Uchiha Hikari!

Once the flames on Uzumaki Gamu went out, Mito immediately ran over, smacked him on the head, and then used Healing Ninjutsu to treat his injuries.

Uzumaki Gamu grimaced. "Ow! What did you hit me for?"

"Don't do things that make people worry!!!" Mito snapped. No stupid risks, no stupid deaths! What if he got himself killed messing around like that?

"Well, I haven't had my fill of life yet~ I'm not about to die that easily~" Uzumaki Gamu said calmly. Going back to hell might have felt like going home, but he had no idea whether he'd receive preferential reincarnation treatment if he died this time, so he wasn't going to throw his life away lightly!

"Then why did you... huh? You're starting to heal?" Mito noticed that Uzumaki Gamu's body was recovering much faster than her treatment could manage... it felt almost like Hashirama's recovery speed!

"Well... that's one of the perks of being a Jinchūriki. Injuries heal especially fast!" Uzumaki Gamu sat up, then realized... all the clothing on his upper body had burned away. He hurriedly took a scroll from his ninja tool pouch, retrieved the clothes sealed inside, and put them on.

Seeing this, the girl immediately asked, "So... who exactly are you people?"

Uzumaki Gamu introduced them. "My name is Gamu Uzumaki. This is my younger sister, Mito Uzumaki, and the one over there is the disciple I took on not long ago. Her name is Lala!"

"The Uzumaki Clan?" The girl frowned. "Why did you release me from the seal?" She knew a little about the Uzumaki Clan. They were friendly with the Senju and at odds with her Uchiha... so did that make them enemies?

She wasn't sure, so what she did next would depend on their answer. If they still wanted to use her... she wouldn't let them have their way, even if she had to die. After all... she had no reason to keep living anyway!

Uzumaki Gamu answered frankly, "I think you're pretty, and I want to take you home as my wife!!" To borrow the words of a certain League of Legends commentator, his little brother had chosen her. Put more bluntly, he was lusting after her looks! (Uzumaki Gamu: Pretty face, sweet voice.)

All three women present fell silent at Uzumaki Gamu's declaration!

Mito covered her face and thought, He said it. He actually said it! So that really was what my second brother had in mind. Honestly... it might not be so bad! Thinking it over, although the girl before her had a bit of an explosive temper, she had voluntarily dispelled Amaterasu earlier. Her nature probably wasn't bad; she'd simply been influenced by the awful environment of the inherently evil Uchiha Clan!

Besides, she was very strong. She looked only about thirteen, but she'd already awakened the Mangekyo and was highly proficient with it. Her fundamental ninja skills were excellent too... honestly, Mito couldn't guarantee she'd win if they fought!

Only a woman of this caliber was qualified to become her second brother's wife... so perhaps this really wasn't a bad thing?

Lala, meanwhile, thought, Wow, Master is so forward~~ So Master likes women too~

Finally, there was the girl opposite him. Uzumaki Gamu's words left her stunned. She'd assumed he coveted her power, but it turned out he coveted her body... hmm, wasn't that more or less the same?

But calling her pretty... oh, how embarrassing!! It was the first time she'd ever heard anything like that, and she felt a little shy!

More than a little. Her face is as red as a monkey's butt~ Uzumaki Gamu quipped inwardly.

The girl said bashfully, "Y-you... how can you say something so shameless!!"

"I say what I mean. That's my ninja way!!" Uzumaki Gamu declared, puffing out his chest. (Naruto: Old Ancestor, that's not how my ninja way goes!)

The girl: "..." Whether that was his ninja way or not, she could at least confirm that this man was incredibly thick-skinned.

Uzumaki Gamu continued, "That said, marriage and children are major life decisions. You can't rush into them. Besides... although I know quite a bit about you, you know practically nothing about me. Forget marriage; under those circumstances, even becoming boyfriend and girlfriend would be difficult!"

"...Then why did you just blurt it out?" the girl couldn't help asking.

"Saying what I mean is my (descendant's) ninja way!" Uzumaki Gamu repeated.

This time, even Mito couldn't resist commenting, "Since when did that become your ninja way!" Didn't she see the word "descendant" in parentheses? Oh, they couldn't see that~ Never mind, then!

The girl thought for a moment and asked, "You said you know a lot about me... how much, exactly?"

"For example... I know your name!" Uzumaki Gamu answered after a moment's thought.

"My name? I don't have a name!" The girl shook her head.

Uzumaki Gamu replied, "You do... Your brain-dead Uchiha clansmen claimed that 'weapons don't need names' and called you Nameless, but your parents did give you a name... Uchiha Hikari! They hoped you could live a good life in a world of light!"

Hearing that, the girl... no, Uchiha Hikari, was dumbfounded. This was the first she'd ever heard of it!

Mito asked, "Where did you learn that? Did Madara Uchiha tell you?"

