Several days had passed since Kushina arrived at the Senju estate. Originally, she had intended to return to the home she shared with Minato, but after realizing how lonely that would be—and noting that Naruto had practically settled into life at Miyu's house—she decided to stay and become a bit of a freeloader.
It wasn't quite that simple, though; her mobility issues—the result of being bedridden for seven years—limited what she could do. However, the moment she could walk at a decent pace, the blue-haired woman planned to put her to work, whether as a secretary, an administrator, or even in a role somewhere within the lawless zone.
"And that's how I beat your father for the first time, *dattebane*," Kushina recounted, sounding immensely proud, while Naruto listened with rapt attention.
"Incredible," the blond boy murmured in awe.
Miyu's house had become livelier and more chaotic with the arrival of its new residents. She viewed the situation this way: Mikoto was like a tame cat, whereas Kushina was a rabbit that couldn't sit still. It was essentially the mindset of someone rescuing pets from a shelter.
The Hokage watched the scene from the table with a faint, incredulous smile; Kushina's story was heavily distorted to make the redhead look good, omitting crucial details—such as the fact that Minato had been on a mission and severely wounded prior to that encounter.
For a moment, she considered speaking up but remained silent. She understood why the Uzumaki was doing this: she wanted to earn her son's respect and admiration, even if by dishonest means. She herself had done things that made it impossible to judge Kushina too harshly—or at least, not very much. Just then, Yami walked into the kitchen; his clothes were wet, rumpled, and ruined, and he exuded an air of exhaustion and frustration.
"Yami, I see you made it back safely," Miyu said, watching her son sit down at the table.
"Yeah... fine," he simply murmured.
"Hmm... so, how was your day?" the blue-haired woman couldn't help but ask.
The half-Senju stared at the table for a few seconds.
*Flashback*: Insert "Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows."
Yami could be seen listening to the explanations of a brown bear wearing boxing gloves, asking if the bear ever took them off; meanwhile, the panda bear was asleep, leaning against a bamboo stalk, while the polar bear sharpened his throwing blades.
He just watched this with a sense of dejection.
...
Deep in the woods, several bears of various breeds and colors were chasing the half-Uchiha, half-Senju—acting as if they hadn't eaten in their lives—while he, sweating and with a hint of fear in his eyes, did his best to dodge their claws and teeth.
Meanwhile, the trio of leader bears watched the scene from a mountain, holding a stopwatch—though no one was quite sure where they had gotten it.
"How long has it been?" asked the brown bear.
"Four hours and thirty-five minutes," replied the white bear.
"When are we going to save him?" questioned the two-toned bear.
"Do we *have* to save him?" he asked his companions, unsure of what to do.
"I think so, or else he might die; it hasn't happened since the competition started, and he looks really exhausted from up here," argued the swordsman bear.
The brown bear and the polar bear exchanged glances for a few seconds before the former sprinted toward Yami's location.
From a distance, Yami just watched this with a sense of dejection.
...
In the next scene, the black-haired youth watched as the brown bear gave him instructions on how to stand before a giant boulder.
The very next second, the bear struck, pulverizing the rock with his immense strength, before pointing at the stone sitting in front of Yami.
He just watched this with a sense of dejection. ...
The panda bear could be seen focused, his katana sheathed; the moment he drew the blade, he executed several rapid strikes against a row of bamboo stalks standing before him.
When he stopped, the cut bamboo revealed an image of the panda trio stacked atop one another—demonstrating his immense pressure and speed—before he turned his gaze toward the "semi-Senju," who also held a katana and faced a row of bamboo.
The latter simply looked on with a sense of dejection.
...
In the forest, Yami was searching for the white bear, but the creature had hidden itself well; even using his—admittedly underdeveloped—sensory abilities, he couldn't locate it.
He suddenly arrived at the snowy biome, only to pause amidst the drifts; he realized that if the bear had hidden here, finding it would be impossible.
Just as he was about to move on, he noticed a snowbank shifting strangely, only to see two bears clawing their way out of it.
Yami had been standing right on top of the ninja bear, which had simply lain down in the snow and camouflaged itself; finding it on the first try had been sheer luck.
He could only look on with a sense of dejection.
...
Amidst a waterfall, the black-haired youth was meditating while a torrent of freezing water cascaded over his body.
His body shivered, and he focused on maintaining his composure despite the harsh conditions—until a heavy log fell onto him, crushing him and knocking him into the stream below.
His body was swept downstream face-down until the brown bear rushed over, grabbed Yami, and anxiously checked him for injuries.
Upon realizing Yami was still breathing, the bear sighed with relief and gave a "thumbs-up" to the polar bear—who had thrown the log—and the polar bear returned the gesture.
The brown bear then signaled the panda bear, who hesitated for a moment before returning the gesture as well.
Even in his unconscious state, Yami could only look on with dejection.
*End of flashback*
"My day went alright," the Senju replied, glancing at her mother. "I'd planned to go to your office to see if I could take on a mission, but I was told you weren't there."
"Yes, well, I was busy dealing with a problem," Miyu answered.
