Verbal Denunciation, I Admit I'm Not Enough

Fugaku Uchiha's features were twisted in agony as he slid down from the wall.

The searing pain in his back was nothing compared to the bitterness in his heart.

The clan had built up so much momentum for him, even proclaiming the Uchiha Clan to be the greatest ninja clan, yet he had actually lost to Shingu Senju?

A mediocre, obscure genin of the Senju Clan?

Had he consumed some secret medicine of the Akimichi Clan before the match?

Shingu Senju was panting heavily, his face flushed red, steam rising from his head as the veins on his temples bulged.

His eyes were bloodshot and filled with crimson, looking even redder than a Sharingan.

Yet, in the end, it was Shingu Senju who remained standing.

The sheer strength of his taijutsu and his overwhelming recovery ability left Fugaku Uchiha feeling desperate.

On the podium, the face of No Uchiha was livid.

It wasn't that he resented his son for not trying hard enough; he only resented the Senju Clan for their unscrupulous methods.

To maintain their reputation, they had actually resorted to such extreme measures on a mere genin.

They could all see that something was wrong with Shingu Senju.

The civilians of Konoha, however, could not see the trickery and cheered for the defeat of the Uchiha Clan.

Seeing a scion of a great clan defeated ignited the passion of the entire arena; if a few had been killed, the onlookers would have been even happier.

Naraichi looked at No Uchiha, then at Mito Uzumaki.

Mito Uzumaki's aged face was full of wrinkles, her eyelids drooping as if she could no longer keep her eyes open.

She said slowly, "The Senju Clan must offer everything for the village, no matter the means..."

This mournful sound made Naraichi temporarily set aside his contempt.

No matter what methods the Senju Clan had used, they were maintaining the dignity of their clan.

This great ship was always moving forward, even if it meant running aground on the shore or plunging into the fiercest whirlpool in the sea.

In the stands, Nawaki Senju closed his eyes slightly.

"Young Clan Head, don't get excited; your legs cannot bear the strain!"

Hearing the reminder from Seigetsu Senju, Nawaki Senju let out a long, dejected sigh.

The person who should have been competing against Fugaku Uchiha was supposed to be him.

Forcing growth by pulling on the seedlings, draining the pond to catch the fish—all the methods used on Shingu were because he was useless, and the clan had been forced to find someone to replace him.

"Sister Seigetsu, when will I be able to continue my training?"

Seigetsu Senju said, "May. In May of the 38th year, you will be able to train."

Seigetsu Senju saw Kawadera Uchiha turn and leave through the passageway on the opposite side of the arena.

Arriving outside the venue, there were fewer people, and the air felt a bit fresher.

Forbidden Technique: Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags!

Tobirama Senju had given him this forbidden technique.

This Tobirama Senju really didn't seem like a good person; his own Senju Clan was on the verge of extinction, yet the forbidden techniques he provided were still full of schemes.

The Eight Inner Gates was intended to make Kawadera Uchiha trade his life for another, and the Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags were no better. By not giving him the Impure World Reincarnation and only providing this, it was also a one-for-one trade.

The original work said the Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags were meant to be used in conjunction with the Impure World Reincarnation. If he used it with his own flesh and blood, wouldn't he die quickly, and die in pieces?

There was no help for it; he had taken the man's gift, so he had to take whatever Tobirama Senju gave him.

Returning home quickly, he took out all his explosive tags.

He had three Shrapnel Explosive Tags, each iron cylinder containing five explosive tags; the lethality of the Shrapnel Explosive Tags was quite good.

Besides that, he only had about 20 standard explosive tags.

Flattening an explosive tag and pressing it onto the table, Kawadera Uchiha began to draw a seal on the back of the tag.

It was an ingenious sealing technique that sealed all the other explosive tags into the first one.

The key was the second unlocking technique: after detonating the first explosive tag, the others would be unlocked in rapid succession and detonate immediately.

In this way, a single explosive tag could achieve a continuous, uninterrupted explosion.

There was no upper limit to the power of this technique; as long as there were enough explosive tags, even Konoha could be razed to the ground.

His first Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tag contained over 20 tags; caught off guard, it should be enough to blow a jonin to death.

In his sea of consciousness, Tobirama Senju said:

"As long as you continue to complete the missions to protect Konoha, I can inform you of my secret experimental base.

Hidden in one of my bases are several prepared Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags, each containing tens of thousands of explosive tags."

"A secret base? Will completing an A-rank mission get me the base address?"

"No, completing an S-rank mission will get you the base address."

"S-rank?"

Kawadera Uchiha hesitated.

The rewards for S-rank missions were always forbidden techniques. The first one he had obtained, the Eight Inner Gates, had shored up his weakness in taijutsu, while the second, the Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags, had given him a trump card.

To receive only a base location as an S-rank mission reward was a bit hard to swallow.

"No, that's too much of a loss for me. A base isn't worth an S-rank reward. How about I counter-offer: two A-rank missions for the base location?"

"I do not accept haggling, because the exposure of any single base would be enough to ruin my reputation. A base is worth at least one S-rank reward, and some are worth two!"

Hearing Tobirama Senju be so resolute, Kawadera Uchiha was instantly intrigued.

"Enough to ruin your reputation? Now that you've said that, I'm wide awake. Deal! I agree to give you the next S-rank mission reward for the base!"

That night, since he didn't have to conduct genjutsu training for Shingu Senju, Kawadera Uchiha stayed in Seigetsu's room until very late.

After being verbally assaulted time and again, Kawadera Uchiha begged for mercy once more.

"I, Kawadera Uchiha, admit in my own name that I can't do it—I really can't! There can't be a fourth time!"

"Haha, so you finally admit you can't? I thought your mouth was the toughest thing about you."

Kawadera Uchiha grabbed Seigetsu's hands to keep her from getting restless, and the two chatted.

Seigetsu Senju said, "Our operation this time was a great success.

Shingu Senju has silenced all criticism; he has become a combat-type ninja.

Aside from him, the four other genin, including Xiaojie Senju and the others, have all entered Konoha Hospital and become medical chunin.

This will become the standard practice for our Senju Clan: for every generation of genin, we will cultivate one or two combat-type ninjas to take first place in the Chunin Exams, while absorbing the rest into the medical system.

In this way, no one else can say anything against us.

Lady Mito is very clever; she already knows what we have been doing.

She spoke with Mei Senju for a long time tonight, and for once, she didn't reprimand her for acting on her own initiative.

The clan heads of the Inuzuka, Aburame, and Kurama clans also approached my brother, saying that with fewer Senju Clan ninjas on the front lines, their own clansmen's casualty rates will decrease, and they will receive preferential treatment at Konoha Hospital and front-line medical stations in the future."

"If you're going to talk, then just talk—stop rubbing against me! Seigetsu, we need to pace ourselves and think long-term; not everyone has the physique of the Senju Clan."

Kawadera Uchiha really didn't want to spend his whole life with just one person, but with Seigetsu draining him like this, he felt he wouldn't have the energy to mess around in the future.

After the New Year passed, it was Year 38 of Konoha.

In the original story, the Second Shinobi World War ended in Year 39 of Konoha. He wondered if things would be any different now that he had altered some of the world lines.

A few days after the New Year, just as Kawadera Uchiha finished his night shift at the Police Force, he saw Ishiya Uchiha waiting at the entrance.

"Kawadera, your leave is over. We are heading to the front lines for the clan!

After a fierce struggle, the Clan Head is about to take office as the Supreme Commander of the front lines!"