"I am Uzumaki Naruto, and I am the future Hokage!" – said Naruto with a determined expression.
"Oh, the future Hokage, huh?" – Bully – 1.
"C'mon, what are you, stupid?" – Bully – 2.
"I'll show you guys!" – Naruto said as he printed the hand seal for the Clone Technique (How did he even know the hand seals for the Clone Jutsu at this point in time is a mystery even for Translator-kun.).
Poof… Poof…
With two consecutive poofs of white smoke, two more Uzumaki Naruto appeared
"Come at me, bring it~!" – Clone 1 said.
"Datebayo~" – Clone – 2 said.
But looking at the two Clones, the three bullies were not only not intimidated but burst into uncontrollable laughter.
"""Hahahahahaha!"""
Even Naruto's eyes turned into saucers and he seemed to be a bit embarrassed.
This is because the two Uzumaki Naruto clones that appeared were too small, not even reaching the height of Naruto's shoes.
While Naruto's eyes returned back to his usual self, as he started looking up.
One of the bullies had already rushed towards Naruto and punched him in the nose.
Bang…
Blood gushed out of Naruto's nose, knocking him out unconscious on the snow.
"Hahaha, I took him down with one punch, future Hokage right! You think you are so cool wearing this ugly red scarf?" – taunted the leader of the three bullies, as he took off the red scarf Naruto was wearing and started destroying it.
While the three bullies were ridiculing Uzumaki Naruto and Hyuga Hinata, Shisui who was watching this scene was at a loss at what to do, especially at the mention of 'Demon Fox.'
Frowning at the scene, Shisui looked at Kuroto.
Kuroto just said, "Don't worry."
Shisui said, "But-…"
But before Shisui could continue, Kuroto smiled and stopped him midway, "Keep watching!"
At this time, the timid Hinata mustered up some courage and ran towards Naruto. She squatted next to Naruto, wiped off the snow from Naruto's clothes, and asked, "Ano… are you… are you okay?"
Naruto just shook his head and didn't say anything more.
The three bullies continued teasing, """Byakugan monster, Demon Fox... hahahaha."""
Suddenly another child walked over, his hands in the pocket of his jacket giving off a casual and indifferent vibe.
Looking at the scene that was happening before him, he said, "Hey, you three, do you only bully weaklings and girls?"
The three bullies suddenly stopped laughing and eyed the third child. Looking at the kid who had his hands inside his jacket, he wore a black turtleneck t-shirk, black pants, black jacket over it with the iconic red and white fan-shaped symbol printed on his clothes.
And his face had a bored-up look.
The three bullies asked, "And who are you?"
"Uchiha Sasuke!" – reported the kid with a slightly colder tone.
Sasuke glanced at Naruto who buried his head in the snow, then turned towards Hinata who was squatting next to Naruto.
Sasuke frowned when he noticed her eyes.
Sasuke then said to the three bullies, "I am different from those two, I am an Uchiha!"
The leader of the bullies threw away the red scarf, and said, "What Uchiha? We are three and you are just one!"
The children are obviously ignorantly right. They don't have any deep understanding of how a fight between shinobi works, nor do they have any deep understanding of any great shinobi village.
For this reason, they dared to speak so rudely to Uchiha Sasuke, and bullied Hyuga Hinata.
Sasuke snorted, he stepped forward and grabbed the leader of the bullies by the collar, and at the same time tripped one of the other two who rushed towards Sasuke.
Then Sasuke used his other hand to catch the incoming fist of the third bully, and said with a grin, "I will make you remember this; I AM DIFFERENT FROM YOU LOT, I AM AN UCHIHA!"
The bullies were suddenly shocked and gulped in nervousness.
Sasuke obviously did not go easy on them and started to beat the hell out of the three.
A few seconds later, Sasuke cleaned the non-existent dust from his hands, and said, "I am sure you guys will remember what I said, now scram!"
"Y-yes… Yes!" – The three bullies repeatedly nodded one-after-another and ran away immediately.
Shisui smiled seeing the three bullies running away after being taught a lesson by Sasuke.
At this time, Sasuke with his hands again in his pocket approached Hyuga Hinata.
Coming closer to Hinata, Sasuke questioned, "You are from the Hyuga clan, right?"
The dazed Hinata weakly nodded, "Ah yes, thank you very much for your help!"
Naruto who also sat-up turned his head to the side and whispered, "Thank you…"
"Thank you?" – Sasuke muttered as his lips curled, "Heh, both of you couldn't even solve just three guys, aren't you shameful? I heard that Hyuga Clan is also in the same league as the Uchiha Clan, but you are so weak?"
Hinata was taken aback by Sasuke's words, she suddenly lowered her head and instinctively replied, "I… I am sorry!"
Sasuke shook his head without any care, "It seems that rumors are true, the Hyuga Clan is indeed declining, unlike the Uchiha Clan."
Leaving this sentence, Sasuke turned and around and started walking away without even as much as a glance at Naruto from beginning to end.
…
On Kuroto's side.
Shisui said with a bitter face, "This Sasuke…!"
Kuroto shook his head with a smile, "He is only a kid, don't worry too much about it."
Shisui sighed. Not because of what Sasuke said, but because of why Sasuke said so.
Children tend to repeat what they hear, and this is no strange with the children of the major shinobi clans.
So, the fact that Sasuke said so, implies that he has been hearing such rumors from somewhere.
And that somewhere is obviously the Uchiha Clan.
Kuroto also understands the recent atmosphere of the Uchiha Clan.
The senior members of the Clan are aware of the troubles that the clan is facing, and they understand that a little carelessness might also lead to the doom of the clan.
The relationship between the clan and village has started to improve because of the pressure from Amatsukami. But this does not mean that the two sides are willing to trust each other.
So, the relationship is at a junction where even small mistakes can turn back the situation.
And that's the point, most of the Uchiha who are not senior members, are not aware of these things too deeply.
All they understand is that the Uchiha Clan is the strongest currently.
There is Uchiha Shinichi outside, Uchiha Shisui inside, and Homusubi part of the Amatsukami.
All three are Uchiha who have awakened the legendary Mangekyou Sharingan and are thus invincible.
Even if Shinichi has defected from the village, even if Homusubi is the enemy of the village and clan, he is after all an Uchiha, as such he represents the might that an Uchiha can have.
Kuroto asked, "Are your clan members still gathering at the Naka Shrine to discuss the matter of Coup?"
Shisui shook his head, "No, the continuous disappearance of Hideki, Ryota and Hiiragi has put Patriarch on an edge, he has been unable to establish any contact with Shinichi, and with Homusubi being a threat, Patriarch can't put his attention on the coup anymore, so there are no more discussions of Coup."
Kuroto nodded, "Right. Even the village would not dare to eliminate the Uchiha Clan in such a situation. The threat posed by Amatsukami and Akatsuki is too much and has put the advisory elder on edge. So long as we keep up the pressure, a solution will present itself before us. Moreover, I am sure that there will be another major event in the village very soon."
Hiruko who has only recently completed the Kekkei Genkai Absorption Ritual will obviously not able to bear remaining silent.
Even in the original story, Hiruko who had not even completed the ritual dared to declare war on the five great villages at the same time.
This action alone shows that he is unwilling to remain on the sidelines for too long.
Now that his strength has reached off the charts, he would obviously not remain silent.
And Hiruko's first target will obviously be Konohagakure.
Shisui obviously understood what Kuroto was saying, "Kuroto-san, do you mean Hiruko?"
.
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Read up to Chapter - 531 on P.a.t.r.e.o.n. Page: p-atreon.com/Milta_translations