"What happened? Tell me about it."
Enichi stroked the sword in his hand, looking pleased and delighted.
Clearly, he was in a very good mood. He had once been a ninja with superb swordsmanship.
With a pair of Sharingan and his swordsmanship, he had been unstoppable on the battlefield. But after Konoha was founded and his family passed away, he gave up the sword, and his heart gradually grew old.
He never expected to encounter a peerless sword at his age.
And it had been made by a child who wasn't even ten.
What talent. What a genius.
Most importantly, the other boy wasn't even obsessed with sword-making, yet he had managed to create such a divine weapon in just a few years.
This child had the makings of the First.
And he was even researching the secrets of the Uchiha.
It seemed that researching the secrets of the Senju and Uchiha bloodlines had merely been an experiment.
Enichi had once taken it as a joke, but now, given the boy's talent, perhaps he really could achieve something.
"Danzo recently sent his Genbu to spy on me. He searched my laboratory, and I severely wounded one of them."
Yayoi spoke with a calm expression.
"Then why are you so calm?"
Enichi understood how serious the situation was. It might not mean much to him, but for Yayoi, being targeted by Danzo was a real headache.
On top of that, his laboratory had been ransacked. If he had conducted any experiments that violated the village's rules, Danzo might have found something to use against him.
"I made two sets of preparations. He won't be able to catch me," Yayoi said calmly.
"Oh? You sound confident. What do you want me to do?"
Enichi was intrigued. The youngster seemed to have a plan of his own.
He hadn't simply come to ask for protection. He had his own ideas.
"Mm. The Genbu ninja will definitely come again in a few days. When they do, I want the Uchiha to take the opportunity to arrest them," Yayoi said.
Danzo was exactly that kind of person. The moment Yayoi showed even the slightest hint of a potential weakness, Danzo would relentlessly target him. He had to teach him a lesson.
It was ironic that a Senju had to rely on the Uchiha to stand up for him, but Yayoi didn't care about pride.
As long as he achieved his goal, that was enough. Danzo was like a hungry wolf. If he wasn't hurt badly, he would always look for an opportunity to cause trouble.
Yayoi was on his own and had no backing. For now, he could only rely on the Uchiha to deal with Danzo.
He didn't even know what he had done to anger him.
Perhaps it was because of Tsunade, his teacher, who had once been the presumptive Fourth Hokage.
Or perhaps Danzo couldn't stand the possibility of anyone else getting close to the Hokage Position.
Or maybe he simply thought that Yayoi's closeness to the Uchiha made him a dangerous, unpredictable person.
Yayoi sighed. If the Senju hadn't disbanded, he wouldn't have been in this position.
But there was no going back.
"Fine. I can have the Police Force help you," Enichi agreed readily.
No matter what, he was a proud Uchiha. Anyone who dared sneak into Uchiha Clan Territory had to be prepared not to leave.
"As for the second matter, it's too dangerous outside the clan territory. I want to move to the center."
Yayoi held up two fingers.
"The center is too densely populated, and there aren't any vacant houses."
Enichi shook his head. There was nothing he could do about that.
"No, I mean I want to live in Yan's house."
Even Yayoi, who was usually so composed, didn't dare look up.
"Ahem. I just need somewhere to put my laboratory equipment. One room will do."
Enichi had first stared at him in astonishment, but his expression soon turned thoughtful.
"You've got some nerve."
In the end, the old man gave Yayoi a sigh and those words.
"Do as you said."
Genbu
Danzo studied the manuscript spread open in his hands, his gaze thoughtful.
The boy was talented. His research into the Senju Bloodline was already very advanced.
At the very least, the experimental data was not far off from what Danzo knew about the Senju's secrets.
Danzo was confident. He thought he had already tested the limits of Yayoi's knowledge.
Although Yayoi hadn't broken any rules, if he continued, sooner or later he would take that forbidden step.
And then Danzo would have his chance.
Danzo also suspected that Uesugi Yayoi had already broken the rules.
The evidence he had destroyed, even at the cost of revealing his strength, was proof enough.
"Send a ninja skilled at staying hidden to keep watching him. If anything unexpected happens, report to me immediately."
Danzo gave the order from his seat in the shadows, his gaze dark.
