Rules for Survival in Troubled Times

Seeing Yuehua Ai's seemingly frozen expression, Nagato's hand, which had been reaching out to stroke the boy's head, suddenly stiffened in mid-air.

"I—I'm sorry, did I scare you?" Nagato retracted his hand as if struck by an electric shock. He lowered his head, using one hand to brush his bangs aside in an attempt to cover his eyes. Seeing Yuehua Ai's reaction, he assumed his unique eyes had frightened the boy, completely unaware of the turbulent storm raging in the mind of the person before him.

Hearing Nagato's apology and seeing his look of profound disappointment, Yuehua Ai realized at once that the boy had misunderstood.

He slowly sat up, wrapping the blanket around his neck so that his entire body remained covered, with only one arm poking out from beneath the fabric.

What a sensitive and insecure child, Yuehua Ai thought. He reached out and tucked the hair back from Nagato's face, revealing his entire expression.

"I wasn't scared at all. I was just thinking about something else."

He thought of the original story: although Nagato possessed power that stood at the pinnacle of the ninja world, his entire life was that of a simple, tragic figure. Because of his innate purity and longing for peace, his short life—aside from his devotion to his companions and his commitment to Yahiko's ideals—had been entirely orchestrated by Madara and Obito. The Uchiha had manufactured tragedy after tragedy, forcing Nagato's life down a twisted path in an attempt to turn him into a puppet. Yet, in the end, Nagato still upheld the ideals he shared with Yahiko. Though he committed many wrongs, he remained forever pure and resilient for the sake of his friends.

Nagato, whom Yahiko called a crybaby, wasn't weak; he simply possessed a heart more sensitive than most and valued human connection above all else. Seeing Nagato's dejected look, Yuehua Ai felt it was necessary to give him some encouragement and confidence.

"They are beautiful eyes. Why would you want to hide them?"

"..."

"Beautiful? ...You... do you... really... not feel afraid?"

Seeing Nagato's blank expression, Yuehua Ai felt speechless. The Rinnegan was a bug-tier power in the Naruto world. Knowing that Nagato was still distressed and insecure about possessing it made his own heart bleed. If you don't like them, give them to me! I'm so envious I could die...

Of course, he wouldn't say those thoughts aloud. Yuehua Ai put on an innocent expression, nodding as he said, "How could I be afraid? Big Brother's eyes are truly beautiful. They look so profound and magnificent. I wish I had eyes just like yours, Big Brother!"

Calling him "Big Brother" to act cute made Yuehua Ai despise himself a little. Even though it was to comfort Nagato, using the mentality of someone who had lived two lifetimes to call him that felt truly nauseating.

While Yuehua Ai felt disgusted and cringy, the two boys and one girl before him certainly didn't think so.

"Really?"

Seeing Yuehua Ai nod with such sincerity, Nagato found it hard to believe. Because of his unique eyes, he had been looked at with strange gazes for many years. A year ago, after his parents were accidentally killed by Konoha ninja, the shock had caused his eyes to erupt with terrifying power, instantly killing those ninja. Since then, he had lived as a wanderer, still harboring fear of that power. Yet today, this child found by Konan was not only unafraid but called his eyes magnificent and beautiful, even saying he envied them. For some reason, Nagato felt an urge to cry.

Nagato lowered his head to his chest, feeling his eyes grow wet. He had to bite his lip hard to keep from sobbing.

Yahiko, moved by the emotion, flashed a wide grin at Yuehua Ai and slapped Nagato's shoulder hard.

"Ai is right, Nagato! You need to have confidence in yourself!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Yahiko leaned in toward Nagato with a mischievous smirk. "You're keeping your head so low—don't tell me you're crying from being touched? Haha, seriously, Na... ga... to... is... a... cry..."

Before Yahiko could finish, Nagato let out a huff, swatted the hand off his shoulder, and wiped his eyes with his arm. He lifted his head but turned his face away, refusing to meet Yahiko's gaze.

"I am not... I... I just got some smoke in my eyes!"

