Chapter 23: Once a Sunny and Cheerful Boy

"Gin, think carefully. How did you awaken your Sharingan?"

Unable to get the answers he wanted from the two elders, Uchiha Tajima turned to question Uchiha Gin.

This question truly stumped Uchiha Gin. His Sharingan had been awakened by the stimulation of the Mangekyo Sharingan's unique genjutsu, Tsukuyomi, from Uchiha Itachi—who had been refreshed in the backyard. This was a secret that had to be taken to his grave.

"Don't be nervous. I am merely curious, as it is quite rare to awaken the Sharingan at your age."

Seeing Uchiha Gin's furrowed brow, Uchiha Tajima spoke words of comfort.

At some point, the expressions of the three people before him had returned to normal, as if the freezing aura from moments ago had merely been an illusion.

The two elders looked at him with the kind eyes of gentle seniors, their gaze filled with gratification; everything seemed harmonious and pleasant.

Yet, Uchiha Gin still felt a faint, strange sensation.

*I hope it's just an illusion,* Uchiha Gin thought to himself. He relaxed his brow and, after a moment of thought, spoke.

"It was when the Senju clan dealt me a heavy blow. In that moment between life and death, I awakened my Sharingan."

The awakening of the Sharingan was nothing more than intense emotional stimulation. His description of awakening it while on the brink of death from a severe injury was perfectly logical and left no room for suspicion.

"Gin, you have truly worked hard on this mission. I did not expect the defenses in the heart of the Senju territory to be so tight."

Hearing such a "reasonable" explanation, although Uchiha Tajima harbored doubts, he could not press further without appearing overly suspicious.

After all, a mere two-tomoe Sharingan was not worth such an intensive interrogation by the clan head.

The two elders beside him also tacitly fell silent, but their subtle gazes never left his eyes.

"Clan Leader, this Senju brat..."

Sensing that Uchiha Tajima was subtly signaling for him to leave, Uchiha Gin hurriedly pushed the unconscious Senju Itama forward.

Uchiha Tajima, whose mind was already elsewhere, spoke with a gentle expression, "Since he is your prisoner, you shall guard him first. For now, spare his life; he can serve as an extra bargaining chip when we face the Senju clan."

Hearing that Uchiha Tajima had entrusted Senju Itama to his disposal, Uchiha Gin was overjoyed. It seemed the boy's life was temporarily safe.

Fearing that the Clan Leader might change his mind, Uchiha Gin grabbed the still-unconscious Senju Itama, offered his farewells, and hurried out.

As the door closed, Uchiha Tajima's gentle expression instantly turned icy, and the two previously warm-faced elders frowned deeply.

"Elder Miao, you were one of the leads in the surgery back then. You shouldn't have forgotten the results. It is absolutely impossible for Uchiha Gin to have awakened the Sharingan."

Uchiha Tajima's voice was as cold as a winter wind.

"Clan Leader Tajima, I guarantee there were no errors in the surgery back then. But that person hadn't been captured yet... could it be...?"

A sense of unease flickered in the eyes of the withered, stick-like Uchiha Miao.

"Are you talking about *that* person?"

After hearing this, Uchiha Tajima rubbed his aching eyes, feeling a headache coming on.

"Is he still alive?"

"He is still being held in the dungeon," the stout Uchiha En spoke up.

"Let's not worry about this for now. The decisive battle with the Senju is imminent. I will arrange for Uchiha Gin to remain in the clan to guard the territory," Uchiha Tajima said after a bout of headache.

For some reason, Uchiha Tajima had recently seemed to suffer from some kind of brain ailment; he experienced sudden pains in his head from time to time. The clan doctors had examined him and found nothing serious, so he simply assumed it was due to overwork.

Carrying Senju Itama out of the Clan Leader's building, Uchiha Gin walked toward the home from his memories while trying to identify the two elders based on the original owner's memories. After a moment, he had his answers.

The stout elder was named Uchiha En, the personal bodyguard of the previous clan leader. He had possessed high combat prowess in his youth and had followed the previous leader through many battles.

After Uchiha Tajima took over as clan leader, En had moved to the second line, becoming an elder responsible primarily for training new recruits and clan security patrols.

The lean, withered elder was Uchiha En's brother, named Uchiha Miao. His strength was unknown, but his position was the head of the Uchiha clan's research department, dedicated to the development of ocular jutsu and ninjutsu.

It was said they had an older brother who had died in a clan struggle in his early years, but no other information was known.

The original owner's knowledge of these people was limited to this, and Uchiha Gin couldn't discern anything else. As he walked, Uchiha clansmen seeing him lost in thought would move aside to let him pass.

Undisturbed, he followed his memory and walked unhindered to a remote area far from the clan's residential clusters. Looking up, he saw a medium-sized wooden house.

The house was no different from those of ordinary clansmen, but it was somewhat dilapidated. Uchiha Gin pushed open the aged wooden door, and the interior layout was immediately clear.

It was a simple one-bedroom, one-living-room setup. The furniture was very old, but the wear marks on the aged pieces suggested the owner cherished them deeply.

Entering the bedroom, there was only a simple wooden bed. On the nightstand sat a well-preserved family photo. Uchiha Gin picked it up to examine it.

It was a simple family of three. The young original owner was a cute little boy at the time, with fluffy, curly hair and a face brimming with happy, blissful smiles.

On either side were a man and a woman, presumably the original owner's parents. The man on the left had a gentle, warm smile and slightly curly black hair; his eyes were squinted slightly, and his expression radiated a sunny aura.

On the right was a cold-looking woman with short, jet-black hair. Her exquisite face was like that of a model from his previous life, and her temperament bore some resemblance to Uchiha Tajima. Though her expression seemed icy, her gaze toward the original owner was full of tenderness.

Sighing, Uchiha Gin put the photo down. "It seems the original owner was an optimistic boy before his parents died in battle. How did he turn so dark later on?"

Musing on the fickleness of fate, Uchiha Gin put down his luggage and cleaned the dusty house. As hunger pangs began to strike his stomach, he decided to go out and buy some groceries.

He didn't feel comfortable leaving the unconscious Senju Itama at home, given the deep-seated hatred between the two clans.

If word got out, there was no telling if a vengeful Uchiha might come by and kill this defenseless brat just to vent their hatred, which would bring trouble upon him as well.

He skillfully hoisted Senju Itama onto his shoulder and headed toward the Uchiha clan market.

Along the way, many people pointed at him as he carried a child, but no one dared to approach and ask. Perhaps they were intimidated by his reputation, which actually allowed Uchiha Gin to enjoy some peace.

Upon reaching the market, he did some simple shopping and tossed the money to the vendor under the merchant's terrified gaze.

Carrying the groceries in both hands, Uchiha Gin wandered back home, humming a tune.

From a distance, he saw that someone was actually waiting at his lonely doorstep. Not knowing what was happening, Uchiha Gin approached slowly and looked.

"Oh? Isn't this Sasuke?"

Squatting at his doorstep was a kid about ten years old. Judging by the spiky black hair, he was clearly a member of the clan. Looking at the boy's face, Uchiha Gin felt a sense of spatial displacement.

The kid in front of him looked so much like the future "What is Gay" that Uchiha Gin wondered if he had transmigrated again.

Seeing that the newcomer was Uchiha Gin, the boy squatting on the ground stood up with a *whoosh*. Before Uchiha Gin could even ask, a familiar voice rang out in his mind

"Detection: Host has encountered combat. Steelheart Chest accumulation has begun..."

(End of Chapter)