Konoha: Preparing to Defect, the System Arrives

Usually, teachers give their students a test on the first day and take them out for missions on the second.

But thanks to Asuka's ridiculous stunt yesterday, his team had the day off. All three of his students were out sick.

Ninjas were tough, but they were still human.

Carrying a bag of fruit, Asuka first went to visit Iruka. His condition was the mildest—just a sore throat that left him unable to speak.

"Ah~ Ah~ Ah~"

Hearing Iruka struggle to say something, Asuka placed a watermelon on the table and turned to him with concern.

"Iruka, you need to rest your voice and stay in bed. Eat the watermelon your teacher brought, and your throat will get better."

"Ah~"

Iruka croaked back, glancing between the watermelon and his teacher.

To be honest, it was hard to explain how complicated his feelings were at that moment.

He wanted to change teachers. Was it too late?

"Alright, I need to visit the others. Make sure you rest."

With that, Asuka disappeared in a flash, reappearing outside the window. After checking his directions, he headed toward Yugao's house.

She had diarrhea.

Thinking about how her current misery was entirely his fault, Asuka stopped by the market to buy the most expensive fruit he could find.

When he reached Yugao's house, he noticed freshly washed sheets and clothes drying in the yard. He frowned and muttered:

"That bad, huh?"

Knock! Knock! Knock!

He knocked a few times, and after a long wait, a weak voice called out from inside.

"The door's open."

Turning the handle, Asuka stepped inside and glanced around the clean and tidy house. He nodded approvingly.

Much cleaner than his place. At least there wasn't cat fur everywhere.

That fat cat of his shed fur year-round. He needed to shave it one day.

Standing in the doorway, Asuka called out:

"Excuse me? Is anyone home?

I'm Yugao's teacher, Uchiha Asuka."

"T-Teacher?!"

Yugao jumped up from the sofa, clutching her stomach. She stared at Asuka in horror.

Why was he here?

And with a durian in his hands?

Was this madman planning to make her eat durian skins today?

Swallowing nervously, Yugao took a few steps back. Tears welled up in her eyes as she stammered:

"T-Teacher, w-what are you doing here?"

"Ah!"

Asuka stepped into the living room after taking off his shoes. He placed the durian on the table and looked at his pale-faced student, speaking apologetically.

"Sorry about yesterday. I already had that shady vendor who sold me fish oil arrested.

When I heard you weren't feeling well, I went to the market and bought the most expensive fruit to cheer you up."

He patted the durian.

He'd never eaten one himself. It looked terrifying, and the smell didn't help.

Yugao twitched at the sight of the spiky fruit. Not everyone liked durian—she certainly didn't.

But seeing Asuka sit down and start peeling it, she forced a weak smile and said:

"T-Thank you, teacher, but you didn't have to go through so much trouble..."

"Nonsense."

Asuka waved her closer and handed her a peeled piece, smiling warmly.

"I used to be a medical ninja. I know exactly what a patient should eat.

You're weak right now, so this is perfect. Try it."

Seeing how serious he looked, Yugao stared at her stomach. She avoided his eyes and whispered:

"I-I'm fine... really."

"Do you know the rules Tsunade-sama set for medical ninjas?"

Asuka stood up and slowly walked toward her, speaking as he went.

"The three rules of medical ninjas:

First, a medical ninja must never give up treatment as long as their teammate is alive. Teammates must also follow their medical ninja's instructions without question.

We're a team now."

"But—"

Asuka moved so fast it was like he teleported, suddenly appearing right in front of her.

So fast!

Before she could react, Asuka shoved a piece of durian into her mouth, covering her stomach with one glowing hand and her mouth with the other.

"Yugao, do you know how many people begged me not to quit being a medic?

Even Tsunade-sama ran back to the village when she heard, yelling at me for ruining her lucky streak at gambling. She said I owed her millions."

What was this smell? Gardenia?

Asuka's faint scent filled her nose with every breath, making her feel dizzy, like she was inhaling secondhand smoke.

She couldn't even smell the durian anymore—just that lingering floral scent.

"Hey!"

Asuka waved a hand in front of her face. Seeing how red she was, he raised an eyebrow.

"It's not that bad, is it?"

"Huh?"

Snapping out of it, Yugao blinked at him in confusion. She had no idea what he was talking about.

Asuka held his hand up and said calmly, "I only covered your mouth so you wouldn't spit out the durian. My finances are tight lately, and I can't stand wasting food. But... why did you lick my hand?"

