Back at the pace, Masashi first went to see the daimyō.

  He stood before the daimyō and his cil to expin his ret absence.

  "The ret situation required implementing yered chakra dete barriers," he expined. "Our sensor array picked up fluctuating chakra frequencies in the 800 to 12e—typical of le reaissaeiques."

  "To ter this, we had to recalibrate our chakra dampening field to create interfereterns at matg wavelengths while maintaining a stable baseline for our own defesu."

  "Additionally," Masashi tinued, "we detected attempts at chakra resonance mapping, likely trying to identify gaps in our security grid. This required us to temporarily suspend all active chakra circution and switch to passive deteethods using natural energy readings."

  The pace officials exged knowing gnces, nodding with impressed expressions. One elderly advisor stroked his beard. "Most thh, as expected of an Uchiha."

  Amazing how easily people accept what they expect to hear, especially when it es with a touch of teical jargon, even when all of it was plete bullshit, Masashi noted as the pace officials nodded along.

  If only they khe real reason—he'd simply been deyed by ay stomach.

  As time passed, the mission to protect the daimyō was ing to an end. The final security review showed no gaps in their defenses, exactly as expected.

  Throughout the mission, the daimyō had been well-protected, dining fortably and sleeping soundly.

  The presence of two Konoha jonin was enough to deter almost all ninja anizations outside the Five Great Nations, and the other freat Ninja Vilges wouldn't risk assassinating a daimyō.

  When it came to a try's daimyō, the major vilges would only take on proteissions, not assassination jobs. It was an unspoken rule that kept the bance of power stable.

  And so, the st day passed peacefully.

  Masashi and Shisui bid farewell to the daimyō and began their journey back to the vilge.

  "Think we'll get another mission like this?" Shisui asked as they traveled.

  "Depends on how the politics py out," Masashi replied, keeping his pace steady. And how many more plications we avoid.

  After three months away, Shisui missed Konoha's snack street immensely. Masashi also missed a few specialty snack shops in the vilge.

  Proteg the nation's leader was a high-pressure task. Masashi had looked forward to unwinding bae, but given how things were developing, that would have to wait.

  With their minds on their favorite hometown foods, the two raced bae as fast as possible.

  When Konoha's gates appeared on the horizon, they both felt a sense of fort. "The vilge has ged since we left," Shisui observed, sing the skyline.

  "The vilge always ges. We just notice it more when we're away," Masashi responded, his eyes catg subtle differences in the guard rotations. And some ges are more ing than others.

  Entering the vilge, the two headed straight to the Hokage's office to report the mission.

  Where they had accepted the mission, they had tister its pletion, and so, after three months away, they saw Minato once again.

  This time, the Hokage looked much busier, sitting diligently at his desk, going through a stack of paperwork.

  The First Hokage's hands-off leadership style led to the early establishment of the Hokage cil and its team of advisors.

  While the Hokage and cil formed Konoha's ultimate deaking body, it was the elders' pre-decision group that handled most of the daily paperwork, freeing experienced Hokage to foore crucial matters.

  "You're back."

  The 'rookie' Hokage looked up from the pile of dots, appearing happy but sp dark circles.

  "Hokage-sama, have you been w overtime?" Masashi asked with curiosity.

  "Lately, everyone's been out on missions, so the administrative work has piled up," Minato said, rexing his brow. "Did the mission go smoothly? Any issues?"

  I ran into your student, who's after your wife, Masashi thought, but knew he couldn't say that out loud. Too misleading, and there was no way to expin the source of that information.

  Besides, the Fourth Hokage's true opinion on the Uchiha was still unknown; it couldn't be judged based on personal impressions from the manga. Too risky.

  Hiruzen, only seen as a sly veteran, was actually someone who avoided all as that could cause turmoil. He opposed any direct flict with the Uchiha and insisted on fining them to the Police Force.

  Danzō seemed outwardly hostile toward the Uchiha but was actually opposed to aside Hiruzen being Hokage to bee Hokage.

  The two elder advisors, though often appearing indifferent, were highly skilled administrators. They could generally resolve flicts amoments through systemic adjustments.

  They were muarded than trusting toward the Uchiha but held no signifit malice, aiming for a banced middle ground.

  Minato, while appearing the most friendly to the Uchiha, was in fact the most ruthless among them.

  Like the First Hokage, the vilge was his utmost priority. If anyone, even close family, threatehe vilge, he would not hesitate to act.

