"Today's training is over, it's already late, everyone go back." Mutsuki said warmly.
By this time, it was already seven o'clock in the evening, and the sky had darkened.
"Okay, goodbye, Yumi-sensei." Obito bid farewell to Mutsuki with excitement.
"Goodbye, Yumi-sensei." Shisui also bid farewell to Mutsuki.
"Shisui, I'm not going back with you today. Rin-chan and I have something to do, so you go back alone." Obito told Shisui.
Since they were planning to surprise Shisui, they certainly wouldn't be going back together.
"Okay, then I'll go back alone." Shisui nodded, with little change in his expression.
After bidding farewell to everyone, Shisui walked home alone. The moon on October 19th was also full, casting Shisui's shadow long under the moon's light, alongside the nearby trees, making him appear not so lonely.
"Just like usual..." Shisui recalled the day, realizing it wasn't much different from usual.
Upon careful consideration, was the day of his birth really so special and worth celebrating?
For a ninja, perhaps the day of mastering a powerful Ninjutsu is more worthy of commemoration.
After exiting the Southern Forest, Shisui gradually entered the main city area, where the number of people around him gradually increased.
Despite being in a time of war, none of the warring factions had fully engaged yet, and Konoha hadn't been greatly affected. The main city area remained prosperous; even at night, the streets were bustling with crowds, and various shops were brightly lit.
"Be good, don't cry. Mom will buy you toys for your birthday."
The child, who had been crying for reasons unknown, quickly smiled again after receiving comfort from his mother.
"Dad, I want to eat that!"
"No, you just finished dinner, didn't you?"
"But I really want to eat it."
"Okay, you can have just one."
Some children couldn't resist requesting tempting fried foods emitting from the streets when they saw them.
Some parents couldn't resist their children's innocent pleading, while others used various techniques to make their children give up voluntarily.
"This one is too expensive, we can't afford it."
"If you eat that, you'll be captured by the legendary Uchiha Madara tonight."
Upon hearing this, Shisui's mood became somewhat subtle. So, his ancestor was already capable of quieting crying children at night?
Curious as to why so many children wanted to eat it, Shisui bought a fried meat pie and tasted it.
Honestly, Shisui only felt it was ordinary after the first bite, a far cry from the tempura made by Mutsuki.
With the mindset of not wasting food, Shisui finished it all.
As Shisui gradually approached the Uchiha clan's territory, the environment became desolate again.
As Shisui neared home, he felt a sense of relief that today was finally over.
Though he knew Mutsuki would never help him celebrate his birthday because Mutsuki didn't even know when his birthday was, and Shisui hadn't told him.
Yet, he couldn't help but harbor a slight hope in his heart. The mysteriously powerful Yumi-sensei might somehow know his birthday without him telling.
Honestly, Shisui was annoyed at himself for having such thoughts. He thought if it were Obito, he would have directly and happily told Mutsuki that his birthday was coming up.
Since neither of them had told each other, why should he still hold onto hope? Wasn't he just hoping for something impossible to happen?
"Shisui, you must learn from your grandfather, Uchiha Kagami, to become a strong and courageous ninja inheriting the will of fire."
Shisui remembered what his uncle had said to him. His recent thoughts were clearly not strong-willed, even though he was just a six-year-old child without parents.
"Don't think too much. Focus on strengthening your abilities first, then we'll practice the Breathing Technique for another two hours later," Shisui thought to himself.
In the ninja world, strength is what matters. Having too many thoughts without strength is meaningless.
Proficiently, Shisui walked to his darkened home from the outside.
After all, there was no one at home, so it would be strange to turn on the lights.
Although it was pitch black, it was still his home. As soon as he entered, Shisui, who hadn't turned on the lights yet, keenly observed that something was amiss - there were extra things.
Quietly, he took out a Kunai from his ninja tool pouch, changed his breathing rhythm, and squinted his eyes to observe the surroundings.
Suddenly, the lights came on, and the dazzling white light from the electric lamps brightened the originally dark room.
"Shisui, happy birthday!"
Shisui, who was prepared for battle with Kunai in hand, looked dumbfounded at the sudden appearance of Mutsuki, Obito, and the others. With a clatter, the Kunai fell to the ground.
"Shisui, happy birthday," Mutsuki congratulated warmly.
"Sorry, I was planning to give you a surprise, but it seems to be more surprising than expected," Mutsuki expressed his apologies.
