Chapter 3: The Decision

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In the open kitchen, Uchiha Mika was tidying up the dishes, noticing Uchiha Tōshirō who had come out of the study and was sitting on the sofa in the living room. She didn't pay much attention, just focusing on her chores.

After about ten minutes of work, Uchiha Mika came into the living room. Seeing the serious child sitting on the sofa, she immediately sat down next to him and lifted him from the sofa onto her crossed legs.

Our protagonist then displayed an expression of utter despair, after all, he was a thirty-year-old man in his mind. Being treated like a child by a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl was mortifying!

After a futile struggle, he had no choice but to give up. From the girl's perspective, his dejected and helpless expression after being 'invaded' was incredibly "cute," especially with his baby fat, making him look even more adorable.

Resigned to his fate, he could only maintain a stern face, straddling the legs of his elder, and spoke the words he had been pondering for a long time.

"Sis Mika, I've decided that I want to become a ninja."

"Become a ninja?" Uchiha Mika was momentarily stunned, looking at the little boy sitting on her lap.

"Yes, become a ninja!"

He repeated his answer with firmness, his gaze steady and direct.

Hearing the boy's determined response and his black eyes staring straight at her, Uchiha Mika put aside her playful demeanor.

Through his bright, black eyes, she sensed the seriousness and resolve of the little boy on her lap.

"Can you tell me why you want to become a ninja? You should know that the training for ninjas is incredibly arduous. And once you become a ninja, injuries, blood, pain, and sorrow are all part of the routine."

"I want to know why my parents, grandparents, and everyone else ultimately became ninjas. I'm also curious about the supernatural energy called chakra. What unique charm does it have that makes every Uchiha so persistent in pursuing it?"

"At the same time, I want to become stronger. I want to see what the view is like from higher up!"

Hearing the words of the little boy named Uchiha Tōshirō, Uchiha Mika felt both surprised and unsurprised.

She was surprised because the boy's answer was not about becoming the Hokage or protecting everyone and the village.

"Because his parents and relatives are ninjas, he wants to become one too, and he's curious about the power of ninjas, and he wants to see the view from higher up! This answer is so Uchiha!"

"I didn't expect to hear such an answer from a four-year-old!" she added silently in her heart.

"Becoming a ninja will be tough for you, Tōshirō! In a month, the clan will start teaching children how to extract chakra and basic taijutsu and shuriken throwing. So you don't have to wait long."

She didn't try to stop him; for the Uchiha, becoming a ninja is an ancient tradition. At four years old, it's time to start learning how to extract chakra.

But a faint sadness crept into her heart. "Perhaps this is the fate of the Uchiha," she murmured.

The word "fate" is widely used among ninjas. Countless ninjas experience helplessness in endless missions and killings.

Hearing that her younger sister didn't intend to stop him from becoming a ninja, Uchiha Tōshirō pulled out a yellowed piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to her.

"A herbal bath?" She looked at the contents of the paper and was somewhat enlightened. It seemed he had prepared thoroughly!

This was the herbal bath recipe passed down through generations of the Uchiha clan. Whenever a child wanted to become a ninja, as long as the family could afford it, every Uchiha parent would prepare it for their child.

Once a week, for about one to two hours each time, combined with appropriate exercise and stretching, this is one of the reasons why the success rate of chakra extraction is high among Uchiha children.

Training a ninja is a very precious and difficult task. Among ordinary civilian children, only one out of ten or even a hundred can cultivate chakra.

In large, medium, and small clans, only a few children out of many can successfully extract chakra. The longer a clan has used chakra, the higher the success rate of chakra extraction among their children.

The herbal bath recipe in Uchiha Tōshirō's hand could increase the success rate of chakra extraction, making it extremely valuable.

"Since that's the case, Tōshirō, follow me." Uchiha Mika put the child down from her lap and led him by the hand towards the bedroom.

She opened the drawer under the bedside table and took out a dark wooden box.

Inside, there were two bankbooks and some valuable documents. She took out one of the bankbooks.

"Tōshirō, this is the inheritance your parents, my sister and brother-in-law, left for you. The other bankbook is the village compensation voucher."

"Since you've decided to become a ninja, the necessary preparations must be made. This bankbook contains over six million ryo."

"The cost of a herbal bath. If the market remains stable, it's about 50,000 ryo. Once a week, for a period of one to three years, depending on the family's financial situation. In total, for three years, it would cost about 7.8 million ryo, which is slightly insufficient. However, if you get the herbs from the clan, there will be discounts and subsidies, making it more than enough."

"For living and regular training expenses, you can receive 3,000 ryo from the village each month, and the clan provides an additional 1,000 ryo. It will be more than enough to cover the expenses for a child like you."

Uchiha Tōshirō's mouth opened wide in surprise. He knew that ninja training was expensive, but he didn't expect it to be this costly.

Seeing Tōshirō's surprised expression, Uchiha Mika chuckled.

"Now you know, right?" She pinched his little cheek.

Uchiha Tōshirō was immensely grateful that he was born into a relatively wealthy ninja family and that there was no melodramatic plot of adults mistreating him after his parents' death.

"Thank you, Sis Mika."

This "thank you" was both for the care she had shown him over the past few days and for her honesty with him.

"Mm, don't get too excited yet! Whether you can successfully extract chakra is still unknown!"

Uchiha Mika accepted the boy's gratitude calmly. But seeing the smile on his face, she couldn't resist adding a bit of discouragement.

(End of Chapter)