In the morning, after finishing his morning workout, Yasuka began guiding Naruko on how to refine chakra and practice the Three Basic Jutsu.
Logically speaking, as Minato’s child, Naruko’s latent talent couldn’t possibly be lacking.
Yet, whenever she attempted to control her chakra, it remained in a constant state of chaotic turbulence, as if something inside her was deliberately sabotaging her efforts.
“Mm…
Naruko, try it one more time.”
Yasuka gently placed his palm over Naruko’s lower abdomen.
Feeling the warmth of his broad hand, Naruko felt a strange sensation wash over her, but she quickly suppressed it and tried once more to mold her chakra for the Clone Jutsu.
This time, Yasuka successfully intercepted the disruptive foreign chakra.
Activating the Horse Talisman, he forcefully purged and expelled the underlying malice, leaving behind only the pure, colossal chakra for Naruko to instantly absorb and claim as her own.
This was the most formidable capability of the Horse Talisman—the noble Horse could expel any external force from the body, while Yasuka retained total control over its intensity, deciding exactly what to purge and what to leave behind.
*What?!*
Deep inside the seal, the Nine-Tails, who had been fully intending to sabotage Naruko, was left completely dumbfounded.
How had its chakra suddenly been “purified,” and why the hell was it being absorbed by this little blonde brat?
“How does it feel, Naruko?”
Seeing her successfully manifest a solid clone, Yasuka knew his hypothesis was correct.
The Nine-Tails inside Naruko’s body was indeed throwing a tantrum.
“It feels like…
a massive surge of power just flooded my body!
It’s such a bizarre feeling.
I feel like…
I could make a hundred clones right now!”
Naruko didn’t understand the exact classifications of chakra reserves.
In reality, her current available pool had already skyrocketed to a staggering ten Kakashis’ worth.
“Mm…”
Yasuka felt a slight headache.
After all, he didn’t possess any specialized sensory Dojutsu, so he couldn’t directly project himself into the seal.
Otherwise, things would be much simpler.
If the Nine-Tails refused to behave, he wouldn’t mind using the Horse Talisman to directly evict the fox from Naruko’s body entirely, leaving nothing but its chakra behind.
But there was no rush.
After a few more iterations of this, the Nine-Tails would learn the consequences of interfering with Naruko and would naturally fall into line.
Following that, Yasuka handed Naruko a few ninjutsu scrolls he had collected, and called Uzuki Yugao over, tasking her with temporarily overseeing Naruko’s training.
“Um…
is anyone open?”
A voice drifted in from the front clinic.
Yasuka instructed the two girls to keep practicing in the backyard while he headed to the front door.
“Yasuka!”
The moment she was let go, Satsuki—who had been led by the hand—ran straight to Yasuka’s side, clamoring for him to continue the stories about the “blond boy.”
Although the character in his stories didn’t quite sound like the legendary Fourth Hokage from the public rumors, the more she listened, the more addicted she became.
For instance, why the blond boy proudly preserved his past as a commoner, how the blond boy blitzed the Hidden Stone Village, or how the blond boy elbow-dropped the Fourth Raikage.
The lore was incredibly wild, but it was undeniably entertaining, and both Satsuki and Naruko absolutely loved it.
“Can you wait just a moment?
By the way, Naruko is practicing in the backyard.
If you’re bored, you can go find her.”
Yasuka ruffled Satsuki’s little head.
Hearing that Naruko was actually growing stronger behind her back, Satsuki immediately bolted toward the backyard in a huff, utterly refusing to lose to that idiot Naruko.
With Satsuki’s departure, Yasuka finally turned his gaze to the teenage girl standing before him.
The newcomer was also an Uchiha, but she appeared to be a few years older than Itachi, possessing a remarkably gentle and serene demeanor.
She lacked the typical arrogance of the Uchiha, nor did she harbor any of Itachi’s brooding gloom.
She wore a sharp, ear-length short haircut, paired with a pair of vibrant, obsidian-like eyes, and a warm, sun-like smile graced her face.
Even the standard black shinobi combat outfit and the somewhat drab Konoha Jonin flak jacket couldn’t conceal her exceptionally striking figure, which filled out the fabric into a prominent, sweeping curve.
“Hello, my name is Uchiha Shisui.
Itachi recommended that I come by, mentioning that this place is great for unwinding.”
Shisui’s smile was incredibly bright, like a breath of fresh spring air.
Yasuka sized her up briefly before asking what seemed to be the issue.
“Uh…
I honestly don’t know myself.
