One Month Later
"Yuna, what day is it today?"
These days, Akio's life had fallen into a predictable rhythm: sleep, eat, make explosive tags, and train in Gentle Fist. The cycle had gone on so long he'd lost track of time entirely.
"Grandpa Akio, it's September 30th today," Yuna replied.
Akio blinked, nodded, and looked up at the darkening sky. The sun had already set. Then he turned to Konan, who was sitting nearby taking a break.
"Konan, that's enough explosive tags for now. Tomorrow's a National Day , I'll give you the day off."
Konan didn't really understand what "National Day" meant, but she still let out a small sigh of relief. Physically, the work wasn't exhausting, but mentally? After a whole month of near-daily production, she was worn out.
"Yes, Sensei."
"Oh, right, Yuna, where's my cat?" Akio suddenly remembered the white furball he'd left in her care.
Ten minutes later, he was staring at a cat that had grown twice as round. His lips twitched.
Yuna, meanwhile, smiled cheerfully. "She eats a lot for such a small cat. No matter how much I feed her, she finishes everything!"
Akio sighed. "Yuna, if you wanted to get back at me, fine, but what did the poor cat ever do to you?"
"Never mind. I'll go find Izuko and handle the explosive tags. Konan, you can head back and rest. No training tomorrow, take two days off."
"Understood, Sensei."
At the Uzumaki residence, Akio found Izuko wearing a troubled expression.
"What's wrong? Something happen?"
Izuko sighed and shook her head. "Sensei, lately… Nagato's been acting strange."
"Nagato?" Akio raised an eyebrow. He really hadn't seen the boy in a month. "What's wrong with him?"
"It's… hard to explain."
Akio chuckled. "What, teenage troubles? Fine, if it's hard to explain, then don't. Let's talk about Kumogakure first."
Izuko nodded. "Kumogakure has returned to normal. Apparently, they were looking for somethin, and now they've found it."
Akio froze for a moment. "Looking for something, huh… that explains all those reconnaissance teams. Wonder what treasure they found."
A hint of curiosity stirred inside him, but he resisted the urge to fly over and check.
"What about the other nations? Konoha, Sunagakure… any movement?" He was still more interested in the Sasori defection and whether the Third Great Ninja War would still break out.
Izuko's expression grew more serious. "No word from Sunagakure. They've gone into lockdown, so we can't get any intel. Because of that, Konoha has entered a state of military readiness."
"I see…" Akio murmured. That likely meant the Third Kazekage had disappeared.
"Well then," he said quietly, "let's see if Sunagakure has the guts to follow through."
"Sensei, how's the production of the explosive tags going?" Izuko asked, changing the subject.
"We've doubled the amount compared to the first batch," Akio said with satisfaction. Thanks to Konan's improvement, their efficiency had skyrocketed.
"How much are we selling?"
Akio frowned. That question gave him pause. He wanted to sell them like last time and reap massive profits, but things were different now. With the entire ninja world on edge, gouging prices again might be pushing it.
"Send someone to ask Hiruzen how much he needs. As for the rest, hold onto them for now, we'll see how things develop."
After all, the other nations might become Konoha's enemies. Even though Akio wasn't afraid of Hiruzen's complaints, he couldn't bring himself to sell weapons to potential foes at a time like this.
Izuko nodded in understanding. "I'll get someone on it right away."
"Good" Akio began, then remembered Nagato. "Wait, you never said what's wrong with him."
Izuko smiled bitterly. "A month ago, he met a wandering musician… and became obsessed with singing."
Akio blinked. "A wandering musician? That's a rare profession in the ninja world."
"Isn't that a good thing? Our clan could use some artistic talent. Nagato singing, I didn't see that coming. As long as it doesn't interfere with training, let him enjoy it."
Izuko sighed. "It's not that simple…"
"Come on, Izuko. Don't be an old fossil who suppresses creativity," Akio teased.
"It's not me," Izuko said helplessly. "Let me put it this way, Nagato organized a concert for that musician. Here in Uzushiogakure. It caused… a riot."
Akio's eyes widened. "That impressive? A real soul singer?"
Izuko forced a smile. "Many clansmen went to watch, but after the concert ended… they chased the musician out of the country."
Akio froze, finally catching on. "So the musician was that bad, huh? Nagato's got no taste. Guess I'll have to teach him myself."
He did hum tunes every now and then, after all.
"It wasn't just 'that bad', " Izuko began, but a patrol squad burst in before she could finish.
"Elder, Clan Leader! We've spotted Kirigakure ships near the sea routes!"
Akio frowned. "Are they attacking us?"
After this much time, it wasn't surprising that Kirigakure had found Uzushiogakure's location.
"No, Elder," the ninja replied.
Akio's expression twitched ,not at the report itself, but at the stiff, old-fashioned phrasing. 'No, Elder, in reply to your question'... what is this, the Warring States bureaucracy?
Setting that aside, he exchanged a look with Izuko. "If that's all, then just stay alert. If they attack, retreat immediately, give them the cargo if you have to. I'll go collect a hundredfold repayment myself."
"Yes, Elder!"
Once the patrol left, Akio turned back to Izuko. "Now, where were we? Right, the wandering musician."
Izuko sighed. "You'll understand when you see Nagato yourself."
Akio shook his head and left. "What a mess…"
As he walked, he used his sensory abilities, and soon located Nagato at a training field. The boy was practicing weighted taijutsu while muttering something under his breath.
"Training and singing?" Akio crept closer, curious to hear what he was saying.
"Sensei!"
Akio froze. He hadn't bothered to suppress his presence, but he hadn't expected Nagato to sense him so easily.
"You've improved, Nagato," Akio said approvingly.
Nagato scratched the back of his head, grinning.
"I heard you've been learning to sing from a wandering musician. Why didn't you ask me to teach you instead?"
"You can sing, Sensei?" Nagato asked, eyes wide.
"Of course I can. Sing something for me, let's see what kind of talent you've got."
Nagato blushed, took a deep breath, and began:
"Yo~
Haven't seen Sensei for a month~
Missed you so much~
Training alone~
Is boring~
Oh yeah~!"
Akio: "…"
…What the hell. Since when did Nagato turn into a meme version of himself?
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