Inside the office.
He gazed into the distance, where the scorching sun illuminated the mountains as if coating them in a layer of gold. His eye power was steadily increasing. It was like a broad river with new tributaries constantly flowing into it, raising the water level.
In this state, Kiyoshi's thinking became more active. Difficult points that he hadn't fully understood before were now clear.
Is the progress at 99%?
Kiyoshi closed the Trait panel. Tonight, he might finally push the [Fire Style Jonin] Trait to 100%. Other basic Traits like [Sword Art Jonin], [Wind Style Jonin], and [Earth Style Jonin] all had progress bars exceeding 70%. Kiyoshi categorized these occupation-based Traits as [Basic], while those triggered by specific events were [Special].
Thinking of this, Kiyoshi looked down at Nono Yakushi. Her long blonde hair, freed from her nun's hat, cascaded down her back with a smooth, silky texture. Kiyoshi couldn't help but run his fingers through it, feeling the strands wrap around his fingertips.
...
Soon after, Kabuto Yakushi returned to his room and fell into a dream. He dreamed of Nonou Yakushi smiling at him and the children of the orphanage having a bright future.
Only that persistent, rhythmic swallowing sound continued to disturb his peace. Unable to take it anymore, Kabuto startled awake from his nap and glanced at the clock.
*Click.*
It pointed exactly to 1:30 PM.
Kabuto glanced at the others who were still sound asleep, then tiptoed out of bed, gently opening and closing the door.
That sound was clearly coming from the second-floor office.
Kabuto intelligently deduced this, showing the innate instincts of a spy. He moved cautiously, step by step up the stairs, until he reached the second floor. At the end of the hallway was Nono Yakushi's office. Listening to the increasingly obvious sounds of swallowing and eating, a thought flashed through Kabuto's mind.
Is the Director secretly eating something?
But Nono Yakushi wasn't the type of person to hide food for herself. Kabuto was puzzled. To solve a doubt, one must investigate. He walked forward step by step and slowly raised his hand.
But at the moment he was about to knock, an inexplicable sense of unease filled his heart. He lowered his hand and placed it on the cold doorknob instead.
Kabuto could feel the temperature of the metal. He planned to go straight in and see what the Director was doing.
*Click...*
Just as he pressed down, someone suddenly touched his shoulder. Kabuto jumped in fright and looked up to see the stern face of the stout nun.
"The Director might be resting. Why are you disturbing her?"
"Ah, no, I..."
Caught off guard, Kabuto didn't know how to explain.
*Click...*
Kabuto released the doorknob and gestured with his hands, trying to say he didn't mean to disturb her rest. But the nun leaned down, staring at him with disbelief. On the first night he was taken in, this child had already broken the rules. When it was time to sleep at nine o'clock, he was still running around.
"It's nap time now. The Director gave you her glasses and you know how to read the clock. Why are you breaking the rules?"
"I didn't mean to break the rules... I drank too much water this morning and wanted to use the bathroom."
In a flash, Kabuto came up with a clumsy excuse. He couldn't say he felt uneasy and wanted to check; such a vague reason would only be seen as an attempt to brush her off.
"Hmph. Since you've been working hard for the orphanage lately, I'll let it slide this once."
The nun spoke in a soft, hushed voice, afraid that her argument with Kabuto would wake the Director. Besides, she had seen the children helping with chores and watched Kabuto perform medical ninjutsu on some ninjas.
"Tha... thank you."
Kabuto breathed a sigh of relief and quickly said he would go back. Before leaving, he looked back at the tightly closed door. What exactly was behind it?
...
*Creak...*
The long-closed door finally opened with the sound of friction. Kiyoshi and Nono Yakushi walked down from the second floor side by step.
"The children are working very hard."
Kiyoshi watched the children who had just finished their nap; not a single one was idling, all rushing to do what they could.
"Ye... yes."
Nono Yakushi nodded in deep agreement. However, whenever she spoke, she couldn't help but frown slightly. This was partly due to the guilt she felt for the children having to work, but also due to the soreness after excessive chewing.
She looked at Kiyoshi, who was now taller than her, and the emotions in her heart didn't fade; instead, she felt even more self-reproach and regret.
God, I hope this child doesn't sink deeper and deeper.
At this moment, Nono Yakushi prayed fervently to God, hoping for forgiveness for her sins.
"Director!"
A listless Kabuto finally saw Nono Yakushi and couldn't help but shout.
"Hey, hey, you've only been away from her for a moment and you're already this anxious? You're not that small anymore."
Urushi patted Kabuto on the shoulder like an old man. In the orphanage, every child viewed Nono Yakushi as their adoptive mother and the person they respected most. However, everyone would endure and express their love through their contributions to the orphanage.
