Konoha, the Uchiha Compound. Inside Sasuke's home.
The room was quiet, occupied only by Fugaku and Itachi.
"Itachi, thank you for your hard work lately. Sasuke's Taijutsu has improved significantly," Fugaku noted, breaking the silence.
"It has nothing to do with me," Itachi replied calmly. "His new teacher is very responsible and possesses excellent Taijutsu skills."
Fugaku paused for a few seconds before recalling the name. "That teacher... Yagyu Masahiko?"
"Yes. While he isn't overwhelmingly powerful, his fundamentals are impeccable," Itachi answered.
Fugaku opened his mouth as if to speak, hesitated, but finally asked, "And that child... Uzumaki Naruto..."
"There won't be any issues. Sasuke shouldn't be involved in that matter to begin with," Itachi stated firmly.
Fugaku gazed at his eldest son. Beneath the stoic mask, he saw hidden exhaustion and confusion etched into Itachi's features. A sigh echoed in Fugaku's heart. Softening his voice, he said, "Perhaps you are right. Go and pick up Sasuke. He has been hoping you'd meet him after school."
"Understood. I will take my leave then." Itachi nodded and rose to leave.
Just as his hand touched the sliding door, Fugaku called out, almost subconsciously. "Wait."
Itachi turned his head back.
Fugaku's lips moved, struggling for words, until he finally said, "Don't push yourself too hard. If the work in the Anbu becomes too much... it is okay to set it down."
"I will consider it."
The Academy Gate.
As the bell chimed, a swarm of students poured out of the building. A few unruly ones leaped over the perimeter walls, drawing shouts of reprimand from the instructors. The entrance was a sea of people.
Sasuke walked out of the school building. The moment he spotted Uchiha Itachi standing at the edge of the crowd, his eyes lit up.
"Brother!"
He waved enthusiastically and sprinted toward him. The corners of Itachi's mouth tugged upward into a rare, genuine smile as he caught the rushing Sasuke in his arms.
Suddenly, Itachi felt a piercing gaze. Following his intuition, he looked toward the source—it was the Taijutsu teacher.
Itachi lowered his head slightly in a gesture of respect, then turned to lead Sasuke away from the school.
Not far away, Masahiko retracted his gaze.
'Judging by that build...'
Masahiko confirmed his suspicions. The person who had been secretly observing him practice the Dance of the Crescent Moon the other day was undoubtedly Uchiha Itachi.
'Itachi is too rigidly loyal; he has a one-track mind. There's no value in trying to recruit him,' Masahiko mused. 'But the other one...'
An image from the anime surfaced in Masahiko's mind.
Uchiha Shisui.
Shisui was roughly the same age as Masahiko's current identity. They had technically been in the same generation at the Academy, but Shisui was a prodigy who graduated at the age of six or seven. Masahiko's predecessor, a civilian with average talent, had never moved in the same circles as Shisui.
On the surface, there was no avenue to build a relationship. Furthermore, Masahiko's connection to Danzō made openly seeking out Shisui impossible.
"Masahiko-sensei?"
"Hm?"
Masahiko snapped out of his thoughts to see Yūhi Kurenai walking out of the school with Kurama Yakumo. He adopted a gentle smile. "Yakumo, how was your first day of class?"
"Everyone was very nice, and the teachers explained things so well," Yakumo said, her smile sweet and devoid of any pretense. "It's the first time I've realized that coming to school could be this happy!"
"Some things are always within reach, but we only realize how precious they are once we lose them," Masahiko said, his voice carrying a deliberate, philosophical weight. "So, for your own sake, and for your parents, you must protect yourself well."
"Yes, I understand!" Yakumo nodded vigorously, taking the words to heart.
Yūhi Kurenai waved goodbye, and the two disappeared at the end of the street.
'She called it an exchange of pointers, but in reality, she was mostly teaching me Genjutsu tricks,' Masahiko thought as he reviewed the day's events.
'Although I didn't learn any formal offensive Genjutsu, I've mastered quite a few techniques for dispelling them. It wasn't a wasted effort.'
He jotted down his insights from the day into a notebook. Without a Sharingan, his potential in Genjutsu was severely limited, so his interest in deeply studying it remained low. However, recording knowledge was never a mistake.
