Chapter 15. Except for Him
---
"I have seen it!" A natural yet doubtful voice said.
"..."
"What's wrong?" Why would he randomly ask such a question?
Konan looked at Uchiha Yuto in confusion. "I see it all the time with Nagato and Yahiko when we were wandering around! Sometimes we couldn't sleep for several days."
"…Indeed, that's the difference," Uchiha Yuto suddenly sighed. "Even if life becomes affluent and easy, don't forget the hard work we put in back then. What I mean is that no matter how life changes, we should always remember the struggles and efforts we experienced for a better life. We must not start indulging in pleasures just because life has improved a little."
He glanced at Yahiko, who looked deep in thought, and at Konan, who appeared somewhat bewildered, worried that he might have gone overboard with his motivational speech. He quickly changed the subject, "Where's Nagato? Why isn't he here?"
Has he already started indulging in pleasure?
"He went with Kyusuke to dig a tunnel yesterday and stayed up really late, so he's still resting now," Yahiko said with a wry smile.
Then he became excited again, "The jutsu you taught us, the non-handseal ninjutsu—Digging Hole Ball—is really useful! We can dig a big pit quickly, and we can throw it and control it from a distance, which greatly reduces our workload. It's just so hard to learn. If we could reduce the power a bit, that would be even better." He sighed again. "You said that during the Sage of Six Paths' time, ninjutsu was used to reshape the world. I don't know why… now it has become these killing machines."
"…"
Yahiko is just too sentimental; he's not cut out to be a successful capitalist.
Yuto patted his shoulder, speaking earnestly, "So you must lead everyone back onto the right path!"
To manage the Land of Rain, they need pit diggers.
"Let all the ninjas use ninjutsu in the right way."
"I will! Brother Yuto!" Yahiko said confidently, "I will definitely not disappoint you!"
"Not disappointed, not disappointed!"
As long as there's work to be done.
Uchiha Yuto took a quick look at the Land of Rain that Yahiko and the others were managing. Although the territory was small, most of it was in low-lying areas that flooded when it rained. The situation was not bad; at least Hanzo the Salamander was not paying them any mind.
Moreover, many refugees have come here. If they could set up factories here, that would be great.
Low wages, plenty of workers, and low costs, but with everything in such a chaotic state, transporting goods over long distances is too dangerous and expensive.
As a businessman, plans must be shelved for now; he wasn't considering it yet.
After strolling for a while and putting away the explosive tags and kunai, the group arrived at Yahiko's base, where Nagato had also woken up.
Thinking about the trio… They were orphaned and homeless in the Land of Rain, later became disciples of Jiraiya, and acquired skills to be self-reliant. Then the eldest brother died, the second brother became crippled, and the youngest sister lost her dreams, starting to listen to the delusional dreams of Nagato, who became neurotic due to his disability.
So… parenting is so important; it must be done well in childhood to establish correct values. Relying on destroying the world to establish peace… is indeed more reliable than the idea of the God of the Ninja World.
If everyone is dead, isn't that peace?
He just wasn't very smart and believed the words of a psychopath. The Uchiha family... except for him, Uchiha Yuto, everyone else's brains were a little abnormal.
Uchiha Yuto sighed and patted Nagato, who was getting up to eat. "Nagato, in the future, stay away from psychopaths and make sure you have your own opinions."
After his words fell,
Nagato silently picked up a steamed bun, looked at Uchiha Yuto, then thought for a moment, nodded, and sat down opposite him.
"…"
This kid is quite mischievous.
As expected, his eyes aren't trustworthy; he misjudges people!
Uchiha Yuto also sat down and began to eat lunch. The meal was prepared by Uzumaki Kana and tasted pretty good, especially with the local speciality, the special salamander… tender and juicy, delicious and chewy. The fish soup and barbecue were also great.
It's just that this thing is poisonous, like pufferfish; if not handled by a professional, one careless moment could lead to the whole family being poisoned.
Uzumaki Kana… back when the Third Great Ninja War hadn't started, he was on a diplomatic mission to the Land of Grass to establish a branch and encountered this wandering woman from the Uzumaki clan. He thought about it and brought her over to the Land of Rain to be with the trio.
