Tanzaku Quarters.
In an inconspicuous small tavern, at a corner table.
Tsunade, with her blonde twin tails and impressive figure, looked at Jiraiya with a flushed face and a half-smile.
"So... return to the village and inherit the position of Fifth Hokage?"
Tsunade downed the wine in her cup in one go and slammed the cup heavily onto the table with a thud:
"Jiraiya, is your brain clogged with toad oil? I lost interest in things like being Hokage a long time ago!"
"Tsunade, it's different this time!"
Jiraiya put away his playful demeanor. "Sarutobi-sensei died in battle. The village is currently leaderless and facing threats from both inside and out."
"You are the granddaughter of the First Hokage and one of the Sannin. Your reputation, strength, and lineage are enough to convince everyone."
"Apart from you, there is no more suitable candidate in Konoha right now!"
"Whoever wants it can take it. Don't come looking for me. Only fools want to be Hokage!"
Tsunade turned her face away and poured herself another cup of wine. "Besides, I stopped being a Konoha ninja a long time ago!"
Jiraiya sighed, knowing that appealing to emotion and reason alone wouldn't work on Tsunade. He rolled his eyes and said:
"What if I told you that the First Hokage's Wood Release has appeared in the village? Wouldn't you want to go back and take a look?"
"What?!"
Tsunade paused in pouring her wine, spilling some of the liquid.
Her beautiful, drunken eyes were filled with astonishment:
"Speak clearly! Wood Release? That... how is that possible?"
"Except for Grandfather!"
"No one in the Senju clan has awakened that power for a long time!"
"Or did Orochimaru conduct some disgusting human experiment again?"
Tsunade's reaction was even greater than Jiraiya had anticipated.
After all.
For her, Wood Release was not just a powerful Kekkei Genkai, but a symbol belonging to her grandfather.
"I know this one!"
Before Jiraiya could answer, Naruto, who was wolfing down food beside them, suddenly looked up and shouted proudly:
"It's Uchiha Yao! He's amazing, and he's my good friend!"
"Uchiha... Yao?"
Tsunade was stunned. "An Uchiha using Wood Release? Kid, have you eaten yourself stupid?"
"I have not!"
Naruto shouted defiantly, "During the Chūnin Exams, that guy Gaara from the Sand Village turned into a super huge, chubby raccoon dog!"
"He was super strong!"
"But Yao is even stronger! He directly created a super huge wooden man, even bigger than Boss Toad! He knocked Shukaku down with just one punch!"
"He even stuffed the black ball it spat out right back into its mouth, and boom! It exploded! It was awesome!"
Naruto spoke while gesturing wildly, his face full of admiration for his friend.
"Wood... Wood Human Technique?!" This time, Tsunade was truly shocked; she even forgot to put down the cup in her hand.
The Wood Human Technique—that was one of her grandfather's signature high-level Wood Release jutsu!
To be able to perform such a technique meant that this Wood Release was definitely not just for show!
She snapped her head toward Jiraiya, her gaze sharp. "Jiraiya! What exactly is going on?"
"How could an Uchiha brat master the Senju clan's Kekkei Genkai? And Wood Release at that?"
Jiraiya spread his hands, a look of puzzlement on his face as well. "I'm not too clear on the specifics either."
"But the kid's name is Uchiha Yao. He's a student in Hatake Kakashi's squad, about twelve years old this year."
"His Wood Release... although I haven't seen it with my own eyes, according to reports from Kakashi and the ANBU, its power is indeed astonishing, and the scale is massive!"
"Some even say..."
"He already possesses a few traces of the First Hokage's style from his younger days."
"As for why he, an Uchiha, can use Wood Release..."
Jiraiya shook his head. "That is also my biggest question."
"But his identity is confirmed without a doubt. He is an orphan of the Uchiha clan, Uchiha Sasuke's older brother."
Tsunade fell silent.
She put down her wine cup and leaned back in her chair, a layer of heavy suspicion clouding her beautiful face.
As a direct descendant of the Senju clan and granddaughter of the First Hokage, Tsunade didn't harbor any ancestral prejudice against the Uchiha clan.
But for an Uchiha to awaken the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai, which her grandfather relied on to pacify the turbulent times...
This was too abnormal!
It completely violated the basic rules of Kekkei Genkai inheritance!
The bloodlines of Uchiha and Senju were fundamentally different. The Sharingan was the ultimate manifestation of Yin Release, while Wood Release was the pinnacle creation of Yang Release's life force.
The two were practically diametric opposites, unless...
Possibilities of certain forbidden human experiments flashed through her mind, making her even more uneasy.
"An Uchiha... actually able to use such powerful Wood Release..." Tsunade's eyes flickered with uncertainty.
This news was indeed more compelling than any other reason she could have imagined for returning to Konoha.
...
Using the Flying Thunder God Technique, Yao teleported to the border of the Land of Fire, into a deep, desolate mountain valley rarely visited by humans.
Far from Konoha and away from major roads, this was the ideal place for him to secretly temper his newly acquired powers.
Yao's training focus was naturally the Susanoo he had just mastered.
And... to further refine the ocular power of his Mangekyō Sharingan.
The Mangekyō Sharingan was a very contradictory Kekkei Genkai!
Every use caused irreversible consumption of the eyes, bringing them closer to eternal darkness.
But on the other hand, to unleash the true power of the Mangekyō, one had to familiarize and strengthen the ocular power through repeated practice.
This created a vicious cycle: if you didn't use the Mangekyō, you couldn't control it; if you used it, you accelerated blindness.
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Naruto : I'm an Uchiha Who Can Use Wood (Simulpub, Ongoing)
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Therefore, under normal circumstances, unless one could evolve it into the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, it was difficult to develop and temper it recklessly.
Naturally, one couldn't fully bring out the potential of these eyes.
Just like Itachi, who until his death could only use Susanoo up to its second form.
But Yao...
He didn't have this concern!
The Sage Body endowed him with unparalleled life force and powerful self-healing abilities.
The risk of Mangekyō blindness was almost non-existent for him.
This meant he could practice again and again, repeatedly draining and training the Mangekyō's ocular power.
By repeatedly probing the edge of his limits, he allowed his ocular power to grow rapidly.
"Susanoo!"
The crimson windmill pattern in Yao's eyes spun rapidly, and a massive emerald-green chakra giant rose from the ground.
From its initial skeletal form, it was quickly covered with meridians and flesh, then condensed into heavy Tengu armor.
A gigantic spiral sword took shape in its hand, and the armor on its chest opened to reveal an orange magatama.
Susanoo: Third Form!
The entire condensation process became incredibly smooth, completely lacking the initial stagnation, burning pain, and heaviness.
This was the result of repeated use and tempering of ocular power!
The life force from the Sage Body not only repaired damage but also caused the side effects from continuous Mangekyō usage to diminish and disappear at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Correspondingly, Yao's perception and control of ocular power became increasingly refined and fluid.
His "development" of Susanoo also progressed at godlike speed.
From initially being able to maintain the first form for only a few dozen seconds, he could now stably activate the third form for several minutes.
Moreover!
Susanoo's strength was increasing. The density of the chakra, the defensive power of the armor, the power of the weapons...
All were steadily enhancing with the growth of his Mangekyō ocular power.