The dinner was very hearty. Grandma Mako knew that Makiya was not used to bland food, so she specially made several dishes that were heavy on oil, salt, and spice.
Having often made do with military ration pills on the front lines, the saliva in Makiya's mouth always carried a hint of bitterness. Now, eating with a vengeance, he devoured five large bowls of rice in one go.
Having eaten and drunk his fill, his blood rushed to his stomach to digest the food, making him feel lazy.
However, the children were very excited on this snowy day, chasing and playing in the courtyard one after another.
Makiya sat on the corridor, picking up a steaming bowl of red bean soup and taking a sip. It had sugar in it; it was very sweet.
"Makiya-ge, Makiya-ge, can you tell us what the battlefield is like?"
"I heard the Mist Ninja are all over three meters tall, and their teeth are longer than their faces."
"How terrifying! Makiya-ge, you're really amazing."
Some of the children lacked ninja talent and couldn't feel the cruelty of war. Thinking that fighting was very cool, they pestered Makiya to ask about things on the battlefield.
To correct their way of thinking, Makiya specifically chose to talk about battles with heavy casualties, leaving the group of little brats stunned and frightened.
Obito sat to the side holding a bowl of red bean soup. Seeing Makiya so popular, he felt a bit of envy and jealousy, muttering in a low voice: "Hmph, he's just a coward who abandoned the mission, that hypocritical guy."
"What did you say?"
Makiya suddenly rose, appearing beside Obito in the next second, bypassing the crowd.
The fierce wind swirled the snowflakes. Obito was startled by the figure that suddenly appeared before his eyes. The red bean soup in his hand fell to the ground, and he scrambled backward using both his hands and feet.
'So fast!'
This was Obito's first reaction. Makiya's movements reminded him of his teacher, Minato Namikaze.
Then Obito suddenly snapped out of it. The other party was just a coward who had fled; what was he afraid of?
Someone who gives up on a mission so easily wasn't even worthy of carrying his shoes.
Obito stood up, brushed the snow off his body, adjusted his goggles, and plucked up the courage to look Makiya straight in the eye: "I didn't want to expose you, but you can't lie to them!"
Makiya followed Obito's pointing finger. A group of children stood frozen in place, not knowing what was happening.
"What did I lie to them about?" Makiya was bewildered, not knowing what nerve of Obito's had been touched.
"You say how amazing you were on the battlefield, but you're actually just a coward who fled. Isn't that lying to them?"
"Huh? Who did you hear that from?" Makiya frowned.
"In front of the clan compound before dinner." Obito smiled proudly. "Two passing ninjas happened to be chatting about your business. If it weren't for the keen observation of Lord Obito, these younger brothers and sisters would have been deceived by you!"
Makiya laughed in exasperation. He grabbed Obito by the collar and lifted him up: "Do you even know who those two are? You don't believe my words, but you're convinced by whatever some random cats or dogs say. Are you an idiot?"
With that, he swung his arm and threw Obito into the yard. Makiya used a bit of force, causing Obito to roll several times and get covered in snow.
"Obito, a brain is a good thing; I hope you have one too. Without even the most basic ability to discern truth, you aren't suited to be a ninja. Otherwise, you'll only end up harming others."
Makiya put on his shoes and walked into the yard, passing by Obito's side and heading for the gate: "The reason everyone in the clan dislikes you isn't because you're weak, nor because you love to show off and make a fuss."
"It's because you're stupid, you don't know right from wrong, and you have no principles."
Makiya's words were like a dagger stabbing into Obito's heart, making him freeze in place.
"Grandma Mako, I'm going out for a bit," Makiya waved toward the house.
The old woman who was boiling soup cast a worried look: "Little Makiya, be careful."
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
Amidst the heavy snow, Makiya closed the gate and disappeared.
"Sigh, little Obito, come in quickly, the snow is heavy outside..."
Root.
Danzo sat behind his desk, his upper body hidden in the darkness.
"Lord Danzo, the implementation of the plan is going smoothly. The rumors have already begun to spread."
"Very good. Increase the manpower involved."
"Yes!"
