The children were innocent and didn't sense the overflowing malice hidden behind this "big brother."
Mito Uzumaki softly laughed without exposing the truth.
Once she finished telling the story, the kids ran off to play. Little Kyoyuki joined them, clearly enjoying herself.
Akaba let out a sigh of relief.
It didn't seem like things had gone too far off track—Mito Uzumaki's storytelling trickery was still top-notch.
After all the children left, Mito straightened up, stared at Akaba for a moment, and said, "I feel like you're suspecting me with ill intentions."
"No way, how dare I?"
Akaba chuckled awkwardly.
He almost forgot—she had the ability to sense malicious intent. Fortunately, it was far from mind-reading.
Mito snorted coldly but didn't call him out. Instead, she continued, "In your manga, Orochimaru visits Tsunade seeking treatment for his injured hand and mentions having killed two people he loved most. Don't tell me one of them is an old hag like me."
"Of course not! With your life force, who in this world could possibly take it except time itself?"
Akaba casually flattered her.
"Oh? Then that means it's about yourself then."
Mito smirked knowingly, her wise eyes seeming to pierce through everything.
"Cough, cough."
Akaba suddenly coughed violently, his face reddening slightly.
She was sly as ever—a true veteran through and through. Some things really couldn't be hidden from her. His mind raced trying to think of an explanation.
At that moment, Mito grinned smugly, rocking back and forth on her chair as she smiled, "If it were Jiraiya or someone else, after your next volume releases, I might go check on both you and Jiraiya at the hospital—but since it's you..."
"What would happen?"
Akaba grew nervous.
Would she land him in the hospital?
Surely they had some shared history—she wouldn't go that far, would she?
"Ohohoho… You'll know once Tsunade comes back after the update. Spoilers aren't good, little Akaba—you're the one who always said that!"
Mito laughed deviously, clearly entertained by his discomfort.
Akaba gritted his teeth.
If you don't want to say it, why bring it up in the first place?!
Gritting his teeth, he inwardly cursed before asking, "Then when will Tsunade come back?"
"Do you really care that much?"
Mito teased again, followed by another round of laughter.
But soon after, her mood turned quieter. After a good ten seconds passed, she finally spoke, "Tsunade's father had another child—a younger brother, so she went over to see how things are."
"A younger brother?"
Akaba paused momentarily—Tsunade's younger brother must be Nawaki then.
He was born now...
"It seems they named him Nawaki."
Mito rhythmically swayed in her chair, appearing indifferent, even somewhat resigned toward Tsunade's "father."
"Come to think of it, who exactly is Tsunade's father?"
Akaba asked curiously.
The manga never mentioned Tsunade's parents, nor even elaborated on her surname. Although she lived within the Senju Clan, only those among the Senju probably knew her true family name.
Mito Uzumaki glanced at him, then fell silent for a while before speaking. "Tsunade's father spent half his life in the shadow of his own father. As the child of the Ninja God, he didn't perfectly inherit his parents' talent for being a ninja and grew up under tremendous pressure."
"He ran away from home?"
Akaba cautiously asked.
"More or less. He abandoned the Senju name and left Konoha. Poor, poor Nawaki..."
Mito Uzumaki sighed softly.
What becomes of a vine once it's cut from its tree?
Akaba clearly thought about this as well. Although such an interpretation seemed somewhat problematic, obviously, Tsunade's father still held strong feelings towards the Senju clan. However, back then, it was he who chose to abandon the family name, and now, it was very likely that the old lady simply refused to let him return.
Mito remained silent for a long moment before finally speaking, "When Hashirama and Tobirama passed away, my nephew wished to return—but I denied him. It's better for children who have left the family to grow independently. That way, even if the Senju clan perishes completely, there will still be bloodline surviving outside."
"You did all this for the family's sake."
Akaba admired her greatly; she'd sacrificed too much for the clan, even refusing her nephew's return, just for the family's future.
But blood bonds had to take a backseat now.
"But if the Senju really fall, he probably won't survive either. Alone and isolated, he might easily become the first target for assassination."
A shattered nest leaves no egg intact.
Whoever possesses the capability to strike down the entire Senju clan would find it easy enough to discover Tsunade's father's identity, especially considering Tsunade still maintained contact with him.
Mito stayed quiet for a moment, finally sighing, "Who can tell what the future holds?"
Me!
Akaba really wanted to say that.
According to the manga, in the end, Tsunade is left completely alone, indicating her parents passed away long ago. Nawaki dies in battle, falling into a trap so complete there's nothing left—not even his organs.
Considering all these factors, the direct bloodline of Hashirama Senju has entirely ended.
Personally, Akaba suspected this might be done to prevent Asura's chakra from reincarnating.
Of course, this was merely his personal speculation.
Without concrete evidence, he dared not reveal such thoughts to Mito Uzumaki, having to keep them bottled inside. Should he consider changing Nawaki's name and surname as well?
The child hasn't even been born yet, but in his manga, Nawaki dies instantly—it'll make the Crown Prince spin in his grave, furious enough to claw his way out.
Akaba became lost in hesitation.
