"Help me tidy up the clothes in the bathroom. Throw them away. They're soaked in blood and can't be cleaned. I'll make some preparations—I'm going to visit Auntie Ye Yue later."
"But…"
Quan's expression tightened in concern. "Is that really all right?"
Watching Yan's silhouette vanish up the staircase, Quan muttered softly to herself. After spending so much time with him, she had come to understand Yan's personality as well as her own name.
Once Yan said something was fine, if you dared to question him further, you were guaranteed to be scolded.
"Captain, I'm seriously worried about you."
Puffing out her cheeks in frustration, Quan stomped her foot angrily.
"Wait!!"
Suddenly, something dawned on her. Her face froze.
"Did the captain just say… he's coming to visit the house?"
In the past, Quan would have been thrilled to hear that Yan might come visit her home.
But now that he was actually planning to come over, she panicked.
The house was a complete mess! Her mother wasn't even remotely prepared! What was she supposed to do?
"Captain! I'm going back home to get ready!!"
Yelling upstairs, she dashed off frantically.
"What's this silly girl doing?"
Yan, in the middle of changing clothes, happened to glance out the window. He caught sight of Quan running down the street like a chicken being chased by a hawk.
After changing, Yan picked up the gifts he'd purchased at the Daming Mansion and stepped out.
"Mom! Get ready!!"
The front door banged open as Quan stormed in, clutching her forehead. Ye Yue, who had been resting at home, nearly jumped in shock.
"I don't recall teaching you to open doors with your face," Ye Yue said, arms on her hips as she stared at her daughter's reddening forehead.
"How old are you? You still panic like this? Wait—aren't you supposed to be at work right now?"
"I'll be more careful next time."
Quan smiled sheepishly, rubbing her forehead vigorously. She'd run too fast, didn't stop in time, and hit her head right into the door.
"You…"
Ye Yue sighed, raising a hand to help massage her daughter's forehead.
Feeling the warmth of her mother's concern, Quan grinned foolishly—but suddenly her smile froze. She grabbed her mother's hand away and exclaimed urgently:
"Mom, now's not the time to talk about this! Hurry and get ready! The captain's coming over to visit! He'll be here any minute!"
"Oh?"
Ye Yue's eyes lit up. She clapped her hands together and said,
"I went to the market this morning and got some fresh vegetables. I'll prepare dinner right away. You clean the house—especially your room! Don't let Yan see the mess and make fun of us, got it?"
Yan's visit put Ye Yue into a frenzy. She darted into the kitchen to begin cooking while shouting instructions at Quan, who started cleaning in a rush.
When Yan finally arrived, both mother and daughter gave him a warm—borderline overwhelming—welcome.
"Auntie Ye Yue, these are some gifts I brought from Daming Mansion."
"You child! You should've come to visit long ago. And bringing gifts? That's too polite!"
Ye Yue was a bit too enthusiastic, which made Yan a little uneasy.
His mother had once shared a close relationship with Ye Yue. But ever since he arrived in this timeline, Yan's mind had been consumed with how to survive, how to anchor himself in Konoha, and how to gain the strength and status to protect himself. Social visits weren't exactly his priority.
Now that his greatest burdens were lifted, and he'd promised Quan he wouldn't break his word—and with gifts already in hand—he decided to visit on a whim.
It was supposed to be his visit.
Yet somehow, Quan appeared more nervous than him.
She kept sitting upright, laughing nervously. It felt to Yan as if she had brought a boyfriend home to meet the parents, worried her mother would disapprove or embarrass her.
Was that just my imagination?
Maybe.
Blinking, Yan glanced at Quan, who was giggling softly without much thought, then turned to Ye Yue, trying to engage in polite conversation.
The only problem was—Ye Yue kept bringing up Yan's late parents, who'd died on a mission.
Yan didn't even know how to respond to that.
The atmosphere was becoming increasingly awkward.
It truly felt like he was a son-in-law getting interrogated by the mother-in-law.
Unable to endure the discomfort, Yan soon excused himself and slipped away.
"Mom! You were too intense! You scared the captain off!"
After Yan left, Quan complained, visibly flustered. Who interrogated guests like that on a first visit?
