Konoha: The Thirty-Year-Old Uchiha Can’t Be Bothered

As the two children grew older, their maturing bodies allowed them to handle their Sharingan more skillfully. Yao gradually began to focus purely on research, no longer engaging them in much unnecessary conversation.

"Eating candy again? Aren't you afraid of your teeth rotting out? I'm telling Grandpa Myo—"

The girl spotted the boy secretly unwrapping a candy and immediately warned him.

"Mmm! Mmm!"

Before she could finish, Gin moved faster than the eye could see, stuffing another piece of candy into her mouth. Tasting the sweetness on her lips and feeling the warmth of his hand, her little face flushed pink like a ripe peach.

"We're family, okay? Don't you dare sell me out."

Faced with her threat, Gin reluctantly sacrificed some of his stash to bribe her. This slightly younger girl was his childhood friend. As someone with no interest in "bronze," he always saw her as a little sister.

Gin was, and always would be, a staunch onee-san type!

No rentou! And absolutely no nantong!

"…Family?"

Those three words were the only thing she heard clearly. Her mind short-circuited, and she almost fainted from embarrassment.

"Hey? Hey?! Why aren't you saying anything?"

When she didn't respond, Gin frowned at the blushing girl, worried he might have smothered her somehow. He quickly withdrew his hand.

"Ah! Why'd you faint again?!"

Recently, the girl had started acting strange — after just a few words with Gin, her face would burn and she'd collapse if he got close.

At first, it scared Gin witless. He even called for help several times. But as it happened more and more, no one paid it any mind. The older ladies in the lab even started pointing and whispering knowingly, leaving Gin dumbfounded.

It was all a misunderstanding!

She's just my little sister!

At that moment, the infirmary door opened.

It was Yao, long unseen.

But this time he wore no warmth on his face. He entered coldly, and when he saw the unconscious girl, he frowned and turned away, ordering his men to take her away.

Gin, sensing something was off, stepped forward.

"Hey! Hey! Where are you taking Hikari?"

Yao stiffly turned his head. His pitch-black eyes were lifeless as he stared at Gin for a long moment, as if trying to confirm something.

At length, he finally spoke.

"A new experiment. You'll be called later."

His voice was utterly devoid of emotion, like a soulless machine.

"Old man?"

Yao's chilling gaze made Gin uneasy. It was as though he were inspecting a mere tool — not his own grandson.

When Gin called him old man, a flicker of anger flashed in Yao's eyes, but was quickly swallowed by darkness.

Without another word, Yao turned and left with his men and the girl, leaving Gin alone, stunned.

But only for a moment.

Feeling something was wrong, Gin dashed out of the infirmary, ignoring the guards' protests, and ran straight to Myo's office.

"What? You're saying Grandpa Myo was sent out to search for clan records?"

Panting heavily, Gin stood in Myo's empty office and turned to the guard who'd blocked him.

"That's right. Elder Myo left yesterday. Said it'd take several days."

The guard spoke truthfully. After all, he didn't dare offend the clan leader's nephew.

"…Fine."

With no one else to turn to, Gin thought of another round, plump figure and ran to the security office.

But the men there told him:

"Elder En also left yesterday. Said he went to the dungeon to find experimental subjects. Won't be back today."

Both elders conveniently sent away? That couldn't be coincidence.

Gin's unease grew.

He decided to go find his uncle.

But as soon as he reached the research facility gates, someone stopped him.

"Sorry. From today onward, you're not allowed to leave until further notice."

The gate guards blocked his path with icy formality.

Gin noted that the guards were unfamiliar faces. His sense of danger deepened.

Both elders gone, new guards at the gate, and he wasn't allowed out…

Worried sick about Hikari's safety, Gin decided to ignore everything and confront Yao directly.

At that moment, inside the lab, the unconscious girl slowly came to.

She found herself strapped to a table, surrounded by strangers.

Panicked, she struggled, but to no avail — her chakra felt sealed, her Sharingan useless, her wrists and ankles already bleeding from the straps.

"Who are you people?!"

Furious and frightened, she glared at them and demanded an answer.

"'Weapons' must accept their fate as weapons."

One of the men spoke coldly.

"What weapons? I have a name. My name is Uchiha Hikari!"

Her defiant reply was met with disdain.

"Stop wasting your strength. This was always your destiny."

One stepped closer and pressed a black palm to her forehead.

An instant later, her head split with agony as a flood of memories poured in — her parents' deaths, her awakening of the Mangekyō, her capture, her lonely days in the dungeon…

Her mind buckled under the weight of it all.

"Aaaaahhhhhh!!!"

Her scream pierced the room, but she blacked out before she could see the shadowy hands reaching for her.

"A weapon doesn't need a name! You will live as a nameless weapon!"

Her name denied, darkness consumed her.

As she passed out again, the men around her suddenly melted like ink, slithering into a single shadow that crept toward Yao's feet.

Watching from afar, Yao's face remained impassive. His eyes were empty, as if he'd seen nothing.

When the black shadow merged with his own, his eyes slowly regained a faint glimmer.

BANG BANG BANG!!!

The laboratory door rattled under furious knocking.

Gin stood outside, his Sharingan spinning furiously, the tomoe on the verge of merging.

Finally, the door opened.

Yao stood there, cold and severe, meeting the boy's blazing gaze.

"What's your rush? You're next."

(End of Chapter)

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