The scenery of Konoha hadn't changed much since Kazashiro left.
The most noticeable change is that there is one more face on the Kage Rock.
Kazashiro lingered on the street for a while, still unsure what to say when he saw his old man, when he heard a soft, sweet voice behind him:
"Brother Kazashiro?"
"Um?"
Subconsciously agreeing, Kazashiro turned around and saw a beautiful woman and the child she was holding.
"It's Itachi."
Upon seeing that familiar little face, Kazashiro couldn't resist stepping forward and pinching it, only then realizing the identity of the woman beside him.
At this time of day, the only person who would be walking Itachi on the street is probably Uchiha Mikoto.
Fugaku is so lucky; with his face alone, he managed to marry such a lovely wife.
Sasuke's good looks are all thanks to Mikoto's genes.
"Big brother?"
Hearing her son address Kazashiro, Mikoto was somewhat surprised and covered her mouth with her hand.
Is this adorable little guy actually a boy?
Half-heartedly, Itachi allowed Kazashiro to pinch and knead his face until the other's hands stopped. Only then did Itachi remember to introduce himself to the two people in front of him.
"Mom, this is Brother Kazashiro..."
"Nice to meet you, I am Shimura Kazashiro." Kazashiro looked up at Uchiha Mikoto, smiled, and extended his hand.
"I am Uchiha Mikoto, Itachi, thank you for taking care of me."
"Not at all, Mikoto."
Kazashiro's answer instantly demoted Itachi by a generation.
Itachi subtly puffed out his cheeks, clearly somewhat displeased with his sudden demotion.
Fugaku: Who turned my son into this?
The two exchanged a few words, and Kazashiro learned from their conversation that the other person intended to go out.
I'm going to the hospital for some checkups.
Hospital? Examination?
Is it true or not? Could it be...?
Kazashiro's gaze unconsciously drifted towards Mikoto's abdomen.
If it's true, then Kushina- nee...
Is the Nine-Tails' rampage coming?
Having said goodbye to Mikoto and Itachi, Kazashiro no longer had any intention of figuring out how to fool Danzo, and instead began to think about the Uchiha who had ambushed him last time.
Those guys are very likely to cause trouble here, so I need to remind Sakumo and Minato to be fully prepared.
No, we still need to call Kakuzu and Pakura back so we can all fight together.
"Kazashiro?"
It was another familiar voice. The moment Kazashiro looked up, he saw a flash of yellow.
It's like he can summon whoever he wants; isn't that Minato Namikaze standing right in front of him?
"Brother Minato." Kazashiro, whose mind was entirely focused on Minato, completely ignored the figure behind him.
"What, did you only see Captain Minato?" Kakashi's tone wasn't very friendly.
It wasn't until Kakashi spoke that Kazashiro noticed the white figure behind him, and immediately said apologetically, "Sorry, Kakashi, I didn't notice you just now."
"Is that all?" Kakashi persisted, walking coldly to Kazashiro's side.
"Uh, is there anything else?" Feng Byakugan darted around as he desperately tried to recall where he had offended Kakashi.
Feeling a light punch on the head, Kazashiro heard Kakashi's complaint in his ear. "You left the village without a word for more than half a year, do you even respect your teammates?"
This isn't my fault, you have to blame Tsunade, she only gave me one day!
Although he really wanted to say that, Kazashiro wisely kept his mouth shut.
"Honestly, at least that idiot Obito told us before he left." Seeing that Kazashiro didn't respond, Kakashi brought up Obito again to compare with Kazashiro.
"Sorry, the situation was urgent at the time." Kazashiro made a pained expression and said pitifully.
Seeing Kazashiro's expression, Kakashi's pent-up complaints instantly vanished.
He wasn't a sentimental person to begin with, but he hadn't seen Kazashiro for a long time and didn't know how to start the conversation.
"Welcome back." Kakashi extended his hand, inwardly criticizing himself as he spoke; this was so unlike him.
"I'm back." Kazashiro instantly dropped his pretense, grinning as he shook Kakashi's hand in return.
"I didn't hit you hard enough, huh? Take another punch!"
"Hey, Kazi, stop messing around!"
"So, where are you two headed?" After joking around for a while, Kazashiro finally remembered to ask Kakashi what they were doing.
Kakashi glanced at Minato, and after confirming from the man's nod that it was something he could discuss, he explained the situation to Kazashiro: "We're going to North Central Town to investigate some things."
"Oh, North Central Town, pfft!" Kazashiro belatedly muttered the somewhat familiar place name, and it took him a while to realize it. In his haste, he almost choked on his own saliva.
"What's wrong? Have you been to this place?" Kakashi, a perceptive person, saw through Kazashiro's subtle expression at a glance.
"Well, I passed by here while cultivating. I heard that a nobleman died there not long ago."
"Yes, that's what we're investigating." Minato nodded.
Hearing this, Kazashiro felt even more uneasy. Why hadn't his father noticed anything after doing this for so long, but he had only done it once and it had attracted so many onlookers?
Hiruzen: Good disciple, that's because your dad has a good buddy like me!
"Did the investigation find anything?" Kazashiro had just asked the question when he regretted it so much that he wanted to slap himself.
Why ask this question if there's nothing wrong with it? Isn't that just like protesting too much?
Fortunately, the two who had known Kazashiro for many years were not surprised, after all, he was a person with a strong sense of curiosity and a free-thinking mind, "No, it should have been done by the bandits in the nearby mountains."
I must commend Aburame Ryoma for his professionalism.
Not long after taking over the situation, the Root ninjas smoothed out all the loopholes, and even a master like Minato couldn't see anything amiss.
However, what's even more impressive is Minato's speed. He set off almost simultaneously with the Root ninjas, investigated the events at lightning speed, and returned to the village even faster than Kazashiro. The Yellow Flash truly deserves its title.
No wonder he's the fastest man in the Shinobi World, he's fast at everything!
Thankfully, Minato and the others didn't notice anything amiss.
Having gotten the answer he wanted from the other party, Kazashiro lost interest in continuing the conversation. Now, all he wanted to know was whether Kushina's belly was showing any signs of pregnancy.
However, asking this question directly is clearly too impolite.
The only option left is to try other indirect methods.
"Oh, right, Kazashiro, are you free for now?" Just as Kazashiro was about to say goodbye to Minato and the others, Minato himself suddenly called out to Kazashiro.
"I need to go to the Fourth Generation to hand over the mission. Could you please give this special item to Kushina for me?"