Konoha: The thirty-year-old Uchiha lacks motivation.

As we all know, sugar is an essential trace element for the human body. Once sugar is deficient, people will experience symptoms such as dizziness and palpitations. In severe cases, it may cause cerebellar atrophy, turning them into a person who can only say "baba aba".

Similarly, milk, which is rich in calcium, is also a good helper for children's growth. If they are deficient in calcium, they may suffer from osteoporosis and stunted growth, or even become flat-chested.

So, is there any miracle drug that can replenish these two essential components needed by the human body at once?

Xiao Nan had a dream where her parents, who had come back from the dead, were celebrating her birthday. The couple had been busy all day, and their small dining table was filled with all kinds of delicious food.

Looking at the steaming food on the table, Xiao Nan wiped the drool from the corner of her mouth and was just about to dig in when her smiling parents suddenly appeared beside her.

"Father, Mother, you..."

"Xiao Nan, happy birthday."

The couple smiled and picked up the dishes from the table, then, to Xiao Nan's bewildered expression, began to feed her enthusiastically.

"Xiao Nan, you're growing, eat more."

"Mmm mmm mmm"

Under the couple's warm hospitality, Xiao Nan's belly quickly swelled into a small ball, and her happy expression gradually turned into fear.

"I really can't eat anymore."

Xiao Nan tried to escape, but found herself seemingly chained to her seat, unable to move an inch no matter how much she struggled.

"Come drink this, it's delicious."

A kind smile graced her mother's face as she inserted a long straw into Xiao Nan's mouth, pouring the cloyingly sweet liquid, carrying a milky aroma, into her little tummy.

tons~ton~ton~

"Mother, I've already drunk it."

"You say no, but your body says otherwise~"

In reality, Uchiha Gin held the weak and unconscious girl in his arms, pouring his treasured strawberry milk, can after can, into her cherry-like mouth through a funnel.

After drinking about ten cans, the girl showed no signs of waking up, except for her belly getting rounder and rounder. She continued to greedily gulp down the sweet and delicious strawberry milk.

"Looks like they're really starving."

Uchiha Gin shook his head and stopped what he was doing. He was worried that if he kept forcing her to drink, the girl would turn into a puff pastry, so he straightened her up and tried to use medical ninjutsu.

As the chakra was refined, a faint green light emanated from Uchiha Gin's palm, and warm life energy was slowly injected, gradually bringing a blush to the girl's face.

"Cough cough cough hiccup~"

Under the baptism of life energy, the unconscious girl coughed a few times and began to slowly wake up. As soon as she opened her eyes, she involuntarily let out a loud burp.

Not smelling the legendary fragrance of a young girl, Uchiha Gin pinched his nose and turned his head away in disgust.

"Are you being polite?"

"You...you weren't dead, hiccup~?"

Fully awake, Xiao Nan ignored the other person's teasing, clutched her chest, rolled backward a few times, and distanced herself from the unfamiliar curly-haired man. She looked at him warily, and between her questions, she couldn't help but let out a baby burp.

"Is this how you treat the person who saved your life?"

Uchiha Gin paid the price of more than a dozen cans of strawberry milk to snatch the little girl back from the Sage of Six Paths, but the little girl didn't appreciate it at all and the first thing she said was to curse him to die.

"My savior?"

Xiao Nan frowned upon hearing this. She didn't recall the man in front of her ever saving her, but as she subconsciously licked her lips, a strange, sweet taste made her feel uneasy.

Looking down again, she saw her round little belly, and a strong feeling of fullness welled up inside her. For a moment, she didn't know what to do, so she could only stand there and stare longingly at Uchiha Gin, who had a lazy look on his face.

"Strawberry milk is very expensive. You just drank thirteen cans of mine. If you break your bones, just give me 100,000 taels of silver."

Pointing to the scattered strawberry milk cartons on the ground, Uchiha Gin did not choose to raise the price on the spot, but instead gave the other party a rare friendly price.

"Ten thousand taels? Why don't you just rob it?"

