Seeing the shocked look on the girl's face, Shimizu smiled.
"You probably thought we were the same kind of person, didn't you?"
"Quiet. Reserved. Calm under pressure. The kind who doesn't show emotions easily—and prefers to prove things through actions rather than words."
"And deep down, carrying pain that can't be spoken aloud… while facing obstacles that seem impossible to overcome."
The girl hesitated for a moment, then gently nodded, acknowledging that he was right.
"That's fair," Shimizu said, his voice slowing as he spoke. "Honestly, I used to think the same thing."
"It's just that my attitude—my mindset, really—is a bit more… positive than yours."
"…It is," Satomi admitted. Then she looked at him with a hint of confusion—and a trace of envy. "How can you have such strong conviction?"
"How do you do it?"
"…Because I've already died once."
Shimizu didn't want to dwell on the memories of when he first arrived in this world. Those memories were too heavy, too suffocating. So he simply summarized it in a lighter tone.
"People only learn to cherish things after they've lost them."
"So I really do treasure the path I'm walking now—the path of a ninja."
And he meant it.
From the bottom of his heart, Shimizu felt sincere, almost reverent gratitude for the chance he'd been given to start over in this world.
Even if this ninja's path was far more treacherous than the life he had lived before.
"Focus on recovering from your injuries," he continued. "You'll heal. The senior medics already said so."
"And Lady Tsunade will definitely find a way."
"Once you're healed… the stage of the ninja world will still be open to you."
Satomi nodded again.
But she didn't seem fully convinced.
So Shimizu continued,
"And about the Caged Bird seal on your forehead… it's not completely hopeless either."
Satomi immediately shook her head.
"That's impossible. The main family would never allow it… and there's no one who can break that kind of seal."
"There is!"
Shimizu's voice was firm and unwavering.
"If your influence becomes great enough, you could sway the decisions of the main family."
"If you could influence Konoha's leadership—maybe even the Hokage himself—then it might be possible."
"…How could something like that even be achieved?"
"You haven't even tried yet, and you've already decided you can't?"
The challenges Shimizu had to face were far greater than what he had just said aloud.
Putting aside the struggles he personally faced, the towering weight of the Uchiha alone was enough to crush him.
He had sworn an oath to his close friend and classmate, Uchiha Sawei—promising that he would take care of his family.
But in the original story…
The fate that awaited the Uchiha clan…
A heavy sigh echoed in the depths of his heart.
In many ways, their situations were similar.
Both were people forced to struggle against the predetermined destinies imposed by the great clans of Konoha.
But Shimizu had already made up his mind.
He would face that inevitable crisis head-on—step by step, dismantling it piece by piece with absolute conviction.
He, Shimizu Uzuki , would never accept defeat.
"I…" Satomi faltered, unsure how to respond.
"I'm sure that the day you first received your jonin uniform, you couldn't believe it yourself either."
"That someone like you could earn that honor."
"So if you've already walked the entire road to becoming a jonin…"
"…what's a few more steps forward?"
"You should believe in yourself. You can go much farther than you think."
When a woman confides her struggles to you—when she shows you the vulnerable side she usually keeps hidden—doesn't that mean, at least a little, that she hopes you'll help carry some of that burden?
Maybe.
It was just that Shimizu wasn't very good at reading the atmosphere.
The only thing in his words was the sincere encouragement of someone speaking almost like an elder.
After a long silence, Satomi finally nodded firmly.
"…Thank you for your guidance, senior. I've learned a lot."
Shimizu didn't bother correcting the way she had changed her form of address again.
That slight sense of distance… wasn't a bad thing.
Because this time, Shimizu no longer felt that moment of confusion—no longer mistook Satomi for Natsue.
In his eyes now, the two of them had completely separated.
They might both appear to be quiet, reserved women at first glance, but in truth they were entirely different kinds of people.
He couldn't let a few superficial similarities project the vague feelings of the past onto the girl standing before him now.
As for Natsue…
All he had left were fading memories—and the regret and unwillingness he felt from that day.
More than once, Shimizu had imagined a different outcome.
If, on the day Natsue met her fate, he had chosen to stand with her—advance or retreat together—what would have happened?
If he had done that…
Then maybe…
But he would never know the answer.
What was missed was missed.
A flower that had never even had the chance to bloom had already withered away.
Still, one thing was undeniable.
Asakusa Natsue—once a living, breathing person—had taken root somewhere deep in his heart.
A more accurate comparison would be this:
There was a thorn lodged there.
Not large. Not small.
Just enough to remind him it was there.
After all, he had never truly possessed her.
And because of that, it wasn't quite right to say he had lost her.
But reality had forced him to accept that truth, and that fact alone was enough to leave someone as proud as him feeling stifled.
Still, as time passed, he would eventually let it go.
Slowly, he would accept everything—and that thorn would fall away on its own.
Or perhaps one day in the future, a woman who truly entered his heart would pull it out for him.
"Senpai Uzuki, it's getting late… I'll head back and get some rest."
"Alright."
"Then you should rest soon too, senpai. Good night!"
"Alright."
The two of them passed each other.
Satomi lowered her head and walked away slowly.
Meanwhile, Shimizu remained standing there quietly, his gaze drifting off into the distance.
…
...
...
"Shimizu, you brat—your ego's getting bigger by the day."
A middle-aged man's voice suddenly sounded from behind him.
That voice belonged to his teacher: Maruboshi Kosuke.
Kosuke continued,
"If I hadn't come looking for you tonight, were you just planning to leave it at that?"
Shimizu immediately turned around, scratching the back of his head with an embarrassed grin.
"Sensei! It's not like that… those three brats dragged me into a conversation earlier. I ended up playing the role of life mentor for a while. Took longer than I expected… otherwise I would've come to see you already."
"Weren't there four?" Kosuke's tone sounded… a little strange.
"You mean Satomi? She just left." Shimizu replied with a perfectly upright expression. "I also played life mentor for her. Successfully rescued the lost soul of a troubled girl."
"…Nothing else happened?"
"How could there be?" Shimizu said solemnly. "Nothing at all."
"…Good."
Kosuke's voice turned serious.
"The affairs of the Hyuga Clan are far more complicated than they appear on the surface. Don't meddle in them lightly."
"I'm sure you're already carrying enough burdens as it is."
"You mean the Caged Bird seal?" Shimizu asked curiously.
"You think it's that simple?" Kosuke replied. "Then think about it this way—over the past several decades, who has ever managed to break that system?"
"The Senju Clan declined. The Hatake Clan withered away. The Uchiha Clan isn't what it used to be. The Uzumaki Clan has practically vanished."
"And yet the Hyuga Clan…"
"For decades now, they've remained at the height of their power—thriving with unstoppable vitality."
...
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