Uchiha Madara's Smile

Since that adorable little brother had resolutely left him behind, Madara did not mind letting him experience an older brother's affection again.

Kosuke's gaze froze once more as he looked at Izuna clutching his forehead with a wronged expression.

What was going on? Did big brother not love little brother anymore?

Seeing this, Mina hurriedly stood and went to Izuna's side, fussing over him with concern.

Uh...

Sure enough, he was still a nasty little brat. He had actually learned to take advantage of others?

Damn it!

Aoba, seated beside Kosuke, watched the four children with amused eyes. The four different expressions on their faces made for quite a sight.

"Madara, I might need to borrow the scroll for a while longer. It would be great if you could find me more blank paper."

Kosuke rubbed his throbbing temples hard and spoke without hesitation.

"A scroll?"

"Blank paper?!"

Two completely different cries of surprise erupted at once.

Aoba quickly raised a hand and clasped Kosuke's wrist, her voice gentle. "Little Kosuke, what do you need so much blank paper for? And what exactly is this scroll you mentioned?"

Hearing his mother's gentle concern beside him, Kosuke once again felt the familial warmth he had never experienced in his previous life.

After thinking for a moment, he decided to tell his mother about it.

"Mom, I borrowed the Chakra Refinement scroll. But don't worry or get excited yet—your son hasn't practiced it."

As a ninja, Aoba did not immediately believe him just by looking at her three-year-old son.

Instead, she circulated Chakra through Kosuke's body and carefully examined him.

Seeing how anxious his mother was, Kosuke repeatedly waved his other hand. "Mom, really! I've only been studying it. I haven't even touched the basic hand seals!"

Only then did Mina remember that their mother was home today when she saw her mother and brother's actions. A flush immediately spread across her face.

She sat back down in a panic, lowered her head, and did not dare look at anyone. Her fingers unconsciously twisted the corner of her clothes.

Meanwhile, when Madara heard Kosuke mention needing a large amount of blank paper, he frowned slightly and fell into thought.

He truly was not sure whether the clan had a large supply of blank paper.

A moment later, Madara's eyes sharpened. His hands rapidly formed seals in smooth succession.

Ram—Snake—Tiger.

As Madara completed the final seal, the soil beside him immediately began to churn.

A cloud of white smoke spread out.

Under Izuna and Mina's watchful eyes, an Earth Clone with the exact same appearance as Madara suddenly appeared where he stood.

It stood with its arms folded, even the lock of hair sticking up over its forehead identical to Madara's.

"Hmm? An Earth Clone?!"

Aoba, who had been focused on Kosuke, had just confirmed that there were no signs of Chakra refinement in his body when she keenly sensed the Chakra fluctuation. A trace of surprise flashed through her eyes.

"Madara, I didn't expect you to be able to use the Clone Technique so skillfully already. As expected of the most outstanding member of this generation of the clan."

"Wow, that's amazing! Older brother, when did you learn that? Can you teach me when you have time? Then I can teach Mina."

Hearing that, Mina secretly lifted her eyes for a peek. The blush that had just faded climbed back onto her face as she made a soft "Mm-hmm~" sound.

"Uh..."

Madara had originally been quite satisfied by the praise from the four of them... Kosuke did not count, so three of them.

Who would have thought that Izuna would suddenly launch a magical attack, forcibly crushing the smile that had just begun to form on his lips?

Seeing the smile that had yet to appear on Madara's face instantly turn into dejection, Kosuke's mouth split into an exaggerated grin. He burst into unrestrained laughter, his bright laugh echoing through the courtyard.

"Go home and look for blank paper. If you find some, just bring it over."

"All right, Mom, please don't worry. Your son takes very good care of his body."

As Madara's Earth Clone left, Kosuke took the opportunity to gently stroke his mother's hand, his eyes utterly sincere.

"All right. Mom understands."

