Only after getting ten li away did Uchiha Gen cautiously release his Mangekyō Sharingan's control. He immediately heard the Nine-Tails' furious roar, accompanied by repeated sounds of mountainsides exploding.
"Tsk, tsk. You can still hear it from this far away. What a fiery little fox~"
Although using the Mangekyō Sharingan made controlling Tailed Beasts more convenient, the intensity of their resistance determined how much ocular power it consumed.
Uchiha Gen had yet to solve the problem of the Mangekyō Sharingan's ocular power consumption, so the less he used it, the better. You never know how expensive daily necessities are until you are the one running the household~.
Take Madara and Izuna, for example. They awakened their Mangekyō Sharingan at the same time, yet by the time Izuna died, Madara's eyes were already nearly blind, while Izuna's had not lost much ocular power at all.
Madara had gone blind so quickly because every time he used Susanoo, he made it as huge as possible. But Madara could not really be blamed for that—his opponent was just as much of a cheat.
Hashirama Senju possessed even more Chakra than the Uzumaki Clan, to the point that he had unlocked the term "Chakra-ton." His physical recovery speed was even more absurd; he could heal in the blink of an eye. If you were a little slow in bandaging him up, you would not even be able to find the wound anymore.
Most importantly, he had mastered the Shinobi World's one and only Wood Release. The fact that Madara could go toe-to-toe with such a monster was already impressive enough.
With a huge scroll on his back, Uchiha Gen returned to the Clan Land without resting. He immediately brought the five-person group, who had mostly recovered, to the laboratory.
At the border of the Land of Wind, the newly built five-thousand-square-meter underground market had opened for business. This, too, had been arranged by Uchiha Gen. With a few adjustments to the framework, it was perfectly suited to become an underground trading venue.
When Uchiha Gen and the others arrived, they saw a sea of people. Pedestrians and horse-drawn carriages flowed past without end, and the people of the Land of Wind, with their headscarves that made them look like Indians, were the most numerous.
"Wow! This is my first time seeing so many people!"
Like a country bumpkin, Uzumaki Shibaki simply lay on the valley ridge and looked down.
The other four had never seen such a scene either, and all wore curious expressions.
"Nothing much to see. You can come take a look around when you have time."
Uchiha Gen spoke indifferently, but to the others, his words sounded unbelievable.
"You... aren't afraid we'll run away?"
"Well, if you dare run, I'll just catch you again. But if that happens, your treatment will be different."
Uzumaki Shibaki swallowed. He could sense Uchiha Gen's considerable ill intent. It seemed that he was not joking.
Afterward, the group set off again and arrived at the laboratory.
The laboratory had been built beneath a mountain and concealed by countless rocks. A forest lay outside, making its location extremely hidden.
Uchiha Gen took the lead in moving aside a large boulder and walked in. The interior was pitch-black, but that posed no problem for the Sharingan.
He found the electrical switch and flipped it. The cave immediately brightened.
Everything outside had merely been for concealment. Inside, there was modern equipment everywhere. Not only had electric lights been installed, but all sorts of appliances were in use as well. Judging by their quality, the tables, chairs, and furniture were all quite valuable.
Uchiha Gen first opened each room and inspected them one by one. The experimental area and living quarters together seemed to exceed five hundred square meters. It appeared that the hired man had hollowed out the entire mountain.
"You can each find a room to live in. Do not leave this cave unless necessary."
"Yes." *5
"From now on, call me Lord Yuan."
With that, Uchiha Gen gave them space to adjust while he entered the experimental area.
The experimental area was enormous. There were six nutrient tanks alone, each three meters tall. Beside them were all kinds of containers, including glass bottles, test tubes, and beakers.
Along the opposite wall stood many high-tech-looking instruments: microscopes of various models, as well as tweezers, clamps, slides, and other tools.
The equipment looked very comprehensive, and accordingly, it had cost a great deal of money. According to the hired man, the total cost of this place had reached fifty million ryo.
"This one laboratory alone cost so much, and its future upkeep will be another huge expense. How much must Orochimaru have spent on all the laboratories he had around the world later on?"
You never realized how much something cost until you did the math. Thinking about it now, Orochimaru's reason for betraying the Akatsuki might not have simply been that he had attacked a companion. He had embezzled the organization's funds, and such a massive sum at that. He had probably wanted to run for a long time already, and then Itachi Uchiha had conveniently come along and given Orochimaru a ready-made excuse.
If Sister Nan had had this much money for explosive tags, she might have made more than six hundred billion of them. Thinking about it now, there really were so many hints buried in Naruto.
He paced around the laboratory, inspecting the equipment. Everything was brand-new, fresh from the factory. Uchiha Gen also saw a calendar hanging on the wall. He tore off most of its pages and set it to today's date.
Time flies. This world that places such importance on bloodlines will eventually strip naked before me.
Within the Uchiha Clan, the busiest person had left. Izuna and Madara had become the new pillars, but with Uchiha Gen's Shadow Clone Technique around, there was not much to handle aside from major matters.
The new ninjutsu Uchiha Gen had researched had long since been placed in the scroll repository. Clan members could exchange mission merits for them: an A-rank ninjutsu required the merits from five A-rank missions, while an S-rank one required three missions of the same rank.
As those in power, Izuna and Madara naturally did not need to follow the usual procedures. They could read whatever they wanted whenever they wished. Madara only learned a few that interested him, and he found those Water Release techniques rather boring.
Izuna had not intended to learn them either, because he detested everything related to Senju Tobirama from the bottom of his heart.
But the techniques Uchiha Gen had created included things like the Bringer-of-Darkness Technique, Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags, and Lightning Release Chakra Mode. Each was more difficult than the last, and many had strict requirements. Merely reading the principles had already made Izuna so anxious that his hair was falling out.
"Izuna, how is your Lightning Release training coming along?"
In the room, Izuna and Madara were having lunch together.
"Big Brother, I think my physique is twice as strong as before! I can kill a cow with one punch."
"Oh? Without using Chakra?"
"Pure strength!"
More than half of the roasted suckling pig on the table was already gone. Judging by the sizes of the plates beside it, even though only scraps remained, they had clearly held rich dishes.
They would never have dared dream of such meals in the past, but they had become commonplace within the Uchiha Clan. These ingredients could be bought easily, and to ensure freshness, special purchases were made every week. All of those channels had been found by Uchiha Gen.
The brothers clinked cups and drained them in one gulp. The fiery white liquor made both of them exhale hot breaths.
"Big Brother, our third brother is the most capable manager I have ever seen. Even Father could not compare."
Madara nodded. There was indeed no denying that.
"Right, a few days ago, the Daimyo sent word that he wanted to discuss something with the Uchiha Clan. Gen said I might need to make a trip there."
"The Daimyo? Our shinobi clan and the samurai of the Land of Fire have always kept to our own affairs. It is also an unspoken rule that shinobi clans do not interfere in ordinary people's wars."
"I know. But an invitation from a nation's Daimyo is not something our clan alone can refuse."
After all, the Daimyo was the nominal ruler of the Land of Fire. Since the Uchiha Clan lived on his territory, they had to show him some respect.
Izuna wiped the grease from his hands on his pant leg and said:
"Then I'll go with you. I've never seen the Daimyo in my life."
"You can't go. You need to stay home."
Before you continue