"Are you the guy Tsunade-Sama brought?" The Yamanaka Clan Jonin asked Akane who had been keeping an eye on them. Hearing his words, Akane rolled his eyes and replied, "Yeah, I am. But don't you know already? I did hear that I will be sparring against a Chunin but bringing a Uchiha who has probably unlocked Sharingan as 'chunin', I surely wasn't expecting this."
Akane spoke in a condensing tone, looking amused. Since they were trying to back him into a corner so that he would reveal everything, he decided to have a little fun with them.
Hearing his words, their expression changed. The Nara Clan Jonin, Hiroshi Nara who had a calm look on his face, was surprised by Akane's words. He glanced at Katsuro Uchiha for a second and wondered how Akane knew the fact that Katsuro was a member of Uchiha.
'Face? But that doesn't make sense. Tone? Posture? Or what? He hasn't shown Sharingan so it should have been impossible for him to know about him. Unless he received information from an external source but I don't think Clan Head would miss something like that.'
While Hiroshi was thinking of how Akane got to know about Katsuro, the Yamanaka Clan Jonin, Sayuri Yamanaka was taking a deep look at Akane to analyse him.
'Relaxed posture. He isn't afraid of anything happening. The amused look in his eyes shows that he is enjoying the situation and I am sure Hiroshi must be thinking how he knew about Katsuro.'
As for Katsuro, he didn't think much about how Akane knew him but he was irked by the attitude Akane was showing to them. Anyone could see Akane's relaxed attitude and Katsuro felt like he was mocking him as they were about to fight but Akane didn't take them seriously.
Before any of them could speak, Akane smiled at them and said, "I am Akane Yanagi. Nice to meet you, Jonin of Nara Clan, Jonin of Yamanaka Clan and Chunin of Uchiha Clan."
'Yanagi? Not Senju? A mixed one? Even if Senju's surname isn't used now, shouldn't it be line Tsunade-Sama who doesn't use the surname? Did Clan Head make a mistake?'
Hiroshi instantly thought of this when he heard Akane's name. Sayuri had similar thoughts but unlike them, things were different for Katsuro. Katsuro, who was from the Uchiha Clan, had thought that the person brought by Tsunade would be someone close to or of the Senju Clan. He planned on defeating him and using the connection between Akane and Tsunade to show the the strength of Uchiha Clan.
But now that he had heard Akane's name, he understood that even if he defeated him, it wouldn't make any difference.
'I am sure he is a nobody. Why did someone like Tsunade-Hime bring him here? Hmm? Is it because of his face? Is this the type of guy she likes? But bringing him here would be stupid, did she pick him from somewhere? A refugee? So that's how it is.'
Katsuro felt like he had connected the dots and he understood that Akane was a refugee picked up by Tsunade-Hime. A confident smile appeared on his face as he understood the situation but Katsuro didn't know how wrong he was. If Akane knew what he was thinking, he would really applaud Katsuro's imagination and then clap his face until his cheeks were swollen.
'Wait a minute, how did he know that I am from the Nara Clan and Sayuri is from the Yamanaka Clan? I was focused on the name that I didn't realise this.' Hiroshi thought and from the corner of his eyes, he looked at Sayuri who seemed to be in deep thoughts.
'Did she also think the same? Considering her, she should have noticed this too, but this Uchiha kid seems to be unaware of this. No, he isn't even bothered by the fact that his opponent knew from where he was even if they met for the first time. Sigh, Uchihas, So troublesome.'
Looking at their expressions, Akane inwardly grinned. He was sure that his words had piqued their interests, especially the Jonin of the Nara Clan, who should have noticed what Akane wanted him to notice.
'They sent someone from Nara and Yamanaka Clan. They both are good at stopping people. I guess this because Tsuna must have said something to Nara Clan Head. Well, let's give them another shock. Though, I wonder how Tsuna will feel when she hears this.'
"So, where are we sparring? I want to end this early so that I can work with my Tsuna-Nee." Akane said while staring at Katsuro, who had been smiling in confidence. The words spoken by Akane seemed to have frozen them, especially the fact that Akane called 'Tsunade-Hime' Tsuna-Nee and even used 'my' before.
"Nee?" Hiroshi blurted the words with some shock in his eyes. He was expecting the relationship to be unusual but he didn't expect that they were close enough for Akane to call Tsunade-Hime as Tsuna-Nee.
"Hmm? Any problem? I don't think this is related to the spar, is it? Also, I introduced myself but I don't even know the name of my opponent. If you don't want to tell, no problem. But hurry up, I am getting bored here." Akane continued his words while making a confused expression and some annoyance in his tone. Hearing him, Sayuri who was lost in thoughts came to her senses and she looked at Hiroshi, who blinked and then nodded at her.
"Katsuro, Katsuro Uchiha. Remember the name of Uchiha who will defeat you,"
Hiroshi was about to tell them to move but before him, Katsuro spoke in a confident tone. Even though he was shocked by Akane's words and understood that his thoughts were wrong, what he cared more about was the fact that they were close and now his motives of showing off the Uchiha Clan's strength could be completed.
Hearing Katsuro's words, Akane couldn't help but cringe a bit. He didn't know why he felt that he had heard similar words in past and then an image of a blond kid with a headband came into his mind.
A chuckle escaped his lips and tilting his head, Akane looked at Katsuro and in a plain tone, he said, "These words don't suit you at all, nor do these words hold true. Even if I am not from the Senju Clan, no way a Uchiha like you will be able to defeat me."
As soon as Akane finished his words, he turned to the other two and said, "Let's go and finish this up. I had enough of you two analysing me."
The atmosphere between the group of four changed when Akane was done with his words. Sayuri and Hiroshi didn't feel like saying anything and they just glanced at each other but it was different for Katsuro who had been mocked by Akane.
Katsuro glanced at Akane, who seemed to take him lightly and was on the verge of using his Sharingan to teach her a lesson. However, when their eyes met, his body instinctively flinched. He noticed her pink eyes—typically seen as soft and gentle—but as he stared into them, he felt a chilling sensation wash over him. All he could perceive in her gaze was boredom and indifference.
It wasn't just that Akane was dismissive; those eyes made him feel like Akane didn't even acknowledge his existence. The only reason Akane bothered to speak to him seemed like a lack of other options. Katsuro couldn't shake the feeling that if they were to meet again in a different context, he wouldn't even spare him a glance. This realization not only frightened him but also filled him with a considerable amount of anger.
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Chapter 49 is out on ptreon