Fooling Honest People

Dark clouds covered the sky, and a cold rain fell without end.

Though it was pouring heavily, not a single bolt of lightning crossed the sky.

The three gathered at Kushina's house looked out at the drizzle through the window.

As for why they had chosen this place, that was something they would have to ask Kushina about.

"I'm saying, guests came over and you didn't even prepare any snacks?"

Jin slapped the table, voicing his dissatisfaction.

Clatter. Kushina threw a plate onto the table, scattering the fruit across it. She clearly was not in a good mood—possibly because of some annoying bastard.

Minato Namikaze sat primly, but his face wore a downright lecherous expression.

Even Jin could not help asking, "Minato, how can you make such a sleazy expression with that cute little face of yours?"

"Huh?" Minato Namikaze looked at Jin in confusion. Then, seeing the disgusted look on Kushina's face, he forced out a smile.

"That's even sleazier."

Kushina looked even more disgusted.

Dejected, Minato Namikaze slumped onto the table. He felt that his life was over.

Kushina then took out a scroll from behind her and tossed it to Jin.

"This is for you."

Jin caught it and opened it directly. It contained several Fūinjutsu techniques that his family had yet to collect.

"I don't owe you a favor." Kushina huffily turned her head and sat down beside Minato Namikaze.

"You can read it here, but you can't take it away."

Although this Fūinjutsu had once been the Uzumaki Clan's specialty, with the Uzumaki Clan's destruction, it now belonged to Konoha.

If Jin brought it back to the Uchiha, it would inevitably cause trouble. Kushina, who lived here alone, understood that much.

"So that was your goal." Jin suddenly understood. No wonder Kushina had invited them over.

He picked up the scroll and began memorizing it seriously.

He was now extremely knowledgeable about Fūinjutsu. Although he had not understood it at first, after deducing Basic Inner Cultivation, all the relevant knowledge automatically appeared in his mind. It was foolproof teaching—he understood it at a glance.

Calling himself a Fūinjutsu expert now would not be wrong. The only problem was that he could not actually use it.

"By the way, why do we have the day off today?" Jin rapidly memorized the contents of the scroll. With the Deduction Golden Finger, any knowledge could quickly be stored away; he could study it further after returning home.

The three of them had only been able to gather here because the Ninja Academy had inexplicably declared a holiday. It was not even the weekend yet.

The room fell silent, yet no one answered Jin's question. He could not help looking up at the other two, only to find Minato Namikaze and Kushina both lowering their heads.

"Senior Nawaki..."

"Brother Nawaki was killed."

Kushina finished speaking in a despondent tone. From now on, she would never see that gentle older brother who had always taken such good care of her again.

"Today is Senior Nawaki's funeral," Minato Namikaze added from behind her.

"What!?" Jin could not help slamming his palm onto the table with a Bang! His expression shifted unpredictably.

"Nawaki... actually... died."

"Did Senior Jin know Senior Nawaki?" It was the first time Minato Namikaze had seen Jin look so gloomy.

"I knew of him. We weren't close."

Jin shook his head.

He had indeed been in the same cohort as Nawaki, but as a student from Class B, how could he have had the chance to know an elite from Class A?

This left Minato Namikaze and Kushina confused. It felt as though Uchiha Jin cared even more about Nawaki's death than they did.

Jin fell silent, his eyes quickly scanning the contents of the scroll.

Whether Nawaki lived or died had nothing to do with him. But the timing of Nawaki's death had a fatal impact on him.

His memories of the timeline from his previous life were somewhat vague, but there was one thing he was certain of: after Nawaki's death, the Second Great Ninja War would break out within a year at most.

Most importantly, that old bastard Hiruzen Sarutobi lowered both the graduation age and graduation requirements of the Ninja Academy, forcing a large number of children to graduate early and serve as cannon fodder in the war.

The First Great Ninja War had not actually drained Konoha too badly, but the constant conflicts afterward had severely depleted Konoha's number of ninja.

There were not enough people on the battlefield.

Which meant that he would get the chance to enter the battlefield.

But who the hell would want that kind of chance!?

"I have something to do. I'm leaving first."

Jin set down the scroll. He had already recorded everything within it in the Deduction Golden Finger.

"You haven't finished reading it yet..."

Before he heard what Kushina said, Jin had already rushed toward the door.

The two looked at each other, completely unable to understand what was going on with Jin.

Heavy rain battered the earth.

Jin crouched atop a utility pole and looked down.

A figure in a green jumpsuit was lying in the grass, struggling mightily to pull a cat out from within.

"Don't be afraid. I'll take you back to your owner right away." The bearded man tucked the cat inside his clothes, using his own body to shield it from the rain.

Unfortunately, his already soaked clothes were hardly much of a shelter from the rain. The kitten poked its head out through the man's collar and stayed there quietly and obediently.

"So he really came here." Jin sighed inwardly.

Might Duy. Jin had searched for this man for a long time. He was an obscure genin with no reputation in the village, and not so easy to find.

