Half a day later.
In the Land of Hot Springs, at the site of Ren Uchiha's battle...
A young man with short black hair, wearing a dark tactical jumpsuit and a Leaf Jōnin flak jacket, leaped down onto the ruins. This was Fugaku Uchiha.
As he surveyed the scene, he couldn't hide his shock. The village that once stood here was gone, replaced by a shattered, massive volcano. It looked as if someone had taken a forty-meter-long greatsword and hacked the earth into pieces. Boiling groundwater gushed from the crater, forming a steaming river that wound down the mountainside.
"Elder Setsuna... what on earth did they run into?" Fugaku muttered. He stood atop the volcano, picked up a handful of scorched sand, and activated his Sharingan.
"Destruction on this scale only means two things. Either Elder Setsuna finally awakened that forbidden power in his final moments... or, he used that forbidden jutsu."
Fugaku's gaze swept across the wreckage. "Hmm?"
He noticed a circular patch of ground near the boiling riverbed that was remarkably intact. It was littered with shuriken, kunai, and dull, spent explosive tags. The ground was scarred with deep grooves and craters from intense Taijutsu combat.
"Someone else was fighting here. This level of Wire-Shuriken technique... was it Seiichiro? No, he's not capable of this. Then it must be Ren Uchiha."
"Ren Uchiha..." Fugaku frowned. Looking at the sheer brutality of the battlefield, he couldn't help but doubt. Is he really just a Genin? Even Shisui, the clan's greatest prodigy, couldn't have achieved this without years of experience.
"Whatever happened, the Elder must have unleashed that power with overwhelming emotion. But what was he trying to achieve?"
Fugaku traced the path of the giant sword strikes, his eyes eventually landing on a specific soil ledge with a noticeable notch. "They might still be alive... At least, Ren Uchiha likely survived!"
Fugaku took a deep breath, remembering what Shisui had told him: 'Ren Uchiha will definitely become the bridge between the clan and the village, Fugaku-senpai!'
And now, the leader of the Hawks, Elder Setsuna, had burned his life away to carve a path for this child.
"Find him!" Fugaku exhaled. "We must find him! This might be the final intel—and the final will—that Elder Setsuna left behind."
In an abandoned village near the capital of the Land of Hot Springs (Yugakure).
Ren Uchiha opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was an unfamiliar, cracked ceiling.
"Yo, you're awake?"
A grey-haired kid with a slicked-back pompadour sat by the bed, munching on a pork chop. He looked at Ren sideways.
"Where... where am I?" Ren asked, confused. His last memory was being sneak-attacked by that old geezer Setsuna inside the volcano. Dammit, that's the second time he's knocked me out like that! Does he want me to have a flat head?
"Yesterday, some underground water burst out and made a hot spring river," the kid said. "I found you floating on the surface and fished you out. Tsk, tsk... you're a ninja, right?" The kid spun his stool around, kicked his feet up on the bed, and rested his head on his hands.
Ren's Sharingan flickered for a split second. Through his specialized vision, he saw that this arrogant brat didn't have much chakra—certainly not even Genin-level.
Ren narrowed his eyes. "You knew I was a ninja and you still saved me? Weren't you afraid I'd stab you the moment I woke up?"
The kid remained unfazed. "Your body is covered in wounds from head to toe, but I checked—not a single scratch on your back. A man who doesn't run away... in a place like the Land of Hot Springs, that usually means he's a 'good guy'."
Ren's smile stiffened. Being given a "good guy card" for the first time in his life by a snot-nosed brat felt insulting. He briefly considered giving the kid a suplex, but the boy had saved him—even if Ren hadn't exactly asked to be saved.
Claiming insurance is getting harder by the day!
"Heh, let me introduce myself. My name is Hidan," the brat grinned, pointing a thumb at his chest. "You can call me Dan-ge (Big Brother Dan). And you?"
Ren kept it brief. "Ren. Genin."
But then, he froze. "Wait, what did you say? Your name is... Hidan?"
"What's with that look? Of course my name is Hidan," the kid scoffed. "The future savior of the Land of Hot Springs! The future Yu-Kage! That's me! I'm going to end the chaos here, kick out the Great Nations' ninjas, and become the next 'Demi-God' of the shinobi world! That is my Ninja Way!"
Wait, Hidan? Isn't he supposed to be an idiot? Ren stared in disbelief, almost activating his Sharingan just to see if this kid was the real deal.
Future Akatsuki member, immortal follower of Jashin, the man who killed Asuma... Hidan was legendary for being loud, arrogant, and—frankly—not very bright. This kid had the personality down, but...
A "Smart" Hidan?! What kind of variant is this?
Ren's mind reeled with memories of old fan theories: "What if Hidan had a brain?" The possibilities were terrifying. It was like "Tactical Minato" or "Healthy Itachi"—a complete game-changer.
"Why are you staring at me like I'm stupid?" Hidan frowned. "Oh! I get it! You're overwhelmed by my presence. It's called 'Kage Pressure' in books. It's okay, I forgive you."
Hidan laughed and tossed a scroll at Ren. "This was floating with you. I couldn't open it, so it must be yours. Take it. I'm gonna go find a doctor to check your head."
Ren ignored the "check your head" comment and caught the scroll. It bore the Uchiha clan crest. As he held it, he felt a strange, resonant connection. He could open it.
Carefully, Ren unrolled the parchment. His pupils shrank as he read the title in bold characters:
[Uchiha Style: Secret S-Rank Forbidden Sword Art]
[Dance of the Sun Halo (Nichiun no Mai)]