I Am Fugaku Uchiha

The sun was setting over the Konoha training ground, where two young shinobi were locked in a fierce duel. One had silver hair, and the other wore orange goggles.

Namikaze Minato, kitted out in his jonin vest, kept a close eye on the confrontation, ready to step in should things get out of hand. Watching from the sidelines was a young girl with colorful paint adorning her face, enthusiastically cheering on her friends.

With a resounding clash, a kunai and short sword collided, sending sparks flying. Both combatants leaped back, eyeing each other warily. "Hey, Kakashi, take this!" Obito shouted, flashing a grin. He swiftly formed hand seals and inhaled deeply.

"Fire Release: The Great Fireball Technique "

"What?" Kakashi's eyes narrowed as he saw a huge fireball sweep over him with a scorching breath. He quickly dodged, but the large range of the fireball meant he couldn't avoid it completely. A strand of his white hair was burned off, and he looked surprised. How did Obito's fireball become so powerful?

Obito's fireball used to be only two or three meters in radius at most. The one just now was at least five meters away, which caught Kakashi off guard.

Obito was thrilled to see Kakashi barely dodging his attack. He swiftly formed another set of hand seals and declared, "You're not getting away... Take this, Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique."

He unleashed a huge fireball that blocked every direction Kakashi could escape. The fireball exploded on the ground, but Kakashi was nowhere to be seen.

"Huh?? Where did he go?" Obito looked around in confusion, but he could not spot Kakashi anywhere. A gloved hand emerged from the ground beneath Obito's feet.

"Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique."

Obito was pulled into the mud by Kakashi, who was a year younger than him. After breaking through the mud and returning to the ground, Kakashi looked at Obito, who had an unwilling face, and let out a sigh of relief.

"This round, Kakashi wins," Minato announced the result of the battle with a smile.

Although Obito had learned a new ninjutsu and his fire release had also increased significantly, it seemed that his combat experience was still far behind Kakashi's.

"Kakashi, you're amazing." Rin exclaimed.

Kakashi touched his scorched hair and said faintly, "Not bad; you've improved."

"Hmph, what are you pretending for? Next time, I'll definitely beat you," Obito said unhappily as he only showed his head. He had only been a disciple for one day and had already achieved such a result. He was confident in defeating Kakashi.

Rin turned her head and looked at Obito's stubbornness. She showed a charming smile and said, "I believe in you, Obito. Come on."

Minato looked at everyone and pulled Obito out of the ground. He smiled and asked, "Obito, did you just learn the second fire release?"

"Yes, teacher. I practiced for a whole afternoon yesterday," Obito replied proudly, patting the mud off his clothes.

Minato was surprised. "Just an afternoon? No wonder..." he trailed off before continuing with a smile. "Although I don't know why your fireball's size and temperature increased so much, the Phoenix Fireball Technique is more powerful when used with the Sharingan."

Obito was taken aback. "The Sharingan? Again?" he thought to himself. He knew how many Sharingans there were in his clan and how hard it was to awaken them. But he had a cool master, right? Surely he could help him awaken his Sharingan. With that thought in mind, Obito made up his mind to ask the clan leader for help as soon as he was dismissed.

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That afternoon, Fugaku finally met the Third Hokage. He was calm and composed as he looked at Sarutobi Hiruzen sitting in front of the desk, holding a pipe and smoking tobacco.

He nodded and did not hide it. "Yes, that's true."

The Third Hokage was surprised by Fugaku's blunt answer and asked, "Can you tell me how you've managed to make such progress in the past six months?"

"Of course, no problem," he replied.

The Third Hokage was taken aback once again when Uchiha Fugaku readily agreed, but his following words left the Hokage puzzled.

"This all started three months ago when I was on a mission to eliminate rogue ninjas. As you are aware, it was a mission that Akihiko had originally taken on." Paying close attention, the hokage nodded.

"I had gone out with the sole purpose of earning some money. While I was chasing some ninjas, I accidentally stumbled upon a deep cave. Inside, I discovered vines with small, blood-red fruits the size of tomatoes. Feeling thirsty, I tested them for poison and then ate them." Fugaku spoke in a calm voice, as if recounting his personal experience. It was clear that he believed what he was saying.

[A/n: You mean devil fruit, right? hahaaa]

The Third Hokage was taken aback. "So you ate those fruits and your chakra became more abundant and your strength increased?" he asked incredulously. He was confused and had never heard of anything like this before.

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