He stared at the damp spot on his hand, then glanced at Yugao with a suspicious look.

He could understand these kinds of things. Back in the academy, his female classmates—who cared too much about looks—often did weird things to get his attention.

But I'm your teacher.

Is the ninja academy getting stranger, or is the whole ninja world going off track?

Even Jiraiya's books don't have this kind of plot.

Whoosh!

Yugao's face turned even redder. She gripped the hem of her clothes tightly and quickly defended herself.

"I-I was just eating the durian!"

"I get it."

Asuka patted her shoulder and shook his head.

"Back in my academy days, girls used to swap out my lunches with ones they made themselves whenever I left the classroom.

I was too naive back then. I'd eat whatever they gave me.

But one day, I saw a girl making food and drooling into the lunchbox. From that day until graduation, I only ate breakfast and dinner. I powered through lunch with sheer willpower."

Sigh!

Letting out a deep sigh, Asuka jumped out the window and left Yugao's house.

Who would've thought that even after becoming a teacher, he'd still...?

"Asuka-san, the clan leader wants to see you!"

Lost in thought, Asuka suddenly stopped as a 170cm tall man with a round nose and a black high-collared shirt blocked his path.

"Uchiha Shisui?"

Recognizing him, Asuka paused and looked toward Itachi, who was following closely behind. He scratched his nose and asked:

"Why do you hang out so much with the clan leader's kid? Doesn't he still wet the bed?"

Hearing this, Itachi's face darkened. He pulled out a kunai and waved it in the air without a word.

"Training with Shisui-san in the forest."

Ha!

Asuka blew on his fist and then smacked Itachi hard on the head.

Bonk!

Itachi winced, clutching the growing bump on his head. His mind went blank for a moment.

Seeing Itachi crouch in pain, Asuka activated green healing chakra in his hands, placed it on Itachi's head, and lectured him.

"Didn't anyone teach you? Outside of training, missions, and war, you're not supposed to draw a kunai.

You're lucky it's me. If it were someone else, they'd have taken it away."

"Can I... still be taught now?"

Hearing a cold voice behind him, Asuka's hands froze mid-heal. He slowly turned around and saw a slightly rounded belly in front of him.

The woman wore a brown apron over loose clothes. Her long black hair reached her waist, and she had a cold smile on her face.

What do you do when you hit someone's kid and their mom shows up?

Apologize.

Refuse to apologize.

Hit the mom too.

Weighing the pros and cons in his mind, Asuka clasped his hands behind his back and put on a serious face.

"Mikoto-san, Itachi is the future of the Uchiha Clan. He needs to interact with all kinds of people early on.

Raising him this way will help him develop tolerance and understanding. When he becomes Hokage one day, he'll see the world differently.

He has the potential for it."

Before Mikoto could recover from her confusion, Asuka quickly sent Shisui and Itachi away. Then his eyes shifted to her belly.

Seeing the slight bump, Asuka immediately thought of Sasuke, who hadn't even been born yet.

Both brothers were geniuses. Aside from their bad luck and tendency to bring doom to their clan, they were decent kids.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

Mikoto raised her basket to cover her belly. She frowned at Asuka, feeling uneasy.

Ever since her first pregnancy, Asuka had always stared at her belly with a look of concern, as if she was carrying a monster.

"Mikoto-san, I have to admit your genes are amazing. All your kids are geniuses."

Asuka sighed as he walked past her. When he was close enough, he lowered his voice so only she could hear.

"Mikoto-san, maybe you should stop after this one.

At the rate you're having kids every three years, the Uchiha Clan won't survive.

If the clan leader doesn't like other methods, I can arrange a vasectomy. I'm good at it, and I won't tell anyone.

Think about the Uchiha's future—two kids are enough."

"What?"

Mikoto's eyes widened in shock as she stared at Asuka's back.

How... how did he know she was having a boy?

The doctor had just said it was too early to tell.

How did he know?

No... wait.

She remembered that during both her previous pregnancies, Asuka had given her the same anxious look.

What is he worried about?

Mikoto had always paid attention to Asuka. He was the clan's genius, after all. But now, all the little details she had overlooked before seemed suspicious.

He's hiding something, isn't he?

As a jonin, even with pregnancy fogging her judgment, Mikoto could still think clearly.

And now, remembering how Asuka once suggested she divorce Fugaku, Mikoto narrowed her eyes at her belly.

"Does he... have eyes that can see the future?"