First Clan Meeting

Shimura Danzō's expression immediately darkened.

He did not want to hear the word Hokage right now. Every time he heard it, it brought unpleasant associations, and the regret in his heart became impossible to suppress.

If only back then...

What a pity...

"This is none of your concern!"

Shimura Danzō's tone was harsh as he stared fixedly at Orochimaru. "Do not entertain any unnecessary thoughts. This is part of our deal."

Orochimaru chuckled softly. "Of course I will honor our deal. But Lord Danzo, have you forgotten something? You are no longer the leader of Root. Transplanting First Hokage Cells is no trivial matter. It will consume considerable resources, and its safety must be ensured. You should know what kind of price that requires, shouldn't you?"

Shimura Danzō's face twitched. He took a deep breath, and his voice turned hoarse.

"That is not something you need to concern yourself with."

Orochimaru's smile remained unchanged. He licked the corner of his mouth before saying, "If that is the case, then I have no objections. However, you will need to wait a few days first."

"What do you mean?"

"Do not misunderstand, Lord Danzo."

Orochimaru shrugged the shoulder where his arm had been severed. "Surely you do not expect me to perform the transplant in this condition?"

Shimura Danzō took a deep breath. "How long do you need?"

"Not long. A few days will be enough. Lord Danzo, do not underestimate my skills."

"Hmph! It had better be."

Orochimaru ignored Shimura Danzō's attitude and turned to leave. "Then, Lord Danzo, make your preparations early."

Shimura Danzō did not try to stop Orochimaru. Or rather, in his current state, he trusted no one.

As he watched Orochimaru's departing back, a trace of venom flashed through Shimura Danzō's eyes.

"Just wait, Hiruzen. And that brat too. I will take what belongs to me."

Konoha's reconstruction had entered its sixth day.

The morning sunlight passed through the outer walls that had yet to be fully repaired, spilling over streets littered with rubble.

Several ninja stood on elevated ground, directing Earth Style ninja to compact the foundations, while Wind Style ninja swept away the dust to make the air clearer.

Ordinary villagers carried all sorts of supplies on their shoulders and in their arms, hurrying through the ruins.

With people constantly coming and going, all of Konoha resembled a massive construction site. The clamor of voices, hammering, and rumbling between the buildings made it exceptionally noisy.

Yet people had grown accustomed to it. If anything, the noise made them feel more at ease.

The villagers were full of enthusiasm for rebuilding their homes, and all of Konoha was in a positive, upward-looking state.

Genkawa Uchiha stood atop his house, gazing at it all from afar.

His home had not suffered severe damage. The courtyard wall had only developed a few cracks, several roof tiles had shattered, and some furnishings in the yard had been knocked askew.

He had not joined the reconstruction efforts. For the past few days, all his energy had been occupied by the scroll Orochimaru had left behind.

Drawing back his gaze, he prepared something to eat as usual, then returned indoors. Sitting cross-legged on the tatami, he spread open the scroll.

The scroll was densely covered with nearly a hundred ninjutsu, ranging from C-rank to A-rank, including every one of the five chakra nature transformations.

His fingers slid across the paper. It contained not only the hand seals and chakra circulation routes for the ninjutsu, but also Orochimaru's annotations.

Those insights were concise yet profound, and some parts gave him sudden clarity.

It had to be said that Orochimaru truly deserved his status as one of the Sannin. He was also the most well-rounded among them when it came to ninjutsu, proficient in all five transformations. That much could be seen from the annotations on the scroll alone.

And this was exactly what Genkawa Uchiha needed most right now.

For well-known reasons, Genkawa Uchiha had never gone to school. Yes, he had never attended the Ninja Academy.

So compared to other Ninja Academy students, Genkawa Uchiha might have had a high degree of mastery over chakra nature and form transformations, yet he lacked certain fundamentals.

It was not quite accurate to call it a lack.

In any case, he had never systematically organized those basic concepts.

He might have been able to see the bigger picture and quickly master a ninjutsu, but exploring from the ground up was often the best way to build one's own method of learning.

And now, this scroll had made up for that shortcoming.

