Perhaps it was because he was moved by Aburame Shigeo's sincerity, or perhaps because it didn't matter, Uchiha Itachi eventually told him all about the current situation of Aburame Chien and Naruto.
Naruto was still burdened with the "demon fox" label, growing up alone, enduring the harshness of the world, just as in the original storyline.
On the other hand, Aburame Chien's situation was completely different.
From birth, she had been surrounded by a halo. Whether in the Aburame clan or in Konoha Village, she was showered with love and attention from all directions.
Influenced by the adults around her, even the children in Konoha now referred to her as "Chien-hime" (Princess Chien).
With such a start, even if her future achievements were limited, she wouldn't end up too badly.
As a father, Aburame Shigeo didn't expect much from his daughter. He only hoped that she could grow up safely.
"As long as the child is safe, it's fine. The dangers and darkness of the ninja world, we old remnants of the past will bear them. You think the same way, right, Itachi?"
Aburame Shigeo's ambiguous words caused Uchiha Itachi to furrow his brow. "What do you mean by that?"
"Exactly what it sounds like!"
Aburame Shigeo took a deep breath, offering no further explanation. He turned and walked away, but after a few steps, he paused and looked back at Uchiha Itachi.
"Itachi, thank you for the information. In return, I won't make things difficult for Sasuke in the future. I might even lend him a hand at a crucial moment."
With that, he disappeared using the Body Flicker Technique, leaving Uchiha Itachi with a changed expression.
"So, he already knows…"
---
What Uchiha Itachi thought didn't concern Aburame Shigeo. He had already returned to his cell cultivation laboratory.
Compared to a few years ago, the laboratory had expanded several times over.
Wherever he looked, there were massive glass containers filled with green cultivation solutions, within which floated various forms of cell tissue.
Maintaining this laboratory alone accounted for the largest part of the Akatsuki organization's total expenses!
If it weren't for Nagato's strong support, and Konan's coordination as a new high-ranking member, the other members of the Akatsuki would have long been in open conflict.
Karin had been particularly vocal in his opposition over the years, and more than once had clashed with Aburame Shigeo. However, each time, the result had caused him great pain.
Once having five hearts, his current number of hearts had fluctuated between two, leading to a fragile state of mind.
Aburame Shigeo even suspected that this might be the reason Karin often "accidentally" injured his partners.
"Well, it's fine. Accidents happen. Most of the people in Akatsuki aren't exactly saints. A bunch of troublemakers... If they die, they die."
Aburame Shigeo didn't feel sorry for these "comrades."
For him, the most important thing was improving his own strength.
Thanks to his efforts, and the enormous funds provided by the Akatsuki, the output of the cell cultivation room was highly promising.
Nagato's cells were thriving, and the synthesized blood worms were of excellent quality. The chakra they produced was five times the amount compared to the chakra produced by the hair-synthesized blood worms.
The only downside was the significant consumption of Hashirama's cells.
A fist-sized piece of Hashirama's cells used to create nearly a hundred blood worms to synthesize the Wood Style parasites, but now it could only produce around twenty.
The chakra consumed in the synthesis process was also five times greater than it was for the original Wood Style parasites.
This meant that the improved Wood Style parasites not only provided five times the Wood Style chakra, but their lifespan was also five times longer.
Theoretically, they could last up to fifty years!
Although this significantly extended the replacement cycle for the parasites, the drawbacks were still apparent.
The material consumption was too great, and the supply of Hashirama's cells was insufficient.
In an attempt to resolve this, Aburame Shigeo had already used 90% of the cultivation room's capacity, but the results were still unsatisfactory.
Cultivating Hashirama's cells required a large amount of materials, and the slow division speed of the cells greatly prolonged the cultivation process.
After seven years in the Akatsuki, Aburame Shigeo had spent hundreds of millions of ryo, and the improved Wood Style parasites only numbered around 6,000.
Adding the 1,000 original Wood Style parasites he had accumulated in the Land of Rice, the total was less than 8,000.
This number wasn't large.
Seven years ago, when Aburame Shigeo was in Konoha, the number of parasites in his body had already reached 50,000.
Now, the total was only one-sixth of that.
Fortunately, the quality of the Wood Style parasites was incredibly high!
The ordinary Wood Style parasites provided ten times the chakra of the regular blood worms.
The improved Wood Style parasites offered more than five times the chakra of the ordinary ones!
This meant that Aburame Shigeo's total chakra was now six times what it was when he was in Konoha.
Moreover, this chakra was highly specialized—Wood Style chakra!
He could clearly feel the Wood Style chakra flowing through his body, like a rushing river, endlessly surging through him.
To put it bluntly, while others had chakra, his chakra could be called "Chaktonra" (Chakra-ton).
His intuition told him that with his current Wood Style chakra reserves, he had enough power to perform the legendary Wood Style technique, "Wood Style: True Forest Creation," from Senju Hashirama.
However, regrettably, he wasn't Hashirama himself. He couldn't simply clap his hands and summon it.
To release Wood Style ninjutsu, he needed to know the corresponding jutsu formula and the principles of chakra release.
Fortunately, obtaining such knowledge wasn't too difficult. Orochimaru should have access to it, and if not, he could always try to steal Konoha's Sealing Scroll.
Aburame Shigeo was more inclined towards the latter.
After all, if someone like Naruto, who wasn't the brightest, could pull it off, then there was no reason why he, as a godfather, couldn't do the same.
Even if he couldn't, he could wait for Naruto to steal the scroll for him.
If Mizuki wanted to play the role of the mantis, then there was no harm in him playing the role of the cicada.
It wasn't about fear of danger; it was about playing it safe.
Safety was the most important thing!
So, things like jutsu formulas could be put on hold for now. The most important thing was to solidify his foundation.
Setting a small goal first—synthesize 10,000 improved Wood Style parasites!
If he achieved this goal, Aburame Shigeo believed that his chakra reserves should be comparable to that of a Tailed Beast.
Although the goal was set, it wasn't something that could be completed quickly.
Unless he used all the funds accumulated by the Akatsuki over the years and expanded the current cell cultivation room by ten times!
But of course, that was just wishful thinking.
If he actually did that, not only would Karin likely defect, but even Uchiha Obito would probably step forward to confront him.
"Ugh, for the sake of caution, I'll just keep things as they are for now."
Aburame Shigeo was somewhat helpless. At the current rate, increasing the number of improved Wood Style parasites to 10,000 would take at least four more years.
Thinking about it, it would take four more years before he could see his daughter, which left him with complex feelings.
"I've been in the Akatsuki for seven years now. If I stay for another four, Chien will be 11, and Naruto will be 12… Hm? 12?"
*(End of chapter)*