The matter of enrollment was settled in one morning.
In the afternoon, they said it was a holiday, but in reality it was time for the admitted students to go back and prepare their school supplies, or to enjoy their last happy moments.
Starting tomorrow, they would be official Ninja Academy students, and also future ninja reserves—soldiers who would one day wield extraordinary power.
The original intention behind Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara establishing a ninja village might have been to give everyone a stable place, to stop killing each other, to unite together, to protect their descendants well, and to keep underage children from being coerced onto the battlefield at such a young age by their elders using all kinds of reasons.
But when the ninja village combined with the state and established the system of one country, one village, its nature changed, and that original intention could never be realized.
Originally, the small-scale conflicts between ninja clans caused by hired missions became military competition between country and country, and between ninja village and ninja village.
In the Warring States period, ninja clans still had a tiny bit of freedom of choice—they had the right to refuse employers—but when ninja clans formed ninja villages and were bound onto the monster that was the state, they could no longer control their own fate.
Once war broke out, it would only be larger in scale than during the Warring States period, last longer, and have even more tragic casualties.
When adult ninja suffered excessively heavy losses, the younger successors would still have to go to the battlefield when it was their turn—nothing would change.
Perhaps Uchiha Madara saw this clearly back then, and only then realized that the dreams he and Hashirama had in their youth were too naive: ninja still had not been able to break free from their predetermined fate.
And so he chose another road, wanting to go one step further—to completely unify the ninja world together with Hashirama, to end this thousand-year-long chaos of war, and to let everyone walk out of this chaotic fate.
Unfortunately, Senju Hashirama had already fallen into the false illusion of peace he had constructed, stubbornly refusing to allow anyone to destroy it.
For this, whoever destroyed the village, he would kill—whether it was his close friend Uchiha Madara, or his own family.
As long as he was alive, there was naturally peace; but once he died, the First Shinobi World War immediately broke out, followed by the Second, and now the Third, which is currently underway.
Uchiha Madara hid underground and watched all of this coldly, becoming even more certain that his ideas were correct, but he was already covered in scars, and Hashirama, who could have joined hands with him, had also passed away.
If he wanted to realize his ideals, he could only use other methods—then he fell into another pit, and became the number-one project manager under Black Zetsu, the CEO of "conspiracy city," where one ring fits inside another ring.
He still had not escaped the fate of being controlled.
...
It was noon. Higashino Megumi and Uzuki Sakura each brought their own children, planning to just eat something casually outside.
At this hour, the two of them were also too lazy to go back and cook.
At the school gate, the four of them saw Gekkō Hayate and Uchiha Shisui following the crowd as they walked out together.
Hayate naturally came out thinking he could freeload a meal.
Shisui, on the other hand, was preparing to head back to his clan.
Uzuki Yugao waved her hand: "Over here, Hayate-nii, we're over here—and Shisui-kun too. Do you want to come eat with us?"
Uchiha Shisui, who had been about to say goodbye to them, froze for a moment and said in surprise, "Eh, is that okay? It won't be too much trouble for everyone, will it?"
Higashino Megumi smiled gently and said, "Child, what trouble could that be? Aren't you friends with Makoto and the others? Or is it that someone at home has already made food?"
For the past one or two years, Higashino Makoto and the other three had often been hanging around with Shisui, so the adults of the three families naturally knew about it, but they did not oppose it.
Those who were hostile toward the Uchiha were certain people among the higher-ups; ordinary ninja or villagers, at most, just felt the Uchiha clan was somewhat aloof or hard to get along with, and were only slightly displeased in their hearts.
After all, as the clan that held authority over Konohagakure's Police Force, the Uchiha clan often dealt with the people of Konohagakure, and because they always relied on the glory of being the number-one clan and held themselves high above others, being cold and unapproachable, they indeed aroused widespread dissatisfaction.
In fact, if you have ever been on a team with people from that clan, you will find they are actually quite reliable—at the very least, given their clan's temperament, they absolutely would not do something like using their comrades as a shield.
As for whether the Uchiha clan has bastards, of course it does; but what clan doesn't have that kind of person?
When Shisui heard Higashino Megumi mention family, he lowered his head and said softly, "My parents are already gone. There's only me at home."
Uzuki Sakura: "What a truly independent and sensible good child. Come along with us!"
Originally, the two of them had planned to take the three kids to some random set-meal place to settle lunch, but since the children's friends had joined them, they naturally had to go eat something better.
Yakiniku Q it was.
