To Repay My Debts, I'll Become Hokage!

Early the next morning, Uchiha Chonhua and the others arrived at the city gates of the capital of the Land of Whirlpools.

By the time they arrived, Hatake Sakumo had already led the main force away to cause trouble for the Cloud Village and the Mist Village.

A few Konoha ninja remained behind to guard the area, their faces expressionless as their gazes swept over the surroundings like hawks.

"You have arrived."

The Uzumaki Clan Head had not gone to harass the Cloud and Mist forces; he remained at the capital with the elite of the Uzumaki Clan to prevent the enemy from employing diversionary tactics or luring the tiger away from the mountain.

It was always better to be safe than sorry.

Beyond that, he wanted one last look at the clansmen of the Uzumaki Clan who were about to leave this place.

The Uzumaki Clan Head looked wistfully at the clansmen before him, whose faces were filled with fear and unease; most were women, children, and the elderly.

"I entrust these fifty clansmen to you."

The Uzumaki Clan Head made his request solemnly, and the Jonin Ono nodded with a serious expression: "I will certainly complete the mission perfectly. Not a single one will be left behind; I will bring them all safely to Konoha!"

The Uzumaki Clan Head nodded, then turned to the clansmen gathered there and said: "Everyone, once you reach Konoha, do not forget that this is our home! If it is safe, please return to the ancestral shrine to reminisce during the holidays."

"I will always be here!"

"Clan Head..."

Hearing this, the Uzumaki clansmen burst into tears. They took one last look at the place where they had once lived, then followed Uchiha Chonhua and the others away with tear-filled eyes.

The Jonin Ono cleared the path ahead, while Uchiha Chonhua and Mikoto Uchiha provided support on the flanks of the formation. Hizashi Hyuga was assigned to the rear, keeping his Byakugan activated for the duration of the journey.

They could not move quickly; of these fifty people, most were not ninja, and those who were had grown old and lacked their former stamina.

In this small island nation, their pace of travel was now like that of a crawling tortoise.

Hizashi Hyuga, walking at the rear, was highly tense. The veins around his temples bulged, and his Byakugan stared fixedly ahead.

Any movement in the surroundings was captured within his vision.

However, because of the Caged Bird seal carved upon his forehead, Hizashi Hyuga would turn to look behind him from time to time to ensure that every angle was under his observation.

Suddenly, his expression changed, and his right hand signaled a secret gesture.

The other three observed their own surroundings while casting peripheral glances toward Hizashi Hyuga.

Seeing his gesture, the three of them turned grave, immediately drawing their kunai to hold them in front of their chests in a defensive stance.

Their behavior caused a stir among the Uzumaki clansmen, who grew nervous and flustered, though none dared to cry out.

The ninja protecting them had assumed a defensive posture—this meant there were enemies!

"It's the Hidden Mist Technique again!"

The Jonin Ono stood on guard for a moment before mist suddenly filled the surroundings, obstructing their line of sight.

They had just witnessed this situation yesterday; the attackers were once again ninja from the Mist Village.

"Senior, I'm going."

Uchiha Chonhua called out, and a moment later, the voice of the Jonin Ono came back.

"Chonhua, be careful."

Uchiha Chonhua looked at the Uzumaki clansmen beside him: "Wait for me for a moment."

"Hey, wait..."

The Uzumaki clansmen were already highly tense. Their previously clear vision was now obstructed, and they could only see half a meter around them; they did not know what had happened to the others.

Fortunately, the young Uchiha ninja was still by their side, which provided some small comfort to their anxious hearts.

But to their surprise, the next moment, the Uchiha youth charged directly into the mist and vanished from sight.

This scared them half to death. Without ninja protection, how could they, mere women and children, withstand the blades of the enemy!?

"Mommy, why did the ninja brother disappear?"

Hearing the voice of the child in her arms, the mother hugged him tightly and comforted him: "It's okay, it's okay. The ninja brother went to fight the enemies; we will be fine."

Long hair obscured her eyes, but the Uzumaki child peered through the curtain of hair, his small face scrunched up.

"Mm... I can't see."

"Huh? Mommy, there's lightning over there!"

The Uzumaki child seemed to have discovered something and cried out in surprise.

He hurriedly pointed in the direction where he had spotted the lightning, signaling for his mother to look, but she was too busy hugging him tightly and murmuring prayers to notice the child's actions.

"Ahhhhh!"

"Ughhhhhhh!"

A shrill, miserable scream suddenly echoed from within the mist. The Uzumaki clansmen, already on edge, immediately broke down, and screams began to erupt one after another.

"Alright, alright, everyone, stop shouting."

A booming voice drowned out the chaos at the scene, followed immediately by a gust of fierce wind.

Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!

The violent gale whipped through their hair, sweeping away the thick, obscuring mist.

Jonin Ono did not lower his guard, turning his gaze toward Hizashi Hyuga.

After observing for a moment, Hizashi Hyuga stated, "There are no enemies for the time being."

Hearing this, Jonin Ono finally relaxed slightly, his eyes shifting toward Uchiha Chonhua.

At his feet lay two Mist ninja, their faces frozen in terror, holes punched through their chests as blood pooled steadily on the ground.

Jonin Ono was stunned for a moment. What kind of technique was this? To punch a hole directly through an enemy's chest—did it have something to do with the lightning from before?

Blue light flickered like lightning, yet it was deathly silent, existing only as pure radiance.

In the blink of an eye, the two Mist ninja had already perished.

"It seems the Mist's signature Hidden Mist Technique is completely unable to evade your perception, Chonhua."