"As for the blank paper I need..." Kosuke sat up straight again before continuing, "A few days ago, the three of them asked me how to refine Chakra quickly. I analyzed it for them and said that while training, mental training had to keep up as well. Then we got onto the topic of reading..."

He pointed at the sheets he had copied out from memory over the past few days on the table and continued, "After that, I thought about whether the Chakra circulation route could be changed, so I wanted to record everything."

"Who would have thought that I would run out of paper? There was no extra paper at home this morning either, which led to what just happened."

Hearing Kosuke's explanation, Aoba's entire body shook, and she froze in stunned silence.

"Changing the Chakra circulation route?"

Almost on reflex, she flicked out several Barrier Kunai with a turn of her wrist.

A flash of blue light passed by, and an invisible barrier instantly sealed off the entire courtyard.

Aoba's body tensed as she stared solemnly at them. "Does anyone else know about this? Kosuke, and how did you even think of changing the Chakra circulation route?"

Kosuke scratched his head. "Uh... Mom, if Madara and Izuna haven't told their families, then only the four... five of us know."

"As for why I thought of changing the Chakra circulation route, I was simply curious about what would happen if it were changed."

Sensing Kosuke's gaze, Madara's eyes immediately narrowed. "What kind of look is that? I, Uchiha Madara, would never be someone who blabbed everywhere!!"

Seeing this, Kosuke helplessly spread his hands and gave his mother a confirming look, indicating that only the five of them knew.

Aoba shifted her gaze and said gravely, "In that case, Kosuke, Madara, this matter must not be spread outside. Do you understand?"

"Uh... Mom, I already told Madara and the others that that day. They agreed too."

Looking down at her young son's serious little face, Aoba instantly understood what he meant.

She immediately stopped what she was doing and sat back down.

"All right, Little Kosuke. Mom will listen to you."

Hearing that, Kosuke gave his mother a sweet smile. Then he turned back and continued, "After thinking about it these past few days, I reorganized all the Meridians in the human body... the Chakra Meridians you are familiar with."

As he spoke, Kosuke took out the Chakra Refinement scroll, spread it flat on the table, and pointed at the diagram of human Chakra Meridians on it.

[Only found this one]

Then he pulled three diagrams from a stack of papers, which he had drawn according to traditional medicine's Meridians.

Lesser Heavenly Circulation, Greater Heavenly Circulation, and the body's Acupoints and Meridians.

He placed them together for everyone to see.

Their gazes closely followed Kosuke's tiny index finger. When they saw the densely packed diagram of the body's Acupoints and Meridians, even though only part of it was visible, their heads immediately began to ache.

No wonder Kosuke said he could not find enough blank paper. This thing probably was not even finished yet.

But to them, it was practically a heavenly script, something no normal person could understand.

Noticing the confusion in their eyes, Kosuke's moving finger involuntarily slowed.

"You... can't understand it?"

"Understand it?!" Even Aoba looked at her young son with astonishment, her voice inexplicably low. "Other than getting a rough idea from the pictures, I recognize the words. But as for their meaning, I doubt there are more than a few people in the entire Ninja World who can understand this. Maybe not even one."

Kosuke compared the different Meridian diagrams of the two worlds, and a wave of frustration immediately rose within him.

Do I have to become a teacher and teach them the relevant basics?

Kosuke rubbed his throbbing temples with both hands.

He took a small sip of fruit juice, cleared his throat, and found several enlarged diagrams among the pile of papers.

Holding them in his hands, he stood up, faced everyone, and pointed to several key areas of his body.

"Chakra's circulation route inside the body was not something that existed from birth. Within our bodies, it is like underground rivers beneath the earth, flowing through the most optimal 'river channels.' We call those channels 'Chakra Meridians,' or simply Meridians."

Seeing Kosuke being so serious, Izuna immediately perked up. "Meridians? Like the Naka River beside the Clan grounds?"

"More or less!" Kosuke nodded slightly. "The main 'rivers' have several important junctions. We call them 'Chakra Points,' which are the black dots—the Acupoints—on that diagram on the table."