As we walked in, Itachi followed behind me, close enough that I could feel his presence without needing to look. I was already on edge, so that did not help, though to his credit he looked more amused and curious than anything resembling murderous intent, so I guessed we were not there yet.
The moment I stepped inside, I was hit with what could only be described as a disaster zone. Clothes were thrown everywhere, empty food containers stacked and scattered in ways that suggested long-term neglect, and a smell hung in the air that made me genuinely question how anyone could live like this and still function. The sink was full of discarded plates, dried stains crusted on from meals long forgotten, and freshly washed clothes hung by the open window, still dripping water onto the floor beneath them. I stumbled to a stop and stared in horror. "Sensei, why are you living like this?"
Itachi nodded, clearly pleased with my reaction, as if this alone justified him tagging along. "I have told him multiple times that he should keep this place clean. He cleans it once, then lets everything pile up again."
Shisui immediately started sweating. "I have a lot of missions. I rarely get to sleep or even rest here."
I narrowed my eyes. "That still does not explain why you leave it this dirty. And did you wash those clothes just because I was coming?" Shisui's sweating intensified as I sighed. "You are probably the fastest shinobi in the village. You can use Shadow Clones. Why not make sure this place stays clean?"
Itachi nodded in approval, clearly siding with me, while Shisui grumbled something under his breath about me focusing too much on small details. My eyes widened slightly when I noticed a cat casually eating leftover food from one of the containers. The moment it realized I was staring at it, it hissed, bolted toward the window, and jumped out without hesitation.
Given Shisui's current chakra network condition, I instructed my shadow clones, who were still carrying my luggage, to place everything outside before returning to clean the house. What followed could only be described as an aggressive cleaning campaign. My clones unearthed old books buried under clutter, expired food that had no business still existing, a dead rat that made Shisui loudly deny responsibility, and several pieces of clothing that he insisted on keeping despite their clearly abandoned status. An hour passed, accompanied by more than a few coughs, before the place finally looked clean. The floors shined, the air felt breathable again, and the lingering smell slowly faded after I used incense to salvage the situation.
Itachi and Shisui both looked around the now-presentable home. "You are clearly talented at housework," Itachi said.
I nodded. "I trained for a long time." Every single one of my shadow clones turned to look at me with completely deadpan expressions, so I dismissed them in a puff of smoke before they could expose me. Shisui looked around as if he was not entirely comfortable recognizing his own house anymore.
Itachi's curiosity finally won out. "Noa, care to go for a spar?"
I raised an eyebrow. "Sorry, but I am a bit tired from the long day, and I need some time to calm my mind. It has not been an easy day for me." I looked down as the weight of everything finally caught up.
"I wanted to help take your mind off it," Itachi said.
I smiled back at him, appreciating the sentiment. It was genuine, even if mixed with curiosity and intrigue. "Maybe another time."
He stood. "I will leave you both to rest for now. I will visit later." I nodded as Shisui waved him off, the door closing behind him and leaving the house quiet for the first time since we arrived.
Shisui spoke almost immediately, breaking the silence. "Again, I am sorry, Noa, for moving you out of your home on such short notice."
I let out a slow sigh. "I am not happy about it, sensei, but I understand the reason, and I appreciate you acting as my guardian during this period. How long will I be staying here anyway?"
Shisui glanced around the clean, pleasantly scented house. "Given your housekeeping skills, maybe forever." He laughed. I did not find it amusing. He fake-coughed into his hand and continued more seriously. "It will be for the month, until we leave for the Chunin Exams. By the time we return, the investigation into the ambush should be concluded, and the true culprits will likely have been dealt with." The way he said the last part carried a grim edge that left little room for interpretation.
He continued without pause. "We will start training early in the morning with Kaen and continue until the day ends."
I frowned slightly. "How is Sena, by the way? I did not get a chance to visit her. And why is she not joining the training?"
Shisui sighed. "She was injured during the ambush."
My eyes widened and I was about to shoot up, but Shisui's hand pressed down firmly on my shoulder. "She is fine. It was not a serious injury. It just scarred her face badly. She is being treated right now, and before you ask, they are not allowing anyone to visit her, not even me. It looks like either she or her parents do not want anyone seeing her injured face at the moment."