Xiao Nan, who was initially a bit confused, suddenly erupted upon hearing the "huge sum" of 100,000 taels of silver, her puffed-up cheeks turning into round buns in anger.

One hundred thousand taels! Even if you sold her, you still couldn't pay it back!

"Besides, it's not like I asked you to give me the drink, so why should I pay you?"

"You'll starve if you don't drink!"

Looking at the tantrum-throwing little girl, Uchiha Gin rubbed his temples with a headache. This was the ninja world version of the farmer and the snake.

"Who wants to drink your filth? I have plenty of food here!"

To avoid incurring huge debts, Konan immediately picked up her unfinished pancake from a nearby corner, held it up in front of Uchiha Gin, and looked at him with a smug expression.

"You call this food? If you hadn't told me, I would have thought it was a shield."

He reached out and tapped the rock-hard flatbread, a strange look flashing in Uchiha Gin's eyes. He withdrew his hand, scratched his head helplessly, and finally decided to be a philanthropist this once.

"Alright, consider it me coming here to help the poor. I can leave you with the strawberry milk money for now, but as payment, I want you."

"Help! Help! There's a pervert here! Ughhhh!"

Before Uchiha Gin could finish speaking, the girl in front of him suddenly retreated more than ten meters, curling her small, thin body against the crumbling wall, screaming for help at the top of her lungs.

"Stop, stop, stop! Can't you let me finish what I'm saying? I just want to ask you a few questions."

With lightning speed, Uchiha Gin pulled a pink lollipop from his sleeve the moment the girl uttered her first word and shoved it into her wide-open mouth.

"Ah! This is... *smack smack*~ I vaguely remember!"

When the foreign object entered her mouth, Xiao Nan instinctively wanted to spit it out. However, as a sweet taste filled her taste buds, her eyes lit up. After sucking it in a few times, she revealed a blissful expression.

"Phew~ As long as you're obedient, all of this is yours."

Seeing that the sweet talk had worked, Uchiha Gin breathed a sigh of relief, then reached into his sleeve and pulled out a handful of different colored sticks, using a seductive voice to tempt him.

"Is it really just a question!?"

A longing gleamed in Xiaonan's eyes. So many candies would be enough for her and Yahiko to eat for a long time. After a struggle, she finally chose to compromise.

"How could this be fake?"

"I promise to obey orders!"

"First question, where are we?"

Shaking the candy in his hand, Konan's eyes followed his movements. Uchiha Gin nodded in satisfaction and asked his first question.

"Did you hit your head? Don't you even know where you are?"

Reluctantly withdrawing her gaze, Xiao Nan frowned slightly, looking at the unfamiliar curly-haired man with a strange expression, trying to guess his identity.

"I'm very dissatisfied with this answer, I'm taking one back."

This little girl is surprisingly cute, it's just a shame she has a mouth.

"No! The Land of Rain, this is the Land of Rain!"

"What time is it now?"

"ha?"

Upon hearing this question, Xiao Nan blinked in confusion. She didn't have a clear concept of the time she was in.

"Let me ask you another question: Are we at war right now?"

Seeing that the girl's confused expression didn't seem fake, Uchiha Gin remembered that the original story used Konoha's calendar years as a reference point, not the calendar system commonly understood by ordinary people. So he changed his question.

"."

The little girl's face instantly fell, and the smacking sounds of her sucking on the lollipop disappeared.

really.

From the little girl's expression, Uchiha Gin got the answer he wanted.

The Second Shinobi World War

So he's currently in Konoha's timeline around year 37. By then, the white-haired guy is long dead, only ashes remain, and his older cousin is lying low somewhere, waiting for a suitable successor.

Of the familiar Konoha F6, only four are still active. The radical Akimichi Torifu has probably retired and gone home, and as for Kagami...

"This is really not a good time."

Uchiha Gin muttered to himself, then turned his gaze to the little girl in front of him.

Looking at her tattered clothes and the inedible food, Uchiha Gin could roughly guess her identity: an orphan displaced by war.

"One last question, what's your name?"

"Little Nan."

"!!!"

