I, Uchiha: Split Konoha

Chapter 220 Finding Myself

A few days later, in the afternoon, Uzuki Yugao had already cleaned up the flower shop.

Looking at the newly renovated, cozy, and fragrant little shop she had imagined, she smiled and decided to go to the Third Hokage tomorrow to explain everything. She was exhausted; she just wanted to live a simple life.

"Swiftwind, what brings you here?"

Today, an old classmate with whom she used to have a good relationship came to visit, and Uzuki Yugao showed a sweet smile, as if she had forgotten the past and dispelled all the pressure in her heart during this time.

The two sat at a table by the window, enjoying the fragrant tea. Moonlight and wind slowly lifted his weary face as he looked at the girl before him, the most perfect and innocent girl in his heart. At this moment, there was only irony.

"Xiyan, why, why have you become like this? A while ago you said you wanted to find an ordinary person, and I thought I had a chance. I mustered up my courage so I wouldn't miss out, but..."

Moonlight Gale's words startled Uzuki Yugao for a moment, but then she realized something and her smile froze.

"Hayate, you investigated me!"

Seeing Uzuki Yugao's unpleasant expression, Gekko Hayate gave a wry smile and nodded, admitting it directly, "You know, we are ninjas, and it's our instinctive habit to investigate the other party's information before settling down."

She originally thought she could bury that past, but it turned out that it was all just wishful thinking on his part.

Emerging from her own world, Uzuki Yugao smiled. "As expected, I was too naive. It's impossible for a ninja to live such a simple life, especially a female ninja."

"The first thing ninjas do before they want to start a family is to investigate each other. I thought I could bury my past, but I was too naive."

After laying bare her complicated past, Uzuki Yugao thought she would run away and be afraid to face it, but when the moment actually came, she revealed a relaxed smile.

"A chakra metal weapon, a legendary sword at that, and any piece of your jewelry worth hundreds of thousands, plus this shop on the most bustling street, Xiyan! If you truly want to forget the past, how do you explain all this?"

At this moment, when Gekko Hayate made up his mind to find Uzuki Yugao, he still had a sliver of hope. If Yugao was willing to give up everything, he was also willing to give up everything to pursue the goddess in his heart.

Gekko Hayate's expression was undisguised, while Uzuki Yugao slowly leaned back in her chair, her eyes gradually becoming unfocused.

"You're right. If I really want to bury everything from the past, I shouldn't have any of these things, much less enjoy them so readily."

"On the contrary, while I say I'm burying the past, I'm also openly enjoying it all." As she said this, a self-deprecating smile appeared on Uzuki Yugao's face.

"Perhaps I still need to confront my true self. As my classmate, Hayate, are you willing to listen to me?"

Still clinging to a sliver of hope, Moonlight Gale nodded and said, "If you want to talk, I'll listen."

"It must have been three years ago, when we both joined the Seventh Police Division at the same time. Do you remember when I was heavily in debt?"

Moonlight Gale nodded silently. He naturally knew about the incident three years ago. Xi Yan had said it had been resolved, and he hadn't thought much about it at the time.

"Do you know the pressure of being burdened with millions in debt? At that time, I contacted every relative I knew, neighbor, teacher, teammate, and classmate I considered helpful!"

As she spoke, Uzuki Yugao's expression turned to one of reminiscence, and a sarcastic smile appeared on her lips. She had concealed the fact that she was on a mission for the Dark Guard, but that was not important. What was important was that she had personally experienced what it meant to be cold and indifferent to human relationships.

Initially, she was determined to carry out the mission in secret, but the avoidance and disdainful looks from her former friends, relatives, and neighbors made her realize that this was probably the real face.

Then, some disgusting people even took advantage of her misfortune. Her former teacher actually revealed a greedy look in his eyes and wanted to pay her several thousand taels of silver to sleep with him, since she wouldn't have a good life if she couldn't repay this huge sum.

Some were gloating. At that time, she saw through human nature and was even somewhat relieved and sneered at these people for showing their true colors.

"Later, under pressure, since so many people wanted to take advantage of me, and I was so valuable, why not sell myself for a high price? I could find someone I didn't mind and get even more people, so I approached the most prestigious police officer at the time, the seventh squad leader."

