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Chapter 135: The Uchiha's Reward and Attention (3k)
Chapter 135: The Uchiha's Reward and Attention (3k)
"I'm home."
Obito called out cheerfully as he stepped into the entryway of his house, kicking off his shoes. He was surprised to find no one there to greet him as usual.
"Hmm, is Grandma out for a walk?" Obito wondered aloud, a hint of confusion in his voice.
Normally, his grandmother would be there to welcome him at the door or at least call out in response.
As he ventured further inside, he realized that his grandmother was not absent but entertaining a guest, which was why she hadn't immediately replied.
"Welcome home, Obito," his grandmother said with a kind smile.
Obito's curiosity piqued as he caught a glimpse of the guest sitting in the living room—a middle-aged man with brown hair, dressed in deep blue.
Though he didn't recognize the man, Obito could tell he was a ninja from their clan, the Uchiha, by the forehead protector he wore and the fan symbol on the back of his clothing.
"Obito, come and greet your Uncle Hachiro," his grandmother prompted.
"Hello, Uncle Hachiro," Obito replied politely, following his grandmother's instruction.
Uchiha Hachiro, the Eighth of his name, offered a smile and praised, "So, you're Obito. You're quite impressive."
"Among the Uchiha of your age, you're one of the best," he added.
"Hehe, I guess so," Obito scratched his head, feeling a bit embarrassed by the compliment. He didn't feel overly proud, as he didn't know this Uchiha Hachiro. Only praises from his grandmother, Noel, or Muzuki would have that effect on him.
"Oh, Grandma, I got first place in the practical exam for our entire grade!" Obito couldn't contain his excitement as he shared the good news.
"Indeed, our Obito is so talented. He'll surely become an exceptional ninja after graduation," his grandmother beamed, gently ruffling Obito's hair.
Uchiha Hachiro listened to Obito's news and silently agreed, feeling his visit was justified.
While ranking first in the grade didn't guarantee future prowess, it was a testament to Obito's current excellence.
He recalled another Uchiha named Tekka, who was the same age as Obito and considered strong for his age, yet he had never achieved such a high rank.
"Keep up the good work, and strive to become a ninja worthy of carrying the Uchiha legacy," Uchiha Hachiro encouraged.
After setting down some nutritional supplements and counting out fifty thousand ryo, which he placed on the table, Uchiha Hachiro continued, "We Uchiha never skimp on rewards for our outstanding clan members. This is to acknowledge your remarkable achievement."
His visit was not a social call to chat with Obito's grandmother. While the Uchiha clan had many distant relatives, they typically didn't waste time socializing with elders unless they were direct descendants.
Uchiha Hachiro had come specifically to bestow a reward upon Obito.
It was a policy within the Uchiha clan to recognize and reward those who demonstrated exceptional prowess beyond their peers.
Obito was supposed to have received this reward after his final exams, but the Uchiha higher-ups didn't closely monitor the ninja school's performance, and Obito, being raised solely by his grandmother and not having many connections within the clan aside from Uchiha Stop, had gone unnoticed until recently.
"From now on, focus on your training. After you graduate, you can join the clan's police force, and I'll personally guide you," Uchiha Hachiro offered.
Ninja clans often afforded certain privileges to their members.
For the Hyuga clan, the main family had the privilege of receiving an education within the clan instead of attending the ninja school, and they would then become genin and take part in the Chunin Exams.
As for the Uchiha clan, their privilege was the Konoha Police Force.
The Konoha Police Force was entirely under the Uchiha clan's control, and every member of the department was a Uchiha ninja. The clan had the authority to appoint their members to any position they deemed fit.
If Obito could maintain his outstanding performance, Uchiha Hachiro was willing to become one of his mentors on the path of a ninja.
However, this was contingent on Obito sustaining his current level of excellence; otherwise, his offer of guidance would only extend to the initial stages of helping Obito settle into his work.
The Uchiha clan had always upheld the ancient doctrine of revering strength above all else. They had no sympathy for the weak, and those with power held all the privileges. If one lacked strength, no matter their struggles, they would not receive assistance.
"Thank you so much, I won't let you down," Obito said gratefully, his face lighting up with appreciation. He chose to ignore Uchiha Hachiro's mention of joining the police force.
Seeing Obito's sincere expression of gratitude, Uchiha Hachiro nodded inwardly.
"Interact more with your Uchiha peers and seniors. Our clan is your most dependable source of strength," he advised.
"After you become a genin, you can request to learn new fire-style jutsu from the clan," Uchiha Hachiro added before taking his leave.
