Soon, as they walked along, Obito struggled with himself for a long time before finally gathering the courage to ask: "Why did Rin... Rin, why do you think I'm in love?"
In truth, that wasn't entirely wrong—Obito certainly felt he was in love, but he never, ever imagined that his secret crush would think he was dating someone else!
Nohara Rin tilted her head in confusion: "Huh? Yesterday evening I saw you with a white-haired girl, chatting away happily as you walked home, you know."
"I even called out to you from behind, but you were so engrossed in your conversation with her, Obito, that you didn't hear me."
"Come to think of it, that girl is very cute, with striking, different-colored eyes."
"..."
Hearing this, Obito's expression completely shattered, followed by a blush of extreme shock that made his whole body tremble uncontrollably.
Beside them, Kakashi, who knew the truth, laughed with unbridled mockery, his low chuckle growing louder and louder.
"Eh, so it was a boy?"
A minute later, after listening to Obito's weak and pale explanation, it was the kind-hearted Nohara Rin's turn to flush crimson, her expression full of embarrassment.
"I'm sorry."
Obito covered half his face in shame and muttered that it was fine.
Just last night, Nariya Ueshima had said he was worried Rin would misunderstand, and sure enough, she already had!
"By the way, does your friend have some special Kekkei Genkai with his eyes, Obito?"
"No." Obito shook his head decisively. "Nariya was born to an ordinary family and adopted into the village by kind people. Like me, he doesn't have parents anymore."
"Ah..." Nohara Rin covered her mouth in surprise, her expression filled with apology and heartache.
Kakashi glanced over from the side. "You Uchiha have way too many rules, forbidding this and that. One of these days, I'll ask my father to bring Nariya over to my place; the Hatake clan isn't so fussy."
"Ha?" Obito snapped, displeased. "Got some kind of problem with the Uchiha? What makes you think you can just bring Nariya to your house? If you do that, how am I supposed to hang out with him in the future? I certainly don't want to look at your face every single time!"
"Obviously, I'd ask my father to adopt Nariya into the Hatake family. It just so happens he can teach him some swordsmanship."
"I bet you just saw how good Nariya is at cooking and want to drag him home as your personal cook! Teaching him swordsmanship? What kind of swordsmanship? Teaching him how to chop vegetables?"
"What did you say?"
"Didn't hear clearly? Then I'll say it again!"
The moment they disagreed, the two started bickering, their voices growing louder and louder until Nohara Rin completely gave up trying to mediate.
Unable to get a word in, Namikaze Minato could only wave his hands helplessly with an innocent expression: "Now, now, Obito, Kakashi, stop fighting..."
Meanwhile, the source of this argument—the other protagonist—was simply buying some bread on the street and munching on it.
Upon returning to his residence, Nariya Ueshima sensed the presence of strangers inside—two of them.
Yet the intruders didn't seem to be emitting any malicious intent.
He took out his key, unlocked the door, and then feigned surprise as he looked at the two ANBU operatives wearing cat-face masks standing in the entryway.
"Lord Hokage wants to see you." One of the male ANBU operatives was brief and to the point, his tone rigid.
Noticing his confusion and seeing how cute he was, for fear of startling him, the other female ANBU operative offered an explanation: "You weren't home last night, so we've been waiting here since early this morning."
"Come with us," the male ANBU operative said again, crouching down to signal him to climb onto his back.
Once his view was no longer blocked by the ANBU operative, Nariya Ueshima's peripheral vision caught signs that things in the room had been disturbed. For instance, the largest leaf of the potted Bodhi plant he kept by the window had been facing the sunlight, but now that leaf had been shifted to the other side, and a little dirt was scattered on the windowsill.
Furthermore, several books on medical science left on the table had also been moved and thumbed through.
It must have been these two, right?
Come to think of it, ever since he was adopted and brought to Konohagakure, he really had been under surveillance. It was just that because those fellows never did anything, and his life was so utterly boring, even the people watching him eventually lost interest.
Every now and then, they would simply drop by for a quick peek and then leave, just to scribble up a report and fulfill their duties.
Now that the ANBU were showing themselves openly, Nariya Ueshima guessed this probably meant his surveillance period of over a year had come to an end.
Carried by the ANBU instead of walking, they reached the Hokage's Office in no time.
Early in the morning, the entire village of Konohagakure was already bustling to life, which included the sound of the Third Hokage snoring right through the door.
The moment the office door was knocked upon and the ANBU announced his arrival, the snoring inside vanished instantly.
"Come in."
Sarutobi Hiruzen's voice feigned alertness.
Stepping into the office, Nariya Ueshima saw the Third Hokage sitting there looking full of vigor, his tobacco pipe resting beside a stack of documents, not yet lit.
Nice acting.
He mentally applauded Sarutobi Hiruzen for his benevolent grandfather act.
First, the Third expressed his concern for this "orphan" of the village, tactfully inquiring whether Nariya Ueshima would be willing to go live with another family in the village.
"Thank you, Lord Hokage."
Hearing that polite tone, the Third assumed the boy was agreeing, only to watch the child before him lower his head in dejection.
"Things are fine as they are. Even though everyone in the village is very kind, I don't want to be bounced from family to family anymore. I want to keep looking after the home of Dad Terashima and the others."
"They passed away with nothing left—they only had me."
As he spoke of his adoptive parents who had died of illness, the corners of his eyes turned red and he shed tears of sorrow. This pitiful, sensible display deeply moved even someone as shrewd as the Third Hokage.
The Third recalled last night's ANBU report, which stated that the boy's behavior and social interactions had been entirely normal, and that after his adoptive parents passed away, he had deliberately kept medical texts on his table, struggling to read and master the characters every single night.
He must be harboring remorse over not knowing medical ninjutsu and failing to save his adoptive parents. This child...
The more the Third thought about it, the more his heart ached, forcing him to temporarily push aside the adoption papers he had prepared for Nariya Ueshima.
"Little Narunari, let me ask you one more thing." The Third picked up his tobacco pipe, wanting to light it, but under the unblinking gaze of those innocent, mismatched eyes just paces away, he felt too ashamed to smoke in front of a child. He awkwardly lowered it, coughed, and asked:
"Would you like to go to school?"
"?" Nariya Ueshima looked surprised.
The Third hinted with a meaning: "Through systematic learning, you can master ninjutsu, taijutsu, or genjutsu to protect yourself—though of course, it depends on where your exceptional talents lie. Speaking of which, if you wish to become a medical ninja, I happen to have a disciple with peerless medical skills, renowned throughout the shinobi world and revered as one of the Sannin, who could be your teacher."
"?"
Observing the Third's inscrutable eyes, Nariya Ueshima feigned a sudden look of enlightenment, then hesitated and said: "Lord Hokage, I'm twice the age of most kids in the Ninja Academy. People will laugh at me."
"Haha, how could that be?" The Third laughed heartily.
"You are a child I am personally and specially recommending for enrollment."
Nariya Ueshima, who would be insane to refuse at this point: "..."
You old fox, refusing to spare even a ten-year-old child and stubbornly trying to train him into a laborer!