The outcome

When Uchiha Mu returned, Madara said quietly, "I didn't expect you to be such a talker. You even told them about my childhood."

"Lord Madara, legendary deeds need to be passed down. Let them remember the real you rather than turn you into a myth." Uchiha Mu spoke earnestly. Perhaps only Madara's younger brother, Izuna, had noticed all this, while the other clan members had simply cheered.

"Suit yourself." Madara paused. This was the first time he had heard such a thing. From the moment he had revealed his strength, his clansmen had changed-all except his younger brother. So Uchiha Mu hadn't changed either. Madara simply hadn't noticed this nobody before.

"Haha, then I will. But ultimately, I'm doing this to encourage them not to give up so easily," Uchiha Mu said with a laugh.

"I'm leaving." Madara rose and left without asking why Uchiha Mu allowed the tailed beasts to roam freely around the village. Dealing with tailed beasts was nothing special for him, but that also depended on whom he was being compared to.

"Who is he?" Once Madara had gone some distance, Hyuga Lingnai came over to ask.

"A ninja I brought back. He's very strong, but he generally doesn't act unless he has to." Uchiha Mu saw Takeuchi and the other three stop Madara Uchiha at the entrance, and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

He hadn't expected those three little ones to find Madara, but the outcome so far was good. The Evil Senju Old Ghost's methods really did work. The deeper the bonds, the greater the cost of betrayal.

"Something feels off. Is he an Uchiha?" Hyuga Lingnai had seen Madara Uchiha before, but now she wasn't quite sure. Naturally, that was because he now carried a trace of his best buddy Hashirama's presence.

"That much is right." Uchiha Mu nodded.

"Are there still Uchiha out traveling?" Hyuga Lingnai was curious. It wasn't surprising that she hadn't suspected Madara. Above all, Madara had died at Hashirama's hands. With Hashirama's strength, there was no way he could have been fooled, and genjutsu did little against him. However, she knew nothing about the Uchiha's forbidden technique, Izanagi.

"The village doesn't lack top-tier fighters now." Uchiha Mu also had a great deal of chakra himself. The Seven-Tails and the Two-Tails had both given him plenty, and he could already perform a Partial Tailed Beast Transformation.

"Mu, Lingnai, our clansmen here are planning to head home tomorrow," Keiko Uzumaki said as she approached and joined the conversation. The three of them had been in this relationship for nearly a year, and Hyuga Lingnai had already accepted her. After all, nobles and daimyo in this world had multiple women, so it wasn't difficult for them to accept.

"All right. Have this fellow escort you home. It's quite a long journey, and he's reasonably strong." Hyuga Lingnai made the decision for Uchiha Mu first.

"Don't worry. Since I brought them here, I'll certainly take them home safely," Uchiha Mu said with a hearty laugh.

"What I want to ask is, are you letting them go back because you want to divide the Uzumaki Clan?" Keiko Uzumaki stated her purpose directly, her expression serious.

Uchiha Mu grew serious as well. "Keiko, do you think the Hundred-Clan Shinobi Nation is a good place?"

"Yes." Keiko Uzumaki couldn't deny it in good conscience.

"Keiko, I'm not trying to annex the Uzumaki Clan. I want them to live better, safer lives. Which do you think would be more likely to attract covetous eyes: the Land of Whirlpools as part of the Konoha Alliance, or a province of the Hundred-Clan Shinobi Nation?"

Hearing Uchiha Mu's question, she wanted to argue that Hashirama was still alive and they were Konoha's allies, but she soon gave up. She felt that Uchiha Mu was right. Any alliance without shared interests could end in betrayal.

Only when their interests were bound together would the relationship between the two sides become unbreakable. But what held the alliance between the Uzumaki Clan and Konoha together? Only the promise between their clan leader and Hashirama. Beyond that, there was nothing.

"Don't worry. I won't do anything, but if the Uzumaki Clan is ever in danger, I'll help." Of course, having the Uzumaki Clan would be better for Uchiha Mu, but he could manage without them.