Uchiha Gin's hand trembled, and the candies he was holding fell to the ground. Konan saw this and immediately rushed over, not caring about the mud, and knelt down to quickly pick up the muddy lollipops.

"So your name is Xiao Nan?"

Seeing this heartbreaking scene, Uchiha hesitated for a moment before asking, his gaze then falling on the other person's dry hair. It was indeed his younger sister, Yukari.

"Yes, I've had this name since I was a child."

Carefully wiping the mud off the lollipop, Xiao Nan stood up and a blinding smile spread across her face.

Uchiha Gin fell silent. According to the description of the item, he was supposed to have come to this timeline to learn secret techniques, and the reason he was teleported to Konan's side was to facilitate his learning.

but…

Looking at the little girl who could be blown away by a gust of wind, Uchiha Gin helplessly rubbed his forehead and began to frantically complain in his mind.

System! This crappy system! I want a refund!

"The item has been used and cannot be returned. Host, please learn the secret technique as soon as possible. If you fail to learn it within three days, you will be permanently banished to the current timeline."

"I work from 8 AM!"

"Countdown begins, remaining time: -258258s"

"%...￥%...￥...%￥%...@＃￥%...＆＊"

The countdown began playing in his mind. After finishing the Uchiha Silver technique he had learned in his lifetime, he rubbed his throbbing temples.

It wouldn't be difficult for Uchiha Gin to learn the secret technique in three days. If the teacher were good, he might have learned it in just a few minutes. But the teacher he had now...

"Hey, are you alright?"

Seeing Uchiha Gin's face alternating between pale and flushed, Konan, standing beside him, poked his thigh with some concern.

"Phew~ What, you're not afraid of me anymore?"

Uchiha Gin was pulled back to reality by Konan's actions. Looking down at the little girl with a worried expression, he asked with some confusion,

"You gave me candy, you're a good person."

Konan nodded seriously, while tightening her grip on the candy she was holding. She didn't believe Uchiha Gin would want anything from her.

A numb soul?

Or is it just a withered body?

In this world, the least valuable people are orphans like her. Their fragile lives are like weeds, and even if they die violently in the street, no one will give them a second glance.

"Xiao Nan, I have one more question for you."

Looking at Konan, who was biting her lip and seemed somewhat timid, Uchiha Gin sighed inwardly, thought for a moment, and asked his final question.

"Could I have another candy?"

Just when Konan thought Uchiha Gin's questioning was over, she touched the seven candies in her arms, mustered her courage, and asked for a price.

"Can."

"Go ahead and ask."

"Do you know ninjutsu?"

"ha?"

Konan looked at Uchiha Gin with an expression as if he were an idiot, her big eyes rolled so wide that only the whites were visible. If she knew ninjutsu, how could she have been reduced to eating expired and moldy pancakes? She would have been living a life of luxury with Yahiko long ago.

"Phew~ Okay, here's some candy for you. Be careful."

With his last glimmer of hope shattered, Uchiha Gin wasn't too disappointed. The item only mentioned learning secret techniques, not necessarily paper ninjutsu.

There are quite a few ninjas with secret techniques in this era. He could easily find a small ninja village, coerce or entice them, learn the techniques, and then run away.

"Thank you, Mr. Curly Hair."

Konan happily accepted the bag of candy from Uchiha Gin, her face beaming with joy. Gin, seeing this, didn't say anything; the girl before him had her own destiny to follow.

Soon, she will form the Frog Squad with two other orphans whose fates are tragic, become Jiraiya's apprentices, and grow into the Dawn of Light who almost changes the Land of Rain.

Although Xiao Tuantuan's interference led to her unemployment and the failure of her efforts, it indirectly facilitated the organization's transformation, successfully elevating it to the number one popular idol group in Naruto.

A flawless version after careful inspection!

"Sigh, it's a pity we only have three days, otherwise we could have done something."

Looking at Konan's innocent smile, Gin Uchiha felt a pang of pity. This timeline was too cruel; everyone's fate was woven from tragic notes.

