Eye Transplat, Returning Home

Soon the two arrived at Naka Shrine.

The gates of Naka Shrine stood wide open, and at a glance Uchiha Hideki saw Uchiha Itachi sitting upright on a stool.

"Go on."

Takuya waved his hand, signaling Uchiha Hideki to go inside and perform the eye transplant for Itachi.

Uchiha Hideki walked a few steps inside, then looked back to see the clan head standing there with his arms crossed, showing no intention of coming in.

He walked quickly up to Uchiha Itachi.

Hearing the movement, Uchiha Itachi lifted his chin slightly, turning his two hollow eye sockets toward the newcomer.

"Father?"

Seeing this scene, Uchiha Hideki felt no particular emotion; as a medical ninja who had survived the Ninja World War, he had seen sights far more miserable than this.

He said softly, "Young Master, I am here to transplant your eyes."

Uchiha Itachi nodded, his mood steady and entirely unchanged.

"Sorry to trouble you, Uncle Hideki."

He recognized the voice of the newcomer and knew his identity.

"Well, then, please um."

Uchiha Hideki looked around to the left and right, brought over a table resembling an eight-immortals table, and said, "Please lie down on this table."

"Very well."

Supported by Uchiha Hideki, Uchiha Itachi quickly lay down flat on the table.

Uchiha Hideki opened the white box, put on his gloves first, and then took out the pair of Three-Tomoe Sharingan that the clan head had handed to him along the way...

Uchiha Itachi felt something being stuffed into his eye sockets... perhaps a moment passed, or perhaps a long time, and suddenly he heard Uncle Hideki say it was done.

"May I open my eyes now?"

Uchiha Itachi asked.

Uchiha Hideki hurriedly told him not to open them yet.

"Young Master, do your eye sockets feel itchy?"

Uchiha Itachi felt the changes in his eye area and indeed felt an itch, so he answered truthfully, "A little."

"Then please tell me once you find that your eyes are no longer itchy."

Uchiha Itachi waited patiently, and after an unknown amount of time, once the itchiness in his eyes had subsided, he spoke up.

"Very well, Young Master, you may open your eyes."

Hearing this, Uchiha Itachi slowly opened his eyes. At first they were somewhat hazy and unclear, but he was not in a hurry, instead waiting calmly for a moment until his vision became clear. The first thing he saw was Uncle Hideki's face before him.

"Uncle Hideki, thank you."

The new eyes Uchiha Itachi had put on radiated a spirited glow. Uchiha Hideki observed for a moment and then nodded. "Don't mention it, Young Master. It was at the clan head's orders."

Uchiha Hideki quietly pointed toward the clan head outside the door.

Although he did not know why Uchiha Fugaku had him remove Itachi's eyes during the day, only to have him transplant them back now, he had no desire whatsoever to get involved in matters between this father and son.

Right now, all he wanted was to go home.

Uchiha Itachi nodded, stood up, and walked out of Naka Shrine.

"Father."

Uchiha Itachi respectfully greeted Takuya at the entrance.

"Hm." Takuya had no son in his past life and had no idea how to treat this ready-made son, so he imitated the demeanor of Uchiha Fugaku from his memories and nodded with feigned sternness.

Immediately after, he looked at Uchiha Hideki, who was standing somewhat awkwardly to the side.

"Hideki, you've worked hard today. Go back and get some rest."

Takuya issued the order to dismiss him, and Uchiha Hideki was more than eager to hurry back.

He quickly muttered that it was no trouble at all and walked away at a brisk pace.

"How are your eyes?"

Takuya maintained his stern appearance and asked flatly.

One had to admit that Uchiha Fugaku still looked very imposing, with his short black hair, square face, expressionless demeanor, and well-defined facial features giving off an indescribable sense of oppression, serious and square-jawed.

Uchiha Itachi, however, had seen plenty of this and felt no discomfort whatsoever.

He looked left and right, and answered truthfully, "Not bad."

"Hm." Takuya had nothing more to say, mostly because he didn't know what to talk about.

Since this ready-made son Uchiha Itachi always acted very respectfully toward him, he couldn't very well treat Itachi too harshly.

"Father, as we agreed earlier, may I go wander around the village for a bit?"

Seeing his father fall silent, Uchiha Itachi brought the matter up himself.

Knowing that he wanted to personally verify whether what he had said was true or false, Takuya didn't stop him either, merely reminding him, "You can look around, but don't interfere with them rounding up the remnants."

Uchiha Itachi fell silent. With his intelligence, he could guess who the remnants his father mentioned were.

"I understand."

"Hm, go ahead."

Takuya gave a flick of his arm.

After Uchiha Itachi finished bowing respectfully, he vanished from the spot with a Body Flicker technique.

Soon he appeared on a rooftop, hopping along like a flea as he headed off into the distance.

Watching Itachi's retreating figure vanish from sight, Takuya finally withdrew his gaze, stroked his chin, and fell into deep thought.

Should he go home now, or go home now, or perhaps go home now?

Uchiha Mikoto was Fugaku's most intimate pillow-companion. He currently had a completely valid excuse not to go home, but what about the future? Would he never go home?

Since he had to face it anyway, there was no escaping it no matter what.

Besides, it wasn't guaranteed that he would slip up and reveal his flaws.

Even if he did, it probably wouldn't have any impact. Well, probably, supposedly.

Takuya strode forth and headed straight home.

It was likely rather late by now, with hardly a soul to be seen on the streets.

Moving with familiar ease, Takuya saw Kominaya House in the distance and walked slowly up to the ornate front gates.

The gates stood wide open, exactly as they had when he passed by earlier, and a light was still burning at the entrance.

Takuya glanced at it a few times; it must have been left out for him by Uchiha Mikoto.

Since he had already made up his mind, Takuya wasn't one to dawdle. After a couple of glances, he forged straight inside and closed the gates behind him with a casual push.

Lowering his head to straighten his clothes and working his facial muscles to ensure everything was fine, he finally took a deep breath, crossed the courtyard, took off his shoes at the genkan entryway, and discovered a slender shadow cast upon the floor.

Calmly blending in with the local customs, he said, "I'm home."

"Welcome back."

Uchiha Mikoto glided forward gracefully, gently removing the green flak jacket that only a Jonin could wear, and then helped him take off his fitted combat uniform.

"You haven't eaten yet, have you? Wait a moment, I'll go heat up some food for you."

Uchiha Mikoto bustled about, poured Takuya a cup of hot tea, and then ducked straight into the kitchen.

As soon as Takuya sat down on the sofa, he heard the sound of a pot being scrubbed coming from the kitchen.

Takuya hadn't felt particularly hungry at first, but once Uchiha Mikoto brought it up, he really was hungry.

After all, he hadn't eaten dinner.

There were no smartphones or other entertainment tools in Naruto to pass the time, and sitting here idly was boring, so Takuya simply turned on the television.

The appearance of this television was rather bulky, much like the black-and-white TVs from before 2008 in his past life, sitting on the table looking like a washing machine.

Flipping back and forth, there were only two channels in total.

The first channel was similar to Channel 1 from his past life, introducing the economic state of the Land of Fire, major national affairs, and so on.

The second channel featured two people performing a manzai comedy routine.