Saving the Uchiha clan starts with becoming the clan leader.

"laboratory?"

Uchiha Arashiyama's heart tightened.

The way he spoke was so vague... It's easy to imagine that this so-called research is probably not anything legitimate. Otherwise, there would be no need to be so secretive. Even he didn't know anything about it before, which shows how high the level of secrecy this laboratory is!

"Zongxian, you... be careful, don't forget Orochimaru's lesson."

Uchiha Arashiyama originally wanted to persuade Sogen not to take the risk, but then he thought that once Sogen was determined to do something, no one could persuade him otherwise. Rather than hoping that Sogen would stop, it would be better to tell him to be careful and not repeat Orochimaru's mistakes.

"Don't worry, I'm different from Orochimaru."

Zongxian said with a smile.

Orochimaru was forced to defect not only because he himself had already decided to leave, but also because of two other factors that prevented him from staying in the village. One was that he used his fellow villagers as subjects for human experiments, and the other was that he should not have let this matter be discovered and exposed.

otherwise,

To be honest, human experimentation is no big deal at all.

Did the Second Hokage develop so many forbidden techniques just by whimsically coming up with them? How could he have done it without extensive human experimentation? Techniques like the Impure World Reincarnation require fresh corpses as sacrifices, but the Second Hokage didn't use villagers for experiments.

Ultimately, it was Orochimaru who developed the idea of ​​leaving Konoha. Otherwise, with his abilities, wouldn't he have been able to find experimental materials outside the village? Or rather, with his methods, how could it be so easy to discover that the disappearances of people in the village were related to him? To put it bluntly, it was Orochimaru's desire to leave that led to that series of events.

"Orochimaru wanted to leave the village himself, but I had no intention of becoming a rogue ninja wandering the world... The research in the lab is kept secret not because it's something to be ashamed of, but because it involves whether our Uchiha clan can prosper in the future. If it were exposed, Shisui or I would probably have to guard it day and night to prevent people from sabotaging it."

Zongxian walked to the door and went out with Uchiha Arashiyama.

"...That's really exaggerated?"

Uchiha Arashiyama's expression was one of surprise and uncertainty.

To discuss whether a family can prosper for generations... what exactly are they researching? Isn't that a bit too exaggerated?

"It's not an exaggeration at all. You'll understand later. Until then, the fewer people who know, the better."

The key to the Uchiha clan's continued dominance at the pinnacle of the ninja world lies in the unbroken transmission of the Mangekyou Sharingan. However, the Mangekyou Sharingan's inherent blindness prevents Uchiha clan members who awaken it from recklessly squandering its power.

Samehada was only able to replenish the depleted eye power of him and Shisui because it was subdued by Sogen. To be honest, without Sogen, Samehada would at most replenish the chakra of its user, rather than consuming Yin Release energy to replenish eye power or Yang Release energy to repair eyes damaged by that unstable eye power.

White Zetsu are actually Hashirama Senju's cells.

It can help stabilize the restless power of the Mangekyou Sharingan.

If a cell transplantation surgery with a 100% success rate can be developed, the Uchiha clan will likely no longer have to worry about the risk of blindness caused by the Mangekyou Sharingan. Of course, this is easier said than done, and a safe transplantation surgery is only one step.

In addition, there is the question of whether the transplanted cells can be inherited. If not, where will the transplanted cells come from in the future?

of course,

That's a bit too far ahead. In short, the first hurdle is how to safely transplant White Zetsu cells into the Uchiha's body. Don't think it's easy just because there's a successful case like Obito Uchiha. In fact, it's not easy at all. Who knows if Madara Uchiha did anything to help Obito Uchiha survive after transplanting half of White Zetsu's body?

Perhaps Madara Uchiha also transplanted his own cells into Obito Uchiha. By then, Madara had already awakened the Rinnegan, and his body had perfectly fused the power of the Sage's Eye and Sage Body. Therefore, Obito Uchiha's example cannot prove anything.

At least for now, there's still no clue about the scorpion.

The powers of the Sage's Eye and Sage's Body, separated for a thousand years, were already clearly distinct. They were practically incompatible, let alone blending together. Even Madara Uchiha, who had awakened the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan, only managed to fuse the two powers and awaken the Rinnegan when he was very old after obtaining Hashirama Senju's cells.

This research was extremely difficult.

This can be seen.

[Chapter 254. Only four or five years]

Zongxian arrived at the Hokage Building with light steps, a friendly smile on his face that he thought was approachable. However, perhaps due to the difference in their status, the civil servants in the building hurriedly stepped aside to make way for him when they saw him.

He had walked this path to the Hokage's office many times; he could walk to the door of the Hokage's office with his eyes closed.

The premise is that no new obstacles are set up on the road.

"Dong dong!"

