Chapter 422: The Senju Clan, it

"Don't stare at me like that, you're making me nervous."

Being tightly watched by the glowing eyes of Uchiha Gin and Senju Itama, Uchiha Madara, who was just about to perform Wood Release, subconsciously shrank his neck.

"Fine, fine, fine, we won't look at you, just hurry up."

Uchiha Gin firmly pressed down on the curious head beside him, and amidst Senju Itama's extremely unwilling expression, forcibly twisted it to the side.

"It's just Wood Release, it's not like you haven't seen it before, why are you sticking your head out like that~"

"Hoo."

With one less line of sight focused on him, Uchiha Madara's nervous mood eased slightly. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and brought his hands together, guiding that warm power within his body to emerge.

Accompanied by the familiar green glow of Uchiha Gin in his palm, a tender sprout containing thick vitality slowly grew out in Uchiha Madara's hand.

"How about it, big cousin, is this Wood Release or not?"

Holding the small sapling up, Uchiha Madara showed off his newly awakened ability to Uchiha Gin with a smug face. This was the first time he had exposed this technique in front of others.

"Uh."

After confirming it was indeed Wood Release, Uchiha Gin's gaze suddenly became strange.

"Let me see too!"

Senju Itama finally broke free from Uchiha Gin's mischievous hand and looked excitedly at the sprout in Uchiha Madara's palm. Her beautiful eyes were filled with shock, and her heart was full of an inexplicable sense of absurdity.

"How is this possible!"

Wood Release, as the exclusive secret technique of Senju Hashirama, hadn't even been awakened by her, his own biological sister. How could it appear in the completely unrelated Uchiha clan?

"How is it impossible?"

In order to prove the gold content of his Wood Release to Senju Itama, Uchiha Madara refined chakra again, converting it into the power of Wood Release. His entire person was instantly enveloped by a green glow, and fresh, unparalleled sprouts immediately grew from various parts of his body.

"Isn't this a Kekkei Genkai that only the Senju clan can awaken?"

Senju Itama's small face collapsed, and she spoke up to refute with great indignation. But halfway through her sentence, her gaze involuntarily fell on Uchiha Gin, who was picking his nose to the side, and her voice gradually lowered.

That's right, there were three people present: two Uchihas and one Senju.

Then, may I ask,

who is the true Wood Release family?

Looking down at her own fair, tender little hands, Senju Itama felt as if she were mourning her parents. Among everyone present, she was the only Senju who couldn't use the Senju clan's Wood Release.

"Alright, alright, stop showing off."

Patting Senju Itama, who had fallen into an emo state, Uchiha Gin turned his head to look at his big cousin who had already begun to turn into a vegetable, and shook his head helplessly.

"How long have you been awakened?"

"Uh, last week, I guess."

Uchiha Madara, who had stopped growing, replied after thinking for a moment.

"Last week?"

Uchiha Gin was stunned upon hearing this.

"You kid really are a genius, to be able to skillfully use the power of Wood Release in just one week~"

Logically speaking, after suddenly awakening Wood Release, without the guidance of someone who had been through it, the awakener would need a long time to learn how to use this power.

It can only be said that he is worthy of being Uchiha Madara, to be able to learn it without a teacher.

"Hehe... it's nothing really~"

Rarely hearing praise from Uchiha Gin, Uchiha Madara revealed a faint smile on his face, and then explained the reason why he could skillfully use the power of Wood Release.

"I don't have that kind of ability, I have to thank Haxi Lama."

"I used the excuse of the village collecting forbidden techniques to have Haxi Lama write a Wood Release secret manual, recording all of his Wood Release secret techniques into it."

"Ha?"

Looking at his smug big cousin, Uchiha Gin almost spat out the tea in his mouth. Wiping away the water stains seeping from the corner of his mouth, his expression was very complex.

"Sigh... I don't remember raising you to be such an adult."

To obtain the Wood Release manual, he actually deceived his best friend. He would rather not have such a younger brother.

"I had no choice either. After awakening Wood Release last week, I came to find you the first chance I got."

Uchiha Madara's expression collapsed. On the night he awakened, he had gone to knock on the door of Uchiha Gin's house, wanting to share this earth-shattering secret with his good big brother. As a result, he didn't even see the other person's shadow before being kicked out dozens of meters away.

"Ah? Did I? How come I don't know?"

