Chapter 439: The Cold-Hearted Uchiha

After recovering from his injuries, since Obito and the others had already returned to Konoha, Mu Yue assigned Shisui to a new team.

Shisui had no objection to this; with his current strength, he was indeed not capable of operating alone on the battlefield.

"You must be Uchiha Shisui, who is joining our team. My name is Takagi Shinji, the captain of this team. My ninja rank is Tokubetsu Jonin, and I specialize in Fire Release," said Takagi Shinji, taking the initiative to introduce himself upon seeing Shisui's arrival.

Even though Shisui was only temporarily joining, self-introduction was an indispensable step.

This wasn't for the sake of formality; it was so that they could have a basic understanding of each other to make combat easier on the battlefield.

Even if they couldn't achieve perfect cooperation, they shouldn't negatively affect each other.

Upon hearing that it was Uchiha Shisui, Takagi Shinji's several disciples looked at him with curiosity; this name had been ringing in their ears recently.

Even the Konoha ninjas in the rear knew about Kakashi and the others' battle achievements, so Takagi Shinji's disciples, who were on the battlefield where the encounter took place, naturally knew even more.

The entire battlefield's Konoha ninjas had come to know of Mu Yue's power and the genius of Kakashi and his team.

"So small, truly eight years old. How exactly did he train to have the strength to fight the Seven Ninja Swordsmen at the age of eight?"

"Could it be that the Seven Ninja Swordsmen aren't actually as strong as legend says? This Uchiha Shisui doesn't look very strong either."

Takagi Shinji's disciples couldn't help but mutter inwardly upon seeing Shisui.

Because Shisui didn't seem to have anything particularly special about him; he gave the impression of being a rather quiet child.

"I am Uchiha Shisui, ninja rank is Chunin. I specialize in Fire Release and Genjutsu." After Takagi Shinji finished his self-introduction, Shisui immediately introduced himself as well, briefly revealing the ninjutsu he was skilled in.

Takagi Shinji nodded, then looked at his three disciples.

"I am Kobayashi Kenji, ninja rank is Chunin. I can use Wind Release ninjutsu."

"My name is Uesugi Toru, ninja rank is Chunin. I specialize in Fire Release ninjutsu."

"I am Miyashita Yuki, ninja rank is Chunin. I can use some basic medical ninjutsu."

Takagi Shinji's disciples responded in turn.

"In order to better arrange tactics when carrying out missions, I need to use a practice battle to understand your abilities. However, we have a mission later, so we'll stop at a light touch," Takagi Shinji said after thinking it over.

Under normal circumstances, Takagi Shinji would definitely let his disciples test him, but since this was the recently renowned Uchiha genius, Takagi Shinji chose to show respect by going himself.

Not to mention, Takagi Shinji really wasn't confident he could defeat Shisui. After all, even eight of him would only have the option to flee if they encountered the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, but Shisui and his team had won.

"Please instruct me," Shisui nodded in agreement. This was also his idea.

"Teacher Shinji, let me do it. If you watch from the side, you'll be able to observe more carefully," Uesugi Toru volunteered, stepping forward.

He was usually the best in the team, and he wanted to fight Shisui to see the gap between himself and a true genius.

"Even if he started training at age three, at most he's trained for five years. I've been a ninja for more than five years. I shouldn't lose too badly," Uesugi Toru thought to himself.

Uesugi Toru didn't have confidence in winning, but thought he could hold his own for a while.

"Are you sure?" Takagi Shinji did not agree.

Takagi Shinji knew very well what level Uesugi Toru was at. He was quite good among chunin, but that was it. He wasn't in the same league as a super genius like Shisui.

"Yeah, it's rare to encounter a genius like Shisui. I want to test my own level," Uesugi Toru explained.

"Then you go ahead." After thinking it over, Takagi Shinji agreed to Uesugi Toru's request.

He wanted to use Shisui's hand to knock some sense into this disciple who was getting a bit full of himself.

If he still had this mindset when carrying out a mission, he would easily die on the mission.

"Begin battle!"

With Takagi Shinji's command, both Shisui and Uesugi Toru moved.

Swish! Swish!

Uesugi Toru, while running, took shuriken from his ninja tool pouch and threw them at Shisui.

Shisui's expression didn't change at all; he likewise flung out shuriken.

Clang! Clang!

The two's shuriken collided with each other and fell to the ground together.

"Even his basic skills are far beyond ordinary people." Observing this, Takagi Shinji nodded inwardly.

On the surface, the exchange of shuriken appeared to be a draw, but Shisui had waited until Uesugi Toru had finished throwing before releasing his own shuriken. Even so, Shisui perfectly intercepted all of Uesugi Toru's shuriken, showing his exceptional skill in shuriken throwing.

