Departure

In the end, Richard still failed to gain an entry into the Water Body Profound Mystery. Though he had felt something, his insight was insufficient. Comprehending laws was never that easy; he could only accumulate it slowly.

That was not something he could accomplish in a short time. Richard and the others then left Kirigakure. There was little point in staying any longer.

The three of them had stayed there for several days and hypnotized several people in succession. The Hozuki Clan had already noticed something.

"Where did you say we're going?" Tsunade was somewhat shocked, yet she also felt as if this moment had finally come. When she had asked Richard about their next destination, he had said the word Konoha.

"Konoha—the foremost of the Five Great Shinobi Villages. A shinobi village founded by the God of Shinobi. Since we've come to the Ninja World, we can't exactly skip a visit to Konoha, can we?" Richard said casually.

Tsunade...

"Is there anything else in Konoha that you need? My granduncle's Wood Release and the Uzumaki Sealing Technique have already been given to you. My second granduncle's Water Release and Flying Thunder God Technique, along with the other Ninjutsu you found interesting, have also been given to you.

"My own Medical Ninjutsu research was traded to you as well. What else in Konoha could possibly catch your eye?" she said weakly. At first, she had not intended to trade away everything, but the more she understood Richard's strength, the more alarmed she became. So she had made several more trades with him over time, until the Senju Clan's inheritance and her years of research had been squeezed dry.

Why had she handed over everything so readily? Wasn't it so this guy would stop setting his sights on Konoha? Yet she still could not avoid it.

"Relax, I won't cause any destruction. Didn't I refrain from causing trouble in Kirigakure too? This trip to Konoha is mainly to see what Chakra Reincarnation is all about. It feels a little like the Otsutsuki's Karma," Richard said.

"Chakra Reincarnation was originally a technique the Sage of Six Paths developed based on Karma, so of course they're somewhat similar," Katsuyu said.

"You know about it?" Richard asked.

"Yes. Old Toad mentioned it before," Katsuyu said.

"Looks like the three of you have had quite a few exchanges," Richard teased.

"Not really. We rarely communicate. The last time my main body spoke with the Great Toad Sage was several hundred years ago," Katsuyu said seriously.

"And what exactly is Chakra Reincarnation?" Tsunade asked numbly. Just how many secrets were hidden in this Ninja World? As for the relationships between the great sages of the three sacred lands of summoned beasts, she did not even want to ask.

"The Sage of Six Paths had two sons. Asura and Indra fell out over dividing the family property and fought each other to the death.

"Though they were two unfilial sons, the Sage of Six Paths was still a responsible father. He had the Chakra of his two sons reincarnate continuously, hoping that one day they would reconcile.

"Oh, right. Their previous reincarnations were Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara." Richard gossiped about the Sage of Six Paths' family affairs in a jocular tone, then dropped a bombshell at the end.

"What did you say? My grandfather was the reincarnation of the Sage of Six Paths' son?" Tsunade truly found that hard to accept.

"Yes, that's right. Your grandfather was Asura's reincarnation. Uchiha Madara was Indra's reincarnation. Incidentally, your Senju Clan are also Asura's blood descendants, while the Uchiha Clan are Indra's blood descendants," Richard said.

"Then were the thousand years of war in the Ninja World, and the current wars among the major countries, also instigated by them in secret?" Tsunade could not help asking. The Sage of Six Paths' family had hidden themselves too deeply. She could not help wondering what schemes this family had—did they intend to rule the entire Ninja World from the shadows?

"Though I'm not particularly fond of the Sage of Six Paths either, isn't it a little excessive to dump such a huge blame on his head without distinguishing right from wrong?" Richard complained.

Although Naruto had indeed been called the story of the Sage of Six Paths' family affairs in his previous life, even without that family or people like Black Zetsu, the Ninja World would not have had any fewer wars.

Human desire was endless. Once people possessed strength, they would naturally want more power. Such things were unavoidable.

"Hah, so I wronged them, then." Tsunade was nearly laughing in anger. Those old immortals should have stayed buried underground. Every last one of them had come out to stir up trouble. If she could beat them, she would have suppressed them all.

"It's not entirely wrong. The current situation in the Ninja World definitely has something to do with their family. But it would be excessive to place all the responsibility on them," Richard said fairly.

But he had no intention of persuading Tsunade or anyone else. At Tsunade's age, her way of thinking had long since taken shape. Changing her values would be no easier than replacing her brain with a new one. He might as well forget such a thankless task.

There was a generational gap between his way of thinking and that of the entire Ninja World, so it was better to discuss such matters less. A person's way of thinking was influenced by their environment. In the broader environment of the Ninja World, there was nothing wrong with Tsunade's way of thinking. Why bother changing it?

In fact, even his own way of thinking had been influenced after living in the Coiling Dragon World for several hundred years. Though he was still affected by the values of his previous life, he had gradually come to accept the law of the jungle as well.

The group headed for Konoha. Tsunade knew she could not stop him. She also wanted to see who the current reincarnations of Asura and Indra's Chakra were. But Richard only knew how to keep her in suspense, saying she would find out once they arrived. Even Katsuyu had learned to be bad and refused to tell her.

"But are you sure you want to follow me back to Konoha like this? If I go alone and keep things quiet, Konoha might not notice me. But if you, Princess Tsunade, come with me, Konoha will definitely investigate. When that happens, don't expect me to back down.

"Whether it's the Third Hokage or Shimura Danzō, if they dare provoke me, I won't hold back.

"I think I should make that clear in advance. Think it over yourself. It would be best if you can persuade Konoha not to disturb me. I don't want to create needless bloodshed either," Richard said.

Tsunade considered it for a while, then still decided to go with Richard. With her there, she might be able to mediate if a conflict arose. If she were absent, she did not dare imagine what state Konoha would be beaten into.

More than ten days later, before Konoha's gates, Richard carefully surveyed the fairly sizable city before him.

That was right. Although Konoha was called a village in the Ninja World, as the number one military force in the entire Ninja World, it was by no means small. As a military organization with over ten thousand shinobi, Konoha's miscellaneous population totaled several hundred thousand. It was already a world-famous metropolis within the Ninja World.

Seeing this, Tsunade said proudly, "Well? Konoha is prosperous, isn't it? This is the most commercially flourishing place in the Ninja World."

"I advise you not to humiliate yourself," Richard said flatly. Konoha might have been the best city in the Ninja World, but compared to the cities in his memories of his previous life, it was not even equal to a fifth-tier small city. Even in the Coiling Dragon World of this life, many cities were far more prosperous than Konoha.

"You... I don't believe there are many cities better than Konoha," Tsunade said defiantly.

"Believe it or not. Konoha is the best, all right?" Richard said offhandedly.