Konoha: The thirty-year-old Uchiha is not motivated.

"Run!"

Hearing the nightmarish pleas for them to stay behind them, the couple turned and ran, their feet moving with incredible speed, as if they had the wind at their backs.

They should have known better than to take the shortcut and stick to the main road. Before they came, they'd heard that masked bandits robbed people on this road, calling out to fellow villagers but each one more ruthless than the last.
I thought it was just a joke, but now it seems to be true.

Uchiha Gin, of course, wouldn't miss this godsend of guides. He flashed after them, calling out affectionately,

"Fellow villager! Fellow villager! Please wait!"

Hearing the increasingly close call, the man instinctively glanced back and saw a ghostly figure darting back and forth in the rain. Terrified, his legs trembled uncontrollably, and his face was filled with despair.

"Bandit sir, we are just ordinary people!"

"Da~da~da~"

Laughing, he caught up with the running couple, and Uchiha Gin pulled back the hood covering his head, giving them what he thought was a friendly smile.
"Hehe, I'm looking for ordinary people~"

"Tonic medicine!"

Little did he know that his smile, in the eyes of the panicked couple, resembled the sneer of a butcher. The purple-haired woman screamed, slipped, and fell backward.

"Be careful, my dear!"

The husband, reacting quickly, caught his wife, but the child he was holding slipped from his arms in the process.
"what!"

As the purple-haired baby, with its innocent, bewildered eyes, was about to crash into a sharp rock protruding from the muddy road, the wife, witnessing this but powerless to stop it, painfully closed her eyes, unable to bear the sight of this tragic scene.
"Puff~"

At this critical moment, a pair of large hands suddenly appeared and caught the baby just before it was disfigured.

"Phew, that was close!"

"you"

After helping his wife, whom he was holding, to a steady position, the man looked at the unfamiliar curly-haired man who was playing with his daughter with a complicated expression.
He couldn't understand why the bandits would save their child. Was it so they could sell him for a good price?

"My child! My child!"

Instead of the expected wailing, the purple-haired woman, her face contorted in pain, suddenly opened her eyes wide. Upon seeing Uchiha Gin holding her daughter in his arms, her face mirrored her husband's expression.

"It's raining heavily and the roads are slippery, please be careful."

Looking with great interest at the bewildered baby in his arms, Uchiha Gin saw a hint of familiarity in the baby's face; his languid expression softened with a rare gentleness.

"It would be such a shame if such a cute face had a scar!"

Gently poking the baby's rosy cheek with his finger, Uchiha Gin glanced up at the couple huddled together in front of him, his tone tinged with reproach.
"Uh"

Captivated by Uchiha Gin's gaze, the couple's palms sweated with nervousness, fearing that this strange bandit might transform into a ruthless, knife-wielding killer in the rain at any moment.

Suddenly, a burst of silvery laughter rang out, instantly breaking the tense atmosphere between the two sides.
"Cluck~ Cluck~ Cluck~"

Faced with the large hands rubbing its little face, the purple-haired baby didn't whine as usual. Instead, it stared intently at Uchiha Gin's deadpan eyes and giggled.

"Are you so outgoing?"

Uchiha Gin shook his head with a smile, took a step forward, but the moment he took that step, the couple opposite him both knelt down with a thud.

“Bandit sir, if you want money, all our travel expenses are here.”

The man, kneeling in the mud, offered his backpack with both hands, his attitude extremely humble.
"what?"

Upon hearing the questioning tone from Uchiha Gin, the couple's hearts tightened.
Since it wasn't robbery,

So what was robbed was...
Having considered the worst possible outcome, the man's eyes were instantly filled with humiliation and rage. The purple-haired woman gave a bitter smile, raised her hand, and pressed down on her husband, whose eyes were bloodshot.
"I'm sorry, darling."

After tidying her makeup, which was damp from the rain, she gracefully rose to her feet. Her voluptuous figure swayed in the rain as she looked at the bewildered Uchiha Gin. Her slightly reddened almond-shaped eyes held a captivating charm.
"Bandit sir, spare my husband and daughter, and I'll grant you anything you ask."

Upon hearing this, Uchiha Gin, who was thinking of finding a guide, instinctively wanted to nod in agreement. After all, the other party had promised him anything, so guiding him was naturally included.
"What a fart!"

But the word "okay" had barely left his lips when Uchiha Gin felt two icy gazes piercing his spine from behind, as if waiting for him to finish his last words. Feeling immense pressure, he quickly changed his words, forcibly averting his gaze from the purple-haired woman's shapely figure opposite him.

"I'm not interested in you."

"what!?"

The purple-haired woman, rejected, stiffened. Even the cold raindrops pounding on her face couldn't force her to close her eyes, which were filled with shock.
Not interested in her?
Then
The man who had been kneeling silently to the side suddenly raised his head, a resolute look that was hard to find in ordinary people appearing on his otherwise unremarkable face. His piercing gaze met that of his helpless wife.
"Honey, I'm sorry."

"woooooo"

The purple-haired woman wept in humiliation, like a helpless wife, watching helplessly as her beloved husband rose, turned his back to Uchiha Gin, and slowly bent the back that should have been the core pillar of the family.
Uchiha Gin stared blankly at the couple who were overthinking things. Is it really that hard to ask for directions these days?