Swoosh!

When only five meters away from Shisui, Uesugi Toru suddenly burst his chakra and used the Body Flicker technique to appear at Shisui's side, swinging a fist.

Shisui seemed to have anticipated this; he slightly turned his body and dodged the incoming fist.

The attack missed. Uesugi Toru immediately stepped back and kicked toward Shisui, but Shisui also happened to step back, causing Uesugi Toru's attack to miss again.

Uesugi Toru pushed his body to its limits in a continuous onslaught, yet he couldn't even touch a corner of Shisui's clothing.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

Seeing that taijutsu was ineffective, Uesugi Toru created distance and performed hand seals to use Fire Release.

"Teacher Muyue's jutsu." Shisui was a little surprised.

Earlier, when Muyue taught the nature transformation of properties, she developed five D-rank ninjutsu, and later she developed the corresponding upgraded C-rank ninjutsu. The Great Fireball Technique was one of them.

"Fire Release: Fireball Jutsu!"

Shisui also performed hand seals and used Fire Release, but to avoid injuring his teammate, he deliberately reduced his chakra usage to weaken the Fireball's power.

"So there is that much of a gap between me and a true genius." After seeing the might of the Fireball Shisui released, Uesugi Toru sighed inwardly.

He had been training in Fire Release for quite some time, and even before the fireballs collided, he could tell that Shisui's fireball was far stronger than his own.

Boom!!

The two fireballs collided, and Shisui's Fireball unsurprisingly swallowed Uesugi Toru's Great Fireball.

Although his fighting spirit had been nearly worn down, his discipline as a ninja still compelled Uesugi Toru to dodge.

Swoosh!

At that moment, Shisui, who had not been actively attacking, made his move. Holding a kunai, he used the Body Flicker technique and charged forward.

By the time Uesugi Toru reacted, the coldly gleaming kunai was already pressed against his neck.

"So fast." Uesugi Toru's pupils dilated, his face full of surprise.

He had thought he could last a bit longer; he didn't expect Shisui's Body Flicker to be that fast.

Shisui silently put away his kunai. This was a practice battle with the purpose of touching and stopping.

In fact, if Shisui had used his full strength, he could have instantly taken down Uesugi Toru from the start. However, to gauge his teammate's strength and to save face for his new teammate, Shisui sparred a few exchanges before getting serious.

"Toru, you were a bit overconfident." Kobayashi Kenji couldn't help but tease.

On the surface, it seemed they had a back-and-forth for a few exchanges, but in reality, as soon as Shisui actively attacked, Uesugi Toru instantly went down.

"His strength truly lives up to his reputation." Miyashita Yuki was amazed by the power Shisui displayed.

Hearing about it was still different from seeing it with one's own eyes. The scene of an eight-year-old child dominating a sixteen-year-old chunin was very impactful.

At that moment, Uesugi Toru did not respond to his teammate's teasing; his mind was filled with only one thought: "How the hell is he eight years old?"

He accepted that Shisui's Fire Release was stronger than his; after all, he was a genius, and ninjutsu indeed heavily relied on talent.

But Shisui's taijutsu was somewhat beyond reason; how could an eight-year-old's body have such physical strength?

"Did he start training in the womb?" Uesugi Toru couldn't help but think to himself.

Takagi Shinji's hand interrupted Uesugi Toru's thoughts.

"Now you know the strength of a true genius, don't you? You still have a long way to go." Takagi Shinji said, patting his somewhat arrogant disciple.

After saying that, Takagi Shinji looked at Shisui without waiting for Uesugi Toru's reply. "Shisui, do you want to rest before fighting, or start now? That guy's level is too low; you were probably holding back the whole time to avoid hurting him."

Uesugi Toru went down too quickly; Takagi Shinji had to personally step in to understand Shisui's abilities.

"Then let's start now." Shisui agreed.

Just now, Shisui had barely exerted any effort against Uesugi Toru, so naturally he didn't need to rest before the next fight.

Uesugi Toru rubbed his patted back, sighed, and walked to the side to spectate. After a battle, the only place that hurt was where his teacher had patted him afterward—that was something else.

"After all, the teacher is a Jonin. He shouldn't end up like me." Uesugi Tetsu speculated on the outcome of the battle in his heart.

A Special Jonin is still a Jonin, with a considerable gap from a Chunin. He believed that Takagi Shinji could force Shisui to use his true strength.

But then something unexpected happened to Uesugi Tetsu: the overall rhythm of the battle between Shisui and Takagi Shinji was almost no different from the previous fight.