As if hearing this news for the first time, Uchiha Gin blinked in a daze.

"I was the one who kicked him. Who told this kid to come at the wrong time."

Suddenly, a lazy female voice sounded above everyone's heads. Uchiha Guang, with sleepy eyes, leaned on the second-floor railing, her tone revealing faint indignation.

Kicking him was light. To dare to disturb her and Ayin's intimate moments—not locking Uchiha Madara directly into Tsukuyomi to enjoy extreme humiliation was only because he was a younger brother.

"Cough, cough, cough... let's just let this matter pass."

Uchiha Gin's expression tightened. He coughed a few times in succession and waved his hand to brush the matter aside.

"It's just mere Wood Release, is it worth being so secretive about?"

Uchiha Guang walked down the stairs gracefully and sat naturally beside Uchiha Gin, looking up and down at Uchiha Madara, who had transformed into a little green man, and wrinkled her small, exquisite nose in disdain.

In her eyes, whatever Wood Human or Arhat was simply not worth a single hair of Susanoo. As for the Flower Tree Realm, which was touted as the strongest field card, it was nothing more than a single Amaterasu for her.

"Xiaoguang, don't dampen big cousin's enthusiasm. He finally managed to pull off some fancy tricks. It's almost the New Year, just let him be happy for a while."

Facing Uchiha Guang's undisguised look of contempt, Uchiha Gin had to come out to smooth things over.

"I'm doing this for his own good. Instead of spending time researching this, he'd be better off using it to properly train his eyes."

Xiaoguang shook her head disapprovingly. Starting from her status as a sister-in-law, she offered some pertinent suggestions to her brother-in-law.

"Eyes... I almost forgot about that. Big cousin, after you awakened Wood Release, did you have any discomfort in your eyes?"

If it weren't for Uchiha Guang's reminder, Uchiha Gin would have almost forgotten about the Rinnegan. Now that Uchiha Madara had awakened Wood Release, it meant he already had the power of the Ten Thousand Things in his body. Wouldn't his eyes soon welcome a brand-new version of an upgrade?

"Discomfort? Not only is there no discomfort, but the state is surprisingly good."

Uchiha Madara shook his head. After awakening Wood Release, he had also worried about whether his other abilities would be affected. However, the feedback from the Sharingan made him feel much more at ease.

Facing the Wood Release energy with maxed-out Yang Release attributes, the Sharingan not only didn't reject it, but instead became increasingly stable. Two completely different energies were slowly reaching a certain balance within his body.

Uchiha Madara had a premonition that once these two energies reached a complete balance, his strength would definitely rise to another level.

Sure enough, it still needed the precipitation of time.

With his super-strong perception sweeping over Uchiha Madara's body, Uchiha Gin nodded unobtrusively.

He could clearly perceive that the Wood Release power that had just awakened in his big cousin's body was growing at a speed visible to the naked eye, but compared to the spiritual power of the Sharingan, it was still somewhat inferior.

If there were a progress bar, Uchiha Madara's current Rinnegan progress was probably only around five percent.

"You kid, shouldn't you be very busy lately?"

Uchiha Gin suddenly remembered that in a while, it would be the Konoha election. How could Uchiha Madara, this designated Second Hokage, have the time to research Wood Release? Shouldn't he be wholeheartedly devoted to his own career?

"Hi, big cousin, whenever this matter is mentioned, I get a belly full of fire."

Uchiha Madara, whose expression had been quite relaxed, suddenly had a face that became extremely foul.

"That white-haired guy said the election is imminent and told me to avoid suspicion, so I haven't participated in the village's big and small affairs for a long time."

Some time ago, Uchiha Madara, as the Shadow Assistant, was preparing to reconcile the accounts since the founding of the village, but was pushed off by Senju Tobirama with various excuses, and in the end, he was even forcibly given a long vacation.

"Hehe."

Uchiha Gin smiled without saying a word. How could he not know the little schemes in Senju Tobirama's heart? Recently, that white-haired guy probably hasn't been able to sleep.

"Big cousin, then I'll go back and continue training. I'll leave the matter of Haxi Lama to you."

Having chatted about what needed to be chatted about, Uchiha Madara stood up to say goodbye. Uchiha Gin waved his hand, signaling him to rest assured.

"Regarding the physical problems of Hashirama, I will find a way. If there is any news, I will definitely notify you the first chance I get."

