Uchiha Izumi and Uchiha Fang Yuan arrived at the residence of the clan leader, Fugaku. At this time, many children had already been brought over by their parents.
The crowd gathered to discuss, puzzled about why the clan competition was being held today and unclear about the intentions of clan leader Fugaku.
The adults instructed their children to behave well.
"Don't worry, Mom! I will definitely get first place later! These losers are nothing to be afraid of!"
Not far away, three figures—one adult and two children—walked over. Even before they arrived, their arrogant and domineering aura had already spread among the crowd. Everyone looked over with unfriendly expressions.
Fang Yuan's eyes narrowed.
What a coincidence, the newcomers were his aunt, his younger brother Fang Zheng, and his cousin Shuli.
The person speaking was Juri, who had been spoiled by his aunt since he was a child. She boasted daily that her son was the greatest genius of the Uchiha clan, and the foolish boy actually believed it, becoming the arrogant individual he was today.
Fang Yuan chose not to comment; he simply wanted to stay away from the brainless guy. But before he could pull Uchiha Izumi away, he was spotted by the sharp-eyed Fang Zheng.
Ever since Fang Zheng was scolded by Fang Yuan, he now felt both fear and excitement when he saw him. After all, no matter how scary he was, Fang Yuan was still his brother!
"Brother!" Fang Zheng shouted.
Fang Yuan pretended not to hear and disappeared into the crowd with Izumi in hand.
Fang Zheng's shouting made his aunt's petty face fall immediately. She looked around and muttered to herself:
"That money-loser is here too?!"
"Damn it! Not everyone can come to the clan competition! This greedy little bastard doesn't even need to look in the mirror to see if he's cut out to be a ninja. Ugh!"
The aunt continued cursing Fang Yuan. After Shuli's vain search for Fang Yuan proved fruitless, he tried to comfort his mother.
"Mom, don't worry. When I meet Fang Yuan during the competition, I will definitely beat him up for you and let you relax."
"How can beating him be enough? Son! Beat him to death! Break his legs and make sure he can't get out of bed for the rest of his life!"
The aunt said viciously. She then looked at Fang Zheng, who was worried beside her:
"And you too, Zheng'er. Don't go easy on him just because he's your elder brother. It wasn't easy for your aunt to raise you. That ungrateful bastard didn't repay me, and he even pissed me off in front of your uncle. You must be ruthless! Only when this little bastard is scared will he behave. Then, maybe I'll let him come back to live with me."
"Okay... Aunt. I will definitely persuade my brother when the time comes." Fang Zheng shrank his head timidly but still tried to appear calm.
Soon, when most of the children had gathered outside the mansion, the door to the Fugaku family residence opened. Two elite Uchiha soldiers emerged. Scanning the area with their three-magatama Sharingan, they said solemnly:
"Family members please wait outside or disperse where you are. Participants, follow me into the mansion!"
The rotating three-magatama Sharingan emitted a terrifying deterrent force, making the Uchiha people outside the door dizzy and confused. They dared not look up, as if they would be captured by the eyes if they just took a glance.
The adults released their children's hands, gave them a few final instructions, and then watched as the elite soldiers led the children into the mansion.
Bang!
The door closed quietly. The loud noise made many children tremble, realizing that they had left the safety of their parents.
"Little devils, today is a very important day. Perform well, and the clan leader will see how capable you are."
An elite Uchiha soldier said as he led everyone to a secluded corner of the mansion. They soon arrived at a side hall. When they walked in, Fang Yuan found it was like stepping into another world. The empty room seemed to be hiding a mystery.
The elite soldier walked to the wall and turned a specific spot in the crack of the wall twice. Soon a noise came from the ground. The huge floor moved, revealing the basement below.
There was some dust on the dark corridor, and there were messy footsteps on it.
Seeing this, Fang Yuan was certain that a group of people had gone down from here before them.
Is the assessment location underground?
Fang Yuan calmly memorized the layout and the location of the elite soldier's movements, then followed the main group downwards.
The dark corridor spiraled downward, with the only light sources being a few torches. Many children cried out of fear in the closed and terrifying environment.
Although Uchiha Izumi was much more mature than these little kids, she was also trembling with nervousness. She tightly grasped Fang Yuan's hand, as if it was her only hope.
The elite soldier at the rear frowned in dissatisfaction and began calling out names:
"Those of you who just cried don't even need to take the test. The Uchiha clan is never cowardly and never cries. You are not worthy of being a ninja. Now those whose names I call, follow me!"
The group of children immediately became noisy. Some were happy, some were regretful, some were gloating, and some were still afraid.
"Luckily I didn't cry! I didn't disappoint the Uchiha master!"
"The Uchiha are proud and will never give in to fear."
"I'm dying of laughter. That idiot Deli just cried. He's going to be eliminated!"
"Tsk, what rubbish. These guys eliminated themselves before I could make a move." Shuli curled his lips in disdain. He sneered at the poor kids who were picked out, hoping to see his cousin Fang Yuan among them.
"My brother never cries. I am the only one who cries. My brother has never wet the bed either." Fang Zheng, who was standing by, said something shocking.
Juri stared at him with wide eyes, never expecting someone to be foolish enough to reveal their own stupidity.
"You'd better not go looking for trouble with him."
Fang Zheng advised Shuli kindly, but Shuli patted his shoulder nonchalantly.
"Don't worry, I won't cripple him. I will only beat him until he kneels and begs for mercy. After all, it's his fault for being disobedient. Among the three of us brothers, only Fang Yuan is rebellious and doesn't obey discipline."
"Well…"
Knowing that his advice was futile, Fang Zheng stopped trying to persuade his cousin and tried to imitate Fang Yuan's calm demeanor. As he thought about it, he realized his brother had never cried since he was a child and always maintained a cold poker face.
Little Fang Zheng suddenly realized this was indeed very impressive!
The Uchiha elite eliminated dozens of crying cowards and then waited until everyone gathered again for roll call. There were fewer than a hundred Uchiha children left for the examination.
No one expected to be eliminated for crying twice because they were afraid of the dark. The remaining kids all secretly encouraged themselves and wanted to appear braver than the others.
The Uchiha elite standing at the front nodded with satisfaction:
"Yes, this is how you look as an Uchiha. Keep going; the clan leader is waiting for you down below."