The Uchiha clan's Mangekyō Sharingan had begun awakening like runners in a relay race. One pair had just been lost with Kagami's passing and now Yunchu had gained his.
There was real blood between them. Fugaku's father had been Kagami's older brother, which made Yunchu sothing like a grandnephew. Close enough that Kagami's death struck ho.
But Kagami had died of natural causes. The emotional shock alone shouldn't have been enough to awaken the Mangekyō.
That's where Akio and the Sage's spiritual clash ca in.
The overwhelming psychic shockwaves, layered on top of grief had tipped the scales. A perfect storm. Right place, right ti.
Lucky break, Akio had called it.
Yunchu's Mangekyō pattern was triangular sothing Akio had never seen before. What abilities it held was anyone's guess. Freshly awakened, Yunchu wouldn't be able to control it properly for quite so ti anyway.
Akio folded his arms.
"You steady yet? If you are, co help remove Kagami's eyes."
Yunchu swayed slightly.
"My apologies, sir. I'm still dizzy. I'll… go lie down."
Akio: "..."
Silence filled the room.
It was just him and Kagami's body.
After a long pause, Akio sighed.
"I've lived through a century of wars. And I'm hesitating over this? It's just eye removal. No big deal."
Half an hour later, after what he privately described as "grim determination" Akio sealed away a pair of Mangekyō Sharingan inside a scroll.
Now wasn't the ti to transplant them.
Kagami's body he stored within his Eight Trigrams Space, stood quietly for a mont… then vanished from the Uchiha compound.
Dawn – Konoha
It was morning, yet the streets were empty.
The earlier waves of spiritual shock had done their work.
"Ninjas will probably sleep till noon. Civilians? Evening. Kids? Maybe tomorrow," Akio muttered. "See? I'm considerate. Gave the next generation a well-earned break."
After congratulating himself, he flickered away.
Kushina's House
"Kushina! Minato! You two awake? I'm coming in!"
Before he could knock, the door opened.
Kushina stood there, looking exhausted.
"Great-Grandpa, please keep it down. Tsukika just fell asleep. She cried half the night."
Akio blinked.
"Just fell asleep? Minato took you out of the village, didn't he?"
"'Took us out'?" Kushina repeated, frowning. "Minato didn't have so weird nightmare, did he? Sothing really did happen?"
"I definitely sensed danger," Minato said, stepping forward with a helpless smile.
Akio chuckled. So Minato had reacted instantly, teleported his family out only to get doubted for it.
Kushina exhaled, then bristled.
"So, did you deal with whoever did that? Which idiot had us freezing on a mountain for half an hour?!"
Akio stiffened.
"…Tsukika didn't catch cold, did she?"
Kushina smiled reassuringly.
"She's fine. Luckily Minato wrapped Naruto in a blanket when he grabbed him. No wonder he slept through everything."
Akio blinked slowly.
"…Naruto sleeps naked, doesn't he?"
Late Morning
Most children would sleep longer than adults after sothing like that.
Naruto was not most children.
By mid-morning, he was awake, shivering under his blankets.
Science had already settled this: standing half-dressed in late autumn cold for thirty minutes was an excellent way to catch a fever.
"Achoo!"
Kushina hovered beside him, maternal glow in full force.
"Here, Naruto. Drink so hot water. Don't worry about the Academy, classes are canceled today."
"Canceled?" Naruto sniffled, downing the cup. "It's so cold…"
Akio placed his hands over Naruto and used dical ninjutsu.
"I've told you before wear pajamas. You kick your blankets off every night. This is what happens."
"Aaah…"
After a few monts, Akio withdrew.
"dical ninjutsu isn't great for common colds. But you're tough. Stay in bed today and you'll be fine."
"Got it… Great-Grandpa…"
Kushina smiled warmly.
"Anything you want for lunch?"
Naruto's eyes softened. Ever since his little sister was born, he hadn't had this much attention.
"…Ran. Ichiraku Ran."
Kushina froze for half a second.
"Then get so rest. I'll wake you when it's ready."
"…Ah…"
Akio followed her out, shaking his head with a grin.
"Poor kid."
Kushina scratched her cheek.
"I didn't have a choice. He was the only one with a blanket. Tsukika's too little…"
"You couldn't have had Minato co back for one?"
"He did co back once. Then imdiately teleported away again saying he sensed danger and didn't have ti to grab anything. I… may have yelled at him."
She looked sheepish.
"Please help with the ran."
Akio smirked.
"You did nothing wrong. Girls should be raised like princesses. Naruto's a troublemaker; he can survive a little cold."
"Shh!"
Akio chuckled.
"Ran, huh… Ingredients won't be easy. Most shops won't open today."
He paused.
"Guess I'll head to Ichiraku."
"Bring extra," Kushina said quickly. "We'll all eat ran."
Ichiraku ran
Akio narrowed his eyes.
"…They're open?"
He stepped inside.
Teuchi greeted him imdiately, smiling wide.
"Welco! What can I get for you oh! Lord Uzumaki Akio!"
Akio scanned the empty shop.
"No custors?"
"You're my first today," Teuchi said cheerfully. "My family went outside the village yesterday to restock ingredients. We just got back half an hour ago. Funny thing, Konoha's unusually quiet today."
Akio blinked.
"Restocking, huh."
He nodded.
"Four miso chashu ran. Three extra-large. Takeout."
"Right away!"
As Teuchi bustled into the kitchen, Akio sat down, lost in thought.
Back when he'd been worried about Nawaki and Mikoto, Teuchi had conveniently appeared, asking for investnt to open this shop.
And over the years, there had been… monts.
Tis when Teuchi had shown up just a little too perfectly.
"Maybe I'm overthinking it," Akio muttered. "If he were suspicious, today of all days he'd be closed, pretending to be asleep like everyone else."
Teuchi returned with four carefully packed bowls.
"Here you are. Safe travels!"
Akio took them and walked toward the door then paused.
"…You're not charging ?"
Teuchi froze for a split second, then broke into a radiant smile.
"It's an honor for the clan elder to eat my ran. No paynt necessary!"
Akio closed his eyes briefly.
"Again. Just a little too perfect…"
He stepped outside, ran in hand, suspicion lingering in the back of his mind.
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