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The nurse lifted her head slightly after hearing Kushina Uzumaki's question and nodded. "There is indeed a child with red hair and one with white hair."
Hearing this, Kushina was certain.
The children the nurse referred to must be Yuichi Yuuki and his companions.
When she first asked, she had already suspected it might be them—after all, only those troublemakers would cause such chaos in the hospital.
Seeing this, Tsunade took her feet off the desk, glanced at Kushina, and said to the nurse, "You can go back to your duties. We'll check it out later."
The nurse nodded respectfully. "Yes, Lady Tsunade!"
Once the nurse left, Tsunade looked at Kushina with interest. "That red-haired kid is the little brother you mentioned, right?"
"Yeah," Kushina replied without hesitation. She didn't keep Yuichi Yuuki's existence a secret from the people around her, and Tsunade naturally knew about him.
Most believed Kushina and Tsunade were just distant relatives, but in truth, since coming to Konoha, Kushina had been living with the Senju family, sharing a home with Tsunade and Nawaki.
Because of this, her relationship with Tsunade was close—like that of sisters.
"It seems your little brother is very…" Tsunade searched for the right word but eventually gave up. "Forget it. Let's go together."
Kushina hesitated. "I'll go first."
She remembered the nurse mentioning that Yuichi and the others were covered in blood. Tsunade's hemophobia might act up if she saw it.
Realizing this, Tsunade nodded. "Then you go ahead and make sure they clean up. I'll follow later—I want to meet your brother too."
"Alright," Kushina agreed, stood up, and walked out the door.
Having spent so much time at the hospital chatting with Tsunade, Kushina was familiar with its layout. She casually asked a passing nurse for directions and headed straight to the ward where Yuichi Yuuki and the others were.
In the ward, the nurse had just returned, glanced at Yuichi Yuuki and Kakashi Hatake, and smiled. "I've informed Lady Tsunade about using the bathroom. She said she'll come over shortly."
The nurse couldn't fathom why Lady Tsunade would personally oversee such a matter but assumed there was no issue.
What she didn't know was that Tsunade's hemophobia was a closely guarded secret, known only to Konoha's top leadership and a few individuals. Most at the hospital simply thought Tsunade didn't take her duties seriously.
Hearing the nurse's words, Yuichi Yuuki scratched his head, puzzled about Tsunade's involvement.
He had no direct connection to her, though Kushina's relationship with her might explain it.
As he pondered this, Kushina pushed open the door. She frowned at the sight of the plasma on Yuichi and the others and instinctively covered her nose against the bloody stench in the room.
Though ninjas often dealt with death, Kushina—who had never been on a mission—was unaccustomed to such scenes in daily life.
"Sister Kushina!" Yuhi Kurenai greeted her with joy.
Yuichi also called her "sister."
Kushina nodded at them, then asked with a frown, "What happened to you all?"
"Covered in blood from plasma, and this one is still unconscious," she said, glancing at Uchiha Obito.
Kushina was confused. She'd seen Yuichi's training before, and it was usually routine. So, what could've caused this mess?
Yuichi scratched his head in embarrassment. "We were helping Obito awaken his Sharingan… but I guess we overdid it."
Kushina blinked in surprise, looking at Obito, then at the others smeared with plasma. It didn't take long for her to understand.
She sighed, shaking her head in pity. Poor kid.
After piecing it all together, she said, "Go wash up." Turning to the nurse, she added, "Take them to the bathroom."
"Of course, Lady Kushina," the nurse replied and led Yuichi and the others to clean up.
Not long after, Tsunade entered the ward. She wrinkled her nose at the lingering smell of blood but relaxed when she saw no visible blood around. Her hemophobia wasn't severe enough to be triggered by just the scent.
"What's wrong with this kid?" she asked, looking at the unconscious Obito in his hospital gown.
Kushina explained what Yuichi had told her. Tsunade shook her head in disapproval.
"Idiots," she muttered. "While it's true the Sharingan can be awakened this way, it places a massive strain on the mind. It's not just paranoia—it's extreme mental stress."
She thought for a moment before smirking. "Still, I didn't expect them to succeed where many Uchiha fail."
Tsunade then remembered the Uchiha clan's recent craze for eye drops and her expression turned strange.
"If I recall correctly, the Uchiha started stockpiling eye drops because of your brother, right?"
Kushina hesitated before nodding. "Yeah… I think so."
Tsunade chuckled. "Konoha is lucky to have him. He's a blessing to the Uchiha."
She glanced at Obito again, imagining the chaos that would ensue if news spread about his eye awakening. The Uchiha might not only resort to drastic measures like eye removal but might also try combining it with these absurd eye-drop techniques.
