Chapter 471: Ke-ke-ke

"Ke-ke-ke."

Inside the dim laboratory, the curly-haired one, wearing a strange grin, extended a long tongue and cornered a cold, white-haired woman in white robes. His eyes, narrowed into slits, flickered with an inexplicable light as he stared fixedly at the fair, swan-like neck she had exposed.

"Don't be afraid. This sort of thing is just like getting an injection; it'll be over after a little pinch."

"You—"

Senju Hijiri, back against the wall, furrowed her brows slightly upon hearing this. An expression of inexplicable helplessness appeared on her face as she raised one hand in a 'stop' gesture.

"Hold your horses."

"Rest assured, I just brushed my teeth."

Uchiha Gin stopped in his tracks and exhaled into his palm, not smelling any strange odors.

"No, I think I can analyze this Cursed Seal technique of yours myself."

"Aren't you in a hurry? I'll plant one on you so you can feel it properly; your learning progress will definitely be faster than analyzing it."

Watching Senju Hijiri, who was moved but refused, Uchiha Gin curled his lip and removed the tongue prop he was using to cosplay Orochimaru from his mouth.

The Sage Transformation Cursed Seal was a forbidden technique specifically developed by Orochimaru to increase the success rate of the Living Corpse Reincarnation; its rarity was evident.

"Actually, it's not that urgent."

Senju Hijiri truly couldn't accept others adding random things into her body. Even though the curly-haired one before her had a close relationship with their family, she still couldn't get past that mental hurdle.

"What a pain."

Uchiha Gin scratched his head, pulled a blank scroll from his backpack, and began to write furiously.

There was no helping it; since the other party wasn't willing to accept the Cursed Seal he planted, he had no choice but to explain the principles of the Sage Transformation Cursed Seal to her clearly.

After a while, Senju Hijiri held the secret technique with ink not yet dry and began to read it carefully. As she delved deeper into the reading, the look of astonishment in her eyes grew increasingly intense.

"It actually relates to natural energy."

She hadn't expected that the Cursed Seal technique Uchiha Gin provided would involve the realm of natural energy, which happened to be a blind spot in Senju Hijiri's knowledge.

So much so that even after reading until she was covered in sweat, she hadn't made any progress in understanding this secret technique.

"I should have gone to practice Sage Art with Big Brother earlier."

Recalling the invitation once extended to her by Shikkotsu Forest, Senju Hijiri felt endless regret in her heart.

However,

she truly couldn't accept slimy slugs on a psychological level.

"You're leaving in a few days, hurry up and learn it."

Uchiha Gin looked at the deeply frowning Senju Hijiri and urged her aloud.

She was a teammate of his cousin; if she ended up in poor condition and held them back, the impact would be massive.

"I'll do my best. If it really doesn't work, I'll just let a Shadow Clone go in my place."

Senju Hijiri, who was fully focused on studying the new technique in her hands, replied casually without even lifting her head. It was just a small gathering, after all; why make such a fuss? Sending a Shadow Clone was already giving those three Ninja Villages enough face.

"Huh? How can that work?"

Thinking of the possibility that Uchiha Madara might encounter an ambush on the road, Uchiha Gin immediately shook his head like a rattle.

"Why wouldn't it work? Although the Shadow Clone is a bit fragile, my skills are all there; ordinary ninjas are no match for me at all."

Seeing Uchiha Gin dare to question her, Senju Hijiri raised her head indignantly, her face full of pride.

Senju Hashirama's clone is no ordinary ninja. Even if you, white-hair, went in your original body, you'd only be beaten by the opponent until you were howling.

Uchiha Gin shook his head secretly, his wavering eyes filled with contemplation.

"Uh—got it!"

When his gaze fell upon the clone in the cultivation tank, he suddenly struck his palm with his fist, then turned his head and asked,

"Do you have a backup of this clone?"

"Huh?"

Senju Hijiri raised her head upon hearing this, her face full of confusion, but she still nodded gently.

"I do."

For the sake of her successful reincarnation, Senju Hijiri had put in a lot of effort. She had indeed cultivated quite a few of these easily damaged consumables like clones, hiding them in another, more concealed secret chamber.

"That's fine, that's fine~"

Uchiha Gin let out a long sigh of relief, leaving Senju Hijiri feeling inexplicably confused.

"What kind of crazy idea do you have now?"

"It's a good thing you met me."

As he spoke, Uchiha Gin reached out toward Senju Hijiri.

"Give me some of your chakra."

"Huh?"

Senju Hijiri was stunned upon hearing this, but seeing Uchiha Gin's serious expression, she hesitated for a few seconds before extending her finger and transferring a wisp of blue chakra to him.

"Give me more, didn't you eat?"

