Chapter 98: Yakushi Kabuto!
"That's really not necessary!"
Nara Keisuke strode over, his voice drawing a flurry of turned heads. As he approached, a lively chorus of welcomes quickly rose up around him.
"Big Brother Nara!"
"The great hero who protected Kikyo Castle!"
The children's words of worship came from the heart, their eyes all shining with a brilliant light. Thanks to the deliberate spreading by certain interested parties, there was probably no one in Kikyo Castle now who didn't know of the astonishing, almost legendary battle record of "Nara Keisuke single-handedly fighting against the odds, crushing the Suna unit, and protecting the peace of Kikyo."
Even back in Konoha, at least within the ninja circles, Nara Keisuke's fame had become very well-known; he could be said to have become famous overnight.
Keisuke hadn't paid much attention to the outside news and was wondering why the children were so enthusiastic today. Just then, another greeting rang out.
"Big Brother Nara, when will you be the number one ninja in Konoha?"
"Stupid Urushi! The number one in Konoha is the Hokage!"
"What's wrong with Big Brother Nara being the Hokage?"
"That's not good at all! When I grow up, I'm going to be the Hokage too!"
Before Keisuke could respond, the children began to argue amongst themselves. As for the little silver-gray-haired boy who had been the center of attention just a moment ago, he was now left out in the cold.
Nara Keisuke sidestepped the group of energetic little rascals and sat down next to Yakushi Nono'o. She was currently comforting the silent silver-gray-haired boy in a soft voice.
"You'll be living here from today on." Nono'o had a smile on her face as she gently stroked the boy's cheek, her whole person radiating a Madonna-like glow. "That is to say, from today on, I am your mother..."
The silver-gray-haired boy looked at her a little blankly, his wooden face showing almost no change in emotion.
"Sister Nono'o, where did this child come from?" Keisuke proactively joined the conversation.
"This is a child I found in the ruins of the battlefield today. When I found him, his head and body were covered in blood, and he was down to his last breath." Nono'o caressed the boy's cheek with pity, her movements incomparably gentle. "Although I treated him at top speed, he still can't remember anything because his brain was severely injured..."
Nono'o even suspected that this child might have forgotten how to speak. Because ever since he was rescued and woke up, he had maintained this silent, unapproachable posture.
Keisuke asked, feigning ignorance, "Then what about that... Kotarō name from before?"
"That's the name I gave him," Nono'o said with a slight smile. "Keisuke, what do you think?"
"I'll say it again... that's really not necessary!" Keisuke looked at the silver-gray-haired boy who was now looking back at him and proactively called out his name. "How about we call him... Kabuto?"
Hearing this name, the children who had gathered around again began to complain openly.
"What a casual name!"
"He clearly didn't think about it at all!"
"But I heard the adults say that's how the Nara clan names are chosen..."
"Big Brother Nara!" The boy who had been called "Urushi" by the other children pointed at the silver-haired boy's face in surprise. "Look at him... he smiled! He seems to really like this name!"
"That's great." An expression of relief appeared on Nono'o's face. She lightly patted the boy's shoulder. "Then from today on, your name is Kabuto."
"As for his surname, I don't mind him taking the Nara name..." Keisuke winked at Nono'o. "But before that, Sister Nono'o, you'll need to get the consent of those few people first."
"The children are right here, what nonsense are you spouting!" Nono'o shot Keisuke a嗔 glance, the charm she revealed in that instant was breathtaking. "Kabuto doesn't need another surname. He will take mine. Yakushi Kabuto."
"Alright, Yakushi Kabuto." Keisuke complied smoothly and lightly pressed the summoning talisman for the [Summoning Technique: Lightning Flash Blade Transformation] on his wrist. "For our first meeting, I don't have much of a gift to offer. Let this serve as a substitute."
Poof!
With a puff of smoke, a pure white, oval-shaped mask appeared in Keisuke's hand. The mask was perfectly smooth, with only hollows carved out for the eyes and mouth. Two faint purple lines ran vertically through the eye holes, the only splash of color on its front.
A Yin-nature [Nature Mask].
Keisuke casually imprinted a mark of the [Flying Thunder God Technique] on the back of the mask.
"Things that have happened can never be forgotten; they are only temporarily not remembered." Keisuke placed the white mask askew on Yakushi Kabuto's head and then, through the mask, patted his head. "Remember to take good care of it, Kabuto."
"Thank you..." Kabuto raised his hand, placed the mask over his face, and a very soft sound of thanks came from beneath it.
Seeing this, Nono'o also reached out and patted Kabuto's head. Urushi and the other children followed suit, wanting to turn the Kikyo Orphanage into the Pat-on-the-Head Orphanage. Fortunately, the fat nun spoke up and put a stop to the commotion—in the name of dinner.
