Naoki Senju decided to conceal the First Hokage's true intentions. In a necessary moment, Hashirama Senju, like Uchiha Itachi, was willing to sacrifice his clan for the sake of the village.
For the Konoha High Command, the more people like this, the better. Ideally, each clan should have a few. Of course, they would never allow such people to appear in their own clans.
"Grandpa said that Sister Tsunade can do whatever she wants, even if it turns Konoha upside down, it doesn't matter. As for those involved in this matter, or those related to it, they will naturally be eliminated without exception!"
Naoki Senju spoke with an innocent and guileless expression, but the murderous intent in his words sent a chill down Tsunade.
After staring at Naoki for a while, Tsunade said quietly:
"If Second Grandfather had said that, I would have believed him. Killing an entire family and wiping out a whole clan has always been Second Grandfather's style. But Grandpa would never say that, or even think that way. Tell me, what is Grandpa's real thought?"
Naoki Senju remained silent. It was indeed unlikely that he could simply fool them. Fortunately, he had already reached an agreement with Hashirama Senju: to launch a small-scale coup with minimal cost and without affecting the foundation of Konoha.
This was Hashirama Senju's bottom line, and also compensation for the seventy-three lives lost by the Senju Clan.
" Sister Tsunade, this is indeed not what Grandpa wanted, but Grandpa and I have reached an agreement: no one involved in this matter will escape."
"Reach an agreement? What agreement?" Tsunade suddenly felt excluded.
Naoki Senju suddenly laughed and said passionately:
"Of course... I want to help Sister Tsunade become the Fifth Hokage of Konoha!"
The Land of Rivers, a secret base.
Uchiha Itachi sat amidst a pile of books, flipping through scrolls of Orochimaru's research records, while Kakuzu sat impatiently to the side, his beady eyes narrowed.
"This is our second day at this base. Why haven't we moved on to the next one? Uchiha Itachi, are you buying time for Orochimaru? If I remember correctly, you're all from Konoha."
Uchiha Itachi's eyes remained fixed on the scroll in his hand, and he replied without raising his head:
"If you're in a hurry, you can go ahead first."
Kakuzu's eyes immediately flashed with chilling killing intent. So what if he had the Uchiha Sharingan? Even the Mitsudomoe Uchiha Clan he had hunted before. The space here wasn't large; he could simply use a combination Ninjutsu to cover it indiscriminately...
Seemingly sensing Kakuzu's thoughts, Uchiha Itachi looked up this time. The Mitsudomoe in his pupils spun slowly, connecting together to form a unique and aesthetically pleasing pattern.
He glanced at Kakuzu indifferently, and an invisible pressure swept over Kakuzu's entire body, the bone-chilling coldness making Kakuzu abandon the idea of fighting.
"It's not Mitsudomoe, what kind of Sharingan is this?!"
To Kakuzu's relief, Uchiha Itachi showed no intention of attacking. Kakuzu, the crimson light in his Sharingan vanished, and he calmly put away the scroll in his hand, saying:
"Let's go, we can set off now."
After Uchiha Itachi and Kakuzu left, a giant pitcher plant emerged from the ground.
One half of his body danced and gesticulated excitedly, saying:
"How terrifying! Uchiha Itachi must have already spotted us. His eye power is truly terrifying."
The other half of his body was much more composed, observing Uchiha Itachi while seemingly lost in thought.
"Follow him. As long as Uchiha Itachi doesn't betray the organization, then it's none of our business."
The Land of Wind, a secret stronghold.
An oasis has appeared in what was once a barren and scorching desert. The trees are not drought-resistant or wind-resistant, but they are growing very well in the hot desert.
Tsunade was comfortably lying under a large tree, enjoying the cool shade, while Shizune kept offering Tsunade a glass of iced drink.
Not far away, Naoki Senju sat cross-legged on a tree branch, his eyes closed, with faint black divine markings appearing and disappearing intermittently.
The longest he ever used it lasted only a dozen seconds. Such a short time was hardly worthy of Naoki Senju young master. So Naoki vowed that he would not use Sage Mode until he had mastered it.
"There are three key points to Sage Mode: first, absolute calmness of mind; second, stable and continuous absorption of Natural Energy; and third, perfect fusion of Natural Energy with Chakra and spiritual power."
"The trees of Wood Release can absorb Senjutsu Energy for me. The Natural Energy 'filtered' by Wood Release is more stable. Even if I can't achieve absolute calmness, I can absorb it without any risk. These are Hashirama Senju's original words, so they should be correct. The problem lies in the third step."
Naoki Senju closed his eyes and looked at himself. In terms of Chakra reserves, being from the Senju Clan and having awakened Wood Release, his Chakra reserves were definitely up to par, and he was comparable to the legendary Sannin like Orochimaru.
"So the problem lies in the control of Chakra."
Originally, after mastering Water Walking, Naoki Senju's Chakra control was already quite excellent. However, recently his Chakra volume has increased too rapidly, and he has also received the residual power of Hashirama Senju, resulting in Chakra volume that is somewhat beyond his control.
" Sister Tsunade, is there any way to improve Chakra control?" Naoki Senju shouted from a tree branch.
" Chakra control? Train Medical Ninjutsu with me, and I guarantee your Chakra control will reach a new level within three months."
Tsunade picked a juicy grape and tossed it towards the spot where Naoki Senju was training.
Exactly! Medical Ninjutsu definitely demands the highest level Ninjutsu Chakra control. To forget about Medical Ninjutsu while around Tsunade is like being blind to one's own limitations...
Tsunade tossed to him, popped it into his mouth, and the moment the grape burst, Naoki face contorted in pain, and he spat it out without hesitation.
So sour~
Tsunade's wicked laughter came from under the tree.
Just as Naoki Senju was about to ask how to train in Medical Ninjutsu, Orochimaru silently approached. Before Tsunade could reprimand him, Orochimaru spoke rapidly:
"The reconnaissance ninjas have discovered the Akatsuki members' whereabouts. They have already entered the Land of Wind, and based on their current speed, they should arrive here in a day at most."
Tsunade instantly rose from the shade of the tree and began issuing orders rapidly:
" Orochimaru, go check the Genin tools and Explosive Tag again. Your subordinates are too weak and can't be used for now. Have them withdraw from the base."
" Shizune, go and produce a batch of antidotes and potent poisons, as well as a large quantity of hallucinogenic drugs, just in case."
" Naoki, you and I will go check the traps we've set. This time, it's not the Akatsuki hunting us down, but us ambushing Akatsuki. So treat this like a real war, understand?"
"Yes!"