Heading to Sunagakure

Uchiha Gen stared at Minato in bewilderment!

"The situation was urgent at the time. If I hadn't told the truth, there was no way we could have reached an agreement. I'm sorry, Gen!" Minato bowed apologetically.

"Forget it. What's done is done. Gen, just go with Minato," Hiruzen Sarutobi chimed in from the side. It would also give him a chance to find out how this Uchiha knew so many secrets.

Ha! Just go with him? You want to freeload off me too? Sorry, I haven't harvested my leeks yet. See you!

"Third Hokage, Fourth Hokage, what you're asking of me is clearly beyond the abilities of an ordinary Special Jōnin like me. My job is just patrolling for the Konoha Military Police Force!" Uchiha Gen refused.

In theory, Konoha Ninja couldn't refuse a Hokage's orders, but there were exceptions. First, the Uchiha had always run the Konoha Military Police Force; that was an agreement between the Second Hokage and the Uchiha. Then there was Gen's performance as a savior last night—his reputation was at its peak. And on top of that, he was incredibly powerful! That hundred-meter-tall Susanoo from last night was still fresh in everyone's mind!

His strength, position, and a suitable excuse were what allowed Uchiha Gen to take this stance. As for whether this would offend the Konoha High Command? Heh, what difference would it make? Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi had bent over backward to please them, and what did they get? The clan was still wiped out! Soft-spoken pleas couldn't save the Uchiha! We had to protect our own leeks!

"As a member of Konoha, you don't even have that much resolve?" Sarutobi the Old Dog began his practiced moral attack!

But Gen had seen this sort of thing plenty in his previous life. If I have no morals, you can't use them to guilt-trip me!

"Nope!"

"Hm?" Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't react at first.

"I said I don't have that kind of resolve! I'm just an ordinary person with twisted values, little conviction, and rock-bottom morals! You'd have more luck offering me money than trying to talk to me about this!" Uchiha Gen scoffed.

"You!" Hiruzen Sarutobi was left speechless. As a respected Hokage, he had a lot of power, but he couldn't openly target a civilian who chose to lie low and had no moral scruples—even if that civilian's surname was Uchiha! Gen hadn't broken any laws, and his actual job was patrolling for the Military Police Force.

Trying to deal with him in secret might not work either. Spreading rumors like they had about the White Fang wasn't an option right now. They couldn't smear someone right after he'd saved the village. Even a fool wouldn't join in!

"Just tell us what you want," Namikaze Minato said, having caught on. Uchiha Gen was clearly playing hard to get! Hiruzen Sarutobi understood what Gen was after, but still wanted to freeload off the Will of Fire!

But as the husband of the person involved, Uzumaki Kushina, Minato couldn't afford to haggle as casually as Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"Hmm, doesn't Konoha have a Scroll of Sealing? I'd like to borrow it," Uchiha Gen said casually.

"Impossible. The Scroll of Sealing is a top secret. How can I just let you read it?" Hiruzen Sarutobi cut in.

"Then there's nothing to discuss. Don't think I don't know that all three of your students have read it, and the Fourth Hokage probably has too! They can read it, but I can't?" Uchiha Gen scoffed.

"How is that the same? They've served Konoha and shed blood for it! You—" Hiruzen Sarutobi stopped, suddenly remembering something.

"What? Not going to finish? Their contributions count, but mine don't? Your shabby tricks aren't remotely clever. Anyone with eyes can see how you've been targeting the Uchiha! And you still have the nerve to preach the Will of Fire in public every day. Pathetic. You can only fool the Academy kids. I don't discuss morality with people who have none. Third Hokage, if you want me to help, fine—but other than the Scroll of Sealing, there's nothing to discuss!" Uchiha Gen bluntly made it clear that he had no intention of letting the Third Hokage save face! His words made Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyelids twitch. What was with this young man, saying whatever he wanted without any tact?

(Uchiha Gen: If I had tact, would you leave the Uchiha alone?)

"You can borrow the Scroll of Sealing, but you can only choose one technique from it," Namikaze Minato said, breaking the deadlock.

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked as if he wanted to say more, but Minato stopped him with a glance. Minato was the Hokage in name, and though he usually treated Hiruzen with great respect, given Kushina's situation, he would absolutely stand his ground on this. Forget it. It wasn't worth it. He might as well do Minato a favor.

"Hmm? All right, one it is," Uchiha Gen said, reluctantly accepting.

The three of them then went to the heavily guarded room where the Scroll of Sealing was kept. With all these layers of security, how had that loser Naruto, who hadn't even graduated from the Academy, managed to steal it? I can only laugh! Just how much did Hiruzen Sarutobi let slide? Poor Mizuki!

After a series of procedures and the removal of multiple seals, the Scroll of Sealing finally revealed its true form.

"You can only choose one. Hurry up," Hiruzen Sarutobi urged, sounding reluctant.

"Wood Style: True Several Thousand Hands"

"Wood Style: Top Transformed Buddha"

"Wood Style: Wood Human Technique"

"Bringer-of-Darkness Technique"

"Spirit Transformation Technique"

"Living Corpse Reincarnation"

"Flying Raijin Technique"

"I'll take the Spirit Transformation Technique!" Uchiha Gen looked through the options and realized there wasn't anything else he wanted. He couldn't learn Wood Release, and he had no intention of grafting someone else's cells onto his body. Just thinking about it made him uncomfortable. So what if it was Wood Release? It depended on who was using it! Senju Hashirama's Wood Release and Yamato's were worlds apart—like a person compared to a dog.

I refuse to believe that when I pour out unlimited ocular power in the future and build a ten-thousand-meter-tall, ultimate, invincible, spiral-flashing Susanoo—Dance of the Thirty-Two Forms—it won't beat mere Wood Style: True Several Thousand Hands!

As for the other forbidden techniques, they were all optional to Uchiha Gen. The Spirit Transformation Technique seemed decent, but it had a very high threshold. The scroll explicitly warned that learning it could be fatal: once the soul left the body, getting it back could be difficult. It was extremely dangerous—and perfect for someone like him who wasn't afraid of dying!

"Hmm? You chose the Spirit Transformation Technique?" Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Uchiha Gen's choice, the corners of his mouth lifting subtly.

"Gen, why don't you choose something else? This technique is extremely dangerous. In all of Konoha's history, the only person who managed to learn it was the late Jōnin Dan Katō," Minato kindly warned him.

"No, I'll take this one. A challenge is what makes it interesting!" Uchiha Gen said, pretending to be arrogant.

"Minato, everyone has their own path. Since Gen is set on it, let him give it a try," Hiruzen Sarutobi advised from the side.

"Hmm?" Sarutobi the Old Dog wanted me dead? Looks like he couldn't get his way by force, and the Will of Fire hadn't worked, so he'd let his evil intentions get the better of him! But whatever. If he pushes me too far, I'll take my Ultimate Storm Wheel Dance: Thirty-Six Forms Susanoo to the Sarutobi Clan Compound and throw a wild dance party!