Chapter 35

But the problem was, if she didn't die, it would be much harder for him to make a move against the Uchiha and get his hands on the Sharingan later.

"Damn it."

Danzo cursed inwardly.

Seeing that he had fallen silent, the Third Hokage said no more and changed the subject.

"What do you think about the Uzumaki Clan?"

With his pipe in his mouth, he frowned. "Now that Lady Mito has recovered somewhat, should we still send a large force to support them? Or should we follow the original plan?"

The Third Hokage wasn't entirely sure himself.

The Uzumaki Mito he had seen had only recovered a small portion of her vitality. Logically speaking, she should not have had much strength left to act. But that woman was skilled in Sealing Arts and deeply calculating. Who knew whether she had deliberately kept something hidden?

What if she had already recovered to her peak?

If they still followed the original plan and ended up enraging Uzumaki Mito, the consequences would absolutely be beyond what he could bear.

Uzumaki Mito's prestige in Konoha had not faded even now.

Though saying she could command a hundred responses with a single call was a slight exaggeration, it was not far from the truth. The Senju Clan's influence remained. If she truly wanted to stir things up, he might even be removed as Hokage, or perhaps forced into an even worse situation.

Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura were both taken aback when they heard that.

After thinking it over, they both felt that continuing like this did seem somewhat inappropriate.

If Uzumaki Mito truly pursued the matter, it would be difficult to clean up afterward.

"What's wrong with it?"

Danzo, however, did not care in the slightest and spoke with a cold sneer.

"We're acting for the village's interests. Where's the mistake?"

"We already warned the Uzumaki Clan and told their entire clan to relocate to Konoha. Uzumaki Luming was the one who refused."

"Even if they're wiped out later, can they blame us for it?"

He added, "Besides, no one knows when the other shinobi villages will make their move."

"Even if they do, they'll at most send a few elites for a surprise attack."

"It'll definitely be a one-hit kill."

"By the time our main force arrives, it'll already be too late."

"Are we supposed to station a large force near the Land of Whirlpools in advance and guard them at all times?"

"Does the Uzumaki Clan deserve that?"

Danzo's tone was full of contempt. Clearly, he thought the Uzumaki Clan was being far too ungrateful.

Fools who could not see the situation clearly only had themselves to blame if their clan was destroyed.

Still, those Sealing Arts absolutely could not fall into another village's hands.

Otherwise, those Jinchuriki would be fully developed.

"Indeed."

Mitokado Homura had no choice but to nod in agreement with Danzo.

The Uzumaki Clan was courting death themselves. What could they do about it?

They had already done everything they could.

"How about sending some elites to support them when the time comes?"

At that moment, the Third Hokage spoke again.

"We can arrange for a group of Anbu and Root elites to be ready to deploy at any time."

"I estimate that Lady Mito will also send Senju Clan elites over at the first opportunity."

"We can act alongside them."

"When it comes to the rescue, we decide for ourselves how much effort to put in."

"Even if the Uzumaki Clan still can't be saved in the end, Lady Mito won't be able to blame us."

"What do you think?"

In any case, based on the intelligence recently sent back by the Anbu and other sources, the other Four Great Shinobi Villages would probably make their move within the next few days.

No matter what, the Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Arts and inheritance had to be brought back. They absolutely could not let another village seize them.

Utatane Koharu: "That works."

Mitokado Homura: "Agreed."

After hearing this, especially when he heard that Uzumaki Mito might send Senju Clan elites, Danzo's eyes flickered as he began making calculations.

But he still put on a reluctant expression and said, "Then let's do that."

"Alright, then it's settled."

On Xunjing's side.

After returning home, Uchiha Chisato waved her hand and took out those Ninjutsu and Sealing Arts scrolls.

She said to Xunjing and Mikoto, "The Ninjutsu and Sealing Arts we traded for this time are all here. Pick whichever ones you want to learn."

"Alright."