While eating, seeing that both of his friends had family members taking care of them, there was a faint trace of envy and longing in his eyes, but he was a smart child and kept his head lowered so no one would notice.
Suddenly, several large pieces of freshly grilled meat appeared on his plate, giving off an enticing aroma.
Higashino Megumi: "Eat a bit more. You too, Hayate. Both of you are a little on the thin side—you need to grow sturdier, like Makoto."
Shisui lifted his head and revealed a happy smile. "Mm, thank you, Megumi-obasan."
Hayate glanced at Higashino Makoto's solid build and muttered inwardly, 'I want that too, but my body just won't allow it.'
Higashino Makoto also had no idea what was going on with Hayate—his strength had improved quite a bit, yet he just wouldn't put on any weight. Could it be that he was constantly keeping Transparency Release active to sneak into the women's baths?
That didn't seem right either—this guy didn't have that kind of god-tier technique yet.
...
After the meal, everyone went their separate ways.
Watching Shisui's retreating figure, Higashino Megumi said softly, "Actually, in every war, the Uchiha suffer quite heavy losses, but it seems no one ever publicizes this. The village also always sends them to the battlefield only when manpower is insufficient. I don't know why things ended up like this between them and the village."
Being a profession that places secrecy above all else, ninja work was like that everywhere, and ninja villages even more so. The grudges between the Uchiha and the village—including the final battle between Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama—had all been classified as secrets.
The Higashino family was just a civilian family; how could they possibly know the twists and turns within?
"What, Mom—do you want to know the reason?"
Higashino Megumi was a little surprised. "You know? That's not something someone your age should understand."
"Because of fear. What those in power fear most is strength they cannot control. Some people are afraid that another Uchiha Madara will appear—because Konohagakure no longer has a God of Shinobi."
Higashino Megumi had originally thought that the son she gave birth to was merely precocious, but she suddenly realized she had underestimated him. She then felt a faint sense of fear and glanced around unnaturally.
"Makoto, what you're saying doesn't align with the Will of Fire at all. Don't say things like that again in the future."
"Don't worry, Mom. No one's eavesdropping. But please don't discuss this kind of thing outside either—not even at home. It would cause trouble."
"Ah—so now you're lecturing me. Fine, fine, I get it."
"Then next, are we going home?"
"No. Come with me."
Higashino Megumi took Higashino Makoto to a flower shop to buy several bouquets, and then the two of them went together to the Konohagakure cemetery in the back mountains.
They each placed a bouquet of fresh flowers on two nonadjacent graves.
Those buried here were all ninja who had died in the line of duty for Konohagakure. Their names were all engraved on the Memorial Stone, including Makoto's grandfather and his uncle.
Ordinary civilians were not buried here.
Among the many festivals held each year in the Land of Fire, three are dedicated to ancestor worship, so Makoto did not come here infrequently.
While using tools to brush the dust off the gravestones, Higashino Megumi said, "Your grandfather died near the end of the First Shinobi World War, and your uncle died near the end of the Second."
"They both died when the wars were about to end. Your uncle had originally planned to get married once the war was over, and to take advantage of that rare period of peace to work hard at strengthening the Higashino family, but in the end he still couldn't escape it."
"Back then, seeing you grow up and be so intelligent, your father and I were planning to give you a younger sister or brother, but then the war came again."
"The Higashino family's luck always seems to be just a bit short."
"Now, your father has already gone to the battlefield, and whether he lives or dies is uncertain. The Higashino family has only you left, Makoto."
"Mom, are you worried about something?"
"Your father told me about your strength. You're a true genius, my son, but if possible, don't try to graduate early like Kakashi. Stay quietly at the academy for a few more years."
"No problem. But sometimes, that isn't something we get to decide. If this war is too brutal and lasts several more years, causing the village's strength to suffer excessive losses, then our generation will ultimately still have to go to the front lines."
"I know. Perhaps this is the fate that ninja can never escape."
"Fate? Maybe. If ninja—people who wield extraordinary power—are willing to sink into becoming mere tools and weapons, then that fate really can't be escaped."
Higashino Megumi was, after all, a traditional ninja, and she didn't quite understand her son's words. "Aren't ninja weapons? For a thousand years, it's always been like that."
"No, Mom. Just because it's always been like that doesn't mean it's right. That's what you call a mental imprint."
"Then, Makoto, why do you still want to be a ninja?"
"Because I've never experienced it, so I want to experience the excitement of this profession—but that doesn't mean I agree that the current state of ninja is reasonable."
---
I will post some extra Chapters in Patreon, you can check it out. >> patreon.com/TitoVillar
---