Chapter 231. Unmoved Heart
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After registering, they entered the village as the sky gradually darkened.
Looking at the familiar sight of Konoha—
At that moment, Hyuga Hanabi couldn't help but feel a wave of emotion.
Based on the intelligence she had, at this point in time, she hadn't even been born yet. In fact, if she had arrived a few months later, she might have been able to hold her newborn sister in her arms.
Thinking about that… It was actually kind of interesting!
But still—
Why would this illusion be set in this specific time period?
After all, none of them had been born yet!
And this world…
She really didn't know how to describe it.
[If the Seventh Hokage found out that his father's night date had been captured, or that the Third Hokage had been embezzling funds, he would probably be completely dumbfounded!]
The familiar scenery and images from her childhood resurfaced in her memories.
This was the Konoha of her childhood.
Though there were some slight differences, overall, it was similar enough to put her mind at ease. At least for now, aside from a few issues with Konoha's higher-ups, everything else seemed fairly normal.
And then—
Suddenly—
A burst of cheerful laughter echoed from ahead.
Hanabi paused, lifting her head to look in the direction of the noise.
What she saw was a group of elderly men and women, dressed in bright, flashy clothes, walking together in a lively crowd.
"What…?"
What were they doing?
The sun had already set, and if she remembered correctly, most people in Konoha at this hour would have already gone home for dinner. It was rare to see people out at night.
Unless they were ninjas or had some kind of business, since this wasn't the peaceful ninja world that came later. The Third Ninja World War had ended not long ago, and even within Konoha, nighttime still carried a certain level of danger.
So—
Why were all these elderly people walking toward the front, looking so excited?
Where were they going?
"Oh~ this!" Jiraiya's eyes lit up when he saw them. A nostalgic smile crept onto his face. "I didn't think I would get to see this again after coming back. Brings back memories~"
Though he had been tricked by Kushina the first time, it had turned out to be pretty fun later on… a lot of the older folks had even tried to set him up with a girlfriend!
"Since we're back, I should definitely join them for a dance sometime in the next few days!"
"???" Hanabi was even more confused now. She stared at Jiraiya with a puzzled expression. "They… Where exactly are they going?"
Jiraiya answered naturally, "To the back hill to dance~ Don't you know?"
"Now? Dancing?"
Hanabi's mouth twitched.
What kind of event was this?
Dancing at the back hill at night—weren't they worried about running into trouble?
Although she found it strange, she wasn't too shocked. After all, compared to some of the things she had read about online, this was nothing.
With a helpless smile, she shook her head. [The nightlife in Konoha here is surprisingly lively~]
But a faint trace of caution flashed through her eyes.
She had entered under the identity of a Hyuga clan ninja. If not for her Byakugan, and the fact that Jiraiya-sama and Six—Kakashi had escorted her in, she probably would have already been questioned by the authorities.
So—
[No matter what strange things happen next, I can't afford to be too surprised!]
Just as she was reminding herself of this—
"Itachi~"
Yuto's voice suddenly rang out.
Hanabi froze again, turning her head in surprise. She saw Yuto standing nearby, his eyes narrowing with a peculiar smile at the corners of his mouth as he began walking toward the front.
"???"
Itachi? Again?
Could it be… that Itachi? The Uchiha genius who broke both the Sixth Hokage's graduation and Jonin records?
Hanabi's heart skipped a beat. She quickly turned to look in the same direction as Yuto…
…
"Itachi, I can't eat anymore… Can you help me finish it?"
"You should only buy as much as you can eat."
"I forgot~" Izumi stuck out her tongue, looking at Itachi across from her. "I'll definitely do it next time!"
"…"
Itachi sighed helplessly. He looked at Izumi, who was making the same promise again.
It's like this every time!
He found himself… struggling to keep up with his training during this period.
Shifting his younger brother in his arms, he reached out and took the half-eaten dango from Izumi's hand. Looking straight at her, he said seriously, "You shouldn't waste food."
After saying that, he glanced down at the dango in his hand. His expression grew conflicted, hesitating slightly before he finally took a bite.
[I'll have to train extra hard tomorrow!]
When Izumi saw Itachi eat the leftovers from her skewer again, she immediately smiled brightly. "Itachi really likes eating dango!"
"Mm~" Itachi nodded, looking at his younger brother, who was reaching out his tiny hands while babbling, "Ya… Ya… Ya." He stared at him seriously and said, "You can't…"
Before he could finish—
Suddenly—
A familiar voice called out from behind.
"Itachi~"
In that moment—
Itachi's whole body tensed, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly. After hesitating for a second, he turned around and bowed slightly to the young man walking toward him. "Uncle Yuto."
Uncle Yuto… is back?
