Plans to Leave Konoha

Senju Nawaki watched the changes in Senju Tojian, seeing that his plan had succeeded and even yielded unexpected gains.

This transformation exceeded Senju Nawaki's wildest imagination.

In this era, the average lifespan of a commoner in the ninja world was only about forty years.

The lifespan of a ninja could reach into their fifties.

The stronger a ninja was, the longer they tended to live.

According to Senju Nawaki's hypothesis, the more chakra nature transformations a ninja mastered, the longer their life, provided they didn't suffer debilitating combat injuries.

Take, for example, the Third Hokage, who lived in luxury and enjoyed the longest life of all.

Chakra, as an energy source, was capable of causing a leap in one's life form.

The powerhouses of the Otsutsuki Clan could even achieve immortality.

This time, he was determined to outlive everyone else.

Senju Nawaki stared intently at Senju Tojian's transformation, noting that everything was developing in a favorable direction.

The most obvious sign was that the bark-like scar on his face was gradually fading away.

Snap.

Senju Tojian's eyes snapped open, his aura erupting as his armor fluttered.

A field of chakra formed around his body.

He looked down at his hands, realizing the changes within himself.

He clenched his fist, feeling the flow of chakra throughout his body.

Swish.

On the ground, curved wooden spikes burst forth from the earth, forming a cage before vanishing once more.

"Wood Release? Cutting Technique?"

A gleam flashed in Senju Nawaki's eyes.

This jutsu was the introductory technique of Wood Release, an improvement upon the Earth Release: Rock Spikes. It was faster, struck from more treacherous angles, and was highly practical.

"Nawaki, my apologies, I got a bit carried away."

Senju Tojian touched his face, also discovering that the scar left by his previous Wood Release had disappeared; he had now fully mastered the art.

As he spoke, he walked to the bedside and helped Senju Nawaki lie down.

He noticed that Senju Nawaki's chakra had been constantly depleting, and sweat was beading on his forehead—a clear sign of exhaustion.

This ability to help others awaken their bloodline must have taken a significant toll on Senju Nawaki.

It felt as if he had returned to the time when Nawaki was a child; back then, Nawaki trusted him above all others, and Nawaki was the most important person in his life.

That fellow Senju Tobirama was only fit to play with Tsunade.

"Granduncle, how do you feel?"

Senju Nawaki's voice was weak, though he already knew the answer.

The power he had just witnessed was exactly the same as when Uchiha Madara danced in battle, only the color of the armor was different.

With Senju Tojian's current strength and prestige, he was more than capable of protecting him.

Some of his plans could now be set in motion; there was no need to stay in this Konoha, and he could even help him reclaim what was rightfully his.

Those who had attempted to assassinate him would also receive their due punishment.

All of this required Senju Tojian's support.

"Better than ever. Give me some time to adapt, and I'll have the absolute power to suppress any ordinary Kage."

Senju Tojian's face was filled with pride.

As he aged and his injuries accumulated, his original strength had steadily declined, falling even below that of an average Kage, which had left him feeling like a hero in his twilight years.

Now, everything had returned to him.

He hadn't become a legacy elder of the Senju Clan solely because of his bloodline, but also because of his talent. He was among the elite, second only to Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama.

Now, he felt no pressure in dealing with an ordinary Kage, especially since he had mastered the lethal weapon that was Wood Release.

He felt even more confident in his ability to shield Senju Nawaki from the storms ahead.

"What about dealing with Sarutobi Hiruzen?" Senju Nawaki narrowed his eyes, making no effort to hide his schemes.

"That Sarutobi brat is a powerhouse built on hype. The only reason he achieved what he has is because Senju Tobirama held nothing back, absorbing the essence of our Senju clan, the Uchiha clan, the Sarutobi clan, the Uzumaki clan, and many others."

"He only manages to handle things smoothly because he holds the intelligence on every other ninja."

"With my mastery of Wood Release, it's a seven-to-three split in my favor."

"And that's only because that idiot Tobirama taught Sarutobi Hiruzen some of the secrets of Wood Release and the Senju clan's techniques."

As he spoke, he tucked the corner of the blanket under Senju Nawaki's arm, making him more comfortable.

Perhaps it was because he had regained his youth, but Senju Tojian had become more talkative and significantly more aggressive.

He no longer bothered to hide his dissatisfaction with Senju Tobirama; after all, that self-righteous "smart man" had a truly abysmal eye for people.

Senju Tojian's affection and attitude toward Nawaki, however, remained unchanged.

"Granduncle, if you were to establish a new clan, how many people could you take with you from the Senju clan? Like those Senju branches such as the Haruno, Takagi, and Sakuragi?"

Nawaki's eyes glinted as he suddenly posed the question.

"What?" A look of surprise crossed Senju Tojian's face before he replied, "Rest assured, I won't be like those people; I will continue to support you."

Those families were all founded by former elders of the Senju clan who, upon reaching the strength of elite jonin, had followed Senju Tobirama's orders to discard the Senju surname, integrate into Konoha, and establish their own houses.

He patted Nawaki's shoulder comfortingly, assuming the boy feared he might abandon him as well.

But he had no heirs of his own; Nawaki was the last person he had left to protect.

As the years slipped by, even the Senju clan itself had become less important to him than Nawaki.

"Granduncle, I don't doubt you. My thought is that if you establish a clan and we both leave Konoha together, we could take more power with us. I also need a pretext—I want to take some experimental materials out of Konoha. Between us, there is no distinction."

Nawaki shook his head, explaining his true intentions to the old man he respected so deeply.

This old man was worthy of his respect.

"Very well. Rest now, and I will make the arrangements."

Senju Tojian nodded, his mind calculating. Just as Nawaki had said, if he were to establish a clan—especially now that he had awakened Wood Release—he could indeed take a much greater force with him.

Many of the hardliners within the Senju clan scoffed at the decisions of that fool, Senju Tobirama, and to this day, they still clung to the Senju surname and clan crest, unable to truly integrate into Konoha.

However, their assets and businesses remained on the original lands within Konoha.

Leaving Konoha to develop elsewhere in the Land of Fire was an excellent path forward; otherwise, they would only be gradually eroded away.