After reviewing his notes, he tucked the notebook into his ninja pouch, grabbed his Aota sword, and headed for the outskirts of the village.
He still needed to practice the Dance of the Crescent Moon.
The Konoha-Style Swordsmanship wasn't a pure Taijutsu or Ninjutsu discipline, meaning he couldn't practice it within the System's specialized training spaces for those categories. He had to do this the hard way.
In the forest.
Whoosh!
Three figures wove through the trees, their blade shadows intersecting so rapidly it was impossible to distinguish the real body from the illusions. As the blades flashed, leaves were sheared neatly in half.
Just as two of the figures crossed paths, a third burst from the side of a tree using the Body Flicker Technique. The blade drew a cold arc of lightning through the air.
Crack!
A thick branch was severed and plummeted to the ground.
Masahiko straightened up and glanced at his interface.
[Konoha-Style: Dance of the Crescent Moon: Skilled]
'Done!'
Although it was only at the "Skilled" level, it proved he had completely learned the sword technique. All that remained was to temper it through actual combat.
Furthermore, his theory about combining Water Clones with the Dance of the Crescent Moon had proven viable. The only drawback was that weaving signs for Water Clones was slower than the standard Clone Technique. To apply it effectively in combat, he would need to experiment and optimize the process.
Additionally...
[Clone Technique: Perfection]
After mastering the Water Clone Technique to Perfection, his standard Clone Technique had been passively optimized and upgraded to Perfection while he practiced his swordsmanship.
Looking at the panel, Masahiko felt a surge of confidence.
'This should be enough.'
The next day.
After finishing his Taijutsu classes, Masahiko went straight to the outskirts of Konoha—specifically, the area where he often encountered "Toge" (Root agents). He continued refining his Dance of the Crescent Moon.
Near noon, he quietly left a folded piece of paper in a specific spot before departing the forest.
When he returned home later, he found a note pressed onto his desk.
It read: "Lord approves of your application for Special Jōnin. Burn after reading."
Masahiko let out a breath of relief.
A Special Jōnin (Tokubetsu Jōnin) was different from a full Jōnin. As long as one possessed outstanding ability in a specific field, they could apply for the assessment. Ninja like Yūhi Kurenai and Mitarashi Anko fell into this category.
Gekkō Hayate was a unique case; due to his Transparent Release, he excelled in reconnaissance and assassination. If not for his congenital illness limiting his physical growth and stamina, he likely would have advanced even further.
Comparatively speaking, Masahiko believed the gap between him and a Special Jōnin wasn't insurmountable. It was worth a try.
At the same time, he knew Danzō was a man of extreme paranoia and control. A move like applying for a promotion had to be cleared by him first to ensure the subsequent plans ran smoothly.
Hokage's Office.
Sarutobi Hiruzen placed the application form on his desk and looked at Masahiko with a warm, grandfatherly gaze. "Are you sure you want to apply for this year's assessment?"
"Yes, Lord Hokage," Masahiko replied with sincere humility. "Thanks to your guidance, my Taijutsu, Clone Technique, and Swordsmanship have all improved significantly recently. I would like to test myself."
Hiruzen chuckled. "The village is always happy to see talented young people step up. Applying for the assessment is certainly not a problem."
He pulled out another document and scanned it briefly. After a few seconds, Hiruzen looked up. "Let's schedule it for three days from now. I will select suitable personnel to evaluate your abilities. If you pass the combat assessment, we will proceed to the written exam and comprehensive evaluation."
"Yes, sir!"
Receiving the confirmation, Masahiko relaxed slightly. He hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Lord Hokage, if I become a Special Jōnin, will there be any changes to my current position?"
"The ninja world is relatively stable right now, so there won't be any immediate reassignment of duties. You can rest assured," Hiruzen said with a reassuring smile.
He leaned back in his chair, his expression turning slightly more serious. "However, if you do become a Special Jōnin, your responsibilities within the Academy will naturally increase compared to before."
Masahiko nodded solemnly. "With greater power comes greater responsibility. I understand this principle."
"Prepare well. I believe you can pass."