"This is just some money Orochimaru gave me because he saw I didn't have much on me."
Raijin rubbed his nose awkwardly.
"Not much money, huh?"
Tatsumi smirked and glanced over at Uchiha Motohide, who stood not far away.
Seeing this, Uchiha Motohide silently lowered his head, casually placing a hand on his forehead as if nothing had happened.
Suisei also lowered his head, pretending not to hear.
Every time Raijin went to the Konohagakure casino to withdraw money, Suisei would always bring people along to assist him.
Now that Tatsumi pointed it out, it was indeed a bit embarrassing.
"You're one of us Uchiha—how can you walk around with no money?"
Uchiha Tatsumi said as he pulled out a thick stack of bills from his pocket and shoved them into Raijin's hand.
"Then I won't hold back."
Raijin grinned and took the money without hesitation.
Honestly, if Raijin wanted to hide the fact that he accepted money from Orochimaru, it would have been incredibly easy.
But he didn't.
Why? Because he wanted Uchiha Tatsumi to give him this money.
Of course, it wasn't that Raijin was obsessed with money.
It was just that this kind of exchange helped strengthen his bond with the Uchiha Clan.
How do relationships grow? It's simple—today I ask you for a favor, tomorrow you ask me for one.
Over time, those bonds deepen.
To be honest, Raijin rarely had any reason to ask the clan for help.
But the clan, on the other hand, constantly needed Raijin's strength to keep the Uchiha standing tall.
So this was all about creating a "problem" just so the clan could "solve" it for him.
Uchiha Madara watched the scene with a smile, saying nothing.
He understood perfectly. In the past, Raijin had to acknowledge the clan's presence, but he didn't have to go out of his way to strengthen that connection.
Now, things were different.
Raijin was making a conscious effort, and Madara knew that part of the reason was himself.
Madara wanted Raijin to be useful to him—
But Raijin also wanted Madara to be useful to him.
At this moment, the Uchiha Clan seemed to be a crucial link between them.
The Uchiha did have an influence on Raijin—his parents, his brothers, they were all here.
Could they really have no impact on him? Impossible.
But for Madara, the Uchiha Clan didn't matter as much.
That was the difference between someone with family ties and someone who stood alone.
"Alright, this matter is settled. Let Orochimaru know that if he still refuses to give up, I'll take care of it myself."
Uchiha Ikusa stood up and walked over to Raijin, speaking in a kind tone.
"Raijin, you shouldn't waste your time on these trivial things."
After a pause, the warmth on Uchiha Ikusa's face faded slightly, replaced by a more serious expression.
"For both the clan and Konohagakure, we all hope you will continue to grow stronger.
Even the smallest improvement from you is invaluable."
He sighed.
"Unfortunately, we old folks can no longer offer much help in that regard.
But when it comes to other pressures—rest assured, the clan is more than willing to handle them for you."
As he spoke, Uchiha Ikusa glanced around the room, his gaze passing over Tatsumi, Setsuna, Motohide, and the others before settling back on Raijin.
"Whether it's me or the other elders, we would all like to see you step away from these daily affairs and focus on what truly matters."
You shouldn't get distracted by things that don't really matter.
Your focus should be on your training. Even if you only get a little stronger, the strength of both the Uchiha and even Konohagakure will increase because of you.
Uchiha Ikusa let out a small sigh and continued speaking to Raijin.
"Orochimaru is your comrade, after all. If you want to meet with him for the first round of talks, you can go. But promise me this—if it doesn't go well, don't push it. Leave it to me.
Trust me, I can handle it for you."
Uchiha Ikusa looked at Raijin seriously.
He really didn't want Raijin to waste his time running around dealing with these matters.
Everyone in the Uchiha clan was willing to support Raijin alone.
Even now, with Uchiha Madara returning to the clan…
They still chose Raijin—the one they had watched grow up—over the man who had abandoned them in the past and even turned against them.
Tsunade becoming Hokage—whether it was to slack off and avoid heavy duties or simply to keep the Uchiha from feeling slighted—was something between her and Raijin.
At this point, Tsunade was already considered part of the Uchiha clan.
The fact that she could attend clan meetings was proof of that.
The Uchiha didn't like Raijin handling clan affairs every day, but they put up with it.
Now, he had finally freed himself from official duties, yet he was about to get distracted by these matters again.
Uchiha Ikusa couldn't stand it anymore.
The Uchiha clan itself wouldn't even let Raijin waste his time dealing with their own clan affairs!
"The fact that you're willing to hold a clan meeting today shows your sincerity—I can feel it, and so can everyone else.
But I don't think you need to worry about all this. You're part of the Uchiha, aren't you?
The Uchiha will always be your strongest support."
Before Raijin could respond, Uchiha Ikusa continued.
The Uchiha didn't need Raijin to do anything except train in peace.
That was what they wanted most.
Because of Raijin, the Uchiha no longer feared anything.
Even if the ancestor of chakra, Otsutsuki Kaguya, were to be resurrected…
As long as Uchiha Raijin was here, the Uchiha would not feel despair.
"Alright."
Raijin looked up at the people watching him and gave a small nod.
To be honest, he was a little moved.
But emotions were emotions—he still had things to do.
Relationships needed to be maintained.
"Go on, try to talk some sense into that troublesome comrade of yours."
Uchiha Ikusa chuckled and patted Raijin on the shoulder.
"Alright, I'm heading out."
Raijin lifted his chin slightly, nodded at Uchiha Madara, and turned to leave.
"Wait a moment."
