Even the liveliest gathering eventually comes to an end.
By 9:30 PM, the three little ones were already dozing off, and the banquet had to disperse.
After seeing Gen and the others off, Kushina closed the door and started preparing Naruto for his bath and bedtime.
Two streets later, Anna Uzumaki also parted ways, taking Karin back with her. Gen, Mikoto, Itachi, and Sasuke continued on toward the clan grounds.
Sasuke was carried in Itachi's arms, while Gen and Mikoto strolled side by side, chatting casually and enjoying the cool evening breeze. The simple warmth of the moment made the night feel pleasant.
They eventually reached the clan's intersection and split off to return to their homes for the night.
Over the next two days, Gen mostly rested, though he resumed his personal training as well. His current focus was on Lightning Release chakra nature transformation and Sealing refinement.
Thanks to Kyouki's guidance and his own prior experience with chakra transformation, developing lightning-nature chakra was only a matter of time.
Though each elemental attribute had unique traits, the core principles overlapped.
By the fourth day, Gen officially resumed duties with the Police Force.
Yuhi Kurenai, Mitarashi Anko, and Uzuki Yugao weren't around, out on missions. Gen's timing back in the village wasn't the best. Most shinobi of his generation were deployed on extended assignments. Missions often lasted a week, ten days, sometimes half a month before returning.
This was the reality of the shinobi lifestyle; constant work, steady risks, and uneven pay.
While shinobi income wasn't bad, it wasn't nearly as glamorous as outsiders imagined. Lucrative missions were the most dangerous, required longer deployment, and carried heavy costs.
The Hokage's office took a cut, the rest was divided among teammates, and damaged ninja tools had to be replenished from one's own share. Injuries only worsened the balance sheet; treatment was expensive, and recovery time meant lost earnings from missed missions.
Some shinobi even ended up in debt despite working nonstop.
Gen first reported in at the Police Force headquarters, then led his Ninth Squad to the outskirts of the village.
Along the way, his subordinates, Vice-Captain Uchiha Shin and the others, praised him endlessly. A lesser shinobi might have grown arrogant under such constant flattery. But in truth, it was rare for Uchiha to give sincere compliments at all.
Their pride made respect hard-earned.
The fact that even his clanmates revered him was proof of the weight of Gen's achievements. After all, within the entire clan, only a tiny handful had reached the point of being feared and recognized across the entire ninja world.
Yes, many Uchiha awakened Two-Tomoe or Three-Tomoe Sharingan and could rise to jonin rank but that alone was far from making a name in the wider world.
The Sharingan was strong, but other villages' bloodline limit shinobi were formidable as well.
At present, there were really only two and a half Uchiha acknowledged as renowned shinobi across nations,
Gen himself, Shisui, and Fugaku who counted as 'half' only because his reputation leaned more on his position as Clan Head than actual battlefield feats.
The elders were known purely for their titles, not their strength.
In contrast, Gen's record was ironclad; intelligence from other villages credited him with over fifteen jonin kills during campaigns against Kirigakure, Kumogakure, and Iwagakure.
The truth was even bloodier, but he deliberately concealed much of it. Even Konoha's own intelligence system, with better data, hadn't tallied more than twenty.
More importantly, his near single-handed domination of the Land of Grass battlefield cemented his reputation as a war-shaping powerhouse.
Other villages' analysts had concluded the obvious; Uchiha Gen's strength had already stepped into Kage-level.
By comparison, none seriously believed Fugaku was more than quasi-Kage at best.
Thus, word had spread that Gen was the strongest ninja of the Uchiha clan.
Most of the clan accepted the label readily as his feats spoke for themselves.
So naturally, the Ninth Squad looked at him with awe.
Gen, however, remained grounded. He accepted their words with calm detachment, fully aware of how vast the shinobi world was. Pride didn't blind him.
"By the way," Gen suddenly asked as they walked, "has any Three-Tomoe Sharingan been lost recently?"
"Captain, no," Chen replied quickly.
Gen exhaled softly. So Obito's really been holding back for over a year and a half?
That patience was concerning.
By now, many of the clan's Three-Tomoe holders had probably grown lax. If Obito struck now, it would be devastatingly easy.
Even if warned, most would probably dismiss it, convinced the danger had passed.
Forget it. They can gamble with their luck. Obito can't do anything to me anyway.
Still, he added, "Shin, Shu, you two should stay cautious. Just because things are quiet doesn't mean the threat has vanished."
"Yes, Captain," they both replied.
Whether they truly took it to heart or not didn't matter. He had done his part.
"Alright then, let's begin today's work."
"Yes, Captain!" the squad chorused.
Gen left them to their patrols and found a shady tree to sit beneath. Arms folded, eyes closed, he appeared to nap, while inwardly planning the next steps of his growth.
Two clear paths stood before him.
First, Sage Mode.
With his vast Kage-level chakra, he already qualified to pursue it. He just needed to go to Ryuchi Cave with Orochimaru. Now that the situation in Konoha was stable, the timing was good. If all went as history suggested, peace with Kumogakure would be negotiated next year but would they truly behave?
With Kushina alive and his own power bolstering Konoha, things were already far stronger than the original timeline. But would Kumo dare risk anything?
Second, empowering his Homies.
He already had ideas on how to enhance the three advanced Homies, though the results remained uncertain. Shizukamaru in particular required special ninja tools to grow, so that would have to wait.
Still, it wasn't ideal to keep all three with him at once. Leaving one behind could serve as an early-warning system. After all, Obito's methods were unpredictable, so best to prepare for a sneak attack.
Decision made, Gen acted at once. His figure blurred, vanishing.
A heartbeat later, he stood atop an active volcano on the southeastern border of the Land of Fire. Sulfurous smoke roared skyward.
"Shuryu."
"Here, Master."
A red flash appeared, forming into a miniature fire dragon that nuzzled against Gen's cheek.
"You'll live here in this volcano. I'll check on you later."
"Okay, Master. I like it here."
"Stay nearby, don't cause trouble, and don't draw human attention."
"Understood."
With a crimson blaze, Kyouki grew larger, soaring on flaming clouds before diving proudly into the magma below.
Gen vanished again.
This time he reappeared atop a towering peak in the Land of Lightning. Below stretched a vast ocean of white clouds, above thunder growled within roiling black storm clouds.
"Kyouki."
"Here, Master."
A wisp of white cloud flitted out from his sleeve, playfully circling his head.
"You'll stay centered around this mountain. You heard my instructions to Shuryu?"
"I did."
"The same rules apply to you. Go."
"Yes, Master."
Kyouki flashed into a streak of white light, vanishing into the storm overhead, merging seamlessly with the thunderclouds.
Gen shook his head. "Those two brats are too eager…"
He patted the hilt at his side. "Shizukamaru, looks like you're the only one left with me now. Happy?"
From within the scabbard came the reply: "only Half so."
"Huh?"
"Without Second Brother and Third Brother, I have no playmates."
"Play with Mokui and Mokuna, then."
"They're too childish, too low-level. It's boring."
Gen: "…"
"…Then how about playing with children?"
"Okay."
Gen: "???"
Wait. Aren't children childish?