8 The Tsundere Has Reverted to an Earlier Version

Regarding how to find suitable ingredients for survival in the wild, the two children only had a vague understanding.

Usually, Kotono and Naruto would each carry a small basket, picking their favorite mushrooms or wild vegetables, then throw them into a pot with some water and seasoning to stew.

[Innate Talent: Uzumaki Physiology activated.]

Hearing this system notification, Kotono dropped the red mushroom she had just bitten into.

“Naruto, you’re picking mushrooms carelessly again.”

Kotono used the system prompts to test for poison. With the spirit of a herbalist sampling countless herbs, she had nearly eaten all the mushrooms in the back mountain and finally identified thirteen edible species.

But Naruto still had a strong curiosity for unfamiliar, beautiful fungi, often bringing trouble to her.

Naruto slurped the soup noisily, unconcerned. “It’s fine, I won’t get sick anyway.”

At that moment, rustling sounds came from the bushes nearby.

“What are you two doing?”

A figure with black hair emerged from the shrubs—it was Sasuke.

Uchiha Sasuke wore a black short-sleeved shirt, carried a quiver on his back, and held a small bow and arrows. A white band was tied around his forehead, and he looked spirited and handsome, dressed like a young master ready for a hunt in the mountains.

“I’m having a picnic with Kotono,” Naruto said, proudly holding up his wooden bowl.

“Hmph.” Seeing Naruto’s boastful tone, Sasuke’s curiosity was quickly replaced by disdain.

“I’m out hunting with my brother. Have you ever shot a wild boar?”

“Tch, wild boars are nothing. I’ve hunted bigger—really huge monsters before!”

Sasuke asked, “What kind of monster?”

Naruto’s eyes flickered evasively. “Uh… three eyes, nine tails! Each eye is as big as your whole body!”

“And then?”

Naruto’s imagination ran out after two sentences.

Fortunately, Kotono interrupted in time. “Sasuke, are you hungry? Want to have some?”

Sasuke glanced at the hotpot and frowned slightly.

Kotono and Naruto were eating simply—mushrooms and green wild vegetables floating in boiling water.

For Sasuke, the eldest son of the clan leader, this mushroom broth hotpot was hardly appealing. If he wanted to eat, Mother Mikoto would prepare a tastier tomato stew.

However, Naruto loudly protested, “No, no! I worked hard to make this. Why should I give it to that annoying Sasuke?”

Sasuke immediately changed his mind. “Fine then.”

The boy picked the largest, reddest mushroom—Naruto had been staring at it and was about to swallow it whole.

“Wait, that—” Kotono tried to stop him.

This mushroom was the new poisonous species that triggered her Uzumaki Physiology today.

Eating it was harmless to her and Naruto, but Sasuke would most likely be in serious trouble.

No one expected Sasuke to be so quick. By the time Kotono spoke, he had already brought the mushroom to his mouth.

Just as he was about to swallow, a stone flew over and knocked the wooden bowl from his hands.

The bowl rolled on the ground, the mushroom and vegetable soup spilling everywhere.

“Sasuke, that mushroom is poisonous,” said a calm, youthful voice nearby.

She looked over and saw a black-haired boy, also carrying a bow and dressed in Uchiha clan attire, walking toward them from behind the bushes.

The boy’s smooth black hair was tied back. His features resembled Sasuke’s but his brows and eyes were softer and more refined.

When his gaze landed on Naruto’s striking blond hair and fox-like markings, he lightly frowned.

He said in a deep voice, “Who are you…”

Sasuke, afraid Kotono would spout nonsense about past-life lovers and embarrass him in front of his brother, quickly spoke up.

“They’re my classmates.”

“This is my brother, Uchiha Itachi.”

[Name: Uchiha Itachi]

[Total Chakra: 138,235 points]

Having 130,000+ chakra at this age made him an undeniable prodigy.

Kotono politely said, “Hello, Brother Itachi. I’m Uzumaki Kotono, and this is Uzumaki Naruto. We are friends of Sasuke.”

At that last sentence, both the black-haired and blond boys snorted simultaneously.

“Who’s his friend?”

“I’m not friends with Sasuke!”

Then, they both gave a simultaneous “Hmph.”

“It’s Sasuke’s friend,” Uchiha Itachi’s brows relaxed with some concern. “Why are you two here alone, and why are you cooking poisonous mushrooms?”

