As long as one graduates from the ninja academy and becomes a full-fledged ninja, they are eligible to participate in the gatherings. It is said that these gatherings discuss matters concerning the future of the Uchiha clan.
"Those outsiders lately—so annoying, spreading nonsense about us Uchihas everywhere."
Uchiha Tekka reached out to touch the white pigeon on Shimizu's shoulder, but it dodged deftly, leaving him to awkwardly scratch his nose.
"Shimizu, your ninja beast is pretty wary of strangers."
"Coo!"
The white pigeon perched on Shimizu's head, seemingly unwilling to interact with the foolish-looking Uchiha Tekka.
"Don't mind the rumors from outsiders. Just focus on doing what needs to be done," Shimizu said calmly.
Wherever he went, he often felt the weight of unusual gazes.
The Konoha Police Force naturally offended people in its line of work, so estrangement from other ninja clans was quite normal.
This planted the seeds of resentment, and with Danzo's constant scheming, the Uchihas' situation was becoming increasingly precarious.
"By the way, let's compete in shuriken throwing. I can now hit the target with six shurikens in one throw!" Uchiha Tekka boasted, his confident expression matched by the twitch of the mole on his brow.
"Oh." Shimizu nodded, exchanged a few pleasantries, and left.
He still needed to continue his training.
Shimizu's Backyard
A series of clashing sounds echoed in the courtyard as kunai struck the targets.
The white pigeon stood on the table, pecking at a chicken leg on the plate while curiously watching Shimizu train.
Being a ninja beast, it possessed chakra within its body.
Unlike ordinary animals, it could consume more than grains and beans; it could digest meat as well.
Its digestive system quickly converted the meat into chakra, circulating within its body.
Compared to humans, this amount of chakra was minuscule, insufficient to perform any jutsu.
At most, it could temporarily enhance its physical body using chakra, and the pigeon did just that.
Shimizu's plan for the pigeon was to use it for gathering intelligence.
Currently, there was no one worth spying on, so the pigeon lazed around Shimizu's home every day.
"Coo."
The pigeon pecked off a small piece of meat and swallowed it, its eyes reflecting Shimizu's figure.
Shimizu closed his eyes, bent his knees, and leapt into the air.
While airborne, his body twisted left and right.
Eleven streaks of silver light shot toward the six targets in the courtyard.
As Shimizu landed, crisp impacts resounded around him.
The targets hanging from the cedar trees were all struck dead center by kunai, without exception.
Each target was densely packed with seven kunai, all overlapping in the bullseye area.
In total, Shimizu had thrown forty-two kunai, all of which hit their marks.
This was the Uchiha clan's shuriken throwing technique.
The ninja academy only taught the most basic forms of shuriken throwing. To advance further, one had to rely on their clan.
Every Uchiha ninja could access the clan's jutsu library.
Access to higher-level jutsu depended on one's contributions to the clan.
Academy students could only learn E to C-rank jutsu, one at a time, and had to prove mastery before moving on to the next.
These restrictions were to prevent careless misuse of jutsu and to avoid injuries caused by overestimating one's abilities.
Some ambitious clansmen wasted significant time trying to learn C-rank jutsu right from the start.
Others who started with lower-ranked jutsu mastered several within the same period.
That said, a ninja's energy was limited. Greater proficiency and deeper understanding of a jutsu enhanced its power, so most ninjas preferred to specialize in a few techniques.
Shimizu was currently practicing the Uchiha shuriken throwing technique, something every Uchiha academy student learned.
The advanced form of this technique was the Manipulated Shuriken Technique.
This involved attaching durable and elastic wires to kunai, allowing them to attack a target and be retrieved afterward.
"I've improved a lot recently," Shimizu mused.
He considered testing his chakra nature soon and selecting a new jutsu to practice.
Additionally, he planned to buy a D-rank medical jutsu scroll to avoid attracting unnecessary attention.
The Uchiha clan naturally leaned toward fire, and most members favored Fire Release jutsu. Testing for other chakra natures required deliberate effort.
Before obtaining the simulator 20 days ago, Shimizu could only hit seven targets at once with intense training.
Even Itachi, a prodigy, could hit eight targets at the age of five without formal training.
If Shimizu continued on his original path, it would be difficult to surpass Itachi in a short time.
Traditional methods like advanced jutsu, sage arts, the Eight Gates, or genetic enhancements required significant time investment—time Shimizu didn't have.
With the simulator, his physical abilities had improved significantly.
Each successful kunai throw represented progress in reaction speed, dynamic vision, and overall coordination.
Shimizu retrieved the kunai and prepared for another round of training.
He decided to test the effects of activating his Sharingan.
One week later, Konoha's streets were bustling with activity.
To avoid unnecessary encounters, Shimizu had been keeping his distance from Yūhi Kurenai for the past week, fearing she might complain to her father.
Whenever he had free time, he visited Yakushi Nono, always bringing small gifts like an apple or a banana to show his sincerity.
"Is that Minato Namikaze?"
Approaching the Konoha hospital, Shimizu spotted a figure.
With spiky blond hair, long sideburns, and a gentle expression, the man wore a green ninja vest, the blue high collar of his outfit visible at the neckline.
Minato was speaking to a dark-skinned, stocky ninja, his appearance dusty from battle.
"No wonder Minato Namikaze has been absent this past month. He must have been out on a mission," Shimizu thought to himself.
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