  If it weren't for the deep attat I felt to Konoha, I might have long ago quit my position to travel the world, Masashi mused.

  "The missio smoothly, with no interference," he said to Minato.

  "Yes, it went smoothly," Shisui agreed, adding, "The daimyō of the Land of Rain... has quite a personality."

  "Oh, that's good to hear," Minato said, quite pleased. This meant another successful proteission for Konoha, which was something to celebrate.

  Although he wao chat longer with them, the paperwork awaited him. After a few encing words, he sent the two off to rest, auro his work.

  Masashi couldn't have asked for a better oute a quickly.

  At home, he took a proper bath, theo visit Fugaku, only to be told he was still at the Police Force.

  After some thought, he realized it had been a while since he had been there himself. So, he ged into his Police Foriform and headed there.

  As soon as he entered, he attracted the attention of his colleagues. Since his st sparring match, he had gained snition among the .

  "Masashi, you're back at work?" A member greeted him, pulling out a cigarette.

  "Smoking's not good for your health," Masashi ented dryly.

  "Says the guy who dodges kunai for a living." The member quickly formed hand signs and lit his cigarette with a tiny fire jutsu.

  He took a drag and started to say something with a smirk, but broke into a smoker's cough.

  His cigarette-lighting attempt ended with the fire sputtering out pathetically. "Being a shinobi is way more—" another cough interrupted his defense.

  Masashi suppressed a smile. The legendary fire teiques of the Uchiha, reduced to lighting cigarettes—and failing at even that. "I just finished my mission, just dropping by," he said, gng around. "Where's Tetsuka?"

  "Oh, he took some time off to pick up his younger brother from the Ninja Academy."

  "I see. Is Fugaku-sama in his office?"

  "Yes, you should go find him. He doesn't seem to be busy right now."

  "Alright, see you. And stay healthy!"

  Masashi left the break room, went upstairs, and stopped at Fugaku's office door. He knocked.

  "e in."

  Opening the door, he caught Fugaku trying to coax a stubborn cat with bits of dried fish. The cat seemed thhly unimpressed by his authority.

  "You're back. Where's Shisui?"

  "He might have goo see the Third Hokage," Masashi replied, notig a freshly brewed tea set oable.

  "Did someone just visit you?"

  "No, this was for you both; I thought you'd e by," Fugaku said, sitting on the sofa. "Have a seat. Tell me about the mission."

  "Overall, it went as expected, though we did enter an ued person," Masashi said, not pnning to keep it from Fugaku.

  In the inal timeline, Obito had been fixated on eliminating the Uchiha, but now that Masashi had exposed his identity, he would likely abandon that approach. However, he might have other pns.

  "That sounds intriguing," Fugaku said, sipping his tea. "Knowing your nature, if you're bringing this to me directly, I assume this person has ties to our ?"

  "Yes, I entered Obito."

  "I see..." Fugaku said. He put down his tea and stroked the cat, which had settled in his p. "Does he bear a grudge against the ?"

  "No, he doesn't."

  "That sounds promising, then. But why hasn't he returned?"

  "It seems he holds a grudge against the entire shinobi world."

  "..."

  As the leader, Fugaku had an obligation to be fully informed about the circumstances of every member who had awakehe Sharingan.

  When the news of Obito's sacrifice first came back, he did his research. But after mulling it over for a long time, Fugaku still couldn't figure out what ued love had to do with hating the entire ninja world.

  Why does the Uchiha keep produg these strange individuals? Fugaku thought to himself irritably.

  "Did you try talking some seo him?" he asked the person iion.

  He remembered that the two had been close.

  "I did. At first, he even tried pretending to be Madara."

  "Oh? That's quite a piece of information." Fugaku nearly lost trol of his usual stoic expression.

  "How did you respond? You know, the has its difficulties too. After all, at that time, he hadn't awakened his Sharingan. Your uanding of policy among your peers is exceptional. Did you expin that to him?"

  "I just told him his act wasn't very ving, a mad. We ended up fighting." Thinking ba the situation, Masashi couldn't help but sigh. "Kids these days have no patience."

  "Mm." Fugaku regained his posure. "Sorry, I shouldn't have asked. It's uandable; just thinking about it, that kind of feeling must be difficult to bear."

  "It's all right, Fugaku-sama. I'm fine."

  "I wasn't talking about you."

  Fugaku decided to stop asking questions and picked up his teacup again. No point hoping; if he were in Obito's pce, he wouldn't e back either.