He stood at the door and knocked. "Lord Hokage, excuse me!"

After obtaining permission from the office owner, he pushed open the door and went inside. The spacious office was not only occupied by the Fifth Hokage, Akimichi Torifu. Jiraiya was sitting comfortably on the sofa in the reception area, and greeted Sogen with a smile when he entered.

"Zongxian-kun, you're here too!"

"Jiraiya-senpai?"

"Thanks to your reminder last time, I went to ask Naruto what he thought. Luckily, I didn't force him to make a decision. Naruto doesn't really want to leave the village yet, and I almost made a mistake."

“Is that so? It’s not bad to stay in the village for now.” Zongxian closed the door behind him. “Naruto is still a bit young. I’ve looked through the memories of the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki. The Eight-Tails Jinchuriki only went to Turtle Island to train when he was a teenager. Of course, he became a Jinchuriki relatively late. But haste makes waste. It’s not a bad thing to be slower. Anyway, the village doesn’t need a Jinchuriki to carry the torch right now.”

"Haste makes waste, that's so true! I was too impatient a while ago. Luckily, Zongxian-kun reminded me last time, otherwise... sigh! I was out of my mind."

Jiraiya sighed and sincerely thanked Sogen.

"I can barely be considered half of Naruto's teacher. It is my duty to take care of the younger generation in the village as they grow. Besides, Naruto is very talented, and it would be a real pity to bury his talent."

"That Yang Escape technique is indeed powerful. Zongxian-jun, you've put in a lot of effort."

Jiraiya smiled broadly, finding it more pleasing to praise Naruto's intelligence than to praise him himself.

He is not yet fifty years old, but he is only a little over a year away from the age of knowing one's destiny. At this time, although he has not yet let go of Tsunade, he has long since given up the idea of ​​having offspring. In addition, the change of the Great Toad Sage's prophecy has made his obsession with finding the prophesied child fade a little, and now he has put all his mind on Naruto.

The name comes from his first child, whom he considered his own grandchild, the apple of his eye.

"Cough cough!"

Sitting behind his desk, Akimichi Torifu coughed twice in exasperation. This was his office, wasn't it? These two were chatting away so enthusiastically, completely ignoring him, the owner. It was really... infuriating!

"Um, Zongxian-kun, is there something you need?"

Left with no other choice, Akimichi Tokifu had to ask the question himself.

"Well, there are two things." Zongxian didn't mince words and went straight to the point. "The first thing is that the police department's rectification efforts are going quite well. Even in the sparsely populated corners of the village, there are now patrols. Given more time, I believe the village's security will only get better and better."

"It's good that it's effective, but Zongxian-kun, you don't need to rush. These things need to be verified over a long period of time. Be patient and work hard."

Akimichi Tokifu spoke earnestly, practically saying, "You just need to mind your own business in the police department and don't bother with other departments and agencies." He was genuinely afraid that Zongxian would use the improvements made in the police department as an example and insist on giving the village a complete overhaul.

He was unwilling to go through such trouble. In his view, the current Konoha administrative system did not have any major flaws. The situation in the police department could only be described as a historical legacy, caused by various forms of suppression and exclusion during the Third Hokage's era. However, other departments did not have such problems.

“I understand that. Different departments have different powers, and many things cannot be applied rigidly. Now the police department is facing a problem, and that’s why they’re here to freeload! The police department has expanded its manpower several times over, and it’s a bit financially strained. Lord Hokage, please lend a hand.” Zongxian said shamelessly.

"Ah! This..."

Akimichi Torifu's face showed a troubled expression as he asked, "Sōgen-kun, I wonder how big the gap is on your end?"

"The shortfall is quite large. I didn't expect the rectification to go so smoothly. When I submitted the budget at the beginning of the year, I was as lenient as possible, but in the end, it still felt stingy," Zongxian said with a wry smile.

Konoha's rule is that the Hokage Building allocates funds to each department every six months based on the departmental budgets submitted by each department. This means that the funds are allocated twice a year, once at the beginning and once in the middle. The Hokage Building does not interfere with how each department spends these funds, but there is only one allocation every six months. Unless a major event occurs, no department will receive any extra funds.

It's currently the end of February, and there are still about four months until the mid-year funding round.

The police department's funds, at best, can last for two months; at worst, they can only last for a month. In any case, they won't last until the middle of the year.

“There is indeed still some reserved funds, but Zongxian-kun… this is a difficult thing to start. If we open this door, other departments will follow suit, and this amount of reserved funds cannot satisfy everyone.” Akimichi Torifu was in a dilemma.

This statement is not without merit.