Watching Uchiha Chonhua walk over, Jonin Ono sighed with emotion, "What a terrifying youth. The Mist's Hidden Mist Technique is nothing but a facade before you."

Clearly, the mist condensed from high-density chakra was enough to obstruct even the vision of Hizashi Hyuga's Byakugan, yet it was utterly helpless against Uchiha Chonhua's sensory abilities.

One could only say the Mist was unlucky to have run into a natural counter.

This was Uchiha Chonhua's evasive excuse; the truth was that he was simply better at using the Hidden Mist Technique than the Mist ninja themselves, a case of crushing them through sheer proficiency.

However, it was true that the Mist was unlucky—who told him to draw a random Mist passerby? He hadn't wanted this. He clearly would have preferred a named character from the original series.

"Let's continue forward. Be careful of wandering enemy squads."

The main force was composed of several ninja squads. While Hatake Sakumo and the others were engaging the enemy's main body, there would always be small enemy squads wandering independently, looking for opportunities to strike and exercising their own initiative.

In essence, Uchiha Chonhua's squad was no different from the enemy in that regard.

Leaving the two Mist ninja corpses behind to serve as fertilizer, Uchiha Chonhua and the others continued on their way.

"Big Brother, what was that lightning just now?"

Just as he returned to the left flank, a child's voice rang out beside his ear.

Uchiha Chonhua turned his head to see a woman looking at him with uneasy apology; it was the child in her arms who had spoken.

The woman patted the child in her arms, signaling him to be quiet.

Uchiha Chonhua stared at the child, feeling a sense of familiarity.

More importantly, long bangs obscured the child's face, making it impossible to see his eyes.

...This was even more familiar.

Uchiha Chonhua asked casually, "What is your name?"

He had truly asked it as a passing remark, but the child's answer caused his gaze to sharpen instantly.

"Are you asking me, Big Brother? My name is Nagato Uzumaki."

Chapter 36: Can Nagato Still Carry Rice Without the Rinnegan?

"...Do you have any other Uzumaki in your clan named Nagato?"

Little Nagato blinked, looking at Uchiha Chonhua with curiosity, and shook his head. "No. My name is actually quite rare within the clan."

So this really was the Nagato Uzumaki who would later carry rice.

"That lightning was Big Brother's ninjutsu." Uchiha Chonhua extended his right palm. "Do you want to see?"

Little Nagato's eyes lit up as he looked at Uchiha Chonhua's palm, nodding eagerly.

Uchiha Chonhua smiled and performed the hand seals, demonstrating a silent Chidori for him. Little Nagato gasped as he watched the lightning condense in the palm.

"Wow, it doesn't make any sound."

On rainy days, thunder would rumble and lightning would tear across the sky, bringing a momentary flash of light. That sense of awe was something Little Nagato still remembered vividly.

To actually be able to gather lightning in one's palm—ninjas really were incredible existences.

"Pretty cool, right?" Uchiha Chonhua dispersed the Chidori.

Jonin Ono and the others stared blankly at Uchiha Chonhua.

"Is that the technique?"

Jonin Ono took a deep breath. This was the technique that had punched a hole through the Mist ninja's chest. What level of ninjutsu was this? He had never seen it before.

Gathering high-density lightning-attribute chakra in the palm was already difficult enough, but to perform nature transformation on top of that...

Jonin Ono had already overestimated Uchiha Chonhua's strength, but it seemed that still wasn't enough.

His throat bobbed as he swallowed hard.

If he could perform nature transformation on high-density lightning-attribute chakra, then he could naturally use it to activate his cells as well.

Extreme speed, highly lethal lightning-style ninjutsu, and on top of that, super-sensory abilities...

Facing an Uchiha Chonhua like this, Jonin Ono judged that he might not be able to hold his own. As a Jonin, he couldn't beat the Genin Uchiha Chonhua.

...This genin is way beyond the curriculum.

Furthermore, this little guy doesn't even have the Sharingan yet.

Jonin Ono dared not imagine what level of strength Uchiha Chonhua would leap to once he awakened the Sharingan.

He truly is a child favored by the Hokage.

Jonin Ono felt even more reverence for Sarutobi Hiruzen in her heart; there was a reason he was the Hokage, his eye for talent was truly precise.

The more she compared, the more she admired, and the gaze Jonin Ono cast toward Uchiha Chonhua carried a hint of awe.

This child is destined for a brilliant future.

Uchiha Chonhua observed Nagato Uzumaki, and through the long curtain of hair, he saw a pair of eyes with clear whites and dark irises.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, lost in thought.

Nagato Uzumaki's eyes were normal for now, which meant Uchiha Madara had not yet considered transplanting his Rinnegan.

Taking a bold leap of logic, perhaps Uchiha Madara hadn't even awakened the Rinnegan yet?

But it would be within these next few years.

Uchiha Chonhua sized him up; Nagato Uzumaki looked to be about four or five years younger than him.

In the original story, war broke out between Konoha and Amegakure, leading to the accidental killing of Nagato Uzumaki's parents; under extreme emotional distress, the power of the Rinnegan erupted, killing the Konoha ninja instantly.

Compared to the little Nagato now, he was only slightly older; there wasn't much time left.

Uchiha Chonhua chatted with the mother and son, Fuso Uzumaki and Nagato, along the way.

Nagato Uzumaki's father had died early, leaving him to depend on his mother, Fuso Uzumaki; Uchiha Chonhua recalled the original story, and it seemed Nagato's father at that time had black hair.

Oh, so it was a stepfather; that wasn't strange then.

"Can I also become a powerful ninja like big brother in the future?"

Little Nagato asked with longing.