Yuehua Ai couldn't help but chuckle at Nagato's stuttering, teary-eyed excuse. Yahiko didn't mind the rebuke at all; he laughed twice, knelt beside Nagato, and draped an arm over his shoulder again. This time, Nagato didn't stop him.

"...Ai... Nagato... Yahiko..." Konan whispered the boys' names, her hands clasped over her chest. Their laughter and playfulness moved her in a way she couldn't describe. It was warm and cozy; she truly loved this.

"Ai, you stay here and watch the place. We're going to get some food. Even if we have some left, we can't just sit around and wait for it to run out!" After a night of talking, the group had learned of Yuehua Ai's experiences. Compared to them, his life had undoubtedly been more fraught with misfortune. The boy and girl could hardly imagine how he had survived on his own.

Compared to Yuehua Ai, their own backgrounds were tragic, but at least they had possessed some self-sufficiency when they lost their parents. The Ai before them, however... their sympathy was overflowing. They felt only heartache for this new little brother and couldn't bear to have him join them in scavenging. Besides, their "scavenging" was mostly stealing. If they brought Yuehua Ai along, not only would they be corrupting a child, but if they were caught and beaten, they would have no way to protect him.

Yuehua Ai, having lived two lifetimes, understood their reasoning perfectly. But living in such chaotic times, how could he comfortably let these boys provide for him just because he was young? Age meant nothing in the face of war. For children who had lost their homes, stealing to survive wasn't a sin. Justice and kindness were just high-sounding concepts; survival was the priority.

Yuehua Ai tightened his clothes to make them fit better. These weren't the clothes he'd worn last night. Although they were old rags the boys had scavenged, they were much better than the dirty, tattered coat he'd been wearing, which had been stuffed with rat meat.

Because Yuehua Ai was so small, there were no clothes that fit him properly. The garment he wore now was just a top that reached his knees, leaving his pale, thin legs exposed. It wasn't a perfect fit, but it didn't hinder his movement. Konan had also given him a pair of shoes she used to wear; they were worn out, but still better than the boys'. Yuehua Ai didn't mind the rags, but he was bothered by the fact that he was wearing nothing underneath. The loose coat chafed against his bottom, making him feel secretly embarrassed. Even after being here for three or four years, he still couldn't get used to that.

"No way, I'm coming too. I'm not a freeloader!" Ignoring Yahiko's words, Yuehua Ai trotted after Konan.

"Dammit, you little brat, just stay here! Finding food is our job!" Seeing Yuehua Ai ignore him, Yahiko couldn't help but roar.

"Yahiko, keep it down!" Konan scolded him.

She turned around, taking Yuehua Ai's small hand in one of hers and stroking his head with the other. "Ai, Yahiko is right. You're still small; finding food is our job. You be a good boy and stay here, okay? Listen to me!"

Yuehua Ai felt quite depressed about Konan's habit of patting his head, but there was nothing he could do—he was only four years old in this life!

"Konan, how could I let you go alone? Since last night, I've been a member of this group, haven't I?"

The group froze at his words. Before they could react, Yuehua Ai continued, "In these chaotic times, being young is no excuse to hide and enjoy the fruits of my companions' labor, is it?"

"..."

They were speechless. Finally, Yahiko sighed in frustration. "Ugh, seriously, how is a little one like you so much more mature than us?"

At the mention of "Little One," the small dog running around Nagato's feet stopped and looked at Yahiko, as if asking, Why are you calling me?

"But... Ai... we are..." Nagato started.

Before Nagato could finish, Yahiko turned to Yuehua Ai. "We understand you want to come, but do you even know how we get our food?"

"Yahiko!" Konan frowned slightly.

Yuehua Ai nodded and said concisely, "Stealing!"

"Uh..." Not just Yahiko, but Konan and Nagato were petrified. It was a direct hit, and it made things incredibly awkward!

Amidst the group's sudden, stiff reaction, the only creature left unaware was the small dog named Little One, who had been following Nagato. After running a circle around their feet, it could only sit there and whimper.