At the Ninja Academy—
"Kamikawa-kun, did you hear? Itachi-kun is going to graduate early. He's only been here a year… that's amazing!"
Uchiha Izumi looked out the window at Itachi, who was the center of attention, and spoke to Kamikawa beside her.
"It really is impressive."
Kamikawa didn't hold back his praise.
Before he knew it, a whole year had passed since they met.
Although he rarely came to school in person, through the memories of his shadow clones, he had come to understand Izumi deeply—she was a gentle, kind, and considerate girl.
At this point, there were still six years before the Uchiha massacre.
Kamikawa wasn't naive enough to try to save the entire Uchiha clan. Even if he tried, they might not believe him.
But letting Izumi die at the hands of those two lunatics—Itachi and Obito—
That was something he couldn't accept.
Perhaps when that time came… it would also be time for him to leave the village.
After all, his original plan was to join the Akatsuki.
Konan… ahem—those black robes with red clouds… he'd been eyeing them for a long time.
"And Kamikawa-kun is amazing too. If you took the graduation exam now, you'd definitely pass early as well."
Izumi's voice pulled him back from his thoughts.
"You're overestimating me."
Kamikawa slipped back into his usual modest-but-not-really act.
In terms of raw talent, Uchiha Itachi truly was a genius.
His battle intelligence was exceptionally high. Without the boost from his cultivation technique, Kamikawa admitted he wouldn't measure up.
The only flaw was emotional intelligence—practically nonexistent.
No wonder, in the original story, despite being feared by Obito, he was still played so easily by Konoha's leadership.
"No, I'm not. Kamikawa-kun really is amazing."
Izumi leaned in closer, whispering softly by his ear. Her warm breath brushed against him as her gentle voice followed:
"Kamikawa-kun… you've been using a shadow clone to attend school too, right?"
"How did you figure that out?"
Kamikawa looked at her in surprise.
He knew she had awakened the Sharingan during the Nine-Tails incident, but the Sharingan couldn't directly distinguish shadow clones. At most, it could infer based on subtle differences—and he had rarely shown both his real body and clones at the same time.
"Kamikawa-kun, a girl's intuition is always sharper than you think."
Izumi stepped back, closed one eye playfully, and smiled.
"Then tell me—am I real or a clone right now?"
Kamikawa was intrigued, a faint smile appearing on his face.
"Hmm…"
Izumi covered her lips lightly and examined him again. After a moment of thought, she answered with certainty:
"You're real. No matter how perfect a clone is, it's still a clone. The eyes can't lie. Recently, your eyes feel different from before… You probably saw Itachi-kun get exposed and got worried, so you started coming in person, right?"
"You really are smart. Though maybe you're the only one who could notice something like that. Who else would pay this much attention to me every day?"
Kamikawa smiled gently, his hand unconsciously reaching up to pat her head.
Izumi's face instantly flushed bright red.
Realizing what he'd done, Kamikawa awkwardly pulled his hand back.
"S-Sorry… sorry… You're just too cute, Izumi. I couldn't help it."
Izumi nodded softly, then turned her back to him.
A faint smile tugged at her lips as she murmured quietly, just loud enough for herself to hear:
"Kamikawa-kun is way too sly…"
Their interaction didn't go unnoticed.
In the corner of the classroom, several girls had been watching the whole time, their inner gossip instincts igniting instantly.
"Waaah… Kamikawa and Izumi are so sweet together! How did I not notice such a handsome guy before? So cute!"
"That's because you only had eyes for Itachi. I've been shipping Kamikawa and Izumi for ages."
"Seriously? Tell me everything!"
"Me too! I want to hear!"
…
Hokage's Office.
"Lord Third, here are the files you requested on Shimizu Kamikawa and his parents."
An ANBU operative respectfully handed over the documents.
Name: Shimizu Kamikawa
Gender: Male
Birthday: November 10
Parents: Shimizu Ichirō (deceased), Shimizu Rika (deceased)
Blood Type: O
Nindō: Protect Konoha; wishes to never see bloodshed again
Hobbies: Helping elderly ladies cross the street
Most Admired Person: The Third Hokage
Dream: To become a great ninja like the Third Hokage
Instructor's Evaluation:
An outstanding civilian prodigy. With proper training, his achievements may rival those of elite clan children.
Hiruzen Sarutobi skimmed through the report and seemed fairly satisfied.
Overall, Kamikawa performed excellently in all areas—shurikenjutsu, kunai throwing, and more—with no obvious weaknesses.
While far less dazzling than Uchiha Itachi, one had to remember—
Kamikawa was just a civilian.
He lacked both the superior bloodline and the resources of a great clan. Reaching this level was already impressive.
But that wasn't the key point.
What mattered most was that Hiruzen saw something in this boy—
the Will of Fire.
A child who admired him and aspired to become a great ninja like him surely possessed strong ideological alignment.
And that was exactly the kind of civilian talent he needed.
"The Shimizu family raised a fine son…"
Hiruzen lit his pipe and exhaled a cloud of smoke, sighing inwardly.
After a moment, he asked:
"How are his interpersonal relationships?"
"He gets along well with most of his classmates… but…"
The ANBU operative hesitated.
"Go on."
Hiruzen tapped his pipe lightly, his expression unreadable.
"It seems Shimizu Kamikawa is quite close to a girl from the Uchiha clan. Supposedly, during the Night of the Nine-Tails, he saved her, and that's how they became acquainted."
With tensions between Konoha and the Uchiha growing, the clan had become a sensitive topic.
"I see…"
Hiruzen's brows relaxed slightly, and a plan began forming in his mind.
Perhaps… he could make use of the boy's admiration for him.
Guide him—no, enlighten him—to act for the sake of Konoha.
Have him gather intelligence on the Uchiha clan… and observe whether they showed signs of rebellion.
But before that, the boy needed to become a true ninja.
With that in mind, Hiruzen spoke:
"Have the Academy pay extra attention to that child. Help him grow as quickly as possible. The village needs talents like him."
"Yes, sir."
The ANBU operative responded respectfully before vanishing in an instant using the Body Flicker Technique.
Watching the spot where he disappeared, Hiruzen lit his pipe again, exhaling slowly.
"…Peace…"