Hearing the Uchiha name, Hikari hurriedly asked, "Who is this Madara Uchiha?"

"The current Uchiha Clan Head... Of course, he wasn't the one who told me. It was actually..." Uzumaki Gamu paused. How was he supposed to explain this? That he'd learned it from playing a game? There was no way he could say that! He needed an explanation that would stop further questions.

Uzumaki Gamu thought for a moment. "The Sage of Six Paths told me!!" After considering it, he decided to pin all those miscellaneous revelations on the Sage of Six Paths from now on. The Dragon Palace, for instance... was the Legacy Grounds prepared by the Sage of Six Paths. His eyes, his ninjutsu, his ninja tools-all gifts from the Sage of Six Paths. The secrets of the Shinobi World had come from him too... and how did the Sage of Six Paths know?

He'd just say the sage had learned them while talking with other dead people in the Pure Land after his death!

Perfect, absolutely perfect! This is the best excuse ever! Uzumaki Gamu thought. (If Black Zetsu learned about this, he'd probably hate Uzumaki Gamu even more, wouldn't he?)

Uzumaki Gamu thought, Hahaha, I helped your two sons' chakra reincarnations reconcile. In return, there's nothing wrong with dumping the blame on you, right? From now on, anything troublesome would be pinned on the Sage of Six Paths. This was a necessary sacrifice for peace in the Shinobi World. Surely he wouldn't object? (Sage of Six Paths: After you've put it that way, what objection could I possibly make?)

"The Sage of Six Paths... what is that?" Hikari asked urgently. This concerned the most important thing in her life; how could she not be anxious? Still, calling the Sage of Six Paths a "thing" was rather disrespectful to her own ancestor, wasn't it? (Since Uchiha Hikari had been raised as a weapon, she'd never heard the legends of the Sage of Six Paths and naturally had no idea who he was.)

"The progenitor of all ninja, and the common ancestor of the Uchiha, the Senju, and us Uzumaki. Of course, he died long ago, but he's an immensely powerful sage. Even after death, he can project his will from the Pure Land back into the living world and communicate with people here... Perhaps he learned your name after speaking with your parents in the Pure Land!" Uzumaki Gamu spun his tale.

The sheer amount Uzumaki Gamu said at once made Hikari feel as though he was making up a story, but... the name Uchiha Hikari felt wonderful to her ears, like being held in her family's embrace... that warm feeling!

It made her feel that everything Uzumaki Gamu said was right... at least the part about her name!

My name... is Hikari? The corners of Hikari's mouth lifted, and her brow relaxed. She smiled from the bottom of her heart!

Mito whispered into Uzumaki Gamu's ear, "What you just said... is it true?"

"Absolutely genuine. Every word of it!" Uzumaki Gamu nodded.

"...I see!" Mito said no more. Watching Hikari smile, she felt a pang of sympathy. The child looked as though she'd never smiled before. What kind of life had she been living?

Uzumaki Gamu said, "Anyway... this isn't the place to talk. It's too dark. Let's go somewhere else and have a proper conversation!"

Hearing his suggestion, Hikari thought for a moment and asked, "How many years... have passed?"

Uzumaki Gamu shook his head. "I really don't know that, but judging by how long the seal has been there..."

"At least a hundred years!" Mito supplied. "Wait, doesn't that mean she's actually someone from a hundred years ago, old enough to be a great-grandmother?" Only then did Mito remember that Hikari was actually older than her... and she'd been calling her a child all this time. Still, her body was only thirteen, so perhaps that wasn't really a problem?

"...A hundred years? In other words, everyone from my time is already dead?" Hikari lowered her head.

Uzumaki Gamu asked, "Do you want revenge on them?"

"...Yes. I want revenge on those Uchiha who treated me like a tool and stripped me of my name... and the Senju and Sarutobi who sealed me away!!" The child hadn't gone so far as to want revenge on the entire Shinobi World!

Uzumaki Gamu said, "There's no real justification for telling someone to abandon revenge, but... I still think spending your time on that would be a complete waste... You're young, with plenty of time to do things that make you happy. There's no reason to seek revenge on people who are already dead... Well, look on the bright side. They're dead, and you're still alive. That's your good fortune. And you've met me. I'll give you the best protection there is, which makes you doubly fortunate!! Any way you look at it, you're far better off than those unlucky bastards!"

"You'll give me the best protection?" Hikari asked in disbelief.

"That's right!" Uzumaki Gamu raised three fingers. "I swear in the name of the Ōtsutsuki Clan! I'll never force you to do anything you don't want to do, and I'll never do anything that wrongs you! If I do, may the Ōtsutsuki Clan (specifically Isshiki and Momoshiki) have their reputation ruined, their property confiscated, be struck by five heavenly bolts of lightning, and die a horrible death!!" Why were those all good things? Where was his price? What was with taking all the benefits and then some?

