To Repay Debts, Become Hokage!

Although Uchiha Chonhua had not expressed any intention of joining his faction, in the eyes of others, he was already Uchiha Ryutai's man.

In other words, he was part of the pro-Konoha faction within the Uchiha clan.

Having joined a faction, he now had a backer.

The hardliners and extremists who usually upheld Uchiha supremacy now cast far fewer hateful glares in his direction.

This ambiguous status allowed these people to restrain themselves, a development Uchiha Chonhua was happy to see.

"Uncle Daisuke, one newspaper, please."

As Uchiha Chonhua headed toward the Senju Compound, he glanced through the paper.

Wars between small nations were trivial matters to the Five Great Nations, but since they were curiosities of the ninja world, the newspapers reported on them diligently.

Uchiha Chonhua scanned the page casually, then his eyes narrowed.

The situation had changed.

Sunagakure, one of the Five Great Nations, had entered the fray.

The Daimyo of the Land of Iron had flexed his financial power, hiring Sunagakure ninjas to launch a sneak attack on the Land of Rain from the rear.

With their home being raided and the people of the Land of Rain suffering, logically, Salamander Hanzo should have abandoned his offensive to return and repel the Sunagakure invasion.

But the reality was the opposite; Salamander Hanzo's assault on the Land of Iron became even more fierce and rapid, as if he did not care that his home was being invaded.

As a result, he was launching a fierce attack on the Land of Iron while simultaneously ravaging the Land of Rain, leaving the people of both nations trapped in the vortex of war and suffering.

The samurai of the Land of Iron could not withstand Salamander Hanzo's offensive and would surely fall soon, rendering the power of money largely ineffective.

Sunagakure had sent troops, but they had failed to force Salamander Hanzo to retreat, making it uncertain whether they would even receive their mission payment.

The blades were drawn and resources had been committed; if the returns diminished, Sunagakure would not be content. Since they had already deployed, they might as well take a massive bite out of the Land of Rain!

Sunagakure had already developed friction and bad blood with Salamander Hanzo.

Uchiha Chonhua recalled the developments of the Second Shinobi World War from the original story.

Next would come the war between Sunagakure and Amegakure.

Following that war would be the conflict between Amegakure and Konoha.

"Time waits for no one."

Uchiha Chonhua sighed, tossing the newspaper into a roadside trash can.

For the sake of the coming war, he had to seize every moment to train and grow!

The Senju Compound had arrived.

Time flies like an arrow.

In the blink of an eye, two years passed, and the year reached 31 of the Konoha era.

Uchiha Chonhua had grown taller. He stood before a mirror, looking at the eyes reflected in the glass with delight.

His scarlet eyes emitted an eerie glow, and two tomoe spun slowly within his pupils.

That summer, eight-year-old Uchiha Chonhua had awakened his Sharingan.

A two-tomoe Sharingan!

Chapter 18: Two-Tomoe Sharingan

Uchiha Chonhua already knew that Uchiha Itachi had awakened his Sharingan at the age of eight.

But when the Sharingan truly awakened, Uchiha Chonhua was both surprised and overjoyed.

He had not expected to achieve a two-tomoe Sharingan right from the start.

"Uchiha Itachi's first awakening was a single tomoe, but I am at two..." Uchiha Chonhua calmed his mind to reflect: "Could it be that the power from Uchiha Itachi's awakening triggered a synchronized awakening for my own Sharingan?"

"And then, due to the fusion of ocular power, it evolved directly into a two-tomoe Sharingan?"

This was merely a guess, but Uchiha Chonhua felt that was likely how it had happened.

Even if it wasn't as he imagined, it didn't matter; he had gained a tremendous advantage regardless!

Uchiha Chonhua looked left and right, admiring his two-tomoe Sharingan and feeling the surging ocular power, his heart racing with uncontrollable emotion.

At the same time, his strength had seen a massive increase.

When members of the Uchiha clan awakened the Sharingan, their chakra would surge, and combined with the various abilities granted by the eyes, their strength would see a terrifying boost in a short period.

Uchiha Chonhua clenched his fist, feeling the abundant chakra within his body and his mastery over various techniques.

He estimated that while he couldn't say for sure if he could defeat a veteran, his current strength was enough to contend with a Jonin.

This was the confidence the Sharingan gave him!

As time marched on, day by day.

Uchiha Chonhua could clearly feel that the strength of the Uchiha Itachi character card was increasing ever more rapidly, and a great deal of knowledge regarding Sharingan training had also appeared.

Uchiha Chonhua understood.

This was his father, Uchiha Fugaku, and his friend, Uchiha Shisui, teaching Uchiha Itachi techniques for utilizing the Sharingan and knowledge of genjutsu.

Their experience was invaluable, and now, Uchiha Chonhua—who had inherited the Uchiha Itachi character card—was absorbing and devouring it all with insatiable hunger.

During these days, Uchiha Chonhua's growth speed was rapid.

Namikaze Minato felt this deeply; the Uchiha Chonhua he sparred with seemed to change every single day, his strength becoming increasingly refined.

This placed immense pressure on him.

Three years had passed, and despite their many competitions, Uchiha Chonhua always managed to edge out Namikaze Minato, holding onto the top spot in their grade to this very day.

"Has the kid Chonhua entered a growth spurt?"

