Might Guy told Uchiha Rei solemnly, "Lady Tsunade will return to the village in five days."
Uchiha Rei nodded slightly and said nothing, but a trace of relief entered his eyes. To him, this was good news.
Tsunade was not only Konoha's future Hokage, but also the last glory of the Senju Clan, hailed as the "Princess of Konoha." Her very existence was one of the symbols of Konoha's Will. Tsunade had no surname because her status had long since transcended ordinary bloodline labels. Just as ancient emperors needed no surname, representing an entire era as individuals, Tsunade's name in Konoha was almost synonymous with "legitimacy."
Throughout Konoha's long history, the Senju Clan had been an unshakable cornerstone, one of the village's earliest founders. And Tsunade was undoubtedly the final mark left upon that cornerstone.
She not only possessed awe-inspiring strength, but, more importantly, had completely changed the Ninja World's understanding of Medical Ninja. The entire foundation of Konoha's medical system had been established and reformed by her. From the moment she introduced the Medical Ninja system, battlefields were no longer filled only with blood and death; they also held life and hope. Other ninja villages followed suit, establishing medical squads of their own.
Uchiha Rei remembered that when he had just graduated, he had once wanted to become Tsunade's apprentice.
Not an official student—even an unofficial, nominal apprentice would have been fine.
It wasn't that he coveted Big Tsunade's body. He just wanted to survive.
Being Tsunade's nominal apprentice meant you had been brought into Konoha's inner circle. One foot was already through to the ending.
To achieve this, he had even sought out Orochimaru, hoping the former Sannin could put in a good word for him. Unfortunately, Tsunade had flatly rejected him. Her reason had been blunt.
Uchiha Rei lacked the talent to become a Medical Ninja.
Tsunade's decisive rejection had made his goodwill toward the "princess" plummet to zero. Orochimaru's favor wasn't easy to repay, after all. Back then, Rei had silently vowed that one day, he'd make Tsunade pay for it.
But after the Third Shinobi World War ended, Tsunade left the village, and Uchiha Rei gradually put her out of his mind. He understood that there were more urgent things to do: hone his Ninjutsu, train his Taijutsu, and strengthen himself. Rather than dwell on Tsunade, he was better off protecting the present he had.
After speaking, Might Guy left.
Not long after seeing Might Guy off, Uchiha Rei sensed a chakra fluctuation from Rekka. Uchiha Rekka was looking for him.
"How long is this day going to keep me busy..." He sighed helplessly, grumbling to himself, I'm practically a master of time management now.
Though he complained, his feet never slowed. Rei slipped quickly through layers of hidden sentries and surveillance, entering the Uchiha Clan Compound. There had been a minor clash between the Uchiha and Root last night, and Uchiha security was tighter, but it made no difference to him.
A few minutes later, he appeared in the tallest tree outside the compound. Uchiha Rekka was already waiting there.
"Lord Rei, do you have a thing for trees? We meet in one every time," Uchiha Rekka teased.
"We're Konoha shinobi. Meeting in a tree symbolizes Konoha's deep roots and flourishing leaves," Uchiha Rei replied with a smile. "Besides, don't you think it's much more comfortable in a tree than on the ground when you're basking in the sun?"
After the joke, he changed the subject. "All right, what did you need me for? I only gave you a mission yesterday."
"The mission is complete." Uchiha Rekka's expression was calm.
"That fast?" Uchiha Rei raised an eyebrow, clearly surprised.
He'd only just given Rekka the mission yesterday.
He had asked Rekka to find out the exact date of the Night of the Uchiha Clan Downfall, and he already had an answer today. Compared to Uchiha Itachi, who had spent years undercover, Rekka's efficiency was astounding.
"Uchiha Obito found me," Rekka continued. "He revealed his plan himself and invited me to join him."
"His plan?" Uchiha Rei's gaze instantly sharpened. "When?"
"In five days."
"Obito wouldn't reveal his entire plan so easily... No shinobi could be that stupid." Uchiha Rei frowned. "Are you sure it wasn't false information?"
