Cared for by Chapter 13

Konoha.

In front of the gates, a squad of ninjas stood firm at their posts.

Because of the war, even the gate guards were now a full squad rather than the usual handful of sentries.

Several miles from Konoha, numerous watchtowers kept watch.

At regular intervals, there were clusters of watchtowers conducting reconnaissance.

A squad slowly approached. The moment they saw Konoha's gates, everyone showed excited expressions.

"We're finally back!"

Goenji looked at Konoha's gates. They were no different from the gates in the original story.

They were just ordinary wooden gates.

The gate guards, however, were different. Kotetsu Hagane and Izumo Kamizuki, the two gatekeepers, were only twelve years old now—two years younger than him—and were still Genin.

It made him feel a little sentimental.

When he had watched the anime before, he had only had a vague impression of these gates.

Yet seeing them in reality felt as though he had seen them long ago.

It gave him the feeling of being a stranger alone in a foreign land.

At the same time, it was clear that the war was still in its most intense phase.

Otherwise, there would not have been so many ninjas guarding the gates.

As Goenji and the others appeared, the ninjas outside the gates immediately grew tense.

They feared the group might be enemies in disguise.

This was not the first time such a thing had happened.

One of the gate guards shouted, "State the password!"

Everyone looked nervous. Even passing merchant caravans hurriedly moved aside when they saw Goenji's group.

They were afraid a fight would break out.

"Uchiha Goenji, leading a squad back to the village to rest..."

Goenji formed hand seals with both hands—not the twelve seals used for ninjutsu, but a special password.

It represented their identity as Konoha shinobi.

Minato had taught him this password. It was a high-level code.

If Goenji, the captain, had died on the way back to Konoha, they could only have reported Konoha's lowest-level password and waited for Konoha's review before they were allowed to move freely.

They would have been detained for several days.

Especially during wartime.

"They're our people. Welcome back."

Although the gate guards did not look favorably on the Uchiha, they treated everyone else warmly.

Goenji registered at the gates. Once the entire squad had finished registering, everyone scattered in a rush.

They began heading toward their own homes.

Tekka Uchiha said, "I'm leaving first. My mom must miss me to death."

After greeting Goenji, he impatiently began running down the street.

"Mm... The Uchiha are not only arrogant. They have a kind side too—it's just reserved for their own clan."

Seeing this, Goenji sighed inwardly.

The others had completed their missions, but his mission was not yet over.

As captain, he not only had to report on the journey back to the village, but also deliver the item Minato had entrusted to him to the Hokage.

All of that had to be reported to the Hokage.

It was also part of a captain's duties.

Konoha Hokage's Office.

Knock, knock, knock!

"Come in."

Creak~

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the documents in his hands and the ninjas constantly coming and going, and his head ached terribly.

Upon hearing the sound, he immediately called for the visitor to enter.

"Lord Hokage." Goenji walked in.

Seeing him, Hiruzen Sarutobi narrowed his eyes slightly. "You're Goenji, correct? Minato already informed me by hawk message. Give me the item."

When Minato had sent back the intelligence, he had mentioned Goenji.

He was someone whose way of thinking differed from that of other Uchiha.

That was Minato Namikaze's assessment.

Not only that, Goenji had already awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan. In every other aspect, he possessed Jonin-level strength.

Whether it was combat experience, battle quality, squad-leading experience, or anything else, he was more than qualified.

"Yes, Lord Hokage. This is Lord Minato's mission item." Goenji took a scroll from his ninja tool pouch, walked up to Hiruzen Sarutobi, and placed it on his desk.

His eyes also flicked toward him discreetly.

The current Hiruzen Sarutobi was between middle and old age, and did not yet have as many wrinkles as he had in the anime.

He still looked fairly energetic, though there was a faint trace of weariness in his eyes.

He had stepped down because of the war.

After all, he had to handle so many matters. One wrong decision could cause the village tremendous losses. That was no small matter.

Hiruzen Sarutobi said, "Well done. Keep working hard in the future. Konoha's future rests on your shoulders."

"...I'll continue working hard." Goenji was somewhat speechless.

Even when accepting a mission report, you had to promote the Will of Fire?

"Mm, you may leave. Rest well, but do not go too far. A mission could come at any time." Hiruzen Sarutobi picked up the scroll, glanced over it twice, then spoke to Goenji with a grave expression.

"Yes."

Goenji slowly withdrew.

Just after he left, a figure entered from outside. A short sword was strapped to his back, and he had a sharp, capable look, though one eye was covered by a strip of white cloth.

"Danzo."

"How about handing that Uchiha from earlier over to me?"

Walking along Konoha's streets.

Goenji admired the scenery of Konoha.

It was still vastly different seeing it in reality compared to watching it in the anime.

But... it was a little desolate.

"Sigh, the war has brought commerce to a standstill too!"

There was nothing that could be done. Everything was serving the war effort.

After buying a candied hawthorn skewer, Goenji ate as he walked.

He did not know how long it would take for things to settle down, but for now, he needed to improve his strength first.

After briefly taking in Konoha's scenery, he returned to the Uchiha clan grounds.

"The Uchiha are still in the center...!"

Goenji looked at the enormous clan grounds and the many ordinary Uchiha civilians walking through the streets.

Some sold goods, some took walks, and the atmosphere seemed quite pleasant.

At this time, the Uchiha clan had not yet been driven away from the central assembly area and remained among Konoha's upper ranks.

They were merely disliked by certain people because of the Uchiha Police Force.

It had not yet reached the point where they were being pushed out of Konoha's center.

The Uchiha were still one of the largest clans, and no one dared make a move against them.

Nor was there any reason to exclude the Uchiha.

In the modern wars, the Uchiha had contributed greatly and earned much merit for Konoha.

Their reputation as the strongest clan was well deserved.

"Yo, isn't that Goenji? You're back from your mission. You weren't hurt, were you? Let Grandma take a look."

As he passed a fruit stand, an old woman spotted him and immediately greeted him.

She held a feather duster in her hand, swatting flies away from the fruit.

Goenji smiled at her. "I'm Uchiha Goenji. Who could possibly hurt me? I'm the one who hurts others. You, Grandma Natsume, need to take good care of yourself. I'll treat you to a meal when I have the time!"

He had not expected someone to greet him on his first day back in the Uchiha clan grounds.

And she even remembered him.

After all, there was no one in his home now.

His heart felt warm.

Even though he was a transmigrator with no real bonds to the ninja world, he could not remain unmoved by an old woman's concern.

People needed emotional connections.