Chapter 146: Childhood Sweetheart vs. The Girl Who Fell from the Sky

The three of them were as eager as arrows returning to their bow; the journey that should have taken two days was completed in just one, and they hurried back to the clan grounds.

Seeing the familiar gate of the clan grounds from afar, the young girl felt a bit hesitant. More than a decade had passed since she was sealed; things had changed and people were gone. Was there still a place for her inside?

"Hikari, what's wrong? We're almost home."

Noticing the young girl's hesitation, Uchiha Gin turned his head and spoke to Hikari, whose steps had become slightly constrained.

That's right, she still had Gin as family; she had a home too.

Thinking of this, the young girl let go of the misgivings in her heart and followed the two of them through the clan gate.

"It hasn't changed much; it's still the same familiar look."

Feeling the atmosphere around her, the young girl squinted her eyes, looking at the clan grounds—which were little different from before she was sealed—with an expression of enjoyment, her heart involuntarily relaxing.

"Gin, from now on, you will be responsible for her daily life. If there is anything, I will send someone to contact you."

Eager to return to handle his work, Uchiha Tajima arranged for the young girl to be cared for by Uchiha Gin directly. In any case, the two had been close before, and doing this was just going with the flow.

"Understood."

Hearing that the task of caring for Hikari was being handed to him, Uchiha Gin was stunned for a moment, then immediately understood his uncle's intention and readily agreed.

"Uncle, it doesn't matter when you aren't using your ocular power, but when you are fighting, you must never take off that cloak."

Worried that Uchiha Tajima might be taken advantage of by his dark personality, Uchiha Gin spoke up to remind him.

"Mm, I know."

After giving a few simple instructions, Uchiha Tajima left in a hurry.

"As the clan head, Uncle is very busy, so you must never become a leader in the future."

Watching Uchiha Tajima's receding back, Uchiha Gin said earnestly to the young girl beside him,

"Alright, let's go home too!"

"Gin, where do you live now?"

In the young girl's memory, Uchiha Gin, whose memory had been tampered with, lived in a very remote place, and she would often sneak over to peek; the house was old and small.

Now that there was a strange boy inside, was it really convenient for her to go and disturb them?

"Still the same old place, but I've built a new big mansion. Don't worry about having nowhere to stay; you can pick any room you like when you get there."

Knowing what Hikari was worried about, Uchiha Gin waved his hand boldly, indicating she shouldn't worry; his place definitely provided food, lodging, and total satisfaction.

The young girl walked side-by-side with Uchiha Gin on the way home. The older clan members who saw Uchiha Gin all frowned, a trace of inexplicable disgust appearing in their eyes. Seeing the cloaked girl beside him, they began to whisper.

"Where did that guy abduct another young girl from? I heard he was even stalking an underage girl a while ago. Bah! Truly a disgrace to the Uchiha."

Even without sensory abilities, the young girl could read the malice these clan members radiated toward Gin, and she clenched her fists tightly.

Gritting her teeth and just about to say something, she keenly heard the gossip they were whispering and her expression suddenly changed, revealing a look of vigilance.

"Gin? What they said..."

"Don't listen to these old biddies wagging their tongues. They don't do any real work, just spend their days spreading rumors."

Uchiha Gin's face turned dark, and he grabbed the young girl's hand, leading a blushing Hikari away from this place of trouble.

"Wow~~~"

Looking at the strange, luxurious big house before her, the young girl was so shocked she couldn't close her mouth, her beautiful eyes wide open in an expression of disbelief.

"Come, come, don't be shy, just treat it like your own home."

While greeting the shocked young girl, he walked up and started banging on the door, shouting loudly,

"You brat, open up! Your foster father is home!"

Following a burst of hurried footsteps, the door that had been knocked on for a long time was suddenly pushed open. Fortunately, Uchiha Gin reacted quickly, escaping the lethal blow that would have sent him flying.

"You brat, haven't seen you in a few days, and you want to kill me to inherit my big mansion?"

Cursing, Uchiha Gin swiped at him, wanting to give the Senju brat a righteous punishment, but the other party dodged it skillfully.

"You curly-haired ape, you're actually alive? Heaven must be blind."

Itama Senju, who hadn't been seen for a long time, rolled his eyes, his delicate little face full of disdain. With his hands on his hips, he complained impatiently.

He had thought he could enjoy a few more days of peace, but he hadn't expected this guy to return so soon. He even had a date to eat grilled meat with Zhili-jie today! And he came back empty-handed—didn't he promise to bring him a souvenir?

"Unreasonable! You rebellious brat!"

Itching with frustration at this guy, Uchiha Gin rolled up his sleeves, preparing to teach this brat how to act like an adult and let him know who was really in charge of this house.

Uchiha Hikari, standing to the side, did not make a sound after seeing their interaction; instead, her delicate brows were locked tight, her eyes full of doubt and regret.

Just now, when Itama Senju opened the door, the moment she saw this strange child, a sense of crisis involuntarily rose in the young girl's heart. Then, after carefully examining the other party from head to toe, the heart Uchiha Hikari had been holding in suspense finally died.

"Gin, who is this?"

Barely suppressing the doubts in her heart, Uchiha Hikari took a step forward and naturally took Uchiha Gin's arm, pressing her budding chest tightly against him. She asked with an innocent face, her brows carrying a hint of fragility and guilelessness that made one feel pity.

"Tsk, I forgot to introduce you. This kid is the one I told you about. Isn't he just asking for a beating?"