Looking at the dim blue glow in his hand, Uchiha Gin frowned with some impatience.

"What exactly are you trying to do?"

"Found you a temporary substitute, although it's one-time use."

"Substitute? One-time use?"

Senju Hijiri, with a bewildered face, blinked. How many more secrets were hidden in this curly-haired one's head that she didn't know about?

"Yeah, this is about enough."

After plucking half of the white-haired original's chakra, Uchiha Gin turned and walked to the cultivation tank. A flash of red light flickered in his half-narrowed eyes, and his single hand began to form complex hand seals.

The chakra in his other hand actually began to drift on its own, as if it had a life of its own, turning into wisps of blue smoke that merged into the clone inside the cultivation tank.

"Whew."

Uchiha Gin, having finished this series of complex operations, wiped the non-existent sweat from his forehead. The moment he turned his head, his eyes had returned to normal.

"What were you tinkering with just now?"

Senju Hijiri, having witnessed this eerie scene, furrowed her delicate brows even tighter.

"What kind of bad intentions could I possibly have?"

That was true, too.

Looking at Uchiha Gin's fluffy curls, Senju Hijiri nodded imperceptibly.

"Come, I'll teach you a new forbidden technique."

"???"

Another one?

Who exactly is the master of forbidden techniques between the two of us?

Nozakama,

As night fell, a full moon hung alone in the pitch-black night sky. The bright white moonlight spilled down, adding a touch of illusion to this vibrant border town.

"Boom—boom! Boom! Boom~"

"The weather is dry, watch out for fire."

At the town gate, a slender figure held a gong and clapper, fulfilling his duty.

"Whew~ finally time to get off work!"

After patrolling the town, Shenhuo, having finished the fifth watch, was preparing to end his day's work and return home to reunite with his wife and children.

"Eh?"

As a result, when he looked up, he found a strange figure in a black robe standing outside the town gate. Shenhuo's expression instantly became solemn.

He hadn't even noticed when the other party had appeared.

"Who are you?"

Maintaining a safe distance from the black-robed person while being vigilant, Shenhuo asked while quietly reaching his hand toward the ninja tool pouch hidden at his waist.

Whoosh!

However, in the next second, in the blink of an eye, the black-robed person had actually disappeared from where he stood. Shenhuo's pupils constricted slightly; he instantly retreated to create distance and looked around, but found no trace of the other party.

"Could it be that I've been staying up too late?"

After searching the vicinity, Shenhuo still found nothing. This forced him to doubt whether there was a problem with his mental state, leading to hallucinations.

"Forget it, I'd better go home and tidy up first~"

Shenhuo, with his brows tightly locked, hesitated for a while. Remembering that today was the day Kakuzu was supposed to arrive, he picked up his tools and hurried home without delay.

At the same time, in a dense forest dozens of miles away from Nozakama, a cheerful Kakuzu was speeding along the treetops.

He looked down at the discounted toy in his hand, and thinking that he would soon see his cute grandson, the corners of his stiff mouth couldn't help but curl up slightly.

As an orphan, he cherished the regained family affection dearly.

Little Tsubasa, Grandpa is coming~

Just as Kakuzu was enjoying the scene of a family reunion, he suddenly stopped in his tracks, feeling something. His green eyes landed on a black-robed figure not far away.

Meeting on a treetop dozens of meters high, you can't exactly call it a coincidence, right?

It's eighty percent likely they are coming for him.

Are they traveling together?

Several guesses flashed through Kakuzu's mind, and finally, he locked his suspicion on a competitor in the black market. He then snorted coldly and pulled out a well-crafted kunai.

"Hmph! If you want my money, you'll have to wait until I'm dead!"

"Kakuzu! Run!"

"Huh?"

However, before Kakuzu could continue to make threats, Chomei, who was residing in his consciousness sea, issued a warning.

"Lord Tailed Beast, do you know him?"

Kakuzu furrowed his brows slightly, and his footsteps moved backward, preparing to run at any time.

He followed the words of the Tailed Beast, with whom he had a life-and-death friendship, unconditionally.

"Stop blabbering, run!"

Seeing Kakuzu's slow movements, Chomei's massive body jumped up and down in anxiety. It had previously learned of the black-robed person's terror from the group members.

It had thought it was a lucky one who had escaped a disaster like the Nine-Tails, but it hadn't expected the other party to eventually come knocking on the door.

"Yes."

Hearing Chomei's anxious voice, Kakuzu felt a chill in his heart. He kicked off with his legs with great force, and his whole body shot backward like an arrow off a bowstring.

"Target found, beginning recovery."

The black-robed person slowly raised his head, looking at Kakuzu, who had already become a small black dot, and pressed his palms together gently.