No department ever complains about having too much money. Regardless of the year, every department always complains that they don't have enough money, and you never hear anyone say that they can't spend all the budget.

but--

Just because something makes sense doesn't mean it's without flaws. Reserve funds are meant to prevent all sorts of unexpected emergencies, and they should definitely be spent when the time comes. Otherwise, what's the point of holding onto them? Once the Hokage makes up his mind, the other departments will at most make a fuss and then just give them a few measly coins to get rid of them.

Ultimately, to get this money, you still need to do your job well with the Hokage.

"I understand that, but I really have no other choice. If there were any other way, I wouldn't have shamelessly come here." Zong Xian complained bitterly. He couldn't possibly say he had no other option but to capture rogue ninjas to exchange for money. He sighed repeatedly.

"Although the internal reorganization of the police department is going smoothly in all aspects, to be honest, it would take at least four or five years to straighten everything out. If we can't get through this current difficulty, it might take even longer. So I ask for your support, Hokage."

"Four or five years? That's certainly a difficult situation... Alright! Zongxian-kun, you should submit a report first, find a suitable reason, preferably one that can shut down the other departments. I'll try my best to squeeze more money out of the reserve fund for you." Akimichi Torifu gritted his teeth, showing a very troubled but determined look that he would overcome the difficulties to help you get it done.

Actually,

Akimichi Torifu breathed a sigh of relief.

Four or five years is not bad. In four or five years, he will be sixty-seven or sixty-eight years old. With his current physique, to be honest, if he can persist for another four or five years, he will probably be about to retire. The Akimichi clan looks like they are all fat, which makes people worry about their blood pressure. But in fact, their clan inherits the Yang Release Secret Technique. If they take good care of themselves, it is not difficult to live to seventy or eighty years old.

Keep in mind that the average lifespan in the Land of Fire is less than thirty years.

Place it in Konoha.

The average lifespan of ninjas alone is less than 25 years.

During the three Shinobi World Wars, when the fighting was intense, students from the Ninja Academy were sent to the front lines as cannon fodder. Very few ninjas were able to die of old age. Akimichi Torifu was considered to have lived a long life. It was only because he used his clan's secret medicines such as "spinach pills" and "curry pills" in battles when he was young that he pushed his body's potential to its limits, leaving behind irreparable injuries. He could probably have served as the Fifth Hokage for another ten or twenty years without any problem.

However, things are fine as they are now. Akimichi Torifu has no complaints. Compared to his friends and comrades who died decades ago, he has already made a lot of money by living to this age. Moreover, if he had been in good health and could have lasted another twenty years, he might not have been chosen as Hokage in the first place.

Akimichi Torifu breathed a sigh of relief, and Sōgen didn't feel he had suffered any loss.

As I said before, it's not time to compete for the Sixth Hokage position yet. To be honest, he's already busy enough with the affairs of the police department. His training time has been repeatedly compressed. He used to often take time to guide his students and sister's training, but in the last two weeks, he's been studying on his own.

Although the recent reforms by the police department also played a role.

Regardless, Zongxian plans to focus on his training from now on, exploring the mysteries of the Flame Fan, Banana Leaf Fan, and Amber Purification Bottle, studying the essence of Yin and Yang Release techniques, trying to find an alternative path to awaken the Rinnegan, and researching the White Zetsu cell transplantation surgery...

A whole host of things awaited him.

Akimichi Torifusa's desire is to remain in the Hokage position for another four or five years.

"By the way, Zongxian-kun, you said you came to see me with two things. What's the other thing?"

Autumn path seeks the wind and inquires about the Way.

"Ah! This... it's still a matter for the police department, a missing persons case." Zongxian reported truthfully. As soon as he finished speaking, Jiraiya, whose eyes were darting around and he was wondering whether to take his leave, changed his expression, gathered his scattered attention, and sat down firmly.

"Missing Persons Case?"

Akimichi Torifu stroked his short stubble on his chin, his brows furrowing slightly. A missing person... This was no small matter, but logically speaking, it shouldn't be something that required the concern of a dignified Hokage. What was the reason behind this?

His mind raced, and in a flash of inspiration, he remembered a past precedent.

My heart skipped a beat. Could this be another Orochimaru story?

Thinking of Orochimaru, he subconsciously glanced at Jiraiya, and seeing Jiraiya's serious expression, he became even more certain of his guess. His mood immediately turned heavy, wondering who in the village had committed such a heinous crime this time...

"During this period, a patrol team responsible for the newly built area discovered that construction workers have been going missing..." Zong Xuan, unaware that the Fifth Hokage and Jiraiya's conjectures had strayed far off course, continued explaining the case, "According to the investigation by the team below, this missing persons case has been found to be connected to the embassy. The mastermind behind it is very likely to be the Daimyo's envoy stationed in Konoha, so I..."

"Aren't there people researching forbidden techniques?"

Akimichi Torifu blurted out, interrupting Sogen's words.

"Huh?"