When Mikoto Uchiha saw who had arrived, surprise showed on her face.
"Why are you here?"
"Isn't there a clan meeting today?"
The man smiled. "The meeting's over."
"I thought I'd come by and see how you're all doing. How are the little ones? Are they doing well?"
Mikoto Uchiha nodded. "Mm-hm."
"They all have pretty good talent. If they train hard, they can all become capable ninjas in their own right."
The man looked surprised, then turned his gaze to the three of them. Nebula Kotetsu looked back at him.
Fugaku Uchiha.
The head of one of Konoha's great clans—or rather, one of the great clans of the Shinobi World: the Uchiha Clan.
A powerful man with at least three tomoe, and quite possibly a Mangekyō Sharingan. Aside from Hiruzen Sarutobi, whom Nebula had seen giving a speech about the Will of Fire at the opening ceremony, Fugaku was undoubtedly the strongest person he'd ever met in person.
At that moment, the powerful man's gaze was remarkably kind. It finally settled on Asuma Sarutobi.
"You're Asuma, right?"
"I've heard about you."
"They say the Sarutobi Clan has a very promising young man. Well done. If Mikoto says you're good, the rumors must be true."
Asuma Sarutobi straightened unconsciously, a smug smile appearing on his face.
He couldn't feel the pressure Nebula had sensed in Fugaku's presence at all.
As the young master of the Sarutobi Clan and the Third Hokage's own son, he felt no awkwardness, even in front of the Uchiha Clan Head.
A great clan?
What great clan?
That was just outsiders exaggerating.
The strongest member of their clan was only an elite jonin, while the old man he looked down on was an undisputed Kage Level ninja—and widely regarded as the strongest Hokage in history!
So he treated the man before him as nothing more than a kind ordinary uncle with a slightly bigger house.
He greeted him with a smile. "Clan Head Fugaku."
"You're too kind."
"Besides, Teacher Mikoto went easy on me just now. If she'd been serious, I'd have been flat on the ground already."
"Hahaha..." Fugaku Uchiha seemed amused by the boy's humility. "Don't sell yourself short."
"Keep working hard. I believe you'll surpass Mikoto one day and become an even stronger jonin."
Asuma Sarutobi nodded earnestly. "Mm. I'll work hard."
Beside them, Nebula Kotetsu felt awkward listening to all this.
One of them was doling out praise, and the other actually believed it.
What did he mean, "If she'd been serious, I'd have been flat on the ground already"? If Mikoto Uchiha had been serious, Asuma Sarutobi wouldn't have had the chance to stand in front of her.
Nebula could tell that Fugaku Uchiha had made a special trip here just to meet Asuma Sarutobi. His intentions were obvious.
All Nebula could do was look away and try not to feel so awkward.
After praising Asuma Sarutobi a few more times, Fugaku Uchiha turned his gaze to Kurenai Yuhi.
"How are you doing, Kurenai?"
"Have you gotten used to training here?"
Kurenai Yuhi answered sweetly, "Yes. Teacher Mikoto takes good care of us."
"That's good." Fugaku Uchiha encouraged her. "Keep it up."
"Your father is always bragging to his colleagues about how good he is at genjutsu."
"Kurenai, train hard and try to surpass him soon. Maybe then he'll stop showing off to me."
Kurenai Yuhi gave a shy smile. The Uchiha Clan Head seemed much more approachable now.
Fugaku Uchiha's gaze finally fell on Nebula Kotetsu.
Sensing his attention, Nebula turned and met his eyes.
Nebula didn't look away. He watched the convincing fake smile on Fugaku Uchiha's face, curious to see what he'd say next.
Come on.
Come on~
Praise me~
A clan head couldn't play favorites, could he?
As Nebula waited, Fugaku Uchiha hesitated. He studied Nebula with a puzzled look, then slowly said,
"You're Nebula Kotetsu, right? Young man... You're really handsome!"
Nebula Kotetsu: ...That's it?
"Keep working hard. The future of Konoha rests on all of you."
Nebula managed an awkward but polite smile.
You brush me off, I brush you off.
Suddenly, his smile froze.
A panel prompt appeared before his eyes.
[Ping!] [Potential binding target discovered: Mikoto Uchiha (a sorrowful woman who will die at the hands of her eldest son; change her tragic fate).] [Bind?]
"All right, nothing else to do here. You can get back to work," Mikoto Uchiha said impatiently from the side as Nebula stood there looking "at a loss." "I still have to train them."
Fugaku Uchiha hurriedly replied, "All right, all right."
"Carry on. I won't keep you."
He had just reached the door when he seemed to remember something and turned around. "Oh, right. Since this is your first time here, don't rush off at noon."
"I've had lunch prepared. We'll eat together."
After Fugaku Uchiha left, Asuma Sarutobi and Kurenai Yuhi said, "Clan Head Fugaku's not quite like the rumors. He seems like a pretty nice uncle."
Kurenai Yuhi nodded.
Next, Mikoto Uchiha started answering everyone's questions.
She began with Asuma Sarutobi again.
While she was answering questions, Nebula Kotetsu moved to one side. He stared at the prompt on the panel, thoughts churning.
[Potential binding target discovered: Mikoto Uchiha (a sorrowful woman who will die at the hands of her eldest son; change her tragic fate).] [Bind?]
Should he bind her or not?
If he did, what kind of task would the system give him?
Would it be a general task like the one from Might Guy, or something like Rin Nohara's...
"System."
"Can you give me a hint?"
There was no response.
He thought for a moment and tried asking another way.
"System, if I bind a character and don't complete the task, will there be any punishment or other consequences?"
This time, the system finally responded.
[If a task issued by a bound character is not completed, there will be no punishment or other consequences.]
Nebula Kotetsu breathed a sigh of relief.
If there were no consequences, things would be much easier.
He already had Rin Nohara, Might Guy, and Kurenai Yuhi as bound characters.
All three of their tasks had generous time limits. If he bound another character, he'd get stronger even faster.
He thought to himself, "System, bind."
[Binding successful!]
Nebula Kotetsu's eyes widened slightly.
What kind of task would the system give him?
Would it be saving her from death? Preventing the Uchiha Clan massacre?
Or teaching Itachi Uchiha, who'd gone astray?
A simple everyday task like studying hard and improving every day would be even better.
As he waited, both anxious and eager, the panel's information changed. When he saw the refreshed text, Nebula Kotetsu's face froze.
[Bound target: Mikoto Uchiha (instance: Fugaku Uchiha)] [Current task: Filial Piety of Master and Disciple (Your team's jonin leader has been feeling a little down lately. As a Genin on the team, please massage their fingertips for one hour to relieve their stress.)] [Time limit: Seven days.] [Choose one reward: Child-rearing Manual Lv. 2, Shurikenjutsu Lv. 2, Great Fireball 10x Dedicated Skill Boost Card.]
Nebula Kotetsu: "..."
Before you continue