If Hatake Shibu hadn’t been the son of Hatake Sakumo, he probably wouldn’t have survived until now.
Every day, he was practically hated by both people and dogs alike.
He had even dragged members of the Uchiha clan into the disgraceful act of carving things into the Hokage Rock.
If he had been an ordinary civilian, they might not have killed him, but they would certainly have left him lying in Konoha Hospital for several months.
Shibu walked along the streets of the Uchiha clan compound toward Uchiha Obito’s house.
The Uchiha compound was relatively open.
Of course, that was only when compared with the Hyuga clan.
At the very least, if an ordinary resident genuinely wanted to enter the Uchiha compound, they could do so after undergoing some questioning.
The Hyuga clan, on the other hand, practically shut their doors and ruled their own little kingdom.
They even had their own clan laws, making the place feel as though it were still the Warring States Era.
And then there was the Caged Bird seal.
“Isn’t that Shibu? Come here! Big Sis has some candy for you!”
Shibu looked at the Uchiha clan leader’s wife in front of him and felt a headache coming on.
He wasn’t a little kid anymore!
Wait.
That wasn’t quite right.
He was only four years old right now.
He really was a little kid.
He was one year older than Kakashi, who was only three this year.
He had to admit, children in the shinobi world really did mature early.
Kakashi was also a genius.
He would graduate from the Ninja Academy at six and become a chunin at seven.
What an enviable talent.
“Auntie, I—”
Before he could finish speaking, Uchiha Mikoto pinched his cheek with a smile.
There was a dangerous look in her eyes, as if she were warning Shibu about something.
“Big Sis! Big Sis! I don’t want any candy right now!”
Shibu hurriedly changed what he was going to say, hoping to escape Mikoto’s pinch.
Unfortunately, he was still too young.
How could he possibly win against a kunoichi who was already a jōnin?
Girls from shinobi clans were basically all trained as shinobi.
After getting married, however, they would usually shift their focus toward their families and often directly apply for retirement.
During wartime, if there was a shortage of manpower, they would be recalled and sent to the battlefield.
Only after hearing Shibu call her “Big Sis” did Mikoto finally release him.
She was still so young, yet this brat had actually called her an auntie!
What an unpleasant little brat.
The moment Shibu was put down, he immediately moved away from the terrifying woman.
A wise man doesn’t fight when the odds are against him.
Just wait.
He’d see whether he would teach her precious son a lesson in the future.
Women in the shinobi world generally married young, which was why Mikoto had such a strong reaction to Shibu calling her an auntie.
“Did you come here for something today?”
Mikoto took a bottle of juice from the basket she was carrying and handed it to Shibu.
She knew exactly what the Uchiha compound was like these days.
Normally, nobody wanted to come here.
Even though her husband had given this little brat special permission to enter, Shibu rarely came to the Uchiha compound.
Shibu accepted the drink and took a sip.
“Nothing much. I just came to find Obito. We’re planning to go out today and make some pocket money.”
With that, he immediately ran off.
Of course, he knew why Uchiha Fugaku had given him permission to enter.
It was all because of his father.
The Second Shinobi World War had only recently ended, and it had brought Hatake Sakumo tremendous influence.
His reputation was like a surging wave, and he was one of the strongest candidates for the position of Fourth Hokage.
The Uchiha were merely trying to invest in him.
And they weren’t investing in only one person.
Minato Namikaze was also within their sights.
Unfortunately, his foolish father hadn’t noticed the hidden danger lurking beneath the calm surface.
Hatake Sakumo wasn’t part of the Hokage faction.
Therefore, he couldn’t become Hokage.
Someone who couldn’t become Hokage yet possessed enormous prestige would inevitably become a target for the higher-ups.
It wasn’t that they necessarily wanted him dead.
They simply needed to destroy his reputation.
It wasn’t that everyone who became Hokage belonged to the Hokage faction.
Rather, anyone who had the potential to become Hokage would eventually be absorbed into that faction.
Hatake Sakumo was simply an exception that had slipped through the net.
Perhaps his reputation for swordsmanship had caused them to overlook him.
Shibu wasn’t in a hurry.
When the time came, he would have plenty of ways to get Hatake Sakumo to step down from his position as commander of the Anbu.
After that, he could simply retire and enjoy his later years.
As long as it was publicly announced that he would not participate in the competition for Hokage, there wouldn’t be a problem.
Of course, there wasn’t really any other way.
The succession of the Hokage had always worked like this.
The other villages’ Kage were no different.
There was a principle that had to be followed.
It was called the passing of the flame.
Hatake Sakumo was already at an age where suddenly becoming a disciple of Hiruzen Sarutobi would be rather late.
Still, Shibu would remember this grudge.
Shibu soon arrived at Uchiha Obito’s house.
This area could be considered the Uchiha clan’s civilian district.
Of course, it was still a large clan, so there was no concern about people going hungry or lacking basic necessities.
That said, it was only slightly better than the poorer districts elsewhere in Konoha.
Shibu stood outside the house and shouted inside.
“Obito! Obito!”
Before long, the door opened.
Uchiha Obito walked out looking half-asleep.
Clearly, he had gone to bed very late the previous night.
“What is it? Why did you have to come so early?”
Obito complained.
Shibu’s face immediately darkened.
“The early bird gets the worm. Come on! Let’s go!”
At this rate, Obito would probably never get to eat a decent meal in his entire life.
He wouldn’t even be able to catch warm garbage.
And this guy still wanted to pursue a girl.
“You didn’t have to come this early! I haven’t even eaten breakfast!”
“Smack!”
“Ah! What are you doing? That hurts!”
Shibu suddenly struck him.
Obito instantly woke up completely.
He couldn’t understand why Shibu could make something hurt so much without seemingly using any strength.
“Do you still want to pursue Rin or not?”
“Will having money really help me win Rin over?”
Obito immediately stopped feeling any pain.
His entire body became energetic.
As expected, there was no saving a lovesick fool.
“Well… I can only say that it might. We have to at least give it a try, right?”
Shibu’s words made Obito deflate again.
He collapsed onto the ground like a paramecium, as if the entire world had suddenly lost its meaning.
“Don’t be so depressed. At least once you have money, you can treat Rin to something without being broke, right? Come on!”
Obito perked up.
He felt that Shibu’s words made sense.
As long as he had money, he could create more opportunities to spend time with Rin.
And only then would he have a chance to win her over.
“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go!”
Shibu looked at Obito’s current expression and couldn’t help clicking his tongue in amazement.
As expected, a lovesick fool needed exactly this kind of motivation to get back on his feet.
Some time later…