After Uchiha Madara left, Senju Itama, who was tidying up the tea set, suddenly spoke up.

"Curly-haired baboon, can big brother's body really recover as it was?"

She knew Uchiha Gin's ability. If Senju Hashirama could recover, he would have recovered long ago, and it wouldn't have dragged on until now.

"I have an idea, but I don't know if it will work."

Uchiha Gin nodded in reply, but he didn't have much confidence in his heart. After all, he didn't know where to get something like Asura's chakra, so he could only consider other substitutes first.

Like Tailed Beast chakra or something.

"If there's anything I can help with, just say the word."

With excited light flickering in her beautiful eyes, Senju Itama took a step forward, her hot, delicate body almost pressed against Uchiha Gin, looking at him with eyes like torches.

"Too close."

Before the ambiguous atmosphere could rise, Uchiha Guang's cold, indifferent voice sounded first.

Feeling the chill coming from behind, Uchiha Gin straightened his expression and forcibly pushed away the Q-elastic body pressed against him.

"Kid, you're not what you used to be, mind your boundaries."

Senju Itama was no longer that little flat-chested girl. No matter how much she pressed against him before, Uchiha Gin wouldn't have felt a shred of desire. Unlike the 36D she had now, he simply couldn't handle it; a slight carelessness and he would make a mistake.

"Hmph~"

Senju Itama pouted, glared fiercely at Uchiha Guang, and left carrying the tea set.

"Playing tricks in front of me, you're not qualified yet!"

Looking with disdain at Senju Itama's swaying figure, envy flashed through Uchiha Guang's eyes, but remembering her own status, her face was filled with smugness.

"I have something to go out for, no need to make my lunch."

The situation in the village was a bit complicated now. Since he was idle anyway, Uchiha Gin prepared to take the opportunity to bottom-fish. After telling the two women in the house, he went out swaying.

When he walked to a quiet place, Uchiha Gin closed his eyes and expanded his perception, quickly locking onto his Flying Thunder God mark. With a flash of golden light, his entire person disappeared from the spot.

Land of Waves.

The current Daimyo of the Land of Waves, Uchiha Tajima, who was already nearly eighty years old, was still working conscientiously.

"Whoosh~"

A barely perceptible golden light lit up in the main hall. Uchiha Tajima looked up with a feeling, and seeing it was the familiar light, the scarlet that had just lit up in his eyes quietly faded away.

"Old Uncle, wishing you an early Happy New Year, wishing you a long life~"

Uchiha Gin, who was in Konoha a moment ago, was now standing in the Land of Waves, thousands of miles away. He bowed to Uchiha Tajima, whom he hadn't seen for a long time, and reached out his hand with a fawning face.

"Give me the red envelope!"

Uchiha Tajima shook his head with annoyance, took a red envelope out of the drawer, and threw it over. Uchiha Gin caught it, tore it open in front of his old uncle, and happily began counting the money.

"Old Uncle is generous~"

Although this money didn't count for much in Uchiha Gin's eyes, he was very happy as long as the sentiment was there.

"What's the matter?"

"Isn't it just that I missed you~"

"Cut it out. The number of times you've come to the Land of Waves over these years doesn't even add up to a fraction of your trips to the Land of Whirlpools."

Mercilessly exposing Uchiha Gin's true face, Uchiha Tajima curled his lips in disdain.

"Cough, cough, cough... wasn't that to inspect the work? With you here in the Land of Waves, Old Uncle, I'm naturally one hundred thousand percent at ease."

Uchiha Gin's face turned slightly red, and he coughed a few times to cover up his embarrassment.

"Hehe, inspecting the work in the boudoir of the Daimyo of the Land of Whirlpools?"

"Oh my~ Old Uncle, I have serious business to discuss with you this time, regarding the Senju clan."

Seeing that the matter was exposed, Uchiha Gin hurriedly changed the subject. Upon hearing the two words "Senju," Uchiha Tajima's attention was instantly attracted.

"Speak quickly."

"The Senju clan, it's over~"

"Ha?"

Amidst Uchiha Tajima's bewildered expression, Uchiha Gin recounted the changes currently happening to the Senju clan from beginning to end.

"You mean, Fuma's second son is selling off the Senju clan's assets at a low price to fill the investment debt from back then?"