Because whether the ninjutsu inside were C-rank or A-rank, the annotations explained them from shallow to deep, from low to high. They were entirely Orochimaru's learning insights.

As he read through the scroll, Genkawa Uchiha even had the feeling that he was standing beside Orochimaru.

It was as if he were watching Orochimaru begin with the most basic Three Body Technique, gradually master more ninjutsu knowledge, steadily enrich his foundation, and come to understand the characteristics of ninjutsu.

It was basically a top student's notes.

Thus, over the past few days, Genkawa Uchiha had become completely engrossed, utterly indifferent to anything beyond his window.

Fortunately, no one came to disturb him.

The village was being rebuilt, and so was the Uchiha Clan Compound.

Although the Nine-Tails had not charged into the Uchiha Clan Compound that night, this place had still been affected to some extent. Some areas needed repairs, and most members of the Uchiha Clan had joined in.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Genkawa Uchiha was immersed in the knowledge within the ninjutsu scroll when the knocking outside interrupted his thoughts.

He put down the scroll and hid it away before getting to his feet with a frown. Crossing the courtyard, he went to the door.

When he opened it, a middle-aged man stood outside.

The man was named Uchiha Yashiro. He looked to be thirty-three or thirty-four, with short brown hair, narrowed eyes, prominent cheekbones, and a lean build.

"What is it?" Genkawa Uchiha asked.

Uchiha Yashiro did not waste words and directly explained why he had come.

"At eight tonight, a clan meeting will be held at the Shrine. All clan members who have awakened their eyes must attend. The Clan Head asked me to notify you."

Genkawa Uchiha raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.

He had originally intended to refuse, but after thinking it over, Genkawa Uchiha nodded instead.

"Understood."

With that, he gave Uchiha Yashiro no chance to speak again and directly shut the door.

Outside, Uchiha Yashiro's fingers twitched, but he still took a deep breath, suppressed his displeasure, and turned to leave.

Behind the door, Genkawa Uchiha headed back toward the house, though his mind was already turning.

A clan meeting at this time... This is probably no small matter.

He had clearly thought of something. The corners of his mouth rose as he began looking forward to the clan meeting that night.

After returning to his room, Genkawa Uchiha once again focused on the ninjutsu scroll.

Genkawa Uchiha was well aware of his weakness: he had spent too little time learning ninjutsu, so he naturally needed to make up for it.

By the time Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke were fifteen or sixteen, they had already been fighting Madara Uchiha and Kaguya Otsutsuki.

And what about him? He had only fought the Nine-Tails once.

That gap was a little too large. He needed to work harder.

Whenever someone was absorbed in something, time always seemed to pass quickly. In the blink of an eye, the sun was already setting.

Genkawa Uchiha put away the scroll, stretched his body, and hid the scroll before making himself several small dishes and leisurely eating them.

It was still early. He was in no hurry.

Only after the sky had completely darkened did he finish tidying up. Still dressed in his usual short-sleeved shirt and knee-length pants, he finally left the house.

Within the clan compound, clan members gathered in twos and threes as they headed toward the Shrine.

Genkawa Uchiha's appearance naturally caught the attention of the others, and many gazes fell upon him at once.

In the darkness, pairs of scarlet eyes glimmered with an eerie light beneath the moon.

As the one being watched, Genkawa Uchiha's expression did not change. He seemed completely unconcerned, ignoring them as he walked toward the Shrine.

Everyone was already used to him acting this way.

Ill will was unavoidable, but no one wanted to provoke Genkawa Uchiha at a time like this, so the entire journey was unusually quiet.

Under the stares of many red eyes, Genkawa Uchiha arrived at the Shrine. He walked straight inside and casually found a corner to sit in.

More and more people arrived, but the atmosphere remained quiet. No one knew why this clan meeting had been called, and they were all waiting for Fugaku Uchiha to appear.

Fugaku Uchiha did not keep them waiting long. He soon emerged from the rear hall of the Shrine and took a seat at the head.

His gaze swept across every person present. When he saw Genkawa Uchiha sitting in the corner, his eyes paused slightly before moving away as though nothing had happened.

"Everyone, this clan meeting has been called because there is an important matter that needs to be discussed."

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