"I vote in favor of strengthening the cooperation between our two clans.
Even though there aren't many areas where we can collaborate, the Uchiha lack reliable allies. Forming an alliance with the Inuzuka clan would only benefit us.
However…"
Yan specifically reminded Itachi and Fugaku:
"While sacrificing for the clan is a duty of every Uchiha, I believe some things shouldn't come at the cost of personal feelings."
"Itachi, can I hear what you think about this?"
The show had gone on long enough. A partnership between the two clans would be great, but if it didn't work out, Yan wouldn't force it.
He still believed Itachi should have at least some say in his own future.
Fugaku and the elders all turned their attention to Itachi.
Under everyone's gaze, Itachi, who had always kept a low profile, lowered his head slightly and said calmly,
"Elder, I will follow the family's arrangement and trust my father's decision."
Well, that shut Yan up.
"If that's the case, then let the Patriarch decide. I won't interfere too much in this matter—I've got plenty on my plate already."
Itachi had already placed the Patriarch above all else, believing that sacrificing for the clan was his duty.
Since that was his stance, Yan had nothing more to say. As long as Itachi himself had no objections, that was enough.
Besides, in an arranged marriage between two clans, the Inuzuka clan wouldn't just send some random person. Otherwise, it wouldn't be a proper alliance—it would just be an insult to the Uchiha.
Yan vaguely remembered that among the Inuzuka, the Twelve Guardian Ninja's Inuzuka Kiba had an older sister.
She was probably Itachi's former classmate…
Whatever, no point worrying about this. Let Fugaku handle it himself.
After thinking about it for a moment, Yan shook his head, not bothering to dwell on it. Once Fugaku and the others were done talking, he left.
"Advisor, Hokage-sama wants you to come to the Hokage's office immediately."
Just as Yan stepped out of the Patriarch's estate, an Anbu ninja appeared. It was unclear whether they had been waiting there the whole time or had just arrived.
The surveillance on the Uchiha had long been lifted, and Anbu were no longer restricted from entering the Uchiha compound.
Only a few key areas remained off-limits, as they were tied to the Uchiha's heritage.
"I'll head there now."
After signaling the Anbu to go ahead, Yan quickened his pace toward the Hokage's office.
He went straight up to the second floor and walked directly to the office.
But the moment he opened the door, his mood soured—because he saw two troublemakers inside.
"Messy clothes, bruised faces… Great, just great. What was it this time?"
"Eh~~"
Naruto and Sasuke stood there, still glaring at each other, neither willing to back down.
Yan wasn't the least bit surprised to see them in the Hokage's office after a fight.
If those two went too long without a brawl, *that* would be strange.
Sasuke wasn't really the type to pick fights. Even if he found someone annoying, his usual cold attitude toward his classmates meant he wouldn't go out of his way to start trouble—let alone throw the first punch.
Naruto… well, let's just say that out of the ten times they fought, all ten were started by him.
And the reason? It was always because of Sakura.
Good grief.
Seeing the unstable tomoe in Sasuke's eyes spinning wildly, Yan couldn't help but think, *Wow, he's actually so mad that he awakened his Sharingan.*
In the original story, Sasuke awakened his Sharingan after witnessing the Uchiha massacre, his rage unlocking a single-tomoe Sharingan.
That moment became a well-known scene among *Naruto* fans.
But with the plot now altered, Sasuke was just a normal student going to school. He hadn't gone through any major trauma.
If anything, the only real conflict he had was his fights with Naruto.
Sasuke was already nine years old. Awakening his Sharingan at this age—even if it wasn't *extraordinary*—still put him among the more talented ones.
Sasuke awakening his Sharingan was already great news for Fugaku, but on top of that, it happened because Naruto made him so mad—what a bonus.
Yan had been wondering how Sasuke would unlock his Sharingan since the Uchiha Massacre had already happened, and Sasuke was now nine years old. Then, before he could even think too much about it, Naruto pushed Sasuke over the edge and made him unlock a single-tomoe Sharingan out of sheer anger.
When Yan questioned them, Naruto, who had already suffered enough losses, quickly lowered his head.
He could joke around with Tsunade, and he dared to do so because he knew she wouldn't really punish him.
But Yan was different. He wouldn't physically punish Naruto, but he could make his life miserable in other ways.
Naruto stayed silent. Sasuke just glared at him without saying a word.
Yan turned to look at Tsunade, and she simply shrugged. "I haven't even asked yet. Wasn't I waiting for you to handle it?"
With that, both of them turned their attention to the teacher who had dragged these two troublemakers in.
Due to the ninja school reforms, Naruto's homeroom teacher was no longer Iruka but a Special Jonin named Luo Shuixing.
Now that both the Hokage and her advisor were staring at him, Luo Shuixing instinctively clamped his legs together and quickly explained:
"Hokage-sama, Advisor, here's what happened."
He shot Naruto a fierce glare as he spoke.
You little troublemaker, can't you just give me a break?
Ever since I became your homeroom teacher, I swear I've lost ten years of my life!
"Hehehe..."
Under his teacher's deadly stare, Naruto could only scratch his head awkwardly and chuckle.
You're still laughing?!
Looks like I haven't given you enough homework!
Once this mess is settled, I'm assigning extra homework to Naruto. That way, he won't have time to think about this nonsense.
You're just a kid, and all you care about is stuff like this? At least improve your grades a little first!
"Sakura wanted to invite Sasuke to have lunch together, but he coldly turned her down. So Naruto started provoking him..."
The whole thing was simple—it was basically Naruto's fault.
He deliberately provoked Sasuke just because Sasuke rejected Sakura's invitation.
Sasuke ignored him the first time.
Sasuke ignored him the second time.
But by the third time? Enough was enough.
Did this guy think he could push him around forever?
And so, the two of them started fighting in the classroom.
At first, Sasuke had the upper hand, but Naruto was like a cockroach—no matter how many times Sasuke knocked him down, he kept getting back up.
In the end... Naruto turned the tables and won.
Sasuke couldn't accept this humiliating defeat and awakened his Sharingan out of sheer rage.
Before they could start round two, the teacher arrived, quickly restrained them, then dragged them both to the Hokage's office like a couple of misbehaving kids.
If it were any other students fighting, the teacher would have handled it on the spot.
But with these two?
Yeah, that wasn't happening.
Neither of their backgrounds was something a regular teacher could afford to mess with.
With no other choice, Luo Shuixing had to bring them to the Hokage.
"These two little brats..."
Students brawling in the classroom was a big deal, and after hearing the full story, Tsunade slammed her hand on the desk in frustration.
"NARUTO! What the hell were you thinking? Do you just assume I won't beat the crap out of you, so you can do whatever you want?"
"Sakura asked Sasuke to have lunch, and he turned her down. That's between them! What does that have to do with you?"
"I just couldn't stand watching him reject her and make her cry!"
Naruto shouted stubbornly, gritting his teeth.
---------------------------------------
You can read 10 chapters ahead on patre on
patr eon.com/JYouyi