It is not as if people with special eyes do not exist.
Regardless of their color or the abilities they contained, Shimura Danzo considered himself to have seen enough of them.
Yet, the moment he laid eyes on that child's eyes, a strong urge to possess them had welled up within him.
Because those eyes looked vaguely familiar.
After a moment of thought, he confirmed he had seen them before.
Sarutobi had seen them as well.
Judging by appearances, however, Sarutobi seemed not to have remembered. Could it be that the Third Hokage's energy was spread too thin by the sheer volume of daily affairs?
Or perhaps he had already remembered and was deliberately pretending not to know.
Otherwise, why would he go out of his way to make a special exception for an unrelated child, allowing him to attend the Ninja Academy?
Yet sending someone to the Ninja Academy for a leisurely education was pure a waste of time.
If that was truly the case, he found himself unable to fathom what Sarutobi was thinking.
Regardless of which it was, however, he was determined to secure that child no matter what.
-
"Uncle Sakumo, what were you saying just now?"
Inside a shop on Konoha's commercial street, while picking out stationery for school, Nariya Ueshima vaguely heard Hatake Sakumo say something in a low voice beside his ear.
It was just that he happened to be lost in thought and hadn't paid much attention.
This absent-minded demeanor of his, falling into Hatake Sakumo's eyes, suddenly made it somewhat difficult for him to bring up what he had just said again.
Was the boy still unable to let go of his adoptive parents and still mired in grief?
That must be why he had declined Lord Hokage's proposal to stay with another villager's family.
Besides, he had heard that every single night, the child struggled to learn characters and pored bitterly over medical texts.
Such earnest dedication was truly heartbreaking, yet a person always had to move forward.
Pulling himself together, Hatake Sakumo repeated, "Nariya, what do you think of Uncle's home?"
"Uncle's house is very big, you know. You will definitely love it once you go take a look."
"......"
After saying this in a solemn voice, Hatake Sakumo felt as though the surroundings had suddenly grown quiet. Not only that, but several gazes carrying astonishment and oddness were cast his way one after another.
Meanwhile, the child he had just called out to, who was holding a pen to test-write, froze in his expression and stared at him with wide eyes.
What is the matter?
Hatake Sakumo was at a loss.
Two seconds later.
"The weird uncle Obito mentioned must actually be Uncle Sakumo, right?"
"......?"
"Because what you said just now sounded just like a perverted abductor."
Hatake Sakumo: "......"
"Don't worry, though, Uncle. I won't report you to Lord Hokage."
Nariya Ueshima looked at him, turned his head to calmly put down the pen, and picked up another one instead.
Realizing what had happened, Hatake Sakumo was stunned and hastily waved his hands. "No, that's not it, that's not it."
No wonder the surrounding customers who overheard had looked at him like that! If he hadn't been wearing his forehead protector and a Jonin flak jacket, someone might have rushed over and pinned him to the ground right then and there!
Was it all because his phrasing had been too strange?
Come to think of it, he hadn't had much experience communicating with young children. Even though Nariya was around Kakashi's age, as a father, he didn't usually chat much with his own son anyway.
So was there a generation gap?
"What I meant was, Nariya, would you like to come live at Uncle's house? There are empty rooms there."
As the words left his mouth, Hatake Sakumo froze once more. Uh, that time it still didn't sound quite right...
Catering to a child's self-esteem really made one hold back and act overly cautious, leaving him slightly at a loss.
Meanwhile, Nariya Ueshima watched the reaction of the illustrious White Fang of Konoha out of the corner of his eye, the corners of his lips curving upward as he found it rather amusing.
Those words hadn't really been a big deal; it was just that seeing Hatake Sakumo's expression suddenly tense up so rigidly, he had deliberately misinterpreted them to lighten the mood.
He had originally thought the man had come looking for him to discuss some major matter, but it turned out to be about his living arrangements after all.Just rejected the Third Hokage, and now here comes the White Fang of Konoha. Why hadn't he realized he was in such high demand?
Oh, right, almost forgot about Shimura Danzo.
Not long ago, he really hadn't wanted to go to anyone's house. But then Shimura Danzo had inexplicably popped up midway with an invitation of his own, and that forced him to reconsider.
Because given Danzo's sinister nature, the man might well come looking for him again with more brainwashing nonsense.
If he wanted to avoid that endless annoyance, he certainly needed to find a backer.
And as it happened, Hatake Sakumo had come looking for him.
Also as it happened, Danzo was somewhat wary of this man. So—
"Isn't this our renowned White Fang?"
Just as he was deep in thought, and Hatake Sakumo was standing there awkwardly, a raspy baritone echoed from nearby.
The newcomer had long black hair, eyes with golden slit pupils, purple eye shadow extending down to the sides of his nose, pale skin, and magatama-shaped earrings with a bluish-green tint.
Hatake Sakumo frowned, turned his head, and called out the newcomer's name: "Orochimaru."
"What a coincidence."
Orochimaru walked over with a faint smile. "Seeing you with a white-haired child in this shop from afar, I assumed that someone as perpetually busy as you was taking your son out for a stroll. Apparently not."
With that sarcastic remark delivered, his golden pupils swept down to the expressionless boy. After taking a closer look, a flicker of interest suddenly sparked within him.
"What's wrong with this child's eyes?"
"Thank you for your concern, but his eyes are completely normal."
"Oh? Natural? Heterochromia is quite rare, you know."
"..."
Hatake Sakumo had no desire to spar with Orochimaru on this topic any longer, so he changed the subject: "Didn't the other two return to the village with you?"
Knowing that he was asking about Jiraiya and Tsunade, Orochimaru maintained that seemingly amicable expression of his.
Yet, possessing pupils akin to a serpent's alongside pale skin, his entire aura was shrouded in an ineffable, chilling gloom.
"They both have their own matters to attend to. Even when we return together, we don't constantly congregate."
"That is truly unfortunate," Hatake Sakumo said coolly.
Orochimaru glanced at him, sensitively sensing that Sakumo did not want him talking too much to the child standing before them. He guessed aloud, "This child must be one of the batch you were responsible for bringing back last year, right?"
"Children with unknown backgrounds carry a very high value for utilization."
Hatake Sakumo decisively let his expression turn cold. "Please do not speak like that in front of a child."
Even though Nariya Ueshima was not very old, he could still understand at least that much.
After all, who would want to know that the only reason they were brought back to settle in the village was because of their utility value?
Orochimaru saw nothing wrong with his own words, but seeing Hatake Sakumo's expression grow frosty, he knew when to stop.
After all, the other's strength surpassed that of the Sannin; the superficial respect and courtesy still had to be maintained.
"Then I won't disturb you further." Pausing for a second, Orochimaru slowly turned around. Before taking a step, he turned his head back with a smile, casting a lingering, ambiguous look at Hatake Sakumo and Nariya Ueshima.
"I hear there have been criminals abducting children near the village lately. Do be careful not to let the child get stolen away, oh?"
"…Thank you for the reminder."
Hatake Sakumo squeezed those words out almost through clenched teeth.
By the time Orochimaru's figure had gradually faded into the distance, he finally withdrew his stern gaze.
Turning his head back, he discovered that Nariya Ueshima, who had been standing right beside him just a moment ago, had suddenly vanished.
Hatake Sakumo: "!"