Ten days later, Yami quietly returned to Konoha.
However, he was the only one who came back. He had arranged for Karin and her mother to stay in a former bandit base fifty kilometers away.
Of course, all the bandits there had already been eliminated by him.
He did this mainly to leave a traceable path for the mother and daughter.
Upon returning to the village, Yami took on a bandit elimination mission and headed out again. This time, he brought Karin and her mother along.
He brought them directly to the Hokage's office.
Looking at the two red-haired individuals standing in front of him, Hiruzen was momentarily stunned.
"You two… are you from the Uzumaki clan?"
"Yes."
Yami nodded. "I rescued them from a group of bandits by chance. Uzumaki Misa and Uzumaki Karin. They have nowhere else to go, so I brought them back."
"Third Hokage, please help register them."
Their situation was different from Pakura's. Pakura could live in secret for a while without revealing her identity, but Karin was too young.
Especially with her conspicuous red hair—only Hiruzen could arrange an official registration.
That's why Yami had gone to such lengths to put on this little show.
Hearing this, Hiruzen fell into deep thought.
Yami gently patted Karin's head, and she very cooperatively began to tear up.
"Old Man," he said with well-timed irritation, "what are you hesitating for? You scared the child to tears."
"A Hokage scaring a three-year-old. Shameful."
"Ahem, I just feel sorry for the Uzumaki clan. I got distracted for a moment…"
Hiruzen coughed awkwardly. "Alright, since you've brought them here, they can stay in the village from now on."
"Thank you, Hokage." Uzumaki Misa bowed deeply.
"No need to thank me." Hiruzen gave a familiar, kindly smile. "Just treat Konoha as your home."
The Uzumaki clan still held great value.
With proper training and mastery of powerful sealing techniques, they could serve as a strong suppressive force against tailed beasts—just like Kushina and even Uzumaki Mito in the past.
This could also help prevent Naruto from losing control in the future.
"Do you need me to arrange accommodations?" With that thought in mind, Hiruzen's tone grew even warmer.
"No need," Yami said immediately. "Aunt Misa's cooking suits my taste. I've hired her as my housekeeper."
Uzumaki Misa nodded repeatedly. This was the story they had agreed on beforehand.
She could already tell that Yami had no interest in this Hokage. Coincidentally, as a survivor of the Whirlpool Country, she herself didn't have a favorable view of Konoha's leadership.
So she had no intention of submitting to Hiruzen either.
"I see."
Although Hiruzen felt a bit disappointed, he still nodded and wrote up a registration note for Yami.
In the blink of an eye, two months passed since Yami brought Karin back.
Konoha had once again entered a snowy winter. In half a month, it would be the 55th year of the Konoha calendar.
"Yami-oniichan!"
Karin, who was reading a manga indoors, suddenly sensed something. Her eyes lit up as she ran downstairs, put on her little boots, and was about to head to the yard when the door opened.
Yami walked in with Yugao and Kurenai.
"Not bad," Yami praised as he patted her head. "Your sensory ability has improved a lot."
Receiving praise, Karin smiled even more brightly.
"Karin, do you only have eyes for Yami?" Kurenai asked playfully, pretending to be upset.
"No, no!" Karin quickly waved her hands. "I also sensed Aunt Kurenai and Aunt Yugao's chakra!"
Pfft!
The two girls' expressions darkened, and Yami couldn't help laughing.
The fact that Karin and Misa had moved into the Shimura household was no secret, especially to the two girls who frequently visited.
After learning of their past, both women felt sympathy. Kurenai had even accepted Karin as her little sister and took good care of her.
The only awkward part was the titles. Misa was only in her twenties—calling her "Aunt" was clearly inappropriate—so the two women let Karin call them that instead.
Misa came out of the kitchen. "Master Yami, you're back."
After two months of recovery, her vitality had returned, and her fiery red hair was once again full of life.
"Misa-san." Kurenai and Yugao released the pitiful Karin and greeted Misa with a smile.
That was the issue.
Misa was still young, so it didn't feel right for them to call her "Aunt." In the end, they left that job to Karin.
After changing into more comfortable clothes, Yami looked around and asked, "Where's Pakura?"
"She went to Root." Misa replied while bringing out freshly sliced fruit from the kitchen.
"Did your mission go smoothly?"
"When I'm involved, things never go wrong," Yami said smugly. Kurenai rolled her eyes.
"You're the source of most of the trouble."
Yami curled his lips and didn't argue.
This mission did stem from him.
After the Chūnin Exams ended, all major ninja villages had received intel. The most agitated response came from Suna, which sent multiple teams to assassinate him.
But with Pakura's presence, their methods and communication channels were easily exposed and broken.
This time, Yami's team had gone to Tansho Street and eliminated a Suna infiltration team.
Their leader was a Jōnin, while the other two were special Jōnin.
With the failure of this mission, Suna would likely keep a low profile for a while.
The silent death of a Jōnin implied that even Elite Jōnin were at risk. Given how precious they were to their village, Suna wouldn't casually risk them again.
What were they going to do, send Rasa to assassinate Yami?
If he did, Yami would be thrilled.
He'd never killed a Kage-level ninja before.
After staying home for a while, Yami headed out to pick up Izumi.
Karin also changed into her outdoor clothes and followed behind like a little tail.
"In two years, you'll be able to go to the academy."
"I don't want to! I want to stay with Yami-oniichan!"
"No, going to school will teach you useful things. It'll help you better support me in the future."
"Then I'll go. I want to graduate early, just like Yami-oniichan!"
