When Fūka woke up again, he hadn't opened his eyes yet, but he smelled a pleasant fragrance, similar to disinfectant but more appealing. Unable to resist, he opened his eyes and saw a white ceiling.
"Where am I..."
"Ah, Fūka, you're finally awake! You idiot, you pushed yourself so hard you passed out! Can't you take care of yourself?!" Obito's voice came from the side, sounding quite agitated and even exasperated. "I was finally mustering up the courage to confess my feelings to Rin, and you ruined it!"
Fūka blinked a few times, recalling what had happened before he passed out.
As for the confession, if it weren't for me, you'd probably have received the "just friends" card and be crying in a corner right now!
Fūka huffed, "Oh? Well, don't mention it. It's just what I should do."
"Damn it, I'm trying to thank you here!" Obito was on the verge of a meltdown.
"Uh? Really?" Fūka feigned innocence. He was only six, after all.
Obito trembled all over, even his forehead protector seemed to quiver.
Just then, a young female doctor walked in.
"Fūka, is it? You're awake," she said. The doctor wore a white coat and had long, golden hair. She also wore glasses and looked very gentle.
"Ah, hello, Doctor!" Obito immediately stood up and asked, "Doctor, is Fūka going to be alright?"
"Fūka simply overexerted himself during training, which led to a nutritional deficiency, causing him to pass out. If he eats more meat, he'll recover just fine," the doctor said with a warm smile.
"Meat?" Obito froze. Given the conditions of their families, eating meat wasn't impossible, but having it every day was out of reach. Plus, the energy consumed during training couldn't be replenished by just eating an extra piece of meat at each meal.
The doctor seemed to sense the problem and added, "Don't worry. If you're short on money, I can lend you some."
"Really? Thank you so much!" Obito nearly jumped with joy.
Lying on the bed, Fūka frowned and said, "Doctor, would this be causing you trouble? After all, you're just a doctor."
"Doctor? Hehe, I'm also a ninja," the female doctor chuckled.
"A ninja? A medical ninja?!" Fūka looked at her, suddenly feeling a sense of familiarity. It was as if he had seen her before.
'She must have appeared in the original story. But what was her role? Golden hair, and those old-fashioned glasses... Wait, those glasses look like Nonō's…'
Ah, right.
She is Nonō Yakushi, a medical ninja from Konoha who later became the head of an orphanage and took in the young Kabuto, even giving him her surname!
No wonder she looks familiar.
Wait a second!
Fūka blinked, a chill running down his spine as a sense of dread settled over him.
Nonō Yakushi, before becoming the head of the orphanage, was a member of Konoha's ROOT...
Danzo's subordinate?!
"Ah, Fūka, are you feeling cold?" Obito suddenly jumped onto the bed, concerned. "You seem to be shivering."
Fūka looked at Obito, his eyes nearly filling with tears. "No, no, I'm just excited. Yes, so excited! Finally, there's meat to eat, sob sob…"
Oh my, I'm only six years old, and Danzo's already got his eye on me?
Could ROOT have already infiltrated the Uchiha clan and discovered that I've awakened my Sharingan?
But that's unlikely. After all, only I know about my Sharingan, and I rarely use it. The only time it was seen was a few nights ago, and the chances of being discovered were very low!
"You two are children of the Uchiha clan, aren't you?" Nonō Yakushi smiled. "I'm happy to lend you money, but you'll have to repay it in the future."
"Of course. I would never not repay a debt!" Obito said proudly, "After all, I'm going to be Hokage someday!"
Just then, a young figure passed by outside the hospital room. It was a woman with fair skin and a tall, statuesque figure, especially notable for her exaggerated bust. With her sleek golden hair, even without seeing her face, Fūka knew who she was.
Tsunade Senju, one of the Legendary Sannin!
Hmm, Tsunade is destined to be the Fifth Hokage...
Interesting, Obito. I didn't realize you had such ambitions. So you want to become the Fifth Hokage, huh? Heh.
"Then you should work hard," Nonō Yakushi said, patting Obito on the head. She then gave a few instructions to Fūka before turning to follow Tsunade.
"Lady Tsunade, wait a moment..." Voices of their conversation could be heard faintly from outside the room.
Fūka sighed with relief.
'It seems Nonō Yakushi's presence here wasn't about me but about Tsunade.'
Danzo is too dangerous, a schemer who would stop at nothing to achieve his goals. I should stay as far away from him as possible.
"Fūka, are you still upset about earlier?" Obito asked, sitting by Fūka's bedside, resting his chin on his hand. "Kakashi is indeed a jerk, but I have to admit, he is a genius…"
"What are you talking about?" Fūka smiled. "It's not about Kakashi. It's about me. I don't want to live an ordinary life. I want to become strong, and that's it."
"Well said!"
A young man's voice suddenly came from outside the room, followed by a figure who looked somewhat familiar to Fūka.
"Who are you...?" Fūka's mouth twitched slightly upon seeing him.
This man is none other than Uchiha Fugaku, the father of Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Sasuke!
But he's only 25 here, and Itachi is probably still in the making.
"I am Uchiha Fugaku."
At this point, Uchiha Fugaku was not yet the clan leader but a regular member of the Konoha Police Force. However, his talents were already becoming apparent, and his status within the Uchiha clan was rising steadily.
"Master Fugaku, hello." Both Fūka and Obito greeted him respectfully.
The Uchiha clan placed great importance on such formalities. Even though Fūka was dissatisfied, he had no choice but to comply while his strength was still lacking.
Uchiha Fugaku smiled. "I have high hopes for you. Hehe, once you have the determination to become strong, the Sharingan will reward you as you wish. I'll be waiting for you up ahead, young lad!"
With that, Uchiha Fugaku patted his behind and left.
Fūka's eye twitched. This is just too much for one day!
"Hey, Fūka, who was that guy just now? He looked pretty impressive," Obito asked as he closed the door to the room and turned back.
"He said he's Uchiha Fugaku. He should be a member of the Konoha Police Force," Fūka answered cautiously, knowing that even if someone overheard, it wouldn't matter.
"Really? The Konoha Police Force, huh? I wonder when I'll get to join," Obito said with a look of longing.
Fūka said, "Obito, I'm feeling much better now. How about we check out of the hospital?"
"No way!" Obito immediately protested, "That doctor lady was going to lend us money. We can't leave until we get it!"
"..." Fūka.
You make such a good point. I'm left speechless.