"Saitama!!"
Uchiha Mori sat on Uchiha Tianming's left side, gesturing for Saitama to come over. He had a creepy grin that gave Saitama the chills.
"What's up? How about your little girlfriend, hehe," Uchiha Mori whispered as soon as Saitama approached.
Saitama glanced around. The meeting hadn't started yet; not everyone had arrived, and those who were there stood far enough away that nobody seemed to be paying attention. He shot Mori a glare and silently dropped into the empty seat on Uchiha Tianming's right.
He gave a brief nod to Uchiha Tianming before plunking himself down into the chair.
Right now, in this camp, Saitama was widely seen as the third-in-command of the Uchiha Clan, with huge prestige—especially among the younger members.
This was a meeting of the Uchiha Clan, specifically organized by Uchiha Tianming to analyze what lay ahead.
Those present were several high-ranking captains of the Uchiha forces—not many in number.
"Saitama, I heard you ran into the Seven Swords of the Bloody Mist during this mission, and even defeated two of them on your own?"
Uchiha Tianming hadn't participated personally in this operation, but the intelligence reports had already landed on his desk. When he first saw such reports, he felt surprised—although he'd always rated Saitama's abilities highly and knew he could kill regular Jonin, these were famous figures from throughout the Shinobi World. This encounter only increased Saitama's value in Tianming's eyes.
"Well, I did run into the Seven Swords, but I didn't fight two at once—I handled them one at a time. If both had attacked together, it wouldn't have been so easy," Saitama admitted honestly, though with clear humility.
"That's still impressive. They're renowned shinobi across the entire Shinobi World, each possessing at least the strength of a regular Jonin. With their unique ninja swords, even elite Jonin might struggle to gain an advantage against them."
Uchiha Tianming looked pleased as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully—the sparse beard there intentionally grown long.
"Mm," Saitama responded quietly while staring at the table, hands folded.
"To have someone like you in the Uchiha Clan—our ancestors must truly be smiling down on us!"
Uchiha Tianming's comment wandered somewhat, and Saitama wasn't quite sure how to respond, so he remained silent.
"Cough! Cough!" Uchiha Mori interrupted when he noticed Uchiha Tianming starting another sentimental soliloquy, clearing his throat a couple times as a subtle reminder.
Right at that moment, several more Uchiha shinobi entered the tent from outside, completing the guest list. The meeting officially began.
Uchiha Tianming addressed the current battlefield situation, warning all captain-level shinobi to remain cautious while doing their best to assist their subordinates, aiming to reduce losses suffered by the Uchiha during this war.
Only after minimizing casualties should they focus on achieving excellent combat results.
The meeting went on for nearly two hours straight. That kind of stamina matched someone who'd long stood at the top of the Uchiha hierarchy. His speaking skills alone were unmatched—even compared to his ninja talents.
As the meeting dragged on, the ninjas present—including Uchiha Mori—began to feel a sense of despair. Secretly, they all wished for battle instead of enduring this endless meeting.
As for Saitama, within five minutes after it started, he had already completely zoned out and wasn't hearing a word Uchiha Tianming was saying.
"Phew! He sure can talk!" Saitama said as he walked back toward his residence with Uchiha Mori. The flickering firelight barely lit up the dark around them.
"It's all for the clan's good. Tianming-sama works tirelessly behind the scenes, so don't complain," Mori replied, stretching lazily.
"I know. You go rest yourself—I'll just take a walk around."
Saitama waved and turned around, heading toward the edge of the Uchiha district.
It was already around nine in the evening. Many ninja who returned earlier in the day were already resting, but Saitama still felt energetic and showed no sign of fatigue.
This was the time he'd agreed on with Shizune. He needed to go meet up with her and get some bonding time in.
...
Arriving at the clearing, Saitama saw a small figure already sitting on the fallen log.
Standing only about 1.5 meters tall, Shizune really did look small next to him, but that height difference somehow made her even cuter.
"Psst!"
Approaching several meters behind Shizune, Saitama realized that despite not deliberately softening his footsteps, she hadn't noticed his presence yet, so he called out softly.
"Oh? You're here already, Saitama!" Shizune jumped up from the log and spun around with a cheerful start, her short hair swaying as she moved.
"What were you thinking about so intently?"
Saitama sat beside her, leaning back slightly with his hands supporting him against the log.
"Nothing much. Was the meeting over?" Smiling gently, Shizune paused, then blushed and lowered her gaze slightly, looking up at Saitama with clear eyes reflecting his image.
"Yeah, it ended. Man, I'm exhausted! This was even worse than one of Tsunade-sama's marathon meetings!" Saitama shrugged, making an exaggerated show of fatigue.
"Maybe I can give your shoulders a quick massage? Whenever Tsunade-sama gets tired, she always calls for me. I've even picked up some special techniques at Konoha Hospital."
Shizune paused for a moment, then blushed and lowered her gaze as she spoke to Saitama.
"Great! Let's see what you've got," Saitama nodded, lowering himself further to give Shizune more room to work.
"Okay!" She agreed, stood up and moved behind Saitama, placing her hands on his shoulders and starting the massage using what she'd learned.
"How is it?" After working for a while, Shizune asked. Saitama noticed that her hands had initially trembled slightly—unsteady at first—but had now stabilized nicely with perfect pressure.
"Not bad at all. Actually pretty comfortable," Saitama tilted his head sideways, leaning into Shizune's hand.
"Eep!"
Shizune jumped in surprise, her hands froze mid-massage, and she let out a small cry.
"Keep going. What are you afraid of?" Saitama reminded her to continue, keeping his eyes half-closed as pure relaxation radiated from his entire being.
