Uchiha Tunan spent the entire day practicing swordsmanship at the Hatake Family home. Exhausted, he headed home.
Just as he reached the outskirts of the Uchiha Clan Compound, he saw Mizuki Uno standing on the only road leading in, craning his neck expectantly.
"Tunan." Mizuki Uno waved at Uchiha Tunan.
Uchiha Tunan adjusted his glasses, walked up to Mizuki Uno, and gave him a respectful bow.
"Teacher Uno, were you waiting for me here?"
Mizuki Uno stuffed a thick envelope into Uchiha Tunan's hand.
"This contains the village's compensation for your Parents Perished in battle, as well as the reward for eliminating that enemy village spy.
"Lord Hokage has been busy with official matters lately, so he sent me to deliver it to you."
Uchiha Tunan accepted the envelope without even glancing at it. He bowed to Mizuki Uno and said, "Sorry for making you come all this way, Teacher Uno."
Mizuki Uno scratched his head and smiled gently. "It was no trouble at all.
"Still, Tunan, it was truly impressive that you took down a Chunin spy all by yourself."
"It wasn't worth mentioning." Uchiha Tunan shook his head with a faint smile.
The more Mizuki Uno looked at Uchiha Tunan, the more pleasing he found him. Concerned, he asked:
"You look completely exhausted. Did you just return from training?"
Uchiha Tunan nodded. "Yes. I was fortunate enough to receive some guidance from Lord Sakumo, and I gained a great deal from it."
Lord White Fang... It seemed Tunan's talent was even greater than he had imagined, enough to catch Lord White Fang's eye.
With that thought, Mizuki Uno said kindly:
"Working hard is fine, but you need to rest as well. I won't keep you from it any longer.
"See you at school tomorrow."
"Thank you for the effort, Teacher Uno. Goodbye."
Mizuki Uno turned and left. After walking halfway down the street, he looked back and saw that Uchiha Tunan was still standing there, watching him go.
His heart could not help but stir.
He had never expected to teach a student so outstanding in both talent and character.
"Go on home," Mizuki Uno called from afar.
Uchiha Tunan did not reply, only returning a gentle smile.
Only after Mizuki Uno had vanished from sight did he turn and enter the compound.
The Uchiha guards patrolling around the compound saw Uchiha Tunan and nodded to him in goodwill.
Uchiha Tunan returned their greetings with a gentle smile.
No matter the world, reality was always like this.
The moment he returned home, Uchiha Tunan saw the Great Elder standing at the gate to his courtyard.
He had clearly been waiting for quite some time.
"Tunan, you're back." The Great Elder was the first to greet Uchiha Tunan.
Uchiha Tunan placed his hands over his knees and bowed. "Greetings, Great Elder."
The Great Elder waved with a chuckle and stuffed a thick envelope into Uchiha Tunan's hand.
"We're family, so there's no need for such formalities.
"I came specifically to deliver the compensation for your parents' deaths in battle, as well as your living expenses for this month."
Uchiha Tunan discreetly gave the envelope a light squeeze with his fingers.
This was much thicker than Hiruzen Sarutobi's.
Then, with a puzzled expression, he asked, "Didn't Lord Hokage already issue the compensation?"
The Great Elder looked at Uchiha Tunan meaningfully.
"Lord Hokage represents the village. Naturally, we of the Uchiha Clan would not treat our own clansmen worse than Lord Hokage does.
"Now that you have become an orphan, you will receive the appropriate living expenses every month from now on.
"If you have any difficulties, feel free to come find me, or the clan head. Clansmen are family. We will do everything in our power to help however we can."
After saying that, he patted Uchiha Tunan on the shoulder. Without any further explanation or gesture, he turned and left.
The Great Elder's move was indeed clever. It might have worked on others, but against Uchiha Tunan, who understood the ways of the world, it was a little too crude.
That was the art of giving gifts.
The goodwill had already been delivered. All it needed now was time to ferment.
If he had lingered to chatter about this and that, others would surely have felt that he had ulterior motives.
Uchiha Tunan returned home, took the money from both envelopes, and placed it in a storage cabinet.
It seemed he had become quite the hot commodity.
The death compensation Hiruzen Sarutobi had given him far exceeded the proper amount.
The compensation for the deaths of two Chunin would never have been this much.
The Great Elder was even more willing to spend, giving nearly twice as much as Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Uchiha Tunan guessed that the Great Elder had not initially intended to give so much.
He must have learned of Mizuki Uno's presence outside the Uchiha Clan Compound.
From the thickness of the envelope in Mizuki Uno's hand, the Great Elder had guessed roughly how much Hiruzen Sarutobi had given.
So he had doubled it on the spot.
This was a good thing for Uchiha Tunan.
With two Chunin parents dead in battle, he had received compensation equivalent to losing two Jonin parents.
Now that he had money, he could raise more white pigeon ninja beasts.
Until the Third War began, he would not have to worry about running out of money.
The next day, Uchiha Tunan left home as usual and headed for the Ninja Academy.
Before he had even left the compound, he ran into a classmate.
Uchiha Mina.
A flash of delight passed through Uchiha Mina's eyes as she greeted Uchiha Tunan. "Tunan-kun, what a coincidence."
"Yes, what a coincidence." A gentle smile appeared on Uchiha Tunan's face.
The two walked side by side toward the academy.
Of course, Uchiha Tunan knew it was no coincidence.
He had long since seen Uchiha Mina through his white pigeons, sneaking around and lingering at this intersection.
Uchiha Tunan had no intention of exposing her.
After all, there was a high chance that Uchiha Mina would become nourishment for his strength.
Naturally, he had to be considerate toward his nourishment.
Speaking of nourishment, Uchiha Tunan remembered that Uchiha Mina was not the only one among his classmates.
If he failed to gain Hatake Sakumo's approval, he would be in a dangerous position.
These sources of nourishment might prove crucial.
Especially Uchiha Mina.
She was a nameless extra he had never even heard of in his previous life, which meant she was almost certainly doomed to die.
And she was an Uchiha.
If he found a way to improve her strength, then...
If things were handled properly and luck was on his side, perhaps she might even awaken the Three Tomoe Sharingan.
She could contribute a little toward his Mangekyo.
At that thought, Uchiha Tunan's eyes lit up, and he turned to look at Uchiha Mina.
Uchiha Mina appeared to be looking straight ahead, but she had been secretly watching Uchiha Tunan all along.
When she saw him looking at her, her heart began pounding wildly.
"Tunan-kun, is something wrong?"
The moment Uchiha Mina asked, she immediately wished she could slap herself.
How could I ask that? Will Tunan-kun think it's awkward?
What if Tunan-kun had just started to like me, and my question makes him dislike me?
"I think you're different from the other clansmen, Mina." Uchiha Tunan, an old schemer, had far thicker skin than most and naturally did not feel embarrassed.
"Really? How am I different?" Uchiha Mina's heart sweetened, and a hint of shyness appeared on her face.
"Other than Obito, most of the clansmen I've met have been somewhat... too proud...
"But you're different, Mina. I always thought you were lively, but I never expected you to have such a cute side in private."
Uchiha Tunan spoke lightly with a gentle smile, as if he were merely stating a fact, without the slightest trace of flattery.
They chatted as they walked.
They looked just like a young couple from his previous life.
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