"Oh, right. Remember to send a message to Ryufeng, telling him to be careful on the battlefield. Also, I will apply to Hokage-sama to arrange for Itsuki and Shinichi to join the next batch of combat teams. They will depart for the Sand Battlefield to protect Ryufeng's safety. This is all we can do."
Uchiha Fugaku's expression became complex. As the Clan Head and an Elder of the Uchiha, they could not easily intervene without the Hokage's command. They could only protect their clansmen in this way.
"Yes, thank you, Clan Head."
Yusuke Uchiha nodded in gratitude. He was also grateful for the Clan Head's arrangement. After all, although he was the Uchiha Grand Elder, his influence before the Hokage was still weaker than Uchiha Fugaku's.
With Uchiha Fugaku personally arranging two Jonin to protect his son this time, his son's safety could be somewhat guaranteed.
"Seriously, how long have we known each other? Do you still need to thank me?"
Uchiha Fugaku cursed with a smile. At this point, the two had also reached Yusuke's doorstep. Just as Yusuke Uchiha was about to invite Uchiha Fugaku in for a while, Uchiha Fugaku waved goodbye, declining Yusuke Uchiha's invitation, indicating he wouldn't go in.
Back home, Fugaku sat at the table, took a sip of hot tea, and then turned his gaze to Itachi, who was two years old and walking around the house. His eyes were full of love for his son and expectations for his future.
"What's wrong? Is everything alright with Hokage-sama calling you over?"
At this moment, Uchiha Mikoto walked out of the kitchen, carrying a plate of desserts. She slowly walked to the table and knelt. While arranging the desserts, she watched her husband, a hint of concern in her tone.
"Ah, nothing. It's just that Ryufeng and Ren, those two children, earned merit on the battlefield, so Hiruzen Sarutobi called me over to see and credit them both."
Uchiha Fugaku's lips curved into a smile. After all, the last time he was this happy was when Itachi first called them 'Mama' and 'Papa'.
"Oh? Are those two children already that powerful? Speaking of which, the age these children go to the battlefield to fight is similar to when we did, both around eight or nine years old. But we were far worse than they back then."
Uchiha Mikoto said with some emotion. After all, when they were as old as Ryufeng and Ren, although they also went to the battlefield, as Chunin and Genin at the time, their main work was transporting supplies and patrolling, not particularly dangerous missions. Although they also participated in large-scale battles and survived, and their strength was considered top-notch among their peers, compared to true geniuses, they were somewhat lacking.
Above them, Konoha White Fang made a name for himself in the Second Great Ninja War, and below, the Sannin fought fiercely against the Demigod.
Most of their generation did not achieve fame during the Second Great Ninja War. Even the small portion of people like Minato and Fugaku who did, did not receive their own unique titles due to time constraints.
"Kakashi, Ren, Ryufeng, and Shisui. These four children are the most talented I have ever seen. Even when we were young, we might have been inferior. The unfortunate thing is that they have too little time. Although they have shown great talent and strength far beyond their peers at a young age, war is still too early for them. I plan to arrange for Itsuki and Shinichi to go to the Sand Battlefield, so we can rest assured."
Uchiha Mikoto nodded, then looked at Fugaku with some worry.
"What about that child, Ren…?"
"Don't worry, we don't need to worry about that child. His teacher is already there, so it would be redundant for us to do anything."
Uchiha Fugaku also understood his wife's concerns. Over the years, Ryufeng and Shisui would occasionally bring Ren to Fugaku's house to take Itachi out to play.
Gradually, the Uchiha Clan basically all came to know this polite child who frequently visited the Uchiha Clan Grounds. Coupled with Ren's lack of prejudice against the Uchiha, these young Uchiha quickly became familiar with Ren.
And the Uchiha higher-ups were happy about this. After all, from any perspective, befriending Ren had no downsides. In terms of identity, Ren was Tsunade's only disciple, the Third Hokage's grand-disciple, and had a boundless future.
In terms of strength, Ren had defeated Kakashi, the publicly acknowledged number one genius of Konoha, and possessed a self-developed Bloodline Limit. Unless the Uchiha higher-ups' brains were eaten by Akamaru, how could they possibly reject such a genius?
"Ren… big brother!"
Itachi, who heard them talking, walked to Mikoto's side, patting her arm, and stammered Ren's name.
"This child, he really likes Ren."
Fugaku and Mikoto exchanged smiles. Itachi had called 'Mama' as soon as he learned to speak, but the second name he called was not Fugaku, he stumbled over Ren's name. This made Fugaku's face dark for several days.
Good news doesn't travel far, but bad news spreads like wildfire. Because Minato and Kushina were visiting Fugaku's house at the time, they personally witnessed Itachi wobbly walking up to Ren, patting Ren's face while stammering Ren's name.
Kushina, who burst out laughing on the spot, went back and shared this news with a group of wives. Then, word spread, and Fugaku was successfully laughed at for two days in the Jonin circle. Even Hiruzen Sarutobi once teased him about it, and now Mikoto and Kushina sometimes find it hilarious when they talk about it.
However, no one dared to tease Fugaku about it, as the Clan Head of the Uchiha Clan, his strength in the current Konoha, while not unmatched, had few rivals.
"Speaking of which, Sunagakure has already declared war on Konoha first. Hidden Mist can be ignored for now. According to some intelligence from the front lines, Kumogakure and Iwagakure are constantly stationing troops along the border. Our peaceful days are numbered."
Both fell silent. Since the other three Villages had not yet declared war, only stationing troops, Konoha could not make the first move. One wrong move could affect the whole situation. If Konoha were to attack either Iwagakure or Kumogakure first today, the other two Villages would have an excuse to start a war. At that time, if all Four Great Villages entered the fray, even Konoha would not be able to bear it.
Although they were passive now, the good thing was that the other major Villages were not monolithic; they would also fight and attack each other. So, maintaining the status quo was a helpless choice.
Fugaku's analysis was correct. A month after Sunagakure and Konoha began fighting, Hiruzen Sarutobi received intelligence. Seeing Sunagakure at a disadvantage, the restless Iwagakure, led by Third Tsuchikage Onoki, also officially declared war on Konoha.
Fortunately, Konoha was prepared this time and was not caught off guard like Sunagakure. Under Jiraiya, who served as Commander, leading the team, thousands of troops began the prelude to the Great Iwagakure War.