Uchiha Tajima revealed a strange look. He still had a good evaluation of Senju Tobirama. Although he was the son of a mortal enemy, he had some ability, and his brain was much better than that kid Izuna.

Who would have thought that he would actually flip over in such a matter and even drag the entire clan into the water.

"That's right, Old Uncle, now is the perfect opportunity to bottom-fish. As long as we take down the Senju's assets, won't Konoha be under our control in the future~"

Uchiha Gin rubbed his hands like a fly, looking like a dog-headed strategist.

"Won't there be a trap?"

Uchiha Tajima, who had always been cautious and suspicious, was a bit uneasy. He worried that this was a trick by the Senju clan, meant to ferret out lawless elements coveting Konoha.

"It's fine, you can find a few wealthy merchants from the Land of Waves to go and purchase them, or just register a shell company."

Regarding Uchiha Tajima's worry, Uchiha Gin expressed understanding, but the current situation was indeed exactly as he thought.

Senju Tobirama had taken a big tumble on economic issues. If he didn't solve it, he was destined to be nailed to Konoha's pillar of shame, stinking for ten thousand years.

"Good, I'll arrange it right away."

"Good, then I'll go notify the other partners~"

Seeing Uchiha Tajima nod, Uchiha Gin didn't have the slightest intention of staying. He raised his finger and disappeared from the spot.

"This brat..."

Uchiha Tajima, who knew where Uchiha Gin was going, shook his head lightly, but there was no blame on his face; instead, it was filled with thick teasing.

Finding the coordinates of the Land of Whirlpools through perception, Uchiha Gin had just landed when he felt a wave of fragrance hit him. Before he could speak, his mouth was blocked by two soft pieces, and he couldn't speak a word, stammering.

"Ah? Mmm-mmm-mmm."

The next moment, his coat, which had been in service for two and a half days, turned into fragments filling the sky. Uchiha Gin had tears in his tiger eyes, weak as duckweed in the rain, and was ruthlessly pressed down by an unstoppable giant force.

"You owe seven times this month."

Hearing the familiar whisper, Uchiha Gin only felt a deep chill pour down from his forehead.

"Heroine, please show mercy!"

【404 words omitted here~】

"Strawberry flavor is not bad, but remember to bring apple flavor next time."

After a tense and exciting sparring session, Uzumaki Mito, with a rosy face, leaned against the pillow, satisfiedly tasting the spoils of war she had harvested from Uchiha Gin.

A lollipop exuding a sweet scent.

And beside her, Uchiha Gin, who had turned into a dried-up person, tremblingly raised his head. There wasn't a shred of desire in his gray eyes, only a longing for survival.

"Mi... Mito, did you ask for two extra times just now?"

"Oh? You were actually counting?"

Uzumaki Mito lowered her beautiful eyes, her delicate face full of awkwardness. She reached out and ruffled Uchiha Gin's curly hair, and the smile at the corner of her mouth couldn't be suppressed no matter what.

"You seem quite energetic, then how about a few more times?"

"Aba~ Aba~"

Upon hearing this, Uchiha Gin immediately started playing dumb. In front of such things, men are always the vulnerable group.

Before long, relying on his own robust physique, Uchiha Gin recovered quite a bit of energy and spirit, then clutched his kidneys and straightened up.

Seeing this, Uzumaki Mito wrapped herself around him again. Her snow-white lotus-root arms tightly clamped Uchiha Gin's body, and her full little mouth pouted, saying quite aggrievedly,

"You haven't come to see me lately!"

"Don't talk nonsense, I clearly just came last week!"

"That was three days ago! I don't want to leave you for even a moment~"

Uzumaki Mito, who was pressing against Uchiha Gin, had cunning light flickering in her half-squinted eyes.

She knew clearly that compared to that Uchiha Guang, she lacked the advantage of being on the home field, so she could only win by frequency.

"Behave, I came here this time with good news to tell you."

"It's fine, as long as you, Ayin, still remember me, that's good news for me."

Her fair, tender fingers drew circles on Uchiha Gin's chest. Uzumaki Mito's expression was extremely well-behaved, completely different from the terrifying appearance she had just now.

"I'm not joking, it's serious business."

Uchiha Gin shook his head and recounted the changes in the Senju clan again. The more Uzumaki Mito listened, the brighter her eyes became. She was just worrying about not having a chance to enter Uchiha Gin's home field. Wasn't this just like a sleepy person encountering a pillow?

