134. A Task Out of Tune

Because Kurama suggested that their future action plans needed to be renegotiated, and coupled with the fact that he had just reached a reconciliation and consensus with Sasuke, Itachi himself was reluctant to part with his younger brother so soon. Thus, for the first time in five years, the Uchiha elder stayed overnight at the Uchiha estate.

At Sasuke’s insistence, Gen and Sui had been performing regular magical cleanings on Itachi’s room, so it remained in pristine condition and required no elaborate preparation. However, Itachi, who had originally intended to savor the feeling of returning home after a long absence, found himself unable to resist the silent gaze of his younger brother’s large, shimmering black eyes. Without any principles, he chose to share the bed with Sasuke that night, taking the opportunity to have a long-overdue heart-to-heart talk.

Watching Itachi, who had just managed to break free from his stubbornness only to be effortlessly wrapped around his brother’s little finger, Kurama’s lips curled into a smile. He had no intention of pointing it out.

Let this be a small "price" for Sasuke having to endure such long periods of anxiety and uncertainty alone. Besides... he noticed that Itachi himself seemed quite happy to pay it.

After enjoying a sumptuous dinner prepared by Gen and Sui, the group moved to the living room to begin discussing "serious business."

On this matter, Kurama did not intend to interfere too much with the judgments of Sasuke and Itachi. While the goal was to disrupt the trajectory of fate, Kurama had no intention of manipulating other people's destinies for his own reasons—otherwise, when he first arrived during the night of the Uchiha Clan massacre, he could have simply joined forces with Hades, wiped out Obito and Danzo in minutes, and been done with it.

There would have been no need for all this effort—raising a child, laying out elaborate plans, and even sending high-ranking deities from the Underworld, the Twin Gods of Death and Sleep, to run errands—all just to guide events toward the desired final outcome.

Kurama held no reverence for the word "fate," but he also did not place himself on a pedestal above it. So, even though he claimed his method of disrupting destiny was to "use sheer force to overcome ten clever tactics" and "do as he pleased" by relying on his side's superior strength, his actual style of action was quite gentle, standing in stark contrast to that certain King of the Underworld.

"Since you have decided to abandon your original plan, Itachi, you must have some ideas for a new one. Would you mind sharing them with us? You know, especially Sasuke—I don't think he would be willing to be kept in the dark about anything anymore."

Holding Mokona, who was full and starting to get sleepy, Kurama gently massaged the little creature to aid digestion and sleep while he spoke.

Itachi, sitting upright across from him and Hades, pursed his lips. "Regarding that..."

...

That night, the lights in the Uchiha estate remained lit for a very long time. However, apart from those present and the Twin Gods—who could communicate with their Lord at any time via their "external" cosmos connection—no one knew what final conclusion this conversation had reached.

The next day, Sakura Haruno, who had arrived early at the meeting spot designated by their team leader, was eagerly awaiting Sasuke. Whether it was due to feeling dizzy from skipping meals to lose weight, or simply because "beauty lies in the eye of the beholder," the moment Sasuke appeared, she felt he seemed... especially happy.

Though his handsome face remained as expressionless and stern as ever, Sakura somehow felt that the corners of his eyes and brows were filled with a faint, pleasant smile that made her heart flutter and her own mood inexplicably lift.

"Sa... Sasuke."

Feeling that approaching him now wouldn't invite his disdain, the young Sakura hesitated for only a few seconds before decisively speaking up.

Seeing the boy’s gaze shift toward her, though still indifferent, the previous icy coldness had faded significantly. The girl’s breath hitched, and under the gaze of those deep, serene black eyes, her cheeks slowly flushed red.

"Um... you seem very happy today..." she stammered, head lowered, showing only the back of her pink hair to the boy she admired.

"..."

Naturally, there was no response.

Sakura’s outward persona felt her cheeks turn even redder. Internally, she was frantically tapping her own forehead, screaming at herself, "I can't believe I actually used such a terrible, cliché opening line!"