"Hehe, so Shisui, you can make such expressions too, huh?" Obito chuckled as he looked at Shisui, who had widened eyes and a bewildered expression. If only there was a camera, he would definitely take a commemorative photo.
"Shisui, happy birthday! Your youth is advancing constantly," Guy celebrated for Shisui, giving him a thumbs-up.
Shisui scanned his home, looking at the cheerful decorations all around, feeling indescribable joy in his heart.
As lost as he had felt along the way, Shisui now felt equally happy.
"Yumi-sensei, how did you know today was my birthday?" Shisui's mouth couldn't help but curve upward, then he asked.
Though he was excited inside, Shisui was genuinely curious about how Mutsuki knew his birthday. It couldn't possibly be that he asked his uncle, right?
"I don't know, Yumi-sensei told us," Obito replied.
"This is my hidden wisdom," Mutsuki said mysteriously.
As Shisui's homeroom teacher, this kind of thing was too simple. All he had to do was glance at Shisui's records.
At this moment, Shisui had many things he wanted to say to Mutsuki, but when it came to his lips, he didn't know where to start.
He really didn't expect that the faint fantasy deeply hidden in his heart would actually come true. If he hadn't encountered the children celebrating their birthdays on the way home, Shisui might not have even realized he had such a fantasy.
Mutsuki really knew his birthday, and then, with Obito and the others, gave him a huge surprise at night.
"I..." Shisui's mind was a bit confused.
"Thank you, thank you, Yumi-sensei, and everyone," Shisui's myriad thoughts finally condensed into a simple "thank you."
He was truly grateful. Even if Mutsuki didn't go to such lengths to decorate the room for a surprise, just a simple "happy birthday" from him would have made Shisui very satisfied and excited.
Because he hadn't told Mutsuki his birthday and hadn't prepared to trouble Mutsuki to celebrate his birthday, everything could be considered an unexpected joy.
"Look at the cake. We picked it out together. Although it's not as big as the one we got for Yumi-sensei before, it's still nice," Obito opened the lid covering the cake.
"Shisui, this is my birthday gift for you. Let's keep working hard together to become powerful ninjas," Guy presented Shisui with a green skin-tight suit, the same as his own.
"Guy, thank you for the gift. I'm really happy," Shisui expressed his gratitude.
He decided to keep the suit as a collectible item. Wearing it himself would feel quite strange.
"This is the silver Kunai I won as the first prize in the last Junior Ninjutsu competition. I couldn't think of anything good to give in such a short time, so I'll give you this," Obito handed Shisui the silver Kunai he had won before, with a hint of reluctance in his eyes.
Time was too short, and he couldn't think of what to give. The only good thing he had was this silver Kunai that he won as the first prize in the competition.
"Obito, thank you for the gift, but since it holds such sentimental value, why don't you keep it and exchange it for a regular Kunai? This one you should keep for yourself," Shisui suggested.
Shisuiwas already happy that Obito would offer something he cherished so much as a gift. The thought behind it was enough.
"No, once a gift is given, it shouldn't be taken back. Shisui, please accept it. I won't take it back," Obito firmly insisted, pressing it into Shisui's hand.
Seeing Obito's determination, Shisui didn't refuse and accepted Obito's kindness.
He planned to casually snatch the first place when the Junior Ninjutsu competition is held began, and then when it was Obito's birthday, he would also gift Obito a first place silver Kunai.
Rin's gift was her handmade creation. Due to time constraints, it looked a bit rushed, but Shisui could see the thought behind it and nodded his thanks.
"I'm really grateful to everyone," Shisui took a deep breath and said.
This surprise was truly unexpected; he was so happy.
"Shisui, you haven't even seen my gift yet, don't rush to thank" Mutsuki said with a smile.
Handing a rectangular gift box to Shisui, Mutsuki said, "Open it now. I hope you'll like it."
Shisui nodded and didn't hesitate. He opened the gift as Mutsuki suggested, curious about what Mutsuki would give him.
After opening it, Shisui was momentarily unsure what to call this gift.
If it were called a Kunai, it was much longer than a regular Kunai. Regular Kunai were typically around eighteen to twenty centimeters, but Shisui's gift from Mutsuki seemed to be around thirty centimeters. If it were called a knife, it wasn't long enough, but calling it a short blade would be appropriate.
