Chapter 88: Summer of Reflections and genjutsu

Three months later.

The cicadas buzzed, mingling with the noon sunlight, spreading through the lush forest.

Behind a low shrub, a single crimson tomoe slowly spun. Shisui Uchiha crouched low, his excellent dynamic vision etching everything before him into his mind.

"Fast, but not as fast as me," Shisui observed his target, frowning slightly. "Killing is easy, but capturing unharmed... that's hard."

He signaled to his two companions. Three months together had fostered remarkable synergy among the clever boy and girl.

Ruri Mochizuki and Muta Aburame quietly flanked the target, forming a perfect triangular encirclement.

"Begin!" Muta silently commanded. Nearly a hundred tiny black insects emerged from his body, creating a disturbing buzzing noise under his control.

The target's ears twitched instinctively. Seeing the aggressive swarm in the sky, it let out a howl and bolted.

Swift as a thunderbolt, a flash of red light darted more than ten meters away.

"Knew your pig brain would only run forward..." the girl sneered, punching the ground. A wall of pale bone pillars swiftly rose, blocking the path.

Startled, the target skidded in the dirt, changing direction.

But changing direction reduced its absolute speed. Shisui's single tomoe Sharingan spun wildly. Using a high-level Body Flicker Technique, he appeared in front of the target, arms open wide, and hugged it tightly!

"Haha! Gotcha!"

Shisui laughed heartily, his voice as cheerful as a mountain stream.

A small red pig struggled in his arms for a while before giving up, snuggling into the boy's embrace with a resigned snort.

"D-rank mission, capture the runaway pet red pig unharmed, complete! Haha!"

"Hmph..." The white-haired girl walked over, twisting the pig's ear threateningly. "Tell your brothers and sisters you survived the attack of the Kaguya Clan, Sharingan, and Aburame Clan's secret techniques. This is the highlight of your pig life."

The red pig snorted, unclear if it understood.

The ninja world was full of peculiar animals; a pig faster than a bird might just comprehend human speech.

"Let's go report to the client," Shisui said, leading the way with the pig in his arms.

"Wait, Ruri, Shisui," Muta pointed to a bag beside a tree. "There's some wild mushrooms and other delicacies. Let's take them to the Senju Clan grounds and cook lunch for our sensei before reporting the mission. Unlike the C-rank escort mission last time, there's no rush for a D-rank mission."

"Ah?" Ruri replied heartlessly, "Let's sensei cook for himself. He's an adult; he can take care of himself."

"Wouldn't that be too pitiful?" Muta adjusted his sunglasses. "Yuto-sensei's ninja talent is inversely proportional to his cooking skills."

"You have a point," Shisui recalled their sensei's first meal, the infamous octopus-banana miso soup. The best ninjas often blend creativity into their jutsu and cooking. Shisui had convinced himself to finish the soup by imagining it as training.

"Let's go. It's half past eleven. If we finish cooking by twelve-thirty, we'll have time to report the mission and grab some ramen."

...

When Yuto and Tsunade returned from the mountains, the small tatami table was already set with steaming food.

"Ah, it's those kids again," Tsunade said with a smile, sitting down and calling Yuto over. "Come on, your students are more considerate than mine."

Yuto touched his nose and sat across from his sensei.

The food was delicious, likely prepared by Muta. Despite the eerie appearance of the Aburame Clan, they were excellent homemakers.

As they ate, Yuto and Tsunade chatted.

"Yuto, how are your students?" Tsunade asked.

"They're great kids. I arranged for them to do one C-rank mission, followed by three D-rank missions. Every ten days, I take them on a B-rank or even an A-rank mission."

"Isn't that too challenging?"

"They're very talented, especially Shisui. His talent surpasses mine at his age."

"Konoha's Lone Lion has a worthy successor," Tsunade teased. After a pause, she casually asked, "Is Hiashi still pressuring you to return?"

"Yes," Yuto said, his hand steady as he picked up his chopsticks. "At my age, it's good to settle down. I heard that in the Warring States period, ninjas started having children at fifteen or sixteen."

"Hmph..." Tsunade wanted to say more but couldn't find a suitable point of entry. It was a Hyuga family matter, despite being his sensei, it wasn't her place to interfere. She focused on her meal instead.

Yuto silently smiled at the blonde woman, pushing her favorite grilled fish closer to her.

Recently, Yuto's life had been calm. His intelligent and understanding students, responsible and beautiful sensei, and respectful subordinates at Konoha Hospital all contributed to his smooth training and teaching.

He felt like a typical "normal" transmigrator—born in Konoha, training diligently, waiting for Naruto's birth to fight for peace in the ninja world.

Of course, even the best days have their annoyances.

Hiashi Hyuga seemed to have gone mad over the past few months, constantly calling Yuto over to introduce him to potential brides within the clan. His arguments were irrefutable: "Your parents died early. As clan leader, it's my duty to find you a partner so your bloodline and will can continue."

At fourteen and a half, a Hyuga youth should indeed be engaged. But engagement leads to marriage, and marriage to children.

Yuto didn't hate children or marriage; he just couldn't bear the thought of his offspring being branded with a caged bird seal.

The engagement matter was delayed repeatedly, with pressure from Hiashi mounting. Yuto knew it would be hard to resist unless a major event happened or he was assigned away from the village.

In any case, he didn't want his children to be born slaves.

With both pleasant days and annoying problems, Yuto felt like a normal teenager this summer.

...

After lunch, Yuto didn't return to the mountains. He still had responsibilities at Konoha Hospital and couldn't be absent all day.

After bidding farewell to Tsunade, he arrived at the hospital within minutes.

Yuto intended to greet his colleagues as usual and leave, but unexpectedly, a sweating Chunin doctor grabbed his hand.

"Captain Yuto! You're just in time! We have a batch of critically injured from the battlefield... We're overwhelmed... Could you..."

"I can."

Yuto looked at the boy being wheeled into the operating room and responded softly.

The face, the age... He recognized him from the original story in his previous life.

—Yamato!

His "Hashirama Cells" were weak, far from enough for Yuto to complete his bloodline transformation.

But Yamato was a key, an opportunity not to be missed—or a fuse that couldn't be ignored!

Yuto closed his eyes, extended his hands, and allowed his subordinates to disinfect and equip him with medical gear.

Then he walked into the emergency room.

Stepping out of the summer of genjutsu,

Back into the bloody real world.

(End of Chapter)