"Leave it to me!"

Uzumaki Mito immediately patted her chest to guarantee. After finishing, she burrowed into Uchiha Gin's arms, greedily absorbing his body temperature.

"Then I'll leave it to you."

Reaching out to touch Uzumaki Mito's soft red hair, Uchiha Gin's eyes were full of tenderness.

"When everything is settled, I will definitely come to marry you."

"Mm."

Uzumaki Mito, who was nestled in Uchiha Gin's arms like a little cat, felt her body tremble slightly upon hearing this, and then she hummed as softly as a mosquito.

In the following period, Konoha suddenly had a group of mysterious people. They wantonly purchased the fields and properties sold by the Senju clan, catching some big clans watching the wind direction off guard.

"Sasuke, do you think these people are shills?"

The former Ninja Alliance began to secretly hold small meetings again. Led by Sarutobi Sasuke, a few people sat around in a secret room. The stout Shimura Kenichi spoke first, his greasy big face full of suspicion.

"A bit like it, but not sure."

Compared to when he was young and lean, Sarutobi Sasuke was now frowning tightly. After thinking for a while, he turned his gaze to the pineapple head beside him. For this kind of brain-playing matter, it was better to leave it to the Nara clan.

"I don't think so, because there's no need."

Feeling Sarutobi Sasuke's gaze, the middle-aged man of the Nara clan shook his head.

"The handling fee for listing for sale is not low. Going back and forth like this, the Senju clan will lose quite a bit. If it's just to ferret out those with ulterior motives, there's no need to go to such great lengths."

"Then why did the Senju clan suddenly sell off their ancestral property? It's impossible that it's really as the rumors say, because the First Hokage is a gambler and owes a huge gambling debt outside, so he had to sell fields and land to make up for it."

The only woman present spoke slowly, her blue-green eyes full of confusion.

Fifty-something-year-old Yamanaka Minako had lost the style of her youth, but she was still quite charming, and it was estimated that she would be favored by certain "old grandmother" types.

"Clan leader, are we really not participating in this matter?"

In the low-key and luxurious Hyuga residence, Hyuga Xiang Tianyao, who had already taken office as the Hyuga clan leader, faced the inquiry of his subordinate. He opened his pure white eyes without expression, and a faint pressure dissipated. The subordinate who spoke immediately broke into a cold sweat.

"It is this subordinate who spoke too much, please punish me, clan leader."

"Does the Uchiha have any movements?"

Hyuga Xiang Tianyao didn't pay attention to the subordinate who was nodding like a garlic pounder, but instead asked others present.

"Reporting to the clan leader, the Uchiha clan has no unusual movements, nor have they sent anyone to purchase the Senju ancestral property."

"Since that's the case, whether it's true or false, we will not participate in this matter."

Regarding the Senju clan's sudden sale of ancestral property, there were two voices in Konoha.

One of them was that the Hokage and the village secretary were using assets as bait to conduct a wave of fishing law enforcement, just to test whether the ninja clans were loyal.

The above point of view was something the ninja clans made up when holding small meetings.

The second was the debt theory originating from the rumors in the streets.

According to an unknown person, the First Hokage of Konoha, Senju Hashirama, once threw money around in the Land of Fire to participate in dice-throwing activities, but because his luck was too bad, he owed a terrifying gambling debt.

For the sake of the clan leader's reputation, the Senju clan tearfully sold off their ancestral property, just to preserve the First Hokage's lifelong reputation.

However, compared to the second, less reliable rumor, most people believed more in the first conspiracy theory, so the ninja clans with the strength to purchase chose to remain unmoved.

As a result, this lack of movement caused the assets sold by the Senju clan to depreciate more and more, which instead benefited the Land of Waves and the Land of Whirlpools later on.

Looking at the high-quality and inexpensive real estate, people from both sides waved their hands and divided the Senju ancestral property into two. Everyone was all about making money in harmony.

"Thump!"

In the Hokage's office, Senju Tobirama, with a ferocious face, looked at the sales list in his hand, his heart dripping with blood.

"It's much less than I expected."

Senju Tobirama was also puzzled. He had clearly spread the rumors about his big brother owing debts. How could those wealthy ninja clans still be able to endure it? Unless someone was interfering in the middle.

"I know! It must be the Uchiha!" (End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 423 =====