Chapter 76: Delicious Meatballs (Part 2)
Half an hour later...
Not far from Uchiha Ryoichi's courtyard.
The surrounding clansmen watched as the Elder crept forward like a thief, glancing left and right every few steps.
Before long, whispers began spreading through the crowd.
"Hey... don't you think the Elder looks a little... suspicious?"
"Suspicious? He looks like he's sneaking into a widow's house in the middle of the night."
"Exactly! Look at his expression—he's terrified, but somehow excited too. And those careful little steps..."
"What a shame it's daytime. Otherwise, I'd swear the old man was welcoming a second spring in life."
"So what if it's daytime? You can visit during the day too."
"Isn't that a little too bold?"
"Bold? Who would dare gossip about the Clan Elder?"
The Elder's cheeks twitched.
Just this morning, he had admired the warm atmosphere of people chatting about everyday life.
Now that he had become the topic of conversation...
Those same voices sounded incredibly irritating.
A bunch of idle busybodies...
Do they have nothing better to do all day than gossip?
How annoying.
Taking a deep breath, he straightened his clothes and muttered under his breath,
"Damn you... Ryoichi..."
...
Meanwhile...
Ryoichi lay comfortably in the courtyard, basking in the morning sun.
His eyes suddenly opened.
He frowned toward the empty street outside.
"...Was that my imagination?"
He scratched his ear.
"I could've sworn I heard someone calling me."
Inside the house, Tsuru happened to be standing beside a window.
Looking outside, he noticed someone crouching across the street.
After focusing his eyes...
He realized it was the Elder.
The old man was hiding behind a wall, whispering to himself.
Seeing this bizarre scene, Tsuru cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted like a human loudspeaker.
"Elder!"
"You're speaking so quietly!"
"Are you meowing?"
"That's Elder Ryoichi's house."
"Not a widow's!"
"Shh!"
The Elder frantically waved both hands.
"Shh!"
"Shh!"
"You idiot!"
Can't you see this old man is nervous?
Blockhead!
"Hey."
A hand suddenly landed on his shoulder.
"AH!"
The Elder jumped nearly a meter into the air.
When he turned around and saw Ryoichi standing behind him, his face immediately stiffened.
"Uh..."
"Well..."
Ryoichi narrowed his eyes.
"What exactly are you doing?"
The Elder hurriedly straightened himself.
He stretched his chest a few times, took a deep breath, and forced an awkward smile.
"The weather's nice today."
"I finished breakfast."
"I had nothing to do."
"So I came out for a walk."
"Is that so?"
Ryoichi stared at him suspiciously.
After a moment of silence, he asked,
"Do you have something you want to say?"
The Elder shook his head firmly.
"No."
"Really?"
"No."
"I don't."
Ryoichi nodded.
"Fine."
"But I do."
Without waiting for a response, he grabbed the Elder's arm and pulled him toward a secluded corner.
After carefully checking that nobody else was nearby, he sighed deeply.
"There's something important I need to tell you."
The Elder instantly clamped both hands over his ears.
"I'm not listening."
"I'm not listening."
"This is important."
"I'm not listening!"
"I'm not listening!"
"I can't hear anything!"
"Stop talking!"
"If I hear this..."
"...I might not survive."
Ryoichi blinked.
"You already know what I'm going to say?"
"And hearing it would kill you?"
"Don't say it."
The Elder desperately waved his hands.
"I'm not mentally prepared."
"Come back in a few days."
He turned to leave.
Truthfully...
Now that the moment had actually arrived...
He still couldn't bring himself to face it.
"...?"
Ryoichi watched him in confusion before placing both hands on the Elder's shoulders.
"As the second most influential person in the clan..."
"...you have to know."
The Elder froze.
Every ounce of turmoil inside him showed plainly on his face.
I really brought this upon myself.
Why couldn't I have just eaten breakfast peacefully...
Argued with Tsuru for a while...
Wouldn't that have been a much happier morning?
After standing silently for a long while, he rubbed his stiff cheeks and finally turned back.
Putting on the dignified expression expected of the Clan Elder, he declared,
"I already know what you want to say."
"You do?"
"I do."
He nodded heavily.
"You shouldn't have brought him back."
Ryoichi raised an eyebrow.
"Brought him back?"
The Elder sighed.
"So you're still trying to hide it from me."
Then he asked directly,
"Why did Uchiha Madara return?"
"Oh..."
Understanding immediately dawned on Ryoichi's face.
"So that's what you meant."
"I never intended to hide it from you."
"You simply weren't here yesterday."
"And honestly..."
"That wasn't what I wanted to talk about."
"...?"
The Elder's eyelids twitched.
So...
He really wasn't planning to tell me about Madara at all.
Ryoichi continued,
"I actually wanted to tell you..."
"Tsuru has fallen in love with a girl from another village."
"Her background is a little... troublesome."
"So I thought you should know beforehand."
"But since you brought up my cousin..."
"Let's talk about my cousin instead."
He patted his chest dramatically.
"You have no idea how suffocating this has been."
"The entire clan."
"The entire village."
"Not a single person knows about my achievement."
"It's been driving me crazy."
"So today..."
"I'm finally going to tell someone."
The Elder quietly glanced around, already searching for the fastest escape route.
Ryoichi noticed immediately.
"Don't even think about running."
"You already figured it out."
"There's no escaping now."
"If you leave..."
"I'll just visit your house tonight."
"..."
The Elder slowly squatted on the ground.
His voice sounded several years older.
"I was only eighteen back then."
"I had no authority within the clan."
"You know what the situation was."
"The Clan Head..."
"No matter his strength, prestige, or ability..."
"He simply wasn't qualified to become the First Hokage."
"And Lord Izuna..."
"The only one who could support him..."
"...was already dead."
"The clan was surrounded by enemies."
Ryoichi waved dismissively.
"I was only eight."
"I didn't even have the right to speak."
"My cousin, however..."
"He saw everything clearly."
"Once all of you abandoned him..."
"He no longer needed any of you."
"It was that simple."
Looking up at the drifting white clouds, Ryoichi spoke softly.
"Back then..."
"My cousin had already intended to step down willingly."
"It was your decision that was too hasty."
"You ignored the Clan Head's wishes."
"You made the decision for him."
The Elder leaned silently against the wall.
After a long pause, he whispered,
"Then..."
"Why did he come back?"
"The clan shouldn't mean that much to him anymore."
"Don't brush me off."
"You..."
"Ryota..."
"And even Tsuru's grandson..."
"None of you should matter that much in his eyes."
Ryoichi shrugged.
"I honestly don't know."
"The last time he appeared..."
"It was during the young Clan Head's birthday celebration."
"Tsuru spotted him standing among the crowd."
"My cousin's bearing was simply too extraordinary."
"When Tsuru noticed he'd gone the entire day without eating..."
"...he carried him home on his back."
Smack!
The Elder slapped his own forehead.
His expression became one of utter despair.
What incredible eyesight...
Madara's presence truly was one of a kind throughout the entire shinobi world.
And Tsuru...
...had carried him home.
Of all people.
Seeing the Elder's conflicted expression, Ryoichi suddenly asked,
"You're not thinking of reporting my cousin to Konoha..."
"...are you?"
The Elder remained silent.
He was still trying to figure out how anyone could possibly solve this problem.
Madara wasn't merely a problem.
He was a walking catastrophe.
One capable of wiping out the entire clan in an instant.