Useless, What Good Are You?

"What? They found them? And brought back a Kumogakure spy?"

In the Hokage's Office, Hiruzen Sarutobi, who had been worrying over the three children's unknown whereabouts, lost another measure of beard.

"Yes, Lord Hokage." Minato could neither laugh nor cry. Who could have known that the three little brats would dare run straight out of Konoha just to avoid Kushina?

Even more absurdly, three had gone out, yet four had returned.

"Where are they?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked urgently.

"Uh..." Minato recalled the miserable state of the Kumogakure ninja when they had met, then thought of his departed hair. Adding in the Explosive Tag in the man's crotch and the "technique" Jiraiya-sensei had vaguely mentioned, Minato considered his words for a moment before saying,

"The three children are fine. Root personnel took custody of the Kumogakure spy immediately. Judging by his injuries, he should... still not be out of mortal danger for the time being."

"That fellow was quick. He always got there while it was still hot." Hiruzen Sarutobi breathed a sigh of relief, but then seemed to think of something, and his expression immediately turned grave.

"Minato, keep a close eye on your students for the next while. Especially when Root investigates this incident with the children, you must be present the entire time. Understood?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly gave the instruction with great seriousness.

Minato did not understand why, but he still nodded. "Yes!"

"Boss, five special ramen bowls. Make one of them later, please!"

"Got it!"

Ichiraku Ramen.

Kushina sat there smiling, while the three boys beside her sat ramrod straight.

Once Ichiraku had brought over four steaming bowls of ramen one by one, Kushina announced that they could start eating. Only then did the three begin moving their chopsticks like puppets.

"Eat up. Once you're full, you still have to snatch Bells. Even if you ran out of the village, you can't quit halfway."

Kushina gave them a kind reminder.

The three boys immediately shuddered from head to toe!

Today's ramen tasted a little bitter...

Hideki felt a jab from his left. He secretly glanced over, only to find Obito and Kakashi staring at him cautiously but intensely.

As if they were saying: Hurry up and think of something!

Hideki sneered inwardly. Heh, couldn't they see Minato did not even dare show his face? They wanted him to think of something? Think of a hammer!

But then again.

With Kushina beside them, from a certain perspective, it really was not such a bad thing.

The moment they returned to Konoha, the guards at the entrance had stopped them. Leaving had been easy, but getting back in was difficult, especially since they had brought along a Kumogakure vegetable.

But what Hideki had never expected was that the first people to come for them were not Minato and Kushina, but several Root ninja.

Hideki had yet to figure out the precise artistic differences between Root and ANBU masks, but he recognized one of them.

It was the very one who had come looking for him at noon.

Thinking back, today had really been eventful. First, Team 7 had debuted. Then Root had shown up. Then Kushina had chased them down, and finally, they had engaged in a battle of wits and courage with that Kumogakure ninja.

And just as Hideki had expected, while that Root ninja took custody of the Kumogakure spy, he had also intended to settle Hideki's matter right there.

Root's attitude was extremely forceful, and their reason sounded perfectly righteous: the three of them were required to cooperate with the investigation.

Naturally, Hideki refused. His excuse was that he had left the gas on at home. It was actually a signal to make a move. Kakashi drew his blade on the spot, while Obito nearly showed off the Uchiha VIP he had just unlocked—the One-Tomoe Sharingan.

For six-year-old Obito, it was still a little too much of a strain. After all, it had been an accidental incident, practically something he had gotten for free.

Unlike a certain someone...

The atmosphere had been grave then. The three little brats were about to resist the injustice of fate and fight for freedom, just when they were about to get taught a lesson.

Fortunately, Minato and Kushina arrived in time. Kushina said nothing and merely raised her fist. Root made a prompt decision and retreated immediately, not even leaving behind a threat!

Thus, the drama of "would rather die than submit" never came to pass.

After that, Minato went to make his report, while Kushina brought the three of them here.

What they had ordered looked like mere bowls of ramen, but they were actually the result of the three boys' resistance, symbols of freedom.

Kushina sat beside them, looking as if she were about to smash their heads in, but she was actually a protective talisman, intimidating every petty schemer.

"Sorry, sorry! I'm late, I'm late!"

At that moment, Minato's bright voice rang out, like a fresh breeze and a ray of sunlight illuminating the three boys' hearts.

"Customer, your ramen~"

With quick hands and sharp eyes, Ichiraku swiftly placed a steaming bowl of ramen on the table.

Team 7's first group meal officially began.

After thanking the owner, Minato was about to start eating when he saw his three students looking at him eagerly. He immediately understood something.

He smiled faintly and gave the three of them an expression that said, "Leave it to me."

"Kushina, look..."

"Hm?" Kushina narrowed her eyes in a smile, her red hair stirring without wind.

"Haha! Today's ramen smells so good! Haha..."

"..."

The three boys' gazes changed from hopeful to vacant, then to contemptuous.

Useless. What good are you!

And so, time quietly slipped away amid that ramen dinner of mixed flavors.

After finishing the ramen, Minato paid the bill. Kushina suggested taking a walk, and the three little ones did not dare refuse. They could only trail after her dejectedly.

After walking for a short while, Kushina suddenly turned around, her expression extremely serious.

"From now on, you are not allowed to sneak out on your own, understand?"

"Understood, understood." The three boys admitted their mistake in unison, their attitudes thoroughly sincere.

"It's dangerous outside. Today, you ran into someone a little weaker and could deal with him, but what about next time? You won't be this lucky every time, understand?"

"Understood, understood." The three boys admitted their mistake again.

"And next time you want to sneak out, you must notify me. That way, I can go with you... I mean, I can accompany... Anyway, I have to be there with you, understand!?"

"...Understood, understood! We shall heed our teacher's wife's teachings!" The three boys made their stance clear.

That night, after seeing Minato and Kushina off, the three walked down the street and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Life was not easy. It always launched a surprise attack when one least expected it, leaving people unable to guard against it.

"Obito, when do you plan to tell your clan head about awakening your eye?"

As they walked, Hideki suddenly asked.

"Huh?" Obito froze. He truly had not considered that question. "Whenever, I guess... Tomorrow morning? Is something wrong, Hideki?"

"Nothing..." Hideki said no more.

Obito had only awakened a One-Tomoe Sharingan. That was not necessarily one hundred percent a good thing.

Everything had two sides. Obito in this timeline had grown stronger, but evolving his Sharingan further would probably not be so simple anymore.

It was not like he could fake his death again... That would seriously test his acting skills, and after this experience, Obito's psychological defenses would also be much stronger.

"Forget it. There's no need to worry about that for now."

Hideki shook his head and tossed all the miscellaneous thoughts from his mind.

What he needed to do now was not anything else, but grow stronger—and repair the wall.

Yes...

At the thought of the two huge holes in his house, Hideki felt his chest tighten.

What the hell had this whole day even been!