Shindai followed Itachi and successfully entered the Uchiha clan compound.
This was Shindai's first time visiting the Uchiha compound, so he looked around curiously.
Itachi was secretly observing Shindai too.
Their first meeting had been at Minato Namikaze's wedding, when Itachi had found Shindai somewhat strange.
Later on, he had heard the name "Shindai" mentioned several times by his father, Fugaku Uchiha.
Then came the aftermath of the Nine-Tails' attack—since then, Shindai's name had become well known throughout Konoha.
Recently, aside from hearing about Obito, Shisui, and his father Fugaku, the name Itachi heard most frequently was Shindai.
Together with Obito, Shindai had used their Susanoo to drive the Nine-Tails out of Konoha, preventing further destruction.
According to rumors circulating in Konoha, Shindai was one of Minato's closest confidants. He was incredibly strong, stood out among the new generation of ninja, and played a crucial role during the Nine-Tails' attack.
This was technically the first formal interaction between Itachi and Shindai, and what struck Itachi about Shindai was... how oddly he behaved.
"Itachi~"
As they walked deeper into the Uchiha compound, a girl about the same age as Itachi called out to him before running up quickly.
"Itachi, where did you go earlier? I couldn't find you anywhere."
Itachi replied, "Izumi, I stepped out to get a few things. I'm on my way home now. Did you need me for anything?"
Izumi's cheeks suddenly turned slightly red as she kept her head lowered, though her eyes involuntarily glanced toward Itachi. "That... can I go with you to see Sasuke?"
Smiling gently, Itachi agreed, "Want to see Sasuke? Sure."
Suddenly, Shindai interjected with a teasing grin, "Tch, come on, 'see Sasuke'? You're really here to see someone else, aren't you?"
Looking slightly puzzled, Izumi whispered to Itachi, "Who is this person?"
Itachi introduced, "He's my older brother, Shindai. I'm taking Shindai to meet Father."
"Oh! Hello there, Master Shindai!"
Upon hearing "Shindai," Izumi clearly recognized the name and immediately bowed respectfully.
Scratching his head, Shindai laughed, "Whoa, being called 'Master' for the first time feels kinda awkward~"
Looking at Itachi and Izumi, Shindai sighed, "Childhood promise to marry—innocent and pure—this must be youth... I wonder where my own youth has gone."
Whispering into Itachi's ear, Izumi asked, "Why does Master Shindai seem so odd?"
Itachi shrugged, indicating that he didn't know either—even he found Shindai rather puzzling.
Truthfully speaking, Itachi also found it somewhat strange that Izuna had suddenly approached him asking to see Sasuke.
The truth was, Itachi and Izumi hadn't interacted much. During the Nine-Tails' attack, Izumi had been separated from her family, and Itachi happened to be passing by, helping her reunite with the evacuees.
Later, Izumi especially came to thank Itachi. She originally wanted to hug the infant Sasuke, but Sasuke burst into tears, thrashing about violently and even scratching Izumi's face.
At that time, even though Izumi was clearly startled by Sasuke's loud crying, Itachi never expected that she'd still want to go see Sasuke.
When they arrived at the house, Itachi called out, "I'm back!"
Mikoto Uchiha opened the door and saw Shindai standing behind Itachi. Surprised, she said, "Shindai?"
Since Mikoto and Kushina Uzumaki were close friends, Shindai and Mikoto had also gotten to know each other through this connection.
Shindai said to Mikoto Uchiha, "Mikoto, I'm here to see Clan Leader Fugaku. I have something to give him and a message to deliver."
Mikoto Uchiha warmly welcomed them. "This is actually Shindai's first visit to my home. Please come in quickly—I'll go call Fugaku." She added with a smile, "Oh, Izumi came too."
Izumi timidly stood behind Itachi and said, "Yes, I came to see Sasuke."
Mikoto Uchiha smiled and said, "Is that right? Itachi, take Izumi to play with Sasuke while I entertain Shindai."
"Okay."
Itachi took Izumi to find Sasuke.
Shindai entered the main room and sat at the table. After pouring a cup of tea for Shindai, Mikoto Uchiha said, "Shindai, please wait just a moment while I go get Fugaku."
Not long after, Fugaku Uchiha arrived at the main room.
Fugaku Uchiha felt quite delighted upon learning Shindai had come because he knew that since Shindai had taken on two tasks for him, there must be at least one positive outcome—otherwise Shindai wouldn't have come here so soon.
He hadn't expected her to finish things up so quickly.
Although Shindai seemed rather eccentric, his efficiency was truly impressive.
Before Fugaku Uchiha could even offer a polite word of thanks, Shindai already pulled out a scroll: "Clan Leader Fugaku, these are four Ninjutsu written by Hikaku Uchiha."
Seeing the scroll handed to him by Shindai, Fugaku Uchiha immediately realized that Hikaku Uchiha had not agreed to return to live within the Uchiha clan compound.
Otherwise, if Hikaku wished to return to the compound, there would be no need to specially write down those jutsu techniques and send them through Shindai—it would've been easier just coming directly to the compound and telling him in person.
Fugaku Uchiha accepted the scroll and thanked Shindai, "Thank you very much indeed, Shindai."
Shindai waved his hand casually, saying, "Just a small favor. Oh, regarding your request for Hikaku to return to the Uchiha compound—I brought it up, but she asked me to decline. She doesn't wish to return. Honestly, I think it's better this way."
"Clan Leader Fugaku, think about it. Although Minato said that because of the Seal, Hikaku's actual age is about the same as ours, theoretically speaking, she belongs to a granny-level generation compared to you. In that case, due to the generational difference, you wouldn't be able to interact with Hikaku normally anyway."
Suddenly, Shindai heard Hikaku Uchiha's voice in his ear: "If you say 'granny' one more time, you're dead meat!"
Shindai shouted, his face turned red: "If you keep peeping into my business again, YOU'RE dead meat! Not me!"
Fugaku Uchiha was suddenly taken aback by Shindai, but quickly regained his composure.
Through the [Eight Trigrams Sealing Array] Imprint, Hikaku Uchiha could monitor everything Shindai was doing.
Clan Leader Fugaku's guess was bang on. Worried about what weird things Shindai might do with the items they purchased, Pakura asked Hikaku to check on Shindai using the Imprint.
But unfortunately, Hikaku just happened to hear Shindai saying "granny."
"Huff" — Shindai exhaled deeply, forcing a faint smile before saying to Fugaku Uchiha: "Sorry for losing my composure."
Fugaku Uchiha took a well-timed sip of water: "Uh...it's fine."
Shindai continued: "Now Hikaku is living happily at my place, so let her continue staying with us. We'll take good care of her, so there's no need to worry."
Fugaku had already mentally prepared himself. Although Hikaku joining Konoha meant she had forgiven the past, the previous wounds were still real.
Fugaku nodded in agreement: "Alright, I'll leave Hikaku in your hands then."
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