"And how did it go?" Yami asked—more out of courtesy than a genuine desire to know what the blue-haired woman had been up to.
She stared at the table for a few seconds.
Flashback*: Re-insert "Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows."
Miyu stood before several Anbu operatives who were arguing with her about the latest status report from the Uchiha clan; she could only sigh and pinch the bridge of her nose.
She viewed the situation with a sense of dejection.
...
In the lawless zone, Makoto was looking at several Root ninja who had been captured using the techniques of the Ino-Shika-Chō clans.
The blue-haired woman studied them and realized they were new Root recruits; back when she had been undercover, she had spirited away many of Danzō's ninja, while those who remained had stayed on to act as her spies.
Unfortunately, the "old mummy" had begun purging them, forcing her to extract them one by one based on the promises she had made to them.
She looked closely at the Root ninja, realizing how young they were and knowing what she was about to do to them. She felt a twinge of guilt; she shouldn't be doing this to the very people the village was supposed to protect.
She regarded the scene with a heavy heart.
...
In the interrogation room, Ibiki and Anko were restraining a Root ninja—whose tongue was held out—while Miyu drove a nail into it with a hammer.
*Bang* *Bang* *Bang*
The young Root ninja screamed in agony, but the blue-haired woman had no choice but to resort to torture to make them talk.
Even though the seals on their tongues were gone, they still refused to reveal anything about Danzō's plans. Miyu couldn't tell if he had used some secret sealing method she was unaware of, if he had thoroughly brainwashed them, or something else entirely. Meanwhile, pinned to the wall, another Root ninja—with several stakes driven into his body—watched in horror as his comrade was struck down.
Miyu simply looked on with a sense of dejection.
...
At the entrance to the Uchiha compound, Miyu was arguing with the current head of the Uchiha clan, Matsuda Uchiha; the displeasure he felt toward the Hokage was evident in his gaze.
The tension was palpable.
Behind the blue-haired woman stood several ANBU operatives—including Kurenai and Yamato—acting as her bodyguards. In reality, their presence was largely for show; after all, no one in the village would be foolish enough to attack its leader—someone considered on par with the God of Shinobi—but still, one never knew.
The Senju was there because complaints had resurfaced—particularly from civilians—regarding the Uchiha clan's behavior toward them.
With no other options left, the extremists had become somewhat unruly; she had been forced to step in to restore order and essentially threaten them, as they had refused to listen to reason.
She could only view the situation with a sense of dejection.
*End of flashback*
"The usual," Miyu simply replied to her son, who just nodded.
The blue-haired woman looked at her son; she perceived him as sad and distressed, though the reality was quite different. Despite possessing good social skills, the life he had led and his mindset had caused him to stop dwelling on others' feelings—letting his empathy slide a bit—so he never realized that Yami was simply exhausted; nothing more.
"Yesterday, I received a C-rank mission to transport some cargo to the capital of the Land of Hot Springs; you've been asking for one of these for days, haven't you?" Miyu remarked.
Yami, who had his head resting on the table, suddenly lifted it up.
"Really?" he asked, sounding somewhat skeptical.
"Yes, it'll be a good way to test the results of your recent training," the Senju said with a smile, pleased to see her son's spirits lift.
"Understood. Tomorrow morning, I'll go to the Hokage's tower to request the mission," the half-Senju declared.
...
Shisui was reviewing the mission details with Yami, who was already prepared and waiting for the supply caravan to arrive at the village gates so they could set out.
"Even though the mission difficulty isn't high, the large number of wagons makes it very likely we'll be attacked multiple times. It could even escalate to a B-rank mission if bandits led by a ninja show up—which is quite possible," the Uchiha told his pupil. "But if the Hokage believes we can handle it, then that's how it is."
The young man simply looked at his mentor with a complicated expression. One thing he could complain about regarding Shisui was his constant need to talk about the Hokage. He didn't know why he did it, but there had to be a reason. "I see you're ready—is it just the two of you?" Out of nowhere, a somewhat overweight man with a long beard walked over to where the two ninjas were standing.
Both recognized him as the man who had requested the mission.
"Yes, just the two of us. But don't worry; our skills won't let you down," Shisui said, trying to reassure the client.
The man simply scratched his head.
"Our cargo consists merely of ceramics—pots, utensils, and the like; I don't see why any powerful enemy would attack us," the man explained, glancing at the carts already lining up at the village exit. "But one never knows; they might think the goods are valuable enough to steal or seize, so there is a real possibility of an attack."
He then looked back at the two of them.
"That's why I'm a bit worried that just two ninjas—one of whom is a child—might not be able to protect me, the supplies, and the merchandise."
"You have nothing to worry about," Yami said, making a hand sign that caused three Yamis to appear.
It was the Shadow Clone technique—something he had learned once he realized it was necessary. He had only had time to master the standard Shadow Clone jutsu rather than the Multiple Shadow Clone version, though as someone of partial Senju lineage, he possessed enough chakra reserves to use it despite his young age.
The client watched this and couldn't help but smile.
"Then I leave myself in your hands."
In the distance, amidst the houses near the village exit, a Root ninja could be seen secretly watching the entire scene.