Nighttime.
With his wife's help, Fugaku applied ointment to his injuries. After resting for a while, he called Kaito into the study.
Father and son sat across from each other at the tea table, locking eyes for a long while. Neither spoke a word.
"Father, aren't you going to the Police Department tomorrow?"
Kaito glanced at the clock—it was already nearly 10 PM.
Fugaku pondered for a moment, then smiled gently.
"Kaito… that technique of yours today…"
"What was that about?"
To cover up Kaito's Ninjutsu, he had even gone out of his way to "invite" the stray brown ninja dog loitering outside their home back inside.
He had observed the dog—it bore no markings of the Inuzuka clan, likely a failed breeding product.
Tomorrow, he would send someone to the Inuzuka clan to discuss purchasing such dogs.
The fact that Kaito could use space-time Ninjutsu must never reach the village.
Nor could the rest of the Uchiha clan know.
This was to protect him—and the entire Uchiha.
"Oh, it's just swapping places with a ninja dog."
Kaito yawned, his indifferent tone nearly making Fugaku clench his fists to teach this brat a lesson.
What do you mean, "just swapping places"?!
In short.Fugaku thought his son was being extremely pretentious.
If he knew how his father felt at that moment, Kaito would definitely cry injustice.
After all, compared to cultivation techniques and the like, the special ability that came with this achievement title was really nothing much.
If only someone would give him a cultivation manual...
Kaito felt that almost anything would be better than this thing.
However, he had more or less figured out how the system worked. As long as he could trigger a system task, no matter how absurd the content was, the important thing was that he could get rewards.
He believed that in the near future, immortal cultivation techniques, magical treasures, and celestial maidens would all be within his grasp.
As for whether he should hide his abilities from Fugaku, Kaito chose to be upfront about it.
After all, no matter what, this was still better than using such abilities in front of outsiders.
Hmm…
No matter how low the Uchiha clan's standing in the village was now, they still had some influence.
At the very least.
Shisui wasn't dead yet, and there was still some time before the Uchiha massacre.
For now, his father could still protect him.
Seeing that Fugaku remained silent, Kaito continued to elaborate.
"It should be… a space-time Ninjutsu?"
Fugaku fell silent for a long time after hearing Kaito's answer. He gripped his cup, lost in thought for a full ten minutes before finally speaking.
"No."
"This is a Dog Clone."
"It's the same type of Ninjutsu as Itachi's Crow Clone!"
Fugaku forcefully corrected him. Hearing those three words again, Kaito nearly flipped the coffee table in front of him.
But then it occurred to him that his father might be saying this to protect him.
Still…
Couldn't you at least come up with a better name?!
Kaito nodded heavily, taking several deep breaths before reluctantly and helplessly agreeing.
"Right! It's a Dog Clone!"
Fugaku seemed quite satisfied with Kaito's answer. He picked up the cup on the table and personally poured Kaito some tea.
"Remember, don't mention this Ninjutsu to anyone else."
"Not even Itachi or Sasuke."
Kaito accepted the tea, giving Fugaku a meaningful look, his eyes revealing a trace of worry.
"The clan and the village…"
"Has it really come to this?"
Fugaku sighed, which was answer enough for Kaito. Then, looking at his son across from him, he opened his mouth several times but hesitated to speak.
He truly didn't know how to discuss these matters with his six-year-old son.
"Go rest."
"You don't need to worry about these things… I'll handle them."
Kaito pursed his lips, wanting to say something, his heart even more worried that his old man might do something as foolish as in the original story.
At this moment, he really wanted his father to shout—
Don't feed!
Please turn on your mic and communicate!
But the moment he looked up, he suddenly noticed the streaks of white in Fugaku's temples and the faint wrinkles on his face.
"Alright, you should rest early too."
In the end, Kaito didn't voice his thoughts. He was still weak and needed his father's protection.
Whether his words would even be taken seriously was another matter—Fugaku would undoubtedly keep him out of the clan's messy affairs to protect him.
