The old lady prepared to head home, but after lifting her foot, she found herself unsure where to go.
Looking somewhat lost, she murmured, "Where's my house? Why can't I remember?"
Uchiha Aozora quickly reassured her, saying, "It's okay. The roads in Konoha are indeed hard to memorize. It's perfectly normal to get lost."
"Why don't you try to recall—was there anything special near your home?"
Reassured by Aozora's words, the old lady calmed down and began slowly recalling.
"Something special? I remember a large Sophora tree near my house. Every autumn, its leaves fell like golden butterflies fluttering through the air. Saburo loved running around that tree when he was young."
"A Sophora tree? Let me ask around for you."
Saying so, Uchiha Aozora walked over to Sozu and Yuichi and shared his thoughts with them.
"Amnesia?" Sozu and Yuichi exchanged glances.
"Yes, exactly. As the name implies, someone with this illness easily forgets things. She might have already lost most of her memories, holding on to just a few precious ones," Aozora briefly explained.
"Because she's forgotten so much, her personality might've turned childlike. You can't reason with her logically—you need to indulge and comfort her.
Now, the old lady has agreed to return home, but forgotten exactly where it is. All she remembers is a big Sophora tree in front of the house.
Judging from her clean clothes, her family condition must be decent. Also, her son once attended the Ninja Academy. There shouldn't be too many places matching both conditions."
Uchiha Yuichi laughed out loud and said, "Good thinking, Aozora!"
Uchiha Sozu also looked at him approvingly. "Well done. Indeed, there aren't many such places. I remember there's a big Sophora tree in front of Chunin Kawakami Kazuhiro's house nearby."
"In that case, Brother Sozu, you lead the way. I'll just inform the old lady."
After saying a few words to the old lady, Aozora accompanied her while following Uchiha Sozu toward Chunin Kawakami Kazuhiro's residence.
With the old lady leaving the intersection, traffic started moving again.
Yet Aozora noticed the disappointed expressions on the bystanders' faces, gaining deeper understanding about the relationship between the Uchiha clan and the village.
They hadn't walked far when the trio bringing the old lady encountered Kawakami Ken who was searching for someone.
Kawakami Ken was startled, then hurried forward anxiously asking, "Officers from the police station, did my mother do something wrong?"
Coldly, Uchiha Sozu replied, "Your mother had a bout of amnesia and blocked the crossroads near the Academy, causing traffic disruption."
Upon hearing this, Kawakami immediately apologized, "I'm terribly sorry. I'll take my mother home right away."
Uchiha Sozu led Kawakami up to the elderly woman and said, "Granny, go home with your son now."
The old lady looked at Kawakami and said, "He isn't my son. Ken's only ten!"
Hearing this, Kawakami gave a bitter smile and said, "I was dispatched to the Hidden Cloud (Kumo) border recently, and upon returning, I discovered my mother could no longer recognize me."
Understandingly, Sozu handed the old lady over to him and added, "Now that your mother's lost her memory, you'll have to take good care of her from now on and make sure she doesn't cause any more trouble."
"Alright, thank you, esteemed members of the Police Force."
After thanking them, Kawakami Ken managed to coax and trick the old man until he finally led him away.
Watching the mother and son disappear into the distance, the three men genuinely felt happy. Uchiha Aozora, in particular, felt completely at peace, with a deep sense of joy coursing through him.
Because a new Droplet had appeared on the Heavenly Book.
While Aozora was still basking in his joy, Sozu shifted his gaze back from the retreating figures and said gratefully, "Aozora, we're lucky you were here!"
Yuichi also added, "Yeah, this time we relied entirely on you. If it weren't for your help dealing with this amnesiac elder, I don't know what Sozu and I would've done."
Then he casually asked, "By the way, Aozora, whose family are you from? I don't remember seeing you around our clan grounds before."
Uchiha Aozora's attention was focused inward at this point. Hearing the question, he instinctively replied, "My brother is Shisui Uchiha."
"Shisui Uchiha?"
The two echoed in surprise.
Snapped back to reality by their surprised voices, Aozora confirmed, "Yes, my brother is Shisui Uchiha."
Sozu wore a complex expression, while Yuichi's gaze toward Aozora grew cold, even revealing traces of resentment.
He shot back mockingly, "No wonder you're that traitor's younger brother!"
Before Yuichi could continue, Sozu cut him off, barking, "Yuichi, shut up."
Witnessing this scene, Aozora thought to himself: Is Shisui really so disliked by our clansmen? Now they're even calling him a traitor?
After calming Yuichi down, Sozu turned serious as he faced Aozora. "I wonder if your brother has told you anything about the village's growing suspicions toward our clan."
Uchiha Aozora remained silent.
Not waiting for his response, Uchiha Sozu continued, "Maybe it's too soon to discuss these matters with you, but since you've become a ninja, sooner or later you'll have to make your choice.
"Faced with the village's suspicion and suppression, there are diverging views within our clan.
"Some want to show goodwill to the village, others want to demonstrate our strength, while some believe time will erase these suspicions."
When Aozora heard this, he suddenly asked, "What do you think, Senior Sozu?"
Hearing this, Uchiha Sozu hesitated momentarily, his eyes showing some confusion before replying after a moment, "I don't know.
But I know once the seed of suspicion is planted, time won't kill it—it only allows it to take root and grow.
The Uchiha must act, but I know that neither appeasement nor intimidation are good methods.
As long as the village doesn't trust us, whatever we do is futile—our efforts can only delay the inevitable."
With those words, a bitter smile appeared on Sozu's face.
At this moment, Yuichi interjected, "It's not futile! If someone from the Uchiha became Hokage, everything would be resolved!"
Uchiha Sozu shot Yuichi a sharp look to silence him before explaining, "That's one faction's opinion within the clan. Your brother Shisui holds another view. Until the final moment, no one has the right to judge who's right or wrong.
You won't be forced to choose now, but once you become a Chunin, you'll have to make your choice.
Now, observe Konoha carefully. Observe the Uchiha closely.
I hope you'll discover a new way forward."
Having said that, Uchiha Sozu left for the Police Force headquarters with Yuichi.
Watching the retreating figure of Uchiha Sozu, Aozora felt a slight tremble in his heart.
He had always thought the Uchiha were a proud and aloof clan, but Uchiha Sozu's words made him realize how much he'd bought into the anime version of things.
Were all members of the Uchiha really arrogant ninjas?
No, even though they bore unique bloodlines, not all Uchiha were cut from the same cloth.
They possessed different thoughts, different beliefs, different personalities.
Some longed for peace, others were calm and wise, while still others simply wanted to live quiet lives.
Unfortunately, these individuals, often emotionally stable yet slow to progress in power, rarely even awakened their Sharingan.
In the Ninja World, strength meant status—without it, they had no standing and were dragged helplessly toward inevitable doom.
"Why not try saving the Uchiha?"
"There are villains among them, yes—but the majority are ordinary folk. They're innocent."
"And besides, that's one huge pile of *Gongde* right there!"
Uchiha Aozora muttered softly to himself.
Originally, he had only wanted to save his older brother's life, but now new thoughts stirred within him.
Yet if he truly wished to turn this idea into reality, he would need greater power.
"Ahh, it's not just Danzo who wants to destroy the Uchiha!"
Life sure was rough. Aozora let out a sigh.
Tired in both body and mind, Uchiha Aozora went home, threw together a quick meal, and drifted off to sleep.
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