Reincarnation into the world of Naruto with the system

"Young man, don't you have something to tell me?" Yugao began sternly as I entered the kitchen. Hitomi was doing her best to pretend she wasn't there, but her gaze showed approval. And not toward me.

"Um... Good morning, Yugao-san, Hitomi-san!" I smiled with a textbook-perfect grin.

"Good morning. Now, let's go back to your promise from yesterday—not to go anywhere." She spoke with a frown.

Hmm, thinking logically, it's unlikely that Hitomi told her that I had gone out, and she was probably the one who brought me back after I lost consciousness. So… just suspicions? Let's try to dispel them. No point in having high charisma if I don't use it.

"I didn't go anywhere. I spent the whole night right here." I answered honestly and sincerely.

"The whole night?" Yugao narrowed her eyes, fully embracing the role of a strict guardian. I didn't like her tone, but since I'd started…

"Yes, yes, the whole night!" I responded just as confidently and "truthfully."

"Look at yourself. Or rather, at your clothes."

That's when I realized I was in trouble. My clothes were covered in scorch marks, dirt, full of holes, slashed by kunai in places, and soaked in blood. Hmm, I wonder—did Itachi manage to cast something, or is this just how Kyūbi's chakra affects things? Damn, not the time to think about that!

"The mosquitoes these days are absolute beasts. Barely fought them off." Still playing dumb, I answered. I couldn't come up with anything better.

"Mosquitoes, huh? Oh, so it was mosquitoes?! MOSQUITOES?!" Yugao was getting worked up.

"Yep, I'm telling you, beasts." I replied humbly.

"So it was after fighting mosquitoes that Tsuru-san had to heal you all night?"

I didn't know that. I cast a grateful glance at Hitomi.

"Uh-huh." I mumbled, looking away.

"Idiot!"

A sharp slap to the back of my head made me momentarily lose my sense of direction, knocking seventy HP off my health bar.

And then, I was wrapped in a steel embrace.

"You little, shameless liar. Do you have any idea how worried we were? How I worried? Don't ever do that again… and don't tell anyone that you went out. Lie just like you did to me. But don't ever lie to me again!" Yugao's voice was full of emotion.

Oh, there's the second heart refill! And there was still 40% left—nice.

"Alright, Uzuki-san… and thank you. Now, I should prepare breakfast for us." I smiled sincerely, though a little tiredly. They'd healed me well, but I still felt slightly off.

Breakfast passed in silence, but at the school entrance, I was tackled by two small, ground-to-ground missiles while Mai and Hitomi smiled softly.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Saya clung to me.

"What was that? That was so cool! How did you do it?" Aya bombarded me with questions while simultaneously sharing her excitement.

"Alright, girls, calm down. You'll have plenty of time to talk to your hero at school, but for now, you need to get to class. It's about to start." Mai gently reminded them.

"Naruto-kun, please escort my daughters today. As the clan head's sister, I have a lot of matters to attend to, just like all the adults in the Uchiha clan, but letting them go alone isn't an option either."

"Understood." I smiled and gave a serious nod. Well, that was an invitation to a future conversation on Uchiha territory.

Classes flew by quickly. Most of the students and teachers were busy discussing what had happened last night. Understandable—wiping out three-quarters of the Uchiha clan without anyone noticing was no small matter.

Our little group was the usual mess. Shikamaru was napping as usual, Kiba looked utterly exhausted and didn't care about anything—his mother had increased his training load. That meant my conversation with him would have to wait a week. If I approached him now, he probably wouldn't even understand what I wanted… or, even worse, he'd agree and spill all his clan's secrets. I wasn't about to set my friend up like that.

Sasuke surprised me today. Right before class started, he walked up, looked me straight in the eyes, and said "thank you." What was that about? After that, he just sat quietly, ignoring the swarm of girls trying to comfort him. Actually, not just him—Saya and Aya looked like they were ready to beat up any "comforters."

Yeah, guys, almost three full hearts—this is serious business. You're not getting anywhere near him.

Ino also seemed oddly preoccupied today. No idea why.

After class, I walked the twins home and was handed a bag full of scrolls, along with an invitation to visit in two weeks.

I'm an idiot!

If a jinchūriki stuck around the Uchiha clan too long after the massacre, people might start suspecting things. Sure, no one would guess the real reason, but the rumors alone could be enough. Some might even think I'd fallen under the Sharingan's control. They were already taking a risk by giving me Itachi's gift. Postponing the conversation for two weeks was the smart move.

Fine, that gives me time to think about what to say and what not to say. Worst case, I'll just boost my intelligence before the meeting.

Back home, I found myself with an unexpected day off. My two "older sisters" had conspired and decided to give me a break.

Not that we could go anywhere anyway—it started raining.

Hitomi was in her room, mending my outfit. I only had three sets of clothes, and I felt bad throwing this one away. So, Hitomi had taken up a needle and thread—turns out, she was surprisingly skilled. I should ask her to teach me.

Yugao was sitting there too, buried in paperwork. Reports, maybe about me, or training plans—whatever it was, she was fully absorbed in it.

As for me, I had decided to make us dinner in advance. Now, while everything was simmering, boiling, and frying, I sat by the window, watching the rain.

A wave of dark melancholy washed over me.

Itachi's whole situation had been a stark reminder of how things worked. How many others were walking around with "loyalty programming" in their heads? Judging by how bad things had gotten with Itachi before his was removed, he was meant to be expendable—his mental well-being was never a concern. Or maybe there was just a conflict in the programming. Either way, there probably weren't too many like him… aside from Root.

Yeah. Like the one sitting in the next room.

And I still couldn't quite understand the way she thought.