Konoha Drunkard

"Bai went to a barbecue with his classmates, Naruto. What happened to you? Did you get into another fight? Come here, Auntie will rub some medicated wine on you." Mizuki Kawaka was already used to it. In the past six months, Naruto had come almost every two days, and every time he came to see Bai, he had a bruised and swollen face.

Moreover, the news of his affair with the Second Prince of the Uchiha clan had spread throughout the village. Even Minazuki Kawaka, who rarely went out, had heard the Uzumaki clan members talking about it.

"No need, this little injury will heal in a bit. Brother Bai isn't here, I'll come find him tomorrow. I'll head back now, goodbye Aunt Chuanxiang."

Naruto is very polite to gentle people, but he never gives them any face if it's someone like Shanks who teases him all the time. He'll argue back without hesitation and never backs down.

..........

"Naruto, you should just give up. Grandpa said your ninjutsu talent is no good. No matter how much you practice, you can't beat Sasuke. My dad said Sasuke started training hard when he was three. You've always been inconsistent, which is useless. You should just focus on practicing taijutsu first. Taijutsu is the foundation." In the Nara clan, Shikaku said helplessly to Naruto, who had a bruised and swollen face, while flipping through the Ninjutsu manual.

That's right! Unable to find his older brother Bai, Naruto ran to Shikaku and asked him to help him find out what powerful ninjutsu he could learn. He'd work hard tonight and get revenge tomorrow. Now, his feud with Sasuke has little to do with girls anymore. Although the trigger was a girl, it has now evolved into a matter of male pride.

"How could that be! That bastard Sasuke's taijutsu is no match for mine. I was defeated by his ninjutsu. Quickly find me some powerful ninjutsu. I'll learn it tonight and get my revenge tomorrow!"

Naruto said impatiently, because his amazing vitality and recovery ability gave him the illusion that he and Sasuke were evenly matched in taijutsu. Anyway, every time he hadn't even warmed up, Sasuke was already covered in sweat. In the end, he was always beaten up because Sasuke used despicable methods like the Shadow Clone Technique.

"Besides secret techniques, these are all the other ninjutsu I have at home. They were all given to my mom by others. None of them are ones you can learn right now," Xiao Lu Jiu said lazily.

The ninjutsu techniques his family possessed were gifts from his parents when they got married. The lowest rank among them was B-rank, far beyond what a four-year-old could possibly learn. And with Naruto's talent... someone who can't even master a simple transformation jutsu, now expecting him to learn B-rank ninjutsu... is this for his own good or just making things difficult for himself?

"Ugh! My perfectly good day has been ruined like this. Women are such a hassle..." Xiaolu thought listlessly as she flipped through the Ninja Technique Encyclopedia.

"Is there a powerful and easy-to-learn move, Shikaku? I can't lose again, even just one win would be great!" Naruto looked earnestly at Shikaku. He'd really lost terribly in the past six months; as the Hokage's son, he hadn't won a single fight. His father used to have a hard time losing even once, but for him, winning was as difficult as ascending to heaven.

Getting beaten up by Erzhuzi every day is bad enough, at least it doesn't hurt. But when he gets home, he gets beaten up by his mother, and his mother's beatings are really deadly.

"...How could such a ninjutsu exist?" Shikaku rolled his eyes.

"Does Haku have his Ice Release technique? I think it's easy for me to meet him." Naruto still couldn't forget Haku's beautiful Ice Release. He always believed that Haku was so popular and loved by both men and women because of his beautiful Ice Release technique.

"...That white thing is the bloodline boundary. How could I have it here? And even if I did, you wouldn't be able to learn it. It was passed down from the ancestors of the white clan. It's like the whirlpool clan, which is innate. It's just that they need to awaken it, while the whirlpool clan doesn't," Xiao Lu Jiu explained helplessly.

"Bloodline Limit? What's that?" Naruto was hearing the term "bloodline limit" for the first time and found it quite novel.

