Chapter 112: True Water Demon of the Warring States

"Senju Butsuma?"

Gin frowned deeply the moment he heard the name.

A few years ago, when he went to witness that iconic first meeting between his older cousin and Hashi-lady, he'd been arrogantly standing around and got one-shotted by Senju Butsuma into the ICU.

Even now, whenever he remembered that day, his forearms ached faintly.

"Didn't he die of illness? What's he got to do with the Hagoromo clan?"

The news of Butsuma's death hadn't been hidden by the Senju at all—in fact, it had been spread quite openly. Part of the reason the Senju had pulled back their forces was supposedly to mourn their departed clan head.

But thinking back now, Gin couldn't help but feel something was fishy.

He'd seen Butsuma up close. That guy was tough as an ox, and there was never any rumor of chronic illness. For someone from the vigorous Senju clan to die of sickness after only a few years? It didn't add up.

"He didn't die of illness. He was ambushed and killed by the Hagoromo clan leader and several elders."

Tajima narrowed his eyes as he revealed this explosive truth in a calm voice.

???

The Hagoromo clan pulled that off?

Gin was stunned. In his memory, the Hagoromo clan was… kind of lame.

Sure, they had a bit of talent for ninjutsu—nowhere near the Uchiha though. Their chakra pool was a bit larger—nothing compared to the Uzumaki. Physically stronger? Maybe marginally. But against the Senju? Not a chance.

How the hell did this all-around average clan manage to drag down one of the strongest men in the Land of Fire?

That's it—confirmed. Real Warring States water demons.

"They had no choice. Their backers were pressuring them hard. To survive in the Land of Fire, the Hagoromo clan brought out their ancestral treasure—legendary ninja tools said to be passed down from the Sage of Six Paths himself—to assassinate Butsuma and boost their clan's prestige."

"Treasure?"

Gin's eyes lit up. Now this was new—he hadn't heard anything about treasure-type items since his reincarnation. He instantly raised his hand like a school kid.

"They say these ninja tools were left by the Rikudō Sennin (Sage of Six Paths) himself, enshrined by the Hagoromo clan for generations. They only bring them out in moments of crisis."

Tajima's eyes flickered with wariness. After all, anything capable of taking down someone on Butsuma's level wasn't ordinary.

"Unfortunately, the current clan head's bloodline wasn't very pure. He only had four whisker marks on his face, so he struggled to fully control the tools."

"Whisker marks?"

Gin frowned. That term reminded him of the two infamous brothers from the original story—Kinkaku and Ginkaku. They had six whisker marks on their faces, just like the protagonist Uzumaki Naruto. He'd assumed it was due to Nine-Tails chakra.

But canon mentioned they had the marks before absorbing Kurama's chakra. That likely confirmed they were descendants of the Hagoromo clan.

Which meant… the tools enshrined by the Hagoromo could be the same ones from the Fourth Great Ninja War.

"You mean those ninja tools can only be used by people with Hagoromo blood?"

Gin remembered how those six tools were still usable even after Kinkaku and Ginkaku were sealed—like how they were used by some black-ops guy and even Tenten later.

"Not exactly. Anyone can use them—but without the Hagoromo bloodline, it takes a massive amount of chakra to wield them."

Makes sense now. The ninja tools were usable by others but not without a cost. Even that jail guy in Kumo or Tenten used them later.

"Still, even with all that effort, the Hagoromo clan failed."

Tajima's tone turned cold as he continued.

"They went all in. Though they grievously wounded Butsuma, they suffered massive losses themselves."

"Huh?"

So many against one and they still lost? How do you mess that up?

"Butsuma wasn't alone. His eldest son, Senju Hashirama, was with him. That kid turned the whole tide at the last moment."

So Hashi-lady, at just twenty, was already that strong?

Gin thought back to the silly-looking bowl-cut guy in his memories. In just a few years, that guy had skyrocketed in power?

"The jutsu you used—Senju Hashirama can use it too."

Tajima gave him a scrutinizing look.

If Hashirama had already awakened Mokuton (Wood Release), then yeah—it tracked. The Warring States era was barely touched on in the original story, and the progression of power between Madara and Hashirama was shown in just a few panels.

"Man, the Senju really are shameless copycats. I should charge that guy licensing fees."

Gin grumbled, rubbing his curls.

"Alright, let's set aside the issue of your technique for now."

