Itachi

Back in the shop, Samu Kokaze was in a foul mood. Every time he thought of what Guy had said before leaving, his chest felt tight with frustration.

If he had to describe how he felt right now, it was exactly like Kakashi when Guy had first latched onto him.

With a sigh, he sat listlessly in his chair, watching the crowds outside through the window as he waited for customers to come in.

This was more or less Samu Kokaze's daily routine. Thanks to the Nano Core, he did not need to spend much time on training; he could finish it whenever he found spare time.

Aside from being dragged out by Ino to have fun, he spent the rest of his time sitting quietly in the shop, watching customers marvel at his exquisite carving skills and soaking in their admiration. Only then did he truly feel alive.

After all...

Being transported into an anime from his original world was not something he could simply ignore!!!

Sometimes, Samu Kokaze even wondered if he was living in some false world like The Matrix, nothing more than a test subject in a laboratory.

Creak...

The wooden shop door opened, and two figures, one large and one small, walked in.

Startled by the sound of the door opening, Samu Kokaze pulled himself from his thoughts. His eyes narrowed when he saw the fan crest on the clothes of the two visitors.

"People from the Uchiha Clan?" Samu Kokaze murmured softly. A warm smile appeared on his face as he hopped down from his chair and walked over.

"Sasuke, take a look. What do you want?"

Of the two who had entered, the older one lowered his head slightly and asked the small figure beside him, whose hand he was holding.

As Samu Kokaze approached, his expression shifted when he heard those words. So this is Itachi and Second Pillar! No wonder they're the handsome ones in Naruto. They're already this good-looking at such a young age.

"They're all so beautiful!" Sasuke looked at the wooden carvings on both sides, deeply tempted but completely unable to make up his mind.

"Are you the owner of this shop?"

While Sasuke stared at the exquisite carvings on both sides and fell into a dilemma of choice, Itachi spoke in a somewhat cold voice upon hearing approaching footsteps.

Hearing his older brother speak, Sasuke withdrew his gaze from the displays. His little face was filled with confusion as he looked at the child who had come closer, someone about his own age.

Samu Kokaze ignored Sasuke's curious gaze. Smiling, he nodded and looked at the two of them. "What kind of wooden carving do you need? If you're not satisfied with the ones in the shop, I can also make custom pieces."

"You're the owner of this shop? Then you carved all the wooden carvings here?"

Before Itachi could answer, Sasuke, standing beside him, asked in astonishment.

"I carved these in my spare time. My skills are nothing special; please forgive the embarrassment," Samu Kokaze said modestly in response to Sasuke's question.

"Nothing special?"

Sasuke looked at the wooden carvings displayed on the shelves, where even the finest strands of hair were clearly visible. Then he turned to look at Samu Kokaze, who acted as though they were not worth mentioning, and his mouth twitched.

Even Itachi's usually cold, expressionless face twitched slightly. "You are the person whom the nobles of the Land of Fire call the new generation's master carver. To call your skills lacking is truly far from the truth."

"Huh!"

Sasuke, who had been tilting his head to look at the carvings, turned his little head back. He wore an adorably stunned expression as he stared at Samu Kokaze in disbelief.

"He... he's already a master carver at this age?"

"Haha, it's just an empty title. You flatter me. But the Uchiha Clan of Konoha is also renowned far and wide. My small achievements cannot compare to your clan at all!"

Samu Kokaze scratched his head and laughed.

Looking at Sasuke, Samu Kokaze inwardly sighed in regret. If Itachi had not been here, he could have obtained the Uchiha Clan's bloodline with just a few tricks. But with Itachi present, there was no way. Itachi, who had already trained in the Anbu, would never be fooled by his petty schemes.

Still, it did not matter. As long as they remained in Konoha, Samu Kokaze knew it was only a matter of time.

"Hmph! At least you know your place!"

Hearing Samu Kokaze praise his family, Sasuke immediately brightened. He lifted his little head like a proud little peacock.

"Sasuke!" Itachi shouted sharply when he saw Sasuke's haughty expression.

Itachi had worried himself sick over the relationship between his clan and Konoha. Most people in Konoha felt nothing but fear when they saw members of the Uchiha Clan, and they especially loathed the Konoha Military Police Force controlled by the Uchiha.

Much of this stemmed from the Uchiha Clan's pride in its past.

But this was no longer the Warring States era. After Madara's defection, the Uchiha's strength had declined greatly. Whenever Itachi thought of the elders at clan meetings, who looked down on everything, his heart twisted in pain.

He could do nothing about the rest of the clan, but Itachi absolutely did not want his younger brother to become the kind of person others hated.

Hearing his older brother's sharp rebuke and seeing Itachi's serious gaze, Sasuke pouted unhappily before turning his head to look at the displays on either side.

"I'm truly sorry to have embarrassed myself before Master Kokaze," Itachi said with a slight bow.

Samu Kokaze smiled. "Ha, it's fine. By the way, how did you know about me? My reputation hasn't reached the point where everyone knows me, has it?"

Samu Kokaze was genuinely puzzled by this. When he had first carved that life-sized wooden statue, he had deliberately made an agreement with that noble.

From then on, any carving requests connected to nobles or wealthy merchants of the Land of Fire had to be passed through that first noble. Samu Kokaze would refuse anyone else who came to him directly.

At the same time, the noble was to protect and assist Samu Kokaze in every matter.

Thanks to the exquisite wooden carvings Samu Kokaze produced, that noble's influence in the Land of Fire had risen dramatically, and he had earned the Daimyo's deep trust.

Therefore, even among the upper ranks of the Land of Fire, only a handful of people knew who the master carver making pieces for them truly was. Samu Kokaze was indeed curious about how Itachi had found out.

Itachi was silent for a long while.

"My apologies. I learned of it during a mission, but please rest assured, I will not tell anyone."

"It's fine, it's fine. I only hid this identity because I'm still too young. It wouldn't be good if people found out. As long as it doesn't become common knowledge, it's alright."

Scratching his head, Samu Kokaze looked at Sasuke, whose gaze had become glued to the wooden shelves on either side. He smiled at Itachi. "Go ahead and take a look. Since you're today's first customers, I'll give you half off!"

"Thank you, Master Kokaze." Itachi nodded in gratitude.

"It's nothing..."

Creak...

Just as he spoke, the shop door opened again. A wave of chill swept in from the entrance. Samu Kokaze instinctively narrowed his eyes and looked toward the door.