"...Chakra is generally divided into five attributes: fire, earth, wind, lightning, and water. Some people only have one attribute, while others are born with two. When someone perfectly combines two attributes, a new attribute is formed, and that person's bloodline possesses the chakra of that new attribute. This bloodline can be passed down to future generations, hence the term 'bloodline limit.' Haku's ancestor perfectly combined water and wind chakra to create Ice Release, and he inherited this bloodline limit..." Shikaku explained helplessly to Naruto.

"So that means all you need to do is combine the water and wind chakra?" Naruto looked like he understood.

"...It's not as simple as you think. The Third Hokage was born with all five elemental attributes but still couldn't create a bloodline limit. Do you know how difficult that is? The Third Hokage was a ninja doctor who was proficient in all five elemental ninjutsu." Shikaku rolled his eyes and gave Naruto some background information so he wouldn't embarrass himself later.

"Is that perverted old man really that powerful? I thought he was just a perverted old man who spent all day spying with a crystal ball," Naruto said in surprise.

"...Your father is also proficient in both water and wind elemental ninjutsu. Isn't he also trying to create a bloodline limit? Bloodline limits are too difficult to create, and there are only a few bloodline limits in the ninja world," said Shikaku.

"Dad's too weak, he can't even beat my mom, how could he possibly have done this?" Naruto thought of Minato's always timid and submissive manner in front of Kushina and said with disdain.

Little Deer looked up at the sky helplessly. The famous "Yellow Flash" of the ninja world was just a cowardly henpecked husband in front of Naruto.

However... it seems like my maternal grandfather is also afraid of my maternal grandmother. I guess powerful people are all afraid of their wives...

"Shikaku, Naruto, what are you doing? Come and have some snacks." Big Mom, one of the Four Emperors, walked in carrying snacks.

"Aunt Lingling, do you know any ninjutsu that are easy to learn and powerful?" Naruto asked, picking up a piece of pastry and stuffing it into his mouth.

"This... I really don't know. Why are you asking this? You don't want to fight Sasuke again, do you? Aren't you afraid of getting beaten up by Kushina again?" Big Mom shook her head and laughed.

"This is a matter of a man's dignity, I won't give up, and one day I'll get my revenge," Naruto said, raising his little fist with a snack in his mouth.

"Then you'll have to work hard. Sasuke also worked hard since he was a child to get his strength. There's no use in trying to take shortcuts," said Big Mom.

"Hmm! I'll try harder after I beat him up. Auntie, please help me think of some powerful ninjutsu that I can learn." Naruto was still unwilling to give up; he wouldn't succeed without giving Sasuke a good beating!

536. No comparison, no harm.

"Young Master Itachi is back."

"Young Master Itachi."

"Young Master Itachi..."

Itachi, who had just finished his shift with the Anbu, walked along a path in Konoha. Villagers along the way greeted him from time to time. He was one of only two people in the Uchiha clan who could wear the Uchiha uniform without being feared or disliked by the villagers. The other was Uchiha Shisui.

Itachi had been running around the village with Shanks since he was a child. The villagers saw this young Uchiha clan leader every day and knew that he was different from other Uchiha clan members. He didn't have that arrogant aura of a dragon overlord. In addition, he was the disciple of the legendary ninja Shanks of their village, so they were very friendly to him.

"Haha! Young Master Itachi, I heard your brother fought Naruto again today, and Naruto got beaten up again. Your brother is quite the genius!" A middle-aged man laughed loudly, his tone devoid of any mockery. In the minds of ordinary people, Naruto, as the son of the Hokage, should be very powerful. How could he beat Naruto every time? What else could Itachi's brother be but a genius?

"Haha, it's just kids playing house, please excuse the silly thing."

That same phrase again...

Itachi was teased by his ANBU comrades almost every two or three days for saying this, and today was no exception.

He couldn't understand why his younger brother and Naruto seemed to be natural enemies, always fighting whenever they met. Every day when he returned to the clan, his younger brother would brag about how he beat Naruto up, and keep saying how weak Naruto was.

However, to be honest, Naruto is quite weak. He has only seen Naruto once or twice, and each time he saw Naruto, he would only catch a glimpse of him when Naruto was learning ninjutsu from Haku. If Naruto were practicing alone, outsiders might think that this kid's ninjutsu talent is... very ordinary.

