Kurenai heard the sorrowful crying outside and lost her mood.
Instead, she chose to let the shopkeeper pick some white chrysanthemums and wrap them up.
She and Shintaro left holding a bouquet of white chrysanthemums and went to the cemetery where the ninjas who died in the border battles were buried to offer their condolences.
Inoichi gently said, "These two children are very good."
Hayase nodded and agreed with her husband.
❀❀❀
After offering the flowers, Shintaro and Kurenai parted ways.
Shintaro returned to the Uchiha Clan station and was stopped by several acquaintances.
"Boss Shintaro!"
One after another, voices called out, and it was Uchiha Kotetsu and the others who came.
In the blink of an eye, the mischievous students from the ninja school had grown into qualified Konoha Genin, among whom Kotetsu and Hamasu were the strongest.
"What's up?" Shintaro observed that several people seemed to have something to say.
"The patriarch's wife has given birth, and now many people in the village are gathering to witness the joy."
Kotetsu explained the situation, and Shintaro also became interested.
"Then let's go together."
After hearing his words, Kotetsu and the others happily followed Shintaro to the patriarch's house.
A large group of people gathered outside the courtyard, all trying to join in the joy of the patriarch's child's birth, and everyone speculated whether the child would be a boy or a girl.
At this moment, the courtyard door opened, and Fugaku came out with a happy face and said to everyone, "My wife has just given birth to a son, named Uchiha Itachi."
Everyone stepped forward and took out their gift bags, containing congratulatory money, hoping to establish a relationship with the patriarch's family.
A man shouted loudly, "What a great name! He will surely be as strong as the patriarch in the future and revitalize the Uchiha Clan!"
"Yes!"
Everyone echoed endlessly.
But Kotetsu whispered beside Shintaro, "Itachi (weasel)? Isn't that just a weasel? Isn't that creature unlucky?"
In traditional concepts, weasels indeed symbolize mystery and bring bad luck and misfortune.
Shintaro smiled faintly and explained, "Weasels are actually very strong predators. They are agile, fast, and fierce. They are small but can prey on animals larger than themselves."
"Maybe the patriarch chose this name for this reason, hoping his son would gain the strengths of a weasel in the future."
Kotetsu scratched his head and revealed his ignorance. After all, there are so many fierce predators in the world. Why call him Itachi?
However, he still echoed amidst the crowd, "Great name!"
As the crowd dispersed and the excitement faded, it was already dark.
Shintaro handed Fugaku a congratulatory bag. The money inside wasn't much, but it was just a token of appreciation.
Fugaku took the gift bag with a happy face, patted Shintaro on the shoulder, and said, "You will stay for dinner tonight. There aren't many people at the family banquet."
Shintaro bowed respectfully to express his gratitude.
With so many people coming to congratulate, being able to stay for the family dinner showed how much they valued him.
Shintaro sent a shadow clone to Kurenai's house to inform her that he would not be coming for dinner that night and then followed Fugaku to tidy up the courtyard.
The people who came and went just now must have made a mess of Fugaku's yard.
"Your Sharingan hasn't awakened yet, has it?" Fugaku asked casually.
While tidying up the messy courtyard, Shintaro replied, "I'm embarrassed to say it hasn't."
Fugaku said, "Don't be embarrassed. The awakening of the Sharingan is conditional. It must face tragic events like witnessing the loss of relatives and friends and can only be awakened when one is at their lowest."
"That's why the Sharingan is also called the cursed eye."
"And you've been mature since childhood, with a wise mind and a stable personality. It will be harder for you to activate the Sharingan with such a personality."
Shintaro felt strange after hearing Fugaku's explanation.
"Why is the way to awaken the Sharingan so odd? I think the Hyuga Clan can awaken theirs by learning to form seals to control chakra."
Shintaro was confused, so he asked Fugaku, "Patriarch, can you show me your Sharingan?"
Fugaku put down what he was doing and turned to face him, locking eyes with Shintaro.
Suddenly, Fugaku's black eyes changed appearance, his original black pupils immediately turning blood red with three black tomoe on them, making his whole temperament sharp and solemn.
Shintaro's Six Eyes blinked, and he immediately discovered the secret of the Sharingan. 'The Sharingan's chakra connects to a certain part of the brain. It seems the secret lies here.'
'It's a pity I can't directly see what this brain area does; otherwise, I should be able to uncover the Sharingan's secret right away.'
'It looks like I can only conduct further research after I awaken the Sharingan.'
Shintaro thought to himself.
Fugaku then closed his Sharingan.
At this moment, another guest came through the door.
A boy with slightly curly short black hair came in holding a congratulatory bag and handed it to Fugaku, then bowed and said, "Sorry, Uncle Fugaku, I was just practicing at the training ground, so I'm late."
"It doesn't matter, the important thing is that you came." Fugaku kindly took the gift bag and said, "You can stay and eat with us too."
Then he looked at Shintaro and introduced, "Shintaro, this is Uchiha Shisui, a descendant of Kagami-sama, who once served as the Second Hokage's guard."
"Shisui, this is Uchiha Shintaro, whom you've always been thinking about." Fugaku then introduced Shintaro to Shisui. After all, Uchiha Shintaro's reputation as a genius was admired by every teenager.
Shisui respectfully said, "Hello, Shintaro."
Shintaro also returned the greeting, "Hello."
Fugaku looked at the two people in front of him, smiled, and said, "You two are the future of the Uchiha Clan. From now on, I will ask you to take care of Itachi."
Shintaro and Shisui both responded together.
Fugaku then led the two inside the house.
Inside the house, several servants were doing their best to take care of Mikoto, who had just given birth, and the newborn Itachi.
Shintaro and Shisui first greeted and paid their respects to Mikoto, then, led by Fugaku, went to the cradle to visit Itachi.
"So this is what a newborn looks like." Shisui said as he looked at Itachi, lying in the cradle, unaware of the outside world.
Shintaro wasn't interested in babies, but it seemed Shisui liked them.
Fugaku looked at the baby named Itachi. The sharp and serious look in his eyes had long disappeared, replaced by the tenderness and hopeful affection of a father.
The three then enjoyed a family dinner together.
While eating, Fugaku said to Shintaro, "Shisui has just entered the ninja school. His achievements at school are very good, and he has a style similar to yours back then."
Shisui repeatedly said humbly that he didn't dare to take it seriously, but Shintaro commented, "As a member of the Uchiha Clan, isn't it normal to be outstanding?"
The three laughed together, and the scene was very harmonious for a while.
After dinner, Shintaro returned home and started training.
He didn't fall asleep until late at night.