Secretary

Keeping money circulating was crucial, so Uchiha Mu had always encouraged spending. The more often money changed hands, the better the Hundred-Clan Shinobi Village... Nation could develop.

After having the children put away their luggage, the three little ones glanced at Hyuga Lingnai's Byakugan, which she had never deactivated, and tactfully led the Uzumaki clansmen away. Only Uchiha Mu, Hyuga Lingnai, and Keiko Uzumaki remained.

As the latecomer, Keiko Uzumaki felt rather uneasy. She hoped Uchiha Mu would be like the nobles; otherwise, she stood no chance.

Hyuga Lingnai wanted precisely the opposite. She hoped Uchiha Mu would be like a shinobi and have just one partner. Having accompanied him and seen those nobles up close, she genuinely despised their ways.

Their wishes were opposites, but their goal was the same. Both turned to look at Uchiha Mu.

Uchiha Mu's head was throbbing. This felt more suffocating than a battle, but he had to speak.

"Lingnai, this is my fault."

Keiko Uzumaki lowered her head at those words. She had barely interacted with men back in her village. Uchiha Mu had forced his way into her world, and now he was going to leave? Had she been an Uchiha, she probably would have awakened her Sharingan on the spot.

"But what happened with Keiko Uzumaki is my responsibility. I can't abandon her now." Uchiha Mu's voice was firm. Here, that was a real possibility.

Seeing his resolute gaze, Hyuga Lingnai felt disappointed, but leaving him now was impossible for her too. "Uchiha Mu, if you find another woman after this, don't ever come to see me again."

Uchiha Mu's heart skipped a beat. Seeing her disappointment, he let out a soft sigh. Sure enough, keeping peace at home was no easy matter.

Keiko Uzumaki, meanwhile, felt somewhat guilty. Did it really have to come to this over something like this? Did I really like him that much? She began questioning herself, so when Hyuga Lingnai agreed, she wasn't all that happy.

The three finally went their separate ways to cool off. Hyuga Lingnai returned to the room she shared with Uchiha Mu and flopped down. "Chōmei, what do you think I should do?"

Soon, a miniature Chōmei appeared on her shoulder. Over their time together, Chōmei had already given Hyuga Lingnai a great deal of chakra. Apart from being unable to perform Complete Tailed Beast Transformation, she could use Chōmei's abilities as well.

"You can't beat him," Chōmei said after a long think.

"This isn't about whether I can beat him. Then again, you've all lived for over a thousand years without ever having a partner. I must be out of my mind to ask you." Hyuga Lingnai buried her head in her pillow.

"..." The little Chōmei vanished immediately. He didn't quite understand, but he knew she was insulting him.

Uchiha Mu entered the room with the Body Flicker Technique. Even without activating her Byakugan, Hyuga Lingnai knew who had arrived. "Why aren't you with that new woman you found?"

"You're the most important one to me."

"You mean the Hundred-Clan Shinobi Nation, don't you? Chōmei and I keep watch with my Byakugan day and night, and you bring another woman home to me. Yes, I can't beat you, but I'm not that pathetic." Hyuga Lingnai had already buried her head in her pillow.

Uchiha Mu took off his shoes and sat on the bed, then forcibly pulled Hyuga Lingnai over to rest her head on his lap. He felt her resist, but not very strongly.

"What are you doing? I won't forgive you just because you do this."

"Mm. I'm not begging for your forgiveness. But anger and tears don't look good on you. They'll make you age." Uchiha Mu gently wiped away her tears.

Hyuga Lingnai laughed in anger, then activated her Byakugan, got up, and went straight at him, giving Uchiha Mu a thorough beating. Who knew how much time passed?

"You're not allowed to heal, or else..." Hyuga Lingnai raised her little fist.

"Feeling better?" Uchiha Mu's eyes lit up. It hurt quite a bit, but that was better than having her bottle everything up. He swore that from now on, he would focus on building the nation and never get involved in this sort of thing again.

At the end of the day, he had been nothing more than an ordinary wage slave in his previous life. Crossing into another world hadn't magically maxed out his emotional intelligence. He could only resort to this clumsy approach. He also understood now why nobles had multiple women, while shinobi stuck to devoted relationships.

Ultimately, the nobles' women had no choice. Without someone to depend on, they would starve. Shinobi were different. They could live on their own, and as long as they stayed out of shinobi conflicts, they were unlikely to die.

That was why two different sets of standards could coexist in the same world. He hadn't realized that before, so when he visited the Uzumaki Clan's grounds, he had mistakenly assumed Hyuga Lingnai could accept it.

For the next half month or so, Uchiha Mu kept busy while still bearing his injuries. His clones were fine, at least, and barely managed to salvage his image before the students. The twenty Uzumaki clansmen also settled in, arranging to go shopping together during their breaks. Of course, he was deliberately keeping his injuries that way to win Hyuga Lingnai's forgiveness sooner.

During this time, Uchiha Mu was together with Keiko Uzumaki-for work. Yes, the two worked together to set up a barrier over an enormous area. If unfamiliar chakra forced its way in without prior notice, the Barrier Team would know immediately.

After working alongside Uchiha Mu for these past few days, Keiko Uzumaki had come to know another side of him. He felt more fully rounded to her, and she became increasingly captivated. The charm he radiated when seriously working on the village's construction drew her in deeply.

"Keiko, I'd like you to take charge of the barrier from now on." Uchiha Mu looked at her.

"Sure, no problem. But I..."

"I'll talk to that old fellow Uzumaki Ashina and have you join my nation. It needs you." Uchiha Mu held out his hand.

"I look forward to working with you." Keiko Uzumaki thought it over, then reached out and shook his hand. Yes, why should I back down? Hyuga Lingnai was the one who needed to worry, not me. After all, she had known about Uchiha Mu's situation from the beginning and had always been clear about where she stood.

After watching Uchiha Mu carry on in that condition for several days, Hyuga Lingnai had already forgiven him completely in her heart. He was willing to accommodate her. Even if she was a shinobi, what housewife would dare treat her husband like that?

None among the shinobi clans of the Shinobi World would. Only Uchiha Mu had done it. He might be a scoundrel, but returning to their old life was still difficult for Hyuga Lingnai. One of them would have to swallow their pride first.

Without question, that was Uchiha Mu's job. Seeing that Hyuga Lingnai was in a better mood, he immediately sidled up to her. She was delighted inside, but said, "Not working with her anymore?"

"Keiko is quite capable. I'm planning to make her my secretary." Uchiha Mu took her hand and drew her down to sit on the bed.

"Secretary?" Hyuga Lingnai was puzzled, but she had a bad feeling about it.

Uchiha Mu then explained what a secretary did. Seeing that Hyuga Lingnai hadn't gotten angry again, he breathed a sigh of relief. Keiko Uzumaki really was highly capable. She could understand all the data and documents, and even spot flaws in Uchiha Mu's work and correct them.

There was no helping it. Uchiha Mu was building his nation using ideas from his previous life, and it was difficult for him to identify which parts hadn't been properly integrated. He needed someone else to point them out.

Although Keiko Uzumaki hadn't directly participated in managing her clan, she had helped handle its affairs indirectly and had experience of her own. Still, this was her first time dealing with so many people, and she was genuinely nervous. Uchiha Mu, however, delegated authority to her.

"A secretary it is, then." Hyuga Lingnai thought that having an assistant would make things easier for Uchiha Mu in the future, which would give them more time together.