Furthermore, the short blade's appearance was rather ordinary, not as exquisite as Obito's silver Kunai.
Suddenly, Shisui noticed Mutsuki's hands.
At this moment, Mutsuki's hands weren't wrapped in bandages. There were many scars on his originally fair and slender hands, indicating that he had experienced many hardships.
Looking at Mutsuki's injured hands, and then recalling Mutsuki mentioning learning to make ninja tools earlier, and then looking back at the somewhat crude short blade in his hand, Shisui instantly understood everything.
Mutsuki's study of forging ninja tools wasn't for the needs of a strong warrior, nor was it for Obito's nonsensical ninja shop. It was to personally craft a ninja tool for him.
In this instant, the initially unremarkable short blade in Shisui's eyes instantly transformed into the finest ninja tool in the ninja world, surpassing the silver Kunai that won the first place in the Junior Ninjutsu competition by a hundred miles.
Truly, Shisui hadn't expected Mutsuki to go to such lengths for him.
Even his uncle, when giving him birthday presents, would at most buy something, not learn forging ninja tools and then craft one himself.
It's worth noting that Mutsuki was very busy. The time he spent teaching was as much as the time they spent training.
"Haha, don't judge this short blade by its appearance. It's actually quite practical. When forging it, I had the blacksmith mix in a bit of Chakra-infused metal. This enhances its ability to conduct Chakra, making it more effective than ordinary weapons," Mutsuki said with a smile.
It's not just Chakra-infused metal weapons that can conduct Chakra; it's just that Chakra-infused metal has better conductivity. Weapons made of pure Chakra-infused metal even have the effect of prolonging the blade's sharpness.
Mutsuki did want to use more Chakra-infused metal to craft weapons. On one hand, there was a sudden demand for ninja tools, and there weren't that many available in the ninja shop. Plus, he couldn't afford the price.
"But forging materials are really expensive. I've already spent tens of thousands of ryo just on materials. So, don't expect any expensive ingredients for your lunch and dinner," Mutsuki said jokingly.
"Tens of thousands of ryo!" Guy looked at the short blade in Shisui's hand with astonishment. He hadn't expected this unremarkable thing to cost so much.
"No, I think this weapon looks really good. I like it, I really do," Shisui said as he held the short blade in his hands, examining it carefully. He noticed that the word "止" (Shi) was engraved on one side, and "水" (Sui) on the other.
At this moment, Shisui was truly overwhelmed with gratitude. He even felt he didn't deserve Mutsuki's generosity.
He hadn't known Mutsuki for long, not even a year.
He wasn't Mutsuki's only disciple, just the first one.
Yet, without even telling Mutsuki his birthday, Mutsuki had given him such a big surprise.
In the midst of Mutsuki's busy schedule, he still took the time to learn forging ninja tools to prepare a gift for him, even injuring his hands due to haste.
Whether it was the details of the ninja tools or the materials used in them, Shisui could feel Mutsuki's regard and affection for him.
At this moment, he somewhat understood those children who begged their parents to buy snacks and toys for them.
Through Mutsuki, Shisui experienced a kind of emotion he had never felt before.
What kind of emotion was it exactly? It was the kind that actively helped you through difficulties, considered you in every aspect, and could give you the hope you desired most when you felt lost...
A mist of tears appeared in Shisui's eyes, a rarity for him, because he was the strong, courageous Uchiha Shisui who aimed to inherit the will of fire.
He placed the short blade close to him and looked at Mutsuki's injured hands, saying:
"Yumi-sensei, thank you for your hard work, for doing so much for me, I..."
Shisui didn't know what else to say. Faced with such regard from Mutsuki, what could he offer in return?
At that moment, Mutsuki's hand rested on Shisui's head, and he smiled warmly, saying:
"Shisui, you need to understand, I am your sensei, and you are my disciple. That's enough."
Upon hearing Mutsuki's words, Shisui couldn't hold back anymore. He hugged Mutsuki, tears of joy streaming down his face.
"Yumi-sensei, I will definitely live up to your expectations," Shisui's emotions erupted completely.
The three other disciples watching nearby were also deeply moved.
"I wonder what kind of birthday gift Yumi-sensei will give me," Obito couldn't help but wonder.
"Yumi-sensei is truly a great sensei," Rin thought to herself.
"What a youthful scene," Guy praised in his mind.
Seeing the message from the system pop up, Mutsuki's smile grew warmer.
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