"Those naturally evil little Uchihas, I swear I'll—"
Nara Kazuki coughed dryly, catching himself. No helping it—whenever he stood next to Uchiha Shisui, that iconic phrase always echoed in his mind.
"I… I just wanted to help them," Shisui said after a pause, his voice laced with hesitation.
Kazuki felt like laughing. Shisui was still so green. Or perhaps, that innocence never quite left him—after all, Shisui had died young.
Right now, he had the look of a kid carrying some massive secret.
"That's all?" Kazuki smiled, playing along. Just from how Shisui answered, he already had a good idea what the real reason was.
"…Sorry, Kazuki. There are some things I don't know how to say yet," Shisui shook his head. He wasn't old, but he had already noticed the growing tension between the Uchiha clan and the village.
He didn't dare speak his thoughts aloud—not when they involved his clan.
Kazuki took a slow sip from his drink.
Speaking too deeply to someone you've just met is a rookie mistake—one Kazuki understood well.
"I think you're a good person," Kazuki said simply, clapping Shisui's shoulder.
He was actually a little older than Shisui—technically. Though his body had reverted to a younger state when he arrived in this world, his actual age exceeded even Kakashi's.
Unfortunately, he was still officially a chūnin.
Konoha's standards for jōnin promotion were rigid and bureaucratic. Even with Kazuki's greatly improved strength—and the fact that he'd saved Minato and Kushina—it wasn't easy to get promoted.
Minato had privately told him that he'd help Kazuki with the process… but only if Kazuki's abilities came close enough to jōnin level to begin with.
"Thanks…" Shisui's smile was faint, even a little bitter.
Kazuki stared at his cold drink, expression complicated.
Shisui couldn't be more than twelve. Maybe. Hard to tell without asking outright.
While most twelve-year-olds were still at the academy, fussing over schoolwork and budding crushes, this kid was already burdened with clan politics and the fate of the village.
Then again… this was the ninja world.
Kids here didn't get to be normal. Kazuki sometimes wondered if shinobi even counted as "normal humans" anymore.
"I live over there. Come hang out if you've got nothing to do," Kazuki said casually, flashing a small smile.
Discussing philosophy or Uchiha salvation on day one? Not his style. Kazuki had technically unlocked his Talk no Jutsu skill tree, and only needed nine more uses to level it up, but even he knew that persuading powerful ninja with words wasn't exactly easy.
He'd tried convincing Minato to name his son differently—and while Naruto ended up as Namikaze Naruto, the Talk no Jutsu progress bar didn't budge.
"Okay," Shisui's eyes lit up a little. It was the first time a non-Uchiha ninja had ever invited him to hang out.
Usually, he was only allowed to mingle within his own clan. The others treated the Uchiha with suspicion.
But this guy—Nara Kazuki—didn't seem to care.
Kazuki gave a wave and left, feeling oddly at ease. He was exhausted. Just today's cleanup work had significantly raised his physical endurance stat, and even the low-level Water Bullet Jutsu had gained 32 proficiency points.
He'd definitely put in the effort today.
"Damn it, I'm never using Fire Style in the sewers again!" Kazuki cursed as he scrubbed himself clean.
As for that poor bastard...
Kazuki had gone full wolf in sheep's clothing. That enemy ninja—disguised as a civilian sewage worker—had been beyond hardcore.
That guy had lived in human waste for days, just to set up an ambush for Kazuki and Kakashi. His dedication to espionage was next level.
But in the end, Kazuki's split-second Fireball Jutsu flushed him out—literally.
The spy nearly died on the spot. Currently, he was in Konoha Hospital, undergoing treatment.
Kazuki's jutsu had left him with third-degree burns and explosive trauma. Combined with the biohazards in the sewer, the guy was lucky to still be breathing.
Even with enhanced shinobi bodies, disease and infection remained a real danger. Especially when it came to sewer rot, parasites, and mystery illnesses.
The upside? The spy had survived, and Kazuki's mission had been technically completed.
The next morning, a tired-looking Kakashi came to find him.
"We've been given time off," Kakashi said flatly.
"Time off?" Kazuki blinked. He was actually thinking about picking up a kill mission to farm more chakra.
"Yeah. Sensei said… your destructive potential is less dangerous outside the village," Kakashi added with a straight face.
Next to them, Byakko turned his head away, shoulders quaking from the effort of holding back laughter.
Kazuki's expression darkened.
What, just because he'd caused one little explosion that contaminated half the district with sewage?
Not fair.
Still, Kazuki wasn't too bothered. Counter-espionage was fun in bursts, but the work itself could get tedious—and messy. You had to use restraint, and restraint wasn't his strong suit.
"What's our rest period?" Kazuki shrugged. "Depending on that, I might take a mission anyway."
"…Two and a half months," Kakashi said after a long pause.
Originally, Minato had only planned a one-week break.
But Danzo Shimura, incensed, had demanded a full year. There were rumors he'd been dining in that very area when the explosion occurred.
Though most of it had been blocked by the Barrier Corps, one unlucky blob had landed directly in his food.
Danzo's face reportedly turned green on the spot.
Thanks to Minato's appeasement and Hiruzen Sarutobi's mediation, the punishment was shortened—to two and a half months.
"Two and a half—? Oh, come on!" Kazuki groaned.