Xunjing smiled, nodded, stepped forward, grabbed the Flying Thunder God Technique scroll, and quickly scanned through it.

Then he frowned. "Tch, I need to understand Sealing Arts before I can even start learning this thing."

"Fine, I'll set it aside for now and study Sealing Arts later."

After saying that, he also flipped through the Water Release Ninjutsu scroll and committed everything in it to memory.

Only then did he untie the bundle of massive Sealing Arts materials and bury himself in reading them.

He planned to cram all this knowledge into his head first, then practice it slowly afterward.

"Huh? Auntie, I get a share too?"

Uchiha Mikoto was a little stunned. She pointed at herself, then turned to look at Uchiha Chisato.

Uchiha Chisato smiled. "Of course."

"You call me Auntie, and you've formed a contract with Xunjing. How could I leave you out?"

"Auntie is counting on you to get stronger soon so you can lend Xunjing a hand."

"So study hard. Learn as much as you can."

"But don't be greedy at the start. Pick a few to practice first."

"Once you've mastered those, come back and learn more."

Otherwise, taking in too much at once and failing to digest it would instead slow the pace of improvement.

"Mm! Thank you, Auntie!"

Mikoto's eyes warmed as she nodded. Under Uchiha Chisato's encouraging gaze, she also reached out and picked up the Flying Thunder God Technique scroll.

After flipping through only a few pages, she gave up, her brows tightly furrowed. "This is way too difficult. I can't learn it right now. I'd better start with Sealing Arts."

As for Water Release?

She did not have Water-nature Chakra, so she had no plans to touch it for the time being.

"Just do what you think is best."

Uchiha Chisato did not object. Taking the Flying Thunder God Technique scroll, she said as she read, "Is this Flying Thunder God really that outrageous? Let me see."

Before long, she pinched the bridge of her nose and put down the scroll. "It really is difficult. Tobirama Senju was a freak for creating something like this."

"Just in terms of creativity with Ninjutsu, he really was a genius."

She had to admit that.

Then she picked up a Water Release scroll and began reading it, muttering, "Water Release should be quite practical if we'll be going to the Pirate World often in the future."

"It could produce unexpected results at sea."

"Especially against Devil Fruit users."

"Huh?"

Mikoto froze. "Then should I learn some Water Release too?"

"There's no need to rush."

Uchiha Chisato waved her hand. "You're still young, and you don't have Water-nature Chakra. We can talk about it later."

"First, master Fire Release, Lightning Release, and Sealing Arts."

"Add taijutsu, Haki, and the Life-Nourishing Art, and your schedule is already packed. You can't pile on more."

"Wait until you've thoroughly mastered the shape transformation and nature transformation of one release before considering it."

That way, it would not delay the explosive growth of her strength.

"No problem."

Mikoto nodded at once.

That made sense.

"Xunjing, what are you planning to do next?"

As Uchiha Chisato flipped through the Water Release scroll, she asked casually.

"Me?"

Xunjing looked up at his mother, then lowered his head and continued memorizing the Sealing Arts materials. After thinking for a moment, he replied, "First, I'll go to Warship Island and get the dragon bones to make Longevity Pills."

"Then I'll visit Cocoyasi Island and Foosha Village, scout them out, and see if there are any promising kids."

"Finally, I'll go to Shimotsuki Village to find a master and learn swordsmanship from the Pirate World."

"When the time comes, I'll probably have to trouble you, Mom, to help me unlock the map and accompany me there."

He had a clear plan for his route ahead.

Chakra, Ninjutsu, taijutsu, body tempering, and swordsmanship—none of them could be neglected.

He could not stop practicing the Life-Nourishing Art either. He might as well add it after meals as a way to aid digestion.

That would save time while helping digestion and absorption, increasing vitality, and extending his lifespan.

It was killing two birds with one stone.

"Sure, no problem."

After hearing that, Uchiha Chisato nodded. "Come to think of it, Mom already unlocked the map for Loguetown yesterday. I kept forgetting to tell you."