Mito didn't delve further into Tsunade's parents' matter but instead briefly mentioned Uzumaki Kyoyuki's current situation, temporarily easing Akaba's concern. But what came next was difficult to predict.
Akaba departed from the Senju clan.
Today, Mito Uzumaki clearly felt low-spirited; most likely, learning about Nawaki's birth and naming stirred doubts and wavering within her over past decisions.
Deep in her heart, she longed for family reunion.
Yet,
With the eldest son returning now, even though he hadn't participated in any of Konoha's wars, his arrival would inevitably create significant waves.
After all, he was the son of Hashirama Senju himself.
Caught between these tangled realities, Mito found herself paralyzed, unable to choose—and Akaba knew better than to interfere as an outsider.
After leaving the Senju clan,
Akaba continued worrying about the Nawaki issue, but when reaching the manga shop, all hesitations vanished.
His shadow clone had already finished drawing Nawaki's storyline.
Very well, very powerful.
The Multiple Shadow Clone would probably self-destruct on the spot if asked to revise, so to avoid creating extra work for himself, Akaba decided not to make any changes.
I hope Lady Tsunade goes easy on me!
Thinking about it, Akaba couldn't help but feel uneasy. He began strategizing how to avoid being beat up this time.
Using clones definitely won't work.
Multiple Shadow Clones lack durability—they can't withstand heavy blows. If she figures out it's just a clone, Tsunade might actually hit even harder.
What a predicament!
Akaba sat inside his shop sighing and hesitating. After a long while, he picked up his brush pen and began writing the report.
Jokes aside, as an A-ranked ninjutsu, submitting this technique to the village could surely bring considerable benefits.
Meanwhile,
It would be easy for the Third to secretly observe and learn Rasengan from others using the Telescope Technique.
By submitting this report, at the very least, he could gain many rewards. At the same time, he could also prove himself—Rasengan wasn't some ridiculous trick pulled from lewd inspiration! It was based on science, with logic behind it!
The report was easy to write. Within only a few minutes, Akaba had clearly outlined the principle of Rasengan and systematically explained reasonable training methods. He compiled everything into a scroll and submitted it directly to the Hokage office for the Third.
The Third didn't explicitly promise any reward.
However, combined with the medical team duties and these jutsus, there certainly would be gains. They would most likely distribute rewards after the ninja returned from the battlefield.
Sakumo returned yesterday, and Tsunade visited Nawaki today. With the sudden increase in returning ninja, it was estimated that everyone would be back in Konoha by tomorrow.
In the late afternoon near sunset, an "unexpected guest" arrived at Akaba's shop.
Danzo, with his right hand wrapped in bandages.
At this point, his right hand was injured. His right eye had been exchanged with Shamon's—an image nearly ninety percent similar to his later appearance throughout history.
Of course, he hadn't aged that much yet.
"Lord Danzo."
Sakuma Yunlang immediately stood up, somewhat nervously and anxiously.
"Don't let me disturb you; continue doing what you were doing."
Though Danzo spoke gently, having just returned from the battlefield, he still carried an aura difficult for ordinary people like Sakuma Yunlang to withstand.
"Teacher, let's talk outside."
"Mm."
Danzo glanced thoughtfully at the shelves inside the shop before falling into contemplation.
After staring for quite some time, when Akaba had already stepped out from inside the shop, Danzo finally turned his gaze away and said, "Manga is a great thing. It helps ease the tension, fear, and grief of the battlefield. Keep drawing more of them."
An unexpected request came rushing in.
Danzo walked a few steps down the small path.
Nearly a minute passed before he finally spoke again: "Do you still remember those Root teams I asked you to train previously?"
Akaba remembered them clearly. Although he didn't know their names, each one's chakra signature was familiar to him.
"They're all admirable. Fearless on the battlefield, they always take the most difficult and terrifying missions voluntarily. But after every mission, upon taking roll call, none of them ever return alive."
Danzo sighed deeply, visibly burdened and sorrowful.
This harsh [True Illusion] granted them fearless wills, but it also caused them to disregard life and death entirely, transforming them into ninja tools whose sole priority was completing their mission at all costs.
Akaba remained silent for a long time before asking, following up: "Are you suggesting that I keep training another batch?"
"There's no need."
A flicker of confusion passed through Danzo's eyes.
It was almost unheard of to see such an expression on him.
War always demanded sacrifice.
Danzo had always firmly believed in this and hadn't wavered. His heaviness came solely from sorrow for those who had given their lives.
At the very least, he still felt that now.
Akaba couldn't quite grasp what Danzo meant. Fresh off the battlefield, his thoughts were far more chaotic than before.
"Where the leaves of Konoha whirl, fire shall forever burn. With firelight, shadow and darkness must also exist. There will always be those who step into the dark to protect Konoha in silence. Root was never meant to be an organization; it was always a noble ideal."
Danzo spoke with great passion.
In the end, even Akaba couldn't tell whether Danzo was trying to convince others or himself. Either way, he truly abandoned the idea of establishing "Root."
As he listened further, Danzo seemed to have convinced himself.
He paused, murmuring, "That's right. It really is like that."
"What my master said makes perfect sense."
After mulling it over for a while, Akaba could only mutter, "That's all there is to it."
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