He had lost one operative, but it was no great loss. For a mere Uesugi Yayoi to dare defy Genbu left Danzo looking furious.
"Yes."
The Genbu ninja accepted the order. They were Genbu's claws, without feelings and with nothing but absolute obedience to orders.
"Tsunade, you've already given up the Hokage Position. Why do you still insist on standing in my way?"
Danzo was visibly agitated.
Tsunade had originally been the presumptive Fourth Hokage. Everyone knew it.
But she didn't want the position, and Danzo had been the first to rejoice, because it meant he had a chance.
But now, Tsunade might be paving the way for another Senju.
Not for the Fourth Hokage, but for the Fifth.
Whether it was Uesugi Yayoi or Senju Shengshu, either of them could become Hokage.
Although Tsunade hadn't done anything to suggest it, Danzo was certain she had that intention.
Danzo saw things clearly. Unless something unexpected happened, he had almost no chance of becoming Fourth Hokage.
White Fang was at the height of his fame, but he wasn't a threat. Orochimaru was different. He had the temperament of a poisonous snake, and with such a great advantage, Danzo couldn't possibly beat him.
But the next Hokage, the Fifth, was within reach. At least for now, Danzo hadn't seen any of the younger generation show their talent.
There was only Uesugi Yayoi, a Senju and possibly Tsunade's student.
He posed too great a threat to Danzo. His status as Tsunade's student would earn him support and prestige.
And he also seemed close to Orochimaru.
If the time came to choose a Fifth Hokage, Orochimaru would almost certainly support Uesugi Yayoi.
Danzo couldn't tolerate that.
Fortunately, Uesugi Yayoi had close ties with the Uchiha.
If Danzo could find evidence against him, he could eliminate him from contention for the Hokage Position—or even make him work for Danzo.
But Uesugi Yayoi was very clever. He had even noticed that he was being watched.
That was why he had moved his home to the edge of Uchiha Clan Territory in advance.
It was a clever move. It would stop Danzo from going too far, but it was also a foolish one.
His closeness to the Uchiha would undoubtedly plant a thorn in Sarutobi Hiruzen's heart.
As long as the thorn remained, there would be no peace.
With that thorn in place, Hiruzen wouldn't openly favor Uesugi Yayoi when Danzo acted against him, no matter how much he might want to.
That would let Danzo act and probe without worry.
But Danzo still didn't think it was enough. He wanted to crush the person with the best chance of competing for the Hokage Position in the future.
As for Shengshu, Danzo couldn't go after him.
But there was no need to. He couldn't act against him, either. Given his arrogance, the battlefield itself was already the greatest danger to him.
No one in the new generation could compete with Danzo.
The Fifth Hokage Position would be his, Shimura Danzo's, without question!
And if he played his cards right, he could even take the Fourth Hokage Position. All he needed was to find leverage against Orochimaru, too.
After discussing things with Elder Enichi,
Yayoi began to put his plan into action. It was simple—or perhaps Danzo was simply too brazen.
The Genbu ninja didn't even know to keep a low profile after the incident.
They thought that as long as they observed him discreetly and didn't break into his home like last time, they wouldn't be discovered.
Yayoi was happy to let them think so.
Over the next few days, Yayoi deliberately pretended that his experiments had hit a bottleneck, while frequently entering and leaving the illusory Konoha Forest.
He was careful, but in the end, the Genbu ninja still noticed.
Acting on Danzo's orders, they continued their surveillance.
On a moonless, windy night, they saw Yayoi dig up a corpse and bloodstains in the forest.
It was a major development, and they didn't think Yayoi would notice them.
Their strength was only at the Chunin level, but their concealment skills were definitely at Jonin level.
Lord Danzo's orders were to gather evidence against Uesugi Yayoi when necessary.
That was their mission.
After Yayoi left, one of them immediately contacted the others.
According to the records, Uesugi Yayoi was at Chunin level. The Genbu ninja was afraid he couldn't take him down alone.
"Uesugi Yayoi, come with me."
A cold, emotionless voice came from behind Yayoi.
"You're involved in human experimentation. You're coming with me to see Lord Danzo."
"Oh?"
Yayoi turned his head slightly. Seeing the three Genbu ninja, he asked with interest,
"I thought this was Uchiha Clan Territory. How did you get in?"
Before you continue