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Ken followed Fugaku as they left.
He glanced back at Itachi Uchiha, who stood in the training ground looking utterly dejected. The sight stirred up complicated feelings in his chest.
A prodigy.The pride of the clan.
And yet… defeated by him.
Anyone would take that badly.
Ken shifted his gaze to Fugaku Uchiha. As if sensing it, Fugaku spoke without even turning around.
"Itachi's mature. He knows how to manage his emotions. But this loss hit him hard. Let him process it first."
Fugaku paused for a moment, then shook his head slightly, his expression firming up again.
He believed Itachi would overcome this.
"As for your spar," Fugaku continued, "I watched it closely. You won for three reasons. First, your physical strength. Second, your reflexes and coordination. Third… your natural combat instinct."
As an elite jonin, Fugaku had a sharp eye. He'd already seen through both boys' strengths and weaknesses during the fight.
"Itachi's really strong," Ken said with a small smile, keeping his tone modest. "I just got lucky."
Fugaku's brows eased a little at that.
After all, denying Itachi's strength was no different from denying him.
The two walked through the Uchiha district. Members of the police force greeted Fugaku as they passed, and he acknowledged them with slight nods.
Ten minutes later, after weaving through a series of narrow alleys, they arrived in front of a hidden building.
The security here was noticeably tighter.
Patrols moved through the area. Guards stood watch at a heavy iron gate.
"Captain!"
A guard at the entrance quickly stood and saluted when he saw Fugaku. His gaze flicked to Ken, surprise flashing across his face.
In his memory, Fugaku had only ever brought Itachi here.
Who was this kid?
Still, as a member of the police force, he knew better than to ask unnecessary questions.
"Open the door," Fugaku ordered.
"Yes, sir!"
The iron gate creaked open.
They stepped inside.
A dusty, ancient smell rushed out to meet them.
"Uncle Fugaku, where is this?" Ken asked, looking around curiously.
Fugaku didn't slow down as he headed for the stairs. "This is where the Uchiha store their clan's ninjutsu. Very few people in the clan even know about it. Konoha certainly doesn't."
Ninjutsu was the foundation of a clan.
Which was exactly why this place was so heavily guarded.
In the entire Uchiha clan, fewer than three people had permission to enter.
The old wooden stairs creaked underfoot as they climbed. After pushing open a door, Ken found himself staring at rows upon rows of scrolls and books. It was overwhelming.
Fugaku spoke with a hint of pride.
"These are all the techniques the Uchiha have collected since the founding of Konoha. Over a thousand in total. Fire, water, lightning, earth, wind… even genjutsu."
"First, we'll test your chakra nature."
He opened a cabinet and took out five sheets of chakra paper, each a different color.
Most shinobi only had one chakra nature.
By the time they reached jonin level, they might develop two or more.
Take Naruto Uzumaki, for example. Early on, he was found to have wind-nature chakra, which he later combined with the Rasengan to create the Wind Release: Rasenshuriken. That technique even took down Kakuzu during their fight.
Then there was Hiruzen Sarutobi, who possessed all five chakra natures. A true prodigy.
His political skills might have been questionable, but his strength was undeniable.
Ken was curious too.
Just how many chakra natures did he have?
Fugaku explained, "Wind splits the paper. Lightning wrinkles it. Fire burns it. Earth turns it to dust. Water makes it wet. Let's see what you've got."
"Alright." Ken nodded.
He took the fire-nature paper into his palm and focused.
Suddenly—
It ignited.
"Hot, hot!" He quickly tossed the burning paper to the floor and stomped it out.
If he set this place on fire, Fugaku definitely wouldn't let him off easy.
"Fire nature," Fugaku said calmly.
No surprise there.
The Uchiha were naturally aligned with fire. Most of them had fire-nature chakra.
Next came wind.
Ken clenched his hand.
The paper split cleanly in two.
"Wind as well?" Fugaku's tone shifted, a hint of surprise creeping in.
Wind chakra had incredible cutting power. And when combined with fire…
The destructive potential skyrocketed.
Then came the rest.
And what followed completely stunned Fugaku.
The lightning paper wrinkled.
The earth paper crumbled.
The water paper grew damp.
Fire. Wind. Lightning. Earth. Water.
All five.
Fugaku's eyes widened. His mouth opened slightly, but no words came out.
He rubbed his eyes, almost doubting what he'd just seen.
"You… have all five chakra natures?"
"Looks like it…" Ken replied, not entirely sure himself.
For all he knew, the paper might've just been old and unreliable.
To be certain, Fugaku had him test again.
Same result.
All five.
"My god… unbelievable…" Fugaku muttered.
The Uchiha clan had a long history.
Yet geniuses with all five chakra natures were almost unheard of.
As far as he knew, only their ancestor, Madara Uchiha, had ever achieved that.
And now…
Ken was the second.
It took Fugaku several seconds to steady himself before speaking again.
"You're still young. Unless your life is in danger, don't reveal any chakra nature other than fire."
Konoha wasn't as peaceful as it seemed.
The major clans were constantly competing behind the scenes.
The tallest tree catches the strongest wind.
Ken needed time to grow.
At the very least, he had to reach jonin level before he could truly protect himself.
"I understand." Ken nodded.
Standing out too much only invited envy.
Considering his age, and the fact that learning too many techniques at once would backfire, Fugaku suggested he start with two C-rank jutsu. Something like the Great Fireball Technique and a wind-style technique.
The reason Fugaku still insisted on wind…
Was so that, at a critical moment, Ken could combine wind and fire—
And create a trump card of his own.
It was a solid suggestion.
But Ken had other thoughts.
"Uncle Fugaku… I want to learn a genjutsu."
Fugaku hesitated for a moment. "Genjutsu reaches its full potential only with the Sharingan. You haven't—"
He stopped mid-sentence.
Because Ken's eyes had already turned crimson.
A single tomoe slowly spun into existence.
"Uncle Fugaku… can I learn genjutsu now?"
Fugaku was stunned all over again.
"....."