Chapter 66: Telling Little Lies
Yu gently pinched Sasuko's puffed-up little cheeks, feeling the soft warmth through his fingertips.
He narrowed his eyes, his voice carrying playful amusement: "So what does Sasuko think... it should be?"
Sasuko's words came out muffled as he pinched her cheeks: "Either dangerous missions, or agreeing to bad conditions with someone..."
Sorry Sasuko, I actually stole it... or rather, it's what they owed us.
This thought flashed through Yu's mind, but his expression only grew more gentle: "Sasuko is so smart." He released her cheeks and lightly flicked her nose tip. "But this time it really was given to us." He paused before adding, "Or rather... temporarily lent to us."
Sasuko squinted suspiciously: "Lent?"
"Mm." Yu looked toward Konoha's direction outside the window. "Like storing things with someone else—you can take them back anytime you need them."
The space beside Yu slightly distorted as he withdrew a yellowed scroll: "But now, it belongs to you." He offered the scroll to Sasuko. "Want to try? Though you might fall over during the first few attempts."
But Sasuko didn't reach for it, instead crossing her arms to stare at him: "Who did Yu borrow it from?"
Yu's smile stiffened slightly.
Looking at his sister's dark eyes that clearly read "don't try to fool me," he suddenly realized these casually made-up lies were indeed full of holes.
[Next time I should craft a complete story... Sasuko's getting sharper, can't keep treating her like a seven-year-old.]
"A... acquaintance." Yu chose his words carefully. "She doesn't need it temporarily, so she lent it to us for study."
Sasuko continued pressing: "Which acquaintance? Do I know her?"
Yu cleared his throat lightly: "Your principal. We've known each other for a while..."
"Principal?"
Sasuko tried hard to recall that distant figure from the opening ceremony—golden hair particularly dazzling in sunlight, face not clearly remembered, except for one especially prominent feature...
She unconsciously gestured an exaggerated arc: "That blonde woman with really big... assets!"
Then suddenly stared at Yu with alert eyes.
Yu choked and coughed repeatedly at those words: "Sasuko, where did you learn to say things like that?"
Sasuko studied Yu's somewhat abnormal expression, her sense of crisis exploding.
How could Yu have contact with such a woman? Did Yu like that type? She looked down at her own flat chest.
Damn it, she'd definitely grow bigger than that blonde woman in the future!
Sasuko didn't answer Yu's question, instead examining him with suspicious eyes: "How did you meet her? How come I didn't know?"
Her small face gradually tightened as her young mind uncontrollably conjured certain images inappropriate for her age.
Could Yu and that old woman have...
Thinking this, Sasuko's anger flared, her small face reddening.
What right did that brainless busty woman have to interact with Yu? I'm the one closest to Yu!
Seeing Sasuko getting serious, Yu suddenly felt his scalp tingle.
He tried to placate: "Just ordinary work relations..."
He couldn't exactly say he'd hung Tsunade over her office desk to interrogate her, right?
Seeing Yu's evasive manner, Sasuko felt inexplicably hurt, her eyes starting to redden again.
Yu is lying!
She felt powerless, like encountering an unbeatable opponent at the most helpless age.
"Wuu..."
Accompanied by aggrieved whimpering, the scroll in Yu's hand dropped to the floor with a "thud."
Seeing his teary-eyed sister, Yu finally realized things had gone terribly wrong.
He knelt on one knee, grasping Sasuko's shoulders: "Listen to me, it's just because she owes me a favor."
But Sasuko cried even harder: "What favor?! Did Yu do something bad behind my back?" Tears fell like broken pearls as she sobbed and hiccupped.
Yu really wanted to slap his earlier lying self. Indeed, one lie required countless lies to cover it.
Why hadn't he just said he'd found it?
He hurried to comfort: "A life-saving debt. Last time her teacher was severely injured, she asked me to treat him..."
Sasuko raised her tear-blurred face: "Really?"
Yu swore earnestly: "Really, I swear by the Uchiha name."
Only then did Sasuko stop crying, burying her face in his clothes to wipe it clean.
Seeing this worked, Yu struck while the iron was hot: "I'll never abandon you, Sasuko."
These words warmed Sasuko's heart as she nodded lightly: "Mm."
She raised her tear-stained face: "I believe you."
Yu secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Since long ago, Sasuko had been particularly sensitive to women around him, and this tendency seemed increasingly obvious now.
In his previous life, this condition was called "dependent attachment disorder"—patients would become overly guarded toward the outside world, placing all emotional dependence on specific family members. It was a fairly common psychological condition.
To cure this mental state, one could only gradually guide the patient to open their heart and slowly accept external warmth.
He gently ruffled his sister's hair, thinking he should find time to ask Naruko how Sasuko was getting along with classmates at school.
Why not ask Sasuko directly?
As everyone knew, Sasuko loved telling little lies.
Whenever questioned, she'd always use standard triple responses like "classmates are all nice," "teachers are caring," and "school life is happy" to deflect.
If pressed about making new friends, she'd blink those seemingly innocent big eyes saying "yes yes, just forgot their names," then quickly change topics to discuss jutsu practice.
As Yu pondered, Sasuko in his arms suddenly tugged his sleeve: "Next time you treat someone, can I come along? I could be your assistant..."
Looking at his sister's sparkling eyes, Yu felt the road ahead was long and arduous.
"Next time for sure. Didn't we say we'd study ninjutsu today?"
"Oh, okay."
Seeing Sasuko's emotions gradually stabilizing, Yu skillfully redirected the conversation back to the original jutsu instruction.
He gently lifted Sasuko and walked to the living room, placing her on his lap as he unrolled the scroll containing Flying Thunder God technique.
"I've only recently mastered this jutsu myself," his chin lightly rested atop Sasuko's head as his fingertip traced the complex runes on the scroll. "If anything isn't clear in my explanation, Sasuko must tell me immediately."
The girl in his arms nodded slightly, her hair tickling his neck.
Yu began explaining the positioning principles of spatial coordinates word by word, keeping his voice soft and slow.
When he reached the chakra reverse conversion formula, he clearly felt Sasuko's body tense.
"This part is indeed hard to understand, right?" He chuckled lightly. "I was dizzy for three days when I first saw it..."
Sasuko suddenly looked up, her head bumping his chin: "Yu finds things difficult too?"
"Of course."
"Especially the space folding part—I kept crashing into trees during practice..."
Sasuko giggled, then quickly covered her mouth.
Seeing her eyes brighten again, Yu quietly sighed in relief.
Finally managed to coax her back to normal.