Chapter 78: CHAPTER 78
Threat
Uchiha Raito, after receiving treatment, returned to Konoha the next day.
After all, even his fellow clansmen were unwilling to advance or retreat alongside him. The looks they gave him were filled with disdain and suspicion. Rather than endure their scorn, it was better to leave.
Uchiha Jinye's fractured wrist and leg had also been treated.
Though medical-nin provided professional care, full recovery would still take several days.
Jinye had assumed that Chi Yu would allow him to recuperate before assigning any missions. He hadn't expected to be summoned so soon.
Chi Yu unrolled a scroll in front of them.
"I just accepted a mission for our team—target: a squad of Kumogakure shinobi. Reconnaissance indicates there are about ten of them. Roughly half are Chūnin, the rest Genin. No confirmed Jōnin, though one may be a Tokubetsu Jōnin."
Chi Yu looked at them coldly. "This time, I want to gauge your capabilities. I expect all four of you to go all out."
Uchiha Kyōsuke and the others widened their eyes.
Ten enemies? Half Chūnin?
That was an intense first mission.
Jinye looked at the fresh bandages on his wrist and knee and hesitated. "Captain… my injuries—"
Chi Yu cut him off with a sharp glance. "That's not an excuse. You brought that on yourself. And in war, we fight injured or not. Pain isn't a ticket out."
Jinye opened his mouth again, but nothing came out. The decision had already been made.
"Go prepare. Meet back here in one hour. We depart then."
The four dispersed with heavy hearts.
Chi Yu leaned against a tree, closing his eyes as he waited.
Before long, a set of approaching footsteps echoed softly through the forest floor.
Chi Yu cracked open one eye, then closed it again, unimpressed.
The footsteps stopped a few feet from him.
It was Uchiha Kazuo.
Kazuo's face was dark. "Chi Yu," he said grimly, "don't push your luck. This is temporary. Eventually, you'll have to answer to Konoha."
Chi Yu opened his eyes, a faint mocking smile playing on his lips.
"Oh? Go on, what happens when I return? Will your clan do what Raito threatened and take revenge?"
He chuckled, voice dripping with sarcasm. "The great Uchiha clan, Konoha's number one—how terrifying. Should I beg now? Fall to my knees and plead for mercy?"
Kazuo's face reddened with anger.
The smirk slowly faded from Chi Yu's face, replaced by a chilling indifference.
"You think I'm afraid of your clan? If I feared Uchiha retaliation, would I have beaten those five you sent into the dirt?"
"In your clan," he added coldly, "aside from Fugaku, maybe, the rest of you act like fools. No wonder the Uchiha are rotting from the inside—still clinging to glories you never earned."
He stepped closer. "No… not even your own glory. Just the fading afterimage of Uchiha Madara."
Chi Yu's voice lowered, sharper than a blade. "But Madara was a loser. He co-founded Konoha only to be defeated and exiled by the First Hokage. And you—your clan—chose to betray him and stay."
"You call me a traitor, but which of us truly betrayed your so-called legacy?"
"You bastard!" Kazuo hissed.
Chi Yu raised a hand dismissively. "Enough. I don't have time for your tantrum. Threaten me all you want—it'll only fall on those four Uchiha kids you're pretending to care about."
He sneered. "Or… do you want to fight? Beat me, and maybe they'll return to your side."
"I'd love to see what an Uchiha Jōnin is really made of. Or are you just another overhyped failure?"
He locked eyes with Kazuo, who trembled with fury. If glares could kill, Chi Yu would already be dead.
Kazuo knew he was being provoked.
If he fought, it would bring trouble.
But the words—coward, failure, traitor—clawed at him.
Chi Yu laughed softly. "See? This is your clan—so easy to provoke, but no follow-through. You lot live in a fantasy, still thinking you're feared. Pathetic."
Kazuo finally lost control.
"The Uchiha aren't something an orphan like you can insult!"
"Oh?" Chi Yu replied calmly. "But this orphan is the one commanding four of your so-called elite. I beat them bloody while you stood there and watched, helpless. You call that pride? Looks like cowardice to me."
Kazuo's rage boiled over. He activated his three-tomoe Sharingan and lunged, fist raised.
Chi Yu vanished using the Body Flicker Technique, reappearing a few meters back.
Kazuo's punch slammed into a tree trunk, leaving a deep crater.
Chi Yu brushed off his cloak. "So you can hit something. Maybe you're not a coward—but whether you're useful is still up for debate."
His own two-tomoe Sharingan flared to life.
Kazuo began weaving hand seals—Chi Yu recognized them instantly and mirrored them.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!"
They exhaled a barrage of small, controlled fireballs. Each flame twisted midair like a homing ember, scattering in unpredictable arcs.
Using their Sharingan's enhanced dynamic vision, both dodged and weaved between the flames with eerie precision.
Kazuo drew a kunai.
Chi Yu unsheathed a short ninjatō.
They charged.
Steel met steel.
Sparks flew.
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