The Unchanging Man (False)

The Unchanging Man (False)

Year 27 of Konoha

"Today was another peaceful day."

On the streets of Konoha, a man with naturally curly black hair strolled leisurely beneath the eaves of the roadside shops, walking with the cocky, carefree swagger of a spirited young man.

The man was strikingly handsome, but the pair of Dead Fish Eyes on his face perfectly ruined his entire aura, making him look exceptionally punchable.

Although he looked like an unreliable loafer, the people nearby did not avoid him. An old man basking in the sun asked with a grin, "A Gin, heading out to do a mission?"

"No, just taking a walk. I gave myself the day off."

The curly-haired man, A Gin, stopped and answered casually.

After speaking, he seemed to remember something. He rummaged through the high-collared robe he wore for a while, pulled out a stick-shaped object, and tossed it to the old man before popping one into his own mouth.

The old man looked at the lollipop thrown his way with a face full of black lines. "At our age, we can't eat things like this anymore."

"Really? I remember you used to love them."

A Gin looked sideways at the old man, and an unusual emotion flickered through his lifeless Dead Fish Eyes.

"Yeah, that was in the past."

Though the old man did not eat it, he still put the lollipop away and said with a smile.

"I can save it for my grandson. He'll be a month old tomorrow, so I'll treat you to a celebration drink."

"Why is it always drinking? How can a genin's salary afford all this? Great, now I'll have to go catch a few cats again."

A Gin scratched his nest-like curly hair and said irritably.

"Hehe, remember to come when the time comes."

"By the way, have you named your grandson yet? Why not let me name him? Guaranteed to be easy to raise. How about calling him Goudan?"

The old man looked speechlessly at the man who seemed to be having some kind of episode.

"He already has a name. Minato."

A Gin, who had been enthusiastically coming up with names for the child, froze the moment he heard that name. In a daze, something flashed through his mind.

"What? Doesn't it sound good?"

Then A Gin suddenly recalled that the old man before him had possessed a dazzling head of blond hair in his youth, and he let it go.

"Nothing. Just some dead memories attacking me."

With that, A Gin lifted his head and gazed toward the two vastly different stone faces carved into the distant mountain, then sighed.

"I think your grandson has exceptional bones. He may be the reincarnation of the Sage of Six Paths and has the makings of a Hokage. He'll surely achieve great things in the future."

The old man was somewhat confused by that.

"But you haven't even seen him!"

"I observed the stars last night."

The old man paused, then looked up at the blazing midsummer sun.

"Those stars sure are blinding."

When he turned back, the man beside him had already vanished.

"Tch, after all these times, he still leaves without saying goodbye."

The old man shook his head and turned to tend to his shop.

Elsewhere, the man continued wandering aimlessly, his Dead Fish Eyes seemingly interested in nothing at all.

"Gin-sama, the clan meeting is about to begin. Why are you still wandering around here?"

A voice suddenly rang out. A black-haired young man knelt behind A Gin and spoke respectfully.

"The Clan Leader isn't even home, so what clan meeting are we having? Listening to those so-called elders spout nonsense? I'd rather take a walk with that time."

The man called Uchiha Gin casually picked at his ear, as though he utterly disdained such an important event.

The man sent to notify him seemed to have expected that answer. Hesitation appeared on his face, with fear accounting for seven parts and confusion for three. He carefully chose his words and said apprehensively, "Please don't make things difficult for me. I'm only responsible for delivering the message. Whether you go is your choice, but the Great Elder said you must remember that you are still an Uchiha."

After saying that, he vanished in a flash.

"What a bore. They think that just because that damned White Hair is gone, they can start getting restless? Konoha's muddy waters aren't something you blockheads can wade through. Why insist on fighting for the Hokage Position, a job not even dogs would do? Wouldn't it be better to Give Up with me in peace?"

Watching the other man leave, Uchiha Gin rolled his Dead Fish Eyes.

Inside the Hokage's Office beneath Hokage Rock, smoke filled the air. A figure sat at his desk processing piles of documents taller than a person when someone suddenly pushed open the door.

"Hiruzen, I've received reliable information. The Uchiha Clan is holding another Secret meeting today. I've already received a Secret report on the general contents. It's time to act!"

A handsome man in his thirties with an X-shaped scar on his chin slapped a document onto the desk before the person handling paperwork.

The interrupted man looked up at his close friend in exasperation, then casually tossed the document into the trash bin beside him.

"You!!!"

Young Danzo's eyes widened like those of a furious tiger, and he nearly choked on his breath.

"Danzo, don't focus all your attention on the Uchiha Clan right now. The village has only just entered a time of peace, and there is much to rebuild. At a time like this, there can't be any major problems within the village."

Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, who had only recently taken the Hokage position in a crisis, smoked his pipe as he placated his close friend.

"That is an inherently evil clan. We absolutely cannot Lower Guard around them."

Shimura Danzō spoke viciously, but inwardly, he was overjoyed.

Hehe, I finally caught them by the tail!

Hearing the words "inherently evil," Hiruzen warily looked around and shushed him, signaling for him not to continue.

Shimura Danzō, having been reminded, seemed to realize what he had said. His expression became slightly awkward, but he still stubbornly snapped back.

"You're already the Hokage. What are you afraid of?"

"Afraid of what?"

Just as the two were talking, a lazy voice cut in.

"Afraid of that curly-haired Dead Fish Eyes—Aaaaaah!"

Following the question, Shimura Danzō had only spoken half a sentence when he discovered in terror that someone had somehow appeared behind him.

"Big what?"

"B-B-B-Big handsome guy."

As though recalling something terrifying, Shimura Danzō blushed furiously and stammered his response.

"Well, if it isn't Xiao Tuan Tuan? Long time no see."

After hearing his answer, Uchiha Gin familiarly draped an arm over Shimura Danzō's shoulder and spoke with a smile.

"What have you been busy with lately? Still tinkering with that Root of yours? Are you recruiting? I've been a little short on cash lately."

Seeing Shimura Danzō's panicked expression at those words, Uchiha Gin patted his shoulder in satisfaction.

"I'm just kidding!"

"Little Monkey, I came to pick up a few D-Rank Missions. The little fellow from the Namikaze family is already a grandfather, and he invited me to a month-old celebration. I need to earn some money."

Uchiha Gin turned to Hiruzen, who was seated at his desk.

Hearing that, Hiruzen wore an expression of unsurprised resignation and skillfully pulled several mission forms from a drawer at hand before passing them to Uchiha Gin.

"I had them ready for you. But are you sure you don't want to take missions with a higher difficulty? Your strength shouldn't be—"

"What do you mean, shouldn't be? I'm just a genin, the Number One Genin personally bestowed by Hashirama. Don't you know exactly how strong I am?"

Uchiha Gin happily flipped through the missions in his hands.

"They all look pretty good. I'll be going, then. You two best buddies can take your time having fun."

Only after Uchiha Gin left did Shimura Danzō let out a long breath, his expression grave as he said,

"Why is he still like this?"

Hiruzen, seated in his chair, also sighed in relief. A trace of fear from the depths of his heart appeared in his eyes as his face turned solemn.

"He still looks thirty. All these years, ever since we could remember, hasn't he always looked like this?"

"Yeah. He's never changed."

"Could that technique really be so miraculous?"

The two fell into Deep Thought. After all, only a handful of people still knew that technique, and they had no way to verify the matter.

Brain Storage~

PS:

The first chapter was just a prologue. The real story starts from Chapter Two! The first chapter was just a prologue. The real story starts from Chapter Two! The first chapter was just a prologue. The real story starts from Chapter Two! Important things must be said three times~