"Nope. Kids should enjoy their childhood. I regret graduating so early. Now I'm a wage slave. It's all Itachi's fault. What's the point of being such a genius?"
"Uchiha Itachi is so annoying! When I grow up, I'll kill him!"
"Good, keep that energy."
Just as Yami was guiding Karin further down a crooked path, they heard mocking laughter and faint crying.
"Your eyes are gross!"
"You're a monster! Who doesn't have pupils?"
"White-eyed freak! White-eyed freak!"
They looked over and saw three children, about four or five years old, surrounding a small girl with short lavender hair and pure white eyes, saying nasty things.
The white-eyed girl looked aggrieved and terrified, her tears streaming down.
Yami frowned, picked up a small stone, and flicked it at them.
"Ouch!"
All three covered their heads.
"Who did that?!"
Yami walked over with Karin. Seeing an older child approaching, the three troublemakers immediately lost their nerve.
"Why'd you throw a rock at us?" one asked timidly.
"Because clearly, no one taught you basic manners."
Yami didn't care about the whole "don't bully the weak" thing. He kicked each of them, and they started bawling—much louder than the girl had been.
"Daring to cry now?"
"Karin, beat them till they stop crying."
"Yes, Yami-oniichan!"
Karin charged forward with her little fists. With her Uzumaki physique and the self-defense Misa had taught her, it was no problem for her to deal with older kids.
While Karin enthusiastically handed out beatings, Yami squatted down to check on the white-eyed girl.
Thankfully, the boys had only used words, not violence.
The little girl had forgotten to cry. She stared blankly at Yami.
"Don't remember me?" Yami raised an eyebrow and asked softly.
"I do…" she nodded instinctively. "You're…"
"I'm the one you were peeking at through the door last time."
Her face flushed bright red, and she looked like she might faint.
That time, she'd been curious about what was happening at home, wondering why all the adults had left.
Through the doorway, she saw her always-strict father being kind to a boy not much older than her.
"My name is Shimura Yami. What's yours?"
"M-my name is Hyūga Hinata," the little girl replied, poking her fingers together.
"Yami-oniichan, mission complete!"
Karin ran back excitedly as the three kids fled while clutching their faces.
"Well done."
After praising Karin, Yami turned back to Hinata. "As the Hyūga clan's main family daughter, shouldn't you be able to beat up a few civilians?"
Hinata shook her head weakly. "My father says I mustn't hurt others without cause…"
"What does 'without cause' mean, exactly?"
Yami pinched her cheek, making her blush again. "Go find some random person and call him a white-eyed freak in front of your father. Count how many times he uses Eight Trigrams."
"Remember, if someone ever says something like that to you again, beat them up. If you can't win, call the adults. Got it?"
"I-I got it…" Hinata nodded cautiously.
"Good girl." Yami nodded, lifting her chin gently. "Your eyes are beautiful. Those kids were just blind."
"Yami…" Hinata was on the verge of fainting again.
Karin, standing nearby, looked curiously at Hinata's white pupils. A hint of envy flashed through her eyes.
Those were the eyes Yami had praised… She wanted a pair too.
"Lady Hinata!"
"Lady Hinata!"
Two voices rang out in the distance.
Two Hyūga clan ninja quickly arrived via the rooftops. Seeing Hinata safe, they sighed in relief.
Just as they were about to approach, a black blur flashed before them.
Bang!
Both were sent flying, clutching their chests in pain.
The white-eyed girl was stunned.
Yami stood over them with a cold expression. "Trash."
"M-Master Yami, why did you attack us?" one asked through clenched teeth.
"You can't even guard a four-year-old. What use are you?"
Yami stepped on his chest. "Two chūnin, and you lose track of a child?"
Hinata was lucky this time, only encountering a few brats.
What if it had been enemy spies?
You'd be collecting her body!
This was the part Yami hated the most about this plot.
It was one thing for kids to tease the "White-Eyed Princess." They were civilians and didn't understand.
But what about her guards? Even if Hinata wasn't favored, for the sake of her Byakugan alone, Hiashi would never let her wander unprotected.
These two showed up ten minutes late.
Calling them trash was putting it mildly.
Cold sweat dripped from their foreheads. They finally realized how serious their mistake was.
"I'll report this to the clan head. You two better reflect on yourselves."
Ignoring them, Yami returned to Hinata and extended a hand.
"Come on, I'll take you home."
When they arrived at the Hyūga compound, Yami handed Hinata over to Hiashi.
After hearing what happened, Hiashi's face darkened instantly, and Hinata lowered her head in shame.
Taking a deep breath, Hiashi bowed slightly.
"Thank you for the warning. I will increase security around Hinata. This won't happen again."
A father bowing to an outsider—Hiashi found it strange, but the anger in his heart only grew stronger.
He never expected his branch house guards to be so negligent, just because he hadn't been kind to Hinata lately.
"If it's not too much trouble, would you stay for dinner?"
"No need. People are waiting for me at home."
Yami declined and left with Karin for the ninja academy.
After they left, Hiashi's expression darkened further.
"Hinata, go rest in your room."
"Yes, Father."
She ran off like she'd been granted amnesty.
Soon, the new year arrived.
Even shinobi got a few days off during the New Year.
On New Year's Day, Yami spent the day with Pakura, Karin and Misa, his teammates, Izumi, and Izumi's mother.
They all had hot pot together.
At night, he returned to the Shimura ancestral home to spend time with Danzō.
Watching Yami grow day by day, Danzō felt comforted.
No matter how dark the shinobi world became, there would always be people worth protecting.
And on the last day of the break, news of the Kumo Shinobi delegation's arrival reached Hiruzen.
(To be continued.)
***
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