"If no one else is going to eat, I'll clear the dinner away, and everyone will go to bed hungry tonight!"
Late at night.
In the small room.
"I just went to check on that child, Kabuto," Nono'o said, tiptoeing in from outside. "He's getting along very well with everyone, but he's unwilling to take off that mask even when he sleeps."
"Kabuto will be a good boy," Keisuke said, patting the bed beside him. "But Sister Nono'o, did you notice during dinner that there seems to be a problem with Kabuto's eyes?"
"What?" Nono'o had just sat down and was nearly startled to her feet by his words.
"It's not a big problem." Keisuke put his arm around her slender waist. "He just seems to have trouble seeing the dishes clearly. I saw him mistake green peppers for green vegetables several times, and he had a bitter look on his face when he ate them."
"Oh, so it's that..." Nono'o was instantly relieved. She took off the thin, black, round-framed glasses on her nose. "Then I'll take him to get a pair of glasses tomorrow."
"Wait, Sister Nono'o." Keisuke took her glasses. "Although I really like how you look when you wear glasses, have you ever considered using medical ninjutsu to treat your nearsightedness?"
"Nearsightedness is caused by a deformation in the internal structure of the eyeball," Nono'o said with a helpless smile. "Medical ninjutsu mainly involves cell division and regeneration. How could it cause a perfectly healthy eyeball to undergo a permanent shape change again..."
"Actually, I think we can look at this problem from another angle." Keisuke put the glasses back on for her and said in a dead-serious tone, "When using medical ninjutsu to treat nearsightedness, if we can't fix the eyes, we can just swap the eyes!"
Nono'o, holding the legs of her glasses, let out an ambiguous nasal sound. "Hm?"
"As everyone knows, for a ninja, swapping eyes is very simple," Keisuke said, hiding himself in the folds of the barren plain-canyon. "It's just hot-swapping!"
The next morning.
Nara Keisuke, Yakushi Nono'o, and Yakushi Kabuto walked out of the orphanage together. "Sister Nono'o, Kabuto, I'm off," Keisuke said, hugging Nono'o and then patting Kabuto's head, before flickering away.
Kabuto watched Keisuke's incredibly fast speed and exclaimed in amazement, "So fast..."
Nono'o patted his head. "Come on, Kabuto, let's go get you some glasses."
Keisuke quickly arrived in Konoha Village and, at the appointed time, reached the Hokage's Office.
A familiar office, a familiar Third Hokage.
"Keisuke, you're here." Sarutobi Hiruzen shifted his attention from the documents on his desk and looked at the visitor with a smile. "How is it? Is the Flying Thunder God Technique very difficult?"
"It is indeed very difficult." Seeing that the others hadn't arrived yet, Keisuke responded to his small talk. "I still don't have a clue about many problems regarding the technique."
"If an S-rank ninjutsu could be learned so easily, it wouldn't be an S-rank ninjutsu," Hiruzen said, stroking his beard, his friendly and recruiting posture undisguised. "Keisuke, if there's anything you can't figure out, don't forget there are other ninja in the village who know the Flying Thunder God Technique."
"Lord Third..." Keisuke looked at him with some curiosity. "Do you also know the Flying Thunder God Technique?"
"Ahem, I wasn't talking about myself," Hiruzen coughed lightly. "I was referring to Minato."
Namikaze Minato was his grand-disciple, and also a junior ninja he held in high regard. The future of Konoha, shouldn't it be supported by young people like Minato and Keisuke?
"But as far as I know, Jonin Namikaze Minato hasn't been back to the village for a long time," Keisuke reminded him. "Also, I'm about to form a team and carry out missions, so I probably won't have much free time. How about... Lord Third assigns me and my team fewer missions in the future?"
A Nara clan ninja, really is... Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly felt the urge to smoke.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door. Hiruzen quickly skipped over the awkward topic, cleared his throat and said, "Come in."
The door opened. Keisuke turned to look and saw three young ninja in green vests entering the office in succession. Between the characteristic "red eyes" and "white eyes" was a pair of extremely pure, clear, and懵懂 black eyes. Blank, yet with a hint of confusion; curious, yet with a hint of simplicity. Like a husky that had mixed into a pack of wolves.
"Keisuke, these are your squad members." Hiruzen handed him three ninja profile sheets and made the introductions. "Uchiha Shisui; Hyūga Retsu; and Shizune."
(Author's Notes:)
Urushi is a character from the manga.
Hyūga Retsu is an original character.
Shizune, she has no surname, just Shizune.
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(End of Chapter)
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