His system wanted population, public happiness, construction, and development-not any particular shinobi clan. He gathered orphans with kekkei genkai to diversify the nation's future fighting strength. He couldn't remain its sole fighter forever. That would be far too dangerous.

"All right." Keiko Uzumaki didn't believe Uchiha Mu would do anything so unscrupulous.

The Ninja Academy training ground.

"I see. I didn't expect you to be going home. You've been in the village for a year now, haven't you, Shana?" Uzumaki Men sighed as he looked at the red-haired girl before him.

"Is there anything you want to say to me?" Uzumaki Shana asked, staring into his eyes.

Seeing how sincere she was, Uzumaki Men answered earnestly, "Good fortune in battle. And if there's anything you need my help with, come to me anytime."

"Pfft. Aren't you afraid I'll ask you to do something bad?" Uzumaki Shana covered her mouth and chuckled.

"I believe friends wouldn't put their friends in a difficult position by asking them to do bad things. So if you come to me, it must be because you're in trouble and need my help." Uzumaki Men's tone was earnest.

"Idiot. I'm going home soon, and I want to change the village, so I won't dance around it anymore. Men, will you come home with me-as family? Let's change our clansmen together." Uzumaki Shana held out her hand. Even someone inattentive would have noticed that it was trembling.

Even the most oblivious person would have understood by then, and Uzumaki Men was no exception. He had never imagined that Uzumaki Shana liked him. All this time, he hadn't noticed a thing. Seeing her trembling hand, he knew he couldn't put this off. He had to answer her here and now.

"I..."

"Don't worry. We'll be fine without you here, but the Uzumaki clansmen need you more." Uchiha Mu's clone appeared. He knew Uzumaki Men had been about to refuse. With how dense the boy was, it would be hard to find another girl like Shana who would fall for him.

Being his teacher was far too demanding. Not only did he have to teach his student nintaijutsu, but he also had to help him find a girlfriend.

"Teacher?!" they both cried.

The two jumped in fright. Uzumaki Shana didn't know whether to lower her hand or keep it outstretched. Just as she was feeling utterly awkward, Uzumaki Men took her hand firmly. "I'll go home with you."

"So what's your answer?"

"I'm pretty dense, and I don't understand much about these things. But I once swore to pass on Teacher's ideas, and just talking about them in the village won't do. As for our relationship, let's spend time together until I turn sixteen. If you still... like me then, we'll get married." Uzumaki Men looked utterly serious, leaving Uzumaki Shana blushing scarlet.

Meanwhile.

"Huh? Marriage?" Yufeng gritted his teeth. Seriously? He hadn't even won Yucheng over yet, and Uzumaki Men was already planning to get married?

"They're dating with marriage in mind, idiot." Yucheng knocked him on the head.

"Marriage, really? Isn't that guy a complete blockhead?" Takeuchi asked from the side.

"That's wonderful." Xiaoyu looked envious.

"I didn't expect him to be heading into the same situation as Teacher already." Imai shook his head and sighed. What was so good about it? It only tied you down.

"Teacher's too much of a womanizer. That's no good," the two girls said in unison.

Nothing about their discussion suggested their actual ages. All one could say was that early romance in the shinobi world was in a league of its own. Pure-Love Obito was famous even beyond that circle, and he had taken an interest in Rin while his age was still in the single digits.

Back at the scene, after hearing everything Uzumaki Men had said, Uzumaki Shana replied, "All right."

"A perfect ending. Let's celebrate tonight. Teacher's treating, and nobody goes home sober." Uchiha Mu declared the outcome.

"Teacher, is your real body coming?" Uzumaki Men's eyes lit up.

"That's right. I'll give you a farewell send-off. And you students hiding over there, do you want to come too?" Uchiha Mu looked toward their hiding place.

"Yes!" Takeuchi hurriedly revealed himself.

"You guys..." Uzumaki Men tried to point with his right hand, only to realize he was still holding hers. He could only awkwardly raise his left hand instead. Uzumaki Shana was also bright red. She had known they knew, but she hadn't known they would sneak over to watch.