Now, it's just a change of name, with Guren and Hyuga Asane over there.
In the future, that place will be Uchiha Takashi's stronghold.
After Nara Shikaku left with a stack of signed documents, someone else came in.
And naturally, those who can enter without prior notice are specially instructed to do so.
A tall and sturdy figure, with a shiny bald head, looking quite out of place.
Ninjas are typically high attack, low defense, akin to assassins.
But Yamakawa Koji, with his appearance, is clearly a high defense, low agility type, a solid tank warrior.
A tank warrior among a group of assassins certainly stands out.
However, even if someone finds it odd, they wouldn't dare to say it out loud.
In previous battles, Yamakawa Koji was able to take down Sand Ninjas with a single punch, and even after being hit by dozens of kunai and senbon, he continued to fight fiercely.
His combat style is exceptionally tough.
So not only does no one look down on him because of his appearance, but many people actually admire him greatly.
"This is for you!"
Uchiha Takashi tossed a scroll to him.
The Eight Gates!
It was also something brought by the messenger ninja.
Although the Konoha F4 didn't say anything explicitly, they implied enough, which is why Uchiha Takashi gladly accepted the order.
Otherwise, without any benefits, he would have been furious.
Yamakawa Koji took the scroll and turned to leave.
With their relationship, there's no need for thanks. He has already decided to fully train in this forbidden technique to repay his best friend's help.
"Pakura, Rasa, don't let me down!"
Watching his best friend's departing figure, a smile flashed in Uchiha Takashi's eyes.
Although he had defeated them before, it wasn't because they were weak, but because Sage Mode was too powerful, coupled with their lack of information on him.
If they were to fight again now.
Even in a one-on-one, while they might lose, defeating them would be extremely difficult.
Therefore, Uchiha Takashi is genuinely curious about what kind of fun this newly formed ninja army will bring.
In fact, he can guess the hidden cards of the opponent.
Orochimaru! It's been over ten days since he was poisoned. If he hasn't detoxified by now, it wouldn't be Orochimaru. Even if he couldn't, wouldn't he seek out Tsunade?
He just left, he didn't die.
But the fact that there's no news of him until now indicates that the village is deliberately hiding his whereabouts.
It seems the Konoha higher-ups are planning to use Orochimaru as a hidden trump card.
That's why Uchiha Takashi is looking forward to it; otherwise, he wouldn't be interested in a one-sided battle.
One day later!
Yes, it only took one day for the newly formed thousand-strong ninja army to arrive at Kikyo Mountain.
That's what you call 'Konoha speed' (tactical lean back!).
But upon reflection, this speed seems quite normal.
The ninja clans from which the ninjas were drawn are all aligned with the Hokage faction, so it's just a matter of one command.
Moreover, this is about gaining benefits, not a suicide mission, so naturally, no one would slack off.
A thousand-strong ninja army, is that a lot?
Ninjas are inherently a combat profession, always on standby. Most of the time was spent on selection and travel, while assembly and preparation didn't take much time.
Supplies?
They can be directly obtained at the Kikyo Fortress.
This was originally the station for the Southwest Ninja Army, so supplies are abundant.
After blowing up Kikyo Mountain, supplies were immediately sent over.
Ninja tools, soldier pills... nothing is lacking.
Standing atop the mountain, Uchiha Takashi surveyed the ninja army below receiving their supplies.
Elite!
They come from the private armies of various ninja clans (unregistered ninjas), and they are the best of the best. Even the genin among them aren't much weaker than civilian chunin.
As mentioned before.
The advantages of ninja clans far surpass those of civilian ninjas, so it's normal for them to dominate their peers and fight above their rank. "Impressive momentum, let's hope they can live up to it on the battlefield!"
Uchiha Takashi's gaze was playful.
The troops are indeed elite, and in terms of raw strength, they surpass the Southwest Ninja Army.
Unfortunately, they're all private armies.
This means they haven't been tested by fire and blood.
A large-scale battlefield is a completely different realm from regular team battles.
Let's hope they can hold their ground.
Facing the Sand Ninja, who have no retreat and will fight to the death, Uchiha Takashi honestly doesn't have high hopes for this ninja army. It's only because of Orochimaru's presence as a safety net that they have a chance; otherwise, they'd just be sent to their doom.
