Konoha: The thirty-year-old Uchiha is not motivated.

Chapter 942 The Uchiha are beyond saving, just wait to die.

Unfortunately, Uchiha Gin's rather lame reason failed to convince everyone present.

Except for White Zetsu.

"Holy crap! This is a huge scoop from the mob boss!"

Listening to Uchiha Gin's vivid description, the White Zetsu, hidden underground, trembled with excitement. Without waiting for further developments, he instantly vanished from his spot using the Mayfly Technique.

He couldn't wait to share this shocking gossip with the lonely old man at the base.

"Lord Yin, you..."

Compared to the doubts of the other young people present, Uchiha Hikone believed that Uchiha Gin was so guilty that he was hallucinating.

"I misspoke. I have witnessed the battle at the Valley of the End from afar. The clash between Madara and the First Hokage has transcended the realm of humanity. Even if you were added, it wouldn't change anything."

Looking at Uchiha Gin who had started to ramble incoherently, Uchiha Hikaru felt a pang of guilt.

The most heartbroken person after Lord Madara's death was none other than his cousin, Lord Gin. It was truly unbelievable that he had reopened this old wound in front of so many people.

"Well, I hope you understand."

Uchiha Gin, who was just about to fabricate a chapter about Gin's battle against Sasuke, scratched his head upon hearing this. He hadn't expected that the old man, Fire Core, was also quite good at making things up; he had convinced himself.

"Fugaku, prepare to begin the clan meeting. I will announce to all clan members the return of Lord Gin."

Feeling increasingly guilty and tormented, Uchiha Kakuchi waved his hand and immediately arranged for Uchiha Gin to be recognized as a member of the clan, even relinquishing his position as the head elder.

"But what about the Hokage's mission?"

"I will personally go and explain to Hiruzen Sarutobi."

Looking at Uchiha Gin, who wasn't much older than him, Orochimaru's eyes gleamed.

"Tsunade, could you lend me your Yin Seal so I can study it?"

For the past few years, he has been secretly researching a topic about immortality, but unfortunately he has not been able to find a breakthrough. Now, the appearance of Uchiha Gin has given him a lot of inspiration.

"What do you want to do? The Yin Seal is a technique that only women can practice."

Tsunade looked at Orochimaru, who was hesitant, with a suspicious expression, and kindly reminded him,

Are there only women?

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes upon hearing this, his long, narrow snake-like pupils filled with contemplation.

"So what's his situation?"

"My Yin Sealing Technique is incomplete and has a huge flaw."

Uchiha Silver Ears, who was holding chopsticks and waiting for his sweet ramen, twitched. He shook his head at Orochimaru with a half-smile and, under the other's questioning gaze, succinctly explained the special nature of his Yin Seal.

"By maintaining physical vitality indefinitely, one loses the possibility of improving one's strength."

After hearing this, everyone present frowned. Orochimaru stroked his chin thoughtfully, his eyes filled with regret.

"It is indeed a very serious defect."

If the price of immortality is becoming weak, Orochimaru would rather give up this hard-won opportunity.

"So, Senior Yin, what is your current strength?"

Minato finally couldn't suppress his curiosity any longer. Recalling the sword strike Gin Uchiha had unleashed in Roran, he couldn't help but ask aloud.

"By today's standards, they should be Jonin. Of course, having lived a long time, they naturally acquire some special skills."

After explaining to Minato with a smile, Uchiha Gin winked at him with a mocking look.

"Here's your sweet and savory ramen, please enjoy!"

Just as everyone was preparing to press for more details, Teiji, with guidance from Uchiha Gin, finally devised a new dish.

"I'm starting!"

Looking at the steaming hot ramen in front of him, Uchiha Gin broke off his chopsticks with a satisfied expression and began to eat heartily.

Slurp~

Slurp~

For a moment, the entire shop echoed with the slurping sounds of Uchiha Gin slurping up large mouthfuls of noodles.

"Minato, is he the senior you met in Loulan?"

Kushina, who had been rebuffed by Uchiha Gin earlier, leaned closer to her boyfriend and whispered, "..."

"Yeah, don't let Senior Yin's carefree attitude fool you, he's actually very reliable."

"But the Nine-Tailed Fox..."

Kushina gently touched her belly button, a rare seriousness appearing in her eyes.

"Nine-Tails? What happened to Nine-Tails?"

Upon hearing the words "Nine-Tails," Minato immediately became serious.

"It keeps breathing out air for no reason, something I've only seen when Mito-sama was alive."

Putting the Nine-Tails, which was being stressed by the Uchiha Silver Sharingan's aura, aside for the time being, Fugaku, who had received the order from the Fire Core Clan, took his leave first, and Minato immediately got up to see him off.