However, Naruto always chooses Haku as his partner, and the comparison is striking. As the old saying goes, there is no harm without comparison. Compared to Haku, Naruto's ninjutsu talent is truly innate. Itachi was worried about his younger brother's ninjutsu talent, and although he always praised him for being amazing, his younger brother's ninjutsu talent was only slightly better than others, not at the level where he could learn it after seeing it once.

After witnessing Naruto learning ninjutsu, Itachi finally felt a bit better. His teacher was right: a powerful father doesn't necessarily mean a skilled son.

The Hokage, such an awesome being, not only mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, the most difficult technique in the ninja world, but also improved upon it, making it even more impressive than the Second Hokage's creation. His ninjutsu talent is top-tier among the best. However, his son Naruto, although possessing the Uzumaki clan's physique, with an innately vast amount of chakra and strong vitality, has truly pitiful ninjutsu talent. If it weren't for that rare tuft of golden hair on his head, one would suspect that Naruto was a free gift with a phone plan...

"elder brother!"

As soon as Itachi arrived at his doorstep, a handsome little boy rushed up to him, covered in sweat.

"Is Sasuke still training? He's really working hard." Itachi patted his younger brother's sweaty head and laughed.

"I have mastered the Fireball Technique."

Erzhuzi said smugly.

"Really? Sasuke is amazing. I heard you beat up Naruto again today?"

Itachi laughed.

"Of course! That weakling is too weak, he's just tough enough to take a beating."

Upon hearing Naruto's name, Sasuke immediately adopted a disdainful expression. He had been fighting that guy for over half a year, and the guy hadn't improved at all. If his mother hadn't told him not to go too hard, he would have beaten that annoying guy into the hospital.

"Sasuke is amazing. Go take a shower first. I need to see Father about something." Itachi gave his father a look as he left the room before going into the study.

.......

"Has the Hokage instructed you to keep an eye on the Root clan members during this time?"

As soon as Itachi entered the study, before he could even sit down, Fugaku Uchiha spoke up.

"This month, Zhishui is in charge; our team is only responsible for the outskirts of the village. Father, what happened to the Gen tribe?"

Itachi asked curiously.

"...Two days ago, the Second Elder discovered that many of the clansmen he had placed in Root had been cursed, and it wasn't just his people; the First Elder and Third Elder's people were also cursed. Moreover, this curse couldn't be forcibly removed, and those clansmen refused to say a word about Danzo." Fugaku Uchiha said with a serious expression. This concerned the very foundation of the Uchiha clan. Although the three old men didn't get along with him, he was still the clan head, and those people were his clansmen. How could he let this go unchecked?

The most important thing now is that those clansmen have been controlled by Danzo and no longer listen to the clan's orders. This is the key point. At this moment, he also understood what kind of wicked scheme Danzo had been plotting with the three old men all these years. Now it can be said that most of the Uchiha in Root have already taken the surname Shimura, but it was still a bit too late to realize it. In recent years, the three old men have been desperately stuffing people into Root, hoping to make Root change its surname. But they have tried to steal a chicken and lost the rice instead. Root doesn't take the surname Shimura, but the Uchiha are about to change their surname.

"What! How could this be! I observed this for so long with Shisui and I and never noticed it before."

Itachi realized things were getting serious. Although he didn't know how many clansmen the three elders had sent into Root over the years, he estimated that half of their forces were there. Now, most of those clansmen were under Danzo's control, which meant the Uchiha clan was now divided into three factions. What was worse, one group of leaders wasn't even from the Uchiha clan, but their henchmen were all Uchiha. This was an attempt to make them fight amongst themselves.

"Sigh! I knew Danzo had ill intentions from the beginning, but unfortunately, the three elders wouldn't listen to anything they said." Fugaku Uchiha clenched his fists tightly under the table, veins bulging. He really couldn't bring himself to harm his own clansmen, but if he didn't, the Uchiha clan might be finished. Going to Minato wouldn't help. Not to mention that the Uchiha's conflict with the village had been growing stronger in recent years, if it weren't for his eldest son and Shisui maintaining order, either the Uchiha would have to leave Konoha, or Konoha would have wiped out the Uchiha clan. Neither of those paths was something he wanted to see. Who would want to be a wealthy clan in Konoha, the largest village, and run off to a remote mountain village to be a nouveau riche?

