The Shadow Clones' Bizarre Train of Thought

The White Zetsu underground left without a sound.

Katsuki didn't notice anything unusual, even though he was constantly watching the ground below using Mind's Eye of the Kagura. But the White Zetsu were, after all, first and foremost masters at concealing their presence.

However, Katsuki hadn't really expected to gain anything; it was just a shot in the dark. At the same time, her vigilance towards the White Zetsu increased to a new level. Their ability to conceal their presence was terrifying; if used for assassination, they would be extremely dangerous.

"Well! Let's leave it at that for now. It's about time. Let's go back..."

The craters scattered across the fields were all filled in. Bored, the Shadow Clones began digging canals to divert water. They dug ditches in the lower-lying areas to channel all the accumulated water into the nearby river.

"What are you thinking about?"

Watching his Shadow Clones gleefully digging irrigation ditches with Earth Release, Katsuki's lips twitched. Shouldn't Shadow Clones and the original body be similar in personality? So why did his Shadow Clones always do these inexplicably stupid things? Was this how Earth Release were used?

"Crack!!"

A heavy rumble of thunder echoed through the sky, making the very fabric of space seem to tremble.

"The power of nature... how terrifying!"

After assessing the power of the lightning in the sky, Katsuki swallowed hard, his hair standing on end, and he secretly marveled at the boundless power of heaven and earth.

"Let's go back..."

By evening, the torrential rain had subsided somewhat.

Three figures slowly walked through the layers of rain, which were like smoke and mist.

"Yo, Katsuki! We're back."

Yahiko Katsuki the old man sitting under the eaves with great energy, carrying an exaggeratedly large package on his back, his bright smile as dazzling as the sun.

"Minato- style smile... um! Should I call it a leader's smile?"

She muttered to herself, thinking of her friend whose current situation she didn't know, and her hot-tempered older sister. A pang of sadness shot through her heart. She hoped that Otome and Nawaki would go back a little later, otherwise... she hoped that her older sister wouldn't go berserk.

"Morning!"

With a lazy greeting, Katsuki reined in her mind, which was about to drift into a wandering mode.

"Katsuki, you haven't been sitting here all day, have you? I feel like you were in this position when you left this morning, right?" Konan stood in the corridor, took off her raincoat, shook off the water droplets, took the raincoats from Yahiko and Nagato, and then hung up all three of their raincoats.

"How could that be! I did 'exercise' for a while! I dug more than a dozen irrigation ditches in the fields along the river!"

"An irrigation canal? Huh?" Konan tilted her head, her confused little face quite adorable, looking at Katsuki with bewilderment, "Why dig an irrigation canal?"

"... Haha, well..." Katsuki chuckled dryly, sighing inwardly. He couldn't understand it either. After dispelling the Shadow Clones, the memories he returned to were quite simple; the Shadow Clones had only done things out of interest. But he had absolutely no idea when he had become interested in civil engineering. "Ah... it wasn't because the rain suddenly got heavier, and I was worried the floodwaters would reach the house, so I made some preparations in advance."

"Hey!! But this place is on high ground. It was a location that was specially chosen when the house was built, so even if it rains heavily, there's no need to worry about flooding!"

Yahiko interjected, as he was rummaging through his enormous backpack.

Rice, flour, cooking oil, daily necessities—all sorts of things are available...

"Hey, Yahiko, are you planning to open a general store? What are all these things? Fishing hooks, plungers... and even two toilet seats?"

Katsuki's eye twitched. What kind of nonsense was this? The embarrassment she felt had vanished.

"What's wrong? Is there anything you like?" Yahiko turned around and looked at Katsuki with a grin. "Well, there's nothing I can do about it. It's better to buy more things at once to have a backup plan, so you can replace them if they break. Otherwise, it's really troublesome to rush into buying things when it's too late."

"Ah!! That's what they say, but with three plungers, how clogged will the toilet get?"

Katsuki propped her chin on her hand, her gaze wandering over the strange objects on the floor.

"Forget it, let's not talk about this anymore." Shaking her head abruptly, as if trying to clear her mind of unrelated things like plungers and toilet seats, Katsuki summoned two Shadow Clones to help. "Yahiko, my injuries have almost healed, and I plan to leave tomorrow."

"Oh! Tomorrow is... wait!!" Yahiko turned around abruptly, his eyes wide. "What did you say? Why so suddenly? I didn't hear you mention it this morning."

Konan, who was directing the Katsuki Shadow Clones to work, also turned her head and looked over, and Nagato's hands stopped moving.

"Well, after you guys left, I tried to move around a bit and felt pretty much recovered. Besides, I've been eating and drinking for free for ten whole days, and I'd feel bad if I stayed any longer," Katsuki -jokingly.

Yahiko's eyes dimmed for a couple of seconds before regaining their bright and cheerful light.

"Katsuki, now that you've made up your mind, I wish you a safe journey."

Thanks!

The exchange was swift and efficient.

After dinner, Mizuki, who lost a game of rock-paper-scissors, summoned Katsuki Shadow Clone in the kitchen. Katsuki and Yahiko sat under the eaves, chatting while gazing at the dark, rainy night. Inside the house, Konan and Nagato began their daily training.

"Hey, Katsuki, what's Konoha like?"

Yahiko spoke, breaking the quiet atmosphere.

"Hmm... Let me think... It's a very peaceful and lively place. There are many people in the village, and all kinds of shops selling things from all over the world. Those merchants are more skilled than ninjas, traveling all over the country. As long as there's money to be made, I feel like they'd jump into a volcano... Also, the owner of Q Barbecue is very nice; she always gives us free juice... Ichiraku Ramen is also good, but I'm not particularly enthusiastic about it. It's mainly because my sister loves ramen..."

Katsuki herself couldn't explain why she had suddenly become so talkative, muttering about trivial matters.

"That sounds like a great place! That sounds wonderful!!"

A wistful expression appeared on Yahiko's face.

"So, are you going to visit Konoha? Unlike the xenophobic villages like Konoha and Mist Ninja, Stone Ninja doesn't prohibit outsiders from coming and going. Besides, you're Lord Jiraiya's students, so you're not really outsiders. You can definitely come and visit the Land of Fire. The approval process will be easy. It's completely different from the Land of Rain. I can be your guide."