A gut feeling told Black-Framed Naruto that a storm was brewing.
Looking at the bewildered Sasuke, Black-Framed Naruto secretly shook his head.
Was this child too well-protected?
Hmm?!
Black-Framed Naruto suddenly frowned, looking at Sasuke for a moment longer.
Sasuke felt his scalp tingle from the stare.
"What exactly is it?" Sasuke subconsciously emphasized his tone.
Black-Framed Naruto just shook his head.
Was it a delusion? Why did he often feel a sense of displeasure after seeing Sasuke?
"Has anything happened within your Clan recently?"
"Tell me anything you've noticed that seems out of the ordinary."
Hearing this, Sasuke also couldn't help but frown.
After a moment of thought, he said, "Shisui onii-chan has been missing for a long time. Not long ago, Itachi also taught a lesson to those Clan members who suspected him."
"But Father stopped him in the end."
Uchiha Shisui?
Black-Framed Naruto felt something was amiss.
He had heard a lot from Sasuke about Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi.
Both of them were part of the Anbu, a force under the Hokage.
'Could it be that the Old Thing has been focusing his attention there?'
'Hinata's father's message...'
Black-Framed Naruto's frown deepened.
After a long while, he took a deep breath and said, "Sasuke, this matter seems to be fishy."
"Go back and tell your father... to beware of traitors."
The Will of Fire, this weapon, should not be underestimated.
Buzz—
Sasuke's mind went blank.
He didn't quite understand what Black-Framed Naruto meant by 'this matter'.
But hearing 'traitors', he instinctively sensed something bad.
"Who is it?!" Sasuke asked urgently.
"Go back and tell your father now." Black-Framed Naruto shook his head, not saying much more to Sasuke.
However, he still warned, "This matter is probably already 'common knowledge'. Caution is the parent of safety. If there's no absolute certainty, it's better to continue to lie low... Of course, constantly lying low isn't a solution either. Perhaps..."
Black-Framed Naruto carefully chose his words, then added, "Consider failure before success, and prepare a retreat, otherwise, it will be eternal damnation."
"Go, tell your father every word I said, without changing a single one."
"He is the head of the Uchiha Clan; he should consider things more comprehensively."
After speaking, Black-Framed Naruto looked at Sasuke, "Did you remember everything?"
Sasuke was stunned for a moment. Seeing the rare serious expression on Black-Framed Naruto's face, he dared not delay and quickly got up to leave.
Uchiha Fugaku: As expected, it was guessed.
Uchiha Izuna: Hmph! With your little schemes, you've practically written 'coup d'état' on your faces. Is it really that hard for people to see?
Uchiha Fugaku was somewhat uncomfortable being reprimanded, but looking at Uchiha Izuna's ID, he remained silent.
Uchiha Izuna: Disagree? Didn't you hear? Black-Framed Naruto is even pointing it out to you! You are the head of the Uchiha Clan!
Uchiha Fugaku: Second Ancestor... I don't disagree...
Uchiha Izuna: You're not even qualified as a father. I don't know how you became the Clan Head. Your performance as Clan Head is even more indescribable.
Uchiha Fugaku could only smile bitterly. What else could he say?
After all, the Second Ancestor was right.
If he couldn't manage his own small family, the larger family would be a complete mess.
He couldn't control his own son, who became a double agent.
Regardless of whether he managed his Clan members well, when he realized there was an issue with the coup, he chose to trust the double agent.
When he sensed something was wrong that night, he didn't rush out immediately to lead his Clan members in resistance.
Even if he had fulfilled his responsibility as Clan Head, he knew that although the situation was dire at the time, there was still a chance to preserve their strength.
Instead, he chose to sit at home and do nothing.
His performance as Clan Head was indeed indescribable.
Watching Sasuke's hurried departure, Black-Framed Naruto remained silent for a moment, then stopped thinking about it.
He couldn't interfere with this matter, nor did he currently have the ability to.
He could only do what was within his power, trusting that with Uchiha Fugaku's insight as Clan Head, he should have already noticed something was wrong.
"I hope I'm wrong, otherwise Sasuke might become a different person."
He mumbled, then Black-Framed Naruto turned his head and continued his training.
The next day, when he saw Sasuke again, Sasuke seemed somewhat dazed.
Having returned early, he had overheard his father and mother talking to his beloved onii-chan.
Dad wanted onii-chan to control someone... onii-chan seemed unwilling to agree and remained silent.
Finally, when they discovered him, Mom told him not to speak of it.
After he repeated Naruto's words, Dad simply told him not to worry about anything, to focus on school, and that they would handle these matters.
Black-Framed Naruto was not surprised by Sasuke's appearance.
He could only shake his head secretly. His own situation was not very good either, and he didn't want to interact too much with the Uchiha, otherwise the Old Thing would again focus his attention on him.
Fortunately, he had already completed all the necessary training. Now, he just needed time to slowly mature, continuously improve himself, and wait for his body to grow.
Currently, Black-Framed Naruto was the tallest in his class.
Hinata, who ate heartily every day, followed closely behind.
Kankuro: "It seems the only shorty is Uzumaki Naruto in our world."
Uzumaki Naruto: "Damn it, you puppet-carrying guy!"
Slap—
No sooner had he spoken than Neji's palm landed.
"Your emotions are too volatile. Control them. Calmly consider if your reaction is correct."
Slap—
"Neji makes a good point."
Inoichi Yamanaka nodded slightly.
Looking at the aggrieved Naruto, Inoichi Yamanaka cleared his throat, feeling a bit embarrassed.
There was nothing he could do; he had gotten used to hitting him.
Because it was a time of peace, Black-Framed Naruto had long ruled out the possibility of early graduation.
After his body grew, the next training would involve mastering various Chakra nature transformations.
Black-Framed Naruto hadn't yet acquired complete information on this.
Iruka had been avoiding him recently, and for a short while, Black-Framed Naruto felt awkward about cornering Iruka again.
Anyway, time was abundant, so he would consolidate his own strength while teaching the little ones.
However, what was meant to come always would.
Although Black-Framed Naruto didn't choose to protect himself, it was clear that his influence was insignificant now.
Black-Framed Naruto had considered the worst outcome: losing a powerful 'ally'.
This morning, Sasuke handed him a scroll.
As soon as he took it, Black-Framed Naruto knew it was a storage scroll with a special seal.
"Did your father say anything?"
Sasuke shook his head, "I don't know."
Sasuke didn't elaborate on the matter.
Over the years, he had also helped Uchiha Fugaku deliver things to Black-Framed Naruto.
Seeing Black-Framed Naruto put it away, Sasuke was about to ask for the key points of the Body Flicker Technique.
Iruka, however, unexpectedly broke his routine today, not only entering the classroom on time but also announcing the start of class early.
Black-Framed Naruto felt something was amiss. The atmosphere in the Village this morning had been strange.
Shikamaru also spoke much less.
Looking at Sasuke, who seemed to have noticed nothing, Black-Framed Naruto suddenly felt the storage scroll in his arms become heavy.