Without a doubt, she had just squandered a rare opportunity to talk to Sasuke and get closer to him. She bit her lip, unwilling to look up and witness the confusion or even disdain on his face.

However, after waiting for a long time, she heard no cold snort or rebuttal. Sakura finally couldn't help but slowly look up. What met her eyes was not the coldness she had expected, but a handsome face that, while not exactly warm, lacked any sign of dislike.

"...It’s nothing special." He glanced at her and said in a flat tone.

"Eh? Oh, I see. It must have been my imagination, then? Ahaha, ahahaha..."

She laughed awkwardly, and once she turned her gaze away, leaving Sasuke to raise an eyebrow in confusion (Sakura guessed he was thinking, "Is this girl crazy?"), he walked past her to join that annoying Naruto. As she stood there, caught between sweet smiles and annoyed glares, she remained completely unaware that her entire performance had been observed by the two boys.

"Sasuke, is something wrong with her..." Naruto watched the girl from their team twisting and turning, her expressions changing rapidly. He felt a bit intimidated and instinctively tugged at Sasuke’s sleeve.

The Uchiha boy glanced at him with disdain. "Even if there is something wrong with her, it's not what you're thinking. Let go, you idiot. Why are you so timid?"

"You're the one who's timid! I just think she's a bit suspicious..."

"Oh, so your way of dealing with someone suspicious is to hang onto your companion's sleeve?"

"I told you, it's not like that! You..."

Well, the two natural rivals began their bickering again.

Meanwhile, Sakura stood to the side, holding her face as her expressions shifted continuously. Kakashi, who had arrived late, looked at the three children who were about to become his subordinates, his lips twitching at their behavior. He suddenly wished he could stuff these three problem children into the face of the Third Hokage...

Truly, not a single one of them was easy to manage! Was this group a bit too problematic?

Doubtful that these three brats could pass his rigorous test, Kakashi shook his head and put on a look of extreme laziness before stepping out to meet them.

***

As it turned out, Kakashi’s worries were somewhat redundant.

Despite the flaws in their individual personalities, the three children demonstrated remarkable strength during the bell-snatching test that even caught Kakashi’s eye. Sasuke and Naruto showed seamless coordination and solid foundations; Sakura displayed keen insight and perfect mastery of theoretical knowledge. What was particularly commendable was that even though the two boys were clearly in sync with each other and kept a distance from Sakura, they managed to set aside their personal feelings during the "mission" to create opportunity after opportunity for her, until she, too, managed to snatch a bell from Kakashi with their help.

Shaking his head, Kakashi, who hadn't expected to be outsmarted in such a small test by three fresh graduates, felt both frustrated and, more importantly, relieved. With a smile, he announced that all three had passed.

From that day on, Naruto and Sasuke were no longer just ninja academy graduates; they were official Genin of the Hidden Leaf Village, starting to take on various missions under the guidance of their Jonin leader.

Although most of these were trivial and boring tasks like harvesting crops, shopping in neighboring villages, babysitting, or finding lost pets, Naruto, unexpectedly, did not complain. The boy had been diligently practicing a B-rank ninjutsu from the training plan Itachi had sent him, so, frankly, having more time to contemplate his practice suited the single-minded boy even better.

However, the power of the plot—or "fate"—was indeed formidable. Even without Naruto whining to the Hokage for a high-level mission, Team 7, who happened to be at the Hokage’s office to turn in a task, was assigned a C-rank escort mission by the Third Hokage, who waved his hand and declared it was "time for them to train outside the village."

Never mind how Naruto was dragging Sasuke along to excitedly prepare the camping gear they would need—even if he wanted to master his favorite cool ninjutsu as soon as possible, the allure of leaving the village for the first time was significant for the little fox.

While Team 7 prepared for their first escort mission outside the village, in a distant location, Zabuza Momochi, carrying his massive executioner's blade, knelt on one knee in the darkness, bowing respectfully to a presence hidden in the shadows...

"Please rest assured. Haku and I will strictly carry out your orders and do our utmost to... intercept and kill the Hidden Leaf ninjas."