"Don't worry, Master. I won't die."
Shingetsu reached out with her small, childish hands, wrapped them around Madara Uchiha's back, and returned his embrace a little clumsily.
She nestled against his shoulder, her cheek pressed to Madara Uchiha's chest. With only the black clan robe between them, she could feel the warmth of his chest and the beating of his heart when she closed her eyes.
"I'll keep living. I promise."
Madara Uchiha said nothing more. He silently tightened his embrace, his hidden face betraying a pain he could no longer conceal.
Warmth slowly passed from Shingetsu's body into Madara's arms. Feeling the child in his embrace, alive and warm rather than cold, and hearing her gentle, reassuring response, Madara Uchiha found a little comfort and peace of mind amid all his pain and regret.
He had not been alone from the day he was born.
"...No matter what happens, your life comes first!"
All those he had clung to, all those he had wanted to protect, had vanished before his eyes.
Their once-living presence was gone, and the memories of their lives together were gradually fading. Why were human lives and bonds so fragile? Like dust carried away by the wind, they had left him behind so easily, so utterly.
"Shingetsu, you have to live. Keep living!"
Don't leave me behind again. Don't die in front of me again!
The blood-red Sharingan spun rapidly in Madara Uchiha's eyes. Anger, sorrow, pain, despair, hatred-countless emotions of overwhelming intensity flashed through those crimson eyes, while chakra laden with negative emotions surged wildly. Birds scattered from the woods, beasts fled their dens, and every living thing ran from Madara Uchiha's rampaging emotions.
Standing at the center of the storm, forced to endure the onslaught of that tsunami-like chakra, Shingetsu soon felt her heartbeat grow erratic and her nerves throb.
She hurriedly hugged Madara Uchiha even tighter, struggling to answer him beside his ear as she screamed with all her strength:
"I-I promise, Master!"
Her answer seemed to bring Madara Uchiha back to his senses. The rapidly spinning eternal Mangekyō Sharingan in his eyes gradually stopped, then faded back to black. His raging chakra also settled, and for a while, the two held each other tightly without a word.
"...Remember the promise you made today, Shingetsu."
"Mm."
Shingetsu readily agreed, her relaxed, reassured expression a stark contrast to Madara's solemn face.
She did not think staying alive would be difficult. The shinobi world might be chaotic, but she lived in Konoha, with Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju watching over it. Who would dare harm her right under those two legends' noses?
Once his emotions had settled, Madara Uchiha picked Shingetsu up and headed into the clan compound. The instant they disappeared through the Uchiha gates, a puddle of black, mudlike substance swiftly seeped underground from a hiding place ordinary people could never have noticed, lurking in the darkness.
Just before he vanished, Black Zetsu's bizarre features, like a child's scribbles, twisted into a smile brimming with malice and mockery.
Brat, don't go making promises you can't keep.
Unaware of the gathering storm, Shingetsu simply continued her ordinary daily routine. After dinner, she returned home and looked through the clan ledger Hōkaku had given her.
The figures in the ledger were not particularly satisfying. This year's harvest had been good, but it still had not covered their earlier investment in the fields.
Still, that was because they had missed a harvest season. If they could bring in two harvests as usual next year, they would recover their costs then.
Dreaming happily of a future with plenty to eat and wear, Shingetsu grinned, her eyes narrowing with delight. She set the ledger down and sketched out a rough plan for the next stage of farming in her mind.
No one laughed at her anymore. After tasting the benefits, the clan now fully supported her continuing with phase two of the "Uchiha Farming Plan."
But what exactly should she do next?
Shingetsu frowned in thought, deftly twirling the pen between her fingers, a little habit she sometimes fell into while thinking.
Besides rice, Shingetsu had also collected a large quantity of bran this year, which was now stored together by the fields.
Bran was the outer covering removed when rice was processed into edible grains, and it could be used as livestock feed. Shingetsu had already discussed raising chickens, ducks, and pigs with Kazuko. Besides supplementing the clan's meat supply, they would also provide a steady source of chicken and duck eggs.
Come to think of it, should we plant some vegetables, like eggplants?
The thought of the same old three side dishes on the table-radish, natto, and kombu-made Shingetsu sigh.
Don't call me picky. Of course I'd get sick of eating the same things every day!
Shingetsu grumbled to herself, but when she tried to think of other crops grown in the Land of Fire, she discovered that her knowledge on the subject was rather sparse.
Uh, besides eggplants, scallions, and garlic chives, what else is there?
In Konoha as it was now, even fresh fruit and vegetables were hard to obtain. Apart from table staples like radishes and soybeans, along with the kelp brought in by merchants, anyone wanting something different had to forage for wild vegetables in the mountains or buy expensive, less-than-fresh produce from traders.
In the shinobi world of this era, eating a meal with a wide variety of dishes was difficult indeed. Even in the Land of Fire, the richest nation, the selection of vegetables was so pitifully small it could bring a person to tears.
There was no helping it. Fruit and vegetables fit for the table required a long process of domestication and cultivation. During a thousand years of warring chaos, farmers could barely feed themselves. How could they have had the time or inclination to cultivate tastier produce?
Once she understood that, Shingetsu slumped over the table with a long sigh. This shinobi world really did leave her speechless!
If only we had sweet potatoes, potatoes, corn, and things like that.
Recalling the many fruits and vegetables famous for their high yields in her previous life, Shingetsu could not help feeling a heartfelt longing.
If we could grow some here, it might not solve everything, but at least it could ease the shinobi world's desperate hunger a little, right?
And blueberries, watermelons, and strawberries-all my favorite fruits, and now I can't eat any of them.
And my dearly departed cakes, chocolate, and potato chips... all the snacks I loved...
A profound sense of regret quickly filled Shingetsu's heart. It was the bitterness and resentment that naturally arose when someone who had known the abundance of modern society was forced to endure such hardship.
Honestly, there seems to be so much I could do, but none of it is easy!
Shingetsu certainly had plenty of ideas, but even the best cook could not make a meal without ingredients. The shinobi world's low productivity limited what she could accomplish, while its chaotic currency systems and political relationships made matters even more frustrating and difficult.
She put down the pen and ledger, then looked at the sheet of paper covered in her scattered ideas. After a moment's thought, she crumpled it into a ball and tossed it aside.
It would be better to keep the second stage of the "Uchiha Farming Plan" practical. She intended to have a proper discussion with Hōkaku and Kazuko, ask the people in the clan compound what they actually needed, and finally take a walk around the village to see things for herself.
Only by understanding everyone's needs and the village's current situation could she decide what to do next. Sitting here alone, letting her imagination run wild, was rather detached from reality.
Before that, though, she should set aside some grain and send it to the Orphanage.
Shingetsu had long since resolved not to let Chinatsu and the other children at the Orphanage keep eating mixed-grain rice every day. Just remembering that lump of yellow-and-green lunch, which looked like vomit, made her stomach churn.
Besides, she had promised Chinatsu that she and her younger brothers and sisters would all get to eat white rice. She had never forgotten that promise.
Of course, it would also help win goodwill from the Orphanage and the civilians. It was time to do something about the Uchiha's rotten reputation.
It's settled. I'll visit the Orphanage myself after school tomorrow.
Before you continue