Adopted by Tsunade [121-122] (Patreon)

Chapter 121: The Vengeful Widow, Mikoto

"Thank you, Natsume."

Mikoto wiped away her tears and said, "If not for your help, I fear no one from the Uchiha clan would have left alive tonight."

Although she didn't know exactly what role he played, at this point there was no way to delve into it further.

For the surviving Uchiha, the priority was how to keep living, not revenge.

Natsume chuckled, a hint of satisfaction flashing across his face.

As expected of a clever woman.

He took out a set of kimono and handed it to her. "Aunt Mikoto, put this on."

Mikoto instinctively glanced at her disheveled clothes and couldn't help blushing.

She took the kimono, hugged it to her chest, and softly repeated, "Thank you."

"No need."

Watching her interesting reaction, Natsume said, "You're my teacher's close friend. It's only right I look after you."

Feeling his invasive gaze, Mikoto couldn't help a flicker of panic in her eyes.

Just as she was beginning to misunderstand, Natsume stood and said, "Aunt Mikoto, get changed, then we'll talk."

He left the room and closed the door.

The next moment, Natsume arched a brow, reached up, and grabbed the little assassin perched above his head.

"Ah! Damn it! Just a little more!"

Tayuya scowled in frustration.

"Why aren't you wearing the clothes I gave you today?"

Natsume glanced over and was immediately displeased.

"You pervert! I won't let you have your way!"

Tayuya had learned from Hinae that the outfit she'd worn before was a maid uniform.

So she angrily changed back into her usual attire.

Natsume pinched her chin, looked her over from side to side, and said, "Since you won't wear that, I'll give you something more normal."

Unable to speak, Tayuya fixed him with her black eyes, lashes taut and trembling.

"Tch, that's a nice glare."

Natsume hooked an arm under her and carried her into the room.

"A kimono?"

Tayuya had braced herself for humiliation, but it turned out to be something normal.

A pink hemp-leaf patterned kimono with a fitted black haori, the outer jacket.

"What? Need me to dress you?"

Natsume smiled slightly as he asked.

Tayuya huffed, but in the end didn't refuse.

Only after he left the room did she change into the kimono.

"Not bad."

She glanced at herself in the mirror, somewhat satisfied.

"Looks like that pervert forgot to punish me today."

Her eyes lit up; she felt a flicker of relief.

Mainly because having her soles tickled was sheer torture.

Natsume walked back into the room.

"Looks good."

The smile in his eyes deepened. "Now for the punishment part."

Tayuya instinctively backed up a few steps and asked warily, "What punishment?"

"Don't worry, not like last time."

Natsume shook his head.

Tayuya only grew more anxious.

Last time had already been inhuman—what would it be this time?

She should've known this bastard wouldn't let her off.

"Open your mouth."

A smirk tugged at Natsume's lips.

"W-What are you going to do?"

Tayuya's heart skipped. Was he going to make her take poison?

"You're always mouthing off to me, so keep quiet for two days."

Under her puzzled, fearful gaze, Natsume pulled out… a section of bamboo.

"Huh?"

Tayuya froze for a second.

"Bite down."

Natsume placed the bamboo by her lips.

Tayuya instantly realized what he intended.

She bared her little fangs and chomped down on the bamboo as if she were biting Natsume himself.

It wasn't actually Natsume's twisted tastes.

He just wanted Tayuya to role-play.

Dressed as she was now, she looked exactly like Kamado Nezuko from Demon Slayer.

"Finally, some peace and quiet."

Ignoring Tayuya's unblinking stare, Natsume patted her head. "See you next time."

He returned to Mikoto's room.

After changing clothes, this married woman's mental state had clearly improved; she wasn't as despondent.

"Natsume, where are we now?"

Mikoto sat formally on her knees with hands on her thighs in typical Japanese etiquette.

"The Land of Waves."

Natsume, unused to sitting seiza, simply sat cross-legged.

"The Land of Waves?"

Mikoto lifted her beautiful eyes in surprise.

Last night she'd been too grief-stricken to notice how she got here.

Hearing suddenly that she'd left the Land of Fire left her dazed.

Her life had been fairly simple.

Average talent, but fortunate enough to be chosen by Fugaku, entering a life of being a wife and mother.