"Our Obito is truly remarkable. Your father never received a reward like this from the clan. You're already surpassing him," his grandmother said proudly, a smile spreading across her face.
"Father..." The mention of the word caused Obito to search his memories, but he couldn't seem to find any figure associated with that title.
"Keep the money, Obito. Buy yourself something to eat. This is your hard-earned money," his grandmother said with a kind smile.
"Then I'll keep a hundred ryo here with you, Grandma. I'm afraid I might lose it," Obito said, taking out a hundred ryo and giving the rest to his grandmother.
His grandmother finally accepted the money with a relieved smile.
"Obito, you're truly growing up. I just don't know when you'll give me a great-grandchild," she sighed.
Hearing his grandmother mention grandchildren, Obito's face turned red, and he quickly reminded her, "Grandma, I'm still in school!"
Obito's grandmother smiled and said, "You can start cultivating a relationship while you're in school, you know. Your father and your mother were classmates, after all."
"I think that little Karin is quite nice. She seems thoughtful. How have you two been getting along lately?"
"I have to go study now!" Obito exclaimed, his face reddening as he ran upstairs.
...
"This must be the place," Mu Yue said as she looked up at the store's name and walked in.
She felt that the store owner's choice of name was rather abstract. If it weren't for the words 'ninja tools' written next to it, most people would probably have no idea what the store was selling.
If it weren't for Minato's recommendation, Mu Yue would have likely gone to a store with a more conventional name.
As she entered the store, Mu Yue glanced around. The counter and walls were filled with various ninja tools, ranging from kunai to shuriken of different styles.
Despite the unusual name, the store's interior was no different from a typical ninja tool shop.
"Welcome! Is there anything I can help you with today?" a young man with a passionate smile on his face asked.
"I'd like to borrow your equipment to forge my own ninja tool. I may need some assistance along the way," Mu Yue said directly.
"Borrow equipment to forge my own tool?" The young man was taken aback. He had been running this ninja tool shop for several years, but this was the first time he had received such a request.
"If you're looking to forge a specific ninja tool, we do offer custom-making services," the young owner suggested.
Mu Yue felt that he had misunderstood her intention, so she clarified, "I plan to forge a ninja tool by hand as a gift. I value the sentiment of hand-making it more than its practicality."
"Oh, I see! Now that's what I call thoughtful," the young owner exclaimed, his expression softening with understanding.
"I'll pay for the use of the equipment and any assistance I require, and I'll take responsibility for any accidents during the forging process," Mu Yue assured him.
Mu Yue had saved up her salary and bonus from the previous semester, along with her summer training and the current month's wages. After setting aside some emergency funds, she had a budget of up to 700,000 ryo to work with.
She didn't think it would be that extravagant, as she wasn't planning to use any pure chakra metal or heavenly meteorite iron.
A standard-quality kunai usually cost around 200 ryo, so even if the price was inflated a hundredfold, it would still only be 20,000 ryo.
"It must be for someone very important to you," the young owner mused. "Fortunately, you came to me. These days, most ninja tool shops in Konoha buy their goods from elsewhere and rarely have the tools for forging."
He had been inclined to refuse at first, but the sincerity of Mu Yue's intention, coupled with her offer to pay, changed his mind.
"Follow me," he said, calling down a young woman who looked around his age to mind the store while he led Mu Yue out of the shop.
Mu Yue followed the young owner to the backyard warehouse of his home.
"I occasionally forge some fine ninja tools to sell, but I don't do it as often anymore. It's more profitable to sell standard tools," he said, pointing to the forging equipment in the warehouse.
"Everything is mass-produced in factories these days. Times have changed," he added with a hint of nostalgia.
When he was younger, he used to learn how to forge ninja tools from his father. But over a decade later, the times had changed, and hand-forging tools were not only more tiring but also less efficient.
The two negotiated a price, and Mu Yue agreed to pay for all the materials she used during the process, as well as a fee for the owner's guidance.
Mu Yue intended to practice with ordinary materials first and then move on to better-quality materials once she became more proficient.
The birthdays of her three disciples were upcoming: Itachi on October 19th, Might Guy on January 1st, and Deidara on February 10th.
Itachi's birthday was the closest, with only eight days left. Including the time she had spent reading related books, Mu Yue felt that using her shadow clones to accelerate her learning might just barely be enough time.
Using shadow clones to practice ninjutsu was very chakra-consuming, as each clone needed enough chakra to perform the jutsu. However, blacksmithing was different, as long as she didn't create too many clones or accumulate too much fatigue.
Moreover, she could rely on the owner's assistance during the final forging stage, which would make up for a lot.
(End of Chapter)
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