(Uzumaki Gamu: Anyway, all the benefits go to me. I'll leave taking the blame to Momoshiki and Isshiki.)

Hearing this stirred a strange feeling in Hikari's heart. No one had ever treated her this well before. (And no one had ever sworn such a vicious oath in their enemies' names either. Uzumaki Gamu: Says who? Here's someone doing it right now!)

Hikari couldn't help asking, "Why... are you being so good to me?"

"...Didn't I just say? You're pretty, you've got a sweet voice, and you're an Uchiha. You're exactly my type!" Uzumaki Gamu said airily.

Mito thought speechlessly, He doesn't actually like Madara, does he? (Uzumaki Gamu: I don't think I do!)

Pretty, a sweet voice, and an Uchiha... she could toss out that last part entirely. Hearing Uzumaki Gamu describe her that way, Hikari couldn't stop her face from reddening.

So she told Uzumaki Gamu, "In that case... I'll travel with you for now. As for everything else... we'll talk about it later!" Ultimately, she was just a young girl, and one who hadn't received a proper education at that. There were many things she didn't know how to express. So... this would do for now!

Uzumaki Gamu suggested, "All right, to celebrate our new teammate, tonight... let's go soak in the hot springs in the Land of Hot Water!"

"...Wasn't that where we were going anyway?" Mito quipped. Traveling from the Land of Fire to the Land of Lightning meant passing through the Land of Hot Water!

Just then, Lala asked, "What's a hot spring?" The little girl from the desert had no idea what a hot spring was.

Hikari answered uncertainly, "Something like... a hot bath?" Forget hot springs; the child had never even experienced a hot bath, so she couldn't offer a vivid explanation. (Brain-dead Uchiha: Weapons don't need baths! If your body smells, rinse it with cold water!)

And so, everyone set off for the Land of Hot Water! (Uzumaki Gamu: Off to the hot springs~)

The Land of Hot Water lay northeast of the Land of Fire, far from the conflicts between the major nations. It had long remained peaceful and neutral, with no ninja village or military forces. Famous for its hot springs, its economy relied primarily on tourism. The spin-off manga, Konoha's Story: The Steam Ninja Scrolls, took place here! (That mission where Asuma's daughter, Mirai Sarutobi, accompanied Kakashi and Might Guy to the hot spring district. Was it episode 106 of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations?)

Apart from all that, this country also had a legendary ninja: Hidan. Tired of the country's peaceful life, he defected, joined the Jashin Cult, and gained immortality. Later, he joined the Akatsuki and became one of its members!

That was the overview of this country!

The group rode Uzumaki Gamu's Golden Flying Sand Boat to a hot spring town in the Land of Hot Water near the Land of Fire!

Hikari said, "...Amazing. It can even fly?" She was certain now that Uzumaki Gamu really had held back during their fight!

Once Uzumaki Gamu arrived, however, he realized... he'd been here before!

"Aha... so it's this place~" Uzumaki Gamu scratched his head sheepishly.

Mito asked curiously, "Second Brother, have you been to the Land of Hot Water before?"

"I have... Remember the random teleportation I mentioned earlier?" Uzumaki Gamu asked.

"Mm... did you teleport here back then?" Mito followed up.

"That's right. I landed smack in the women's bath, then a bunch of middle-aged ladies chased me around and beat me... I wasn't even interested in them. Why hit me!" Uzumaki Gamu said helplessly.

"...You saw their bodies. You deserved to get beaten!" Mito spoke from a woman's perspective!

"...Fine, just my bad luck!" Uzumaki Gamu could only accept it.

After that, the four found a nice hot spring inn and checked in!

Once they'd changed, it was time for a bath. Mixed bathing... wasn't happening!

Uzumaki Gamu went to soak in the men's bath by himself.

Sitting in the hot spring, Uzumaki Gamu remarked, "Ah~~ It's the off-season, and there's not a single damn soul here... Perfect. I get this huge pool all to myself!" After celebrating his good luck, he looked toward the women's bath!

...Had the customary anime hot spring peeping scene arrived?

Uzumaki Gamu had the Six Eyes. If he wanted, he could easily see through the wooden boards into the women's bath. They weren't wearing clothes now, so there'd be no awkward situation where trying to see through their clothing also made him see through their skin, leaving only muscles and skeletons on display. In other words... he could feast his eyes!

"Only a lunatic would peep on his own sister bathing~" Uzumaki Gamu dismissed those ridiculous thoughts outright and looked up at the sky instead.

Watching the sky begin to darken, Uzumaki Gamu muttered, "I really did say it out loud earlier... Because she's pretty? Well, pursuing her as a girlfriend for that reason is one thing, but marrying her... I don't know if we'd be compatible~" Sharing a life meant dealing with everyday necessities, not simply partnering up because someone looked pretty. Besides, if he married an Uchiha woman, could he still get a second wife?