After all, everyone who came here was either abandoned by their parents or had lost them and was left to wander. Without Nono, they would have died on the streets. In small countries without orphanages, starvation was a daily occurrence. Those countries were chaotic, with no money or stable land for such facilities.
"It seems the children really love the Director."
Kiyoshi smiled.
"They are all lovely children."
Nono Yakushi agreed with this. But there was one thing she didn't say. Long ago, the young Kiyoshi was just as lovely, but her negligence had led to the distortion that existed today.
"It's getting late. We should head out."
Kiyoshi looked at the sky. They had arrived in the morning, and now it was afternoon; it was time to continue the march. The necessary supplies had already been replenished in the town.
"If anything happens to the orphanage, be sure to notify me immediately. I will do my best to help."
Kiyoshi spoke. For now, Danzo didn't dare to cause trouble openly and could only play petty tricks in the shadows. To put it bluntly, Root was just a group of people who couldn't stand in the light, just like Danzo himself. During the Nine-Tails incident, Root was nowhere to be found.
When Pain attacked, Root was nowhere to be found. When subordinates wanted to help, Danzo would slowly tell them no. When was he most active? Only on the night of the massacre, when Danzo and Root immediately blockaded the Uchiha.
He even took the opportunity to hoard a large number of Sharingan. Transplanting so many Sharingan onto an arm couldn't be done in one go; it required multiple experiments and the loss of many eyes.
Hearing Kiyoshi's sincere words, Nono Yakushi sighed deeply.
"I will."
Nono Yakushi nodded. With this assurance, she didn't need to pay attention to Danzo's side and could better care for the children. Knowing Danzo's character, even if she did go back, the orphanage likely wouldn't end up well, and her own fate would be uncertain.
Sometimes, even if you sacrifice everything for the village, possessing too much critical intelligence is a death sentence in itself.
Kiyoshi nodded, then walked toward Uchiha Yakumi. Yakumi agreed with Kiyoshi's suggestion; they had rested long enough. A ninja is one who endures; if they couldn't handle this bit of hardship, they were cowards.
"You carry Nobuhiko."
Uchiha Yakumi spoke to several Hyuga clan members. Shortly after, Nobuhiko was carried out again, but this time the person carrying him was Tetsu Hyuga. Once everyone was gathered, the group prepared to depart.
"Let's go," Yakumi ordered.
"Kiyoshi, remember to eat well and sleep more..."
Perhaps because she spent so much time with children, Nono Yakushi had become a bit of a nag. She gave Kiyoshi many reminders.
"I understand, Nono-sensei."
Kiyoshi smiled. Watching the backs of Kiyoshi's group as they left, Nono Yakushi still held the scroll he had given her. Her mouth... was hurting again. This weight was truly hard to let go of. The current situation was far from stable; this money had to be used wisely. It was for the orphanage, and for Kiyoshi, who worked so hard to earn it.
...
Several days passed.
Kiyoshi finally returned to the Hidden Leaf Village after a long absence. The atmosphere on the streets was as bustling as ever.
This was because wealthy merchants would often move to the village for their safety, boosting the local economy and allowing the villagers to earn more. Only the families with ninja relatives looked worried.
"You've all worked hard."
After the routine debriefing ended, Hiruzen Sarutobi was alone in the Hokage's office. Before long, Danzo Shimura, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado arrived one after another. This incident was a major event for the village. Like the case with Kushina Uzumaki years ago, it almost led to the outflow of a bloodline.
The good news was that the Hyuga bloodline was secured. The enemy's raid was unexpected, and they hadn't anticipated actually seizing Nobuhiko's eyes. The summoning ninjas there didn't have anyone capable of reverse summoning.
The bad news was that two Byakugan had been lost, which meant two powerful reconnaissance ninjas would inevitably appear. The Byakugan's power would surely be transplanted by the Mist into ninjas who were already excellent.
"Troubled times," Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed. The battle at Kannabi Bridge had finally given them the upper hand in the war against the Land of Earth. The village had taken a much-needed breath to recover. Now this had happened; although the danger was averted, what would happen in the future?
The village founded by the First Hokage was only a few decades old; it must not perish in his generation. Otherwise, he would be a sinner for eternity and wouldn't be able to face the First or Tobirama-sensei in the Pure Land.
"Hmph. That Uchiha Kiyoshi is becoming increasingly difficult to control," Danzo said coldly. He had initially agreed to give Nono Yakushi a few days to consider, but on his way back, he received the latest report from his subordinates.
Nono Yakushi had rejected him! Why? Because that brat Uchiha Kiyoshi had somehow produced another large sum of money for the orphanage!
Originally, Danzo wanted to make an issue of this; a newly promoted Jonin shouldn't have that much money. But an investigation revealed that the boy had connections with the Daimyo and the Priestess of the Land of Demons. It seemed only Kiyoshi could treat the Daimyo's symptoms, so he was given a lot of money.