If not for Itachi, that life might have continued forever, without any waves.

"What do you plan to do next?"

Natsume asked with interest.

"Plan…"

Confusion surfaced on Mikoto's face, quickly turning into a complex mix of emotions:

Grief, sorrow, hatred.

Hard to put into words.

"If possible, I want revenge."

Mikoto took a deep breath. "As a mother, I failed to teach Itachi well. I have to correct his mistake."

Natsume paused slightly.

So she wanted to bear this burden for Sasuke?

A fine mother indeed.

"Do you know how many stages the Sharingan can evolve through?"

Natsume thought for a moment and asked.

"I know some."

Mikoto said gravely, "The basic Sharingan has one tomoe, two tomoe, and three tomoe. Above that is the Mangekyō Sharingan. Itachi's eyes are the fourth type—the Mangekyō."

"So you're not ignorant."

Natsume lifted his teacup. "Then you should also know that a three-tomoe Sharingan is no match at all for a Mangekyō."

Mikoto's face dimmed.

Yes.

How could she not know?

If she truly wanted revenge,

she might have to wait for Sasuke to grow up.

Because he might awaken the Mangekyō.

Otherwise, she'd have to rely on outsiders, like Izumi.

She hadn't seen Shisui last night, so she assumed he was still missing, his fate unknown.

But Itachi was her son—she hoped to handle him herself.

"From the Second Hokage's research, I learned that awakening the Mangekyō might not require innate talent; the key condition is extreme emotional stimulation."

Natsume said slowly, "You have a chance to awaken it. If you're willing to pay the price, I can help."

He invoked Senju Tobirama to make his claim more persuasive.

Sure enough, Mikoto didn't doubt him. She lifted her head, gritted her teeth, and said, "I should have died last night. Since I've survived, I won't fear any price. Sasuke is still young—I want him to live happily, not cross blades with his brother."

"What a good mother."

Natsume sighed. "I'll do my best to help you awaken your eyes."

That much was true.

If he could obtain another pair of Mangekyō Sharingan, that would be great.

His organization would grow stronger, too.

But such a massive shock last night still hadn't awakened Mikoto's Mangekyō.

It would be difficult.

Chapter 122: Sasuke Awakens the Sharingan

Natsume didn't immediately proceed with experiments to awaken Mikoto's eyes.

She'd just gone through a catastrophe—she needed a few days' rest.

And he had unfinished business.

Leaving security here temporarily to Shisui, Natsume returned to Konoha.

The Ninja Academy.

The hastily arranged exam had finally ended.

Sasuke looked up at the sky. Twilight had already passed, darkness spreading across the horizon.

Their new Uchiha settlement was far; by the time he got home, the moon would probably be up.

"I wonder if my brother will come pick me up?"

Sasuke fretted.

Lately, Itachi had been too busy.

Sometimes several days passed without seeing him.

For a brother complex, that was hard to bear.

"Sasuke-kun!"

Sakura's voice rang from outside.

She noticed the look in Sasuke's eyes and bounced in excitedly.

Why is she so annoying?

Always wasting my time.

Sasuke complained inwardly.

He turned his head instinctively and saw another beaming face.

"Sasuke, how'd you do on the test?"

Naruto walked up and asked.

"Trivial."

Sasuke replied flatly.

"As expected of you!"

Naruto gave a thumbs-up. "I didn't do so well. I wasn't sure about the last question."

"…"

Sasuke's heart lurched.

He was the same, actually.

But since he'd bragged, he had to keep up appearances.

He silently prayed he wouldn't score lower than Naruto.

In combat, he couldn't beat him.

In theory, they were about the same.

More accurately, as an Uchiha, he'd been exposed to more knowledge, so he had a slight edge.

"Sakura and Ino are waiting for you again, huh."

Naruto sighed. "Sasuke, girls really like you."

"Hmph, troublesome."

Sasuke stood up, noticed his gaze, and felt secretly pleased, though he kept an impatient look.

In this respect, he always won.

But what he wanted wasn't that—it was to defeat Naruto.

"Let's go eat together?"

Sakura suggested.

"Sorry, I have to go home for dinner."

Sasuke refused without thinking.

"I'm meeting Lee—we're going to train."