The Uchiha were all rather intense~ If he upset her and she went off the deep end, that wouldn't be fun at all. Had this bastard really started eyeing the meat in the pot before he'd even eaten the first piece?

Uzumaki Gamu truly was an insatiably greedy man!

The women were chatting too, mainly about Uzumaki Gamu.

Both Hikari and Lala were deeply curious about him and wanted to know his past. With nothing else to do, Mito told them his story.

Mito said, "My second brother was different from everyone else from the time he was little..."

"Wait, he's your older brother?" Hikari interrupted. "He looks younger than you, no matter how I look at him."

"He really is my older brother... Six years ago, he went to the Legacy Grounds, where time flows differently from here. He spent a few months undergoing trials there and gained tremendous power. But because time flows differently in the two places, six years had passed by the time he returned."

Lala exclaimed in wonder, "Oh~~ So that's what happened!"

Hikari, meanwhile, looked incredulous. "That's even possible?" No, I suppose the same thing happened to me... Her situation after being sealed was much like Uzumaki Gamu's experience. Her own time had stopped, while everyone from her era had simply died of old age... hers seemed even more extreme.

Then Mito continued, "Second Brother has always been exceptional. He learns everything quickly. He's the kind of genius our Uzumaki Clan only sees once in a century. Father once said that if he was willing to work hard, he'd have a chance of competing for the title of strongest in the Shinobi World. But Second Brother isn't interested in that sort of thing. He just wants to live happily... If he hadn't been born in this era, he probably wouldn't have become a ninja at all."

"...He doesn't like training, yet he's that strong?" Hikari's gaze went somewhat blank.

Mito said, "Hmm... although he doesn't like it, he's never neglected his training. In fact, he works very hard... almost as though he's worried about some great change coming in the future!" If Uzumaki Gamu had heard her, he probably would have said, "That's my little sister for you. You see right through me~"

Mito continued, "Then, when he was nine, Second Brother sneaked out to go fishing and met the young heirs of the Uchiha and Senju clans. The three of them became sworn brothers..."

"Wait... the young heirs of the Senju and Uchiha became sworn brothers? How is that possible!!" Hikari looked utterly disbelieving. In her era, the Uchiha and Senju had been mortal enemies. Neither could tolerate the other's existence; only one side could survive. And now she was being told that the two clans had sworn brotherhood... she must have been dreaming, right?

Mito said reflectively, "...That's the truly remarkable part. Second Brother actually managed to bring the two of them together as sworn brothers. And now, thanks to his efforts, relations between the Uchiha Clan and Senju Clan are much better than before. They can even coexist peacefully outside their missions!" In the eyes of outsiders, the reconciliation between the Uchiha and Senju was entirely Uzumaki Gamu's doing!

Uzumaki Gamu himself, however, would have said that Hashirama and Madara could have come together without him. The reconciliation between the Senju and Uchiha also owed something to the Kaguya. If they hadn't killed Hashirama's and Madara's fathers, things afterward wouldn't have gone so smoothly! (This fellow still didn't know the Kaguya had taken the initiative to backstab them because he'd thrashed Kaguya Jun~)

Hikari asked another question. "...Is this guy really good at helping people reconcile?" Thinking of how Uzumaki Gamu had treated her earlier, she felt... he really could do the things Mito described!

"He is!" Mito nodded in agreement. "Actually, it isn't just the Uchiha and Senju. Every other ninja clan in the Land of Fire except the Kaguya has started reconciling under Second Brother's influence. People in the Land of Wind and Land of Earth have been influenced by him too... I feel that if this continues, he'll change the whole world!"

Hikari asked curiously, "You trust him that much?"

"Of course... There's nothing in this world that can stump Second Brother!!" Mito's trust in Uzumaki Gamu wasn't merely because they were siblings. Ever since she'd been born, he'd been like an all-powerful superman. The trust built by that enduring sense of invincibility couldn't be shaken!

Hearing this, Hikari thought, He really is incredible... and someone like that says he likes me? She felt a little lost.

For the first dozen or so years of her life, she'd lived in hell. She'd never dared dream of marriage; no, she'd even feared it a little. (They already used her as a weapon. In a few more years, would they simply turn her into a breeding tool?) Now someone was saying he liked her... and Hikari didn't even know what she ought to feel.

Whatever else happens, I'm free now. I should decide for myself what I want to do... but what should I do? Her first impulse was still revenge, but when she thought of Uzumaki Gamu's words... the targets of her revenge were already dead. Going after their descendants would be something of a waste of her time.

Then... if she didn't seek revenge, what should she do?

The girl was lost. After thinking for a while, Hikari decided... she could only take things one step at a time!

She'd take that important first step. As for the rest... she'd worry about it later!