This made it hard for Danzo to use it against him; after all, he wasn't the true Hokage yet. If he caused a problem, Hiruzen would definitely hold him accountable.
The village still relied on the Daimyo's funding; acting rashly against another Daimyo would make the Fire Daimyo uneasy. Daimyos were all part of the nobility; even if they lost a war or a country, they could seek refuge with another and remain aristocrats.
This game had been played for thousands of years in the ninja world, and all Daimyos accepted this rule as a way out. Thus, very few ever truly pushed things to the extreme.
"Hiruzen, Uchiha Kiyoshi's strength is indeed showing signs of escaping our control," Homura Mitokado pushed up his glasses, a cautious look in his eyes.
"Yes, Homura is right. Uchiha Kiyoshi is far too brilliant," Koharu Utatane added. What they wanted was an obedient Uchiha, not one who was too powerful. If Uchiha Kiyoshi became too strong and they weren't careful, he would become another Uchiha Madara. Remember, after Madara left the village, he even tried to attack it with the Nine-Tails.
Back then, they had Hashirama Senju to stop him; what did they have now? Even though the village had many rising stars like Minato Namikaze and Kakashi, once an Uchiha stepped into that other realm, they would gain the power of [Susanoo] and two mysterious ocular techniques. Not only that, they also had terrifying secret arts like [Izanagi].
[Izanagi] was a technique that caused so much trouble within the Uchiha that it had to be resolved and sealed away. This was one of the reasons the Uchiha were so feared.
Any Uchiha who awakened their eyes could potentially have two minutes of invincibility; who wouldn't be afraid? As for the difficulty, no one dared to gamble on how many Uchiha could learn it.
The office fell silent. Only the sound of Hiruzen Sarutobi puffing on his pipe remained. Whenever Hiruzen was deep in thought, he liked to smoke, using nicotine to numb himself and find new ideas. He was the most prolific smoker among all the Hokage.
"The current situation is unclear. It's better for the village if the Uchiha are stronger," Hiruzen said after a long silence. The war wasn't even over yet, and they were already worrying about the consequences of a comrade being too strong.
First, the village had to survive. Without the power of the God of Shinobi, Hashirama Senju, who unified the warring states, none of the Five Great Nations could say they were the winners or free from the threat of destruction.
"Hmph. Hiruzen, you will one day regret your optimism." Danzo was quite furious that Uchiha Kiyoshi had ruined his scheme. This wicked Uchiha not only ignored the olive branch he threw but also influenced Nonou Yakushi not to return to Root.
"Perhaps we can give the Uchiha a taste of success. We could make Uchiha Kiyoshi a guard for the next generation of Hokage," Homura Mitokado suggested after a moment. Regarding the matter of Kakashi's Sharingan, the high-ranking officials had promised the Uchiha some benefits, hinting at eligibility for Hokage candidate nominations. But being eligible didn't mean being chosen.
They could continue to dangle a carrot in front of the Uchiha to keep them working willingly. Making Uchiha Kiyoshi part of the Hokage's guard was one such move. There was a precedent; Uchiha Kagami was a guard for the Second Hokage and a teammate of theirs.
These people were the [Hokage's Inner Circle] and could touch the core of power. The closer you were to the Hokage, the more benefits you would receive. Of course, exactly how much was a matter for discussion.
"The next generation of Hokage?" Danzo's eyes narrowed. He had already placed his bets on Orochimaru. If Orochimaru became Hokage, he would be under his control. In other words, the Uchiha would also be under his control.
"Homura, your suggestion is good." Hiruzen thought for a while; this plan killed two birds with one stone. It would strengthen Kiyoshi's sense of belonging to the village and appease the Uchiha if they weren't chosen for the Hokage position.
"What do you think?" Hiruzen looked at the remaining two. Koharu nodded, indicating she had no objection.
"Hmph. Since you have an idea, Hiruzen, there's no need to ask me. I need to go to the Land of Rain." Danzo snorted. An organization called [Akatsuki] had recently emerged in the Land of Rain; it wasn't very large yet, but Danzo could see they were a group of idealists who might actually make something of themselves there. He could go and plant a few seeds now, eventually collaborating with Hanzo of the Salamander to gain benefits.
If Orochimaru wanted to be Hokage and have others support him, he would need resources to trade for the nominations from the ninja clans. The trip to the Land of Rain might just fill that gap. Hiruzen nodded and asked a few questions about Danzo's plans. Danzo's answer was naturally "for the sake of Hidden Leaf." Hiruzen didn't ask further and concluded the meeting.
...
Hidden Leaf main street.
"Yo, Kakashi!" Might Guy waved at Kakashi. Kakashi nodded coldly and walked the other way.
