After wrapping up business, Shisui and the others took their leave one by one.
Uchiha Hikari, however, stayed behind at Fugaku's warm invitation, eager to try Mikoto's cooking.
While waiting for dinner, she randomly picked a few booklets from a stack of "reading reflections" and skimmed through them.
Hmm… no obvious signs of copying.
Not that it mattered much if they did.
The Uchiha clan's younger generation only numbered a few dozen. Expecting every single one to become a scholar was unrealistic. As long as key figures like Shisui and Izumi were properly trained, they'd hold up the clan's reputation. The rest just needed to avoid being too incompetent.
Sniff sniff.
Hikari suddenly perked up, glancing toward the kitchen. "Is today some kind of special occasion? The food smells really good."
"Well…" Fugaku hesitated, then smiled. "It's mainly because of your return, Ancestor. But there's also a small matter—my son Sasuke is starting at the Ninja School tomorrow. There's a big entrance ceremony, so I asked Mikoto to pick up some extra meat and vegetables to give him a nutritious boost."
"…School's starting?" Hikari blinked, caught off guard.
The Konoha Ninja School's schedule was similar to a modern school system—starting in August, two semesters a year, with short winter and summer breaks. But as a "military academy" of sorts, it wasn't quite like standard education. Summer breaks were a recent invention, only introduced in the last decade or so.
"Has it really been almost a year already?" Hikari let out a soft breath, her mind drifting back to the moment she'd awakened in darkness and climbed out of her coffin. It felt like a lifetime ago.
"Since Sasuke's starting school… Naruto must be too, right?"
Perfect timing for her return.
By tradition, the Ninja School's entrance ceremony required parents to attend. With Minato gone, it was up to her, as Naruto's "proxy guardian," to step in.
She just hoped Hiruzen Sarutobi wouldn't ramble too long during his speech. Her patience had limits.
That evening, Hikari feasted at Fugaku's house, then returned to her own place. She summoned two shadow clones to clean the house and change the bedsheets while her real body sank into the depths of her "mindscape," connecting with Danzo Shimura, whom she hadn't contacted in a while.
Since awakening her Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, her eye powers had grown significantly stronger. Using her seal as a medium to pull someone into a "remote Tsukuyomi" was now smooth as silk.
In a flash, she dragged Danzo into the Tsukuyomi space.
"Tch, tch." Hikari eyed Danzo, now clad in a black robe with red clouds, clicking her tongue before questioning him about his "mission progress."
Danzo had joined the Akatsuki just over two weeks ago. His guide was a man wearing a swirl-patterned mask, claiming to be "Uchiha Madara"—Obito.
The nominal leader, Pain, hadn't shown up.
That was to be expected.
Danzo, alongside Hanzo, was responsible for wiping out the original Akatsuki and causing Yahiko's death. While Hanzo took most of the blame (and had already been killed by Nagato), Danzo was still someone Nagato and Konan despised. Letting him join Akatsuki was already Nagato's maximum concession. Personally greeting him? Nagato would probably kill him on sight.
Perhaps because of this, Danzo was barred from approaching the Rain Village and wasn't privy to detailed Akatsuki intel.
But he did have a partner.
"It's Hidan from the Mist Village, wielder of the Decapitating Carving Knife. I'm currently working with him," Danzo said.
"Oh." Hikari nodded, understanding.
She knew of Hidan—one of the weaker Akatsuki members, barely at elite Jonin level, not even Kage-tier. She had zero interest in fighting him.
"What else do you know about Akatsuki's movements?"
Danzo hesitated before answering, "There's something… I'm not entirely sure about. Akatsuki's been visiting the Land of Demons a few times recently, dealing with a group called the 'Yomi Cult.' Also, they might've tried contacting Orochimaru."
"Hm?" Hikari raised an eyebrow.
Orochimaru was indeed an original Akatsuki member in the timeline she hadn't altered. In that version, he'd joined Akatsuki to pursue Pain's Rinnegan, only to get thrashed by Pain, then later by Itachi, before defecting. Given his status as a "Konoha S-rank traitor," it wasn't surprising Akatsuki would target him again.
But… the Land of Demons? The Yomi Cult?
If she recalled correctly, there was something called "Moryo" there. Could that be Akatsuki's target?
That was intel worth noting.
From the original story, Moryo was no pushover—it had killed the previous Priestess of the Land of Demons and nearly took out a fifteen-year-old Naruto. For Esdeath… it'd be a decent opponent.
Hikari gave Danzo a few more instructions before casually dismissing the Tsukuyomi.
Then she grabbed some clothes, headed to the bathroom, and went to bed.
The next day arrived in a blink.
Naruto was still half-asleep when he was woken by barking. Opening his eyes, he saw Mochi, the white ninja dog, perched by his pillow, licking his cheek while wagging its stubby tail like a propeller.
It'd been over half a year, and the two ninja dogs from the Inuzuka clan had nearly doubled in size. Mochi was as lively as ever, dragging Naruto out for hours-long walks, while Dumpling, the black one, remained as lazy as ever—lying down if it could, standing only if forced.
"Mochi, cut it out… you're drooling on the sheets!" Naruto groaned.
"…Oh no, it's that late? I'm gonna be late!" He rubbed his eyes, checked the clock, and scrambled out of bed, pulling on clothes as he rushed to the bathroom.
Brush teeth, wash face, comb hair.
