Naruto: The Shadow of Uchiha

After leaving the small forest near the Uchiha compound, Kakashi headed straight to the Hokage's office. The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, looked up from his paperwork and asked with concern:

"Did you deliver my order to Uchiha Ryosuke?"

This matter was critical to him. Every extra day Ryosuke spent around Naruto risked interfering with his carefully orchestrated plan. Naruto, the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki, was a vital chess piece—and Hiruzen intended to keep that piece tightly within his control.

Kakashi replied honestly, "He refused, Lord Hokage."

Hiruzen froze for a moment. Then his face subtly changed.

"What did you say? He refused?"

He was stunned that anyone would openly reject a Hokage's order.

"What exactly did he say?"

Kakashi repeated Ryosuke's exact words.

The Third Hokage's expression darkened. Fury welled up inside him—That damned Uchiha. Always so arrogant. Always sabotaging things from the shadows.

But Hiruzen kept his anger in check.

He already knew Ryosuke's background. The boy was the only grandson of the Uchiha clan's Great Elder—a highly respected figure within the clan. Taking action against Ryosuke now could provoke the entire Uchiha clan, especially at this politically sensitive time.

Negotiations with Kumogakure were approaching. The last thing the village needed was escalating tensions with the Uchiha.

He thought for a moment, then spoke calmly.

"Fine. If he wants to associate with Naruto, let him. But tell him this—he must never reveal Naruto's identity as the Fourth Hokage's son. If that leaks, Naruto could become a target for his father's former enemies."

That condition served his plans perfectly.

As long as the villagers continued to resent Naruto, Hiruzen could maintain his benevolent front—acting as the "kind grandfather" figure—while subtly brainwashing Naruto with the Will of Fire.

He was confident he could still win the boy over. Children were easy to manipulate.

This was, after all, his specialty.

Kakashi nodded silently and left. He returned to the woods and relayed the Third's message to Ryosuke.

To Kakashi's surprise, Ryosuke agreed without resistance.

He simply smiled.

"Tell the Hokage I'll keep the secret."

'So just a little pressure was all it took for the old man to back off… Looks like he's feeling the heat from the upcoming peace talks with the Cloud Village.'

Ryosuke didn't care what the Hokage's reasons were—as long as he could stay close to Naruto, it was enough.

Besides, he wasn't blind to the danger Naruto faced.

Now that the identity of the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki had leaked across the village, it was likely enemy spies would also uncover it soon. If they captured Naruto and extracted the Nine-Tails… the consequences would be catastrophic.

Despite how young Naruto was, the military value of the Nine-Tails was immense—every hidden village would want it.

Even if it cost lives, the chance to possess the Nine-Tails would tempt many.

Kakashi felt genuine relief upon hearing Ryosuke agree. He returned to report back to the Third.

Two months passed.

During that time, Konoha's leadership didn't take any action against the Uchiha. The political atmosphere remained quiet.

For Ryosuke, it was a golden opportunity to focus on training and further improve his strength.

Though he still occasionally sparred with Might Guy, he had also started solo regimens modeled after One Punch Man's Saitama Workout: push-ups, sit-ups, squats, and long-distance running.

Surprisingly, it worked.

Thanks to his body's extraordinary recovery rate, Ryosuke had made astonishing progress. His taijutsu alone had now reached the level of a jōnin.

He could already overpower Might Guy in pure hand-to-hand combat, though Guy remained more skilled in technique. Even so, Guy's taijutsu was already at a jōnin level, albeit on the lower end.

Ryosuke didn't know exactly where he stood compared to the elite of the village, but one thing was certain—he was no longer a weakling.

More impressively, Ryosuke had already managed to unlock the Fourth Gate of the Eight Gates technique.

The Third Gate (Gate of Life) and the Fourth Gate (Gate of Pain) were located along the spine—unlocking them was agonizing. Ryosuke had felt like his back was about to explode. For a while, he was genuinely afraid to walk.

But one night of rest, and he was fully recovered.

That was thanks to his Auto Cultivation System, which regenerated his body rapidly.

Without that, even someone as pain-tolerant as he was wouldn't have dared push this far. Normal humans couldn't withstand such reckless training.

That's why mastering the Eight Gates usually took 20 years. It wasn't just about resolve—it was about surviving the process.

Guy had been watching Ryosuke train this entire time and was stunned by his meteoric growth.

He had personally taken seven or eight years to reach the Fourth Gate. Ryosuke had done it in just two months.

Despite this, Guy wasn't jealous—just deeply impressed.

Anyone who witnessed Ryosuke's brutal training regime would find envy impossible. There was no shortcut, no cheating. It was raw willpower and pain tolerance that made it possible.

It was also clear to Guy that Ryosuke possessed a unique physique. Most people would collapse or die from such overtraining. Ryosuke, meanwhile, was thriving.

'This kid's body was made for taijutsu…' Guy thought.

Early that morning, Ryosuke had once again gone to the small forest near the Uchiha compound to train.

The regular Saitama Workout routine no longer exhausted him—so he simply started doing two sets per day.

It took longer, but it still pushed his limits. That was all that mattered.

As he was midway through training, a figure quietly approached through the trees.

It was Uchiha Inaho.

Although the Eighth Elder had previously warned Inaho to stay away from Ryosuke—labeling him a dangerous radical—Inaho had his own views.

Among the clan's three most gifted youths, only Ryosuke openly stood with the Uchiha's political cause, even if his ideas were extreme.

Inaho had always thought Ryosuke's ambition to wipe out the entire Konoha leadership was madness. But…

If Ryosuke truly had the power to back up such a claim—was it still madness?

If he really could take out the leadership, then maybe it was a valid strategy.

That's why Inaho had come—to see Ryosuke's current strength with his own eyes.

If Ryosuke had grown stronger again in the past two months, maybe he wasn't just a radical after all.

Maybe he was exactly what the Uchiha needed.

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