"Probably not." Uchiha Rekka shook his head. "He was too arrogant. I was stunned. He tossed that information around as if it were a joke, without any caution at all. He had an almost pathological confidence in his plan."
"His teammates have it rough," Uchiha Rei said with a cold laugh.
"Lord Rei, what should we do next?" Rekka asked.
"I'll deal with Uchiha Obito myself," Uchiha Rei said confidently.
He wasn't making an empty claim. Several days ago, in the underground chamber of the Uchiha Clan, he had completed a system Sign-in and received a reward: Daofanshi.
This mysterious stone could sever all illusions and space. It would give Obito a very big surprise.
But the information Uchiha Rekka shared next made the situation even more complicated.
"There's one more thing," Uchiha Rekka said in a low voice. "Obito said that on the Night of the Uchiha Clan Downfall, a squad from the Akatsuki Organization would also be responsible for wiping out the remaining members at the clan compound."
Uchiha Rei furrowed his brow, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. "Looks like Obito won't be the only enemy we face in five days."
Uchiha Obito was one of the Akatsuki Organization's masterminds. Although Pain was nominally the leader, Obito was just as influential within the organization. It wouldn't be difficult for him to send a squad to Konoha on a massacre mission.
Unfortunately, most of the Akatsuki members Uchiha Rei knew would not join until several years later. The Akatsuki was still in its early stages, and Rei wasn't very familiar with its founding members.
With this new intelligence, the plan had to change.
Uchiha Rei urged Uchiha Rekka to keep the information strictly confidential and to monitor the movements of any suspicious shinobi in the village as closely as possible. Once his instructions were given, the two quietly parted ways in the tree.
After saying goodbye to Rekka, Uchiha Rei lightly leaped from the branches and made his way through the village. He had undergone a physical examination with Kurama Yakumo in the first half of last night, then trained Taijutsu with Might Guy in the second half. Ever since awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan, he felt increasingly pressed for time, as if he were racing against his own life every day.
It was early morning, with some time left before lunch. He decided to wander around alone, partly to gather intelligence and partly to give his tense nerves an excuse to relax.
"I should find somewhere to rest for a while." He gazed at Konoha's familiar streets and murmured to himself.
But where could he go? His residence in the village had already been exposed. Obito knew where it was, so it was no longer safe. The reasoning was simple.
A thief could steal for a thousand days, but no one could guard against a thief for a thousand days.
As a large shinobi settlement, Konoha had well-developed urban amenities. All kinds of establishments were available to make life more interesting and fulfilling for its residents. But none of them suited Uchiha Rei at the moment.
Tsunade, one of the Sannin, was a regular at the hot springs and especially fond of public baths. She bathed every day as if it were training, keeping both body and mind healthy. Shizune often accompanied Tsunade to the women's baths, too.
"But if I went to the hot springs..." Uchiha Rei's right eye was a Byakugan; he could see everything in the women's baths clearly. The consequences... He gave a wry smile and shook his head, not daring to imagine them.
Jiraiya, another of the Sannin, loved visiting brothels in the Pleasure District to gather "material" for his novel, Icha Icha Paradise. Konoha's rules for such places were relatively relaxed; as long as no illegal transactions were involved, romance and dating weren't expressly forbidden.
"But if I went to the Pleasure District..." With his handsome Uchiha face, he'd probably be surrounded by a crowd of older and younger women as soon as he sat down, like honey dropped into an anthill.
"Hey, handsome, are you free today?"
"You look like my ex, but you're way hotter~"
"Uchiha blood really is something else..."
Just thinking about it made Rei feel like his chakra would be drained dry.
Besides, he was still poisoned, and his chakra was recovering slowly. Going somewhere like that wouldn't give him any real rest; instead, he might "collapse and die" at the worst possible moment.
He thought of Kakashi Hatake, another Jonin. Kakashi was always short on chakra, partly because the Sharingan drained it and couldn't be turned off, and partly because... he read Icha Icha Paradise every single day, far too much.
"Looks like I'll just have to find somewhere quiet to spend some time."
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