The Hidden Leaf Village was established only a few decades ago. Decades prior, it was still the Warring States period, characterized by constant conflict between the major ninja clans.
As a result, there were many vastly different cultures.
Jiraiya's Team 6, the squad that Minato was in, actually included a person with dark skin and lips that closely resembled sausages.
This was featured in Minato's Tale: The Whirlwind in the Maelstrom, where the plot mainly discussed how Minato created the Rasengan and... Kushina's sense of oppression within the village.
"Kiyoshi, you will always be one of us in the Hidden Cloud."
Samatodo paused, then continued:
"If you agree, we can take you away the first time you execute a mission after you graduate. At that time, you will enter the Hidden Cloud Village and receive our best cultivation."
The current situation was tense, with premonitions of the Third Great Ninja War, which was not the best time to take Kiyoshi away.
They needed to wait for the situation to become more chaotic.
"You will be the first clan head of the Uchiha clan in the Hidden Cloud Village!" Samatodo said excitedly.
But Kiyoshi did not get excited with him.
Kiyoshi wasn't fooled by this kind of empty promise, he had seen too many promises of future greatness.
"The Uchiha have been very good to me, and they even taught me Uchiha ninjutsu..." Kiyoshi hinted.
Samatodo immediately understood the meaning behind Kiyoshi's words—he was demanding a price!
"The Raikage-sama truly values you, even allowing us to bring some ninjutsu scrolls."
Samatodo took out a scroll.
Kiyoshi took it and opened it. It was a D-rank scroll called [Lightning Release: Lightning Finger].
The rank of a ninjutsu does not refer to its power but to its difficulty in learning.
E-rank ninjutsu are those that ordinary academy students can learn, and D-rank ninjutsu are those that Genin can learn.
Following this, C-rank ninjutsu are for Chunin, and B-rank ninjutsu are for Jonin.
Beyond this level, ninjutsu generally ceased to concern most ninjas.
An ordinary Jonin could only learn B-rank ninjutsu throughout their entire life.
A-rank ninjutsu were already given the nickname "Forbidden Jutsu" and belonged to the super-high-level ninjutsu category.
At this point, it was no longer solely about learning ability, it also depended on the ninja's physical condition.
Forbidden Jutsu usually consumes a large amount of the user's energy or causes great harm, or even death, to the user. This means that people with scarce chakra reserves are almost excluded from A-rank ninjutsu.
Anyone capable of A-rank ninjutsu would immediately stand out among ninjas of the same rank.
The rank of a ninjutsu does not represent its power, but the more difficult a ninjutsu is to learn, the better its effect generally is.
As for the highest rank, S-rank, that was already referred to as an Ultimate Technique and extremely high-level ninjutsu.
Kiyoshi quickly flipped through the [Lightning Release: Lightning Finger] scroll and found that it only activated the cells in the index and middle fingers.
And while it was called Lightning Finger, it only produced some barely visible electric arcs within the fingers.
Samatodo noticed the change in Kiyoshi's expression, smiled faintly, and narrowed his eyes:
"We have some contacts in the Hidden Leaf Village. You... haven't been taught any Uchiha ninjutsu at all. Why bother? They don't acknowledge you, but we do. If you want more ninjutsu, come back to the Hidden Cloud."
Samatodo's tone was very alluring, as if Kiyoshi would lose the opportunity to change his life forever if he missed this chance.
"I'll need some time to consider."
Kiyoshi took the scroll and left.
The Hidden Cloud was not stupid. How could they give him everything all at once?
They would only try their best to tempt him.
"Lord Samatodo."
After Kiyoshi left, Samatodo emerged from the secret room and went up to the third floor of the shop, looking down at the passersby below.
There were hardly any customers left. Their shop only operated during the day and closed early at night.
The other employees began tidying up, and the remaining few customers gradually left.
"Kiyoshi Yotsuki probably doesn't want to return to the Hidden Cloud," Samui said calmly.
She was a woman who always preferred cool analysis.
Samatodo had just claimed that the Uchiha didn't acknowledge Kiyoshi Yotsuki and hadn't taught him ninjutsu.
But it was foreseeable that this was only temporary.
Later on, once the Uchiha clan deemed Kiyoshi worthy, they would definitely teach him.
She didn't think Kiyoshi Yotsuki would abandon all this, and she and Samatodo were likely just wasting time.
"No, he will eventually."
Samatodo smiled.
Samui's doubts were fine.
His brother was part of the Hidden Cloud's Military Faction, and he knew a lot of internal secrets.
Undercurrents were surging throughout the entire ninja world. The people in the village were no longer satisfied with the status quo.
The Military Faction was waiting for an opportunity. Once the moment was right, they would start a war again.
***
Kiyoshi, already a considerable distance away, stood on the street, blending into the crowd.
His expression was hidden in the night, appearing calm and undisturbed.
When no one was paying attention, his left eye slowly opened, and the one-tomoe Sharingan quietly appeared.
A special chakra known as "Dōjutsu power" circulated slowly. Kiyoshi, who could previously only see the sushi shop as a small black dot, clearly saw the employees closing up the shop.
Even with only one tomoe, the Sharingan increased Kiyoshi's eyesight to a terrifying degree.
Everything was clear as if it were close at hand.
Kiyoshi was able to read Samatodo and Samui's conversation from their lip movements, even catching their subtle shifts in demeanor.
He lowered his head and shook it slightly. "The Uchiha don't acknowledge me, but when has the Hidden Cloud ever acknowledged me?"
His gaze slowly lifted, sweeping past the distant sushi shop, and once again fixed on Samui's beautiful figure on the third floor.
Neither the Uchiha nor the Hidden Cloud were Kiyoshi's true home.
The Uchiha clan handled this with caution to prevent similar incidents with others.
If they mishandled it and damaged their reputation, anyone with Uchiha blood flowing outside the village, like Kiyoshi, would only steer clear of the Hidden Leaf.
The Uchiha clan didn't want to take that gamble.
As for the Hidden Cloud, there was no need to say more. They only wanted to firmly control the Uchiha's Bloodline, strengthen the Hidden Cloud's power, and treat him as a stud.
There would only be endless exploitation.
The Jin no Sho and other official data books stated that the Hidden Cloud was a clan-like organization, similar to a mafia.
And they advocated for... military expansion.
Kiyoshi rubbed the edge of the scroll, his thumb touching the rough texture of the paper.
Looking at Samui's figure, a hint of dark meaning crossed his eyes.
If that was the case, it was perfectly reasonable for him to use some small methods to gain more benefits.
***
For the next consecutive days, Kiyoshi maintained a three-point lifestyle, the Ninja Academy, training after school, and going home.
Until the sixth day, Kiyoshi came to the sushi shop again.
"Guest... are you here for the Squid Sushi?" Samui asked.
But Kiyoshi did not give the same answer as last time.
"Miss Samui, you wouldn't want me to cause trouble between you and the Hidden Cloud, would you?"
***
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