"Hiss—"
Since Ren clearly didn't want to continue, Shisui had no choice. With a thought, he released the Mangekyō Sharingan.
The mont he did—
blood stread from his eyes like tears.
A chill ran through the crowd.
"His eyes… are bleeding?"
Then—
Caw! Caw!
A flock of crows swept in from the distance. In full view of everyone, they circled Shisui and, within seconds, pecked the blood clean from his face.
Ren frowned slightly and shook his head.
Still the sa Shisui.
Sa talent. Sa pride.
Just… completely washed by the Will of Fire.
The so-called "strongest genjutsu user" could rewrite minds—
yet he'd been rewritten himself by Konoha's greatest hypnosis of all.
The silence snapped.
The crowd exploded.
"Looks like the assessnt's over!"
"Shisui's insane, but Ren's taijutsu is just as monstrous!"
"The Uchiha really are Konoha's strongest clan—geniuses keep popping up."
"Eleven years old… and already Jōnin? Even if it's taijutsu-focused, that's crazy."
People talked over each other, excitent rising higher and higher.
They'd witnessed Susanoo with their own eyes—
and they'd also watched a quiet, low-profile Ren take Susanoo's fists head-on like it was normal.
It was the kind of spectacle you only saw once in a lifeti.
Might Guy was practically vibrating.
"Hahaha! Youth is burning!"
He struck a pose, flashing his blinding white teeth.
"I'm running around the village ten tis!"
"Guy—"
Kakashi didn't even finish the sentence.
—Whoosh—
Guy was already gone.
Kakashi stayed where he was for a mont, staring at Ren with a tight expression.
Pain—then resolve.
He turned away.
It's ti.
I can't stay like this forever. If I want to honor Rin and Obito… I have to live.
For the first ti in a long while, it felt like there was light in Konoha again—
and it reached sowhere inside Kakashi's chest.
Not far away, Uzuki Yūgao and Kurenai Yūhi both clenched their fists, eyes locked on Ren.
"He passed."
"Tonight he's treating us to grilled fish."
They were proud—almost smug about it.
Ren didn't disappoint.
He never did.
On the other side, Asuma Sarutobi crushed his cigarette into the ground.
His irritation spiked the mont he noticed Kurenai's gaze hadn't left Ren even once.
"Tch… damn it."
As the excitent continued, groups began peeling away.
ANBU. Root. The Military Police. Various clan shinobi.
No one needed to stay now.
They'd already seen enough to understand what was coming next.
Uchiha Ren's taijutsu was about to beco famous across Konoha.
Hokage Office
Hiruzen lowered his pipe and stared at the Crystal Ball, expression unsettled.
"Ren's taijutsu is… that strong."
What bothered him wasn't Ren's talent.
It was what that talent belonged to.
"Such a waste," Hiruzen murmured. "A taijutsu genius… and he's an Uchiha. And he doesn't even focus on chakra control or ninjutsu."
Danzō scoffed, as if nothing surprised him.
"Shisui didn't even use his real trump card. If he did, Ren would've been crushed."
Hiruzen nodded slowly, thinking along the sa line.
"A shinobi who doesn't rely on ninjutsu… no matter how strong his body is, how far can he really go?"
Danzō's mouth curled.
"As long as an Uchiha never 'opens his eyes,' he's acceptable."
His gaze sharpened with greed.
"The only real threat is the Sharingan. Taijutsu specialists—no matter how strong—don't scare ."
Hiruzen's eyes narrowed.
"Since Ren passed Shisui's Jōnin assessnt… I'll make a brief public statent."
Danzō added flatly, "Say he's the Uchiha clan's top taijutsu specialist. Encourage the clan to learn from him—train taijutsu."
Hiruzen's brow twitched.
"No."
That wasn't encouragent.
That was a slap in the face.
Everyone knew what the Uchiha took pride in.
Calling a taijutsu specialist their "number one" was basically mockery.
Danzō shrugged.
"Do what you want. I still think the Uchiha need to be reminded who's in charge."
He turned and walked out.
No hesitation.
No looking back.
Today, he'd seen what he'd been craving for years.
Now all that remained—
was to lay the trap properly.
Shisui. The Uchiha. Their eyes.
I'll take them. Sooner or later.
Hiruzen watched him go, smoke spilling from his lips as his expression shifted.
"'Remind' the Uchiha…"
He didn't finish the thought.
But the idea had already sunk its hooks in.
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