Although he'd been threatened, Minato still couldn't help but struggle a little.
There was a kimono in Kaien's courtyard. Judging by the size and style, it fit Kaien's body perfectly—and it had been freshly laundered.
Which could only mean one thing: Kaien had worn it.
And not long ago, either.
So when exactly had that happened?
Namikaze Minato fell into a mental whirlwind, trying to piece it together. After thinking it through, he concluded it must have been around that night… the one where he'd gotten caught sneaking around.
Normally, even if Kaien was the type to mess with him a little, he wouldn't go this far. So something unusual must have happened that night…
A breeze stirred the air, tousling Minato's golden hair. Along with it came a familiar scent.
His nose twitched. In an instant, he pinpointed the source—not Kaien himself, but the kimono.
That confirmed it.
If it hadn't been worn, how else would it still carry that fragrance? And the scent remained even after washing, which meant Kaien must've worn it for quite a while.
In short: he wanted to see it.
"..."
But Minato had a sinking feeling that he'd never get the chance. He could already sense the ominous glint deep in Uchiha Kaien's Sharingan.
He dared not speak a word. If he did, it wouldn't just cost him lunch—he might also get introduced to a brand-new fist technique.
If Kaien felt like it, he could probably throw a genjutsu at him just for the fun of it.
This sensory ability of his—Minato had only awakened it after fighting that freaky masked man. Even now, he was still refining it.
Though strangely enough, he could no longer sense that ominous intent from Kaien.
So maybe… he'd sensed it wrong?
Actually, he hadn't.
For a brief moment, Kaien had been seething.
That stupid kimono that could socially annihilate him? Definitely White Zetsu's doing.
Normally, Kaien let White Zetsu do his laundry and tidy up when he was out. This time, the fool must've taken it upon himself to wash the kimono too.
And the more he thought about it, the clearer it became—his own laziness had betrayed him.
After some internal debate, Kaien decided to let White Zetsu off the hook. It was hard to come by a White Zetsu that could do chores. No need to stab this one… yet.
With his mood somewhat restored, Kaien stepped forward, shot Minato a warning glare, then pushed open the door. His Sharingan slowly faded.
Whatever. If he saw it, then he saw it. If I'm not embarrassed, the one who should be embarrassed is someone else.
Minato instinctively stepped back, then quickly followed him inside with a sheepish grin. Kaien didn't seem to have caught on to what he was thinking.
Lunch was still on the table.
Still… who knew if he'd ever get a chance to see it again...
...
Afternoon.
Senju Clan Compound.
High up in a lush tree.
Nawaki was—just like always—fiddling with explosive tags. He held one between his fingers, studying it from every angle, muttering to himself.
"Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags… how do I start it to maximize the blast radius? But using this against just one ninja might be overkill."
"No matter how strong a ninja is, they can't dodge dozens of tags going off at once, right?"
"And this involves sealing jutsu too… So I should optimize the restraining function of the seal and then focus on more precise internal detonation?"
"If I can encase the whole body, then reinforce the limbs with sealing layers, maybe I can—"
A shadow suddenly blocked his view, cutting him off mid-thought.
He looked up—only to find his entire field of vision filled with Uchiha Kaien, hanging upside down above him in a perfect arc.
The sunlight caught Kaien's outline, making him seem even more dazzling than usual.
"Kaien… too close. A little personal space would be nice…"
Kaien was in shorts, and thanks to gravity, his pale thighs were far more exposed than normal, almost glowing under the light.
Nawaki coughed awkwardly, his heart giving an involuntary thump.
His junior in name only, Kaien had a bad habit of popping up out of nowhere, usually to either surprise or terrify him.
[Affection from Nawaki +2]
Kaien narrowed his eyes. "Every time I see you, you're messing with exploding tags."
He never called Nawaki "senpai." He found Nawaki too simple and straightforward to warrant the formality. Nawaki didn't mind—if anything, he took it as a sign of closeness.
"You said studying explosive tags was cool, didn't you? Besides, I've already learned a bunch of techniques to pair with them."
"If it were the old me, I'd probably walk straight into someone else's explosive tag trap like an idiot."
"But now? I might actually inherit Grandpa Tobirama's explosive tag ninjutsu and become Hokage one day!"
Just thinking about it made Nawaki's blood boil. If he could master the Mutual Multiplying Explosive Tags jutsu, then with Grandma Mito's help to improve the seal formulas...
Then maybe—just maybe—he wouldn't be blown up by a tag ever again.
Kaien nodded thoughtfully.
"Well, good luck. At our age, three out of the four of us want to be Hokage."
Minato, Kushina, Nawaki… all had their eyes on the title.
Only Uchiha Kaien dreamed of something else entirely.
Being the Hokage's advisor.
He didn't care who became Hokage, as long as he got to sit back and slack off.
As long as he could coast through life, it didn't matter who wore the hat.
"Oh right—where's Kushina? Let me tell you a secret… I'm actually here to help Minato win her over."
Kaien flipped upright and leaned close to Nawaki's ear, like he was sharing some top-secret intel.
The warm breath so close sent a chill down Nawaki's spine, his ears flushing red in record time.
[Affection from Nawaki +1]
Sensing danger to his dignity, Nawaki quickly coughed again.
"Kushina? She's got a new best friend lately—someone from your clan, actually."
"She's my classmate too—Uchiha Mikoto."
Kaien raised an eyebrow. "Oh, Fugaku's childhood friend? I've heard she's one of the gentlest in the clan."
He was genuinely surprised. Kushina and Mikoto were already friends at this point?
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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