Never Dared to Hope / The Helpful Hashirama

If you change it, you're no longer Uchiha Clan.

Tsunade needs a group of close friends like this so she won't suffer losses.

Therefore, regardless of whether Uchiha Shingen accepts him or not, Senju Muzoku will Senju Muzoku make this setting a reality.

"Don't misunderstand, I didn't mean anything by it." Senju Muzoku suddenly reached out and ruffled Tsunade's hair. "She's my only niece, so you're practically siblings now. I'll have to take good care of Tsunade for me from now on."

Upon hearing this, Tsunade finally snapped out of her shock.

Wu Zu Uncle Muzu has a descendant in the Uchiha Clan, and that descendant happens to be Uchiha Shingen. Even now, when those old guys find out, they'll probably go crazy.

The combination of the names Senju Muzoku and Uchiha Shingen is incredibly powerful and could significantly alter the political landscape of the village.

"Uncle Wu Zu," Tsunade said, barely able to process the news, "Do you know the consequences of doing this?"

Regardless of whether the Senju Muzoku meant that, he was essentially endorsing Uchiha Shingen.

The Hokage is indeed not the private property of any single clan, but the Hokage does need a background.

As a key figure in the founding of Leaf Village, Senju Muzoku's descendants, even if not Senju Clan himself, would still be qualified to Hokage Position.

The way Uchiha Shingen is perceived by those people will change in an instant.

The former Uchiha Shingen posed no "threat".

The conflict between the Uchiha Clan and the Hokage, which Hidden Leaf Village had finally managed to quell, is likely to resurface.

"Don't worry," said the Senju Muzoku.

He knew Tsunade, after all, Senju Tobirama hadn't kept it from him.

However, Tsunade is really not as good as Sarutobi Hiruzen in this aspect. Sarutobi Hiruzen's reaction is much faster, and he has already made a move against the Uchiha Clan.

This monkey, being wary of the Uchiha Clan has become ingrained in his very being.

"That person, is his name Uchiha Obito? What do you plan to do with him?" Senju Muzoku asked.

With his identity "revealed," the next step is to deal with Uchiha Obito and solidify the matter.

Uchiha Obito was a perfect tool that came to our doorstep.

For Hidden Leaf Village, this person is a ticking time bomb; anyone who touches him will be in trouble, Uchiha Clan is the most problematic.

As Senju Muzoku predicted, Sarutobi Hiruzen indeed handed Uchiha Obito to the Uchiha Clan.

There are only four people who can perfectly resolve this situation for the Uchiha Clan.

None of them are human.

Chapter Sixty-Seven Never Hoped

Prisons have never been designed to be comfortable for people.

It can't be more comfortable than a normal house outside.

The ninja clan's private prison adhered to this principle even more strictly.

The underground prison of the Uchiha Clan had decent lighting and ventilation, and the guard room was fairly comfortable, but the cells themselves were very crudely made.

The prison where Uchiha Obito was also a long-established cellar.

In the difficult times of the past, the Uchiha Clan's underground prison was used quite frequently.

During the Third's era, although the Hokage Building had many underhanded actions against the Uchiha Clan, even Shimura Danzō would adhere to the last line of defense—never arbitrarily using the resident Anbu Ninja.

Various temporary workers are the ones who mainly deal with the Uchiha Clan.

They've even hired ninja.

The Uchiha Clan is also very tough; anyone who causes trouble, unless they are a registered Konoha Ninja, will be severely punished.

When you need to rack your brains to gather intelligence, you put them here.

Once they've extracted all the intelligence, they'll kill the culprits and scatter their ashes.

However, as the most powerful Yin Release ninja clan in Leaf Village and even the entire Ninja World, the Uchiha Clan uses the same methods to gather intelligence as the Yamanaka Clan.

It's not about physics at all; it's mainly about the clash of ideas between us.

So unlike in typical TV dramas where the cell is messy and dirty, this cell was relatively clean.

There wasn't much blood on the wall; the traces of splattered brain matter were more numerous than the bloodstains.

Overall, it looks alright at first glance.

Uchiha Obito sat in his cell, his Chakra completely sealed. When he fell into the hands of the Uchiha Clan, Uchiha Fugaku added another layer of protection, so even if he found an opportunity to use his Chakra, he would find that his eye power was sealed.

However, Uchiha Obito remained calm.

Because he didn't actually lose.

The possibility of starting a war and then being suppressed has been taken into account as a contingency plan, and even the possibility of being captured by the enemy has been considered.

Because his opponent was Hidden Leaf Village, the most powerful ninja organization in the history of the Ninja World.

Only in this way can they be qualified as a sacrifice to end the ninja era.

A large-scale war between the major ninja villages is about to begin, and each village and its allies will be drawn into it, not in a round-robin fashion, but simultaneously.

Only in this way can the fighting capacity of each village be greatly weakened in a short period of time.

At this moment, all he needs to do is protect himself; the Uchiha Clan won't have the energy to deal with him for the time being.

He's a real nuisance. If we get rid of him easily, the Uchiha Clan will be suspected of "silencing him."

Footsteps could be heard in the hallway outside the door.

The footsteps were too heavy and didn't match the guard's footsteps.

Uchiha Obito looked towards the prison door.

A person wearing red armor came into his view.

This person was familiar to Uchiha Obito.

Because this person was a spirit he communicated with.

The First Hokage, Senju Hashirama.

Uchiha Obito somewhat surprised that this God of Shinobi would appear in the underground prison of the Uchiha Clan.

"Young man," Senju Hashirama looked at him, "You are very talented."

"It is an honor to receive the praise of the God of Shinobi," Uchiha Obito smile. "Are you satisfied with this new era?"