She shook her head. "Unbelievable. They'd probably succeed by sheer luck and end up thanking that brat of yours for it."
Tsunade shared her thoughts with Kushina, and both women couldn't help but feel conflicted.
It was absurd, but the Uchiha might genuinely owe Yuichi Yuuki their thanks.
It was a complicated feeling, but for some reason, Kushina felt a bit happy.
As she and Tsunade were chatting, Yuichi Yuuki and the others returned.
Kushina couldn't help but laugh when she saw Yuichi in a hospital gown, looking somewhat dejected.
"Why are you all wearing hospital gowns?" she asked, amused.
Yuichi sighed helplessly. "We don't have any spare clothes, so this is all we could wear for now."
He jumped lightly in place, adding, "But hey, these clothes are pretty comfortable."
"That's only because you just took off your weights," Kakashi interjected, his tone laced with disbelief. "Honestly, I don't know how you've been training with such heavy weights."
Kakashi had always known Yuichi used weights during training, but he never realized how heavy they actually were. When Yuichi had removed them earlier, the dull thud they made upon hitting the floor was startling—it was far more than just 20 kilograms.
Kakashi's comment didn't surprise Tsunade or Kushina.
The Uzumaki clan's monstrous physical resilience was no secret to them. Their stamina and recovery rates were almost inhuman—no matter how exhausted they were, a single night's sleep was enough to completely restore them.
As the group chatted, a sudden noise drew their attention.
"Rin!!!"
Everyone turned toward the voice to see Obito suddenly sitting up on the hospital bed. His eyes were wide open, his two-tomoe Sharingan spinning wildly.
Kushina's gaze immediately shifted to Rin with a playful glint. She loved drama, especially in a village as uneventful as Konoha.
"It looks like this kid really cares about you," Kushina teased, smirking at Rin.
Obito, meanwhile, looked around, confused. "Rin? Everyone? You're… not dead?!"
His voice trembled as if he were still coming to terms with what he was seeing. Slowly, he exhaled in relief.
"I just had the longest nightmare…"
He recounted his "dream" in detail: arriving at the training ground to find Might Guy and Yuichi lying motionless, Sarutobi Asuma cut down, and one by one, his other friends—Rin included—falling until only Kakashi and himself remained.
"I'm just glad it was all a nightmare," Obito said, patting his chest. "It was terrifying."
He paused, then added with excitement, "But in the dream, I awakened my Sharingan. It felt so powerful! It'd be amazing if I could actually unlock it for real."
The group stared at him in silence, their expressions growing increasingly awkward.
As he kept talking, seemingly unaware of his active Sharingan, it became harder for them to hold back their laughter.
Finally, Rin hesitantly approached him. "Obito…"
"What's wrong, Rin?" he asked, puzzled.
Rin opened her mouth but hesitated, unable to find the right words.
At that moment, Yuichi stepped forward, smirking. "Obito, is it possible that wasn't a dream?"
Obito froze. His eyes widened in disbelief, and he scrambled backward, pushing the blanket to the foot of the bed as he pressed himself against the wall.
"Wha—?!"
Tsunade, who had been silently watching, crossed her arms with a wry smile. "If you're going to freak out, at least make your bed afterward. I'm not charging you for it this time."
With that, she turned and left. She had only come to see Kushina's infamous younger brother. Now that her curiosity was satisfied, she didn't intend to stay.
Kushina, on the other hand, was fully invested in the unfolding drama, her excitement barely contained. Life in the village had been dull lately, and she had been craving some entertainment.
Obito, meanwhile, was still processing. "Wait… yesterday you asked me something, didn't you?"
"Yeah, I did," Yuichi said casually.
Obito frowned, trying to recall. "What did you ask me?"
"I asked if you wanted the Sharingan so badly that you'd endure any pain to unlock it," Yuichi replied with a shrug.
Obito's memory clicked. "You did say something like that…"
His voice quivered. "So… this is the process of awakening the Sharingan?"
As tears welled in his eyes, he declared, "If that's the case, then I don't want it! Power gained by sacrificing friends' lives is evil!"
Kushina nodded in agreement, her expression serious for once. Power obtained at the expense of loved ones was indeed meaningless.
But Yuichi's face remained impassive. He glanced at Obito and said, "But the Sharingan only awakens in moments of extreme emotion."
He paused, letting the words sink in before continuing. "What you saw—watching us all die—that was the catalyst. The Sharingan is born of love, but to wield it, you must endure unimaginable loss."
His tone was calm but carried a sharp edge. "If you want love, you'll have no power. If you want power, you'll lose your love."
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