"Tagitsu Hime, how much of the illusory Senjutsu Chakra you injected is left?"
Like a veteran electrician checking a live wire, he could tell just by the touch.
A day had passed, and it seemed to be recovering well.
The Senjutsu Chakra coursing through its flesh was no longer affecting him.
It wouldn't be long before the cobra woke up.
The remaining superficial wounds were trivial.
It just needed a trip to the Konoha Hospital.
Motomu's train of thought came to a halt right there.
'Who knows how much of Tsunade's influence remains in the Konoha Hospital right now?'
Besides, he had just taken out one of Danzo's subordinates recently; he was already under a cloud of suspicion.
Dragging a snake to the hospital and making such a scene...
...would just be asking for trouble.
The hospital was a no-go. Among the people he knew, Rin, with her passion for medical ninjutsu, was basically a semi-pro.
Maybe he could ask her for help.
Creeeak!
The half-open bedroom window was suddenly shoved wide by a hand.
Frowning, Motomu looked up at the intruder outside the window.
"Obito, you brat, could you stop opening this window?"
"Bro, there's an emergency! The Clan Leader has business with us."
Obito, out of breath from his frantic sprint, panted as he tried to climb through the window to drag Motomu away.
"Alright, alright!"
Motomu pushed him back while nimbly leaping out of the window himself.
...
The Clan Leader's estate, a three-tiered courtyard.
"Enter!"
The wooden sliding doors, bearing the Uchiha fan crest, were pulled open. Sunlight reflecting off the pond and rockery in the courtyard passed between the two youths, illuminating the dim reception room.
Two years had passed, and Uchiha Tetsuya had changed drastically. His hair was now a shock of white, his face etched with wrinkles and devoid of color.
Old injuries from the Warring States period, the First War, and the Second War had flared up. The Clan Leader, who had once been a source of funds for Motomu, was essentially on his last legs.
He gazed at the two young clansmen.
In his dimmed eyes—already clouded though he was only in his forties—he seemed to be reminiscing about the past.
'Back then, Clan Leader Madara and Lord Izuna were just as exceptionally gifted.'
Unfortunately, his son, Fugaku, was the one—and the only one who could be—the future leader.
Now, that old dog Danzo was constantly targeting the Uchiha.
Sending Uchiha clansmen to the front lines even before the war had officially broken out...
Tetsuya saw right through his schemes.
It was nothing more than an attempt to whittle down the Uchiha's strength.
Fugaku, his own son, a genius who had awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan early and had the potential for the Mangekyo, could absolutely not be sent to the most violent front lines!
These two children before him were remarkably talented and on the verge of becoming Chunin.
Perhaps they could sate the appetite of that jackal.
Tetsuya was old; he was past the age of shouting about Uchiha glory.
He only hoped his son and the grandson in his daughter-in-law's womb would be safe.
Let the burden of sacrificing the clan's geniuses fall on his shoulders.
He coughed violently twice.
Just as Motomu was getting nervous, thinking the Clan Leader might kick the bucket right then and there...
...Tetsuya caught his breath and waved for them to sit.
"Clan Leader, why have you summoned us?"
"I heard you've made it to the third stage of the Chunin Exams?"
Motomu and Obito exchanged a glance and nodded.
"Then, I'll be blunt..."
After hearing the Clan Leader out.
Motomu understood the gist of why he was there.
Getting a payout was one thing.
But the main issue was the rigging of the Chunin Exams.
According to Tetsuya, he and Obito had originally been paired together in the finals.
Meaning he would have to fight Obito one-on-one to decide who would be promoted.
However, Tetsuya and the Konoha higher-ups had negotiated to change the promotion criteria to a scoring system.
In other words, as long as his fight with Obito was entertaining enough for the audience and the Daimyo...
...both he and Obito could become Chunin.
And if they pulled it off...
...Tetsuya would pay them an 800,000 ryo bonus afterward.
Clack!
A leather briefcase was pushed onto the table and opened.
200,000 ryo in cash was stacked neatly inside.
The green portraits of the Daimyo gave off the scent of fresh ink.
The Clan Leader is actually being generous for once!
Motomu couldn't help his eyes drifting toward the money.
"For the glory of the Uchiha, do your best."
This stingy leader hadn't even wanted to fund a single kunai before.
Now he'd suddenly had a change of heart?
'Is this a case of a dying man's words being kind?'
Glancing at the equally stunned Obito, a now-calm Motomu didn't buy a word of it.
Judging others by his own standards, he was a selfish man; if he were dying, he'd definitely drag a few people down with him.
There was definitely something fishy going on.
He and Obito throwing a match to become Chunin at eight years old...
It would certainly bring fame to the Uchiha.
But what good would that do a man on his deathbed?
Money? Fame?
For a dying man, nothing was more important than one thing!
That's right—his legacy.
Motomu, who had read plenty of cultivation novels in his past life, understood perfectly.
When a Nascent Soul Grand Elder was about to die, he would definitely pay a visit to his old friends.
He'd take down as many as possible to pave the way for the sect after his passing.
This old geezer Tetsuya probably had the same idea.
He wanted to clear the path for Fugaku.
How could he and Obito be used in this regard?
That's right.
The impending Third War.
As a high-ranking member of Konoha—even if the Uchiha leader was somewhat marginalized...
He still knew what he needed to know.
While he might not know the exact cause of the coming conflict, he could guess the general situation from the village leadership's movements.
From the look of it, is Danzo sending Uchiha ninja to guard the borders on the front lines?
Danzo, who was itching to harvest some eyes, wasn't even hiding it, and the Clan Leader had caught on!
Motomu was already on Danzo's radar.
If he feigned incompetence in the finals and didn't get promoted, it would arouse suspicion and lead to further testing.
If he did get promoted, he'd be sent to the front.
For an ordinary person, this was a true 'damned if you do, damned if you don't' scenario.
But for him...
...the benefits of becoming a Chunin far outweighed the threat.
In the war, Obito had Madara watching from the shadows; at worst, he'd just end up as that half-broken kid.
And as for himself, going to the front lines to prevent a Hidden Sand invasion would put him closer to the Tailed Beasts—undoubtedly a good thing.
Reality might play tricks.
But cheats never lied.
With his system, the speed at which his strength grew would be beyond Danzo's wildest imagination.
Danzo wants to harvest eyes?
"Go tell it to the Big Eyeball."
Motomu's mind settled.
He locked eyes with the old leader.
One million ryo to push little brother Obito to the front lines...
...isn't that a bit low?
"I'm going to need more."
Tetsuya fell silent, momentarily stunned by Motomu's sheer greed.
"I need more money. This is barely enough for a blade like the one in Kakashi's hand."
"My dear, generous Clan Leader, there are two of us, after all."
Obito, whose imagination had nearly been stifled by poverty, felt his scalp go numb at the mention of Kakashi's trash blade costing a million ryo.
He felt his scalp go numb.
Ignoring Obito, who couldn't get a word in edgewise...
Motomu cleared his throat and continued.
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