Although he worked hard enough, due to his lack of talent, he had not trained as desperately as his son. Yet he was a man Konoha would remember forever.

Jin's Basic Inner Cultivation could be mastered quickly by those with talent, but the hardworking might not necessarily lose out to the talented.

Who in Konoha worked harder than the Might father and son?

Naturally, Jin had set his sights on Might Duy. Unfortunately, it would have been somewhat strange for a child from the ninja academy to approach a genin on his own.

So he had been waiting for an opportunity.

The two cat-searching missions Might Duy had taken on were assigned by him. For instance, the cat in Duy's arms was actually a disguised ninja cat.

Jin had begged Cat Elder for a long time before that old woman agreed to have the ninja cats cooperate with him.

Originally, he had planned to wait for a chance encounter before getting acquainted with Might Duy.

Unfortunately, Nawaki's death had disrupted everything.

For the sake of his own life, he no longer intended to wait for some coincidence.

He lightly jumped down from the utility pole.

"Uncle, that cat is mine." Jin raised his head, enduring the rain pelting his face.

His height was a real disadvantage right now. He could only look up at Might Duy.

"Huh?" Might Duy was a little dazed. Why had the client suddenly appeared right in front of him?

While Might Duy was still confused, Jin called out.

"Little Meow."

The white kitten at Might Duy's collar jumped onto Jin's shoulder and began meowing.

Because he had worked out Cat Language before, he could understand it.

"A year's supply of cat treats, or I'll expose everything you've done."

"Okay, okay, okay."

People—no, cats—really weren't what they used to be these days. It was actually hiking up the price on the spot.

He wondered whether reporting it to Cat Elder would count as extortion.

"Uncle, thank you for helping me find Little Meow. You're soaked through. Come to my house for a cup of hot tea."

Without waiting for Might Duy to react, Jin grabbed him and started leading him toward his home.

"Wait, there's no need! This is my mission!" Might Duy stopped and hurriedly refused.

"I'll get your mission reward for you while I'm at it."

"But..."

"What do you mean, 'but'? Are you looking down on me..." Jin raised an eyebrow, showing just enough anger for Might Duy to see, then revealed the Blaze Fan on his back.

"Or are you looking down on the Uchiha!"

"Uchiha?!" Might Duy jumped in fright.

The Might Family really did have a talent for comedy.

"I wouldn't dare."

"Then let's go."

Bullying honest people was really fun.

The two walked one after the other into the Uchiha Clan Compound.

With the rain pouring down, there was no one in the Uchiha Clan Compound besides those in the open shops.

As for attending Nawaki's funeral, that was unlikely. The village would not allow it, and the clan did not want to get involved with the Senju Clan.

As they entered the Uchiha Clan Compound, Might Duy trembled with fear, afraid that two Police Force officers might suddenly rush out and arrest him. The reputation of the Uchiha Police Force was deeply ingrained in everyone's mind.

Fortunately, nothing of the sort happened. When they entered a large residence, Might Duy was somewhat surprised.

"This place..."

"Don't be so reserved. I live here alone."

Jin entered through the foyer, first bowing to the two black-and-white memorial photos before turning to Might Duy.

"Make yourself at home. I'll get you some snacks."

"Sorry to intrude." Might Duy carefully sat down somewhere his clothes would not get wet.

Before long, Jin set tea and snacks on the table.

"There's a washroom upstairs. Uncle can go wash up and change clothes. You can head back after the rain stops."

"Sorry to intrude."

Still dazed, Might Duy changed into a set of plain clothes without a clan crest and sat formally on the tatami. He did not dare touch the snacks or tea on the table.

Jin, who had also washed up, pushed a scroll toward him.

"This is my payment."

"What is this?"

"A small ninjutsu."

Might Duy reached for it, but hesitated before gritting his teeth.

"Could this be exchanged for the money from this mission?"

He had come for the reward for finding the cat. He could not be greedy for anything else.

"I'm sorry." Jin's expression darkened. "I don't have enough money to pay the reward for this mission. This ninjutsu is all I have."

"Then forget it." Might Duy shook his head, smiling as he raised a thumb. "Young man, work hard and keep living. There's no need to pay me this time."

Jin also broke into a brilliant smile. "So, Uncle means that we Uchiha are the kind to welch on debts? That you look down on us?"

Might Duy hurriedly waved his hands at those words. How had his words gotten so twisted?

"That's not what I meant."

"Then..." Jin pointed at the scroll beside him.

Might Duy surrendered and picked up the scroll after all.

"Uncle should study it carefully. As long as you're willing to work hard, you'll be able to learn that ninjutsu."

"Thank you."

Jin's third victim left in a daze with the ninjutsu scroll in hand, after Jin had forcibly stuffed an umbrella into his hands as well.

After Might Duy left, Jin took out a small notebook.

It was filled with names. He drew a circle after Might Duy's name. Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki had received the same treatment.

"That's everyone for now."