Sage Body or Sage Eyes

"Ah, I'm sorry, teacher." Uchiha Sasuke and corrected it.

He made up his mind; from now on, he would be the most well-behaved boy in Team 7.

Naruto the Naruto is definitely not as well-behaved as him.

Tonight, he went to play with Koyuki. If he wanted to win over Brother Shingen, he had to win over Koyuki first.

Completely unaware that if his thoughts were known to Shingen, he would inevitably face grueling training, Uchiha Sasuke had already entered obedient mode.

"Teacher, what do we do next?"

"What else can we do but go back? The protection mission isn't over yet." Uchiha Shingen thought to himself that this kid was probably forgetful.

However, he didn't take it seriously; Uchiha Sasuke was always forgetful, except when he was playing.

He led the three of them back.

When they returned to the Daigo Territory's mansion, the people there were still trembling with fear.

As the saying goes, "every profession has its own secrets," and ordinary people cannot clearly judge the strength of ninjas, because even a Genin is considered very strong by them.

Those with more experience and knowledge know that Chunin are stronger than Genin, Jonin are stronger than Chunin, and the Five Kage are the strongest.

Those with power and influence, based on this understanding, know that there is a small group of people standing at the very top of the Ninja World, who, together with the Five Kage, represent the most powerful aspect of this world.

More often than not, ordinary people judge the strength of ninjas from two different factions by their numbers.

At this moment, Uchiha Shingen returned with Team 7, and the people in the mansion were filled with anticipation.

Then they heard the good news they had hoped for: all the wandering ninjas had been wiped out.

The Daigo Territory's family was extremely grateful, remarking that those jinxes who had ruined their fiefdom were finally gone.

All the words in my heart can be summed up in one sentence: Leaf Village is the best!

Uchiha Shingen and Team 7 accepted the lord's family's gratitude, but they remained steadfast in their principles and resolutely refused to accept any gifts.

However, to put the Daigo Territory at ease, Uchiha Shingen presented him with an inside ticket to the Uchiha Ice and Snow Exhibition the following year as a gesture of goodwill.

The Jonin of the Uchiha Clan now always carry a few internal tickets when they go out on missions. When they encounter a client with whom they have a good working relationship and who are particularly compatible, they will give them one. This way, they won't make the other party feel uncomfortable by refusing a gift.

However, this is a tactic that only the Uchiha Clan can use. For these wealthy nobles, the ice and snow exhibition itself is not important; what matters is the significance of the ticket. The Uchiha Clan also limits the number of internal tickets for each ice and snow exhibition to no more than one hundred.

For the rest of the time, the Team 7 diligently carried out their protection mission.

There were no more wandering ninjas trying to make their presence known, Uchiha Shingen was basically idle, completely relegated to the role of "instructor".

However, just before the mission ended, he left the Daigo Territory's mansion once again and went to the seaside.

Black Zetsu said that if you want to find it, he knows where it is.

To Uchiha Shingen, this meant, "Come find me when you're free."

Black Zetsu send him such a signal without a reason.

After all, he's a cool guy who likes to do more and talk less.

Reaching the beach where he had first met Black Zetsu, Uchiha Shingen used Earth Release to sink into the water.

Adhering to the principle of learning only what is useful, Uchiha Shingen's Earth Release techniques were still few, but he did learn Earth Movement.

At his level, there really is no distinction between superior and inferior Five Elements Escape Techniques.

Whether it's fusion or single-property, there's really no difference; neither is inherently better than the other. It just depends on which one is most suitable for the current situation.

Fire Release: Kagutsuchi: Explosive Flame Array, in terms of sheer power, is no less powerful than Magnet Release: Scorching: Erosion Reincarnation.

He can unleash a fully charged Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique. If the opponent takes the hit head-on, he can blast them into the sky, right up to the sun.

Unlike before in the Land of Grass, he could clearly sense the Chakra below.

That's more like it.

Accelerating, Uchiha Shingen plummeted to the bottom.

The moment he was detached from the soil, he somersaulted over and landed headfirst on the rock face.

In the darkness below, the Sharingan, and countless humanoid Chakra painted a vibrant, bright world in his eyes.

He landed gently, and a Scorch Release fireball rose up, floating in front of him and dispelling the darkness.

Black Zetsu stood silently in front of him, watching him intently.

Beside it were several White Zetsu.

Judging from their dazed and confused appearance, they were undoubtedly newly made clones.

"Why are you so late?" The environment is a bit unsettling, especially since Black Zetsu's voice is already deep, like something out of a horror movie.

Unfortunately, Uchiha Shingen was already immune to this kind of atmosphere.

He was able to sleep in a mass grave on his first playthrough, so if he doesn't burst out laughing while watching a horror movie now, he'll be doing the director a favor.

"He brought students with him," Uchiha Shingen said. "What's all the mystery about? By the way, it's starting next year, want to come and watch?"

"Start?" Black Zetsu looked at him silently, then turned and walked inside. "Let's talk about it after Leaf Village gets through this year."

Chapter Nineteen: Sage Body or Immortal Eyes

Black Zetsu's words seemed somewhat sudden.

However, Uchiha Shingen's expression remained unchanged. He stood still, the flames flickering, and a cluster of flames seemed to leap around in his eyes, adding to his mysterious and eerie aura.

This quiet and gloomy place seemed to hide too many things that couldn't be brought to light. In the darkness, a pair of eyes that had been imprisoned for a thousand years and then released were spying on Uchiha Shingen, who stood here alone.

