Chapter 168: Are You Thinking About Women?

"Captain Koji!"

The clansmen beside Koji Senju hurried to help him up, their eyes filled with fear as they looked at Uchiha Gin.

The Uchiha clan's genjutsu was truly terrifying; the formidable Captain Koji had been taken down by the opponent in just a single exchange.

Wait, no? Is "touch-porcelain" (faking an injury) popular among the Senju clan now too?

"Let go of me, I'm fine!"

Struggling to his feet, Koji Senju looked at the frowning, contemplative Uchiha Gin, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and said in a hoarse voice,

"I remember you, kid. You're that weakling who used to follow behind Feng Huo Uchiha."

How many times is this now? Why does everyone I meet call me a weakling? I don't even have a center-parted haircut.

"Kid, tell me where Feng Huo Uchiha is hiding, and I'll spare your life."

With the physical constitution of the Senju clan helping him recover quickly, Koji Senju stared fixedly at Uchiha Gin and slowly stated his purpose.

"Sorry, I haven't visited Captain Feng Huo in a long time either, but if nothing unexpected happened, he should be drinking right now."

Inside the Uchiha clan compound.

"Achoo! ~"

Having just finished a cup of wine, Feng Huo Uchiha sneezed violently, rubbed his nose in confusion, and said to the person beside him,

"Dailang, why is this wine of yours so watered down?"

"It must be that brat Erlang again!"

"Feng Huo Uchiha didn't come?"

Learning from Uchiha Gin that Feng Huo Uchiha—the man he had been obsessed with for years—had not come, Koji Senju stroked the hideous scar on his face and said in a cold tone,

"Then I'll just have to send you on your way first. But don't worry, it won't be long before Feng Huo Uchiha goes to find you."

"I'm really not that close with Feng Huo Uchiha. Why don't you ask someone else?"

Hearing this from the Senju clansman, Uchiha Gin's dormant memories slowly revived. Wasn't this guy the one who protected Itama Senju during the "Weeding Out" operation back then?

He had fought back and forth with Captain Feng Huo back then, but was defeated in the end. He had thought he was sent to meet the Sage of Six Paths by Feng Huo Uchiha at the time; he didn't expect him to be alive.

"Heh, these six years! Do you know how I spent these six years? No! You don't know!"

Of course I don't know, and I don't want to know. You aren't a blonde-haired, blue-eyed little girl, after all.

"Every day, I have endured the pain caused by these burns. The heat deep in my marrow has accompanied me every moment, keeping me awake, keeping me mindful."

"Feng Huo Uchiha, I want you dead!"

"Achoo!!! Dailang, can you close the window? It's a bit cold."

Watching the tangible black aura rising from Koji Senju, Uchiha Gin couldn't help but glance sideways.

It's a good thing this guy is a Senju; if he were an Uchiha, that would be a real problem—he'd have unlocked the Mangekyo Sharingan in a heartbeat.

"Have you thought of your last words?"

After venting his emotions, Koji Senju lowered his head, looked coldly at Uchiha Gin, and said slowly,

"Uh, I want to ask, how do you track the Hagoromo clan?"

Uchiha Gin scratched his face, asking the question that had been bothering him for half the day.

"That is your last word?"

"Let's call it that for now. I heard the Senju clan is always honest and trustworthy; surely you wouldn't even..."

"Hmph! A dying man, telling you won't hurt."

Holding the advantage in numbers, Koji Senju proudly crossed his arms and revealed their method,

"The reason we have been able to keep biting at the heels of the Hagoromo clan is thanks to the assistance of the Uzumaki clan."

After hearing Koji Senju's explanation, Uchiha Gin finally realized that every Senju cleanup squad was equipped with a sensory-type Uzumaki clansman to help them track the remnants of the Hagoromo clan.

What a good police dog of the ninja world!

"Not bad~ So where is your team leader now?"

Seeing Koji Senju getting into the flow of his story, Uchiha Gin couldn't help but press for more.

"Captain Koji, could this kid be stalling for time?"

A slightly sharper Senju clansman leaned into the ear of the rambling Koji Senju and whispered his suspicion.

"Uh—you guy, you have some nerve, actually fooling us!"

Realizing what had happened, Koji Senju slapped his own bald head and roared at the innocent-looking Uchiha Gin.

No, no, no, we always felt something was wrong!

The remaining eighteen Senju clansmen shook their heads in unison, taking a step back to distance themselves from Koji Senju.

"Sigh, it would have been better if you'd just said it voluntarily, to avoid the physical pain."

Seeing that he couldn't fool them anymore, Uchiha Gin shook his head and said with a sigh.

"Uchiha scum, die!"

Feeling played, Koji Senju attacked in a rage, his mortar-sized fist carrying immense force as it smashed toward the seemingly frail Uchiha Gin.

"Boom! ~"

A loud bang echoed, and dust filled the air. The surrounding Senju clansmen hurried over, ready to see the state of that annoying Uchiha's corpse, but instead, they heard a scream,

"Ah! Ah! Ah!..." (Beast Senpai face~)

"That Uchiha didn't die?"

A Senju clansman said strangely.

"Sigh, maybe Captain Koji held back. After all, the captain's mental state hasn't been stable these past few years. It's good for him to vent a little after finally catching an Uchiha."

