207. Welcome Home (End Of The Warring States Arc)

In the backyard.

Uchiha Gin anxiously awaited the NPC’s next move, his sharp senses detecting a faint spatial energy. Excitement bubbled within him—he couldn’t believe an obscure NPC could activate such an advanced skill. Overwhelmed, he felt like fortune itself was smiling upon him.

"Am I truly blessed by the RNG gods?"

The wait dragged on until a gentle breeze stirred fallen leaves on the ground, scattering them between Gin and the NPC, Shiranui Genma. The spatial energy radiating from Genma finally reached its peak.

"Is it happening now?"

Afraid of being caught off guard, Gin immediately activated his Sharingan. His crimson eyes locked onto Genma, who had maintained the same posture for an unnervingly long time. Gin’s vigilance was at its maximum.

But what happened next was entirely unexpected.

Genma’s body suddenly erupted with a strong burst of spatial energy, startling Gin enough to make him step back. The vibrations from the energy caused his Sharingan to morph into a bluish-white variation resembling the Byakugan, allowing him to see the threads of spatial energy clearly.

"Whoa!"

For a moment, Gin felt an illusion of being able to control space itself. Then, with a muffled "thud," Genma collapsed to the ground, convulsing as if struck by lightning.

"What just happened? I didn’t even touch him—he fell on his own!"

Gin was utterly dumbfounded. He’d just been waiting, and the NPC had suddenly collapsed. Would the system think he was cheating?

Before he could process further, ripples of light appeared, wrapping around Genma’s twitching form and removing him from the scene without a trace. As Gin stood there puzzled, the system's voice echoed in his mind:

"Daily backyard refresh: Random skill [Flying Thunder God Formation] unlocked. You’ve received Flying Thunder God Formation Fragment x1."

[Flying Thunder God Formation (1/3): A downgraded version of the Flying Thunder God Technique. Requires three users to activate and can teleport objects or individuals within the formation to another location.]

PS: This skill is exclusive to specific NPCs: Shiranui Genma, Misumi Tsurugi, and Tetsu Iwashi.

As Gin processed the notification, he froze in place.

"Flying Thunder God?! Did I hear that right?"

In disbelief, he opened his skill menu and scrolled through countless locked gray skills until he found it—Flying Thunder God Formation, marked with a progress indicator of (1/3). No wonder Genma had struggled; trying to activate the technique solo had backfired, leaving him rolling on the ground in pain.

"Damn, so it’s just a cheap version of Flying Thunder God..."

After reading the skill description in detail, Gin felt a wave of disappointment.

"What’s the use of this junk skill? Do I have to find two other people to form some sort of shinobi delivery squad?"

As Gin grumbled, the system chimed again:

"Detected: Host possesses the item ‘Flying Thunder God Kunai.’ Skill [Flying Thunder God Formation] successfully learned. Combining with Flying Thunder God Kunai increases the chance to unlock the full Flying Thunder God Technique."

"Wait, what?!"

Gin stopped mid-rant, stunned. He glanced at the kunai, which had been gathering dust in his inventory for years.

"I can’t believe this thing is still useful after all this time. This is… touching, really."

Feeling reinvigorated, Gin’s mood soared. Humming a random tune, he turned and headed back into his home.


---

Entering through the back door, Gin was imagining his future as a ninja courier when a round, graceful figure caught his eye in the living room. Though vaguely familiar, he was certain he didn’t recognize this person.

His guard instantly went up as he frowned and asked, “Uh… who are you? Did you walk into the wrong house?”

The alluring, unfamiliar silhouette froze upon hearing his voice, then leaped up in excitement. Her rounded hips and long, pale legs created an elegant arc in the air.

“Gin! You’re finally back!”

The woman turned to face him, her excitement brimming as she ran toward him. The familiar voice left Gin stunned, and before he could react, he was enveloped in her soft embrace, unable to move.

Despite briefly enjoying the unexpected “blessing,” Gin maintained his usual sense of integrity. Reluctantly, he “struggled” free from her embrace and prepared to admonish her for the inappropriate display.

But as he was about to lecture her about respecting public decency and saving such meetings for a quiet, private evening, he got a clear look at her face.

Her exquisite features left him momentarily in awe. However, the more he stared, the more he realized—this wasn’t just a beautiful stranger. She was the spitting image of Uchiha Hikari.

Not "similar," but identical.

His gaze shifted to her forehead, where a familiar diamond-shaped mark shimmered. Gin’s jaw dropped.

“Y-You… are you Hikari?!”

The woman covered her vibrant lips with her hand, laughing softly. Her dark eyes sparkled as she teased, “Surprised? I’ve mastered the Yin Seal!”

Gin, shocked speechless, stared at the busty version of Hikari. Her newfound charm and elegance, coupled with the mark of mastery on her forehead, left his heart racing uncontrollably.

“Ahem! I didn’t expect you to master the Yin Seal so quickly, Hikari. Truly impressive—you’re a genius!”