Unfortunately, he is now in dire straits. If the three-day period ends and the secret technique fails, he will be trapped in this timeline forever.

"Let me think of where I can get a little secret technique?"

Uchiha Gin, who had just turned around and taken a few steps, suddenly showed a look of surprise on his face. He lifted his foot and tried to take a step forward, but was blocked by an invisible wall of air. No matter how hard he tried, he could not put his foot on the ground.

"A secret arts mentor has been matched. Please study diligently, host."

Before Uchiha Gin could even ask a question, the system notification sounded in his mind. He swallowed stiffly and slowly turned his head. All he could see was the little girl picking up the pancakes scattered on the ground.

"Are you sure you're not mistaken?"

"Master Konan is ready. Please learn the Paper Ninja Technique as soon as possible."

"."

"Huh? Didn't you leave?"

Just as Konan finished cleaning up the moldy pancakes, she looked up and saw that Uchiha Gin, who had just turned and left, had actually returned, and was looking at her with an extremely complicated expression.

"You're not having second thoughts, are you?"

Clutching the small bag of candy to her chest, Konan looked at Uchiha Gin with a wary expression.

"No, I'm just unfamiliar with the roads around here and would like to hire you as my guide. You'll definitely be well paid."

For now, the best course of action is to cultivate a good relationship with Xiao Nan; other plans can be made later.

After all, now

He seemed unable to stray too far from the girl in front of him.

"A tour guide? I know this area like the back of my hand!"

Upon hearing that there was a reward, Konan's eyes lit up. Uchiha Gin was dressed so elegantly and was so generous. She would definitely make the most of this opportunity. Whether she and Yahiko could have meat for the New Year depended on this.

"Okay, then take me to the nearest town for a stroll."

"This way, please."

Throughout the journey, Konan, in high spirits, skipped and hopped along. Following behind her, Uchiha Gin, noticing the large bag of inedible flatbreads on the girl's back, asked, "..."

"These sesame seed cakes you're carrying are probably inedible now, aren't they?"

"Who says you can't eat it? Just soak it in water overnight, and it will taste just like it's fresh out of the oven."

Xiao Nan pouted, replying indignantly. In her eyes, which were filled with hunger, all food deserved respect.

Seeing Konan's flustered expression, Uchiha Gin wisely refrained from saying anything and silently followed behind her. Soon, the two arrived at a fairly prosperous small town.

"Pretty good, doesn't look like it's been through a war."

Uchiha Gin looked at the bustling town and raised an eyebrow in surprise. In his mind, a country in the midst of war should be in complete chaos.

"Because this is a town protected by Lord Hanzo, no one dares to cause trouble."

Konan turned her head and considerately explained to Uchiha Gin.

"Hanzo the Salamander"

Seeing the adoring light in Konan's eyes, Uchiha Gin nodded thoughtfully.

The demigods at this stage were quite formidable, easily defeating the three legendary ninjas who were at their peak. Their strength was roughly equal to that of the strongest members of the Five Kage at this point.

Unfortunately, he had the ability, but his vision was too narrow. As he got older, he became complacent and settled for the status quo, perfectly illustrating the story of the dragon-slaying youth who eventually became the dragon himself.

"Curly hair, are you a ninja too?"

Seeing Uchiha Gin's nonchalant expression, Konan couldn't help but ask, since most people would feel a sense of awe upon hearing the name of Lord Hanzo.

"I guess so, I know a little bit."

Uchiha Gin stroked his chin and made a gesture that could make a stick turn red at the slightest provocation, towards the puzzled Konan.

"Really! Can you teach me?"

Xiao Nan clenched her little fist excitedly, her face full of anticipation.

"Um, why do you want to learn ninjutsu? Being a ninja isn't a good profession."

Instead of immediately agreeing, Uchiha Gin asked a question in return.

"That must be so that they won't be bullied and can at least have enough to eat."

The girl's eyes gleamed with wonder; completely absorbed in her own world, she didn't notice the tall, imposing figure approaching her aggressively from a short distance away.

