Chapter 443: Even the Dead Can Speak

"Huh?"

Hearing the cold words of his father, Senju Tobirama's blood ran cold.

This wasn't how it was supposed to go.

In disbelief, he couldn't help but turn his head toward Senju Butsuma, who was standing not far away, trying to use his eyes to offer a reminder—

that he was the true Senju son, while the curly-haired guy beside him was nothing more than an uninitiated son-in-law.

Yet, to his dismay, Senju Tobirama realized that his father's gaze was fixed entirely on Uchiha Gin, not sparing a single glance for his own flesh and blood.

"Are you Uchiha Tajima's nephew?"

"Uh, more like a nephew-in-law, closer than a real one."

Uchiha Gin scratched his head in confusion. He had expected this old man from the Warring States Period to greet his ancestors with some local slang.

Instead, the Senju Butsuma who had been a raging lion just moments ago had turned gentle and kind.

He instinctively activated his Good-and-Evil Perception.

Seeing the overflowing goodwill reflected back at him, Uchiha Gin was momentarily baffled.

"Hey, did you cast a genjutsu on your old man?"

He gave the ashen-faced Senju Tobirama a sharp elbow to the ribs and whispered his inquiry.

"I was the one who— Ouch!"

Senju Tobirama, already wallowing in self-pity, was struck in the ribs and gasped in pain.

Suppressing the urge to retaliate, Tobirama glared at Gin and began to spout nonsense with a straight face.

"My father has always been a generous man. Upon hearing that the Senju and Uchiha had joined hands to build Konoha and welcome peace, he let go of his past grudges."

"I see. So your whole family is fine, you're just the only bad seed. Maybe you should ask your dad if he picked up the wrong baby back then."

Uchiha Gin slapped his palm, a look of sudden realization dawning on him.

*Snap! *

The sound of a rational mind breaking.

"Curly-hair, I'm going to kill you!"

"Tobirama, you're a bit loud."

"..."

Scolded by his father once more, Senju Tobirama completely turned gray, retreated to a corner, and began drawing circles on the floor.

"Tajima and I were old acquaintances. I never expected that old geezer to have such an outstanding descendant."

Ignoring his son, Senju Butsuma turned his head with a smile. The unexpected praise left Uchiha Gin feeling deeply suspicious.

Was this old man trying to trick him into letting his guard down so he could land another punch?

"Average, average. I've only held the title of 'Konoha's Good Person' for ten consecutive years."

"Haha, truly a hero among youths."

"Not at all. I've often heard of your heroic spirit, Senior Butsuma."

"Is that so?"

"Of course~"

"..."

One old, one young, one living, one dead—two men from different eras began a cross-generational commercial exchange of flattery.

Under the filter of a "worthy son-in-law," the more Senju Butsuma looked at Uchiha Gin, the more he liked him.

If he weren't under the control of the Impure World Reincarnation, he would have dragged Gin over for a few drinks already.

"It's a pity I came in such a rush and didn't bring any gifts for my... for my nephew. I'll have to let Tobirama make it up to you!"

Caught up in the excitement, Senju Butsuma looked at his empty hands and turned to order Senju Tobirama, who was still emo in the corner.

"Huh?"

Senju Tobirama raised his head in confusion. He realized that this trip had cost him his father and his fortune; he hadn't gained a single benefit and had even lost a significant amount.

"Do you have an objection?"

"No, none at all!"

Seeing his father's lingering excitement, Tobirama felt a tightness in his chest. If he let his father keep chatting with that detestable curly-hair, he didn't know how much more he would lose.

"Ahem... you two have chatted enough. Father, we have important business to attend to. We can catch up next time I summon you."

He coughed a few times, putting on a stern face.

"We still need to confirm Big Brother's safety. It's a matter of urgency."

"Tsk!"

Senju Butsuma frowned, but since it concerned his eldest son's safety, he had no choice but to relent.

"Nephew, I shall take my leave."

"Take care, Senior. On the fifteenth of this month, I'll burn some local specialties for you."

Uchiha Gin looked "reluctant" to see him go, his dull, dead-fish eyes shimmering with tears, which warmed Senju Butsuma's dead heart.

*Truly a filial child, much better than raising a son! *

"Do you need me to send word to your uncle that you're safe?"