Tajima waved it off. Despite Gin's quirks, he trusted him—after all, he'd watched the kid grow up. Even if he'd grown a little… twisted, he was still family.

"At the brink of death, Butsuma's son unleashed your jutsu and drained nearly all the ambushers into husks. Only a few escaped. The Hagoromo clan head managed to reverse-summon the ninja tools back to the shrine with his dying breath."

After spilling all the details of that battle, Tajima looked at the now-frowning Gin and added:

"Now the Senju are like mad dogs, scouring the land for traces of the Hagoromo clan. Leading the charge is that white-haired brat you met before. He's sworn to erase every last Hagoromo from the world."

Evil from birth, that white-haired gremlin!

With Tobirama leading the charge, the Hagoromo might not even make it to the founding of Konoha. He'd just been thinking about helping them hide out for a decade—but now? With Mokuryū (Wood Dragon) and Gōdaikōzō (Great Buddha) on the rampage, they'd be lucky to last the month.

"This mission's gonna be tough."

Hunted by the entire Senju clan, with no fighting force left, the Hagoromo survivors were helpless. Just women, children, and elders—easy prey.

"So Uncle… can we just…"

Gin's lips curled into a sinister grin as he made a slicing motion across his throat.

"I get what you're saying. But there's no need."

Tajima had considered robbing the Hagoromo of their treasures, but after personally testing the Six Paths ninja tools, he found them pretty useless to outsiders.

"They're more burden than benefit—drain too much chakra, and their true power can't be unlocked."

"Besides, anything that pisses off the Senju? We Uchiha are morally obligated to support it. If the Senju want something, we'll make damn sure they don't get it."

Whoa. Didn't know Uncle had that kind of sass.

"So then…"

Gin glanced down at the map in his hands. Did this mean the responsibility for this suicide mission was going to…?

"That's right. You'll be in charge of this."

Tajima nodded with a look that screamed "I believe in you!"

"But my strength…"

Gin tried the usual excuse to get out of work.

"No worries—you're going with Uchiha Hikari."

Tajima, finally calling the girl by her real name instead of "nameless," grinned.

"Since I was worried about your power level, I'm assigning you a top-tier support."

To him, this combo was perfect: the questionably genius Gin and the undeniably powerful Hikari—a flawless match.

The best brain (debatable) and the strongest muscles—what could go wrong?

"Can I refuse?"

Gin suddenly dove forward and hugged Tajima's leg, snot and tears everywhere.

"I'm the last of my line! Thirty years old, never married, still pure! Please, let someone else go!"

"GET OFF!!"

Tajima's eye twitched as he looked at the goo now coating his pants. Furious, he kicked Gin across the room.

"Whoops~"

Gin nimbly dodged, wiping his face clean and nonchalantly asking while caressing the map:

"So, what's the reward?"

"The reward is simple—you can choose one of the Six Paths ninja tools, and the Hagoromo clan will owe you a favor."

Tajima muttered as he tried to wipe his ruined pants. These trousers were done for.

"No cash?"

One trash-tier ninja tool and a vague promise? That's all it took for the Uchiha to risk everything?

"Their ancestral land was seized by the Senju. Any wealth they had is long gone. All that's left are the helpless survivors."

Tajima genuinely felt some sympathy. At least they were helping screw over the Senju.

"Besides, the late clan head was an old friend. His dying request—I'll try to honor it."

If it were Madara in charge, the Hagoromo would've been kicked to the curb. That guy only cared about Hashirama. The Hagoromo? Never heard of them.

"Well, alright then~"

Gin sighed and rolled up the map.

"I'll take the mission."

"…Huh?"

Tajima blinked in surprise. He'd expected more resistance. Gin actually accepted?

He'd even thought of doing it himself, handing over clan affairs to Madara and retiring. But with Hashirama's power spike and Madara obsessively training to catch up, Tajima had to step in and hold the clan together.

That meant he needed someone trustworthy for the job.

Gin's impressive performance during Hikari's unsealing had caught his eye. Despite his usual laziness, after regaining his memories, he'd unleashed shocking strength. Tajima suspected the kid had even more hidden depths.

"My precious nephew!"

His eyes gleamed as he patted Gin on the shoulder.

"This mission is yours. If you need anything, just ask! If I so much as blink, I'm not a real man!"

"…When I get back, I wanna retire in a mountain village and become a swordmaster of legend."

(End of Chapter)

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