"Minato-kun, you've really done us a huge favor."

With a composed expression, Fugaku looked at Minato, who had followed him out, a complex look flashing across his face.

Is the return of Uchiha Gin, a senior member of the Uchiha clan, a good thing?

This is certainly true for the Uchiha clan, which has been under severe suppression, but for him, the newly appointed clan leader who hasn't even settled into his new position yet, it's not necessarily the case.

He had finally managed to suppress the hawkish faction within his clan who were always trying to cause trouble, and just as the relationship between the Uchiha clan and the Konoha leadership was gradually improving, a cousin of Madara Uchiha suddenly appeared. How could he not be worried?

If this Uchiha Gin is also a radical, with his seniority, all the Uchiha would have to follow his lead if he raised his arm and rallied them.

The thought that all his efforts over the years might be in vain gave Fugaku Uchiha a huge headache.

"Fugaku-senpai, don't worry, Gin-senpai is a very kind person."

As if sensing Fugaku Uchiha's worries, the quick-witted Minato immediately understood his concerns and smiled assuring him.

Putting aside his righteous assistance during the time in Loulan, just considering the fact that Uchiha Silver Gang member Hatake Sakumo offered him advice, this senior was different from ordinary Uchiha.

Looking at Minato's gentle expression, Fugaku sighed inwardly.

"I hope so."

No sooner had Fugaku left than the Sannin also emerged from the shop. Jiraiya, walking at the front and clearly somewhat distracted, looked at his outstanding disciple with a sigh and patted him on the shoulder.

"Minato, you've brought back someone extraordinary this time."

"Senior Yin is a good person. If it weren't for his help, we might all be stuck in Loulan."

"Oh~ Is he really that strong?"

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. He knew Minato's strength very well, and for Minato to say something like that meant that Gin Uchiha's true strength was far beyond that of a Jonin.

"How should I put it? In short, they are very strong."

Because his memories were sealed, Minato's mind was filled only with the image of Gin Uchiha opening the Heavenly Gate with a single sword strike, so he pondered for a long time but couldn't come up with a coherent explanation.

"Your chakra is a bit disordered, are you injured?"

Orochimaru, who was standing to the side, suddenly frowned, his scrutinizing gaze sweeping over Minato's face.

"Thank you for your concern, Orochimaru-senpai. I only suffered a minor injury, it's nothing serious."

Subconsciously touching his still-healing kidney, Minato smiled and nodded at Orochimaru, not suspecting that there was something wrong with his memory.

"By the way, where's Kushina?"

Seeing that all three legendary Sannin had emerged, but his girlfriend was still nowhere to be seen, Minato immediately had a bad feeling.

"It looks like she's doing some kind of breath test."

Tsunade, who was deep in thought, looked up at him and replied with a strange expression.

"what?"

Inside the store, "What kind of weird ritual are you performing, you tomato-headed idiot?"

Uchiha Gin, who was slurping noodles, looked at Kushina, who was pacing back and forth beside him, with a puzzled expression. Did this little girl inherit her intelligence from her son? She didn't seem very bright.

despair!

"Not laughing anymore?"

Kushina abruptly stopped three meters away from Uchiha Gin, observing the suddenly quiet Kurama (Nine-Tails). A deep sense of certainty filled her fair face.

Sure enough, it was because of that curly hair that Nine-Tailed Fox started breathing out inexplicably.

"Da da da"

Thinking of this, she unexpectedly took a few small steps forward.

"what!"

As the distance closed, the Nine-Tailed Fox inside the sealed space indeed began to breathe frantically as if in response.

"What did you do to the Nine-Tails?"

"Uh?"

Looking at the red-haired girl with burning eyes, Uchiha Gin slurped up the last noodle and put it in his mouth. After giving a satisfied thumbs-up to his hand, which was nervously clenched by the pot, he looked down at Kushina's flat stomach.

"Is it causing trouble again?"

"You do recognize it!"

Sensing Uchiha Gin's gaze, Kushina awkwardly covered her navel, her pretty face showing only increasing confusion.

"We wouldn't even call ourselves acquaintances."

Uchiha Gin shook his head. He had dealt with the Nine-Tails quite a bit, but he had never actually met this Nine-Tails before.

"impossible."

Unconvinced, Kushina suddenly took a few steps back, widening the distance to more than three meters. Kurama, unable to detect any remaining Sharingan aura on Uchiha Gin, instantly calmed down.

"It's the power of the Sharingan."

Uchiha Kakuzu, who was waiting to the side, squinted his eyes and pondered for a moment before speaking slowly and deliberately.

