Natsuhiko had some impression of his former desk mate, largely because her name sparked quite a bit of imagination in him.
Uchiha Sora.
If you broke the name apart, it was rather interesting. Natsuhiko just wasn't sure whether she had an older brother.
Although they had once shared a desk, he hadn't actually known her that well—even though, in his memory, she had genuinely been a good person.
But with the mindset of an adult, Natsuhiko had never been particularly interested in children.
Especially not one from the Uchiha clan.
He knew very well what would become of the Uchiha in the future.
They would eventually be massacred, reduced to only a handful of survivors.
And Uchiha Sora had never appeared in the future storyline.
Which meant one of two things—
Either she died during the war,
Or she perished in the clan's massacre.
On top of that, when he was younger, his mind had been entirely focused on how to avoid the war.
Naturally, he had no intention of getting too close to the Uchiha.
"Didn't expect to run into her now. Looks like the war didn't affect her much."
Natsuhiko thought silently to himself, then prepared to turn and leave. Since someone was already using the training ground, he had no intention of competing for space.
However, just as he was about to walk away, Uchiha Sora seemed to notice him and turned around.
"The training ground is pretty big. If you want to use it too, that's fine."
Her voice was gentle—just like when Natsuhiko had first met her upon entering the academy years ago.
Though now, it carried a slightly more mature tone.
Natsuhiko paused.
There really was no need to leave so abruptly.
Compared to the completely unfamiliar shinobi around him, at least she was someone he knew—even if they hadn't been close.
"Then I'll take you up on that," Natsuhiko said with a faint smile and a nod.
Sora, however, didn't immediately reply.
Instead, she studied him curiously.
There was something familiar about this young man.
After thinking for a while, she seemed to recall something.
"You're… Natsuhiko? Fukami Natsuhiko?"
"Yes." Natsuhiko blinked in slight surprise, then smiled and nodded. "Long time no see, Sora."
He was honestly a bit surprised she recognized him.
Back at the academy, he had kept an extremely low profile.
The reason he could recognize Uchiha Sora was because he had activated his "cheat" ability at a young age, which granted him strong sensory perception.
As her desk mate, he had memorized her chakra signature.
And besides, the Uchiha clan was notoriously blessed with good looks—it was hard to forget.
It had to be said—
Heaven's favoritism toward the Uchiha clan was almost excessive.
Throughout the entire clan, it was genuinely difficult to find anyone with strange or unattractive features.
To put it another way, being good-looking in the Uchiha clan wasn't anything special—because everyone looked about the same.
But if you looked average, or even strange, then you would definitely be unforgettable within the Uchiha clan.
"I didn't expect it really to be you."
Sora revealed a smile that felt like a spring breeze. "It's been almost five or six years. I've only heard about you from others. You're now…"
"Just an ordinary ninja, constantly carrying out missions," Natsuhiko answered before she could finish.
He knew what she wanted to ask, so he took the initiative.
There was no way he would reveal his real situation. His Anbu identity had to remain confidential. He wasn't Kakashi, and he certainly didn't want his position to become common knowledge.
"I see."
Uchiha Sora nodded gently, then smiled again. "Well… the war is over, isn't it?"
"Yes. The war is over."
Natsuhiko nodded as well, looking somewhat emotional.
For a ninja, acting skills were essential—especially for Anbu members, who had to perform flawlessly.
During certain special missions, you might need to disguise yourself as anyone. Without convincing acting, that simply wouldn't work.
Natsuhiko's acting was decent.
At that moment, he looked exactly like someone reflecting after surviving a catastrophe—
Even though he had never actually set foot on the battlefield.
"Let's not talk about that."
He decisively ended the topic. He knew that the more one spoke, the more mistakes one might make.
"How have you been these past years?"
"It's been the same. After graduation, I went to the Land of Whirlpools."
Sora brushed back a strand of hair near her temple and spoke softly.
"Fortunately, I had good luck. I stayed by the clan head's side the whole time, so nothing really happened to me.
After the war with Kirigakure ended last year, I returned. I've been on standby since then. Now I'm planning to transfer to the Medical Department, but the approval hasn't come through yet."
Because the Uchiha clan excelled at Fire Release techniques, when Kirigakure declared war, they were sent to the Land of Whirlpools as the main force against them.
The Hyuga clan went as well.
After all, Kirigakure specialized in thick mist and had even developed the Hidden Mist Technique to obscure vision.
In that kind of environment, the Hyuga clan's Byakugan could fully display its strengths.
So even though the Hyuga and Uchiha disliked each other—competing over the title of Konoha's strongest clan and strongest dōjutsu—they still had to cooperate when it mattered.
Sora's luck really had been good.
The fact that she was sent to the Land of Whirlpools to fight Kirigakure already proved she had solid talent.
Those without talent wouldn't have been sent there.
They would have been thrown into far harsher battlefields—like the Land of Grass against Iwagakure, or the Land of Hot Water against Kumogakure.
In those places, Uchiha members didn't receive much protection.
"Good choice. The Medical Department is definitely a solid option," Natsuhiko said with a smile, though his mind was busy thinking. "Work hard. I'm sure you'll get in. Maybe I'll need to rely on you someday."
"Thank you."
Uchiha Sora's smile remained sincere and radiant. "I'll do my best."
It had to be said—
This Uchiha Sora truly embodied the traits typical of Uchiha women.
In Natsuhiko's memory, Uchiha women rarely appeared, but they all seemed to share common qualities:
Gentle.
Graceful.
Beautiful.
Whether it was Uchiha Mikoto—the mother of the so-called "ultimate double agent," Uchiha Itachi—or his childhood friend Uchiha Izumi, they were all like that.
Even long ago, around the time when Uchiha Madara had just left Konoha and an internal conflict broke out within the clan—
Uchiha Naori, who single-handedly resolved the turmoil, was also similar.
Natsuhiko found it rather puzzling.
Why was it that the men of the Uchiha clan often seemed borderline insane—
Yet the women were gentle to an almost unbelievable degree?
Could it be…
That their clan's peculiar brand of madness was inherited only by the men and not the women?