuke.
Never mind the Nine-Tails sealed within Naruto. As for the Uchiha clan, which was now superficially harmonious but privately distant from Konoha, they had also sent Sasuke to the Academy.
Moreover, he had been personally escorted by the Uchiha clan's second-in-command, Kawasaki.
The meaning behind this gesture was quite intriguing. Was the Uchiha clan extending an olive branch, or did they have other plans?
Although Neji was a year above them, he was very close with Naruto and Sasuke.
With Kawasaki as a caring elder and Sasuke and Neji as good friends, Naruto's life had changed. He caused much less trouble and no longer went out of his way to play pranks that annoyed everyone.
Whether they were commoners or children of nobility, everyone at the Ninja Academy knew about Sasuke's and Neji's backgrounds. With his two little brothers from the two great dōjutsu clans looking out for him, almost no one dared to pick a fight with Naruto.
Compared to the original timeline, Naruto's life was much better now.
...
After a long journey, the delegation from the Hidden Cloud Village finally set foot in Konoha. After a round of negotiations, all the terms were finalized, and they were preparing to officially sign a peace treaty.
To mark the occasion, Konoha was holding a large-scale peace festival. Although the villagers of Konoha didn't have a particularly favorable impression of the Hidden Cloud, no one liked war. Many villagers joined the celebration.
Several of Konoha's commercial streets were packed to the brim, so crowded you couldn't move.
The Cloud delegation used the festival as a pretense to gather intelligence from all over the village. They soon discovered something astonishing: the entire Uchiha clan had withdrawn into their own district.
Meanwhile, the Hyuga clan was solely responsible for guard duty and patrols. And the Hyuga's defensive lines were considerably lax.
Yugito Nii compiled all the intelligence, a sense of relief washing over her. She pulled out a patrol map of the Hyuga clan's routes and studied it carefully. The Cloud had expended great effort to obtain this map.
"Nagasaki Shinichi, are you sure about this? Perhaps a different operative would be better?" Yugito asked with a hint of regret.
"Lady Yugito, my three older brothers died in the war. Now, I have only one thought in my mind: revenge," Nagasaki Shinichi said, his eyes empty and his body exuding an aura of death. "Success or failure, we stand to gain either way."
"Yugito, why aren't you out there having some fun? The festival is super exciting, yo! You blockhead, yo!"
A mismatched voice rang out as Killer Bee entered the room. He was the leader of the delegation and had just been touring Konoha, accompanied by several of Konoha's consultant elders.
Yugito said, "Stop messing around, Killer Bee. Get ready. We might need your power tomorrow."
Killer Bee dropped his hip-hop demeanor and clenched his fists tightly.
...
Konoha's festivities had little to do with Kawasaki. He had no interest in such热闹 (liveliness), and besides, after this period of work, the Uchiha's new territory was finally complete.
The moment the territory was established.
[Ding... Development Mission, Stage One: Breaking Away from Konoha and Achieving Self-Reliance, complete.]
[Host has acquired knowledge of Konoha-style Sealing Jutsu.]
A massive influx of knowledge about sealing jutsu flooded Kawasaki's mind.