Yakushi Nonō

"We'll get someone started on acquiring a biotech company tomorrow." Uchiha Fugaku looked at Uchiha Akira. "Is there anything else?"

Uchiha Akira had been about to leave, but a thought occurred to him. "Clan head, do you know someone called the Wandering Miko?"

He had no idea how good Yakushi Nonō was at research, though he suspected she was only average. She was highly skilled in Medical Ninjutsu, but she had come from a background as a spy.

She had been one of the best spies of her time, but that didn't necessarily mean she was any good at research.

Being skilled in Medical Ninjutsu didn't mean someone was good at conducting research.

Her adopted son, Yakushi Kabuto, was another matter entirely: a master of making dreams come true in the later years.

If Yakushi Kabuto had been absent from the Fourth Ninja World War, the fighting would have been half as fierce.

Like Orochimaru, Yakushi Kabuto was an undeniable genius.

Of course, Yakushi Kabuto was only six or seven years old right now, but his future was bright.

Someone with such enormous potential was worth recruiting early.

"The Wandering Miko?" Uchiha Fugaku looked thoughtful. "I remember she used to be part of Root. Apparently she left Root, and now she runs an orphanage."

"What's the matter? Is something wrong with her?" Uchiha Mikoto asked curiously. "I heard she's a very kind person who's taken in a lot of war orphans."

"There's nothing wrong with her." Uchiha Akira shook his head. "I just think we ought to recruit her."

"Our Uchiha clan can't keep standing alone. We'll never become Hokage without enough support." Uchiha Akira looked at Uchiha Fugaku solemnly.

"She was Root's ace spy, and she's highly skilled in Medical Ninjutsu. She'd make a good recruit." Uchiha Fugaku nodded.

Uchiha Mikoto frowned and looked at the two of them. "If we try to recruit her so openly, won't that put the Third and Danzo on their guard?"

An ordinary person would be one thing, but Yakushi Nonō wasn't ordinary. She had once been Root's ace and knew many of Root's secrets.

"So what?" Uchiha Akira shrugged, unconcerned. "We're not doing anything Konoha forbids. We're just hiring her as a researcher for the new pharmaceutical company we're opening."

"You two are talking as if she's sure to join you." Uchiha Mikoto shook her head with an amused smile. "Don't forget, she was once an elite member of Root. Would she even want to get involved with the Uchiha?"

"She'll agree. Keeping that orphanage running isn't easy, and from what I know, it's already running dangerously low on funds." Uchiha Akira sounded confident.

"Then I'll leave this to you." Uchiha Fugaku nodded. "I'll let you know as soon as the acquisition is complete."

The Uchiha clan worked quickly. With the help of the Sharingan, what might have taken months was done in ten days.

The Uchiha clan acquired a pharmaceutical company called Shentian Bio. It handled both research and sales, and it was a fairly powerful business.

Acquiring a company of this size wasn't enough to put the Uchiha clan under strain.

After all, the Uchiha clan had been around for a long time and had amassed a great deal of wealth over the years.

The people of Konoha didn't react strongly to the Uchiha clan entering the pharmaceutical industry.

They assumed the Uchiha clan was simply trying out a new side business.

The recent Ninja World War had made weapons dealers and pharmaceutical companies a fortune.

Which of Konoha's clans didn't have a side business or two?

How could anyone support such a large clan on mission earnings alone?

The Nara clan's antlers were famous throughout the ninja world, while the Yamanaka clan specialized in growing flowers and medicinal herbs...

An orphanage in the forest on the outskirts of Konoha.

Yakushi Nonō sat behind her desk, her brow furrowed with worry.

"The orphanage has enough money to last three more days at most, but the village won't send its next payment for another two months..." Worry weighed heavily on Yakushi Nonō's face.

Knock, knock, knock.

Just then, someone knocked on the door, and a plump, middle-aged woman appeared in the doorway.

"Sister, someone's here to see you. He's a ninja from the Uchiha clan, waiting in the orphanage's lobby."

"The Uchiha clan? What do they want?" Yakushi Nonō's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly as she stood and headed outside.

When she reached the orphanage lobby, she saw a handsome young man with black hair and eyes, a Ninja Blade strapped to his back, looking around.

"I'm Yakushi Nonō. May I ask what you want?" Yakushi Nonō gave him her customary smile.

"Uchiha Akira." He got straight to the point. "Sister, would you be interested in a job?"

"I'm sorry." Yakushi Nonō shook her head. "I'm no longer a ninja, and I'm not interested in the work you're offering."

As far as she was concerned, the Uchiha clan had come to her because they wanted to make use of her skills as a spy.

She was already sick of the life of a spy. Now, she just wanted to save as many war orphans as she could.

"You've got the wrong idea. I'm not asking you to return to your old line of work." Uchiha Akira shrugged. "Our Uchiha clan plans to enter the biopharmaceutical industry. We've acquired a company called Shentian Bio and want to hire you as a researcher."

Hearing that, Yakushi Nonō relaxed.

The Uchiha clan was a giant in Konoha, and its members were known for their pride. She didn't want to deal with them.

Running the orphanage was hard enough already. If she offended the Uchiha clan as well, life would only get harder.

Then she said, "I'm the head of this orphanage, and I have to look after the children here. I'm afraid I won't have time to work for your biopharmaceutical company."

"Sister, from what I understand, your orphanage is facing a serious funding shortfall. Konoha's payments aren't enough to keep it running." Uchiha Akira's words carried an implication.

Yakushi Nonō fell silent. Just as Uchiha Akira had said, Konoha's payments weren't enough to cover the orphanage's expenses.

Usually, she had to take some of the children out to work for pay. That was the only way to keep the orphanage going, barely.

"Shentian pays its researchers very well!" Uchiha Akira raised an eyebrow and spoke unhurriedly. "You don't want your orphanage to close, do you?"

After a moment of silence, Yakushi Nonō said, "I'd like to know what my work would involve."

"Don't worry, Sister. It's nothing forbidden." Uchiha Akira smiled as he spoke. "Biological cloning and targeted organ cloning."

To him, that was the most important thing—not research into transplanting Hashirama Senju Cells.

With the Chimera Technique at his disposal, he only needed the cloning research.

Once he mastered the Chimera Technique, he'd be able to obtain Hashirama Senju Cells naturally.