Konoha: Starting with Sage Mode.

Chapter 8 Uchiha and Senju

That evening, in the basement of the Uchiha clan compound, at the residence of the current Uchiha clan leader, Uchiha Homura.

A series of sharp whipping sounds rang out.

The hunched-over Uchiha Homura stood beneath the candlestick, coldly watching a six-year-old girl being whipped.

The girl was Uchiha Chizuru, and the man whipping her was the middle-aged man Kirito had met before, named Uchiha Kari.

Under Uchiha Kari's control, the whip lashed Chizuru's back mercilessly, leaving bloody welts.

"Chizuru, do you know why I'm punishing you today?"

After Uchiha Kari finished delivering the 20 lashes, Uchiha Homura instantly activated his Sharingan, staring at Chizuru with his three-tomoe Sharingan and speaking.

"Because I lost."

Chizuru, fighting back tears, answered stubbornly, fearlessly facing Uchiha Homura's three-tomoe Sharingan with her one-tomoe Sharingan.

"Wrong, completely wrong."

Uchiha Homura shouted loudly, the three tomoe in his eyes spinning rapidly.

The next moment, Chizuru let out a miserable scream, covered her head and knelt on the ground, her eyes revealing deep fear.

"Stand up. I'll ask you one more time, why are you being punished?"

Uchiha Homura ignored the pitiful appearance of the six-year-old girl and said coldly.

Upon hearing this, Chizuru struggled to her feet, glared at Uchiha Homura with hatred, and replied, "Because I'm not strong enough."

"That's right, you got it right. You're not strong enough. As a genius of the Uchiha clan, you actually lost to an orphan from an orphanage. It's a disgrace."

Uchiha Homura retorted sarcastically.

"What did you say?"

Chizuru exclaimed in surprise.

Uchiha Homura did not answer the question she wanted to know, and simply turned and left.

No answer is an answer.

Chizuru collapsed to the ground, utterly dejected. She had thought Kirito was a genius ninja secretly trained by some clan, and that she had lost because of carelessness. But the truth was so cruel.

As a genius carefully nurtured by the Uchiha clan, he actually lost to an unknown orphan.

It was truly shameful.

A strong sense of shame welled up in Qianhe's heart.

"Miss, temporary success or failure doesn't define the future. What's important is to learn from your mistakes and strive for improvement. Your talent is no less than that person's; in the future..."

Uchiha Kari couldn't bear to see Chizuru like this, so he went over to comfort her.

But before he could finish speaking, Chizuru glared at him and snapped, "Shut up! Are you underestimating me? Get out!"

A loss is a loss; Uchiha Chizuru doesn't need anyone's comfort.

Uchiha Kari obediently left, but there was no unhappiness on his face; instead, a slight smile appeared.

"Next time, I absolutely, positively won't lose, absolutely not, Dad, Mom, I..."

After Uchiha Kari left, Chizuru lowered her head and began to mutter to herself with a stubborn expression, but as she spoke, tears involuntarily dripped from her chin.

Meanwhile, above the basement, Uchiha Homura looked at Uchiha Kari emerging from the basement and said expressionlessly, "How's the situation?"

"Miss will cheer up."

Uchiha Kari answered respectfully.

"Very good. I'll have a medical ninja come over to treat Chizuru later. Also, the medicinal bath can't be stopped today."

Uchiha Homura said coldly.

"Ha~"

Uchiha Kari bowed and answered.

The next moment, he used the Body Flicker Technique and disappeared from Uchiha Homura's sight.

Uchiha continued to look in the direction of the basement for a while, then came outside, raised his head and looked at the beautiful crescent moon in the night sky with his Sharingan.

"Chizuru, you must become the pillar of the Uchiha clan and lead your people to continue to live tenaciously."

. . .

In the courtyard of the Senju clan's patriarch's house, Nawaki was diligently punching and kicking a wooden stake. Judging from his already battered fists, he had been training there for quite some time.