“We just found out they were poisonous,” Kotono explained.

“We don’t really know what’s poisonous or not. We just eat and if it feels uncomfortable, then it’s poisonous.”

“I took a bite of this mushroom just now. My tongue felt a bit numb, so I tried to stop Sasuke from eating it.”

Uchiha Sasuke: …

Uchiha Itachi: …

To Naruto and Kotono, the spirit of the herbalist seemed ordinary, but the two young Uchiha showed clear shock and sympathy.

“My mushroom soup tastes really good,” Naruto defended sensitively.

Sasuke hesitated.

He looked at his brother, who nodded with a smile, then huffed and said awkwardly,

“My brother and I just shot a wild boar and plan to roast the meat. Would you like to try some? Consider it my treat.”

So the simple hotpot meal turned into a rich picnic of hotpot and barbecue.

Uchiha Itachi helped them discard the dark mushroom soup and cooked a new pot.

The boy carefully picked all the poisonous mushrooms out of the wooden basket and patiently explained to the three children how to identify poisonous fungi and how to self-rescue if accidentally ingested.

Uchiha Itachi was very skilled in identifying wild plants, effortlessly sharing detailed knowledge. His calm, pleasant voice made the explanation especially captivating.

Kotono sincerely thought, “I didn’t expect Sasuke’s praise for Brother Itachi to be an exaggeration.”

Uchiha Itachi gave the impression of being humble, gentle, intelligent, and steady—very fitting for the eldest son of a great family.

How could such an outstanding genius be a villain?

Uchiha Itachi’s demeanor and appearance were much better than Kirei Kotomine’s—his eyes even sparkled!

Uchiha Itachi smiled faintly, making Sasuke beam proudly. “That’s how excellent my brother is!”

Naruto sneered beside him, clearly annoyed.

Sasuke instantly bristled. “Hey, you runt, want a beating?”

Kotono stopped them. “You two, don’t fight in front of Brother Itachi!”

Hearing Kotono, Naruto pulled a face at Sasuke. “Hmph, useless without your brother, you arrogant Sasuke. If you’re so good, let’s have a food-eating contest. Let’s see who can eat more barbecue!”

“Bring it on!”

The two boys then gobbled their food fiercely, glaring at each other as they competed to eat more.

Kotono watched and looked toward Uchiha Itachi, who was smiling gently at his younger brother.

That was such a normal, human reaction.

Kotono pondered.

Fate had various timelines. In the main timeline, Kirei Kotomine became a villain who betrayed his master and ancestors.

But in the Fate/Apocrypha timeline, because he never met Gilgamesh and realized his own evil nature, he remained a troubled priest.

Solved!

Someone must have been trying to lure Uchiha Itachi into opening the gates to a new world—hiss, there’s a bad guy near the Uchiha!

But how to gather intel on Uchiha Itachi’s surroundings?

Kotono looked at her little arms and legs, feeling a bit troubled.

…

As the sun set, Uchiha Itachi helped them clean up all the trash and led them down the mountain.

The Uchiha clan’s territory was close to the back mountain.

“Goodbye, Brother Itachi, goodbye, Sasuke!” Kotono’s voice was clear.

“Bye, bye,” Naruto pouted and waved carelessly.

“Goodbye, be careful on the road,” Uchiha Itachi smiled.

Sasuke mumbled, “Bye.”

“That’s too quiet,” Itachi said softly, “Sasuke, that’s rude.”

“Goodbye, Kotono, goodbye, runt,” Sasuke said stubbornly and coolly.

He earned another grimace from Naruto.

On the way home, Uchiha Itachi suddenly said, “That kid just now was very cute.”

Sasuke frowned. “Uzumaki Kotono? She’s pretty ordinary in class. There are many girls cuter than her.”

“…”

The boy looked puzzled but saw his brother’s slightly mischievous smile.

“I didn’t say if it was a boy or a girl. How do you know who I’m talking about?”

His brother’s gaze seemed to see through something.

A bright flush spread from the boy’s ears to his cheeks, and he awkwardly looked away.

No way!

That Uzumaki Kotono girl—he wanted to talk to her but ran off when Naruto called… how was she cute?

Anyway.

Anyway, Uzumaki Kotono was not cute at all.

That’s what Uchiha Sasuke said!