Obito's eyes were filled with hope.
Hayashi, on the other hand, looked slightly helpless.
It really seemed like he would have to bring out that long forgotten, S rank technique again, the legendary Talk no Jutsu.
He waved lightly and led Obito to a patch of grass not far away.
Both of them sat down side by side at the edge of the field.
"There's something I probably shouldn't have told you, but this morning I had a discussion with the Third Hokage, and we agreed on a reform plan for the clan."
"From now on, Uchiha shinobi will be assigned under non Uchiha jōnin leadership. Because of that, I cannot be your team leader."
Obito tilted his head slightly, clearly not fully understanding.
So Hayashi repeated the explanation in simpler terms.
"I know you might have doubts, so let me ask you something. What kind of relationship do you think our clan has with the rest of the village shinobi?"
Obito thought for a moment, then shook his head.
"Not very good."
Obito had three well known hobbies in life, peeking at Rin, arguing with Kakashi, and helping elderly people cross the street.
All three, especially the last one, could become extremely dangerous if taken too far.
Despite not being rich, he still regularly engaged in that "help the elderly" habit without hesitation.
Fortunately, the people of Konohagakure were relatively simple and honest. In another world, that kind of behavior might have already led to massive compensation claims and lawsuits.
If that were the case, Obito might have awakened his Sharingan much earlier, maybe even Mangekyō level stress at a young age.
Because of his personality, Obito was quite close to ordinary villagers, so he understood better than most the resentment many lower ranking shinobi held toward the Uchiha Clan.
"Then do you want to change that?" Hayashi asked.
"Yes!" Obito answered immediately.
"These reforms are exactly for that purpose," Hayashi said calmly. "To help the clan integrate properly into Konohagakure."
"I see… is that what my mother meant by making more friends?"
"Something like that," Hayashi nodded. "I also heard you want to become Hokage?"
"Yes!"
Hayashi looked at him for a moment, then said, "I'm not laughing at your ambition. Back in the Ninja Academy, Minato, Nawaki, your teacher Kushina, and Himeji all said the same thing."
"Wanting to become Hokage is a good dream. If you really run for it one day, I'll vote for you."
"Really?" Obito tried to keep a straight face, but his excitement was obvious. His body even started trembling slightly.
He had already forgotten why he came here in the first place.
"Of course it's real," Hayashi said with a light laugh. "You can ask Minato and the others. When have I ever lied?"
"The reason I'm telling you this is simple. If you want to become Hokage, you need to build connections. Don't limit yourself to just the clan, and don't rely only on me as your teacher."
"I understand!" Obito nodded firmly.
"Good. Mikoto and I will come by tonight. Go home now, Kyoko is probably waiting."
After saying that, Hayashi walked off without letting Obito follow him.
It took Obito a while to fully process everything. Then he suddenly pinched his own cheek hard.
He winced.
It hurt.
So it was not a dream.
---
After returning home, Hayashi was immediately dragged into cleaning duties again.
The workload this time was not small. Three different locations needed to be cleaned, including Kushina's small building.
Even Tsunade, before leaving, shamelessly requested her own room be cleaned as well.
Clean it yourself.
That was Hayashi's only thought.
This was exactly why the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique was useful.
Within half a day, all three locations were cleaned completely.
Naturally, Tsunade's room was left untouched.
Anyway, Kakashi would be graduating soon. He could always assign him a D rank mission to clean it later.
Hayashi silently concluded that he was quite brilliant.
---
In the evening, Hayashi and Mikoto arrived at Obito's house on time.
After apologizing for the visit, Mikoto went into the kitchen to help Kyoko, leaving Hayashi and Obito alone in the living room.
Hayashi did not waste time either. He took Obito to a nearby training ground and taught him a Fire Release technique.
Obito learned quickly and looked visibly excited afterward, already imagining showing it off to Rin the next day.
Sigh, a hopeless romantic was a hopeless romantic at any age.
Hayashi silently worried about the complicated emotional triangle forming between Kakashi, Might Guy, Rin, and Obito.
Thinking about it, the root of all problems might actually be Kakashi.
It might have been better if Sakumo had a daughter instead.
No, that would not solve anything either. It might just become even more complicated.
---
After dinner and some more conversation, Hayashi and Mikoto prepared to leave.
Mikoto carried a small cloth bag filled with freshly picked golden persimmons from the tree in Obito's courtyard.
As they walked through the quiet streets, she held Hayashi's arm lightly with her right hand.
The two walked side by side.
Hayashi spoke casually, "Honestly, we have too many houses. Kushina's place alone is already three different locations to maintain. It's exhausting. We should probably sell some of them."
Mikoto smiled softly.
But by the time they turned a corner, she was already looking at him with a teasing expression.
"But I remember you saying during dinner that we should keep buying property because prices will rise in the future."
Hayashi scratched his head.
"I said that? I don't remember that at all."
"You definitely said it," Mikoto replied firmly.
"Then you must have misheard," Hayashi said without hesitation.
Mikoto's eyes curved slightly with amusement. She almost called his name directly but stopped herself and said instead, "Whatever the clan head says is correct."
Hayashi lightly tapped her forehead with his finger.
"You really enjoy teasing me. I'm not even the clan head yet."
Mikoto smiled and said nothing more.
They soon sat down on a nearby bench.
Hayashi picked up two persimmons, one large and one small.
Using a simple set of hand seals, he cleaned them with Water Release before handing them over.
Mikoto naturally took the larger one, leaving the smaller one for him.
"When will the clan succession ceremony happen?" she asked softly while peeling her fruit.
"In December. The last clan meeting of the year."
"Isn't that a bit late?"
"Not really. Uchiha Yama has been gone for five or six years already. The clan has waited long enough."
"What do I need to prepare for?" Mikoto asked.
"Probably just taking over the Six Paths Fan kept at Naka Shrine. I'm not entirely sure either."
"The Six Paths Fan? The one said to control flames?" she asked.
"Yes. But that thing is actually a fake. The real one was taken by Uchiha Madara long ago."
"How do you know that?" Mikoto asked casually.
"Madara told me," Hayashi said with a straight face.
"Oh." Mikoto did not seem very interested. The persimmon in her hand clearly mattered more at the moment.
She silently handed him the carefully peeled fruit, and he returned the favor.
One large, one small again.
Mikoto ate slowly at first, then gradually became more relaxed.
Hayashi also kept eating, but his gaze drifted toward her profile from time to time.
Mikoto looked ahead and smiled softly.
"It's really sweet."
"Then when we get back, we should plant a persimmon tree in our courtyard," Hayashi said.
"Mm," she nodded without hesitation.
===
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