Chapter 61: If You Want to Make a Kid Happy, You Gotta Give Them Something Real

"Host failed. Gained *10 Heart Energy. Heart of Steel chest reward unlocked. (Current Heart Energy: 33)."

The system's pleasant prompt rang in his mind, and Gin couldn't stop the corners of his mouth from curling up like an AK under recoil. Even though he didn't manage a full win streak, this was still way better than last time.

Glancing at the glowing Heart of Steel orb icon on the system board, Gin held back from opening it right away. As a proper unlucky soul, he'd wait until tonight after a bath and some incense before praying and opening it.

"Brat, stop hanging on me. Go clean up already."

In a great mood, Gin didn't bother bickering with Itama anymore. He patted his butt lightly to shoo him away to his chores.

"Ahhh!"

The little brat jumped again, yelping as his rear was struck once more.

"Ah what?! Get moving. Want dinner tomorrow or not?"

Gin followed up with a righteous thump to the head, cutting off the kid's sonic attack on the spot.

"Uuuuu…"

Itama clutched his head, cheeks puffed like a steamed bun, glaring up at Gin as if vowing eternal vengeance.

Ignoring the little one's murderous stare, Gin hummed a tune as he strolled out.

Seeing his barren backyard before he left, Gin decided he needed to renovate it — after all, if he was gonna grind skills there, it should at least be comfortable.

Walking down the wide avenue of the Uchiha compound, he passed rows of neat wooden homes, many of them clearly newly built. Some had even been converted into shops selling daily necessities and goods from far-off caravans.

"Boss, how much is this?"

Gin casually picked up a strange-looking mask from a street stall and asked the shopkeeper.

"One hundred ryō!" the man replied warmly, without the usual disdain the others had for him — which made Gin glance at him twice.

"You're not Uchiha, are you?" Gin asked, noticing the familiar red hair on his head.

"Haha, sharp! I'm a traveling merchant from Uzushiogakure," the shopkeeper said cheerfully, a good-natured middle-aged man.

"Uzumaki?" Gin pressed further.

"Yeah, Uzushiogakure. We're all Uzumaki, but I'm just a normal guy, not a ninja," the man explained, clearly used to being asked.

In this world, even though chakra existed, the number of people who could refine and use it was very small. The ninja population was tiny compared to the ordinary folk. Even within ninja clans, there were plenty of people who couldn't awaken chakra and instead worked in trade and production under the clan's protection.

"I see. I'll take the mask," Gin said, pulling out coins he'd exchanged for gold earlier and handing them over.

"Thank you! Anything else you need?" the Uzumaki shopkeeper beamed, already trying to upsell him on other wares.

"You got anything that can make a kid happy?"

Gin thought for a moment and asked.

"You got kids? How old?" the man asked, leaning in.

"No, no, just a relative's kid. Five years old. Stubborn type."

Well, the Senju and Uchiha were technically one family centuries ago — calling Itama a relative wasn't wrong.

"Then I recommend this."

The shopkeeper dug around his pack and pulled out a plush doll.

Gin blinked in surprise at the odd toy.

"This is called a bijū. They live near our land. Don't be fooled by how cute the plush is — the real thing is said to be massive and ferocious," the man explained with pride.

"I'll take it!"

Gin immediately decided.

"That'll be 3000 ryō!"

The shopkeeper grinned from ear to ear — this batch of dolls had been gathering dust for ages. He'd finally found himself a real sucker!

"Keep the change!"

Gin handed over the bills like a boss, then picked up the plush and examined it.

The Three-Tails, Isobu — not the most prominent of the tailed beasts, living mostly underwater, originally captured by Hashirama and sold to Kirigakure along with the Six-Tails. Later sealed into Rin, sparking Obito's rampage, and eventually passed to Yagura before returning to the wild until Akatsuki captured it.

The plush was actually well-made — a chibi, ugly-cute version of Isobu, with appeal to all ages and genders.

"Pretty good. Boss, my name's Uchiha Gin. If you get more bijū plushies, let me know."

The more he looked at it, the more he liked it. His strange collector's impulse kicked in.

"Of course, of course! Name's Uzumaki Zhōuxuán. If I get more, you'll be the first I call," the man said, though in his heart he regretted not charging more — next time he'd price by the number of tails.

Uzumaki Zhōuxuán? Weird name.

Waving goodbye, Gin tilted the strange mask onto his head, cradled the ugly-cute Isobu plush, and headed for the general store he'd visited last time.

"Boss, this, that — I want it all. Deliver it to my house."

Still the same shopkeeper from before. Gin picked out a stone table, a wooden lounge chair, a full set of training dummies and targets, paid, and left his address for delivery and installation.

"I still gotta find a carpenter. That backyard fence is pathetic."

The crude fence Gin had thrown up in his backyard was such an eyesore. A gust of wind would knock it down. He needed a proper craftsman.

"I'm too busy."

"I just hurt my back yesterday, can't do it."

"No way, find someone else."

Every shop he visited gave him some excuse. The last one didn't even bother making one — the disgust was written all over their face. Gin was baffled — fine, hate me, but money's money!

No choice. Looks like he'd have to do it himself. He sighed and turned back, planning to surprise that brat Itama — but hadn't walked far when he ran into a familiar face.

"Captain Fūka!"

Gin spotted his former squad captain from afar and waved.

Uchiha Fūka, on leave, had rarely come out to wander. Hearing the familiar voice, he turned in confusion — seeing the curly-haired young man waving at him felt almost like a hallucination.He muttered without thinking:"Big brother Kin…?"

When the figure got closer, Fūka shook off his reverie, his expression turning cold.

"Uchiha Gin. Weren't you assigned to dungeon duty? What are you doing wandering here?"

"Hehe, just finished my shift, came to pick up a few things. Captain Fūka still on leave?" Gin laughed awkwardly, unwilling to admit he'd skipped work.

"Mm."

Fūka just nodded indifferently, keeping his distance.

Gin, knowing full well the original body came with an unspoken "everyone hates me" debuff, didn't take offense. Instead, he smiled sheepishly and scratched his head.

"Captain Fūka, do you know someone named Uchiha Kin?"

(End of Chapter)

[Check Out My P@treon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][www.p@treon.com/euridome][Thank You For Your Support!]