"You brat, how dare you swagger around in the street like that? I'll skin you alive!"

Feeling a chill run down her spine, Xiao Nan, overwhelmed with a sense of crisis, slowly turned around. There stood the owner of the pancake stall they had just visited, glaring angrily at her, his calloused hands clenching so tightly they cracked.

"what!"

Xiao Nan screamed and took off running, but this time, without her teammates' cover, the quick-thinking stall owner grabbed the bag from her back.

"Put me down!"

With a tug, all the sesame cakes in the bag fell to the ground, merging into the black mud, their original color no longer discernible.

"I'll chop off your filthy hands right now, then see how you steal anything!"

Looking at the ruined stolen goods, a hint of pleasure flashed across the stall owner's face. He lifted the struggling Xiao Nan high into the air, then licked his lips menacingly.

"No, I'll never do it again!"

As the stall owner drew the blunt knife tucked into his waistband, a look of despair appeared on Xiao Nan's face.

In the month since she became an orphan, she has witnessed several orphans being punished for stealing. Losing hands and feet was considered lenient; losing their lives was commonplace.

"Hmph! You trash are not even as good as stray dogs. You are only a burden to this country. I will solve your problems for Lord Hanzo."

Holding the gleaming, blunt knife high in his hand, the stall owner's high-sounding words drew cheers from the surrounding crowd.

"Kill her! These petty thieves deserve to die!"

"Yes! She must be the culprit behind all the recent thefts!"

The residents here had long harbored resentment towards homeless orphans, so they naturally supported the pancake stall owner's actions.

"No...it wasn't me."

Trembling and frail, Xiao Nan, like a piece of duckweed in the rain, was swallowed up by the overwhelming accusations; only despair awaited her.

Consumed by hatred, the stall owner showed no mercy. As his狰狞 smile widened, the blunt knife he held high was about to fall.

Xiao Nan closed her eyes in despair, awaiting death.

"Bang!"

A deep, metallic clang rang out, and Xiao Nan, who had been waiting for pain to come for a long time without experiencing it, slowly opened her eyes.

The stall owner, who had just been looking ferocious, now had a face flushed red. A plain black wooden knife was held horizontally in front of his blunt blade. The veins on his hand holding the knife were bulging, but he couldn't budge the wooden knife an inch.

"Click!"

After a few seconds of stalemate, the black leaf flicked lightly, and the blunt knife in the stall owner's hand flew backward and embedded itself deeply in the wall of the shop next to him.

"Who are you to meddle in other people's business?!"

The stall owner clutched his swollen, red hand, his face, half red and half blue, showing a hint of fear. But, confident in his position, he braced himself and asked,

"I'm just a passerby."

With the black wooden sword resting on his shoulder, Uchiha Gin, who had intervened to prevent the tragedy, slightly opened his half-closed eyes.

Even without the Sharingan, his slightly murderous gaze could still send chills down the spine of an ordinary stall owner.

"You little brat, you're lucky you escaped with your life."

The stall owner, who was nearly glared at by Uchiha Gin to the point of incontinence, tried his best to clench his prostate and buttocks, and fled in a very comical posture.

Seeing this, the onlookers scattered like birds and beasts, afraid of angering Uchiha Gin, this strange person who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

In their eyes, anyone with extraordinary power is no good, regardless of whether they are a ninja or not.

The stall owner, terrified and having wet himself, threw Xiao Nan on the ground. She stared blankly at the scene unfolding before her. As the surrounding crowd dispersed, the lonely, helpless girl slowly lowered her head and began rummaging through the black mud to find the flatbreads that had been hidden there.

Tap~

Tap~

A string of water droplets, not raindrops, fell onto the dry, pale back of my hand, creating barely perceptible ripples.

blah blah blah!

吧.

Suddenly, a shadow fell over Xiao Nan's frail body, shielding her from the falling rain and stopping the girl's tears.

Holding an umbrella, Uchiha Gin crouched down and reached out his hand to the mud-covered girl.

"Be my son. Pshaw! Sorry, I mixed up my lines." (End of Chapter)