"I'm ho."
Obito stepped through the entrance, changing his shoes as he cheerfully called out to his grandmother.
"Huh… is Grandma out for a walk?" he muttered when no reply ca.
Normally, as soon as he announced his return, she would either co to greet him or answer from wherever she was.
Walking further inside, Obito quickly realized she hadn't gone out at all—she had guests. That explained the lack of response.
"Obito, welco ho," his grandmother said warmly, smiling at him from the living room.
Obito's gaze shifted to the guest seated across from her—a brown-haired, middle-aged man dressed in dark blue attire.
He didn't know the man personally, but the ninja headband and the Uchiha fan emblem on his back made his identity obvious.
"Obito, you've co at just the right ti. Say hello to Uncle Yashiro," his grandmother prompted.
"Hello, Uncle Yashiro," Obito greeted politely.
Uchiha Yashiro returned the smile. "You must be Obito. Very good. Among the Uchiha your age, you're one of the most outstanding."
"Hehe, not bad," Obito chuckled, scratching his head. The praise didn't stir much emotion in him—it was different from hearing it from Grandma, Rin, or Mugetsu.
"Oh, right, Grandma—I got first place in the grade-level practical exam!" Obito's eyes lit up as he shared the news.
"Our Obito is truly amazing. When you graduate, you'll definitely beco an excellent ninja," she said proudly, patting his head.
Yashiro nodded slightly at this confirmation. Being first in the grade didn't guarantee future greatness, but it was undeniable proof of exceptional talent at this stage.
He thought of another Uchiha boy, Tekka—close to Obito's age and considered talented—but Tekka had never managed to take first place overall.
"Keep it up, and strive to beco a ninja worthy of inheriting the Uchiha's glory," Yashiro said.
He then set a box of nutritional supplents on the table, followed by a neat stack of fifty thousand ryō.
"We Uchiha are never stingy with our outstanding clan mbers. This is a reward for your achievent."
It was clear he hadn't co just to make polite conversation. While all Uchiha were distantly related, they rarely visited elders without reason. His trip was specifically to reward Obito.
This was a clan policy: any mber whose strength far surpassed their peers would receive recognition and tangible rewards.
In truth, Obito should have received this after the term-end exams, but the clan's higher-ups hadn't been actively monitoring the academy's grades. With only his grandmother at ho and being a relatively inconspicuous student—aside from knowing Shisui—Obito had flown under the radar.
Only recently had they realized that this seemingly low-profile boy had risen to beco a genuine Uchiha genius.
"Now, train diligently. After you graduate, you can join the clan's Police Force. I'll personally guide you then," Yashiro continued.
Large clans often had their own privileges. For the Hyuga, the main family could bypass the academy entirely, receiving clan-based education before becoming genin and entering the Chunin Exams.
The Uchiha's privilege was the Konoha Police Force—completely under their control, with every mber an Uchiha. Positions could be freely assigned within the clan.
If Obito could maintain this level of excellence, Yashiro wouldn't mind personally ntoring him. But if he fell behind, that "guidance" would likely amount to little more than an introduction to the work.
The Uchiha's ancestral code had always been the sa—respect the strong. Strength brought everything; weakness brought nothing, no matter the hardship.
"Thank you. I'll train hard," Obito said sincerely, though he ignored the ntion of joining the Police Force.
Seeing his earnest expression, Yashiro nodded in approval. "Interact more with your fellow Uchiha—your peers and seniors. Clan mbers are the most reliable strength you'll have. Once you graduate, you can apply to the clan to learn new Fire Release techniques."
With that, he rose and left.
"Our Obito is truly promising. Your father was never rewarded by the family before—you're already more outstanding than he was back then," his grandmother said, her smile brimming with pride.
"Father, huh…" Obito tried to recall, but no image ca to mind. His parents had died before he could form any mories of them.
Still, his childhood had been happy. With his grandmother by his side, he had never lacked love.
"Grandma, better put this money away before the wind takes it," Obito said, neatly gathering the bills and handing them to her.