A suffocating smell filled the air.

Suddenly, Uchiha Shingen murmured softly.

"Do you want to die...?"

The feeling of being secretly watched disappeared.

Uchiha Shingen walked in the direction that Black Zetsu had just left.

This branch site has just opened, and the renovations aren't even finished yet; the sound of dripping water can be heard all around.

This is an ideal environment for raising White Zetsu.

After walking through the long corridor, Uchiha Shingen entered a spacious area.

There is light here.

Cultivating White Zetsu still requires equipment and light.

In the empty underground space, Black Zetsu fiddled with equipment that was clearly newly acquired.

"Where did you get all this?" Uchiha Shingen walked up to it and glanced at the machines.

All clues pointing to its origin have been erased; the other party is a veteran, with a strong black market style.

It seems necessary to make a trip to Cat Granny's place.

"I have my own way," Black Zetsu said.

"What did you mean by that just now?"

"..." Black Zetsu stopped what he was doing and looked at Uchiha Shingen.

Uchiha Shingen understood the meaning in its eyes.

How dare you ask that?

"Actually, I'm a good person," Uchiha Shingen said. "What I hate most is fighting and killing."

Black Zetsu lowered his head and started fiddling with the machine again.

"Then congratulations, you've arrived in the world created by the killer."

"Old Hei, why are you suddenly acting all artsy?"

Uchiha Shingen sighed.

It's only been a few years, but I couldn't resist anymore.

I really don't want to kill anyone.

Can't these ninjas have a little more patience?

Always resorting to violence to solve problems, such a simplistic and brutal approach, it's no wonder Uchiha Madara against the society.

Senju Hashirama was down-to-earth, but he lacked a proper understanding of the patience his colleagues possessed under normal circumstances.

It's just that this world lacks a peace-making tool called "Let's all stop living."

"Can you send me a message? Who are they?"

"I can't give it to you." Black Zetsu finished fiddling with the equipment in front of him, walked to the side, and started working on another one. "I'm just reminding you, since you're interested in Tailed Beasts, you should make your move sooner rather than later."

This Black Zetsu getting more and more mischievous; he's even learned to keep people in suspense.

No, it just likes to keep things mysterious.

"Alright, then I won't ask anymore," said Uchiha Shingen. "Is that all you're going to tell me?"

Hearing this, Black Zetsu finally stopped fiddling with its broken equipment.

It turned its head back.

"You really don't want the Chakra of Ashura and Indra?"

"It would be a lie to say I don't want it, but I have some doubts about this thing." Uchiha Shingen thought about Naruto Uzumaki's behavior in the original timeline.

How should I put it? Something just feels off.

To put it simply, it's like a sad song that's been forced into sounding like, "Hey sir, come in and have some fun!"

Uchiha Sasuke is perfectly normal, it's just that a group of people kept telling him "you're not normal" and then he was forced to become "normal".

"What do you suspect?" Black Zetsu asked.

"Ashura and Indra reincarnate with their own Chakra for their own purposes. Chakra can carry a person's will, so how can they guarantee that their reincarnated Chakra will act according to their wishes?"

In the Hokage world, Chakra can be used to manipulate possession effects.

Both Uzumaki Kushina and Namikaze Minato from the original timeline accomplished this.

There's no reason why Ashura and Indra couldn't do it.

Not to mention Hagoromo Otsutsuki, who is still alive as a ball of Chakra.

"Uchiha Madara was unaffected," Black Zetsu gave an ambiguous answer.

"That's because Madara only received a negligible portion of it," Uchiha Shingen said. "For Madara, the power of the First Hokage served as a guide."

"Otherwise, do you really think I can separate Ashura and Indra's Chakra from your disciple?" Black Zetsu spoke the truth, "I can only extract a portion."

"We'll see. How do you know I'm interested in the Chakra of the Tailed Beasts? Can't I just want to capture Tailed Beasts?"

"I can tell the difference," Black Zetsu scoffed. "But you've stumbled upon the right thing. The Chakra of the Tailed Beasts is an indispensable part of the Sage of Six Paths' power, which is what you like to call 'Sage Body.' Are you abandoning 'Sage Eyes' and planning to take the path of 'Sage Body'?"

Uchiha Shingen remained noncommittal.

Just look at age spots to see how difficult it is to Rinnegan's bug; yet, Madara is still a legitimate reincarnation of Indra's Chakra.

In comparison, gathering the Chakra of all the Tailed Beasts is more feasible.

I don't need to reach the level of Naruto Uzumaki from the original timeline; I just need to improve his current Sage Body level.

He's stuck at this level now, only experiencing quantitative changes without any qualitative ones.

The Sage Body is stuck and cannot move; the Sharingan is almost the same.

If the power of the Sage Body could be further enhanced, it might have a miraculous effect on his Sharingan.

He's already over thirty, and he only has ten years left. Once he's over forty, his mental and physical condition will begin to decline, and then it will become a zero-sum game.

That would be pointless.

Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara were also at their peak during this age range.

For a ninja, the height they reach at their peak is the highest point of their life.

"So that's what you think." Black Zetsu confirmed Uchiha Shingen 'Uchiha Shingen thoughts; this was its real purpose in meeting with him.

Everything is progressing smoothly, despite many unforeseen setbacks over the years, just as it and Obito had envisioned back then.