Suppressing the turmoil in his chest, Gin awkwardly bent forward and retreated a few steps, offering her some clumsy praise.

"Hmph~ Of course! A mere Yin Seal is nothing for me."

With her hands on her hips, Uchiha Hikari proudly displayed her perfect figure before Uchiha Gin. Having adjusted her apparent age to thirty, Hikari exuded a faint, mature charm. While her upper body wasn’t overly dramatic, it was still enticing, with a slender waist and a round, firm lower body paired with long, pale legs exposed to the open air.

Gin, frustrated at the sight, felt a strong urge to wrap her in layers of Balenciaga under the cover of night and appreciate the view at his leisure.

Unable to restrain himself, he muttered, "Not bad, not bad at all."

“Eh? Gin, why are you hunched over like that?”

Gin, snapped out of his internal critique by Hikari’s innocent and curious gaze, immediately straightened his posture. With an expression of saintly composure, he looked at the mature yet naive girl and replied earnestly, "I was saying, Hikari, your talent is truly impeccable!"

“Pfft~ Yin Seal difficult? It’s nothing as long as you have hands!”

Pleased with the praise, Hikari’s mood faltered slightly as she recalled being the last among her peers to master the Yin Seal. Pouting, she mumbled under her breath, “Hmmph.”

“Huh? What nonsense are you spouting? The Yin Seal is an incredibly advanced secret technique! Most people could spend their entire lives trying to learn it without success. For you to master it, Hikari, proves you’re a once-in-a-lifetime prodigy.”

Hearing the trace of dissatisfaction in her tone, Gin began explaining the difficulty of mastering the Yin Seal, emphasizing that only geniuses could achieve it. He even noted that across the entirety of the Naruto series, only Tsunade and Sakura had managed to learn this youth-preserving technique, which was far more challenging than most S-rank jutsu.


---

"Boom!!"

Before Gin could finish his words of admiration, the heavy wooden door of the mansion was violently kicked open, splintering the intricate carvings into pieces. Fortunately, the house itself was a product of Wood Release, so the damage slowly repaired itself as chakra flowed through the structure. Still, the sheer force of the entry made it clear the culprit was a repeat offender.

“Old Hag! Why’d you run so fast? Didn’t you see me and Haruka carrying all this stuff?”

Huh? Why hasn’t this brat’s voice dropped yet? Isn’t he almost eighteen?!

Gin swallowed back half of his retort as he turned to glare at the young Senju Itama, who had kicked the door. Annoyed, Gin prepared to scold the boy and suggest scheduling a check-up for his delayed voice change.

But as his gaze shifted to Itama, who was carrying a mountain of items that blocked most of his upper body, Gin caught a glimpse of something that left him stunned. Peeking out from behind the pile was Itama’s head, complete with a forehead adorned with a diamond-shaped Yin Seal.

Gin froze, his mouth opening and closing as he stammered, “Y-You... What kind of nonsense is this? How is it possible—no, wait, WHAT?!”

Itama tilted his head in confusion. “Eh? You’re back, you curly-haired ape? Weren’t you supposed to be at the frontlines with your cousin?”

Despite his androgynous, delicate features remaining unchanged, the Yin Seal on Itama’s forehead completely threw Gin off. He rubbed his eyes vigorously, but the mark didn’t disappear.

“How the hell did you learn the Yin Seal?!” Gin’s voice trembled.

In his system notes, the Yin Seal was explicitly marked as learnable only by females—except for Gin himself due to his system privileges. How had this brat bypassed that restriction? Had the system fallen for Itama’s androgynous appearance?

“Hah? Who do you think you’re underestimating? I was the first to master it! Take this!”

Offended by Gin’s skepticism, Itama immediately dropped the pile of groceries and charged at him, brimming with indignation. Blue chakra surged around him as his fist shot forward.

“Wait—this is monstrous strength?!”

Recognizing the unmistakable aura of chakra-enhanced strength, Gin tensed. Already an expert in this field, he could see it clearly.


---

“Alright, alright, Itama, calm down. Gin-san was just surprised. There’s no need to make such a fuss and risk embarrassing yourself.”

A sweet voice interrupted the commotion as Uchiha Haruka stepped in. With a gentle motion, a pink, translucent hand appeared out of thin air, effortlessly restraining the enraged Itama mid-air. After a few soft words of comfort, she set the pouting boy down.


"Woah Haruka, you succeed too?"

"I knew you could do it.”

Compared to his shock at Itama mastering the Yin Seal, seeing the same mark on Haruka felt entirely reasonable. Smiling with pride at his cheerful disciple, Gin praised her warmly.


---

As the dust settled, the three women sat together, their expressions soft with gentle smiles. Their distinct, beautiful eyes shimmered with the same mysterious light as they watched Gin bustle around the kitchen, preparing dishes for the welcome-home party.

In unison, they called out:

“Welcome home, Gin/curly-haired ape!”


---

Thus concludes the Warring State Arc.

Warring State Arc: Complete!