She concealed everything about the ANBU mission because it was a ninja code that she had to keep secret for her entire life.

As Uzuki Yugao recounted her story, Gekko Hayate revealed a look of regret. Back then! When Yugao was going through her most difficult time, he hadn't thought that much about it. He was so foolish.

"He's great—gentle, considerate, and strong. I'm the one who's not good enough for him. I was the one who came to him in the first place. And over the next three years, even though it was a shameful affair, I had everything I needed to have: the warmth of a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship and all sorts of gifts for holidays."

"I accept the precious jewelry that only noble families can wear, the blades that ordinary ninjas cannot possess, and even advanced ninjutsu. I believe that these are all things I deserve."

At this point, Uzuki Yugao shook her head and smiled bitterly, "I thought I got all of this by sacrificing myself, but now that I think about it, it's so ridiculous. He has never lacked people like me around him. Talent and beauty are not indispensable to me."

"But he never said anything. It was as if he felt guilty about this shameful relationship and he was trying to make up for it. The advanced ninjutsu and weapons were to help me live. The precious jewelry was perhaps his way of expressing his guilt, but I took it all for granted. Now I understand."

"He was a great man. For the sake of his ideals, he was afraid of burdening those around him. He had his own feelings, but he was also afraid of involving everyone, so he always gave silently."

Moonlight Gale listened silently as Uzuki Yugao recounted her experiences over the past three years with a smile and laughter, as if she were telling someone else's story, without any sense of resentment or bitterness.

"I chose to withdraw because I thought I was under various criticisms and pressures. Only then did I realize that I had only ever thought about myself and never about others."

"Tell me, if I had given up this precious sword, these jewels, even all the ninjutsu he taught me when we parted, if I had given up everything! Could I have buried the past and started anew?"

Uzuki Yugao's curious question seemed to be asking about something she was very serious about and eager to know.

After listening, Moonlight Gale silently shook his head, "People can't give up on the past; they can only temporarily bury it deep in their hearts."

"That's right, just like how I've gotten used to my current high and mighty position."

At this moment, Uzuki Yugao's face gradually regained the heroic spirit she once had at the Ninja Academy, and she slowly raised her head like a proud swan.

"I am a special Jonin at the age of seventeen. I have mastered advanced ninjutsu that many people envy and are jealous of. I am at a height that many ordinary ninjas cannot reach even in their entire lives. I enjoy the eyes of my relatives, neighbors and friends who used to look down on me and now regret it."

"And all of this was earned by me over three years, and he never minded!" When she said this, Uzuki Yugao directly magnified her selfishness, but she was also frank and made no attempt to hide it.

"Even if I give up everything, these past events will still not be forgotten, just like you said, Gale."

With a self-deprecating smile, Uzuki Yugao chuckled and shook her head, saying, "I thought I was pursuing a simple life, but what about others? Will they forget my past? And the people around me? They won't!"

"From the moment I became a ninja, I was destined to be extraordinary. Even if I went to an orphanage, the orphanage would investigate my information and personality, and even my ordinary colleagues would investigate me out of habit as ninjas."

"Then tell me, why should I give all of this up? What I have is the safe haven he gave me; when I lose everything, these are my last reserves."

At this moment, Uzuki Yugao revealed a sincere smile, as if she had finally seen through herself.

She never wanted to give up everything she had gained in the past three years. Perhaps it was vanity, or perhaps it was selfishness, but that's human nature.

Even if she gives up everything, others won't let go of her past, so what reason does she have to give up what's hers?

"I understand now. Perhaps from that moment three years ago, we were from two different worlds."

This time, Moonlight Gale gave a wry smile, knowing that the two of them had actually been in different worlds for three years.

The last vestige of hope in his heart vanished completely. He could accept it, but what about his family? What about his friends? The constant reminders revealed that he was only deceiving himself.

Meanwhile, Uzuki Yugao rediscovered her true self.

Moonlight Gale is gone, this time decisively. They're from different worlds, and besides, neither of them would give up everything they have.