Just before leaving, Senju Butsuma remembered something and asked.

"Uh, thank you, Senior. But my uncle sent me a dream yesterday saying he's doing well, so there's no need to trouble you."

"That makes sense. A child as filial as you must provide plenty of offerings to that old geezer Tajima, unlike some unfilial sons..."

Senju Butsuma nodded in deep agreement, then shifted the pressure onto the third person in the room, looking at Senju Tobirama with disappointment.

"Take care, Father!"

Senju Tobirama shouted, frantically signaling Uchiha Gin with his eyes.

Looking at the impatient Tobirama, Uchiha Gin, standing behind Butsuma, gave a thumbs-up with a smile and mouthed a silent word:

【Three Million】

It was easy to summon a father, but hard to send one away. You were the one who asked me to summon your father, Tobirama; did you think you could send this Buddha away without paying a price?

Seeing Uchiha Gin's extortion, Tobirama, who had read his lips, had no choice but to grit his teeth and give a slight nod.

【Deal.】

Seeing that Tobirama was sensible, Uchiha Gin smiled and raised his hand.

"Take care, Senior. Next time, come over for a visit. My little cook's culinary skills are top-notch."

"Haha, don't keep me waiting too long, neph—"

The white light surrounding Senju Butsuma's body was brilliant, and he was laughing heartily. However, before he could finish his sentence, his strong body turned into gray dust and fell away, revealing the lifeless death-row prisoner inside.

"Phew, finally gone."

With the bloodline suppression finally lifted, Senju Tobirama let out a long sigh of relief. Looking at Uchiha Gin, his eyes were filled with regret.

If he had known it would be like this, he never would have come.

"Don't think about reneging on the deal. I have the whole thing recorded."

Fearing that Senju Tobirama would turn hostile, Uchiha Gin immediately held up the recorder that was still running.

"You!"

Senju Tobirama's fists tightened.

"Our Senju clan values integrity. A promise is a promise; I won't short you a single cent."

"And what about what your dad just said?"

"Do you really take the words of the dead seriously?"

"Impure World Reincarnat—"

"Fine, fine, fine!"

Seeing Uchiha Gin about to repeat his trick, Senju Tobirama regretted not slapping himself. Why on earth did he teach this bastard a forbidden jutsu? It was just asking for trouble.

"Heh, that's more like it. Hand it over~"

Uchiha Gin chuckled and held out his hand.

"Right now? I need to go back and prepare."

Senju Tobirama frowned. Even a debt collector wasn't as urgent as Uchiha Gin.

"What are you talking about? Give me Hashirama's cells."

Uchiha Gin rolled his eyes. What did he take him for?

"Oh! Right."

Searching through his pack, Senju Tobirama quickly pulled out a scroll labeled with Senju Hashirama's name.

"Ask me for more when you run out."

Taking the scroll, Uchiha Gin sensed it with his space-time power and found dozens of sealed test tubes inside.

The cells, soaking in nutrient solution, radiated a powerful Wood Release life force.

"I hope I don't run out."

"Me too."

After the handover, Senju Tobirama turned to leave, but was stopped by Uchiha Gin.

"Wait a second."

"What is it now?"

Senju Tobirama turned back in confusion. Uchiha Gin gestured for him to wait, pulled a piece of paper from his pack, and began scribbling furiously.

After about five minutes, he blew on the wet ink and handed the paper over.

"What is this?"

Taking the messy paper with suspicion, Senju Tobirama hadn't even looked at it yet when Uchiha Gin's voice reached his ears:

"This is the optimized version of Impure World Reincarnation 2.0. I was bored last night and just tinkered with it."

"You..."

Senju Tobirama's heart trembled. Such exquisite optimization must have taken an immense amount of effort. Uchiha Gin must have stayed up all night to complete it.

"The payment will be delivered to your mansion tomorrow."

Not good at expressing gratitude, Senju Tobirama didn't say anything overly emotional. He decided to use practical actions to thank Uchiha Gin for his help.

The next day.

"Curly-hair, what kind of trash did you buy on home shopping TV again?"

In the morning, Senju Bankan, who was about to go out to buy groceries, looked at the mountain of gift boxes at the door and angrily pulled off Uchiha Gin's blanket, shouting the question.