"Uchiha Takashi-kun!" Hyuga Aotsuki's sweet and playful voice suddenly rang out behind Uchiha Takashi.
Yes, she had returned from the Land of Rivers.
After the battle at Kikyo Mountain, she immediately went there, not only to look after Guren but also for another important reason.
Fetal movement!
The second phase of the Tenseigan's fetal movement had arrived.
After passing this phase, her strength increased significantly.
She hadn't quite reached Kage level from quasi-Kage, but dealing with Kage-level opponents became much easier than before.
Even if Pakura and Rasa knew her abilities, they wouldn't easily win.
This was still a matter of combat experience.
If both sides had similar combat experience, and they fought openly, the chances of her emerging victorious were quite high.
"How's it going?"
Uchiha Takashi curiously examined Hyuga Aotsuki's eyes.
A hint of blue flickered, as deep and mysterious as the ocean.
"Very well... It's just that something on the moon seems to be calling me!"
Hyuga Aotsuki looked up at the sky.
Even though it was daytime and the moon wasn't visible, her gaze seemed to pierce through space to see it.
"It must be your bloodline yearning to be completed!"
Uchiha Takashi speculated.
On the moon, the only thing related to the Tenseigan would be the Otsutsuki bloodline.
If completed, she should be able to quickly bypass the fetal movement phase and enter the mature phase.
However, after recalling, Uchiha Takashi remembered that the main and branch families on the moon hadn't started their conflict yet.
Going to the moon now would be asking for trouble, so they needed to wait for the right opportunity.
And the best opportunity would be intercepting Toneri when he comes to meet the 'Princess of the Byakugan,' giving them a chance to fully complete the bloodline.
"Bloodline, huh!"
Hyuga Aotsuki murmured to herself, then withdrew her gaze.
She wasn't someone who chased after power, but working for Uchiha Takashi required strength, which drove her to work so hard. This was the true reason for her rapid increase in power.
As the two were chatting, a group led by Nara Shikaku approached.
Here he comes, the fun is about to begin!
Uchiha Takashi's smile was hard to suppress.
Sarutobi Shinnosuke, along with the two men and one woman who had previously represented Koharu Utatane, Sarutobi, and the Mito clan to trouble him, plus a representative from the Shimura Clan, made it hard not to be intrigued.
The group reached the mountaintop where Uchiha Takashi and Hyuga Aotsuki stood.
"Uchiha Takashi... Commander!"
Sarutobi Shinnosuke looked somewhat reluctantly at the refined young man before him, ultimately refraining from calling him 'Taichijin.' (This is a more respectful way to say commander -subordinate to higher rank- in chinese if you have any suggestions leave a comment)
If it were Orochimaru, he wouldn't hesitate.
But Uchiha Takashi!
A kid in his teens, it was hard for him to call him Taichijin, so he directly used his title.
But it wasn't wrong.
In terms of position, he was also a commander, and with their positions being equivalent, not calling him Taichijin was reasonable.
Uchiha Takashi greeted him with a smile.
"Sarutobi Shinnosuke, Commander!"
His smile was genuine.
Seeing this second-generation Hokage uncomfortable was a pleasure for him, so he didn't care about the title... just kidding.
Before the other could respond, he coldly said, "I'm glad you came to see me, but not even calling me 'Taichijin' is quite rude!"
Yes, what level are you at to sit in the same position as me?
Second-generation Hokage... well, never mind! Even if you can be a commander, that's your ability, but not calling me Taichijin makes me seem inferior to other Kage-level powerhouses?
Uchiha Takashi's thoughts were straightforward.
In his previous life as a 'programmer,' he naturally resented the upper echelons and the second generation.
Before, he had to endure to get by, but now he couldn't just lie down, and with Sage Mode at his disposal, he couldn't directly rebel, but he couldn't vent his frustration?
Of course, a significant part of his anger was directed at Sarutobi Hiruzen behind him.
He had just reached an agreement with him to become the commander of the southwestern ninja army to resist the Sand Ninja, and then he turned around and formed a new ninja army to divide power. Did he really think he was that easy to handle?
It was only for the sake of the Eight Gates and using Konoha's channels to find orphans that he reluctantly agreed.
But if you come to 'pay respects' and don't even call me Taichijin, it puts me in a tough spot.
And since it's tough, why bother?
Rather than trouble himself, he might as well go crazy.
Uchiha Takashi adhered to this philosophy well.