The next day, the sky was blue and the spring wind was blowing. Although it was a bit cold, it brought along a wisp of freshness.
In Konoha’s Uchiha clan district, Uchiha Tonan got up and made a pot of tea for himself. He then washed his face and completed his morning ablutions. Once done, he saw that his wood carvings on the platform were all covered in dust.
So, he picked up a rag and carefully wiped the carvings one by one. While wiping, he regretfully said, “It’s a pity that all of you left so quickly. Otherwise, you all could have also gone to my Land of Bliss.”
After cleaning the carvings, Tonan put three incense sticks in front of them as per usual. He then packed up his things and left the house. Now that there were no Jiraiya and Senju Tsunade on his tail, he could safely farm his plantation in Konoha. Perhaps the only change was just that he was no longer attached to Sarutobi Hiruzen but Shimura Danzo.
Given that the situation had changed, his best choice was to be firmly connected with Danzo. Since the reconstruction of the welfare institution would begin today, Tonan wanted to take a look and supervise it.
Hitherto, Hiruzen had been taking care of him so no one dared to mess around with him openly. But it was different now. The reconstruction work had been arranged by Danzo. Hiruzen’s short-sighted subordinates could run over and use the pretext of subpar material or house design not conforming to Konoha rules or such excuses to hinder the work.
The previous people in the welfare institution had been temporarily shifted to Konoha Orphanage. Tonan took some time off every day to console them and keep up the appearance. It was just limited to that now because he had already gained their acknowledgments.
He had also gained Maito Dai and Maito Gai’s acknowledgments. Therefore, he didn’t care much about them either. Being a human, one should be realistic, otherwise, one would be too tired. He had entrusted Hatake Kotoura to Hatake Kakashi.
For a while, he had no plan to take the baby back and raise him. In any case, Kakashi seemed to like Kotoura very much. At this time, Tonan hoped that the war would start soon. Then, he would have a good harvest. Just thinking about it put him in a very happy mood.
Tonan had just closed the courtyard door when his ears suddenly moved, and he heard sobbing sounds coming from not far away.
“Aiyo… It seems that there are confused little lambs in the Uchiha district. Isn’t this a good chance to take advantage?” Tonan stared in the direction from where the voice had originated.
“Isn’t this the former Great Elder’s house? Did Shisui come to commemorate his grandpa?” Tonan still cared about Uchiha Shisui. After all, Kotoamatsukami was still a useful skill. Perhaps, it could be used to attack some tricky and delicious prey.
Thinking of this, Tonan sorted out his clothes, and putting on a refined and casual expression on his face, he walked towards the Great Elder’s house. He pretended to pass by the house and glanced sideways at the courtyard. He saw the crying Shisui sitting under the eaves while holding three wooden carvings.
“Shisui, why are you crying here alone?” Tonan pushed open the courtyard door and walked in with a concerned look. Shisui raised his head sadly, and said while choking in sobs, “Tonan-san, I miss my grandpa, father, and mother.”
Tonan walked over and sat beside him. He then rubbed the little boy’s head and said gently, “Can you show them to me?”
“Hmm,” Shisui nodded and handed over the three wooden carvings to Tonan. Tonan put away Great Elder’s carving to the side and raised the wooden carvings of Shisui’s parents, looking at them carefully.
Although the workmanship was a little rough, it still had a charm, which showed how meticulously they were carved. “Are these two Shisui’s father and mother? Why do they look so familiar?”
Tonan narrowed his eyes a little as he suddenly recalled. When fighting against Orochimaru back then, it seemed that Shisui’s parents had also participated. Naturally, those two didn’t seem to be very strong and they were swallowed by the Eight-Headed Serpent in the beginning. And Tonan would not remember cannon fodder like them.
On further thinking, this did make sense. At that time, Tonan’s secret was quite important to the Great Elder. He would give priority to informing his son and daughter-in-law.
“This is bad! In the original plot, the Great Elder and his parents didn’t die so early. After so many changes, I wonder if Shisui will still successfully awaken Kotoamatsukami. No, I must brainwash him while he’s still young. Otherwise, he’ll begin to resent Konoha because of his relatives’ death.”
“After all, his grandfather was forced to die by the village and his parents were killed by Orochimaru, one of Konoha sannin. Apart from the Asura’s reincarnations like Naruto, who could always maintain a pure heart, normal people will fall into hatred.”
Thinking of this, Tonan began brainwashing. This time, it was not for acknowledgment. It was just to plant a love for the village in Shisui’s heart. It was still the old routine. The first step was showing he felt the same way.
Tonan gently placed the wood carvings on the floor next to him and sighed deeply. He then looked up at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle and reminisced, “Shisui, I never thought that you would also suffer so much pain at such a young age like me.”
Shisui stopped sobbing and looked at Tonan’s profile with tears in his eyes. He said, “Tonan-san, did your father, mother and grandpa also die?”
With a look of reminiscence, Tonan slowly replied, “When I was six years old, my father and mother went to war and never returned. As for grandpa, I don’t even know his name. I heard that he had died before my birth.”
When Shisui heard this, he suddenly realized that Tonan was even more miserable than him.
