I Can Take on 10!!

Shazo had lived in Konoha for twelve years.

He understood the strength of the Uchiha Clan, but he understood even better the supreme influence Wood Release held in Konoha.

In front of the Konoha Ninja and the Uchiha, he could create a lush forest, preach the Will of Fire, then declare that Konoha needed the Uchiha Clan and had to protect every Konoha Ninja.

Who would still dare suggest wiping out the Uchiha Clan?

If Shimura Danzō dared to throw a tantrum then, the Konoha Ninja could drown him in spit.

As long as the Third Hokage still had a brain, he would personally tear apart that ill-timed bastard.

The First Hokage's Wood Release Kekkei Genkai and the Will of Fire were the two great tools that united Konoha's people.

Konoha's powerful ninja corps, its outstanding ninja prodigies, even its prosperous and safe life—all of it had grown from those two cores.

If the Third Hokage saw someone openly questioning those two things and still refused to come down hard on them, then it would be his turn to face questioning.

Especially in Year 55 of Konoha, Hiruzen Sarutobi's position as Hokage was far from secure.

The Konoha Ninja had only reluctantly accepted his return to power in the first place. And what had he done?

He had driven away Orochimaru, the natural candidate for Fifth Hokage. He had accepted Kumogakure's insolent threats and traded Hizashi Hyuga's life to Kumogakure for peace.

For seven whole years, Konoha had been unable to choose a Fifth Hokage. The Konoha Ninja had long since reached the limits of their dissatisfaction.

Without the Third Hokage's shaky position as a prerequisite, the Uchiha Clan would never have come up with something as rotten as a coup.

When the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, had been around, no Uchiha ninja had ever clamored for a coup.

Still, Shazo strangled the little man shouting in his heart and calmly reconsidered his plan of action.

He could not get carried away. Getting carried away got people killed.

After awakening the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai, Shazo could change more than just the Uchiha Clan massacre. He could also change his own standing in Konoha.

If he handled things well, he might even take Tsunade's place and become the Fifth Hokage before turning twenty.

Shazo suddenly realized that he seemed capable of changing Shisui Uchiha's fate.

As a transmigrator, he had naturally considered approaching and securing key figures from the story, using them as threads through which to influence the Ninja World.

Shisui Uchiha was one of the important, pivotal characters Shazo knew of, but he was not easy to approach.

Because he was kind.

Shisui Uchiha was far too kind. Worse still, his sense of hierarchy was too strong.

Because Hiruzen Sarutobi was the Third Hokage, Shisui trusted him unconditionally, and even trusted Shimura Danzō deeply.

He had even told them about the core ocular technique of the Mangekyō Sharingan!

Was a technique like Kotoamatsukami something others should know about?

Shisui Uchiha trusted his superiors without limit and kept no secrets whatsoever. He was completely unsuitable as a friend. He was simply too much of a liability.

If Shazo could take Shisui Uchiha in as a subordinate, that would be incredible.

But Shazo had previously been nothing more than a civilian ninja. His strength and status had not qualified him to be Shisui Uchiha's friend, much less make him willingly serve as a subordinate.

So he had given up on that idea.

Now, things were different.

Having awakened the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai, Shazo was naturally linked to the First Hokage by status. He had a chance to persuade Shisui Uchiha to abandon the Third Hokage and place his faith in him instead.

It might be possible.

The Third Hokage had far too many flaws.

During Hiruzen Sarutobi's tenure as Hokage, Whirlpool Village had been destroyed, the Senju Clan had vanished, the Konoha White Fang had committed suicide, and of the Konoha Sannin, one had defected while two had left. Konoha's decline was plain for all to see.

He had led the Konoha Ninja to victory in two wars, yet gained not the slightest benefit from either victory.

Those victories were like Schrödinger's Cat, existing in a superposition of victory and non-victory.

In any case, the Konoha Ninja had never felt as though they had won any war.

Hizashi Hyuga, who had been forced to commit suicide, had the greatest right to speak on that matter.

So many facts could not possibly have failed to affect Shisui Uchiha.

It was only that Shisui Uchiha was accustomed to blindly obeying authority and unwilling to think about such matters. Or perhaps he had thought about them, but did not know how to solve the problem.

Then Shazo would give him an authority even greater than the Third Hokage. Using the First Hokage to suppress the Third Hokage, he might be able to win him over.

Shazo was tempted.

Who would not be tempted by the chance to take in such a perfect subordinate as Shisui Uchiha?

But for now, the most important thing was mastering his own strength. Personal power was the foundation of everything.

With enough money on hand, Shazo rented an advanced training ground and systematically tested his own abilities.

Tearing off the newly grown branches and tender shoots, Shazo left his bedroom and entered the small courtyard.

From basic speed, reaction time, agility, strength, endurance, and recovery, to chakra extraction volume, extraction efficiency, circulation speed, control ability, and external control, he tested everything carefully.

Shazo's basic physical qualities had increased by a full twofold. That meant that without considering factors such as ninjutsu, he could now defeat ten versions of yesterday's self at once.

He could honestly say, "I can take on 10!!"

If it were a one-on-one arena gauntlet, Shazo felt that even a hundred versions of yesterday's self would be no match for him. He could fight all day, until hunger finally defeated him.

But an even greater surprise awaited him.

Shazo discovered that he could easily achieve both chakra shape transformation and nature transformation. He could also easily refine chakra of all five attributes—wind, earth, water, fire, and lightning. He had even refined Yin Release and Yang Release chakra.

It was a miracle.

A miracle born from the cultivation knowledge Demon Xiazhuo had accumulated over several centuries, the century of insight into Spirit Particles gained by Shinigami Xiazhuo, and the combination of those things with his own chakra training.

Unfortunately, Star-faring Xiazhuo's powerful and convenient telekinesis had not been shared.

Shazo also discovered that there was a problem with his ninjutsu proficiency.

First, his greatly enhanced physical qualities had disrupted his muscle memory, slowing his hand seal speed.

Second, his chakra control had increased enormously, and its circulation speed within his body had also risen dramatically, conflicting with his previous habits for performing ninjutsu.

His ninjutsu circulated too quickly inside his body, and when combined with his sluggish hand seals, errors occurred instead, causing his ninjutsu to fail.

But Shazo quickly turned the bad thing into a good one. He tried removing several hand seals and replacing them with his vastly improved chakra control, successfully performing the ninjutsu.

The speed was even faster than before.

He smiled with satisfaction. "So this is what it feels like when Jonin perform ninjutsu. This is also why they all have ninjutsu in their own distinctive styles."

"Mm, I think I should learn from Hashirama Senju. Clap my hands together, shout whatever I want, and it appears."

Shazo spent the entire day practicing ninjutsu, familiarizing himself with chakra and his control over it.

His powerful physical qualities gave him abundant recovery ability. Even after a busy day, he did not feel the slightest fatigue, and before nightfall, he had practiced his basic ninjutsu to a level that satisfied him.

After dark, Shazo quietly left home and went to the wilderness between the Daimyo's Mansion in the village's northeast and the barrier surrounding its walls.

Because the Daimyo's Mansion cut off transportation between this area and central Konoha, no one lived there.

The daimyo usually lived in the Land of Fire Capital and only stayed temporarily at the Daimyo's Mansion when visiting Konoha. The enormous residence was likewise empty.

The northeastern corner of Konoha could be called the most desolate place in the entire village.

Shazo felt that practicing his Wood Release Kekkei Genkai here would make it least likely for anyone to disturb him.