As he went through the motions, Naruto's eyes kept darting to a corner of the living room, half-expecting a familiar figure to step out—the one he used to see every day.
But… nothing.
His expression dimmed as he made a sandwich, chugged some milk, grabbed his goggles, and headed out.
He arrived at the Ninja School, where the courtyard was already buzzing with people—adults and kids chatting in small groups.
There was a pink-haired girl with both parents.
The Ino-Shika-Cho trio standing with their fathers.
A shy Hyuga girl shrinking into the crowd.
And then…
"Naruto!" A spiky black-haired boy pounced from behind, slapping his shoulder.
Naruto jumped, then grinned as his gloom lifted. "Kiba, it's you!"
"Hmph, only I'd put up with a klutz like you," Kiba said with a smug toss of his head. He glanced around. "Where're Mochi and Dumpling? And that sister of yours… Hikari, right?"
Whack!
Before Kiba could finish, Hana Inuzuka appeared behind him, giving his head a firm but gentle smack. "Show some respect! You can't just throw around Lady Hikari's name like that. If I were in my Security Force uniform, I'd have you locked up."
After scolding her brother, Hana crouched down, her tone softening as she looked at Naruto. "Little Naruto, didn't Lady Hikari come with you?"
"Nah… Big Sis Hikari's probably busy with super important stuff. I'm a big kid now—I can handle the entrance ceremony on my own!" Naruto puffed out his chest, putting on a brave face.
But the hint of loneliness in his eyes was plain to any adult.
Hana pursed her lips, ruffling his hair, about to say something when her gaze froze. "Wait, is that…?"
"Huh?" Naruto turned to follow her line of sight.
A soft hand landed on his shoulder, and a strand of hair brushed his cheek as a warm voice teased, "What's this? It's only been a few months, and you're already missing me?"
"…Big Sis Hikari?!" Naruto's face lit up like the sun breaking through clouds, his blue eyes sparkling. With his whisker-marked cheeks, he looked like a big cat reuniting with its owner.
On the other side, Hikari chuckled and straightened up. "Long time no see."
It really had been a while.
Hikari had left Konoha at the start of the year. After dealing with Orochimaru, she'd spent time in the Dragon Clan, Inuyasha, and Akame ga Kill worlds, and nearly half a year had passed.
Compared to six months ago, Naruto had grown taller, his yellow hair a bit longer and neatly combed. He even bore a slight resemblance to Minato now.
"Hm… you're looking a lot better than before," Hikari said.
"Before?"
She meant the original timeline's Naruto, who'd grown up neglected, dressed in grimy yellow clothes with dull, malnourished hair. The Naruto standing before her was a completely different kid.
At that moment, Fugaku and Mikoto, who'd been standing nearby, coughed and chimed in. "Ancestor, this is the boy you mentioned—Naruto-kun, right? He's about Sasuke's age. They might become good friends."
"…Hey, it's you!" Naruto and Sasuke said, recognizing each other.
They'd met before, but living far apart—and with the Anbu keeping Naruto away from the Uchiha district—their interactions were limited to brief encounters in the village. Now, as they greeted each other, a competitive spark flared between them.
Fugaku quickly scolded them, while Mikoto knelt to mediate softly.
Hikari, arms crossed, watched the scene unfold with amusement, snapping a few photos to send to the group chat.
[Nameless: [Naruto.jpg]×5]
[Nameless @EternalBro: Mr. Minato, these are Naruto's latest pics.]
[GhostPrincess: !]
[GhostPrincess: So this is Mr. Minato's son? He's so cute! I wanna hug him myself!]
Yamato was the first to pop up.
Hikari wasn't surprised. In the original story, Yamato's obsession with Kozuki Oden led her to treat Momonosuke like her own son, going all out to protect him. Now, with her admiration for Minato surpassing even Oden, she was probably already imagining some kind of "father-son" bond with Naruto.
[EternalBro: Naruto's grown a lot… Is that the Konoha Ninja School? The kid next to him looks familiar.]
Hikari smirked to herself. Of course he's familiar—he almost became your "daughter-in-law."
[Nameless: That's Sasuke, Fugaku Uchiha's son. Same age as Naruto, starting school this year too.]
[EternalBro: Oh, him… I saw him once when I went with Kushina for her checkup. He was just a tiny bundle in Mikoto's arms back then. Hard to believe he's this big now.]
[Brand: Wait, in your and Mr. Minato's world, kids start school this young? They look like they're only five or six!]
[Nameless: You haven't seen the Warring States era here. Back then, kids that age were already dying on battlefields.]
[Brand: ?]
As Hikari chatted in the group, lost in thought, the Ninja School's annual entrance ceremony kicked off.
Hiruzen Sarutobi took the stage first, followed by the principal and teacher representatives. Perhaps because he'd heard from the Anbu that Hikari was back—and saw her in person—Hiruzen kept his speech short, sticking to generic lines about "leaves dancing and flames burning" before stepping down.
He even glanced nervously at Hikari a few times, as if worried she'd pick apart his "Will of Fire" spiel again.
Luckily, Hikari wasn't in the mood to bother with him.
As the ceremony wound down, Hiruzen strolled over, offering a polite smile and some small talk before lowering his voice. "Miss Hikari, we received reports that an Uchiha clansman activated Susanoo in the Grass Village and went on a killing spree. Was that…?"
"Yeah, that was me."
(End of Chapter)