Going to other large villages is not a realistic option. No clan would want to see the powerful Uchiha clan come to seize power and profit. At the same time, with so many clan members in Danzo's hands, he doesn't want another Uchiha branch family to emerge in ten years or so.

537. Young man, you're still too green.

"What did the three elders say?"

Itachi quickly calmed down. A terrible thought had involuntarily crossed his mind, but he quickly suppressed it. After all, he was the young head of the clan and the future heir; how could he lay a hand on his own clansmen?

"......Why!"

Fugaku Uchiha shook his head and remained silent. Yesterday, the three old men came to him not only to tell him about this matter, but also because they had made up their minds to rebel against Konoha. After all, Danzo had crossed the line of rebellion against the Uchiha. In the past, it was fine if they occasionally took down a few people, since the Uchiha had a lot of people and didn't need to worry about a few more. But this time, Danzo's actions were too outrageous and he had gone too far. If they didn't rebel after this, they could stop calling themselves the number one clan in the ninja world and become more like the number one coward in the ninja world.

Fugaku Uchiha shared similar thoughts. Although he didn't want the village to reach this point, it was the reality. If he forced the clan head to back down further, his conscience would be tormented. However, his disagreement with the three elders lay in their desire to rebel and reclaim the glory that belonged to the Uchiha. The Uchiha and Senju had built Konoha together, but while the Senju had produced two Hokage, the Uchiha had become increasingly marginalized. In every one of the three Shinobi World Wars, the Uchiha had suffered the greatest losses, yet in the end...? Not only did they fail to obtain anything, but they also suffered occasional setbacks at the hands of Danzo. They had tolerated the village's past strength, but things were different now. The Konoha's Shanks and White Fang were old, the Third Hokage was old, and the village only had Minato Namikaze and Tsunade. Meanwhile, their Uchiha clan leader was in his prime, possessing the Mangekyou Sharingan. Itachi, though not yet awakened, was still a top-tier Jonin. As for Shisui… well, even if he didn't help the clan, he might not help the village either. Given the Uchiha's current strength, they could have put up a fight!

Fugaku Uchiha's plan was to lead his clan away from Konoha. He wasn't like those three old fools who knew nothing. Although Shanks and White Fang were old, Fugaku, having witnessed their power, wasn't sure he could handle them now. Especially Shanks, who had claimed to be old years ago, yet still managed to send the Nine-Tails flying. Who knew how much strength he still possessed, especially that terrifying aura? The aura Shanks unleashed against tens of thousands of Iwa ninja during World War II was still chilling to think about. Those who hadn't experienced that war could never understand the helplessness in the face of such an aura. Therefore, Fugaku had no intention of fighting Konoha. Perhaps Shanks would spare them from interfering because of his eldest son, since everyone knew Shanks was a sentimental person... especially since he loved his eldest son so much.

However, these are all final plans. The most important thing now is to resolve the issue of the clansmen being controlled by Danzo. Otherwise, they will be unable to go anywhere and will only be able to oppose the village.

Thinking about all this, Fugaku Uchiha couldn't help but feel a little lost. He and his brother Haru Uchiha had worked together for more than ten years, and in the end, his brother died. He continued to work hard, but in the end, he still couldn't overcome Danzo's methods.

........

Itachi emerged from the study in a daze. His father shook his head, not revealing the three elders' plans, but Itachi already guessed what the outcome would be. Torn between the village and his clan, eleven-year-old Itachi was at a loss for what to do.

"Why are you here all alone? Shouldn't you be playing house with your precious little brother right now?" Unbeknownst to him, Itachi had left the clan's territory and arrived at the Hokage Rock, where he ran into Shanks, who had just finished shoving Hashirama Senju's head and was on his way home.

"Teacher, if it were you, what would you choose?" Itachi looked forlornly at the village below the Hokage Rock. It was already dark, but the village was brightly lit everywhere.