He soon couldn't hold on any longer, lying on the ground panting heavily, repeatedly muttering, "Damn it, damn it, damn it."

A strong sense of shame was spreading through Rope Tree's heart.

The thought of what happened this afternoon filled him with shame, and he wished he could disappear into a crack in the ground. He had the audacity to ask Kirito to become his subordinate in the future, even though he was incredibly weak.

After being thoroughly outmaneuvered by the black-haired girl from the Uchiha clan, Nawaki finally realized just how weak he really was.

Although the other party called him trash, he couldn't find a single reason to refute it.

As the grandson of the First Hokage, Nawaki was pampered since childhood, and he was naturally proud and extremely proud. Although he didn't usually put on airs as the grandson of the Hokage because of his good upbringing and personality, he genuinely believed that he would become the Hokage in the future.

However, today's events have completely shattered the pride in his heart.

Kirito and Chizuru are clearly the same age as him, but compared to them, he is really useless, and may not even be as good as Inuzuka Kei, who also wants to become Hokage.

"I can't go on like this. I must become stronger. I'm going to become Hokage someday, and I absolutely have to do it."

Rope Tree suddenly shouted.

Although he wasn't quite sure what exactly he would do as Hokage, he knew that the Hokage's responsibility was to protect everyone in the village, and that without sufficient power, it wouldn't be possible.

"Hmph, someone who only talks big and can't even put in their best effort during training has no right to become Hokage."

Suddenly, a voice emerged from the nearby shadows.

Upon hearing the voice, Rope Tree instantly jumped up from the ground, looking at the red-haired woman who was emerging from the shadows with some fear.

This was a very beautiful woman. She had two buns tied on the back of her head, a diamond-shaped mark between her eyebrows, and deep, weathered eyes. She looked very young, but she exuded a kind of weariness unique to the elderly.

She is none other than Mito Uzumaki, the most renowned elder among the Konoha ninja, the pillar of the Senju clan, and the wife of the First Hokage.

"Grandma, what are you doing here? You haven't been here since earlier, have you?"

Rope Tree shrank back, looking like a mouse before a cat, and said timidly.

The person he was most afraid to see was Mito Uzumaki. It wasn't that Mito Uzumaki didn't love him; on the contrary, she loved him very, very much.

The way he was being pampered was too much for him. He was made to learn sealing techniques that he could never master, and this was called pampering.

For a long time, this caused him to get a headache whenever he saw sealing techniques, and then he would cry and make a fuss, which finally freed him from his misery.

He is now very afraid that Mito Uzumaki will force him to learn sealing techniques again after hearing what he just said.

Forget about sealing techniques; even if Nawaki didn't know sealing techniques, he could still become an outstanding Hokage.

"Who has time to watch an idiot haphazardly driving piles? I heard you haven't eaten, so I came to check on you, only to hear someone spouting nonsense."

Mito Uzumaki looked at Nawaki with a look of disgust.

"I'm not exaggerating, Grandma. I will definitely become Hokage someday."

Seeing that Mito didn't mention sealing techniques, Nawaki suddenly felt superior again and said defiantly.

Upon seeing this, Mito narrowed his eyes, but there was nothing there. He simply flicked Nawaki's forehead lightly with his finger.

One brain snapped.

The next moment, Rope Tree's entire body spun in the air and flew out, eventually crashing into a wall in the yard and collapsing it.

"Ouch, that hurts!"

Rope Tree crawled out of the pile of stones, covered his reddened forehead with his hands, and shouted.

Then, he heard Mito's voice: "Starting tomorrow, you must begin practicing the sealing technique again."

"Damn it!!!"

Upon hearing this, Rope Tree's headache intensified, and he let out a bloodcurdling scream.

Ignoring Nawaki's screams, Mito turned and left. She looked up at the waning moon in the night sky and sighed softly, "Hashirama, I can't hold on much longer, but I will persevere to the end."

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(End of this chapter)