For example, Hayate Gekko could never abandon his family, companions, and everything closely connected to him. And Yugao Uzuki could never abandon her power and everything else.

As the flower shop returned to tranquility, Uzuki Yugao stood alone in the sunlight, quietly gazing at the surroundings.

"So this is the little house I wanted to escape to, not a place to forget everything and start over."

The soft sound echoed in the room, and just then a small figure timidly opened the door and walked in.

"Sister Xiyan, I'll help you tidy up the flower shop today."

The girl with long blonde hair smiled when she saw Uzuki Yugao.

"Oh, it's Ino. You've come at the right time. My sister just prepared afternoon tea. We can rest today."

Ino Yamanaka: This shop was originally Ino's mother's flower shop. After her parents passed away, the shop closed down and was sold by the Yamanaka family. Ino has always hoped that the new owner of the shop will continue to run the flower shop.

In this way, she can find her mother's flavor here.

Ino sat obediently on the stool, the two of them, one big and one small, smiling and sipping tea like sisters.

"Ino, I'm sorry about what happened to your parents."

Seeing her lose her parents at such a young age, and being the daughter of the clan chief in such a state, although her treatment is better than ordinary people, the new clan chief will certainly not treat her the same way as before, after all, the new clan chief represents new interests.

Despite her young age, Ino was a precocious child in the ninja world, and she smiled like a little adult.

"Sister Xiyan, Mother is doing this to protect Ino, so Ino should smile every day so that Mother and Father won't be disappointed."

The infighting within the large family taught Ino, even at a young age, that relying on her mother was the most dangerous thing after her father's passing.

On the contrary, the mother's death was to protect her daughter. The couple gave up everything and left behind a young daughter. The new successor would also not take action against Ino to avoid gossip.

After all, a child without parents doesn't need much targeting. They just need to stop teaching Ino some advanced ninjutsu, and she will naturally disappear from the crowd.

On the other hand, if her mother were alive, Ino would learn advanced ninjutsu as she grows up, and might she then reclaim her position as clan leader? This is the potential threat.

Moreover, with the mother around, shouldn't the clan chief also reserve some resources for this orphan and widow?

Although Ino lost everything without her mother, she also lost the threat.

"Ino, are you doing well in your family?"

Faced with Yugao's question, Ino gave a sweet and innocent smile, "It's fine, anyway, nobody cares anymore."

The casual remark that no one cared sent a shiver down Uzuki Yugao's spine; she understood this perfectly. The former daughter of a mountain clan chief, now an ordinary, unremarkable girl from a mountain tribe, long forgotten and ignored by everyone.

"So, Ino, what are your dreams?"

Whether she wanted to make amends or to see the hatred in Ino's heart, Uzuki Yugao casually asked questions, but secretly released a simple ninjutsu technique to relax and hypnotize people.

The Yamanaka clan allowed Ino to come here, and there was no doubt that they could use her methods to completely annihilate Ino, who was almost no threat.

Unconsciously, a hint of hatred slowly appeared in Ino's eyes, which had become somewhat dazed. "I will become the strongest female Jonin, and then ask the heads of the Ino-Shika-Cho clans! Why did they abandon my father when they were supposed to advance and retreat together as a group?"

"And what about the Third Hokage, who claims to protect everyone? Why does he just stand by and watch all of this happen?"

Young Ino, having grown up quickly after losing her parents, has come to understand something: who was the culprit who killed them.

Inside the flower shop, Yamanaka Ino leaned against a soft chair like a kitten, lost in a dream, as if her home and her parents were in her dream.

But Uzuki Yugao sighed softly, "Poor little girl, everything your parents went through is a result of the current politics."

"Afraid to take responsibility and shifting it to subordinates, while those subordinates, driven by self-interest, push your parents out, this may be politics, but it shouldn't be this cold and ruthless."

The regime of the Third Hokage, now ruled by Uzuki Yugao, has truly reached a point of decay, much like the Third Hokage at his age, now in its twilight years.

He is the rising sun, and she hopes that this sun will never set!

Ugh, these editing assignments are giving me a real headache lately, I just can't seem to finish them.

(End of this chapter)