Mikoto, You Wouldn't Want...

Night fell over Training Ground No. 8 in the Uchiha Clan Grounds.

"Hey! Ha!"

"Smack! Smack! Smack!"

A black-haired girl with long straight hair was diligently striking a wooden post, alternating between fists and kicks, every blow packed with force.

The post's surface glistened with sweat. She panted heavily, wisps of hair stuck to her forehead, yet her movements did not pause in the slightest.

Her expression was grave, her lips pressed into a thin line, and her eyes held a deep-seated resentment—as though the post before her were a mortal enemy.

"Naori, why are you training so late today?"

The girl stopped and looked back.

At the edge of the training ground stood another black-haired girl with long straight hair, taller and wearing a light kimono. Her gentle eyes curved warmly.

"Big sister, why are you here?"

"Naori is being naughty," Mikoto Uchiha said as she approached gracefully, her footsteps soft. "You used to call me Big Sis."

Naori Uchiha pursed her lips and turned her little face slightly away. "...I'm already in second grade, sis."

Mikoto chuckled and walked over, taking out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from her sister's forehead.

"All right, all right. Naori is cutest when she's being stubborn.

"So, Miss Second Grader Naori, can you tell your sister why you trained so late today?

"Even if this is the clan grounds, your family will worry if you stay out too late."

Naori fell silent for a moment, lowering her head to look at the reddened backs of her hands. "I'm sorry, sis."

Mikoto ruffled her hair. "Why is little Naori apologizing? We're family, there's no need for that. Come on, let's go home."

"Okay~!"

On the way home, Naori Uchiha finally could not hold it in anymore and told her everything that had happened at school.

Starting with how that red-haired Mirai Uzumaki had tied up more than a dozen classmates with Adamantine Sealing Chains on his very first day after transferring in,

then how he had landed three Kunai in a vertical line through the bullseye during throwing class,

and finally how he had suspended her in midair with a single chain during combat class—

By the time she described that "spread-eagle" pose, Naori's voice had grown softer and softer, and even her ears had turned bright red.

Mikoto kept smiling as she listened, though a hint of seriousness quietly flashed through her eyes.

"So Naori wants to train even harder, then defeat that boy named Mirai Uzumaki, right?"

"Yes!" Naori clenched her fists. "I'll definitely defeat him! And I'll defeat him fairly and squarely!"

Seeing the fire burning in her sister's eyes, Mikoto gently patted her head. "I understand. Your sister supports you, but—"

"But what?"

"But tomorrow, I want to take a look at this Mirai Uzumaki," Mikoto said with a smile. "Just from a distance. I promise I won't interrupt your class."

Naori froze. "Why?"

"Because your sister wants to see what kind of boy has my Naori so concerned."

"Big sister~!" Naori's face reddened even further. "I'm not concerned about him! I'm concerned about how to defeat him!"

"Yes, yes, defeat him~ You can do it, Naori!"

"Hmph!"

Early the next morning.

Mirai Uzumaki and Kushina Uzumaki walked side by side on their way to school, their red hair especially striking in the morning light.

He yawned as he walked, but his eyes sharpened for an instant.

—There it is again.

Within the range of Mind's Eye of the Kagura, that presence had appeared again, roughly thirty meters behind and to his left.

The chakra signature was steady, and its concealment techniques were excellent.

But before Mind's Eye of the Kagura, it was no different from holding up a sign saying, "I'm watching you."

"What's wrong?" Kushina noticed his unusual behavior and tilted her head.

"Nothing. Just a little sleepy." Mirai brushed it off and kept walking as though nothing had happened.

He quietly withdrew his senses.

It could not be helped. He was a candidate for the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, so it was only natural for the Hokage to send people to watch him.

The Anbu surveillance irritated him, but he did not yet have the power to flip the table.

Even when I'm trying to flirt with a girl, the Anbu have to watch... what kind of nonsense is that?

He sighed inwardly. Once he became the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and gained enough strength, the first thing he would do was drive the Anbu away from his side.

But becoming a Jinchuriki also meant Grandma Mito...

At that thought, his footsteps paused, and an indescribable emotion rose in his heart.

Though they had not spent much time together, that kind old lady who always sat beneath the covered walkway drinking tea and smiling as she watched them play had unknowingly come to occupy an important place in his heart.

Perhaps it was because Mirai had never experienced such gentle affection in his previous life.

"Don't think about it," he muttered. "Let nature take its course."

Kushina leaned closer. "What did you say?"

"I said—the weather's nice today."

"Eh~ Mirai... why have you been acting so mysterious lately?"

"These are adult worries. You wouldn't understand."

"Huh? I'm older than you! You're only seven!"

The two bickered all the way to the school gates.