Senju Tobirama was the founder of the ninja village system.

But the founder of this era was Senju Hashirama.

The God of Shinobi refers both to his strength and to his perspective that surpasses that of all other ninjas.

When the alliance between the Fire Daimyo and Leaf Village was established, the true era of ninjas began.

They transformed from mere mercenaries into a force that dominates the world order.

Before that, ninjas, like monks, were considered "marginalized" individuals. Although they possessed great power and were indispensable in the military field, they did not have corresponding political status.

Senju Hashirama provided the idea of one village per country, bringing together ninjas scattered across various regions.

From then on, ninjas and nobles were ranked above all others.

Uchiha Obito once admired this person.

"I heard that your dream used to be to become Hokage?" Senju Hashirama asked.

After parting ways with Sakurako and the others on the street, he followed Uchiha Madara, intending to go back together.

But Uchiha Madara absolutely refused to let him come along, and even threw a tantrum, saying that if he came along again, he would go to the Hokage Building and fight Senju Tobirama and Senju Muzoku.

They were evenly matched throughout their lives, Senju Hashirama was well aware of his old friend's abilities.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone to face Uchiha Madara alone in the first place.

They're both the kind of players who go overboard when they play.

Having someone nearby is a burden.

If Uchiha Madara were to actually attack the Hokage Building, the building would definitely be destroyed. Senju Hashirama had no choice but to retreat first.

He decided to wait until Uchiha Madara calmed down before starting a conversation.

Walking along the road, feeling dejected, he encountered Uchiha Fugaku again.

Upon seeing Senju Hashirama, Uchiha Fugaku's first thought was of Uchiha Obito was imprisoned.

Although he told Uchiha Obito with absolute certainty that he would execute him.

But he really hadn't figured out how to execute him. Sarutobi Hiruzen was already quite old, and he was still giving him a difficult problem.

He really couldn't ignore this move.

These old men are all incredibly cunning.

Senju Hashirama was timely; at least he could endorse the Uchiha Clan.

So, Uchiha Fugaku explained Uchiha Obito's situation to Senju Hashirama while bringing the First Hokage here.

Senju Hashirama didn't comment on the Uchiha Clan's private prison, which relieved Uchiha Fugaku.

Then, this scene unfolded before our eyes.

Upon hearing Senju Hashirama's question, Uchiha Obito did not deny the fact.

"That's right, I once admired you and dreamed of becoming Hokage," Uchiha Obito said. "Of course, I also had my own selfish reasons. If I became Hokage, my comrades and others would recognize me."

"Young man, the Hokage isn't that kind of person." Senju Hashirama sat cross-legged in front of the cell door. "One becomes Hokage only by gaining everyone's approval."

"I understand that very well." Uchiha Obito's smile was somewhat sarcastic. "But First Hokage, the darkness in this village is different from when you were here. It's not just that you can do anything in the name of 'for the village.' Ordinary villagers will not hesitate to use their verbal violence. The thought that I would want to fight to protect these people in the past makes me feel disgusted."

"Now that you put it that way, I roughly understand the situation," Senju Hashirama sighed. "However, people like us possess overwhelming power, making us easily feared by others. If we don't take the initiative to be inclusive, how can we make the village a better place?"

"So this is where your naivety lies," Uchiha Obito said. "You believe too much that people are inherently good. You distributed the Tailed Beasts to various villages, yet you turned against your own friends, which did not bring peace."

"I'm afraid you've misunderstood, young man." Senju Hashirama looked at Uchiha Obito. He seemed to understand why this talented young man from Leaf Village had fallen to such a state. "Madara and I never hoped for complete peace in this world. War and peace are not the points of contention between us."

Chapter Sixty-Eight: The Helpful Pillar

Uchiha Fugaku did not enter the prison with Senju Hashirama, but waited outside.

Senju Hashirama was willing to kill Uchiha Madara for the sake of his village.

That is why everyone believed that Senju Hashirama's decisions were truly fair.

From the perspective of the interrogation and execution process, having Senju Hashirama the interrogation would have been able to eliminate all suspicion against the Uchiha Clan.

Uchiha Fugaku didn't hide his thoughts and told Senju Hashirama the truth.

Senju Hashirama immediately stated that as a fellow villager, he found it natural to help others and would not hesitate to do so.

Honestly, after following Senju Hashirama on this journey, Uchiha Fugaku felt like he was being brainwashed.

As expected of the God of Shinobi, he is terrifying!

Senju Hashirama's eloquence... was actually terrible, but this guy's persuasive skills were so good that even if you disagreed with his views, you would feel that he was very sincere and not just trying to fool people.

Uchiha Fugaku understood a bit better now. That's why, despite the abundance of skilled fighters in that era, everyone generally believed that it was Senju Hashirama who quelled the chaos.

For a group of the most difficult ninja clans at the time to be willing to bring their families and live together in one village, it required not only strength, but also popular support.

Before the Uchiha Clan joined forces with the Senju of the Forest, they protected their ordinary clan members from outsiders by establishing secret strongholds.

As long as these clansmen remain, even if the most elite ninjas of the era are wiped out, they can still rise again.

The reason why the Uchiha Clan, who were targeted by the Hokage Building, were so irritable and impulsive was because the clan members lived inside the high walls and in independent communities. Once the village decided to target the Uchiha Clan, these ordinary clan members had nowhere to escape.

Even if a few powerful members of the Uchiha Clan manage to escape, it won't make much difference.

As a ninja clan, they have been wiped out.

Regarding Uchiha Fugaku's idea, Senju Hashirama responded...

This is because he didn't do a good Hokage as Hokage!

Then, to Uchiha Fugaku's utter astonishment, they were led down into the underground prison.