"Lord Tailed Beast, who exactly is he that makes you so afraid?"

Kakuzu, with wind under his feet, couldn't help but ask Chomei while fleeing.

Can I not be afraid?

Chomei in the consciousness sea tucked in its wings.

"He is..."

"Boom!"

Before Chomei could finish speaking, a wooden dragon descending from the sky blocked Kakuzu's path. The black-robed person standing on the dragon's head was like a god descending to earth.

The moment he saw the wooden dragon, Kakuzu's green pupils dilated sharply. He had quite a psychological shadow regarding this thing.

"You are..."

Feeling that he had been locked onto by the black-robed person's aura, Kakuzu swallowed hard with difficulty.

Whoosh—

A gust of wind happened to blow by, blowing off the cloak covering the black-robed person's head. Under the bright moonlight, a face that made Kakuzu terrified appeared before his eyes.

After a few seconds of silence, Kakuzu glanced at the discounted toy in his hand, and a look of determination emerged in his eyes.

He carefully placed it into his bag while pulling out his gray driver.

"Lord Tailed Beast, do we still have a chance?"

"Let's give it our all."

Feeling the determination in Kakuzu's heart, Chomei flapped its wings and stood up straight.

At this point, escaping was impossible; they could only fight for their lives.

"Henshin!"

"Clang!"

The silver knight drew the short blade from his waist, and a forward-moving determination burned in his red compound eyes.

"Beginning... recovery."

Number Seven looked at his target expressionlessly, waved a hand, and countless wooden branches attacked the lone silver knight.

Nozakama,

At the entrance of a relatively remote residence, a child a few years old was squatting, propping up his little head and staring longingly at the other end of the street.

"Mother, it's almost noon, why hasn't Grandpa come yet?"

After a while, still not seeing the person he was waiting for, he couldn't help but complain to the black-haired woman in the courtyard behind him.

"Perhaps Grandpa encountered something on the way, he will definitely arrive later, don't you worry, Tsubasa."

Mako tilted her head and thought for a moment.

"Grandpa promised me he would buy me a new toy!"

The child called Tsubasa waved his little hands with a face full of anticipation.

"Mako, come here for a second."

Just as the mother and son were communicating, Shenhuo's voice suddenly rang out from inside the house. Mako sensed the abnormality in her husband's tone and immediately got up and walked into the room.

"Shen-kun, what happened?"

After entering the room, Mako looked at her solemn-faced husband and asked with confusion.

She saw Shenhuo push a card depicting a creature that looked like a human but wasn't in front of his wife. Mako saw the hideous cracks on the card at a glance.

"Father-in-law, something happened."

"Ah?"

This card was transformed from Kakuzu's Earth Grudge Fear, representing one of his lives. If the card appeared broken, it meant he was in life-threatening danger.

"Shen-kun, prepare to depart."

Looking at the broken card, Mako nimbly took off her bulky loungewear, revealing the capable combat gear underneath.

"Okay."

Shenhuo nodded, turned around, took two scrolls from the room, and tucked them into his clothes.

The couple was ready to go. When they went out, Tsubasa looked curiously at his parents who had finished changing.

"Father, Mother, are you going to earn extra money again?"

"Yes, we'll be back soon, Tsubasa, you're in charge of watching the house, okay~"

If they relied solely on Shenhuo's meager salary, the couple wouldn't be able to survive, so in their spare time, they would go out to do bounty missions to earn extra money.

They hadn't kept this from the child, so Tsubasa was used to it.

"Mission guaranteed to be completed!"

Soon, the two escaped the town and arrived at a hidden open space. Mako pulled out the card that still had a faint aura, pressed it against her forehead, and began to communicate with Satoru inside her body.

"Satoru, help me find Father."

"Hmph! You're dreaming!"

Satoru, lurking in Mako's consciousness sea, snorted disdainfully and refused categorically.

My relationship with you, woman, hasn't reached that point yet.

"You—"

Hearing the expected answer, Mako furrowed her brows slightly.

Although she had been a knight for many years, her relationship with Satoru...

was a little bit complicated.

It couldn't be called bad, but they were definitely not intimate comrades.

"Father is in imminent danger, at a time like this, don't be temperamental anymore."

"What does it have to do with me whether that caterpillar lives or dies?"

At the moment, Kakuzu's life was hanging by a thread; a second later might be an eternal farewell.

Mako took a deep breath, and after some inner struggle, she made a decision that could be called painful.

"As long as you are willing to help me this time, I will let you use Shen-kun for one more night every week."

"..."

Shenhuo, who was nervous on the side, was instantly stunned upon hearing this. Feeling cold all over, he looked at his beloved wife with disbelieving eyes.

"Deal." (End of chapter)