"Oh, come to think of it, I finally mastered the Mystical Palm Technique not long ago. Even Tsunade-sama said I have real talent."
"Shizune, you're so close," Saitama said, feeling her warm breath on the back of his neck as she sat beside him on the fallen log.
"Oh wow, you're amazing!" Saitama replied in a mocking tone, acting like an annoying smartass.
"Hmph!" Shizune huffed angrily, pressing down harder with her hands.
"Ow ow ow, I'm sorry already!" Though Saitama didn't actually feel any pain from the extra pressure, this was just how things often went between guys and girls—he faked it, and she bought it.
"Hmph! Let's see you mock me now!" She eased up again and continued massaging him normally.
"Do you want to learn? I can teach you," Shizune said, watching Saitama comfortably rest his head against her left hand. She gently straightened his head to face her.
"Seriously? If that's okay, then I'll give it a try. More skills never hurt." Saitama blinked in surprise, not expecting Shizune's words. Then he replied, "I guess I can learn."
"Mm, I even specially asked Tsunade-sama about it today, and she said it's okay to teach you."
Her voice was soft, but Saitama heard clearly.
"Woo! Hehehe," Saitama made an odd sound, prompting Shizune to press down hard again.
"Hmph!" Shizune snorted once more, deciding not to respond further.
"It won't be peaceful here anymore starting tomorrow."
Saitama looked into the distant night sky. The weather wasn't great tonight—thick with heavy, box-shaped cumulus clouds that signaled rain. Yet, stars stubbornly peeked through the gaps. The moon was bright too, its light shining through the clouds onto the earth. It was already July now, and the weather was beginning to turn hotter.
He had barely realized how long he'd been here—it had already been about five months.
"Phew!" Saitama shook his shoulder slightly, signaling that Shizune didn't need to keep massaging.
"Come over here and sit for a bit. You've made me even more tired now. Let's chat for a while before going back to rest."
He patted the spot to his left, and Shizune moved there, sitting very close to Saitama.
"The war here has finally begun. I heard the battle with Sunagakure is ending soon. I wonder when this place will finally calm down."
Saitama took one of Shizune's hands in his, simply holding it and enjoying her warmth.
"Mm." Shizune murmured. The moment Saitama took her hand, she seemed to lose all capacity for thought, murmuring only an "Mm."
Looking at the sky, Saitama stayed quiet. Naturally, he knew how the original conflict between Konoha and Suna was meant to unfold. But since he had entered this world himself, the butterfly effect could potentially alter things. It wouldn't be surprising if Konoha and Suna's fate turned out different than he remembered. Fortunately, recent information confirmed everything still followed his memories closely, remaining mostly unchanged.
"Let's go back. It's getting a little chilly out here at night."
Saitama gave Shizune's hand a gentle pat. Though she looked quite slim, her hands felt surprisingly soft.
"Okay! You should also go back and get some early rest. There might be missions tomorrow too!"
Shizune nodded and tugged Saitama's sleeve.
"Okay, let's go!"
Saitama got the hint and climbed down from the fallen log.
"Thud!"
Saitama sat right back on the log. Shizune had been sitting with her feet swinging, so she just hopped right down—it was kinda funny to watch.
"Haha!" Saitama couldn't help but laugh when he saw this.
"What are you laughing at?" Shizune naturally understood what Saitama was laughing about. She looked at him shyly.
"Nothing. Let's go back." Saitama stifled his laugh, put both hands on Shizune's shoulders, and gently pushed her forward.
"Aren't you going to say goodnight?" After walking a few steps pushed along by Saitama, she turned around to face him.
"Yeah, good night!"
Saitama ruffled Shizune's hair, then reached out and gently tapped her nose with his index finger.
...
Back at the tent, they found Uchiha Huo and Uchiha Yan still awake, chatting inside their tent.
"What's up with you two?" Saitama pulled open the tent flap, not surprised to see them there. He walked in and asked.
The only response was two pairs of complicated eyes staring back—neither Uchiha brother spoke. The whole tent went quiet, lit only by the soft glow of a small lamp casting their shadows onto the canvas wall. However, Saitama's shadow stood prominently at the front, appearing much larger than the other two smaller figures huddled together behind him due to the angle of light.
"I heard our captain went on a date with Tsunade-sama's disciple today?"
Finally, Huo couldn't hold back, his voice laced with disbelief.
"That never happened. We're just friends."
Saitama shot back casually without hesitation.
"But the whole camp's already buzzing! Loads of people saw it themselves. They even say Tsunade-sama was so mad she looked like she was about to blow her top!"
"Tsunade-sama's a woman—how could she even have a mustache?"
Saitama replied with a smile.
"So it really did happen, didn't it?"
Still not convinced, Huo pressed further. This time, Saitama stayed silent, answering with just his eyes.
"I knew it! Me and Yan should've stayed with you instead of rushing back to rest like that!"
Convinced of Saitama's unspoken confirmation, Huo sounded somewhat regretful.
"All right, time to go. I need some rest! Talk about it tomorrow!"
Saitama started shooing them out while unbuckling his sword belt, sitting down on his bed as he spoke.
"Alright then, captain—you have a good rest!" Yan grabbed the still-chattering Huo, dragging him toward the exit.
"There! See? You still wouldn't believe me! How could something everyone in camp is talking about be false?"
About to head out for his evening wash, Saitama caught Huo talking to his younger brother outside. Instantly, his head began pounding.
"Why do I keep getting headaches again? I'm still just a kid! Those ninjas are really asking for it today!"
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