Happy moments never last long.
After spending the day exploring Konoha with Uzumaki Kushina, the sky had already darkened. Reluctantly sending Kushina back to the mansion, Shiranui Riku made his way alone to Orochimaru's underground base.
He hadn't returned home for quite a while now, and he imagined it must be covered in dust. Cleaning the place just to spend a night there seemed like a hassle. It was simpler to head back to the base.
As Riku walked along the quiet path, his mind wandered to the conversation he'd had earlier with Uzumaki Mito.
He could tell that Mito genuinely saw him as a younger member of her family, like a junior. But Riku couldn't bring himself to see her as a true elder. No matter how deeply she loved Kushina, it didn't erase the fact that she was prepared to sacrifice Kushina for the sake of Konoha.
And there was another problem—Mito's ability to sense malice. She could easily tell when someone was lying. That made her particularly difficult for Riku to deal with.
Was there any way to deceive Uzumaki Mito?He played the possibilities over in his mind, trying to come up with countermeasures.
Just as Riku was lost in thought, two figures stepped into his path.
His eyes narrowed as he saw the emblem of the Uchiha clan on their backs.
"Well, well, who do we have here? Isn't this Uchiha Riku?"
"Uchiha Riku? Don't make me laugh. He's not even really an Uchiha. Just some bastard child."
"Hahaha! You're right—I almost forgot!"
The two Uchiha laughed mockingly, their words laced with scorn.
Riku's face turned cold. He didn't want to engage with them, so he tried to walk around.
But the two moved in to block his way.
"What's the rush? Did we hit a nerve, bastard?"
"Afraid we're telling the truth?"
Riku's voice dropped an octave, dark and clear. "Get out of my way."
Hearing that, they laughed harder.
The one in front, Uchiha Yuto, reached out to shove Riku.
Without hesitation, Riku grabbed his wrist.
Yuto was older, but Riku's intense training made him much stronger. As he began to apply pressure, Yuto's expression contorted with pain.
"Let go! Damn it, let go!"
Riku said nothing. He tightened his grip.
Seeing the situation escalate, the other boy—Uchiha Kazuma—rushed in from behind and swung a punch at Riku's head.
Without turning around, Riku kicked backward, his heel landing square in Kazuma's stomach and launching him off his feet.
Yuto's wrist was still in Riku's iron grip.
Riku's eyes lowered, not even looking at Yuto's face. "So... will you get out of my way now?"
Yuto snarled through clenched teeth. Despite the searing pain in his wrist, his pride kept him defiant.
"You're just some reject from the Uchiha. A disgrace. And you dare talk to me like that? Go to hell!"
Yuto yanked a kunai from his belt and aimed it straight at Riku's head.
"Too slow."
Riku tilted his head slightly, and the blade sliced nothing but air.
Before Yuto could even react, Riku kneed him hard in the gut.
"Guh—!"
Yuto's eyes nearly bulged from the blow, and his kunai clattered to the ground.
Riku didn't stop. Still gripping Yuto's wrist, he drove an elbow into his forehead.
Dazed, Yuto stumbled back and collapsed.
"Yuto!"
Kazuma scrambled up to help his friend.
Blood dripped from Yuto's lip. He wiped it away and growled, "Kazuma, we're doing this together—teach that bastard a lesson!"
With that, he hurled a handful of shuriken at Riku.
In one fluid motion, Riku drew the katana from his hip. The blade shimmered, and in a single slash, every shuriken was knocked aside.
The two Uchiha drew their kunai and charged him.
But in the blink of an eye, Riku vanished.
"Wh—what was that?! Teleportation?!"
"Where'd he go?!"
Then, a voice—low and cold—spoke from behind them.
"It's not teleportation. Just speed. I told you... you're too slow."
Riku swung the back of his katana across Yuto's right arm, the one holding the kunai.
Crack.Yuto's arm bent at an unnatural angle.
"AAAHHHH!"
He collapsed, writhing and clutching his mangled arm.
Before Kazuma could react, Riku seized his right arm and kicked the back of his leg, forcing him to kneel.
Riku planted a foot on Kazuma's back and twisted his arm.
His voice was calm—eerily calm. "One of Konoha's rules is to never attack your comrades. You two made the first move... and you used kunai. So if I break an arm from each of you in self-defense, that's fair, right?"
Kazuma trembled under Riku's grip. "N-no... please... don't!"
But Riku didn't listen. With one brutal motion, he snapped Kazuma's arm.
Crack.
Kazuma screamed, rolling on the ground beside Yuto, both clutching their broken limbs.
Riku looked down at them with cold detachment. "You Uchiha are pathetically weak."
Yuto, still writhing in pain, shot him a murderous glare. "You'll pay for this! The Uchiha clan won't let you go!"
Riku scoffed. "You two are already sixteen or seventeen, and you still haven't awakened your Sharingan? Even after I broke your arms?"
He paused, then sneered. "If the entire Uchiha clan is like you... I'm not exactly trembling in fear."
Their faces flushed with shame—but then their expressions turned to shock.
Because Riku opened his eyes—and revealed his own Sharingan. The scarlet glow pierced the dim street like a warning.
"To be honest," Riku said, smiling faintly, "the Sharingan is pretty damn useful."
As he turned to leave, he suddenly stopped and looked back.
"Oh, right. You two work for the Konoha Military Police, don't you? Always so eager to press charges and uphold the law."
His smile turned into a smirk.
"Well then—go ahead. I'm waiting. If you want to report me, come find me at Orochimaru's base. Don't pretend you don't know who he is. Ask around—everyone knows."
Yuto and Kazuma froze. Of course they knew who Orochimaru was—one of the Legendary Sannin of Konoha.
They hadn't just lost to someone with a Sharingan. They'd picked a fight with Orochimaru's disciple.
As Riku walked away, he tossed a parting insult over his shoulder.
"Idiots."
And then he disappeared into the night.