Although he was very puzzled by the young girl's sudden change, Uchiha Gin did not suspect anything, assuming it was just social anxiety from not interacting with people for a long time. He then pointed to the snarling Itama Senju to explain to her.

"Who is this suspicious person?"

Itama Senju, who had been bickering with Uchiha Gin, only then noticed the cloaked girl standing to the side.

Seeing the other party suddenly press against Uchiha Gin, for some reason, an nameless fire rose in his heart. Seeing her "tea-like" performance, this nameless fire shot straight to his crown, so he asked unpleasantly,

"Don't just bring random people home. If you're in heat, go solve it in the woods."

"You brat!"

Just as Uchiha Gin was about to properly educate this sharp-tongued brat, Uchiha Hikari grabbed his hand, shook her head to signal him not to be angry, and then walked gracefully toward Itama Senju.

She took off her cloak's hood, revealing her beautiful face, smiled sweetly at the gnashing Itama brat, straightened her body—which was a few years more mature than the other's—and said sincerely,

"Hello, my name is Uchiha Hikari. I am Gin's childhood sweetheart who grew up with him. Thank you for taking care of him while I was away."

Having said that, she bowed slightly to the Itama Senju before her. When she raised her pretty face again, there was a hint of provocation, and her beautiful eyes were full of fighting spirit.

"Hmph! Hypocritical Uchiha."

Itama Senju's teeth were almost ground to dust. Although Uchiha Hikari's cultivation wasn't particularly high, the Senju brat ultimately suffered from her age. With her shallow experience, she was completely crushed by the other party in the first encounter. After falling into a disadvantage, she could only huff coldly and say no more.

"Alright, alright, let's go inside to talk. What's the point of standing outside?"

The originally noisy scene suddenly became quiet. Uchiha Gin, who didn't know the two had already engaged in a round of confrontation, was a bit confused, but it wasn't good to leave them out there, so he quickly broke the damn silence and invited the two to hurry inside.

After the three entered the house, they sat in the living room in an equilateral triangle. Both sides tacitly maintained the same distance, their eyes examining each other, with lightning faintly sparking between them.

"I'll go make you some tea."

The Senju brat took the initiative to attack, relying on her familiarity with the terrain. After standing up, she expertly took tea leaves from the cabinet to brew them, then brought the fragrant tea to the two. After placing it in front of Uchiha Hikari, she raised her little face with a hint of triumph.

Tsk, this little BZ.

The young girl's hand holding the teacup tightened, almost crushing the expensive porcelain Uchiha Gin had purchased at a high price.

"Hoo~~~ Brat, the tea you brewed isn't bad!"

Having gone out on a mission and not having drunk tea for several days, Uchiha Gin took a small sip of the tea Itama Senju had carefully brewed. Relishing the lingering fragrance in his throat, he couldn't help but praise her.

Hearing Uchiha Gin's praise, Itama Senju, who rarely didn't talk back, raised an eyebrow at Uchiha Hikari, who was bringing the cup to her lips, the provocation in her eyes growing even more intense.

"CRACK!!!"

"Ah! ~~"

Finally unable to hold back, the teacup in Uchiha Hikari's hand shattered violently. Scalding tea splashed, and the young girl covered her little hand, her delicate brows furrowing in grievance, her face full of a pained expression.

"Hikari! Are you okay?!"

Seeing the teacup suddenly crack and Uchiha Hikari looking as if she had been scalded by the hot tea, Uchiha Gin hurried over, took the young girl's little hand, and asked with a nervous expression.

"Mm~~ I'm fine, I can endure it. After all, I've been sealed for so many years..."

Seeing that her plan had succeeded, the young girl looked at Uchiha Gin, who was looking down at her little hand, and the corners of her mouth curled into a subtle smile. Her smiling eyes looked at Itama Senju to the side, as if telling her,

Compared to me, you're still not on my level.

Tsk, hateful old woman.

Itama Senju suppressed the anger in her heart, sat to the side, and watched Uchiha Hikari's performance in silence, plotting how to counterattack.

"Hey, that's it. My technique isn't bad, right!"

As the green light on his hands faded, Uchiha Gin looked at the young girl's smooth, as-good-as-new hand and said with a hint of pride; it was good that he knew quite a few things.

【Mystical Palm Technique】: Outputs chakra from the palms to increase the healing ability of wounds or affected areas.

This medical ninjutsu was a skill he had "brushed" from Tsunade in the backyard, but he usually didn't have a chance to use it. This was the first time he had performed it on the young girl, and it looked like the effect was quite good.

"Gin, you're so amazing. I've never seen you perform this ninjutsu before."

Uchiha Hikari, who had originally wanted to put on a show of suffering, saw that Uchiha Gin had actually healed her burn with a ninjutsu she didn't know when he had learned. Stroking her smooth, fair, and soft hand, she exclaimed with genuine surprise.

"Hehe, I just know a tiny bit of the basics; I still have a lot to learn."

Hearing the young girl's praise, a very satisfied Uchiha Gin immediately stated that he still needed to continue studying hard; the days ahead were long, and he could not be arrogant.

Bah, this old woman, she acted so well I almost believed her.

Watching the two being lovey-dovey, Itama Senju, who was left on the sidelines, ground her teeth in frustration and muttered to herself in her heart,

"Hmph! I would have healed from a small wound like that in minutes."

After all, with her constitution, a small wound like that would probably have the scab fall off before it even needed a bandage.

(End of chapter)