"What do you mean scared him off?"
Ye Yue poked her daughter's forehead gently.
"What's wrong with a mother caring about her daughter's friend? It's called enthusiasm! If it weren't for you…"
"Mother!!"
Quan's face turned scarlet. She threw her arms around her head and wailed,
"What do you mean 'because of me'?! I'm ignoring you!"
"This kid…"
Watching her daughter flee into her room, Ye Yue couldn't help but chuckle.
"Silly girl. Some things, if you don't grab them now, they'll slip away."
Though she said that confidently, Ye Yue's smile faded slightly as she recalled a rumor—that Yan and Shizune, Tsunade's disciple, were close.
That thought made her uneasy.
If Quan didn't have the courage to express her feelings, how could she possibly compete with someone from Tsunade's inner circle?
The situation didn't look good.
Still, she decided to let the children handle things themselves. She had been too enthusiastic today—partly out of concern for Yan, but mostly to give her daughter and Yan a little push.
Unfortunately, her daughter froze and kept giggling nervously. And instead of sparking something, she ended up scaring the poor boy off.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere in the village had begun to shift tangibly.
Anbu forces were increasing. Several ninja squads had returned from their missions to bolster the patrols and security.
News of the Mokuton human experiments had spread from the Daming Mansion to the wider world.
It eventually reached Konoha, but the Third Hokage didn't send anyone to intercept the information—he had already steeled himself for the consequences.
Yan, meanwhile, remained calmly seated in the police department, observing the chaos unfold like a spectator watching a play.
He was prepared to attend the clan meeting—and deal with the elders.
Danzo had already been imprisoned and was enjoying very special treatment.
All that was left was for Anbu and the prison ninja to make their final preparations—then the Uchiha would be allowed to post their own guards directly inside Danzo's cell block.
To apply more pressure on Konoha, the Daimyo had even dispatched envoys to the village for questioning.
More and more villagers were talking about the matter.
Everything was set.
Now all that remained was for time to let things ferment.
After work, Yan returned home, bathed, changed into clean clothes, and brought Quan with him to the Uchiha clan meeting.
It was Quan's first time attending, and she was clearly nervous—following Yan cautiously, her head down.
Every time they passed fellow clan members headed toward the ancestral hall, Quan would pause and greet them respectfully.
To build momentum for the clan meeting, even the chunin affiliated with Fugaku's inner circle were in attendance this time.
Fugaku understood perfectly that the younger generation of Uchiha all admired Yan greatly.
With them present—and Yan at the helm—they could easily force the old hardliners to concede.
Don't underestimate the power of the younger generation.
If they didn't support you, or worse, believed you were clinging to authority without contributing anything to the clan, your prestige would plummet.
It was Quan's first clan meeting. To prevent her from being reprimanded for any nervous blunders, Yan escorted her the entire way.
"Relax. Just act natural. This might be your first time, and you and Aunt Ye Yue are outsiders, but as long as you don't make any mistakes, no one will bother you."
On the way, Yan offered reassurance.
"Besides," he added calmly,
"even if you do make a mistake—what's the worst that could happen? Don't forget, you're my person now. Anyone who troubles you is picking a fight with me. Even the elders have to think twice before doing that."
"Captain… are you really that amazing?"
With his calm assurance, Quan slowly relaxed. Her eyes sparkled with admiration as she followed closely behind him.
But because she was still small, she couldn't quite keep up with Yan's long strides. She had to take quick steps and occasionally jump a bit to stay with him—like a bunny hopping behind a wolf.
"Of course," Yan said.
"Otherwise, you think everyone was greeting you so warmly just because of your cute smile?"
As a newcomer, Quan had greeted all the seniors on the path to the ancestral hall—and without exception, they all responded kindly.
Some even paused to chat with her.
It gave her the mistaken impression that Uchiha elders were easy to get along with.
Yeah right.
Uchiha were prideful.
Unless you had strength or status, they wouldn't acknowledge you.
Especially the elites—they wore their cold glares like armor.
"I thought everyone seemed nice…" Quan said shyly, sticking close to Yan in case he left her behind.
They neared the family ancestral hall.
Fugaku had not yet arrived…
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