Just as they reached the entrance, a figure stepped in front of them.

It was a black-haired girl with long straight hair, noticeably taller than them. She wore the dark kimono common among the Uchiha Clan, and her delicate features carried both gentleness and dignity.

She looked to be around eleven or twelve, but was already clearly a great beauty in the making.

"Hi~! Are you Mirai Uzumaki?"

The girl leaned forward slightly. Her tone was gentle, but her gaze carried a hint of scrutiny.

Mirai paused, then raised his head to study her.

Long straight black hair, the Uchiha Clan crest, and features somewhat similar to that aloof little black-haired girl—but a completely opposite temperament—

One was an iceberg, while the other was a spring breeze.

Information raced through his mind, and his eyes widened slightly.

"No way! You're—Mikoto Uchiha?"

"Yes." Mikoto nodded lightly, somewhat surprised. "You know me?"

"I've heard of you." Mirai's expression did not change, but waves had already risen in his heart.

This is Mikoto Uchiha? The Uchiha Clan's greatest beauty? Fugaku's square-faced fiancée?

She's already this pretty at eleven or twelve. What will she be like in a few years?

How is that weak, square-faced Fugaku worthy of her!

His mind spun rapidly, but he maintained a polite smile on the surface. "What can I do for you, Senior Mikoto?"

Mikoto looked at him, mildly surprised as well.

This little boy was even more... pleasing to the eye than Naori had described.

His red hair had a soft sheen beneath the sunlight, and his features were well-proportioned. Though he was still young, she could already tell he would grow into a handsome boy.

And when faced with an older student suddenly blocking his path, he remained composed and at ease.

"I heard that you fought my younger sister in combat class yesterday," Mikoto said directly.

"I came to ask you something—if you face each other again in the future, could you... go a little easy on her?

"Just don't let her lose too badly."

Her tone was earnest, and there was a trace of heartache in her eyes.

Naori was stubborn. After returning home last night, she had practiced hand seals alone in her room until midnight. When she got up this morning, her fingers were still trembling.

How could an older sister not feel distressed seeing that?

Mirai blinked, then smiled.

"Senior Mikoto, I think—" He slipped both hands into his pockets, his tone serious. "Going easy on her wouldn't be appropriate. Given Naori Uchiha's personality, she wouldn't accept someone holding back against her, either."

Mikoto froze, opening her mouth to say something, only to realize that he was right.

Naori truly hated being pitied more than anything.

She sighed, ready to give up and turn away.

"But—"

Mirai's voice caught up to her from behind.

"I can avoid bullying her too badly. For example, I won't use that... well, that embarrassing sort of binding. I'll try to let her lose with some dignity."

Mikoto turned back, surprise and expectation in her eyes.

"But," Mirai said, raising one finger, "I have one condition."

"What condition?"

"I can't tell you yet, Senior Mikoto! But I can guarantee it won't be anything too excessive."

Mikoto's brows furrowed slightly as she studied Mirai again.

He wore a gentle smile and looked entirely harmless.

Yet for some reason, she found him strange.

"Mikoto, you wouldn't want Naori to be hung in midair in a spread-eagle pose every combat class, would you?"

After hearing that, Mikoto's strange feeling deepened. Frowning, she said, "Fine, I agree."

"But—if Naori challenges you of her own accord, you can't deliberately lose to her. That child has strong pride. She'll be even more upset if you intentionally let her win."

"Deal." Mirai held out his hand.

Mikoto paused, then reached out as well and lightly shook it.

His hand was not large, but his grip was firm.

"It's a promise." Mikoto smiled faintly, and that smile beneath the morning sunlight made Mirai's heart itch.

After Mikoto had walked far away, Kushina suddenly poked Mirai in the waist. "Hey! What did you say to that pretty Uchiha big sister? Why did you even shake hands?"

"Nothing. We just reached a small cooperative agreement."

"An agreement? Don't tell me you're selling your looks?"

"Hey, hey—what do you mean, selling my looks? Am I that kind of person?"

"Hmph, I saw your eyes practically turn into slits from smiling!"

"...You saw wrong."

The two noisily entered the school building. Not far behind them, an Anbu figure silently appeared from the shadows of a tree for an instant before swiftly disappearing again.

In the Hokage's Office, Hiruzen Sarutobi set down the dossier in his hand. After hearing the Anbu report, he lightly tapped his pipe.

"Mikoto Uchiha... how did Mirai's affairs get tangled up with her again?"

He considered it, then merely shook his head.

It was just children's business. Let them do as they pleased, as long as they did not cause any trouble.

Meanwhile, in some corner of the Uchiha Clan Grounds, Fugaku Uchiha, who was wiping down a Kunai, suddenly sneezed.

"Strange... why do I feel a chill down my back?"