Watching the two spar from afar, Jiraiya marveled at Uchiha Chonhua's rate of progress; the time Minato could hold out against him had been cut in half compared to before.

Tsunade looked at Uchiha Chonhua thoughtfully; as a member of the Senju Clan, she had her own suspicions.

Could it be that Chonhua had... awakened the Sharingan?

Only the awakening of the Sharingan could cause such a massive surge in strength for someone of the Uchiha Clan in such a short time.

It was strange, though. Had Chonhua encountered some kind of painful event?

Tsunade looked at Uchiha Chonhua with a hint of worry, knowing full well what the awakening of the Sharingan implied.

However, based on her observations over the past few days, Chonhua's mood was no different than before... if anything, he seemed even happier?

Bang!

Unable to withstand the force of the strike, Namikaze Minato was sent flying backward. He flipped in mid-air and landed on the ground, his breathing ragged.

He gave a bitter smile: "I lost."

"Good match, Minato."

"You're getting stronger and stronger, Chonhua." Namikaze Minato sighed, his expression revealing a trace of frustration.

The gap between him and Chonhua was only growing wider.

Pat.

A warmth touched his head, and Namikaze Minato didn't need to look up to know it was the large hand of his teacher, Jiraiya.

Jiraiya ruffled Namikaze Minato's hair messily and said: "Don't be discouraged, Minato. Just keep training hard, and you'll catch up soon enough!"

Namikaze Minato composed himself, took a deep breath, and said: "Yes, Jiraiya-sensei."

"Chonhua-kun has changed quite a bit lately. I'm very curious about what has happened to you."

With a pale, cold complexion and a slender build, a pair of snake-like pupils stared at Uchiha Chonhua with keen interest.

"I've simply had more realizations lately."

Uchiha Chonhua stared back at Orochimaru and said slowly.

"Is it really just realizations?" Orochimaru's voice was raspy, and he gave a faint smile. He didn't press further, but his snake-like gaze held a deeper meaning.

If there truly were more realizations driving such a drastic change in Uchiha Chonhua in such a short time, it could only be the Uchiha Clan's Kekkei Genkai: the Sharingan.

But... had Uchiha Chonhua really awakened the Sharingan at such an age?

Thinking of the investigations he had conducted, it seemed far too early for someone of that age to awaken the Sharingan.

He should trust the data, but Orochimaru mentally marked it as 'to be determined.'

"Chonhua, are you hiding something from me?"

"Sensei, really, I'm not. What could I possibly be hiding from you?"

"Really?" Tsunade looked at Uchiha Chonhua with a suspicious gaze.

Uchiha Chonhua felt helpless, repeating only that he had gained new insights and his training had become smoother.

As long as he didn't activate the Sharingan, they could suspect whatever they wanted.

The gathering of the Sannin was only a brief moment; as elite jonin of the village, they each had their own affairs to attend to.

Tsunade was no exception; compared to two years ago when she had time to go to the casinos to bet it all, she was now so busy that she rarely visited her beloved gambling dens.

Another day passed, and Uchiha Chonhua headed to the Senju Compound to study medical ninjutsu.

Three years had passed, and while Tsunade had not yet officially taken him as a disciple, she had already poured out everything she knew to teach him.

Uchiha Chonhua thought to himself that since she had stopped holding back in teaching him her ninjutsu, the day he became Tsunade's official disciple couldn't be far off.

The stepping stone into the Hokage's inner circle was finally within his grasp.

"Nawaki, I'm here..." Uchiha Chonhua's greeting trailed off.

He found that Nawaki looked like a frost-bitten eggplant, his expression sorrowful and dejected.

Following Nawaki inside, he discovered that this wasn't just limited to Nawaki; Tsunade wore the exact same expression.

"What... what happened to you two?"

Seeing Uchiha Chonhua enter, Tsunade forced a faint smile.

Although, in the eyes of Uchiha Chonhua, it looked more like crying.

"Chonhua, you should head back for today; it's not convenient to host guests at home."

Uchiha Chonhua did not ask for the reason: "I understand, Teacher Tsunade. I will come again next week."

"Don't come next week either. I am heading out of the village for a mission, and I'm not sure when I'll be back. I will notify you once I return."

Uchiha Chonhua nodded, saying nothing more.

Nawaki had welcomed him in, and now he saw him out.

"Chonhua, I'm sorry. Grandmother is feeling unwell, so we can't host you today." Nawaki looked deeply apologetic.

"My apologies."

Uchiha Chonhua paused for a moment upon hearing this, then shook his head: "There is no need to apologize. So it is Grandmother Mito who is unwell; this is my oversight. Please convey my regards and tell her I hope she recovers and returns to good health soon."

Nawaki nodded, and then the gate closed.

Uchiha Chonhua exhaled a breath that had been stifled in his chest; he felt quite unsettled.

He had been coming to the Senju Compound for three years, and Grandmother Mito had always looked at him with kind eyes, as if he were her own kin, always preparing fine tea and delicious snacks for him.

She would sit on the veranda, watching him play with Nawaki, watching him listen to Tsunade's teachings, watching him grow step by step...

The memories of those days still felt vivid before his eyes.

People are not made of wood or stone; how could one be without emotion?

He understood that the kind old grandmother's time was running out.

Chapter 19: Kushina Uzumaki

"This is the student transferring to our school starting today..."

"I'm Kushina Uzumaki, ya know! Ah!"