Closed-Door Disciple

Yashui spoke his true thoughts, not the thoughts of the original Yashui.

His words caused an uproar among the birds. They chirped and chattered among themselves, and quite a few asked things like, "Are you really a member of the revenge-loving Uchiha Clan?"

"Quiet," the Three-Legged Golden Crow said slowly. Though its voice was not loud, its penetrating quality quickly quieted everyone down.

"Your thoughts are truly interesting..." The Three-Legged Golden Crow burst into laughter. "I haven't met such an interesting human in a hundred years."

"You probably haven't met many humans in a hundred years!" Yashui suddenly fired off a quip.

"How can you talk to the Three-Legged Golden Crow like that? You can't bully an old coot!"

"Yeah... Even if he's an old coot, he's still our boss."

Yashui chuckled. He had only set things up; the birds of the Hundred Bird Nest had delivered all the real zingers! Still, this showed how relaxed a place the Hundred Bird Nest was—much more so than Konoha Ninja Village.

"Now then, Yashui." The Three-Legged Golden Crow suddenly opened its eyes wide, and the birds scattered in all directions. The entire palace was left with only Yashui.

The dazzling light pouring from the Three-Legged Golden Crow's eyes was blinding. Fortunately, Yashui was wearing sunglasses; otherwise, he would probably have fled just like the other birds.

In the glare, Yashui barely managed to open his Sharingan and withstand the intense light. He could just make out that the Three-Legged Golden Crow's eyes were actually miniature suns!

"Would you be willing to become this old man's final disciple?" The Three-Legged Golden Crow seemed to smile when it saw Yashui open his eyes.

"Lord Three-Legged Golden Crow, are you sure this is all right?" Yashui asked cautiously, as if afraid he might break some rule. Even though he was eager to agree, he felt he should at least go through a more formal process first.

"Are you willing or not?" the Three-Legged Golden Crow pressed.

"I'm willing, I'm willing!" Though Yashui pretended to be bashful, he was thrilled. The Three-Legged Golden Crow was a god. How many people could hope to become a god's disciple?

"Heh heh heh..." The Three-Legged Golden Crow laughed again. "Tomorrow, bring two jin of rice wine. Pour all your chakra into it, then bring it here."

"But how do I get here?" Yashui asked.

"Form the hand signs for the Summoning Technique in reverse, and you'll be able to reach this place," the Three-Legged Golden Crow replied. "Don't stand me up tomorrow, kid."

"Boss, you called?" A white dove flew into the center of the palace.

"Ha ha ha ha..." Yashui finally couldn't hold back his laughter. "This place is great! I feel so relaxed here! I'll definitely come back tomorrow, Master. Don't worry."

The Three-Legged Golden Crow watched, sweating profusely, as the little white dove appeared before him and undermined his authority. It awkwardly flapped its wings, and Yashui vanished with a "poof."

Yashui's vision went dark. When he opened his eyes again, he was back in his room.

"It's already seven in the evening..." Yashui sighed. Time really flew.

The lively atmosphere of the Hundred Bird Nest was completely different from Konoha's lifelessness.

Yashui went downstairs. There was no delicious dinner waiting in the living room. The entire house was empty.

"Grandpa? Konohamaru?" Yashui called softly.

Neither of them seemed to be home.

"Grandpa Third is busy with work, so he might be home late. But Konohamaru shouldn't be..." Yashui opened the front door and looked around in both directions.

He was worried about where dinner was coming from. He hadn't eaten much all day at the Hundred Bird Nest.

"Yashui, where have you been?" The Third Hokage came out from behind him.

"Grandpa, um..." Yashui stammered. To him, the Third Hokage was also an accomplice in the Uchiha Clan's extermination. Even for the sake of the original Yashui, he had to do his best to keep his whereabouts secret.

"Never mind. You're back, and that's what matters." The Third Hokage smiled kindly. "If you want to go somewhere in the future, go ahead. You're growing up, and this old man can't keep you on a leash. But tell your family first. Konohamaru and Uncle Asuma went all over looking for you. If you hadn't come back soon, I might have had to abuse my authority as Hokage. Heh heh heh..."

Yashui felt touched. He was just an outsider who could have disappeared without anyone caring, yet the Sarutobi Clan had gone to so much trouble to look for him.

"Thank you, Grandpa!" A trace of warmth welled up inside Yashui. He hadn't felt that way in a very long time. That warmth was like a drug; Yashui almost forgot that the Third Hokage had allowed the Uchiha Clan to be exterminated.

"I'll let everyone know. Come home for dinner." The Third Hokage before him vanished with a "poof." It was a shadow clone, probably left there because the Third Hokage was worried Yashui might return home alone.

Yashui went back into the house, his rationality keeping his feelings of gratitude toward the Third Hokage firmly in check. Before he had felt that warmth, Yashui had realized that he couldn't see through the Third Hokage at all.

This time, the Third Hokage had left a shadow clone there. It had seen Yashui come out of the house instead of coming in from outside. An experienced ninja like the Third Hokage would naturally think about why that was, and it wouldn't take him long to figure out that Yashui had gone to the summoning realm to train.

Yashui wasn't ready to tell the Third Hokage about that yet. Tomorrow, before going to the Hundred Bird Nest to train, he would come up with some excuse to get out of it.

"The Third Hokage really is a troublesome person." Yashui returned to his room and looked at the photo of himself with the Third Hokage. He scraped at the Third Hokage's face with his fingernail. Just how much did the Third Hokage know? It made Yashui feel unsafe.

At that moment, Yashui remembered something important. He hadn't asked how to control his Sharingan when he went to the Hundred Bird Nest. His eyes might still go out of control sometimes.

Looking at the sunglasses the Third Hokage had given him, he thought he wouldn't be able to go without them anytime soon.

Night passed quickly. The next morning, Yashui got up especially early. He searched every corner of his room and gathered the loose change scattered around.

Even though he was a child adopted by the Third Hokage, he had pitifully little pocket money. Yashui spent all of it buying two jin of rice wine, while the shopkeeper watched him with deep suspicion.

The shopkeeper was probably wondering why a child would want to buy rice wine.

After getting the rice wine, Yashui found an open space. He checked that no one was around, then used the Summoning Technique.

Today, Yashui didn't need to worry about his "family" from the Sarutobi Clan searching all over for him. He had told the Third Hokage before leaving, and the considerate Hokage had even packed him a lunch.