In taijutsu, Takagi Shinji still couldn't gain any advantage over Shisui; in fact, he was beaten back step by step.

In Fire Release, Takagi Shinji was still suppressed by Shisui. When both used Fire Release simultaneously, in the end, Takagi Shinji's Fire Release was swallowed up by Shisui's.

Takagi Shinji's three disciples all watched this scene with shocked expressions.

Clashing with ninjutsu of the same nature can easily compare the strengths of both sides, because there is no counter relationship; the stronger will always defeat the weaker, without exception.

Takagi Shinji's loss in the ninjutsu clash proved that his training in Fire Release was inferior to Shisui's.

"Teacher Shinji actually..." Kobayashi Kenji stared wide-eyed at Takagi Shinji, whose back was soaked with sweat.

As their instructing teacher, Takagi Shinji was the Jonin they had the most contact with. Watching their own teacher being beaten until he was drenched in sweat by an eight-year-old child—the impact was simply overwhelming.

Luckily, Shisui kept in mind the rule of stopping at the right point. Feeling that he had learned enough, he voluntarily stopped the fight, which preserved what little face Takagi Shinji had left.

Whether it was from overexertion or the high temperature of Shisui's Fire Release, Takagi Shinji's face turned slightly red.

"Truly monstrous strength." Takagi Shinji let out a breath and thought.

Although he had thought Shisui would be strong, after actually crossing hands, Takagi Shinji was still astonished by Shisui's power. It was as if he was facing a genuine Jonin of considerable ability.

The battle-experienced Takagi Shinji could detect that Shisui had held back, because going all out would have injured him.

"Having such a powerful teammate is a good thing." Takagi Shinji comforted himself in his heart.

This was indeed a bit embarrassing. He had just lectured his disciples, only to be badly beaten himself when he stepped up.

And so, Shisui joined Takagi Shinji's squad and began a new mission career.

Although they were all teammates, Shisui could clearly feel that he had not integrated into the team's atmosphere. The three squad members all had a faint sense of distance from him.

Shisui hadn't experienced this feeling in a long time. He only had this sensation when he went out with the elders of the Uchiha clan in the past.

After entering the ninja academy, he spent most of his time training with Mu Yue, mostly staying with Mu Yue and Mu Yue's disciples, so naturally this kind of thing didn't happen.

This feeling made Shisui a bit uncomfortable, after all, he hadn't done anything harmful to the group.

Shisui roughly guessed the reason, but he couldn't be one hundred percent sure.

Subsequently, Shisui did not isolate himself from the entire team because of that faint sense of distance; he still remained himself.

During a somewhat dangerous mission, Shisui used his Sharingan to deal with an ambushing enemy, sparing Kobayashi Kenji and Miyashita Yuki from injury.

After this mission, that faint sense of distance disappeared.

"Shisui, I'm really grateful. If you hadn't acted quickly enough, we'd probably be lying in bed for a while," Kobayashi Kenji said gratefully.

"So it seems not all Uchiha are cold and unfeeling... tsk."

Miyashita Yuki smiled and elbowed the emotionally unintelligent Kobayashi Kenji, then said apologetically to Shisui, "Sorry, Kenji isn't good with words. Shisui, please don't take it to heart."

Through interaction, one could tell that Shisui wasn't a cold-hearted person, but from what Miyashita Yuki knew, Uchiha ninjas all had strong clan identity. She feared Shisui might be unhappy about it.

"I don't mind," Shisui shook his head and said.

If someone really spoke ill of the Uchiha clan without reason, Shisui would indeed be unhappy about it.

But was Kobayashi Kenji really speaking without reason? That wasn't necessarily certain.

Based on Shisui's understanding of his clansmen, there were indeed some who completely didn't care about those outside the Uchiha.

Obviously, Shisui had guessed correctly. The reason the squad didn't accept him immediately was not because he had defeated Uesugi Tetsu and Takagi Shinji, but because of his surname—Uchiha.

Because he was an Uchiha ninja temporarily joining the squad, the three squad members had a faint sense of distance from him at the very beginning.

Shisui even thought that squad leader Takagi Shinji might also have felt that way, but Takagi Shinji was older and thus able to hide it well.

"I must change the Uchiha clan's image among the Konoha public." After deep thought, Shisui understood the importance of a good reputation.

Not every Uchiha could, like Shisui, prove their true character through actions to improve relations.

Many Uchiha clan members had a pride of the strongest clan. If outsiders showed a sense of distance from the start, they would respond with an even stronger sense of distance.

Even if they realize that the other party has misunderstood, they would be too proud to bother explaining.