"Huh?"

Senju Itama, who had been secretly peeking at Gin and Izuna's conversation from his bedroom, instantly shrank back inside. But when he heard the word "dinner," his eyes lit up and the corners of his mouth twitched—only for him to remember the proud bones of the Senju clan, and he shouted back stubbornly:

"You despicable curly-haired monkey, don't think you can corrupt me with your Uchiha sugar-coated bullets!"

Hearing his new nickname, Gin's fist tightened. He swore to himself to properly "take care" of this brat later.

"Not eating? I was going to make sweet and sour fish."

Gin said with ill intent, trying to lure him in.

"I, Senju Itama, would rather starve to death, jump out this window, than take even one bite of your food!"

Recalling the sweet and sour pork he once had, Itama gulped hard, though he continued to talk tough. After all, fish was his favorite—his older brothers often took him fishing by the river, where they grilled fresh, fragrant fish.

"Mmm! This sweet and sour fish is so good!"

Gin wordlessly watched the little brat with his head buried in the bowl, eating away. Was this kid secretly called Senju Kezawa instead?After all, he was just a five-year-old kid—easily subdued with good food.

"Eat slower. Watch out for fish bones," Gin reminded, worried the kid might choke.After all, the mission wasn't done yet, and it'd be too much of a joke if the kid died from a fish bone.

"…Huh?"

Hearing this, Itama froze mid-bite and looked up in confusion. When did he even sit at the table? And what was this sweet and sour taste in his mouth?

"You filthy curly-haired monkey! You actually used a genjutsu on me!"

Forcing himself to swallow the food, Itama gave him a "I see through it all" look. Surely he had been trapped in this Uchiha's illusion—otherwise he'd never have eaten even a single bite!

"Don't make stuff up. When you're done, clean up. I've got something to do."

Gin smacked him on the head to snap him out of it, leaving instructions before heading to the back yard.

Looking at the barren space behind the house, Gin stroked his chin.

"Wonder what skill I'll pull today. As long as it's not another 'one-vs-seven,' it's fine."

As he prayed, Gin felt his chakra condense.Here it comes!

The sky suddenly darkened, and a seductive red moon rose slowly. In the empty backyard, a ripple-like gray-white wall appeared, and a familiar figure emerged.

"Son of a—!!"

An untranslatable string of beautiful profanity burst from Gin's mouth.

His eyes instantly shifted into combat mode, three black tomoe spinning in his scarlet Sharingan. Ever since reaching three tomoe, his strength was close to a jōnin's.If only his body wasn't so frail, he might even be able to spar with future powerhouses using his overpowered Amaterasu-capable right eye.

Amaterasu.

Gin chose to strike first—only idiots waited to test an opponent. Against enemies, you always start with a kill move.

Black flames erupted from Itachi's body out of nowhere. Seeing it hit so easily, Gin felt a burst of joy—could it be this time he'd succeed?But the next second, Itachi's form dissolved into a flock of crows and scattered, leaving the black flames hovering uselessly before fading.

Karasu Bunshin no Jutsu (Crow Clone Technique).

Dozens of crows quickly reassembled into Itachi's form—one of his signature jutsu.

"Tsukuyomi."

Before Gin could react, he locked eyes with the icy Mangekyō. Only… in those eyes was a faint trace of amusement that Gin almost didn't notice.

Without suspense, Gin was once again pulled into Itachi's genjutsu world.

"Ah… couldn't dodge it after all."

Nailed to that all-too-familiar cross in the eerie red world, Gin actually felt a strange sense of "homecoming."

Without his own Mangekyō, he still couldn't match Itachi.

"Come on. Don't go easy on me just because I'm a delicate flower!"

Facing the familiar one-vs-seven torture, Gin decided to just lie flat. Tsukuyomi? Whatever. He wasn't the petty type to whine about it for ages.

The 72 hours passed quickly. Kneeling on one knee after the ordeal, Gin felt surprisingly okay—almost as if he'd developed a resistance to Tsukuyomi.

As a cooling sensation swept through his mind, his fatigue vanished.

At last, the system's prompt chimed in his mind:

"Backyard daily random skill refresh: [Genjutsu: Tsukuyomi] — Tsukuyomi Shards +10"

[Tsukuyomi Shards (20/40): Collect 40 shards to unlock the Mangekyō skill Tsukuyomi.]

To his surprise, he'd just gotten 10 shards at once! Gin flipped through the system window in delight.

"Congratulations, host. Shards halfway complete. Award: 1 Tsukuyomi Trial Card."

"Tsukuyomi Trial Card: Use once to cast Tsukuyomi with no cost, unaffected by enemy strength."

Even an extra reward! Gin looked at the card sitting in his system inventory, muttering that the system finally did something human.

With this card, he'd have some confidence next time he ran into some overpowered opponent—he could just drop one Tsukuyomi and ruin their life.

Dusting off his knees, Gin hummed a little tune as he strolled home. Pushing open the door that Izuna had painstakingly repaired—surprisingly quiet and sturdy—he thought the kid actually had some skill.

Then he spotted a little butt sticking up in the air. Itama was diligently scrubbing the floor, crumbs of food scattered about—it looked like the brat had made a mess.

Watching the little butt swaying back and forth, Gin's hand itched. Quietly sneaking up, he gave Itama's butt a solid slap.

"Ahhh!"

The startled Itama jumped up, clutching his backside, his face red with shame and anger.

"Kid, you've got some nice bounce back there."

A little surprised by how soft and springy it felt, Gin grinned and clapped his hands.

"You pervert Uchiha! I'll kill you!"

Itama flushed red from head to toe, tossed the rag aside, bared his teeth, and charged.

"Host has entered combat. Heart of Steel chest accumulating…"

So even sparring with this brat triggered a Heart of Steel battle? Gin raised a brow—free points!

With a plan in mind, he didn't dodge or block, letting the kid tackle him. The impact knocked him to the ground, and the furious Itama straddled him, raining down punches and scratches before sinking his teeth into Gin's cheek.

Gin had actually been enjoying the massage up to that point—until the sudden bite left him dumbfounded.Hey, weren't gentlemen supposed to use their hands, not their mouths?

"Alright! I give up, I give up! Disgusting! Get off me!"

Wiping the shiny spit from his cheek, Gin waved a white flag in disgust.

(End of Chapter)

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