Kaito pushed himself up from his knees, bidding Fugaku farewell before heading for the study door. Unexpectedly, Fugaku called out to him just as he was leaving.
"Kaito."
Kaito stopped and answered softly.
"Hmm?"
"I'll protect all of you."
Fugaku held his teacup, as if sensing Kaito's earlier emotions, and added this casually.
Kaito stood at the door for a long time. As he pulled it shut, he also said to Fugaku,
"I know."
"I'll protect all of you too."
Kaito always believed that this stern-faced, prideful father of his—who loved hiding his private stash—would protect them.
As for what those idiots in the clan might do, he had no idea.
Though he hated to admit it, there was no denying that the Uchiha clan had more than a few screws loose.This group of people would go to any lengths to awaken the Sharingan in their descendants, sparing no means to achieve their goal.
Of course, whether it's right or wrong...
There's nothing inherently wrong with their pursuit of the Sharingan's power, but it inevitably harms the fragile psyche of children, further exacerbating the already extreme personalities influenced by the Sharingan.
Meanwhile, the Uchiha clan members carry themselves with arrogance when dealing with others in the village, walking down the streets with their noses in the air, looking down on other major ninja clans.
They might as well shout outright, "The position of Hokage—we Uchiha can take it too."
While there are normal individuals among them, the majority of the older generation behave this way, and they raise their children in the same manner.
If problems didn't arise from this, it would truly be a miracle.
Kaito's head ached at the thought of having an older brother at home who might one day slaughter their own clan, not to mention the one-eyed Uchiha traitor lurking in the shadows, ready to raise his blade against their kin.
Shisui...
He had to find a way to save him.
With these thoughts, Kaito returned to his room and went to sleep.
The next morning.
Kaito, deep in slumber, was abruptly awakened by Sasuke's shouting outside.
He and Sasuke shared a room, but yesterday, the little guy had been sulking and had taken his blanket to sleep in Itachi's room instead.
"Big brother!"
"Teach me the Crow Clone Technique! You already taught it to that guy Kaito!"
In the living room, Sasuke clung to Itachi, relentlessly begging to learn the Crow Clone Technique, leaving Itachi sweating profusely.
It wasn't that he didn't want to teach it...
But Sasuke simply didn't have the talent for it.
"Sasuke, how about I teach you a powerful Fire Release instead?"
"This is a Ninjutsu I use often."
Sasuke's lips pursed, his stubbornness flaring up instantly. He turned his head away, refusing outright before continuing to whine.
"No! I want to learn the Crow Clone Technique."
Itachi thought for a few seconds before speaking again.
"Then I'll teach you a Genjutsu. This Genjutsu is—"
Sasuke didn't even let him finish, cutting him off forcefully.
"No! I just want to learn the Crow Clone Technique!"
"That guy Kaito even learned the Dog Clone from you!"
Itachi Uchiha: ?
Rubbing his eyes, Kaito drowsily passed through the living room just in time to witness Sasuke's tantrum.
Itachi stared at Kaito in shock, his eyes practically screaming...
What the hell is the Dog Clone?!
The only Ninjutsu he knew related to dogs were those used by the Inuzuka clan, and even then, he'd never heard of anyone using a Dog Clone.
"Morning, Sasuke, Itachi."
Kaito raised a hand in greeting before shooting Sasuke a displeased look. "And in the morning, no less..."
"Can you keep your whining down?"
Sasuke clenched his fists tightly, turning his head away to avoid Kaito's gaze. He wasn't ready to deal with this guy yet.
Itachi awkwardly patted Sasuke's head and gave Kaito an apologetic smile.
"Sorry for disturbing your rest."
Just as Kaito was about to leave, he suddenly backtracked into the living room, stepping right up to Itachi to pose another soul-crushing question.
"Itachi."
"If one of us—me or Sasuke—had to die..."
"Who would you choose?"