Konoha: Uchiha's Two-Way Travel in One Piece

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Uchiha Madara was a bit surprised after hearing the report.

"Her lost life essence and ocular power have been fully restored to their peak?"

"And with just a one-eye ordinary Mangekyō Sharingan, she could unlock the fourth stage of Susanoo?"

Zetsu replied, "yes, her other eye seems to have lost its power as she was only using one eye."

"That's… not bad at all!"

Even back in his prime during the Mangekyō stage, he could barely achieve the same.

However, for Madara as he was now, this was merely acceptable.

In his opinion, Uchiha Jiri would never reach the Eternal Mangekyō stage, let alone awaken the Rinnegan.

Without those advancements, her future potential would always be limited. She would never pose any real threat to him.

"Indeed!"

Black Zetsu nodded affirmatively. "It's not just her. The other Uchihas also seem... different somehow. Their physical strength and vitality have significantly improved. There must be some kind of secret behind this!"

Even if Madara wasn't overly concerned about this, Black Zetsu was determined to figure it out.

He didn't like things happening beyond his control—it unsettled him.

"Oh? It's not an isolated case?" Madara raised an intrigued eyebrow. "Interesting. In that case, go investigate Konoha. Find out what's going on."

"While you're at it, evaluate the Uchihas and see if any are suitable candidates to act as my surrogate."

"Understood!"

Black Zetsu immediately accepted the order.

To Madara, everything else was secondary. The smooth execution of his plan was what truly mattered.

---

Eight Days Later, Konoha's Main Gate

"Ah! Finally, we're back! I can finally rest for a few days!"

Tsunade stretched lazily as she looked at the familiar gates of Konoha.

"You!" Uzumaki Mito shot her a disapproving look. "You barely did anything this whole trip! This was far easier than any mission, and yet you're still complaining?"

"You're just too lazy on normal days!"

"Hehe…" Tsunade chuckled sheepishly. "It's been a while since I left the village. The hospital probably has a pile of work waiting for me. I'll head there first!"

Without waiting for a reply, she bolted toward Konoha.

"That girl..." Uzumaki Mito shook her head helplessly and led the group to the gates to organize their entry.

There was no need to notify the Third Hokage—ANBU scouts had already sent word of their return while they were still on the road.

Sure enough, it wasn't long before the Third Hokage arrived with Utatane Koharu and representatives from various ninja clans.

They welcomed Uzumaki Mito and the others warmly, congratulating them on their successful mission and extending a formal greeting to the newly arrived Uzumaki Clan members.

From there, the discussion naturally shifted to the resettlement arrangements for the Uzumaki Clan.

Fortunately, this was not Uchiha Jiri's concern—it was left to Mito, Uzumaki Ashina, and the Third Hokage to sort out.

Jiri led her Uchiha group away from the main party, heading straight for the Uchiha compound.

---

At the Uchiha Compound Gate

The patrolling Uchiha guards spotted them from afar.

"Huh? It's Lady Jiri and her group! They've returned victorious! Go notify Captain Ryuka and Young Master Kaito immediately!"

"Understood!"

Within ten breaths, Uchiha Ryuka arrived swiftly at the gate. Bowing respectfully, he greeted, "Welcome back, Lady Jiri!"

"Mm." Jiri nodded and issued her orders. "Have Uchiha Shichidai and the two elite security squads return to their posts. Let them rest for three days before resuming their regular training."

She then asked, "How have things been in the compound and village while we were away?"

Ryuka nodded confidently. "Everything has been in order. No outsiders have been caught snooping around the compound, and the Third Hokage hasn't made any unnecessary moves. Patrols have been stricter, likely as a precaution against potential external threats."

"Oh, by the way, the Uchiha Pharmacy has been closed during these days. This caused a bit of unrest at first, but it was resolved after some explanations."

"Still, keeping it closed isn't ideal—we're losing quite a bit of revenue every day."

Jiri nodded knowingly. "I see. No surprise there. As long as Hiruzen isn't stupid, he won't stir trouble at such a critical time."

"Don't worry about the pharmacy. I'll order it to reopen shortly. In fact, we'll increase the daily supply of medicine to make up for lost profits. The demand is already outpacing supply, so a few days of closure won't hurt much. We'll make it back easily."

Ryuka smiled in relief. "Understood! I'll get back to work, then."

"Good. Also, reduce security measures in the compound today. If the village remains stable tomorrow, restore patrols to their usual levels."

The impact of the Uzumaki Clan joining Konoha was still uncertain, but Jiri doubted it would cause significant turmoil.

That said, a new clan joining inevitably meant others would see their interests squeezed. Konoha's pie was only so big, and another large family would mean fewer slices for everyone else.

"Yes, Lady Jiri!" Ryuka bowed and left to carry out her instructions.

---

On the Way Home

As Jiri hurried back to her house, she ran into Uchiha Kaito and Uchiha Mikoto.

"Mom! Welcome back!" Kaito waved enthusiastically as he approached. "How did everything go? Was it smooth?"

Mikoto followed suit. "Auntie, welcome home!"

"Mm, I'm back." Jiri smiled and patted their heads affectionately. "Everything went well."

"You two didn't sneak off while I was gone, did you?"

"Of course not!" Kaito grinned. "We spent all our time training!"

"Good." Jiri nodded in satisfaction. Once they were back home, Kaito couldn't contain himself any longer.