"The Nine-Tails sensed Lord Gin's eye power, which triggered its stress response."

"How could that be? Mikoto and I even went to a hot spring together!"

Kushina looked at the old man in confusion. It wasn't like she hadn't had close encounters with Sharingan ninjas before.

"It's different. Lord Gin and Lord Madara are blood relatives, so their eye powers naturally have similarities. The Nine-Tails was once forcibly enslaved by Lord Madara, so it would naturally become agitated upon sensing similar eye powers."

"Is that really true?"

Looking suspiciously at the confident old man, Kushina slightly pursed her lips.

That makes it sound like she's a weak Jinchūriki.

"Can't you just ask it?"

Uchiha Gin looked curiously at Kushina, who was pouting. Shouldn't this kind of question be asked directly to Kurama, the beast in question?

"He's too dead to ask."

Recalling the Nine-Tails bound hand and foot in the sealed space by the Vajra Seal, with only its mouth exposed and breathing, Kushina shook her head with a strange expression.

"Kushina, Gin-senpai, you..."

Just then, Minato, worried that his girlfriend and Uchiha Gin might clash, rushed in. Seeing the two staring at each other without any violent conflict, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Senior Yin, we won't disturb your old friends' gathering any longer. See you later."

Minato glanced at Uchiha Hikaru, who was waiting next to Uchiha Gin, and then tactfully pulled his girlfriend away first.

"Oh, Lord Yin, you've come back at the worst possible time."

After the bystanders dispersed, Uchiha Higanbana, who was strolling slowly through the streets of Konoha with Uchiha Gin, suddenly let out a long sigh and uttered a strange statement.

Uchiha Gin rolled his eyes upon hearing this.

"Then I'll go?"

"."

"That's not what I meant."

Uchiha Kakuzu gave a bitter smile.

"I have failed Lord Madara's trust."

The Uchiha clan's status has declined drastically. Compared to its former glory as a powerful clan in the Land of Fire, its overall strength and prestige are now only a fraction of what they once were. Even former underlings like Sarutobi and Shimura dare to act arrogantly towards them.

Seeing his clan in such a sorry state filled Uchiha Kagami with shame and indignation. If he weren't so old and weak, he would have awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan in no time.

"You've done more than enough to lead the Uchiha clan through the hands of that white-haired guy until now."

Contrary to expectations, Uchiha Gin simply nodded slightly. He knew very well that he had no right to interfere with the Uchiha clan in this timeline.

"Master Yin"

Upon hearing this, Uchiha Kako was stunned for a moment, then large tears welled up in his cloudy eyes.

He had waited nearly forty years to hear those words.

A moment later, he wiped away his tears and straightened his hunched body.

"Lord Gin! I will definitely lead my clan to restore the glory of the Uchiha clan."

"Uh, that kid named Fugaku from earlier, is he married?"

Looking at Uchiha Hikaru's determined gaze, Uchiha Gin hesitated for a moment, then suddenly asked a question that caught the other party off guard.

"Reporting to Lord Gin, Fugaku is already married, and his wife is currently pregnant."

Although he couldn't understand why Uchiha Gin would ask such a strange question, Uchiha Hikaru still answered seriously.

Upon hearing that Fugaku Uchiha was not only married but also about to have a child, Gin Uchiha could only regretfully offer six words:

"There's no hope. Just wait to die."

"what?"

"Watergate!"

Minato, who had been enjoying a sweet moment with his girlfriend, was walking home with a happy smile on his face when his reverie was interrupted by a figure leaning against the street.

"Jiraiya-sensei?"

Seeing Jiraiya all alone, Minato quickly suppressed his lecherous expression and resumed his usual serious demeanor.

"I have something I'd like to confirm with you."

Jiraiya nodded, his eyes showing an unusual seriousness.

"Please speak."

"Has that Uchiha Gin ever told you what he's been doing all these years?"

"Senior Yin, huh?"

Seeing the solemn expression on his teacher's face, Minato frowned and pondered for a moment before slowly speaking.

"On the way here, he mentioned that he had been traveling incognito through various countries of the ninja world for years, his footprints covering almost every corner of the ninja world. Some time ago, he was in the Land of Honey, and further ahead were the Land of Snow, the Land of Waterfalls, and the Land of Rain."

"Wait, the Land of Rain?"

Upon hearing the words "Land of Rain," Jiraiya's expression changed slightly.

"He traveled to the Land of Rain? When exactly?"

"He didn't say the specifics, he only mentioned that the Land of Rain was still at war at that time."

"That makes sense then. So it was him." (End of Chapter)