Looking at the subordinate's departing back, Danzo felt smug. The death of Sakumo Hatake had shown him the lethal power of rumors and gossip.
Originally, he only wanted to suppress Sakumo's contributions and reduce his influence. He hadn't expected things to develop to that extent. It could only be said that it was still Sakumo's own problem; his own will was not firm enough, and his mind was too fragile.
Makiya's combat power was not weak, but he was a child after all, with an even more fragile mind. Faced with the pointing fingers of a thousand people, how would he choose to die?
Danzo looked forward to it.
This feeling of hiding behind the scenes and controlling the situation fascinated him.
During the war, Konoha's commerce remained prosperous.
The heavy snow couldn't stop the villagers' enthusiasm for consumption. Even the dessert shops on the street were doing a brisk business.
Customers sat in the shop in twos and threes, eating three-color dango and drinking red bean soup while enjoying the snow and chatting.
"Hey, did you hear? A deserter has emerged from the Uchiha clan this time."
"Aiya, with so many of them going to the battlefield, it's normal for one or two deserters to appear."
"You can't say that. That's the Uchiha clan. And I heard that guy named Makiya abandoned the mission halfway, causing the village a huge loss."
One person slammed their bowl heavily onto the table, face flushed with righteous indignation: "The wife of the owner of the lover of the dog from the house of the great-aunt of the second uncle of my cousin's female cousin has internal news. Because the village lost too much, they've run out of money and plan to increase taxes after the New Year!"
"What?!"
"This is bad. That guy named Makiya is truly detestable."
"Wait, wait, that's not right. The version I heard is different from yours." A customer at the next table leaned over: "What I heard is that even though that Makiya guy abandoned the mission, he did it to save someone, and he even killed many enemies."
The bowl-slamming guest stiffened his neck: "What's so great about saving someone? You can't abandon a mission even to save someone! What we lost was real gold and silver! Besides, wasn't Lord White Fang the same?"
"You're all wrong." Another table of customers gathered around: "I heard that Uchiha Makiya abandoned the mission because he was afraid his teammates would get the credit."
"Mine is the correct one. I heard it from the inside. What? You're asking who? Sorry, it involves personal interests, so I can't disclose it. Let's just say, those who know, know."
Several people argued in a huddle, each firmly believing they were right. The truth of the matter wasn't important; they only cared about their stance.
After all the arguing, only one point could be confirmed: that Uchiha Makiya had indeed abandoned the mission. As for the reason, everyone had their own story.
Others watched the drama unfold, enjoying the spectacle. The shop owner smiled knowingly and took the opportunity to hawk his business; as long as they didn't wreck his shop, everything was fine.
"Everyone, quiet down..."
"Everyone, look over here..."
Makiya shouted twice, but was drowned out by the noisy bickering. Helplessly, he pulled out a stack of bills: "Oh, whose hundred thousand ryo is this?"
The crowd fell silent instantly. Everyone turned their heads to look at Makiya, only to see a flash of red light as three tomoe gradually occupied their entire vision.
Makiya spun in a circle, his massive ocular power pouring out freely, instantly controlling everyone.
He put away the money, walked over to the people who were arguing the most fiercely, asked for the sources of their information, and took out a scroll to start writing.
"Let's see... the east side of the commercial street, the south side of the Hyuga clan, and another one is... near Training Ground 14..."
The scroll was densely marked with location information. Makiya determined the direction of several sources spreading the rumors and left the dessert shop.
A moment later, the customers in the dessert shop came to their senses and looked at each other.
"What were we... just arguing about?"
"Let me think. Oh, right! You have to dip three-color dango in chili oil to make it taste good!"
"It should be dipped in sugar, you heretic!"
"Wrong! It should be dipped in octopus ink to be authentic!"
"..."
On a certain street, two villagers walked into a small shop. As they chatted, they suddenly started arguing, their faces turning red over the matter of Makiya, before parting on bad terms.
After leaving the shop, the two met at the end of the street and smiled at each other.
On the water tower of a nearby roof, Makiya stood in the snow wearing a raincoat, slowly drawing his short blade.
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