Naruto waved, also turning her down in another way.

"Train?"

Sasuke grew alert. "How do you train with him?"

"Run laps around Konoha. Keep running until you drop."

Naruto paused, then invited, "Want to come, Sasuke? I think it works. After I pass out and wake up, I feel full of energy."

Sasuke's eyes lit up.

He didn't care about most people's invitations.

The Uchiha had plenty of training methods.

But Naruto was different.

He couldn't beat him.

If they trained together, maybe he'd discover the secret of Naruto's strength.

Sakura clenched her fists and fumed inwardly: "Damn it! Why do I have to compete with guys for a guy?!"

Ino stifled a laugh to keep from breaking their friendship.

After giving up the rivalry, she found it was still plenty fun.

"It's late today. I'll tell my father and go with you tomorrow."

Proud as he was, Sasuke still treated the Naruto he acknowledged fairly well.

"It's a deal!"

Naruto gave a thumbs-up and left after saying goodbye to the three.

"Have you noticed something?"

Ino tilted her head. "He really likes giving thumbs-up lately."

"True."

Sakura rubbed her chin, frowning. "It feels familiar."

"I'm heading out."

Sasuke didn't join the discussion and gave them no time to respond before slipping into the night.

"Sasuke-kun~"

Sakura's voice startled birds from the trees.

"Let's go."

Ino tugged Sakura along.

After a few steps, she looked regretful.

She'd forgotten to ask Naruto where Natsume lived.

…

The sun vanished completely, and night covered Konoha.

Thanks to the street lamps, it wasn't utter darkness.

Sasuke walked along the main road, feeling a bit lonely at the sight of couples everywhere.

Was his brother in the Anbu right now, or already home?

Thinking, he approached the Uchiha settlement.

"Halt!"

The sudden voice made Sasuke look up.

In front of him stood a ninja wearing a bull-patterned mask.

An Anbu.

Because Itachi was an Anbu captain, Sasuke knew a bit.

"This area is sealed off. No one is allowed in."

"…?"

Sasuke's eyes widened, a bad premonition rising. "I'm Uchiha Sasuke. This is my home. Why can't I go in?"

"You're Uchiha Sasuke?"

The Anbu ninja hesitated, taking in his appearance.

Black hair and eyes, a black high-collared long-sleeve, and the clan's fan crest on his back—his identity was basically certain.

He wavered, unsure whether to let him pass.

Sasuke seized the moment he zoned out and used the Body Flicker to rush in.

"Poor kid."

The Anbu sighed and didn't give chase.

Sasuke burst forward at speed.

At night, the Uchiha compound lacked its usual bustle.

Pitch-black, with not a single light on.

By moonlight, Sasuke vaguely made out bloodstains not yet cleaned from the ground.

His heart clenched.

He sped up.

Moments later, he reached the center—his home.

Sasuke froze.

Strange ninja moved back and forth.

On the ground lay rows of corpses.

At the front was his father, Uchiha Fugaku.

"Is that… Uchiha Sasuke?"

The area was under Anbu control at the moment.

Of course, Root had already swept through and taken many things, leaving only corpses behind.

"Captain, what do we do?"

"The Hokage said to treat him kindly. Leave him be."

The Anbu exchanged a few words and ignored Sasuke.

"No!"

Sasuke screamed, collapsing.

He knelt before Fugaku's body as tears poured out.

His heart-wrenching howl echoed through the Uchiha compound.

"Sasuke."

A female Anbu wearing a frog mask, unable to bear it, stepped forward.

"Who did this?"

Sasuke lifted his head. A single tomoe appeared in his eyes, his face twisted. "Who?!"

"Uchiha Itachi."

The Anbu was slightly startled—she hadn't expected him to awaken the Sharingan at this moment.

"Impossible!"

Sasuke stiffened. "There's no way it was my brother. You're lying!"

"I have no reason to lie."

The Anbu said, "I know you don't believe it, but that's the truth. Your brother, Uchiha Itachi, killed the entire clan and chose to defect."

Sasuke's eyes bulged.

The tomoe in his eyes trembled wildly.

His chakra and ocular power became extremely unstable.

In the next instant, the Anbu knocked him out.

"Sasuke, get some rest."