Chapter 30

"Hm?" Uzumaki Mito froze, her gaze shifting between Xunjing and Uchiha Chisato. "Are you serious?"

Had she spun this lie so many times that she believed it herself?

How could Uchiha Chisato fail to notice the suspicion on her face? She offered no further explanation, merely chuckling softly. "Why not try it and find out?"

Uzumaki Mito stared at her for several seconds before finally nodding. "Fine! Let's try it!"

She wanted to see exactly how Uchiha Chisato would cover up this lie later. Could this six-year-old brat really be that capable?

With that thought, Uzumaki Mito turned to Xunjing and asked, "What do you need me to do?"

"Hold out one hand and place it on the table." Xunjing raised his hand in a gesture.

"Alright."

Uzumaki Mito did as instructed, placing her hand palm-up on the table before Xunjing.

Xunjing extended several fingers and rested them on her wrist. With his proficient Medical Ninjutsu, he quickly grasped the condition of her body.

The situation was not complicated. It was much as he had guessed before—her life force had been depleted too severely. All she needed was to replenish what had been lost. However, the amount she had lost was far too great for ordinary methods. She needed a Life Potion to restore it all at once.

Of course, that could not solve the longstanding problem of the Tailed Beast inside her continuously draining her life force. She would still need to take medicine regularly in the future to maintain it.

"That's enough."

Having figured it out, Xunjing withdrew his hand and gave Uchiha Chisato a slight nod.

Then, under the doubtful gazes of Uzumaki Mito and Tsunade, he spoke directly. "I understand the situation now. There's nothing else wrong with your body, and you've maintained it well over the years. There's only one problem—your life force loss is far too severe."

"Drink a Life Potion, and the lost portion can be replenished all at once."

"However," he added, changing the subject, "there's nothing I can do about the natural decline in life force caused by age."

If it could replenish the losses caused by aging as well, then it would not be a Life Potion. It would be an immortality elixir. Clearly, Xunjing's product was not that miraculous yet.

Uzumaki Mito frowned as she considered Xunjing's words.

Matters of lifespan involved far more than what appeared on the surface.

Things like Life Origin, the number of times cells could divide...

The more she thought about it, the more she felt that Xunjing truly understood these things.

"A Life Potion?" Uzumaki Mito asked along with Tsunade. "What is that?"

She turned toward Uchiha Chisato. "Is that what you drank before?"

As she spoke, unease had already begun to stir in her heart.

Could everything Uchiha Chisato had said be true?

Had her son truly awakened overnight and become an extraordinary healer?

"No."

Uchiha Chisato shook her head, her tone perfectly calm. "You know my condition was much more complicated than yours. Healing me was not such a simple matter."

She paused before continuing, "It took me more than half a month to recover."

Honestly, if they had possessed a Life Potion back then, her recovery time could certainly have been shortened further.

But there had been no need for that.

Taking it slower had actually been beneficial.

Her body at the time truly could not withstand recovering too quickly.

"I see..."

Uzumaki Mito nodded, understanding.

The condition inside Uchiha Chisato's body had indeed been far more troublesome.

She asked again, "Then what do I have to offer in exchange for this Life Potion?"

"Once I drink it, will I never have to worry about my life force being drained away again?"

"Well..."

Xunjing spoke before his mother could, shaking his head directly. "It's not that simple. The Life Potion can only restore the life force you lost this time. In the future, you'll still need to take Nutrient Pills from time to time to make up for the portion the Tailed Beast consumes every day."

"Nutrient Pills?"

Uzumaki Mito was completely baffled.

"That's another medicine I made," Xunjing explained. "It can replenish a large amount of nutrients in a short time, restore physical and mental stamina, and ease fatigue. Most importantly, it can also provide a small amount of gentle life force."

"You could call it a heavily upgraded version of Military Rations Pills."

He smiled. "Our Uchiha Clan's new apothecary will sell them in the future. You can just buy them there when the time comes."

With that, Xunjing turned to his mother. "Mom, you can negotiate the terms now."

After saying that, he retreated to sit beside his mother, closing his mouth and no longer interrupting.

"Alright."

Uchiha Chisato answered with a smile, then turned to Uzumaki Mito. "Three conditions."

"First, starting today, the Senju and Uchiha Clan will form an alliance. We advance and retreat together."

Her gaze darkened. "I imagine you've seen it too. Tobirama Senju and his brother never had good intentions. The ones they want to suppress and destroy are not only the Senju, but our Uchiha Clan as well."

"To put it plainly, we have a common enemy."

Uzumaki Mito nodded lightly and did not deny it. "Fine, you have a point. I accept the alliance."

No matter how bad joining forces with the Uchiha Clan might be, it could not be worse than the current situation.

Besides, if the abilities Uchiha Xunjing had displayed were all real, combined with the recent changes the Uchiha Clan had brought about, who could say where things would go in the future?

The old debts between the Senju and Uchiha Clan had long since been settled.

If this continued, there would barely be a shadow of the Senju left. Was there any point in clinging to old grudges? It was meaningless.

Uzumaki Mito had never taken Tobirama Senju's obsessive wariness toward the Uchiha Clan seriously.

"Second, I want the Flying Thunder God Technique, Tobirama Senju's Water Release Ninjutsu, and every Sealing Art you know."

Uchiha Chisato continued.

She did not mention money at all.

Once the Uchiha Apothecary opened, they would have no shortage of silver.

And if they secured that batch of gold and those rare shellfish from Sky Island, they would be obscenely rich.

Ask for money? Only someone with water in their brain would choose that option.

Ninjutsu and Sealing Arts were what truly held value.

The Space-Time Gate could already teleport directly, so Flying Thunder God seemed somewhat redundant for contractors.

But it could not be put that way.

Using it as a cover for Flying Thunder God, or letting clan members without contracts study it, were both good options.

"This..."

After hearing this, Uzumaki Mito furrowed her brows. "The Flying Thunder God and Tobirama's Water Release are no problem."

"But among the Sealing Arts, I cannot give you the Reaper Death Seal or the Adamantine Sealing Chains."

"There's no need to explain the first one. As for the latter, you lack the Uzumaki Clan bloodline, so you would not be able to learn it even if you had it."

And it might leave a weakness in the Uzumaki Clan's Adamantine Sealing Chains.

"Fine, then remove those two."

"No problem."

Uchiha Chisato did not dwell on the matter. After thinking for a moment, she gave Xunjing a meaningful look.

Xunjing nodded, and she agreed.

Then she added, "The final condition is that Tsunade takes my son Xunjing as her disciple and agrees to teach him all the medical knowledge and Medical Ninjutsu she knows. Is that acceptable?"

"Huh?"

Both Tsunade and Uzumaki Mito were stunned.

Uzumaki Mito's face was full of confusion. "Didn't you say your son had awakened, and that he was already highly skilled in medicine and potions?"

"He can even make Life Potions and Nutrient Pills. Does he still need to acknowledge Tsunade as his master and study medicine under her?"

"Or do you have another motive? Are you setting your sights on the position of Hokage?"

This was the most reasonable explanation Uzumaki Mito could think of at the moment.

"Not entirely."

Uchiha Chisato shook her head lightly and spoke frankly. "Quite a few people in the Uchiha Clan have their eyes on the position of Hokage. It will certainly be an objective we strive for in the future."

"But I know very well that strength alone is not enough. We also need sufficient influence and supporters before someone from the Uchiha Clan can possibly take that seat."

"Merely carrying the title of the Hokage's direct disciple would be completely useless."