The next day.
As Hatake Seiko entered the classroom, he smiled and greeted Uchiha Gen.
"Good morning, Gen-kun."
"Good morning, Seiko."
Their brief exchange immediately drew the attention of the other students.
Both boys had always been solitary figures in class. The difference was that Uchiha Gen was subtly ostracized—no one wanted to get close to him—while Hatake Seiko maintained an aloof attitude, rarely approaching others of his own accord.
Now, however, the two clearly seemed familiar with one another, naturally stirring curiosity.
Even so, for the rest of the morning, Hatake Seiko and Uchiha Gen sat quietly in their usual corner seats without further interaction.
At noon, after classes ended, the students took out their bento boxes for lunch.
Uchiha Gen's bento contained several neatly shaped rice balls, carefully prepared by his younger sister, Izumi.
Just as he finished eating, Uchiha Gen suddenly turned his head toward the classroom door.
Almost at the same moment, Uchiha Shisui appeared there. He caught Gen's eye and gave him a subtle wave, signaling him to come outside.
"Shisui, what is it?" Gen asked as he followed him.
The two walked to a small grove behind the Academy's main building.
Uchiha Shisui looked at Gen, sighed softly, and said, "Gen, I heard you had a conflict with Shimura Ken, Sarutobi Akagi, and some other sixth-year students."
Gen was startled. "How did you find out?"
"The news has already spread around the Academy," Shisui replied. "Shimura Ken and his group are furious. They're saying they'll get their revenge."
His expression darkened slightly. "And people are saying the Uchiha are bullying others again."
Gen sneered. "Shisui, why do you even care what they think? It's just the pointless barking of sore losers."
Shisui reached out and rested a hand on Gen's shoulder. "Gen, I want to change how the village sees the Uchiha Clan. I hope you'll avoid fighting whenever possible."
"Shisui," Gen said calmly, meeting his gaze, "do you even know why I fought Shimura Ken and his group?"
Shisui hesitated. "No… I don't."
After a brief silence, Gen continued, "You're too kind—and too naive. Constant compromise won't change how the village views the Uchiha."
Shisui frowned slightly. In his eyes, Gen could have handled the situation more gently. Still, Gen's thinking reflected that of many clan members—believing strength was the only answer.
Just then, hurried footsteps approached the grove.
A group of boys rushed in, surrounding them. There were nearly twenty in total, students from several different grades.
"Shimura Nozomi… Sarutobi Aoki," Shisui said, recognizing the two at the front. "What do you want?"
Shimura Nozomi was tall and broad for his age, casually flipping a shuriken around his finger. Beside him stood Sarutobi Aoki, much thinner in comparison.
The shuriken spun rapidly as Nozomi's cold, snake-like gaze swept past Shisui and settled on Gen.
"So you're Uchiha Gen," Nozomi said. "The one who injured my younger brother."
Shisui leaned closer and whispered, "His younger brother is Shimura Ken. Sarutobi Aoki is Sarutobi Akagi's second older brother—and one of the boys you injured yesterday. They're here for you."
Sarutobi Aoki glared at Gen. "That's right. We came for him."
Shimura Nozomi's lips curled into a cruel smile. "Uchiha Gen, you hurt my brother. Whatever pain he suffered, I'll return it to you twice today."
As his words fell, he snapped his wrist.
The spinning shuriken shot straight toward Gen.
Clang!
A sharp metallic sound rang out as another shuriken intercepted it midair.
Shisui stood in front of Gen, his arm still extended.
"Shimura Nozomi," Shisui said sharply, "you dare use a shuriken?"
At the Ninja Academy, fights were unofficially tolerated—but only taijutsu. Ninja tools and offensive ninjutsu were strictly forbidden to prevent serious injuries.
Nozomi scoffed. "This has nothing to do with you, Uchiha Shisui. It's between us and that brat."
Shisui's expression suddenly changed.
Sarutobi Aoki—who had been standing beside Nozomi—was gone.
A powerful gust of wind rushed from behind.
Before Shisui could fully react, Aoki appeared behind Gen, grabbing his shoulder and leaping backward.
Bang!
Aoki landed beside Nozomi.
But in the same instant, Shisui moved.
With blinding speed, he seized Gen and pulled him free, placing himself between Gen and the attackers.
Gen stared at him in shock. "Shisui… thank you."
Even he hadn't expected Shisui to move that fast.
Shimura Nozomi narrowed his eyes. "Uchiha Shisui, if you keep interfering, we'll beat you up too."
Before Shisui could respond, a younger boy ran into the grove, panting.
"Boss Nozomi! Uchiha Minami is coming—with a group of Uchiha!"
Nozomi's face darkened instantly.
The boys around him exchanged uneasy glances. Facing a group of Uchiha head-on was not something they were confident about.
Nozomi glared at Gen. "You got lucky today. Next time, you won't."
With that, he jumped away. In moments, the entire group vanished from the grove.
Shisui frowned deeply. "Gen, I'll speak to Shimura Nozomi later. But you need to be careful. Don't provoke them again."
Gen sighed. "Sometimes it's not that you look for trouble—it comes looking for you."
He then explained how Shimura Ken and his group had been bullying Hatake Seiko.
"They were harassing a classmate. Was I supposed to just stand by and watch?"
Shisui fell silent.
After a moment, he sighed. "You did the right thing. I was too quick to judge."
As they spoke, a group of Uchiha boys rushed into the grove.
Gen recognized Uchiha Shinsuke and Uchiha Eiji among them.
At the front stood a boy around thirteen years old, with long hair reaching his shoulders.
He glanced at Gen, then turned to Shisui. "Where's Shimura Nozomi?"
"They left when they heard you were coming," Shisui replied.
"Tch. Cowards," the boy said coldly.
Uchiha Minami then looked at Gen. "Don't worry. As long as we're around, no one will bully a member of the Uchiha Clan."
"Thank you, Minami-senpai," Gen said respectfully.
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