Above the Hokage Rock.
Hearing Satoru's words, Kakashi looked down at Konoha.
"It's nothing. That child needs his own life, and I shouldn't interfere with him."
"Boring. If I were the Fourth's disciple, I'd take him out to play every day," Satoru pouted.
Not getting an answer made him feel bored.
He had thought he would get an interesting answer.
Might Guy: "Then you need to quickly find the 'love' trait in your book, Kakashi."
Encouragement and companionship were what he considered useful for juniors, but he was meticulous and wouldn't interfere too much with Kakashi.
Everyone's thoughts were different.
"Mm." Kakashi was silent.
Then, at Satoru's suggestion, the three discussed their understanding of Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, and Genjutsu, making progress together.
This was also one of the few interactions among them as classmates, apart from eating and drinking.
Satoru had a family, and Kakashi and Might Guy were mission fanatics, so general life topics didn't fit into their conversations.
All three were geniuses and could help each other improve.
Without a system, Satoru's path to becoming stronger naturally progressed through discussions.
From the beginning, it was through Hiruzen's guidance, observing the works of the sages, and sparring with various classmates, progressing little by little.
Again, it was also by reading the memories of enemies and clashing with others' ideas.
Working behind closed doors was never the approach of a smart person.
Whether sparring with others, reading the works of the sages, or occasionally teaching juniors, he could gain inspiration in certain areas, thereby improving himself.
Whether it was Might Guy or Kakashi, they were both Jonin at a young age, and interacting with them naturally yielded more gains.
It was like teaching students; it could even make his brain absorb knowledge faster.
Thinking alone was a talent.
Gathering the thoughts of countless people was wisdom.
This was Satoru's idea.
The intense discussion quickly passed, and the three gained a lot.
Satoru went home to take care of his children, Kakashi secretly went to read, and Might Guy... went to perform his losing punishment.
Swoosh! Swoosh!
ReTomoeoe appeared in the night, and Shisui appeared in the Hokage Office.
He knelt halfway before Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"Hokage-sama, according to your intelligence, no high-ranking Uchiha Clan members were on missions recently."
Uchiha Shisui reported the intelligence he had gathered.
Hiruzen Sarutobi heard him: "Have there been any Uchiha left outside in the past?"
Ibara Keisen, as one of Konoha's mainstays and a successor to the Will of Fire, had no reason to lie about intelligence.
Moreover, he had also verified with Danzo's subordinates that the enemy indeed possessed a Sharingan.
But now, the Uchiha Clan had no corresponding person, which was so similar to the Nine-Tailed Fox's rampage before.
Although all Uchiha Clan members were under Anbu surveillance, some inexplicable things happened.
Now there were only a few possibilities: someone had stolen the Uchiha Bloodline Limit, the Uchiha had hidden from everyone and had surviving clan members outside who were taking some kind of action, or there was a bloodline left outside, just like the people of the Land of Whirlpools.
"According to the clan's records, there are no Uchiha Clan members left outside, at least not in the records after the Warring States Period ended."
Uchiha Shisui detailed the intelligence.
During the Warring States Period, there were even fewer; in such chaotic times, more clan members died, fewer people existed, and records were clearer.
But a Ninja would not rule out any possibility.
Shisui was also shocked in his heart that there was still an 'Uchiha Clan member' wandering outside.
And according to Hokage-sama's intelligence, the other party very likely possessed the power of the Mangekyo Sharingan and also Wood Release.
That was the power of the First Hokage Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara, who pacified the chaotic world; one person possessed both.
This made his mood even heavier.
This incident would make the Uchiha's situation in Konoha even more passive.
It would also heighten the Hokage's suspicion of the Uchiha.
Tap, tap, tap!
Hiruzen Sarutobi tapped his finger on the table, lost in thought.
Excluding all impossibilities, there were still too many possibilities.
For example, besides suspecting internal plots within the Uchiha, he also suspected that his disciple Orochimaru was behind it.
Because during the period when Orochimaru brought glory to Konoha, which was also during wartime, many Uchiha died, and although most of their eyes were recovered, some were lost.
He suspected that when Orochimaru was conducting human experiments, some Uchiha might have been abducted.
"You go back first. Be sure to pay attention to any possible intelligence," Hiruzen Sarutobi said.
"Yes."
Whoosh!
The next day.
Satoru was using Pupil Setting Hand to create several phantom beasts with cradles on their backs, carrying the two little ones flying around the room.
Wah-yi~
Both babies were very excited, experiencing the feeling of flying.
But before he could spend much time with them, an Anbu delivered a message: Hokage-sama wanted him to come over.
Speechless, Satoru had no choice but to leave the children with Ayame and set off for the Hokage Office.
"How is it? Are children easy to take care of?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked with a smile, teasing him.
It must be very difficult!
Only those who have taken care of children know that it's much harder than killing on the battlefield.
His family only had Sarutobi Shinnosuke, his eldest son, who was more stable.
Asuma, however, was enough to give him a headache.
Now, Konoha's mainstays also had children; he probably felt the same way.
"They're easy to take care of. They don't cry or fuss. As soon as I came back, they recognised me as their dad. They smile every day and know how to call out when they need to pee or poop. It's so easy. I never thought taking care of children could be this easy."
Satoru felt it was fine; his two boys were very easy to take care of.
There was nothing about them that made him feel bad.
Although they were a bit strange at times, their clothes always had some dust on them at night.
He had also monitored them, but both his son and daughter were very well-behaved.
He hadn't found anything unusual.
"...Easy... easy to take care of?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi was full of questions.
The Sarutobi Clan was considered large; now, when parents went on missions, nannies took care of the children.
But even so, facing his ten-month-old grandson, Konohamaru, his head was spinning.
He was fussy all day long.
Sometimes, when he held him, he would deliberately pee on him.
He wouldn't pee if he weren't held, but he would pee if he were.
"Yes, I heard your grandson was born a month earlier than my children. He must be even more well-behaved than my children!"
Satoru felt that the Third Hokage's expression was a bit off.
What's so hard about taking care of a child? They're not like older children who have their thoughts, like Naruto, Konohamaru, or Inuzuka Hana, those little brats with ideas.
They're not even a year old yet. As long as you ensure their safety and change their diapers, it's very easy.
You don't even need to coax them; they laugh when you tease them and call out 'Daddy' when you tell them to.
Hiruzen Sarutobi was jealous. Goodness, don't everyone else's children cause trouble? So only your children are easy to take care of!
"Alright, let's not talk about family matters anymore. I called you here for official business."
Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't want to talk about this anymore.
....
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