Knowing they couldn't escape, the two brothers obediently followed Fugaku to the training ground in the courtyard.
Having their father take time to evaluate their progress should have been something to celebrate.
As the clan head, Fugaku rarely had time to even eat meals with them at home.
Let alone accompany them in training.
But.
Sasuke couldn't bring himself to feel happy about it.
Among the three brothers, Itachi's talent was something Sasuke could never hope to match - he was Sasuke's idol.
Yet Sasuke knew full well he couldn't compare to his elder brother in terms of innate ability.
Kaito was also incredibly talented, to the point where even Itachi and their father had shown admiration.
When they first learned the Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique, Sasuke had to practice countless times just to produce a small flame.
But Kaito...
After just one glance, he successfully performed the hand seals and released the jutsu, then cheekily remarked that "not even dogs would bother learning something like the Great Fireball" - the kind of infuriating comment that begged for a beating.
This clearly demonstrated Kaito's extraordinary talent.
Yet despite this, Kaito was always slacking off and skipping training.
Because of this, their father had never praised him. Facing both Kaito and Itachi, Sasuke couldn't help but feel inferior.
Now that it was time for their father to evaluate their progress again, Sasuke couldn't help but hesitate, worried about performing poorly.
Noticing his younger brother's low spirits, Kaito placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder and said in his usual teasing tone:
"Oi, my foolish little brother!"
"The battle hasn't even started yet, and you're already feeling scared?"
He wasn't good at sentimental words, so he could only try to provoke Sasuke a bit.
If you said Sasuke was talented...
In the early stages, there really wasn't much to see, especially considering how his whole clan had to die for him to awaken his Sharingan - pretty hard to take seriously when you think about it.
But if you said he had no talent, he still ended up becoming one of the two most overpowered characters in the series.
Regarding this, Kaito could only say his younger brother's talent hadn't fully manifested yet.
Take their recent taijutsu training for example.
Sasuke's improvement was almost comparable to the gains Kaito made with his 200% bonus.
This situation reminded Kaito of those unnoticed students in high school who suddenly shot up to the top ten during final exams, as if they'd activated cheat codes.It's just so damn hard to understand.
"I'm your older brother!"
Sasuke slapped away the hand on his shoulder, once again emphasizing his status as the elder sibling. Kaito couldn't figure out why this kid was so obsessed with this point.
He lowered his head, hands in pockets, and quickened his pace to put some distance between himself and Kaito.
As he approached Fugaku's back, Sasuke—whether to encourage himself or display his determination—suddenly declared:
"I won't lose!"
"Kaito, I'll definitely catch up to you and big brother!"
Fugaku's gaze lingered on Sasuke for a moment upon hearing this. He could tell the boy was under immense pressure.
But he wouldn't say much about it. Sometimes, this kind of pressure wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
"Come at me together."
Fugaku clasped his hands behind his back, beckoning both brothers to attack, though his eyes remained fixed on Kaito the entire time.
It was as if he'd never paid any attention to Sasuke.
Of course, no matter what, Sasuke was still his son. As a father, how could he not care?
This was mainly to give Sasuke a little push.
"Alright!"
"Watch out, Father—here I come!"
After forming the Seal of Confrontation, Sasuke swiftly drew kunai and shuriken from his ninja pouch and hurled them at Fugaku.
Unlike Sasuke's courtesy, Kaito had already begun circling Fugaku the moment the fight started, subtly adding pressure to the stationary man.
Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh—
Though Sasuke had thrown the shuriken and kunai simultaneously, each followed a different trajectory midair.
The angles were tricky, deliberately aimed at Fugaku's vital points—throat, eyes, and lower body.
By now, Kaito had maneuvered behind their father. But unlike Sasuke, he didn't strike immediately. Instead, he bided his time, waiting for the perfect moment to land a solid hit on the old man.
Truly a heartwarming display of father-son affection.
Fugaku didn't so much as twitch as Sasuke's shuriken and kunai flew toward him, watching calmly as the attacks landed right before him.
Clang—clang—clang—
The shuriken and kunai all struck Fugaku's body, making Sasuke clench his small fists in the distance, his heart pounding with nervous sweat.
Yet, in the next second, a loud "poof" sounded from Fugaku's position, followed by a wooden log clattering to the ground.
"Kaito, if you don't make your move now, you'll miss your chance."
Fugaku's voice suddenly rang out behind Kaito, startling him into an instinctive reaction—he pivoted and lashed out with a sweeping kick toward the source.
Swish—
Fugaku raised his arm, blocking the strike with the back of his hand before seizing Kaito's ankle.
Then, he began his critique.
"Good reflexes."
"But your power is lacking."
Fugaku stepped back and flung Kaito away with a single motion, his hands already forming a rapid series of hand seals.
Sasuke's youthful voice rang out as his Fire Release technique activated a split second faster.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
Whoosh—
Scorching flames sent the courtyard's temperature skyrocketing, a two-meter-wide fireball barreling straight for Fugaku's face.
Kaito had once shared some tips with him, one of which was never to let the enemy complete their hand seals.
Of course.
Kaito had also advised against shouting out technique names during battle, as it could give opponents time to dodge or counter.
But there was no helping it...
His Great Fireball Technique had reached a decent level, and this was the perfect moment to show off. Not calling it out in front of his father now would be worse than death.
"Sasuke, remember this.""Don't play with fire techniques in front of an Uchiha shinobi unless you're stronger than them."
Fugaku's eyes narrowed slightly, and when they reopened, the three tomoe of the Sharingan were revealed.
He calmly formed hand seals where he stood. Just as the Great Fireball was about to hit him, he took a deep breath and spat out an even larger fireball that swallowed the smaller one, then surged toward Sasuke's position.
Whoosh—
A leg appeared almost without warning in front of Fugaku, aiming straight for his face.
The three tomoe in Fugaku's eyes swayed from side to side, and the world around him seemed to slow down.
He shifted his body slightly, narrowly avoiding Kaito's attack trajectory, and once again grabbed the boy's foot.
This time, he threw him with much greater force.
He needed to teach Kaito a proper lesson—he'd even activated his Sharingan.
Why did this kid keep rushing in to show off his taijutsu...?
Did he really think he was one of the village's ninja dogs?
"Kaito, did you learn shuriken and Ninjutsu just to use them on the village's dogs?!"
Caught once again, Kaito felt his vision blur as he was about to hit the ground.
Fortunately, at that moment, the faint image of a small dog flashed in his sight. Outside the Uchiha compound, a brown ninja dog was lifting its hind leg, taking its time to relieve itself, as if to dispel its fear.
Inside the courtyard, about to be slammed to the ground by his father, Kaito clenched his eyes shut and mustered the courage to shout:
"What the hell are you barking at?!"
...