Chapter 269: Uncle Returns to Work as Daimyo

"In this current situation, my appearance would only be counterproductive."

In the darkness, a lean figure slowly paced out. Uchiha Tajima, who had returned from the dead, wore a look of slight relief on his weathered face. His black eyes held a trace of tenderness as he watched the backs of Uchiha Madara and his brother as they walked away. After a sigh, he spoke to explain.

"Preparing to leave without saying goodbye?"

Watching his uncle's relieved expression, Uchiha Gin raised an eyebrow. He was the one who wanted to meet his two cousins, and now he was the one who didn't want to see them. He really couldn't understand it; it was just a farewell, not some life-or-death separation.

"Madara has already made the choice he believes is correct. If I appear now, it will only disturb his heart."

Uchiha Tajima shook his head. No one knows a son better than his father; Uchiha Madara was a very emotional person. The words and actions of others could easily influence his judgment. If he were to learn that his father was still alive, there was no telling what kind of complications might arise, so he had to avoid such accidents as much as possible.

"Alright~ then let's set off!"

Unable to grasp the logic of this father and son, Uchiha Gin immediately chose to stop thinking. After stretching, he spoke to his uncle.

"It's so far from the seaside, you shouldn't go. I will go ahead to rendezvous with Elder Miao myself."

The outside was currently a scene of great bustle, and Uchiha Gin was considered a prominent figure in the Uchiha clan; if he were to suddenly disappear, it might cause unnecessary trouble. Uchiha Tajima shook his head, intending to go alone.

"It's guaranteed to work, Uncle."

Uchiha Gin smiled and reached out to place a hand on Uchiha Tajima's shoulder. Amidst the other man's puzzled expression, the two grown men vanished into thin air, leaving not a trace in the quiet little hut.

Senju Tobirama, dressed in the formal attire of the Senju clan, narrowed his scarlet eyes slightly. He was observing several young women with strange chakra signatures among the Uchiha clan members opposite him. He looked suspiciously at one tall, black-haired woman; he felt her chakra was very familiar, but he couldn't for the life of him remember where he had seen her.

"Huh? The aura of the Flying Thunder God? But it doesn't quite look like it..."

Just as he was pondering, a sudden spatial fluctuation made his heart skip a beat.

"Tobirama! Why are you staring at those Uchiha girls? Could it be that you..."

Senju Hashirama, wearing his beige outer garment, suddenly appeared behind him. He patted Senju Tobirama's shoulder hard, laughing heartily, though his tone carried a hint of awkwardness.

"Hmph! Do you think everyone is like you?"

Having his train of thought interrupted, Senju Tobirama felt a surge of irritation at his beaming brother. He immediately gave him an elbow strike and retorted with disdain, casting the earlier anomaly to the back of his mind.

At the seaside border of the Land of Fire, a massive black ship was hidden beneath cliffs bristling with reefs. An old man was busily directing his subordinates to move heavy wooden crates onto the ship. With a flash of golden light, two figures appeared on the deck of the giant vessel.

"Ugh~~~"

Facing the two who had suddenly appeared, Uchiha Miao, who was in the middle of giving orders, hadn't even spoken yet when Uchiha Tajima, looking green in the face, collapsed by the side of the ship and began to retch. Uchiha Gin, the culprit behind it all, walked over helplessly, patted his back, and said,

"It's like this the first time, you'll get used to it~"

"Is this... that technique of the white-haired Senju?"

Having vomited all the bile from his stomach, Uchiha Tajima turned his head, pale-faced, and looked at the relaxed Uchiha Gin, asking with suspicion. He knew that Senju Tobirama's space-time ninjutsu was far too bizarre; even he found it exhausting to deal with.

"Nah~ it's different. Mine is easier to use than his~"

Uchiha Gin immediately shook his head, indicating that he had no deep connection with Senju Tobirama and that this technique was different from the other man's.

His was the Minato Namikaze version of the Flying Thunder God; it was far superior to that guy Senju Tobirama's~

"Child, you really are a genius."

He took a deep look at his nephew. Ever since Uchiha Gin had escaped death at the hands of the Senju clan over a decade ago, he had undergone a earth-shattering transformation, becoming mysterious and unfathomable—even to him, his uncle.

"You know it!"

"Old Clan Head, have you finished your conversation with the Clan Head?"

Uchiha Miao, on the deck, saw that Uchiha Tajima had recovered and asked.

"Let's talk about meeting later. The important business comes first."

Having just finished vomiting, his calves still trembling, Uchiha Tajima shook his head. He didn't want his appearance to affect his son's judgment.

"Tsk tsk tsk, truly worthy of being the tech expert of the Uchiha. You actually managed to build it~"

Taking advantage of the gap in their conversation, Uchiha Gin observed the giant steel ship. The appearance of this ship was a spur-of-the-moment idea of his; after drawing a simple sketch, he had handed it to Uchiha Miao for corrections.

Upon receiving confirmation that it could be built, Uchiha Gin had immediately slapped down ten gold bricks for the stunned Uchiha Miao, telling him to work overtime to finish this steel beast.