"Obito, you keep it to buy food. This is what you earned yourself. Grandma doesn't want it," she said with a kind smile.
"Then I'll leave it with you, Grandma. I'm afraid I'll lose it," Obito replied after thinking for a mont. He took out one hundred ryō for himself and handed the rest to her.
His grandmother accepted the money with a look of deep contentnt. "Obito… you've really grown up," she sighed. "I just wonder when I'll get to hold a great-grandchild."
At that, Obito's face turned bright red. "Grandma, I'm still in school!" he protested.
She chuckled. "You can still cultivate feelings while in school, you know. Your father was actually your mother's classmate."
"I think Rin is a very good child—thoughtful, polite. How have you two been getting along lately?"
"I need to go study!" Obito blurted, fleeing upstairs with a flushed face.
---
"Spin, spin, spin… so this must be the place." Mugetsu looked up at the signboard before stepping inside.
He thought the shop owner's naming sense was… abstract. If not for the words 'Ninja Tools' written beside the na, most people probably wouldn't even know what it sold.
If Minato hadn't recomnded it, he would have gone to a shop with a more normal na.
Inside, the walls and counter were lined with all sorts of ninja gear—different types of kunai, shuriken, and more. The interior layout was no different from any other ninja tool shop, despite the odd na.
"Custor, do you need any ninja tools?" A young man with a friendly smile approached.
"Can I use your equipnt to forge a tool myself? I might need your assistance during the process," Mugetsu asked directly.
"Use our equipnt… to forge it yourself?" The man looked surprised. In all his years running the shop, it was the first ti he'd had such a request.
"If you're looking for sothing specific, we do accept custom orders," the owner offered after a mont's thought.
Realizing there was a misunderstanding, Mugetsu explained, "I plan to personally forge a tool as a gift. The intention behind making it myself is more important than the practicality."
"I see… that's quite thoughtful," the owner said, understanding dawning on his face.
"Whether it's using your equipnt or requesting your help, I'll pay accordingly. And if any accidents occur during the process, I'll take full responsibility," Mugetsu added.
He hadn't touched any of his salary or the bonus from the end of last sester. Between that, his sumr training pay, and a month's salary from the new term—minus ergency savings—he had a budget of up to 700,000 ryō.
It wasn't like he was asking for sothing forged from pure chakra tal or teorite. An ordinary kunai cost about two hundred ryō; even at a thousand tis that price, it would still be only two hundred thousand.
"You must be giving it to soone important," the young owner said thoughtfully. "Lucky you ca here. Most shops in Konoha just import tools these days; they hardly keep forging equipnt anymore."
He had been about to refuse, but after hearing Mugetsu's reasoning—and knowing the custor was willing to cover all costs—he decided to agree.
"Follow ."
He called a young woman, likely his peer, to watch the front, then led Mugetsu to the backyard warehouse.
"I occasionally forge high-quality tools to sell, but not as often now. Ordinary items sell better," he said, gesturing toward the neatly arranged forging equipnt.
"Everything's mass-produced in factories now… tis have changed," he added with a hint of nostalgia.
When he was a boy, he had often helped his father forge tools by hand. But over the years, handmade work had beco tiring, inefficient, and less profitable compared to mass production.
The two discussed terms: Mugetsu would pay for all material costs and an additional fee for guidance.
His plan was to practice with standard materials first. Once he got the hang of it, he would use higher-quality materials for the final product.
His disciples' birthdays were as follows: Shisui on October 19th, Might Guy on January 1st, and Obito on February 10th.
Shisui's was the closest—only eight days away. With the knowledge from books he had already read, plus Shadow Clone practice, Mugetsu felt he could manage it in ti.
Using clones for ninjutsu drained a lot of chakra since each one needed enough to perform techniques. But forging was different—he only needed to avoid creating too many clones at once to prevent fatigue.
For the final forging, he could ask the owner for full assistance, ensuring the best possible result.
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