After deciding to appoint Deidara as the Fourth Tsuchikage, Mirai and Kurotsuchi wandered around Iwagakure together under Deidara's lead.
Compared to before, Iwagakure looked almost like a completely rebuilt village.
Massive stone sculptures stood everywhere, blending seamlessly with the village's rugged terrain, giving off an overwhelming sense of tragic grandeur.
Deidara introduced proudly, "Most of these sculptures were my idea."
"Even though they can't capture the brilliance of an explosion, they can still be etched into people's hearts forever."
"A lot of people come to Iwagakure just to see them — they're quite popular."
After hearing that, Mirai chuckled. "Deidara, you've really given up on your old artistic pursuits, huh?"
Deidara shook his head and explained,
"Art doesn't have to stick to just one form. As long as I can express what's in my heart, that's enough for me."
Looking at the more composed Deidara, Uchiha Mirai silently nodded.
This guy really had changed a lot.
Maybe even Deidara himself couldn't say whether, back then, he had been genuinely pursuing art — or just a rebellious kid stubbornly trying to gain recognition in his own way.
...
They ended up staying in Iwagakure for about a month before Mirai finally took Kurotsuchi back to Konoha.
As for Iwagakure, he felt perfectly at ease leaving it in Deidara's hands.
...
After returning to Konoha, Mirai found Tsunade playing mahjong with Konan, Uchiha Mikoto, and Uzumaki Kushina.
When Tsunade spotted Mirai approaching, she couldn't help but exclaim excitedly,
"Mirai, this mahjong game you invented is amazing! I can't get enough of it!"
Uchiha Mirai noticed that Tsunade had a huge pile of gold coins stacked next to her.
For some reason, despite her terrible gambling luck in everything else, Tsunade seemed to have incredible luck when playing mahjong.
After watching them for a bit, Mirai quickly lost interest.
He just wasn't into these kinds of things. If he had free time, he'd rather go fishing than play board games.
"Tsunade, where are Kurenai and Rin?"
"They should be in the living room playing games..."
After getting his answer, Mirai headed toward the living room.
There, he found Kurenai Yuhi, Rin Nohara, and a few others, each holding a controller, engrossed in a multiplayer racing game.
Everyone was so focused that they didn't even notice Mirai walk in.
"Ahem..."
Mirai cleared his throat, finally drawing their attention.
When they saw him, Kurenai cheerfully invited, "Honey, want to join us?"
Uchiha Mirai shook his head. "No thanks. Not really interested."
Most of these games had been ones he told about. Back in his previous life, he'd already played them countless times.
Even though some of the storylines had been slightly altered here, it wasn't enough to spark his interest again.
Seeing him refuse, Kurenai pouted and said, "Tch! You're such an old man. Totally out of touch with the times."
At that, Yugao Uzuki, Guren, Rin Nohara, and the others couldn't help but stifle their laughter.
Anko Mitarashi even chimed in directly, "That's right, Jerk Senpai! You can't act like an old fossil — you gotta keep up a youthful spirit!"
Mirai couldn't help but laugh out of exasperation.
Never in his life did he think he'd live to hear himself being called an "old fossil."
"You girls only find this stuff interesting because you haven't seen anything truly good."
Curious, Rin Nohara asked, "Mirai, you mean you've played even better games?"
Uchiha Mirai let out a light snort. "Of course."
Anko quickly retorted, "Jerk Senpai, I don't buy it! These games are cutting-edge, you know."
"You're just saying that to save face!"
Mirai shot Anko a glance and said flatly, "If you want to try, I can show you right now."
Kurenai immediately clapped her hands excitedly. "Honey, we want to play!"
As his childhood friend, Kurenai had absolute trust in Mirai.
If Mirai said he had something more fun, then there definitely was!
Seeing the eager looks on all their faces, Uchiha Mirai smiled faintly.
"Alright then, let's give you a real immersive experience."
The moment he finished speaking, he pulled them all into a genjutsu world.
This illusionary world was based on the racing game they had just been playing, but inside it, they could experience the thrill of driving firsthand.
"Whoa! This... this is the game world!"
"It feels so real — it's just like the real world!"
"No wonder Mirai said the other version was boring! I didn't know games could be like this!"
Seeing their amazed expressions, Mirai snorted lightly.
With his current strength, creating a full-immersion virtual world was child's play.
If you're going to play a game, you should feel like you're really inside it.
After familiarizing themselves with the controls, the girls quickly got into the game.
Meanwhile, Mirai quietly made his way over to Anko.
"Anko, didn't you just call me an old fossil?"
Seeing the dangerous glint in Mirai's eyes, Anko immediately grew wary.
"What, Jerk Senpai, you're not seriously mad, are you?"
Uchiha Mirai smiled and shook his head.
"I'm not mad. But since you keep calling me Jerk Senpai, shouldn't I at least act the part?"
Hearing that, Anko instinctively crossed her arms over her chest.
"J-Jerk — I mean, Uchiha Mirai, you better not do anything weird!"
Even though she'd secretly fantasized countless times about scenarios like this in the middle of the night, now that it was actually happening, Anko couldn't help but hesitate.
Mirai grabbed her wrist, his smile turning a little colder.
"This world is under my complete control. Even if you scream until your voice gives out, no one will hear you."
Faced with Mirai's intense gaze, Anko eventually gave up resisting. She mumbled to herself, trying to convince herself,
"Whatever... it's just an illusion world... it doesn't really count..."
Hearing that, Mirai smirked and leaned in. "Anko, anything that happens inside this world... will be reflected in reality too."
Anko lowered her head and tightly shut her eyes.
"Jerk Senpai, you're such a big bad guy!"
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
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