Now it seems she's doing pretty well; at least Nagato has an older sister around, and he has become a bit more playful.
"You better not use those eyes too much," Uchiha Yuto said after some thought, "It's too taxing on your chakra. Now that you're still growing, if you're not careful… you could end up overexerting yourself, and I might have to arrange for someone to get you a wheelchair. You should also learn other ninjutsu and cultivate a positive and optimistic mindset."
The Rinnegan truly lives up to its reputation as an evolution of the Sharingan; it becomes stronger with anger.
Uchiha Yuto guessed that Nagato had become somewhat extreme later on, perhaps related to these eyes.
So, could it be that the Sharingan is the source of the Uchiha clan's madness?
And since the Sharingan originates from the God Tree… I remember there were speculations that Kaguya Otsutsuki transformed from a goddess into an extremist, not merely due to giving birth or reaching menopause; perhaps she was also… infected by the Rinnegan.
It seems the Uchiha family's mental illness is also an ancestral mental illness.
"I know," Nagato nodded.
These eyes… are indeed somewhat strange; they become particularly spirited upon activation, causing one's mind to heat up and leading to impulsive actions if one is not careful. At the time, it didn't seem like much, but thinking back… it's quite dangerous for a ninja to lose their composure.
"Sister Kana checked me, and when I get excited, a chakra similar to the Uchiha clan's Sharingan appears in my eyes, making me easily confused in my heart."
"…"
Uchiha Yuto chuckled awkwardly.
Indeed, the mental well-being and psychological health of the Uchiha clan need to be focused on!
After the meal, he and Uzumaki Kana headed to the underground laboratory that he had built at great expense.
Unfortunately…
There were too few researchers.
And the experimental samples… were also far too few.
"Lord Yuto, please," Uzumaki Kana, dressed in a white lab coat, smiled gently and gestured toward a surgical table-like bed. "This time we just need to do a simple examination."
Here, there were most of his Sharingan and chakra data. His awakening of the Sharingan was different from other Uchihas; it wasn't triggered by witnessing the death of loved ones or comrades but rather when he graduated from elementary school… started making money, and awakened it right after the first upgrade.
From then on, he awakened it naturally as his attributes increased through system upgrades.
Perhaps being excited about making money is also a form of emotion!
Uchiha Yuto watched as Kana leaned in close, carefully examining his eyes, her unique red hair and gentleness contrasting with Kushina, who had the same fiery red hair.
It was refreshing.
Unlike his soft and sweet childhood friend, Suzune, she resembled more like Nono, exuding a gentle older sister vibe.
A moment later,
"Are you really not going to stay in the Land of Rain?" Kana suddenly said softly. "Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan all hope that you will stay."
"Just wait a bit longer."
How can he stay when there's still money to be made?
Uchiha Yuto smiled and shook his head. "I can't let anyone else know I'm in the Land of Rain!"
"Kana understands." Uzumaki Kana smiled with pursed lips, her eyes blinking softly, then fell silent for a moment. "Thank you."
After speaking, before Yuto could respond, she smiled again and said, "The pupil power has increased, but there aren't many other changes." Saying this, she directly put away the plastic gloves, her cheeks slightly flushed, her gaze somewhat dreamy, and extended her delicate, onion-like hands toward Uchiha Yuto. "Lord… please!"
"Actually, biting down on your…"
"Lord, please!"
"…Thank you for your hospitality!" Looking at the smiling Kana, Uchiha Yuto directly took her slender, fair index finger into his mouth, gently biting down. Instantly, a warm, liquid-like sensation flooded his mouth, as if filling his entire oral cavity, and his body felt as if it had been parched for dozens of days, crazily absorbing the energy flowing from Kana.
A soft "Mmm~" moan echoed in the closed laboratory.
Uchiha Yuto wanted to pull back his mouth, but… her finger remained inside, seemingly… scratching him gently.
"???"
What was going on?
…
At the same time…
In a somewhat luxurious house in the Land of Rain,
A figure wearing a heavy gas mask stared at the information on the table and muttered, "Did those little kids do any strange activities today?"