After sending Deidara off, everyone in Iwagakure, from the ninjas to the civilians, wore delighted expressions.
They were practically ready to bang drums and gongs!
Uchiha Yu glanced back at their faces and let out a long sigh.
Don't worry. Once Deidara's grown up, I'll bring him home to visit often.
Long live peace!
"Let's go. We're heading to the Land of Fire," Uchiha Yu said to Deidara.
Deidara nodded vigorously. "I've wanted to go for ages! Big Brother, hurry up and take me!"
Uchiha Yu smiled and led Deidara toward Konoha.
Five days later.
The two finally made it back to Konoha safe and sound. They hadn't run into anyone from the Akatsuki along the way, either.
When Uchiha Fugaku saw Uchiha Yu return, his face lit up with joy.
After parting ways with Hyuga Tokuma, Uchiha Yu had vanished without a trace, leaving Uchiha Fugaku terribly worried.
Fortunately, he'd made it back safely in the end.
"Let me introduce you. This is Deidara, whom I brought back from Iwagakure," Uchiha Yu said to Uchiha Fugaku.
"Deidara?" Uchiha Fugaku looked at the blond boy before him, whose hairstyle was straight out of a punk band, and frowned slightly.
Clearly, he hadn't realized just how much potential Deidara had.
"Come on, Deidara. Show my dad what you can do." Uchiha Yu patted Deidara on the shoulder.
Deidara's eyes lit up, and he immediately tossed out a Clay Bird.
Flapping its wings, the Clay Bird slowly flew toward a nearby house.
Uchiha Fugaku looked at the silly-looking Clay Bird and managed a strained smile. "Not bad. It's pretty interesting."
Clearly, Uchiha Fugaku still hadn't figured out what the Clay Bird was capable of.
"Ha!" Deidara formed a Hand Seal with one hand.
The Clay Bird suddenly shone with a dazzling light.
The brilliant flash was followed by a deafening explosion.
The house that had stood there moments earlier was now nothing but rubble.
"Holy crap!" Uchiha Fugaku almost choked on his own spit.
His eyes widened. He couldn't believe that a single Clay Bird could level a house.
"This power... It's even stronger than an Explosive Tag! Not even an ordinary Fire Release has this kind of power!" Uchiha Fugaku's eyes shone as he asked Uchiha Yu, "Is Deidara going to be one of our people in Konoha from now on?"
Deidara was about to explain that he was only here to seek refuge, but Uchiha Yu clapped a hand over his mouth.
"That's right. He's with me now. Trust me, he'll become even stronger!" Uchiha Yu said with a firm nod.
If Deidara had gone straight for "Art is a Patrick Star," Konoha would probably have ceased to exist.
"Excellent! Very good!" Uchiha Fugaku patted Uchiha Yu on the shoulder, satisfied. "Remember to bring a few more geniuses back to the village in the future! Our village could really use more talents like Deidara!"
He was about the same age as Uchiha Yu, yet already this powerful. He'd surely become even stronger in the future!
Uchiha Yu gave a cheeky grin. "What about my mission reward?"
Only then did Uchiha Fugaku remember. "Hyuga Tokuma told me all about it. You did a great job on this mission, so I'll give you the reward as usual."
Being only seven and completing such a difficult mission was already an impressive feat.
Uchiha Yu quickly asked, "What about Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke's mission rewards?"
Uchiha Fugaku blinked. "I haven't given them out yet. Why?"
He hadn't given them out?
Great. Their rewards are mine now, too.
Uchiha Yu immediately hid his scheming smile, rubbed his hands together, and said sweetly, "I can take their mission rewards back for them! Just give me the rewards for all three of us. That'll save you the trouble!"
Uchiha Fugaku paused, but didn't suspect a thing. He nodded. "All right. Go collect them in a bit. Be sure not to lose the money."
Don't worry. Even if I lose myself, I won't lose the money!
That night.
At the Uchiha compound.
Uchiha Yu called Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto over.
"About the mission a few days ago: Father said we did a great job, and he gave me the rewards. I'll hand them out now."
As he spoke, Uchiha Yu reached into his wallet.
He wanted to keep all the money, of course, but he should at least make a show of sharing some.
Just a little, so they wouldn't get suspicious.
If they told Uchiha Fugaku, he wouldn't get a single ryo.
"How much is it?" Sasuke asked excitedly, licking his lips.
Naruto nodded vigorously, too. "Second Brother, if we got a mission reward, does that mean I'm a ninja who can stand on his own now?"
Uchiha Yu smiled. "Of course!"
Then he handed each of them a wad of cash.
"Dad was going to give us three thousand ryo each, but I figured we'd been through life and death together and made a tremendous contribution in Sunagakure. We accomplished an extraordinary feat! So after I kept pestering him, Dad finally agreed to give each of us five thousand ryo!"
Uchiha Yu thumped his chest, speaking with righteous conviction.
The moment Uzumaki Naruto heard that they were getting five thousand ryo, his eyes lit up.
"Five thousand ryo? That's several months' worth of living expenses for me!" Uzumaki Naruto hugged the money and grinned like an idiot.
Only Sasuke looked thoughtful after taking the cash.
"Wait a minute. We usually get five thousand ryo in allowance every month. Why are we only getting five thousand ryo for completing a mission?"
With that, Sasuke frowned and looked at Uchiha Yu with suspicion.
Uchiha Yu didn't bat an eyelid or feel the least bit guilty.
He said casually, "Allowance is allowance! A mission is a mission! They have nothing to do with each other! Besides, five thousand ryo is plenty. You should learn to be content!"
Only then did Uchiha Sasuke put away the cash. "Oh!"
Uchiha Yu kept a perfectly calm expression, but inside he was over the moon.
Uchiha Fugaku had given him six hundred thousand ryo in total.
After giving Uchiha Sasuke and Naruto five thousand ryo each, he still had five hundred and ninety thousand ryo left.
Add that to what he'd already saved, and he now had well over a million ryo.
That was more than a thousand Pay-to-Win Points!
It was enough to do all sorts of things!
Besides, this was exactly when he needed money.
"Starting tomorrow, we'll begin systematic training," Uchiha Yu told Uchiha Sasuke and Naruto.
The lessons at the Ninja Academy were still far too basic.
Uchiha Sasuke had long since memorized everything they taught there.
And although Naruto was at the bottom of his class, his battle instincts were excellent.
Making Naruto memorize things by rote at school didn't bring out his strengths.
So Uchiha Yu planned to carefully arrange their training from here on!
After all, their next opponents wouldn't be pushovers.
Before you continue