"Mom, do you have any plans right now? If not, can we finally explore Sky Island?"

He was eager to get his hands on the Thunder Fruit (Rumble-Rumble Fruit) and study it thoroughly. If there was a way to eliminate its weaknesses, all the better.

"Haha! Looks like you can't wait either, huh?"

Uchiha Jiri smiled knowingly. "Give me a couple of days," she said.

"I'll likely need to deal with the Uzumaki clan's matters first. Integrating a large clan like theirs into the village isn't as simple as it sounds."

"It won't be long before the village convenes a meeting with all the major clan leaders to discuss this."

The Uzumaki clan would need a sufficiently large area of land designated as their territory. Discussions would also cover the clan's future responsibilities and obligations within the village.

"I see," Kaito nodded in understanding. "In that case, we'll wait a couple more days."

"Meanwhile, I can take Kushina and Minato over to the pirate world to get them familiarized with it!"

These preparations would speed up their training in the future.

For safety reasons, he hadn't left the clan territory these past few days. Instead, he relied on shadow clones to guide Minato and Kushina in their training every day.

Moreover, he avoided taking them to their old training grounds, as the remote location made it potentially unsafe.

Instead, Kaito chose one of the training fields within the Senju compound.

"Oh? You haven't taken them there yet? Well, handle it however you see fit," Jiri said, surprised, but she didn't comment further, leaving the arrangements up to Kaito.

Afterward, Jiri asked Kaito about their training progress over the past few days, as well as the overall situation within the clan. Once the updates were finished, she turned her attention to preparing dinner.

The meals she'd had while away had been far from satisfying. Cooking Sea King meat wasn't convenient while traveling, so she had relied on the full-nutrient pills to maintain her training and strength.

While effective, the pills lacked the satisfaction of actual food.

After all, dishes made from Sea King meat weren't just nutritious but also incredibly delicious—a true indulgence.

---

Meanwhile, in the Hokage's office

After arranging for the Uzumaki clan to temporarily stay in the Senju compound with Uzumaki Mito, Hiruzen returned to his office, accompanied by Utatane Koharu, Mitokado Homura, and Shimura Danzo.

With a stern expression, Hiruzen turned to Danzo. "Danzo, explain the situation regarding this mission in detail."

"Although the Anbu has already provided a thorough report, I want to hear it directly from you as someone who was there."

Could the information really be true? Could Uzumaki Mito have stood her ground against the Third Raikage and even forcibly extracted chakra from the Nine-Tails?

And could Uchiha Jiri truly summon a colossal, hundred-meter Susanoo that forced even Onoki to flee?

When Hiruzen first received these reports from the Anbu, he found them hard to believe.

Both Koharu and Homura also looked to Danzo, awaiting his account.

Danzo scowled as he responded, "It's true. Both of them displayed power that surpassed their peaks."

"Especially Uchiha Jiri."

"I never imagined she could achieve such feats with only one Mangekyo Sharingan."

"She didn't show her other eye so it seems, it's still damaged."

"Onoki was no match for her."

"That said, defeating Onoki in a short time isn't realistic either," he admitted. "That old man's Dust Release is still terrifyingly powerful."

"Hiruzen, Uchiha is becoming a bigger problem for us!"

"And it's not just Uchiha Jiri. Many of their elite members have grown unnaturally strong as well."

"Their chakra reserves, physical vitality, and even life force have all seen significant improvement."

"I suspect they possess some kind of medicine far superior to the nutritional pills they sell on the market."

"If that's true, it's bad news for us."

"We must find a way to uncover the secret behind these medicines and take control of it."

"Additionally, we need to find a way to suppress and weaken the Uchiha. If not, they'll only grow stronger over time."

Danzo's tone left no room for doubt—he wouldn't tolerate the Uchiha gaining more power.

Hiruzen nodded grimly. "I've already received confirmation of this from Anbu reports and even personally observed the remaining Uchiha in the village."

"It's clear that their strength is indeed unusual."

"While I want the formula for their medicine as much as you do, obtaining it won't be easy."

Koharu interjected, "For the past month, the Uchiha have been purchasing massive amounts of herbs, rare medicinal plants, and chakra metals."

"Perhaps we can reverse-engineer the formula by studying the raw materials they're buying and the medicines they're selling."

"As long as we involve skilled pharmacists, it should be possible to deduce the formula."

Her tone revealed her jealousy over the immense profits the Uchiha were undoubtedly making from these medicines.

"That's a reasonable idea," Hiruzen said, frowning slightly. "But we don't have many top-tier pharmacists at our disposal."

"The most skilled ones are Lady Mito and Tsunade."

"But given their connections to the Uchiha, I doubt they'd cooperate."

"We'll have to explore other options, perhaps from the hospital or the Ino-Shika-Cho clan."

Hiruzen sighed inwardly. Lately, he had noticed a growing rift between himself and Tsunade.

On the surface, she appeared much the same as before, though perhaps a bit more casual and carefree.

But Hiruzen could tell she was becoming increasingly distant from him.

It was likely something Mito had told her—probably regarding the Senju.

Still, Hiruzen didn't regret his actions against the Senju in the past.

If he hadn't done what was necessary, how could he have secured his position as Hokage?

It wasn't his fault. The Senju had overstepped, acting as though they didn't need to respect him as Hokage.

Any leader in his position would have done the same.

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