"Mr. Bandit, this is my first time. Please be gentle, I'm afraid I'll scare my daughter."

"Wait, what are you doing? Don't take your pants off, I'm afraid of needles!"

Terrified of getting a sty, Uchiha Gin quickly covered the curious eyes of the baby in his arms, while simultaneously turning his head away. What he saw was a sullen, embarrassed iron fist.
"Boom!"

"Ah~ Hikaru, why did you hit me? I didn't say anything!"

"."

A few minutes later, under a large wooden shelter,
The couple, who had just been disheveled, sat up straight, their faces full of shame, and performed a classic dogeza (prostration) before Uchiha Gin, who had dark circles under his eyes.
"Sorry, it was a misunderstanding on our part."

"It's alright, I also bear one percent of the responsibility in this matter."

Rubbing his eyes, Uchiha Gin pursed his lips. The locals of the Land of Rain were way too wary. He'd greeted them so warmly, yet they still slipped away faster than rabbits.

To avoid his panda eyes affecting his dignity, he casually pulled out a pair of sunglasses and put them on, but the sunglasses only added a touch of amusing humor to his appearance.
"The main reason is that things haven't been very peaceful here lately. Masked men frequently rob supplies, and my wife and I are worried about it."

The man, wanting to laugh but not daring to, scratched his head sheepishly and began to explain.

"Is things not peaceful?"

Upon hearing this, Uchiha Gin thoughtfully stroked his chin. Under Hanzo's reputation, the security of the Land of Rain wasn't exactly good, but it certainly wasn't bad either.
If the nearby residents were willing to crowdfund, masked thugs like these who roam this area should have been wiped out long ago by the ninjas who were collecting subsidies.

The fact that they could exist for so long indicates that the masked men were not weak, but rather highly mobile, organized, and disciplined; they would not search if ordered to attack, and would not retreat if ordered to search.
Therefore, there is only one answer: the masked men who robbed and stole supplies were most likely ninjas, and very likely ninjas from large villages.
As for their purpose in coming to the Land of Rain, that was not something Uchiha Gin should concern himself with. Right now, he only had one question before him.
Looking up at the slightly reserved yet affectionate couple, Uchiha Gin asked,

"Where are you two headed? If you happen to pass through Amegakure, could you please take us with you?"

The couple, their faces filled with worry, watched their daughter being teased and held in the arms of two incredibly beautiful women. Hearing Uchiha Gin's question, the man was the first to snap out of his daze, replying with a surprised expression,

"Amegakure? What a coincidence, Amegakure is our destination."

It turns out the man's wife was from Amegakure, and this trip was to take their six-month-old daughter back to her parents' home to visit her maternal grandparents.
"That's wonderful. Well then, I'll trouble you two to lead the way. I'll reward you handsomely once we reach Amegakure."

Uchiha Gin chuckled and raised an eyebrow, but the movement was so abrupt that he pulled on his black eye, wincing in pain. His comical appearance eased the tension between the tense couple, and their furrowed brows gradually relaxed.
"It was just on the way, nothing more. How could we possibly take on bandits like that?" "Just call me Gin-san."

"Sorry, Gintoki, I just kept calling you that~"

The purple-haired woman nodded apologetically, her beautiful eyes, tinged with a hint of worry, then fell on the two women holding her child beside her, looking as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.
"Those two"

Seeing the two girls' maternal instincts flaring up, Uchiha Gin gently shook his head and gestured for them to speak.

"They just prefer children. Xiao Guang, Xiao Zhili, hurry up and return Xiao Nan to your two fellow villagers."

"Let us hug this child again, she's so cute!"

Uchiha Hikaru gently rocked the giggling purple-haired baby girl in his arms, a rare tenderness appearing on his usually ruthless face.
"Purple, a plus."

Even Uchiha Rinpoche, who always had a stern, expressionless face, was now beaming with smiles. She gently stroked the baby girl's bluish-purple head, her eyes filled with a tenderness that could melt the entire Land of Snow.

"I'm so sorry, I'll bring Xiao Nan over to you right away."

"No need, no need. If you two like my daughter, you can play with her more. It's strange, she usually cries and fusses all the time, and no one else can even hold her, but when she sees you, she keeps smiling."

Sensing that the two women meant no harm to her child, the purple-haired woman immediately waved her hand, but the doubt in her eyes deepened with the child's laughter.
Who is Xiao Nan?

With the misunderstanding cleared up, the group set off together. Uchiha Gin, his panda eyes now less swollen, took off his sunglasses and chatted casually with the man leading the way about the recent situation in the Land of Rain.

"Fellow countryman, has anything unusual happened in the Land of Rain lately?"

Something unusual?
The man, who was wondering why Uchiha Gin's panda eyes had disappeared so quickly, frowned upon hearing this, a thoughtful look in his eyes. After a moment, he gently shook his head.

"Apart from the sudden increase in the number of ninjas and merchants, everything is the same as before."