"Huh?"

Uchiha Gin, yawning, walked downstairs. His lazy, dull eyes swept over the gift boxes, and a look of realization quickly appeared on his face.

"Those? They're prizes I won at the annual meeting a few days ago."

"You're that lucky? Who gave them to you?"

Hearing they were free prizes, Senju Bankan happily began to move them.

"Your dad."

"Huh?"

"I mean, I have ancestors watching over me, so I have such good luck~"

"Shouldn't you say it's your dad then?"

"Oh, whose dad isn't a dad? It's all the same, all the same."

"All the same? Does this count as a marriage proposal?"

Uchiha Gin's sleepy, perfunctory words sounded like a thunderclap to Senju Bankan. The girl's face instantly flushed, and her whole body felt like it was burning.

"Then I'll leave the cleaning to you."

Without paying attention to Bankan, who was muttering to herself, Uchiha Gin yawned and went back to his room to sleep.

Konoha.

A group of hurried ninjas stood in a dense forest a few kilometers outside the Konoha gate. Dozens of eyes were filled with various emotions: fear, envy, inferiority...

And more than anything, deep humiliation.

Looking at the towering Konoha village in the distance, the old man leading them took a deep breath, turned around, and whispered to his subordinates:

"Remember my instructions. No matter what happens, do not engage in any conflict with the Konoha ninjas."

"Yes!"

"Good. Prepare the props, change into the costumes, and start the performance."

Inside the Hokage Building,

Uchiha Madara sat coldly in the Hokage throne he had longed for, but his heart felt empty. He couldn't live a single day without Hashirama.

Beside his desk, a small table had been added. Uchiha Izuna, radiating the scent of a corporate slave, was burying his head in documents, working frantically.

His busy figure and Madara's leisurely posture formed a stark contrast.

On the other side of the room, Senju Tobirama was meditating. As the secretary in charge of foreign military affairs, he was actually quite free at this moment, so he poured all his energy into searching for Senju Hashirama.

Because he had sent out too many shadow clones, he needed to stay alert, ready to receive new memories at any time.

*Knock, knock, knock! *

Suddenly, a series of urgent knocks sounded.

"Come in."

As the only idle person in the room, Uchiha Madara spoke up.

*Creak~*

"Lord Hokage, something's wrong!"

"Kagami, why are you so panicked?"

Looking at Uchiha Kagami's tense expression, Madara frowned slightly. Could it be that people from other villages were attacking?

It just so happened that Hashirama wasn't around, and his hands were feeling a bit itchy.

"There are people outside the village..."

Uchiha Kagami, kneeling on one knee, looked terrible.

"People causing trouble outside the village? Just throw them to my cousin for reform."

Not hearing the explosive news he expected, Madara looked uninterested.

"Lord Hokage, it's not trouble."

"Not trouble? Could they be here to collect a debt?"

As soon as Madara spoke, Kagami's face became incredibly colorful.

"Lord Hokage is wise!"

"Huh?"

Konoha Gate,

As one of the main channels into the village, the Konoha gate was often crowded with people.

But at this moment, all passersby stopped in their tracks, standing on tiptoes and stretching their necks to peer into the center of the crowd.

"What on earth are you doing!?"

The gate guards looked at the group of people in front of them in confusion. Having experienced life-and-death battles, they found the current situation quite difficult to handle.

Standing in front of the guards wasn't an army, but a group of dozens of people led by an old man in his twilight years.

Not only were they not fully armed, but they were dressed in tattered clothes, with patches of all sizes on their knees and elbows, looking quite pathetic.

Seeing that the crowd of onlookers was growing, the old man leading them felt the time was ripe. Turbid tears instantly welled up in his gray, defeated eyes.

"We... we just want an explanation!"

He knelt on the ground with a *thud*, his choked voice reaching everyone present.

"We want an explanation from the First Hokage—Senju Hashirama, who loves peace the most."

As soon as these words were spoken, the surrounding crowd exploded.

"What?"

"Are they here to collect a debt?"

"Is it a mistake the First Hokage made when he was young? But the age difference is a bit too big, isn't it?"

"I remember the First Hokage is currently in seclusion..."