Knowing Sena, and knowing her parents even more, I could guess exactly how that situation was unfolding. They were probably the ones who decided it. She was likely being lectured by her mother for scarring her face while they spent a small fortune on the best healers available to make sure not a trace of it remained.
"They told me she will be joining us the day we leave for the Chunin Exams," Shisui continued, "and not a moment before that."
I nodded slowly as the mood dimmed further, the weight of everything pressing down on me. Shisui noticed and stood. "I will go get some food."
I reached into my pocket and handed him a folded list I had written while my clones were cleaning, detailing all the tools, supplies, and food missing from the house. Shisui's eyes widened as he scanned the extensive list, but one look at my expression convinced him not to comment. He tucked it away and left, clearly resigning himself to an extensive shopping trip.
I sat down in a meditative pose, letting the quiet settle as I finally turned inward to deal with the emotions I had been pushing aside. I was truly sad about leaving the Senju compound, about leaving Genta and Takemura behind. It had all happened too fast. Even knowing it was temporary did not make it easier. What bothered me most was not the move itself, but my current weakness. The fact that I needed protection stung more than I wanted to admit. It hurt my pride, but it was also reality. If I wanted to protect myself and the people I cared about, I had to work much harder, and I had to do it soon. I was certain Danzo would not fade quietly into the background after this.
I let the sadness and helplessness burn down into something sharper, something steadier, until it became determination. Itachi's earlier suggestion gave me direction. I would spar with him to improve my kenjutsu and taijutsu. I would work with Shisui to learn how to counter genjutsu, especially with the Chunin Exams approaching. It was still my weakest discipline, and that weakness could get me killed. I would train with Kaen to improve our teamwork, because the exams demanded coordination, at least until the final stages. And I would devote more time to fuinjutsu. It was one of the main reasons I survived that ambush.
Stormdrive and full lightning chakra circulation were off the table here. Using either inside the Uchiha compound would draw far too much attention. I trusted Shisui, but no one else. That limitation meant setting aside training in those two aspects and devoting more time to refining everything else.
I took a deep breath and opened my eyes, deciding that today would be the only day I allowed myself to rest.
I looked up at the empty ceiling and spotted a dirty patch there, not entirely sure how Shisui had even managed that, and the sight made me miss my mural. Looking at it had always helped calm me down. Instead, I activated the seal etched into my palm, and the fox figurine appeared into my hand. The craftsmanship caught my eye, the beauty of it enough to pull a small smile from me. It was already doing its job, lifting my mood.
Absentmindedly, I fed a thin stream of chakra into the fox, more out of habit than intent. Nothing happened. Still, something brushed against my senses, faint enough that I almost dismissed it. It lingered just at the edge of awareness, vague and indistinct, but it pulled my focus back. When I concentrated on it, the sensation clarified slightly. It reminded me of sensing seals, but twisted in a way that felt unfamiliar, like the feeling had been altered or routed through something I did not yet understand. I scratched the side of my head, curiosity overtaking fatigue, and extended fine strands of chakra thread from my fingers. Carefully, I let them brush along different parts of the figurine, testing seams, joints, and edges without applying any force. When one thread slid along the side of a leg, something finally happened. The fox twitched, barely perceptible, no more than a nervous flick, but unmistakably real.
I stilled, not in panic, but in focus. Carefully, I adjusted the angle of the thread, barely increasing the chakra flowing through it, just enough to test resistance. My pulse picked up despite my effort to stay calm. I shifted to another joint, then another, each attempt deliberate and precise, never forcing the connection. The movements remained limited and inconsistent, different from one limb to the next, and finding the correct point of contact was anything but straightforward. Still, there was a pattern to it. This was not random twitching or coincidence. Whatever mechanism lay hidden inside the figurine was incomplete or dormant, but it undeniably existed. A slow smile formed as curiosity pushed aside the last of my fatigue. It seemed I had underestimated this little souvenir far more than I realized.