After Mitaraishi Anko left, Uchiha Itachi once again appeared silently at the entrance to the Three-Color Dango Shop.
"Boss, do you still have any limited-edition Three-Color Dango?"
"No, that kunoichi just bought them all."
As he spoke, the dango shop owner pointed toward Mitaraishi Anko, who had just bought the dango and left.
When he heard that the limited-edition dango were gone, Uchiha Itachi felt a pang of pain in his heart.
His Sharingan involuntarily appeared in his eyes.
Then Uchiha Itachi asked again.
"What about regular Three-Color Dango? Do you still have any?"
The dango shop owner looked at Uchiha Itachi's Sharingan and answered cautiously.
"N-no, that lady bought those too."
????
At that moment, Uchiha Itachi felt as if the whole world had collapsed.
How could this happen?
My limited-edition Three-Color Dango.
Damn you, old man.
Uchiha Itachi could only force himself to keep going, then left in a daze.
What Uchiha Itachi didn't know was that something even more painful awaited him—there was a huge pile of paperwork waiting for him to process at the Military Police Force.
Meanwhile, Uchiha Fugaku was eating dango as he searched for Ichiraku Ramen.
After all, he'd come to the world of Naruto. How could he not meet the legendary mastermind behind the scenes, Otsutsuki Ichiraku?
Honestly, Uchiha Fugaku just wanted to try the so-called Ichiraku Ramen.
After all, the old Fugaku had hardly ever gone out to eat this kind of food.
When Uchiha Fugaku arrived at Ichiraku Ramen, he saw a blond truant gazing longingly at the shop.
Uchiha Fugaku took a closer look. Wasn't this the Konoha prince from the original story, Uzumaki Naruto, who had stolen his younger son's first kiss and shared a passionate bond with him?
However, Uchiha Fugaku didn't pay him much mind.
Though the old Uchiha Fugaku would certainly have turned around and left, unwilling even to meet the boy.
After all, even an accidental encounter with an Uchiha clan member would make people suspect they had some kind of scheme, that they were trying to get close to him in order to control him.
After all, with the Konoha F4 around, even Kakashi, the disciple of the Fourth Hokage, hadn't chosen to approach Uzumaki Naruto before the Third Hokage found him.
The person Naruto was closest to might have been Sarutobi Hiruzen, which showed just how great the Third Hokage's desire to control him was.
Uchiha Fugaku ignored Uzumaki Naruto and went straight to a seat at Ichiraku Ramen.
"Boss, I'll have your most luxurious ramen set."
Uchiha didn't have to wait long before Teuchi served him the most luxurious ramen set.
When Uchiha Fugaku reached for his wallet out of habit, he realized he hadn't brought any money today.
He was immediately caught in an awkward predicament.
Should he ask to put it on credit?
Tomorrow, the whole of Konoha might be buzzing with the embarrassing news that Uchiha Fugaku, the Uchiha Clan Head, had eaten ramen without paying.
As he thought about it, Uchiha Fugaku began looking for a solution.
Right, I still have my Ninja Cat.
The Ninja Cat Clan was in the ninja tool business, after all.
A lot of the Uchiha Clan's wealth came from them.
Thinking of this, Uchiha Fugaku immediately used the Summoning Technique to summon his contracted Ninja Cat.
A puff of smoke rose, and Denka appeared before Uchiha Fugaku.
"Clan Head Fugaku, what do you need?"
Hearing the Ninja Cat's question, Uchiha Fugaku felt a little awkward and said, "Denka, here's the thing. I want to borrow some..."
Before Uchiha Fugaku could finish, Denka hurriedly left him with a single sentence and released the summoning, returning home.
"Clan Head Fugaku, pay back what the Uchiha Clan owes first."
????
Only then did Fugaku realize the cat had run off just like that. Sure, he'd borrowed a tiny bit more than before, but was that really any reason to react like this?
Besides, he'd soon be a man with another big goal.
Paying back that tiny bit he owed would be a piece of cake.
But if he couldn't borrow from the Ninja Cat, where could he get money for the meal?
He should've asked Itachi for some when he saw him.
Just as Uchiha Fugaku was fretting, he suddenly spotted the prince beside him and his eyes lit up.
"Uzumaki Naruto."
Naruto, hearing someone call his name, couldn't help but pause.
Did this uncle know him?
Then why didn't he recognize him at all?
But since the villagers of Konoha still hated him, Naruto was delighted that someone had called out to him.
"Hello, uncle. What can I do for you?"
Uchiha Fugaku wasn't pleased to be called uncle, but since he had to rely on Naruto to pay for his meal, he didn't get angry.
"I'm Uchiha Fugaku, Sasuke Uchiha's father. I happened to come here for ramen today."
"I saw you seemed to like ramen. Is that right?"
Hearing who he was, Naruto was surprised. He hadn't expected this uncle to be the father of that arrogant Sasuke Uchiha.
But why had he stopped him? Naruto asked outright.
"I do like ramen, but why did you call me over, Uncle Fugaku?"
Hearing Naruto's reply, Uchiha Fugaku got straight to the point.
"Here's the thing. Sasuke told me you're a very capable student in his class."
"I'll treat you to ramen. In return, how about looking after Sasuke at school?"
A very capable student? He was treating him to ramen?
Was that really how Sasuke saw him?
Naruto, starved for affection, could no longer think straight at the sound of those words. He immediately agreed with excitement.
"Thank you, Uncle! I'll definitely look after Sasuke."
Hearing Naruto's answer, Uchiha Fugaku knew he'd achieved his goal.
Now he just had to wait for someone to pay.
With that, Uchiha Fugaku pushed his untouched ramen toward Naruto.
"Boss, another serving of your most luxurious ramen set."
"Coming right up."
"Thanks, Uncle Fugaku! Let's eat!"
Meanwhile, one of the three Anbu following Naruto had already gone to the Hokage Building to report the matter to Sarutobi Hiruzen.
When Sarutobi Hiruzen received the news, his body shuddered.
"What is Uchiha Fugaku trying to do? Does he not know Uzumaki Naruto is the village's Jinchūriki?"
"Is he trying to control the Nine-Tails and obtain the Tailed Beast's power?"
"Quick, assemble all the Anbu. We're going there together."
Before you continue