Just then, Uchiha Madara suddenly spoke up.
"Hm? What is it, Madara-senpai?"
Raijin paused, looking at Madara in surprise.
"I'll go with you to meet this Orochimaru."
Madara stood up and said.
For one, he was curious about what kind of person could come up with such an idea.
On the other hand, he wanted to observe Raijin and Orochimaru's conversation to get a better understanding of Raijin himself.
"Can I say no?"
Raijin blinked and looked at Uchiha Madara.
"Can you not say no? I promise I won't say a word."
Madara chuckled and replied,
"Alright, let's go together then."
Raijin thought about it and realized there was no real reason to refuse.
It's not like Madara was going to kill Orochimaru on the spot, right?
"Let's go."
Madara nodded and started walking out of the Naka Shrine.
Raijin glanced at Tsunade and nodded before turning to follow Madara.
Tsunade sighed and pouted a little.
She had originally planned to go find Orochimaru herself.
But now, it seemed unnecessary.
—
On the way, Raijin sent a shadow clone ahead to inform Orochimaru, then continued walking with Madara.
"If it were me, I would've rejected the idea immediately."
Madara spoke as they walked.
"You don't actually think any ninja clan would support this idea, do you?"
He added after a short pause.
Madara was curious—was Raijin helping this Orochimaru guy because of their bond as comrades, or was there another reason?
"Orochimaru is my comrade. I can refuse him, but I can't just shut him down without doing anything."
Raijin responded.
"I know this idea will never work, but Orochimaru is an extremely talented ninja.
If I just say no without offering anything, he won't give up. And if that happens, there's a good chance he'll end up leaving the village."
"Oh? And you're actually worried about what Orochimaru might do to Konohagakure? I fought him once—he's strong, but that's about it."
Madara glanced at Raijin.
"It's not about what he could do to the village. If he leaves, personally, I lose a comrade I once fought alongside. And for the village, it means losing an exceptional genius."
Raijin shook his head and laughed.
"I see."
Madara smirked slightly. He had to admit, Raijin saw things quite clearly.
If he were the one in charge of Konohagakure, he would probably handle it the same way.
Spending a bit of time and resources to keep a talent like Orochimaru around was definitely worth it.
"What else could I do? If Lord Tobirama hadn't given me a way out, I wouldn't have known what to say back there."
Raijin sighed.
Handling the clan meeting was easy for him, but dealing with Orochimaru was the real challenge.
"Hmph, Senju Tobirama."
Madara snorted. If Uchiha Raijin weren't here, the first thing he would've done upon arriving in Konohagakure was kill Senju Tobirama.
As they talked, they arrived at Orochimaru's home.
The moment they stepped inside, Raijin saw Orochimaru sitting in the courtyard, pouring tea.
"It didn't work."
Raijin spread his hands and sighed at Orochimaru.
"The moment your shadow clone came to find me, I already guessed as much."
Orochimaru chuckled and then turned his gaze to Uchiha Madara.
"So, even Madara himself came. Please, have a seat."
Madara nodded and sat down with Raijin.
"Madara insisted on coming. I couldn't stop him."
Raijin said as he sat across from Orochimaru.
Madara chuckled softly and said to Orochimaru,
"I'm mainly interested in the person who came up with this idea. Sorry to intrude."
Normally, Madara was quite polite.
"You're not intruding. It's my honor to serve you tea, Madara-sama."
Orochimaru smiled and placed a cup of tea in front of Madara.
"At the clan meeting just now, as soon as Raijin finished explaining this plan, someone immediately wanted to kill you."
Madara took the tea Orochimaru handed him, chuckled, and continued,
"Including me."
After a slight pause, he went on,
"Hmm, that's understandable. After Raijin left, Second Hokage explained the difficulties to me, and I knew then that this plan would never work."
Orochimaru sighed and shook his head helplessly.
"So, have you given up?"
Madara raised an eyebrow and asked Orochimaru.
"If there's a chance, I still want to try."
"Then you'd better work hard. Right now, the person closest to the ancestor of chakra is sitting right in front of you."
Raijin took a sip of tea and said to Orochimaru,
"If you can get a drop of Madara's blood, your plan will succeed."
Then he added,
"So, Madara-sama, would you be willing to help me?"
Orochimaru asked Uchiha Madara without hesitation.
"What do you think?"
Madara laughed and asked in return,
"For everything I've achieved, I once fought to the death with Hashirama at the Valley of the End. Tell me, why would I help you?"
"Exactly. That's the real problem."
Orochimaru sighed and nodded.
"If you can take a drop of my blood by force, I won't argue. But if you expect me to just give it to you, that's impossible—especially now that you've made your plan public."
Madara looked at Orochimaru and said.
This kind of thing was never meant to be exposed.
Once people knew about it, there were only two choices:
Either abandon the plan, or use force to carry it out.
There was no third option.
"Of course, there's another choice—you could use your bond with Raijin to get a drop of his blood."
Madara continued,
"But think carefully about the consequences. If you do manage to get Raijin's blood, you might not live long enough to execute your plan."
Orochimaru froze for a moment, at a loss for words.
"I won't let the Uchiha clan's Kekkei Genkai leak out. I may not be able to kill Raijin right away, but I can hold him back. And you—how long do you think you can survive against the Uchiha?"
Madara intended to settle this once and for all.
With Jigen watching from above and his own unfinished ambitions below,
Madara didn't have time to waste on Orochimaru.
And neither could Raijin.
So Madara made it clear—either give up, or die.
(End of chapter)
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