"Kakashi is getting colder and colder to me," Guy said, puzzled.
"It's probably because of Obito," Genma Shiranui shook his head, a toothpick in his mouth. It was normal for teammates to die, and Kakashi had seen it before. It must be that Kakashi and Obito were close, which left a shadow on him.
"It's a pity I wasn't there at the time." Guy clenched his fist. He had always viewed Kakashi as his best friend and greatest rival, and it hurt to see him so depressed.
Kakashi ignored the others and continued forward. A few minutes later, he heard someone else call to him.
"Kakashi, I ran into you here." Kiyoshi was carrying a bag full of groceries and snacks. He looked at Kakashi, who was walking with his hands in his pockets and his head down. Kakashi didn't want to look up, but he suddenly realized the voice was familiar.
"Kiyoshi, are you finished with your mission?"
"Yeah, finished. It was a success." Kiyoshi nodded. At least preventing the Hyuga bloodline from leaking out was a success. "How is the Anbu lately?"
"Busy. Lots of missions," Kakashi said. Compared to Guy, Kakashi actually spent more time with Kiyoshi. Guy spent most of his time training alone or with his father, Duy. Kiyoshi and Kakashi followed similar paths: sword arts, Lightning Style, and so on.
Back then, Kiyoshi was the only one who could keep up with him. Now, Kakashi felt that in front of Kiyoshi, he was the ordinary one. The gap was too large. But Kakashi didn't care about fame; he only wanted to protect Rin.
"Where is Rin?" Kiyoshi asked after a bit of small talk.
"She's been helping at the hospital. She seems to have some official position now and manages a few people."
"I see." Kiyoshi's eyes flickered. The once-solid team had fallen apart. One at the hospital, one in the Anbu, and one presumed dead in the Mountains' Graveyard doing rehabilitation. As for their Jonin leader, Minato Namikaze, he was still busy supporting comrades at the front lines with the [Flying Raijin Jutsu].
Rin probably didn't know how to act around Kakashi either. But in a while, Obito would turn dark. Kiyoshi thought of this. He wouldn't stop it; he would even actively push it.
Information about [Kamui] made it easy to deal with, as there were many solutions in the original story. If Madara introduced a new character with an unknown ocular power, it would be more difficult.
A "first-encounter kill" was no joke, especially with a space-time technique. No one knew what power an Uchiha would manifest through the [Mangekyo Sharingan] based on their heart's reflection. As for the time to train a newcomer, Kiyoshi didn't think Madara was short on time; he could easily last a few more years.
Madara was only in his late eighties or nineties, and in the end, he died because he chose to unplug the tubes supplying chakra from the [Gedo Statue]. If he had stayed plugged in, there was no telling how long he could live.
"That's perfect..." Kiyoshi said goodbye to Kakashi, already thinking about how to make Obito fall. Rin would be a critical and indispensable part of that.
...
Kiyoshi's house.
"Lord Kiyoshi!" Guren was dozing off in the courtyard with a broom when she saw Kiyoshi enter and quickly stood up.
"I've neglected you." Kiyoshi patted Guren on the head and gave her some delicious snacks. To manage a subordinate, one must give favors. A girl like Guren, whose family was gone, would remember even a small favor for a long time.
Orochimaru's eventual failure and Guren's betrayal happened because he ignored her, choosing Guren's rival as a vessel and focusing entirely on Sasuke. This led to Guren's jealousy and her eventual maternal awakening through Yukimaru.
"No, no! I'm very happy here, Lord Kiyoshi!" Guren shook her head urgently, afraid he would think she was ungrateful. Lord Kiyoshi had given her everything she needed, pocket money, and had even helped her with the Ninja Academy enrollment.
To be honest, life here was much better than in her village; after all, this was Leaf, under the Hokage's feet, where order was stable.
"Is that so?" Kiyoshi led Guren inside. After she had eaten a few bites of the snacks, he suddenly said: "Let me see the progress of your training."
"Okay!" Guren's cheeks puffed out as she swallowed the dango, then she began to form hand signs. A pink crystal solidified in the air, slowly growing into the shape of a snowflake.
"Is that [Crystal Style: Crystal Shuriken]?" Kiyoshi recognized the technique. In the original story, its power was much greater than a normal shuriken and represented a basic use of Crystal Style.
"So this is called Crystal Style," Guren thought for a moment. "The name Lord Kiyoshi gave it is very nice. Let's call it that."
"If you like the name, then that's fine." Kiyoshi laughed. The name was plain and common; Guren saying it was nice was probably just her trying to please him. No, perhaps not.
The adult Guren didn't seem particularly bright, being very violent and focused only on killing. As a fighter and a loyal subordinate, she was perfectly qualified.