Another Senju clansman replied with a sigh.

"Eh? This scream, why does it sound so familiar?"

At this moment, a clansman who had been by Koji Senju's side for many years felt something was wrong; why did the screaming sound so... beastly?

"Not good! Quick..."

"Quick what?"

A lazy voice sounded in their ears. The alert Senju clan quickly huddled together, and one of them used Wind Style to blow away the rising dust.

As the dust cleared, the group of Senju clansmen saw a scene that made their eyes split with rage.

The incredibly formidable Koji Senju in their eyes was currently being held like a chick by that frail Uchiha. His dull eyes showed that he had been controlled by genjutsu, and the thick arm he had used to punch was bent at a bizarre angle.

"Hmm, keeping one is enough, so you guys are useless."

Looking at Koji Senju in his hand, Uchiha Gin felt that keeping one for questioning was enough; as for these others...

"You guys can go~"

Uchiha Gin scratched his head and said casually. Don't say I didn't give you a chance.

"Everyone, attack together! There's only one of him."

One of the Senju clansmen shouted, raising his blade to charge at Uchiha Gin. The rest of the clansmen beside him didn't fall behind, and all eighteen charged toward Uchiha Gin together.

"Sigh, all day long it's just fighting and killing. No wonder you have nothing left in the end."

Are you saying that as if your Uchiha clan has a happy ending?

Uchiha Gin didn't coddle these guys; if they were looking for death, they shouldn't blame him.

Without even raising his eyelids, he stomped his feet on the ground, and countless branches burst from the earth, writhing like tentacles.

The charging Senju clan saw this scene, and their expressions were even more spectacular than when they saw Koji Senju defeated just now.

"That is! The clan leader's technique?"

Someone shouted.

Eh? Has Hashirama Senju already become the clan leader? Cousin, you need to work harder; try to unlock the Mangekyo before we meet next time, otherwise, you really can't beat the Great Buddha without a Gundam.

Before these Senju clansmen could react, the lightning-fast branches had already wrapped around them, and in no time, all eighteen were tightly bound.

"Mmph! Mmph! Mmph! ~~"

The screams rose and fell, and as the Wood Style tentacles quickly absorbed these guys' chakra, the muffled screams slowly disappeared.

"Boom!"

Sensing the dissipation of eighteen life forces, Uchiha Gin waved his hand to disperse the Wood Style tentacles. Eighteen drained corpses fell down, hitting the ground with a heavy thud.

"Tsk! It doesn't seem that disgusting after all."

Uchiha Gin was not a bloodthirsty person. Except for the time he killed the transmigrator Kaguya Zhangzhu when he first arrived, he had never actively killed anyone, and the sparring in the dungeon was always stopped at the right time.

Of course, the first playthrough doesn't count~

Cutting ties with his former self at the speed of light.

"In the end, I still merged into this world."

Uchiha Gin sighed, saying goodbye to his former self, and greeted this chaotic world with a brand-new mindset.

"Time to wake up."

Lowering his head, he channeled his chakra to wake Koji Senju, whom he had controlled with genjutsu.

Now, to deal with ordinary ninjas like this, there was no need to even open his Sharingan; simple, conventional genjutsu could solve the problem.

"Where is your leader?"

Looking at Koji Senju, who stood before him with dull eyes, Uchiha Gin asked.

"Young Master Tobirama is camping in the canyon to the southeast."

The controlled Koji Senju spoke without reservation.

"How many people from the Uzumaki clan have come?"

"There are twenty members of the Uzumaki clan led by Lady Mito Uzumaki."

Huh?

Hearing this familiar name, Uchiha Gin's head began to ache again.

He had thought he wouldn't see her again before the founding of the Hidden Leaf Village; he never expected to hear news of that bun-haired woman again after only a few years.

He wondered if her dream of being a heroine had been fulfilled yet.

Recalling the first major catastrophe he encountered after transmigrating, if it hadn't been for the help of that bun-haired Mito Uzumaki, he might have already transmigrated to the next world.

"Alright, I have nothing else I want to know; you may commit suicide."

After Uchiha Gin finished asking what he wanted to know, he left behind this final order and turned to pursue the retreating team of the Hagoromo clan.

"Pfft!"

With a single hand-blade strike, Koji Senju ended his own life. Having regained his senses in his final moments, he looked at Uchiha Gin's retreating back, unable to fathom even if he racked his brains why the guy who looked the weakest six years ago could actually kill him in an instant.

As darkness descended, carrying endless confusion, Koji Senju ended his life.

The Wood Clone of Uchiha Gin in the team seemed to sense something and deliberately lagged a few steps behind; the main body took the opportunity to swap places, and the Wood Clone turned into a piece of withered wood on the spot.

"Gin, you're back?"

The sharp-witted Hikari Uchiha was the first to notice Uchiha Gin's anomaly, and she asked after observing him for a moment.

"Yeah, it's settled."

With matters weighing on his mind, Uchiha Gin did not say much; his mind was currently occupied by another red-haired figure.

"Are you thinking about a woman?"

A woman's innate sixth sense told Hikari Uchiha that Uchiha Gin's current state was very wrong.

"Ha? Is it that obvious?"

(End of chapter)