Itachi just asked me to bring Satsuki here, so I came along.”
Shisui scratched her head with a look of pure innocence.
Seeing how overjoyed Satsuki was, she genuinely believed Itachi was simply too busy to accompany her sister and had merely asked for a favor.
“Then…
do you feel any physical discomfort anywhere?” Yasuka probed further.
Shisui pondered seriously for a long moment before shaking her head.
Her body was perfectly healthy; there were no issues whatsoever.
*Shisui…
wait, Shisui?*
Only then did Yasuka recall a vague piece of lore—didn’t Shisui commit suicide later on in the story?
If that was the case, as long as he prevented her suicide, it should give a massive boost to his talisman progress bar.
“Um…
is there something wrong?”
Shisui looked at the man in front of her.
Even with her impressive height of 1.8 meters, she still felt a bit short standing before Yasuka.
“In any case, step inside with me first.”
After a moment’s thought, Yasuka decided to give Shisui a physical examination, only to immediately discover that her eyesight was notably deficient.
“Your…
eyesight isn’t doing so well?”
Yasuka stared directly into Shisui’s bright black eyes.
The previously carefree Shisui instantly sharpened her gaze, her eyes locking onto Yasuka with intense scrutiny.
“How…
did you know that?”
Seeing Shisui suddenly on high alert, Yasuka rolled his eyes and pointed toward the medical signboard hanging outside the door.
Shisui finally snapped out of it, realizing that the man was a doctor—and an incredibly formidable one at that.
“Uh…
I’m sorry…
I…
I…”
Shisui felt entirely at a loss.
Yasuka, deeply curious about her condition, obtained her consent and placed his hands over her eyes.
Utilizing the restoration power of the Horse Talisman, Yasuka rapidly replenished the depleted visual prowess within Shisui’s eyes.
When she opened her eyes once more, she felt as though the man standing before her had never been so strikingly clear.
And…
he was remarkably handsome.
Shisui dazed off for a moment, completely captivated, until Yasuka called her name, snapping her back to reality.
“Do your eyes feel any better?” Yasuka asked softly.
“They…
they feel much better!
Thank you so much!”
Shisui hurriedly expressed her gratitude.
Ever since awakening her eyes, she had secretly utilized her Mangekyō a few times.
It was immensely powerful, but her vision had steadily deteriorated as a result.
Since then, she had abstained from using it and had never spoken of it to a soul.
She hadn’t expected Yasuka to nearly see right through her…
“Is it due to a Kekkei Genkai?” Yasuka pressed further.
Faced with his question, Shisui initially wanted to decline answering, but her eyes had just been fully restored by him.
That alone was a favor that no amount of money could ever repay.
Nodding in silent confirmation, Shisui implored Yasuka to keep it a secret, as it was her absolute trump card.
“Understood,” Yasuka agreed, further requesting that she return for regular check-ups to prevent any future relapse.
“I will.”
A month passed, and Yasuka had fully integrated into his new life in Konoha.
He had also broken the truth to Naruko regarding her parents.
Perhaps due to the lingering influence of the “blond boy” stories, Naruko felt an odd sense of familiarity with the father she had never met, and surprisingly didn’t break down into tears.
However, that very night, Naruko mimicked Haku and slipped into his blankets under the pretext of warming the bed, leaving Yasuka utterly speechless.
If Naruko and Haku kept this up, Yugao’s notebook was going to run out of pages.
Aside from that, Itachi and Shisui frequently brought Satsuki over, depending on who had free time, though the two teenagers almost never crossed paths at the clinic.
“Yasuka-kun…”
Itachi arrived at the clinic as she usually did, bringing Satsuki along.
Her posture carried an irrepressible layer of exhaustion, as if she had just survived a high-stakes mission.
“The usual?” Yasuka inquired gently.
Itachi nodded silently, following Yasuka into the private room and lying down on the bed with practiced familiarity.
The friction between the village and the clan was escalating day by day.
Caught in the middle as a double agent, she found no solace on either side.
The mounting pressure left her mentally and physically drained, but at the very least…
this clinic remained the one sanctuary where she could truly let her guard down.
Looking at Yasuka as he meticulously blended the soothing incense for her, a trace of softness entered Itachi’s eyes.
It was truly strange; she had initially visited purely due to her father’s political directives, yet she had somehow grown completely accustomed to the fragrance of this place.
As her mind drifted, eagerly anticipating the calming effects of the incense, an incredibly ill-timed voice suddenly boomed from the front door:
“Yasuka!
I’ve come for my check-up!”