Chinatsu lacked plenty of things, but money wasn't one of them. With an entire clan's accumulated wealth in her hands, how could she possibly be short of money? The butcher hurried off to prepare his finest beef.
While she waited, Chinatsu stood quietly with her arms folded. She was already a budding beauty, and simply standing there without moving or speaking made her truly captivating.
She was still only thirteen. Given more time to grow, her current looks already offered a glimpse of the stunning beauty she would become, someone who could enchant anyone.
"Is it ready yet?"
"Y-yes, it's ready!"
The butcher tossed his cleaver aside with a swish, gathered up all the best beef in his shop, and handed it to Chinatsu.
There were about ten jin of it, enough to last her a while.
Chinatsu hefted the beef in her left hand. Although she still had plenty of money, she couldn't exactly carry several hundred jin of beef back with her. Otherwise, Hiruzen Sarutobi would probably question whether she'd gone out on a mission or a shopping trip.
With the beef in hand, Chinatsu turned to leave. It was better not to linger in Kumogakure. She had a nagging feeling that if she stayed any longer, something would happen that was far too big for her brain to figure out how to handle.
Just a few minutes after Chinatsu left, a woman with long, light brown hair appeared on the street.
An aura of gloom radiated from her entire body. Many people around her who knew her wanted to say hello, but that aura scared them into keeping their mouths shut.
Passersby: What's wrong with Lady Yugito? Did she fail a mission? Surely she hasn't had her heart broken?
Perhaps she heard their muttering, because Yugito Nii suddenly turned and glared at one group. The people who had been whispering immediately fell silent in fright.
After turning back, Yugito Nii let out a helpless sigh. She hadn't even known she could be so sentimental. Only one person had died in front of her. As a ninja who had lived through wartime, she should have been used to that long ago...
Yugito Nii walked over to the butcher's shop where Chinatsu had bought her beef. The owner was still so delighted at making such a large sale that he completely failed to notice Yugito Nii's gloomy mood.
"Oh, if it isn't Lady Yugito! Would you like to buy some beef from my little shop?" the owner asked, waving cheerfully.
Yugito Nii glanced sideways at him and forced a smile onto her dark expression. "You seem to be in a good mood today. Business going well?"
"Hahaha, it's not just business! I also met a very pretty young lady. I wonder if you know her, Lady Yugito Nii? She's quite young, but very pretty, and very rich, too!" the owner explained with a smile.
Yugito Nii froze for a moment. Chinatsu was the first person who came to mind, but she quickly dismissed the thought.
With those injuries, Chinatsu was unquestionably doomed. Even if she knew Medical Ninjutsu and treated herself, she couldn't have survived. She was definitely dead.
Yugito Nii raised a hand to her forehead, then shook her head hard.
I can't keep dwelling on this. I'm not one of those hotheaded fools. I can't let my emotions dictate my actions. I need to pull myself together quickly. There's still plenty of work ahead.
Yugito Nii lifted her head and looked up at the sky. Despite those thoughts, she couldn't possibly recover so quickly. It would be another month before the memory truly began to fade for her.
Meanwhile, Chinatsu headed back to Konoha without looking back. To be thorough, she should have lingered where Yugito Nii believed she had died and made a decoy, just in case Yugito Nii doubled back.
But Chinatsu had no inclination to do that, nor was there any need. Once she returned to Konoha, they would belong to two separate worlds. They might never cross paths again.
Chinatsu: I feel a little bad about tricking you, but sorry. I'm a ninja, too!
About a week passed before Chinatsu finally left the Land of Lightning and returned to the Land of Fire. Rest assured, the beef she carried hadn't spoiled. As long as she kept releasing chakra, the specially wrapped beef was effectively refrigerated and could keep for a long time.
"Almost there at last. At this time of day... maybe I can still pick Naruto and Sasuke up from school... Hmm, should I give them a surprise?" Chinatsu giggled. Her brain, despite its limited processing power, whirred into action, quickly coming up with plenty of good ideas for pranks.
She was still three or four kilometers from Konoha, walking along the road home with a smile on her face, when a figure appeared in her path.
As the figure gradually came into focus, the smile vanished from Chinatsu's face.
The person standing in her way made Chinatsu shift into combat mode immediately.
Gloomy and sinister, with bandages wrapped around his face and arm, he was one of the few people Chinatsu had deemed an "enemy she had to face."
Shimura Danzō.
The ruler of Konoha's dark side, he was a ninja from the same generation as Hiruzen Sarutobi. Like Hiruzen Sarutobi, he believed the village came before everything else, but he was far more extreme.
Incidentally, after the Uchiha Clan Massacre, this man had taken a large number of Sharingan and forcibly implanted them into his own body. Beneath the bandages on his arm were Sharingan.
One of the Sharingan belonging to "Chinatsu's" older brother, Shisui Uchiha, was also in his possession.
"Did that fool Hiruzen Sarutobi really think he could protect you by sending you away? I'll let that brat Sasuke slide, but you're an exception. I can sense it. If I don't eliminate you and let you keep growing, you'll become a threat to Konoha."
Shimura Danzō strolled toward Chinatsu, one leisurely step at a time. In his eyes, there was nothing wrong with what he was doing. Even if he killed Chinatsu, Hiruzen Sarutobi wouldn't do anything to him. At most, he would yell at him a little and shoot him a few dirty looks, just as he always did.
In truth... that was indeed the case.
The only person who could save her was herself.
Chinatsu's gaze sharpened, and three blood-red tomoe spun into view within her eyes.
Three-Tomoe Sharingan!
This was the highest level most members of the Uchiha Clan could reach in their entire lives. For Chinatsu to reach it at thirteen undoubtedly marked her as a genius.
Yet even after seeing those three tomoe, Shimura Danzō remained disdainful. As far as he was concerned, the outcome was already decided, both in raw strength and in trump cards.
Forget three tomoe-even if she had a Mangekyō...
"It won't hurt much. It'll be over very quickly."
Shimura Danzō delivered his threat, then raised both hands and began forming hand seals...
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