Ever since the two kingdoms of Kaze and Tochi began their war without bloodshed over the Land of Rain, a large number of foreign ninjas have flooded into the Land of Rain, along with foreign merchants who saw an opportunity to make money.

The Rain Kingdom, situated at the crossroads of three nations, had previously been constrained at every turn by the three major powers. Now, with the influx of these two groups, the stagnant Rain Kingdom has been injected with considerable vitality.
As long as there is no war, the people of the Rain Kingdom will welcome people from all walks of life with open arms.

"That's it"

Uchiha Gin nodded slightly. It was best that he was alright; peace in the ninja world was his greatest wish in life.

"No! Darling, have you forgotten? Recently, there has been a sudden increase in the number of natural disasters."

At this moment, the purple-haired woman with her ears perked up interjected, adding a new piece of information.
"In the Land of Rain, it rains heavily every three days and lightly every two days. Isn't it normal for natural disasters to be frequent?"

The man, however, disagreed. He was a native of the Land of Rain and had witnessed countless natural disasters since childhood; landslides, mudslides, and floods were commonplace for him.

"But what about volcanic eruptions?"

"Uh"

This question truly stumped the man. If it weren't for the sudden lava eruption a while ago, he might never have known that the Land of Rain actually had an active volcano.

Compared to the couple debating, Uchiha Gin narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.

A sudden increase in natural disasters,

Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions.
Could this familiar commotion be them?

"Ah Yin, I almost forgot to ask you, why did you just call this child Xiao Nan?"

Just as Uchiha Gin was speculating about the true culprit behind the natural disaster, Uchiha Hikari, who was holding the baby girl in front of her, suddenly turned around, her beautiful black eyes filled with doubt.

"Ha, they didn't say that?"

Uchiha Gin paused slightly, then pointed to the couple who had also turned their gaze towards him. The purple-haired woman shook her head at this.

"Xiao Nan is a good name, but my daughter is not named yet. This trip back to my parents' home is to ask my mother to name the child."

"Uh"

Without making a sound, Gin Uchiha twitched the corner of his mouth, only then realizing that he had inadvertently spoiled the plot.

Helpless, he could only sigh, pull out his senior citizen card as a shield, and try to get away with it.

"Sigh~ I might have remembered it wrong. You know, I'm getting old now, and my memory isn't always good."

Fortunately, this trick always worked. Uchiha Hikaru's attention was quickly drawn to the baby in his arms, and he forgot about his previous prediction.

Uchiha Gin breathed a sigh of relief and continued chatting with the man. His calm tone and lack of condescension made the two men enjoy their conversation throughout the journey.

When it comes to the art of language, Lao Yin has it easy to manipulate an ordinary person. Before long, the man was practically begging him to become sworn brothers and for his daughter to recognize Uchiha Yin as her godfather.

The rain continued to fall, but the barriers between the group had long since vanished in the ripples that spread behind them.

As ordinary people with limited walking ability, the couple and their companions walked and rested for a whole day before finally spotting the steel village shrouded in rain in the distance.
Just like the impression left by a fleeting glimpse decades ago, Amegakure remains a village dominated by reinforced concrete, with very few wooden houses.
But there's no other way; only this kind of material can withstand the relentless erosion of rainwater.

"Gintoki, let's part ways here."

Taking the child from the reluctant Uchiha Hikari's arms, the man solemnly bid farewell to Uchiha Gin.
"Let's have a drink together sometime in the future!"

Although there had been some misunderstandings between the two before, in the short time they spent together, Gin Uchiha's humility and peace, hidden beneath his lazy facade, deeply moved him.

He had seen many ninjas, but this was the first time he had encountered one so down-to-earth.

"Next time for sure~ Next time for sure~"

Uchiha Gin nodded seemingly perfunctorily, but his gaze remained fixed on the baby in the man's arms, a thoughtful expression flashing across his face.

The compensation I promised you before

"Gintoki, what kind of person do you take me for?"

"."

Looking at the indignant man with a bewildered expression, Uchiha Gin reached into his pouch on his back and rummaged around for a few moments. When he pulled it out, he held a crystal-clear blue teardrop in his hand.

Tears of the Goddess: [Increases chakra recovery speed by 15%. Trait - Accumulation: When the holder and nearby teammates refine or consume chakra, the holder's maximum chakra increases by 4.]

"Gintoki, are you looking down on me?"

The man's eyes widened in anger upon hearing this. He genuinely considered Uchiha Gin a friend and didn't want that friendship to be tainted by money.
"Don't misunderstand, this isn't a reward, it's a gift, and also a token."

Gently shaking his head, Uchiha Gin placed the blue water droplet in the arms of the baby who had fallen into a deep sleep after playing. A flicker of realization crossed his eyes, and a shy yet stubborn figure appeared in his mind.
Is Konan doing well in the other timeline? Did she and the helpful Yahiko run into Nagato?

The things he left behind didn't trigger anything either. Ugh~ I really want to know if Yahiko actually followed the same old path.
A few seconds later, Uchiha Gin snapped out of his reverie, looked down at the infant Konan, and said softly,
"If this child wants to go out and see the world in the future, she can come to Konoha to find me." (End of Chapter)