  "Do you have any idea what Obito's pnning?"

  "He's after the ails."

  "Hm?" Fugaku put down his teacup again. "Are you certain? Is the information reliable?"

  "Extremely reliable. He told me himself." Masashi, feeling thirsty, gulped down his tea and tinued. "There's this strahio him g to be the Will of Madara. That thing isn't simple."

  "Obito's strength has transformed—he's even awakehe Mangekyō Sharingan."

  At this point, Fugaku could hardly sit still in his office.

  " you describe that so-called Will of Madara?"

  "Well… it actually looks pretty unique. Fugaku-sama, you uand. Let's say, it's like a sheep letting out a goat-like fart—both fshy and eous."

  Uand? What nonsense is that? Fugaku almost couldn't hold back from giving Masashi a taste of Mangekyō as well.

  This geion's young people were irong—two Mangekyōs, and a third with the potential to awaken one. Sihe founding of the vilge, the Uchiha had never been so powerful.

  But each had a quirk more serious tha, and Masashi robably the most stable among them.

  Fugaku decided to focus more on training Itachi from now on.

  Looking at Masashi, he reflected on how the boy possessed three chakra transformations—fire, wind, and water, just like his own son.

  Perhaps that recisely why he o ask this now.

  "Masashi."

  "Yes?"

  "Do you have a girl you like?"

  "Huh?" Masashi was caught off guard.

  The ninja s shared many characteristics with noble families, such as the importance of lineage and the encement of the younger geion to marry and have children.

  The Uchiha had an official matchmaking er, though the young people never went. It was always the parents and grandparents.

  For someone like Masashi, who had awakehe Sharingan, the would do everything it could to ence an internal match. If he were to find a girlfriend outside the , her entire family history would be thhly examio ehere were ic issues.

  As for Masashi, he enly averse te. What if he had to gh it a third time?

  Besides, he felt more suited to assigning work than doing it himself.

  "Fugaku-sama, you uand…"

  "I don't uand." Fugaku interrupted. "Just tell me whether you do or not."

  "Of course I do."

  "Hm!?" Fugaku was shocked, but then he really did uand.

  Looks like this guy needs a match. He cks discipline.

  Thinking about how his wife had ged after marriage, he smirked internally. You think you uand women? No, kid, you have no clue.

  "All right, I get it. I'll arrange somethihere's o stress. It won't hurt to meet a few people. Also, there's something I want to discuss personally."

  Not giving Masashi a ce to deflect, Fugaku quickly switched topics. "About Itachi, what do you think of him?"

  "Itachi?" So this was his real agenda. "Something up with him tely?"

  "I asked Shisui to help train him before, but now I'd like you to mentor him for a while. He has the same chakra nature transformations as you."

  "Oh?" Masashi tried to recall.

  He vaguely remembered that Itachi used water-style jutsu, but he wasn't sure. Previously, Masashi wouldn't have wao teayone, but now he didn't mind.

  "Sure, no problem. But Fugaku-sama, everyone's busy with missions, right?"

  "Don't worry. Over the st three months, the 's mission frequency has slowed, and at least there won't be as many high-level tasks."

  Masashi nodded. Ihree months was abht.

  In the shinobi corps, ninjas with official positions didn't usually take on missions uhere ecial need. If not for the previous rush fh-level missions, the Uchiha wouldn't have had as many opportunities.

  High-level missions were limited iime, and three months lenty of time to plete most of them.

  However, with the year's end approag, the avaible missions for the Uchiha were likely mostly taken.

  "Got it. When should I start? Also, is there any guidan what I should teach?"

  "No specific requirements—teach as you see fit."

  "All right then, Fugaku-sama, about—"

  "Mm, that's all for now. You may go. Your information is critical; I o call a cil meeting immediately."

  Once again, Fugaku cut him off.

  He realized this was deliberate, muttering to himself but not really bothered.

  A matchmaking session? It was hardly a big deal.

  There was a fine liween a matchmaking session and just messing around. It was only thanks to his principles that he didn't get involved with members. Otherwise, would Fugaku o set him up?

  His family members, whehey visit, always brought home a stack of profiles. Before Obito's sacrifice, his grandmother brought even more.

  But what was the point?

  Nothing could stop him from shining brightly for this world.

  He would always be the man the women of Konoha couldn't fully have. At most, they could have him temporarily, but his heart—never. His heart beloo everyone.

  After all, he was a man from the of Love.