Inside the Uchiha clan's training ground.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique."
A massive fireball spewed from the mouth of Itachi, who should have been in class at the Academy. It struck a large tree ahead, leaving a black scorch mark upon its trunk.
Immediately after, Itachi leapt into the air and hurled several shuriken. With a series of crisp clashing sounds, he manipulated their collisions midair, successfully striking five separate targets.
"As expected of my son."
Hidden in the shadows, Fugaku's lips curled faintly as he witnessed Itachi's performance.
"Ahem, shocking—so the son of the Police Force Captain dares to skip school in broad daylight."
Takeshi's voice rang out. Hearing it, Fugaku's face instantly stiffened.
But he didn't forget it was he himself who had called Takeshi here, so when the man walked up beside him, Fugaku forced out a smile that looked anything but sincere.
Thanks to this man, he, as Captain of the Police Force, received a mountain of complaints every month—every single one about his son's arrogance and abuse of status.
Fortunately, the Police Force was no longer a Uchiha-only domain. Konoha's citizens no longer pinned every single grievance on the entire clan as they once had.
Of course, there was a downside.
Any enforcer who failed to handle a case to the satisfaction of the villagers would see his family branded with the title of "evil clan."
Thus, the so-called evil clans expanded rapidly: the evil Uchiha clan, the evil Hyūga clan, the evil Fūma clan, the evil Sarutobi clan...
This harsh reality finally made the overly stubborn Uchiha realize the truth—no matter who occupied the position, it was impossible to satisfy everyone.
Tension between the clan and the village dissipated, and now, the most entertaining pastime after work was comparing which clan had received the most complaints that day.
Incidentally, the winner of yesterday's "Most Evil Clan" title was the Kurama clan.
"So, Captain Fugaku, you called me here just to show me your son skipping class?"
Imitating Fugaku's posture, Takeshi leaned against a tree with his arms folded across his chest, blowing upward at the strands of hair falling across his forehead.
If Hyūga Hiashi saw this unruly manner, he would no doubt complain again about the Shimura clan's coarse upbringing.
Fugaku shut his eyes, once more weighing the pros and cons.
His silence gradually drew a more serious expression from Takeshi.
It seemed this man truly had something important to discuss.
"I intend to apply for Itachi's early graduation."
Fugaku's voice reached his ears.
Early graduation? Did that really require informing him?
He wasn't Itachi's father—shouldn't Fugaku decide that on his own?
Takeshi's heart was full of doubt.
"I want him to stay by your side, to receive your personal guidance."
As Takeshi puzzled over why Fugaku would bother with such a trivial matter, the man suddenly stepped forward and bent his perfectly straight back into a bow.
"I don't take on teams."
Still unaware of Fugaku's true intent, Takeshi rejected him without hesitation.
Of all the responses Fugaku had prepared for, this was the last he expected. His thoughts were thrown into disarray, and his bent waist faltered.
"Takeshi-san, what Father means is… he wants me to take you as my teacher."
At some point, Itachi had appeared between them. Familiar with Takeshi's way of thinking, he rephrased the request in terms far easier to grasp.
Take Itachi as a disciple?
But he wasn't even familiar with the Uchiha fighting style.
Takeshi hesitated.
In Itachi's eyes, however, a faint trace of expectation flickered.
"Itachi, what about you—what do you think?"
Unable to decide purely by weighing pros and cons, Takeshi ultimately chose to hear the boy's own opinion.
"I'm willing."
"Then I'll entrust him to you." Fugaku bowed once again.
...
"Fugaku is clever, I'll give him that."
News of the matter quickly reached Danzō, who was in the middle of a heated sparring match with Hiruzen at the ANBU training grounds.
"Isn't this a good thing? The Uchiha clan gradually integrating into the village—the vision of the First Hokage is being steadily realized."
Dodging one of Danzō's full-powered punches, Hiruzen leapt high. His flying kick missed its mark, and he landed, panting heavily.
His age was truly catching up with him—just one hour of sparring had left him winded.
Danzō's stamina had also reached its limit.
Even in his youth, his close-combat skills had lagged behind Hiruzen's. Now, with age advancing, his old injuries were beginning to resurface.
The cane he once carried for appearances had gradually become a necessity.
In the future, he feared, he would have to rely on large-scale jutsu like that foolish son of his.
Danzō sighed inwardly.
"That kid doesn't want to lead a squad anyway. Training Itachi gives him something to do. In that case, why not have him join the Police Force directly?"
Seeing Danzō no longer intent on continuing, Hiruzen pulled his jacket back on and asked his opinion about Takeshi's role.
"Put him on law enforcement duty?"
Danzō thought carefully about Hiruzen's suggestion.
Better not. He'd heard the rumors circulating in the village.
He had no desire to hear anyone calling the Shimura clan an evil clan.
...
Although he had accepted Itachi, Takeshi was unfamiliar with the Uchiha clan's combat methods. The only instruction he could truly provide was in ninjutsu.
Having studied under Sarutobi Hiruzen, his mastery of the Five Great Nature Transformations was unmatched in Konoha. Few could rival him.
"Come, I'll take you to find a taijutsu instructor."
Recalling Itachi's sickly body in the original story, Takeshi decided to build up the boy's physique.
"One, two, one, two..."
On Konoha's streets, Might Guy walked on his hands, paying no attention to the strange looks from passersby.
Suddenly, sensing a familiar presence, Guy shifted his weight onto one hand, spun once in midair, and landed firmly on his feet before Takeshi.
"Yo, my friend Takeshi! Ever since the surprise attack mission, I haven't seen you! Come, let us resume our destined battle!"
Guy's eyes burned with eagerness.
"No problem. But before that, I have a question. Do you still wake up early every day to train?"
Unusually agreeable, Takeshi nodded at once to Guy's request.
"Of course! My youth has only just begun to burn—how could it fade so soon?!"
Flames all but blazed from Guy's eyes.
"Good. From now on, you'll bring along my disciple for your morning training."
"Huh?"
Hearing this, Itachi let out an incredulous sound.
Politely glancing up and down at the green spandex-clad eccentric before him, Itachi suddenly felt a stab of stomach pain.