The design of the entire ship was modeled after destroyers from his previous life. It lacked the currently popular masts, and its propulsion relied entirely on chakra. The deck was equipped with multiple turrets for combatants to release ninjutsu and strike enemies.

"Gin, where exactly are you taking us?"

After the two old men finished their exchange, they approached Uchiha Gin, who was looking on in admiration. Facing this nephew he couldn't see through, Uchiha Tajima asked.

"Uncle, although the Uchiha and Senju clans are currently at peace, you must never put all your eggs in one basket."

Uchiha Gin stood at the very front of the deck, pointing toward a direction, and said to the two men pondering behind him,

"In that direction, there is an island nation called the Land of Waves. It is a place forgotten by the nobles."

"The Land of Waves is that island nation adjacent to the Land of Whirlpools?"

The well-informed Uchiha Miao asked after a brief moment of recollection, his aged face filled with confusion.

"That's right, that's the place."

"What are we going there for?"

Hearing that his destination was actually a small island nation, Uchiha Tajima was very reluctant. In the Land of Fire, he was a big shot who occupied half the ninja world; how could he stoop to living in such a tiny place?

"To be the Daimyo."

"Hmph~ I won't do that—wait, what did you say?"

Facing his nephew's arrangement, Uchiha Tajima immediately expressed his protest. He didn't want to go to that kind of backwater, but after grumbling, he heard a familiar yet strange title, which made his heart jump, and his voice became stuttering.

"I am having you go to be the Daimyo of the Land of Waves."

Compared to the vast territories of the Five Great Nations, the Land of Waves, sandwiched between the Land of Fire and the Land of Water and adjacent to the Land of Whirlpools, had no such thing as a Daimyo. His uncle's appearance would perfectly fill the void in the Land of Waves.

"Although the Land of Waves serves as a throat of the sea and a place for passing merchant ships to resupply and rest, it has no native ninjas, only many wandering ninjas and pirate outlaws."

Regarding Uchiha Gin's explosive statement, Uchiha Miao, who was well-versed in geography, was the first to raise doubts. Nobles led by the Daimyo relied on their immense wealth to control ninjas and make them serve their interests, thereby consolidating their rule. The Land of Waves happened to lack ninjas, so no nobles were willing to invest there.

"Did you think I had you bring so many people just to let them relax?"

Hearing this, Uchiha Gin rolled his eyes in annoyance and pointed at the Uchiha clansmen busy on the deck, reminding them,

"They are the ninjas who will serve you as Daimyo. Remember to pay them their wages~"

"Phew~ where am I supposed to get the money?"

Huh? Can't I get a free ride?

Uchiha Tajima wore a bitter expression. He was currently penniless and empty-handed; where would he get the money to pay these clansmen? Could he not rely on his own old face?

"Go take a look at what they are moving."

Having anticipated this, Uchiha Gin pointed to the wooden crates the Uchiha clansmen were moving and said,

"!!!!"

A puzzled Uchiha Tajima and Uchiha Miao opened a wooden crate at random and were instantly blinded by the golden light before them. Especially the uncle, who had just changed his eyes and wasn't quite used to them yet; he was immediately stimulated to the point of tears.

"Gin, where did you get so much gold?"

Even Uchiha Tajima, who had seen his fair share of the world, couldn't help but chatter his teeth after seeing such a quantity of gold.

"I went to the Land of Wind, didn't I? I discovered some ruins on the way, and there was quite a bit of gold inside, so I scavenged it all~"

Uchiha Gin was already well-versed in lying, telling the story so flawlessly that the two old men couldn't find a single flaw.

"We have the people, and we have the money, but the Land of Waves is adjacent to the Land of Whirlpools. Those guys from the Uzumaki clan are not easy to get along with."

With people and money, Uchiha Tajima was suddenly filled with ambition, feeling that the Land of Waves was actually not bad. But thinking of that difficult neighbor, he frowned, and his heart began to feel troubled.

After all, his Mangekyo had already been transplanted to Uchiha Madara, and his current eyes were just ordinary Sharingan from Uchiha Miao's inventory. With his strength greatly diminished, he felt immense pressure to go head-to-head with the Uzumaki clan in their prime.

"Nah~ as the saying goes, more friends mean more paths. I told you before, I have a route on the sea. You can rest easy. Once you go to the Land of Waves, live steadily as your Daimyo, develop the economy well, and build up your strength. Sooner or later, there will be a use for it."

His uncle's concerns were reasonable. Although the Uzumaki clan hadn't set foot in the Land of Fire in recent years, they were still famous on the sea, having fought several battles with the Land of Water and rubbing those prominent ninja clans of the Land of Water into the ground.

"Is it an enemy?"

Just as the three were talking, a small boat appeared on the sea in the distance, rushing toward their giant ship at high speed. Uchiha Gin, who sensed the arrival, didn't speak, but Uchiha Tajima, upon discovering the trail of the small boat, asked in a deep voice.

"No, it's a friend coming to lead the way. You all should get along well in the future."

(End of chapter)