"...That depends on you. Life is about making choices, just like playing a game. But you can start over in a game, not in life. What's wrong? Heartbroken? No way, my disciple Shanks is a total heartthrob. What girl was so blind to you? Tell me." Shanks was bewildered by his precious disciple's abrupt words, but to maintain his lofty image in his disciple's eyes, he forced out this sentence.

"...The Second Elder discovered that most of the clansmen in the Root region had been controlled by Danzo's cursed seal..."

Itachi didn't hide anything from Shanks, except that he didn't tell him about the three old guys' plans.

"Sigh! Where there are people, there is conflict; where there are people, there is a strife. Your three old geezers, out of greed, handed over their heads to Danzo. Danzo, out of selfishness, accepted them all. It was a willing fight between the two sides. That's why I said you're not suited to be a ninja. Go find Minato, hand over your ninja headband, return your Uchiha uniform to your father, and obediently stay by my side to help me retire. Wouldn't that be better? After I die, you can inherit my fortune and become a big tycoon." Shanks pinched Itachi's cheek. Sure enough, he'd grown up; he'd lost some collagen, and it didn't feel as good as before.

"........."

Itachi looked down at the brightly lit village and didn't bother with any more pleasantries. "Damn it," he thought, "Is this body something I can just shed? My blood runs Uchiha." He was right not to ask Itachi for advice in the first place; not a single word he said was relevant.

"Alright, stop overthinking. There's a saying that life is like... well, you can't fight it, so you just have to close your eyes and endure it. Just bear with it, and it'll pass. Aren't ninjas the most capable of enduring? Besides, look at the ninja world, people die every day, it's just that it's not your relatives or friends who die, so you don't care. But that day will come eventually, and all we can do is face it. It's the same with your Uchiha clan. Look at the villagers in the village, besides you and Shisui, who else from your Uchiha clan has ever greeted you? Basically, no one. Although the Uchiha clan is one of the two great founders of Konoha, you've seen the attitude of your clansmen towards the villagers over the years. To be honest, when..."年你小的时候我就非常喜欢你，可是我却对宇智波向来都没有什么好感，毕竟当年我跟晴子大人很小的时候，晴子大人就差点被你们宇智波的三个王八蛋给揍了，所以当初到底要不要收你当弟子我也矛盾了很久，不过后来我想了想，虽然你是宇智波一族的人，但是宇智波代表不了是你，就像宇智波镜，宇智波春，止水他们一样，虽然他们都是宇智波的人，可是他们对村子的爱要大过对家族的爱，少年，你还太嫩了，等你经历多了，不用我说你也能想通。”香克斯拍拍宝贝弟子的肩膀.

538. Soy sauce customers are very annoyed.

Itachi nodded as if he understood, though he was a super genius with a mature mind. However, maturity has its limits. Naturally, he didn't understand family, national, or world affairs as deeply as Shanks, who had lived for decades. He only understood what Shisui and his father and grandfather said about how their grandfather loved the village more than his family. He didn't know whether he loved the village more or his family more.

This is also why he had difficulty making a decision. If Shisui were in this situation, he would have no choice at all. Although Danzo's actions were outrageous, the Uchiha clan was no better. Based on the general idea, Shisui would definitely choose the village, at least to keep the village stable.

As for Danzo... there will always be opportunities in the future. A ninja who can't even endure is no good. At worst, we can just take out his corpse and whip it after he dies...

"Alright, I've been in philosophy class all night and haven't had dinner yet. Come home with me for dinner. With your rigid father's rules, he probably won't wait for you to come home for dinner." Shanks said, pulling Itachi down from the Hokage Rock.

...........

While Shanks was taking Itachi home for dinner, the Hokage's office was far from peaceful.

In the Hokage's office, the four great leaders of Konoha, plus Minato and the Sky Piercer, were all gathered together for this very reason.

As for the fact that Danzo controlled the Uchiha members in Root, they all knew about it. After all, it was Danzo who tricked the three Uchiha Tanuki back then. Although the upright Minato was very resistant to this method, the things he dealt with and the methods he used when he was in charge were completely different from when he was a henchman.