"Taking your little brother out for a walk?" Yuto affectionately patted Itachi's head and then bent down to look at his nephew in Itachi's arms—the one who would later… walk the path of getting beaten up. Yuto sighed with emotion and gave the baby's chubby cheeks a gentle pinch. "Oh, this must be Sasuke, the one Brother Fugaku mentioned~ He's adorable!"
"…"
Father said… not to let Sasuke get too close to Uncle Yuto.
Then—
What should he do now?
Itachi's gaze flickered with hesitation. But after seeing Yuto simply pinch Sasuke's cheeks and slip a small stack of money into Sasuke's pocket, he relaxed a little inside.
It seemed that Uncle Yuto wasn't doing anything strange.
However—
Yuto: ()
Itachi: ω(ヾ)
"???"
"?!"
Yuto was also puzzled, feeling the softness beneath his fingers.
Why does he feel even chubbier now?
In the time he had been away… had someone else taken over the "feeding" duties?
Brother Fugaku?
Or Sister Mikoto?
Did they finally understand?
He smiled approvingly. "Not bad. It seems that you've eaten well during this period!"
Itachi: …
At that moment—
Hanabi, who had followed along, suspiciously eyed the black-haired boy holding the baby in front of her.
[Itachi?]
Probably… not, right? It was likely just someone with the same name.
After all… she had just seen Yuto pinch that soft, squishy face. It really looked soft.
She kind of wanted to pinch it too.
There was no way the real Itachi-senpai would be like that.
"Itachi!" Kakashi and the others, along with Jiraiya, greeted him.
"Kakashi-senpai, Obito-senpai, Rin-senpai." Itachi and Izumi both bowed slightly. "Jiraiya-sama."
After that—
Yuto, who had been pinching Itachi's face, stopped his hand and looked at Itachi with a serious expression. "I heard your teacher visited your house some time ago?"
Seeing Itachi's embarrassed silence, Yuto shook his head and continued in a meaningful tone, "Getting into fights at school, then running straight home after class… That is not right! You need to study hard and stop fighting with your classmates! Otherwise, your parents and your uncle will be disappointed in you."
With a sigh, he gently patted Itachi's head. "If you run into any trouble, you can always come talk to your uncle. It's getting late. Go home now. You too, Izumi."
As an uncle, he was quite responsible!
"Yes, Uncle Yuto!" ×2
The two of them bowed respectfully in response.
Then—
They turned and headed toward home.
The others silently watched the two children and the baby leave.
[It seems that he is definitely not Uchiha Itachi.] Hyuga Hanabi stared at that small figure, feeling more certain.
Even though the boy's clothes bore the Uchiha clan crest, there was no way it could be Uchiha Itachi.
After all, Uchiha Itachi was Konoha's once-in-a-generation genius.
[How could a genius like him possibly be failing in school badly enough for the teacher to visit his house…]
Just as that thought formed—
Suddenly—
Jiraiya sighed with emotion from beside her. "Is that the son of Clan Leader Fugaku? I didn't expect him to have grown up so much already. He's even in school now, and he already has a younger brother. Konoha's future is in good hands!"
After hearing that—
Hyuga Hanabi fell silent.
After a moment—
Her eyes twitched slightly. She turned to look at Jiraiya with a blank expression.
"He is… Uchiha Itachi?"
"Yeah~" Jiraiya gave her a confused look. "What's wrong? Didn't Yuto just say that?"
But—
Hanabi didn't respond. She continued to stare at Jiraiya with an increasingly serious expression. Even her tone became more intense. "The son of Uchiha Fugaku—the Uchiha Clan Leader? Uchiha Itachi?"
"…Yes, that's definitely Uchiha Fugaku's son—Uchiha Itachi!"
What's wrong with this Hyuga girl?
"The same Uchiha Itachi who graduated from the Ninja Academy at the top of his class after just two years at age seven, became a Chunin at age ten after passing the exam by himself, joined the Anbu at age eleven, and was hailed by his teacher as the most gifted student ever—that Uchiha Itachi?"
"Well… I'm not sure about all that. Didn't Yuto just say he just started school?" Jiraiya scratched his chin thoughtfully, frowning. "You could ask Yuto about it. But from what I heard from Yuto… he seems to be more of a problem student!"
After hearing that—
Hyuga Hanabi slowly turned her head toward Yuto.
Yuto sighed emotionally and shook his head. "Jiraiya-sensei is right. Brother Fugaku has been really worried about Itachi's education!"
"…"
"…What's wrong with you?"
"…Nothing." Hanabi shook her head, her gaze complex as she stared toward the disappearing figure in the distance. Her tone, however, was completely calm. "My heart… is completely unmoved."
Compared to the Third Hokage, the Fourth Hokage, Advisor Mitokado, and Orochimaru-sama…
A genius like Itachi becoming a problem student—
Well—
That's really… no big deal!
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