Two Months Later
Akio sat cross-legged on the ground, staring intently at the "steaming pot" before him.
It was a custom-made creation, specifically designed for brewing medicine.
After carefully taking stock of the Senju clan's current population, Akio had felt both relieved and alarmed.
Among the Senju adults, those between twenty and forty there were just over fifty. For those between forty and sixty, a little over twenty.
Adding in the few who had married in or out since Konoha's founding, the total barely surpassed one hundred. Still, they remained one of the village's major clans.
They couldn't compare to the Uzumaki, of course, a clan large enough to form a nation. But within Konoha, only the Uchiha and Hyūga had more members than the Senju.
The real problem appeared in the younger generations.
Among the Senju aged sixteen to twenty, there were only four people. Between ten and sixteen, just one. And below that… there was only Itachi!
Akio didn't know what a "normal" age distribution was supposed to look like, but he knew this was absolutely abnormal.
In the pot before him simmered a specially prepared medicinal concoction essentially the ingredients of (Six-Ingredient Rehmannia Pill), multiplied by five.
Thankfully, the Senju clan had strong constitutions; otherwise, this level of "tonic" might have killed someone instead of helping.
"Tsunade! Kushina! Come get the medicine ready!"
Kushina had already returned from the Land of Whirlpools. Hiruzen had gritted his teeth and pulled Minato off the battlefield to oversee the Chūnin Exams in Konoha.
The exams should be well underway by now, but Akio hadn't gone to watch. He couldn't care less about being an official "witness" this time.
These days, Akio brewed a pot of medicine every day, while Tsunade and Kushina served as his assistants. He refused to believe that after all this effort, the Senju still wouldn't produce a single new child.
With pained expressions, Tsunade and Kushina entered the room. The smell of the concoction was indescribably bad, so Akio always kept a repulsion barrier in place to contain it.
"Once it's ready, every Senju gets a bowl and make sure they drink it all!"
"Yes… yes," the two replied helplessly.
Soon after, the Senju compound echoed with complaints.
"Medicine again?"
"Do we really have to drink this stuff?"
"I want to go back to the battlefield…"
Akio smiled faintly. "No one's escaping."
Right now, only Nawaki and a few middle-aged clan members with children were stationed in the Rain Country. Akio hadn't allowed anyone else to leave.
"I wonder if it'll work this time… It's been two months already," Akio muttered.
Just then, someone entered.
"Great-Grandfather, can you please do something about Dōzan? He"
Akio smiled as he listened to Kazane's constant complaints.
For the past two months, poor Dōzan had been dragged all over Konoha by Kazane's, meeting potential brides from every corner of the village.
"Alright, give it one more month. If there's still no progress on my end, then Dōzan won't get to choose anymore," Akio said with a sigh.
If it came to that, he'd just have to play the role of the old-fashioned matchmaker himself.
Satisfied, Kazane finally nodded and left.
"What's the real cause of this? Genetics? Something else? I can't find any explanation…"
Akio sat alone in the room, deep in thought — but no answer came.
Half a Month Later
Same room. Same steaming pot. Same herbs.
Akio was almost ready to give up. After two and a half months with no results, it seemed hopeless.
"So this is what they call 'prosperity followed by decline,' huh?"
"Or maybe… some kind of destined extinction?" Akio muttered. He didn't believe in fate not one bit.
"Tsunade! Kushina! Come get the medicine ready!"
Tsunade walked in, face full of reluctance. Kushina wasn't with her.
Akio frowned. Tsunade quickly explained, "The final round of the Chūnin Exams just ended. Minato came back."
"I see. You handle the medicine, I'll go see the two of them."
"Great-Grandfather, you..."
Akio ignored her grumbling and headed straight to Kushina's room. Minato was just stepping out.
"Elder Akio."
Akio nodded with a smile. "So, how did the exams go? Any promising new chūnin?"
Minato gave a small, tired smile. "Might Guy, Kurenai Yūhi, Asuma Sarutobi, Genma Shiranui, Rin…"
Akio listened to the names, then covered his forehead with a wry smile. "Obito didn't pass?"
Minato sighed and nodded helplessly.
Akio chuckled. He didn't need to ask what happened, Obito had probably done something foolish again.
"Good thing Kakashi went to the Land of Whirlpools with Sakumo. Otherwise, Obito might've died of frustration."
Before he could continue, someone arrived with a message.
"Elder Akio, the Uchiha clan head requests an audience."
"Kagami?" Akio blinked. "Understood."
He waved them off, not wanting to interrupt Minato and Kushina's "reunion," and stepped out of the Senju compound. Sure enough, Kagami was waiting outside.
"You actually came back from the Rain Country? Is Konoha doing that well over there?"
Kagami shook his head. "Not exactly. Only because Jiraiya finally recovered from his injuries did I dare return."
Akio nodded. Seeing Kagami hesitate, he said, "If there's something you need, come in and talk."
Back inside, Kagami glanced curiously at the pot of boiling medicine. Akio casually explained, "Just some supplements."
"Elder Akio, please take care of your health," Kagami said earnestly.
Akio's face darkened. "It's not for me! Forget it, what brings you here?"
After a pause, Kagami asked quietly, "Is it true that the vision lost from the Mangekyō Sharingan can't be restored?"
Akio froze, studying the man's eyes deeply. "Didn't I tell you before not to overuse it? How much vision do you have left?"
Kagami gave a bitter smile. "The Third Tsuchikage's Dust Release is nearly impossible to block. Without Susanoo, I'd have been obliterated.
"As for my eyesight… at least I can still see your face clearly."
Akio sighed, half amused. "You can still joke at a time like this?"
After thinking for a moment, he shook his head. "As far as I know, the only way to restore your vision is through transplantation. You've read the Uchiha stone tablet, you know what I mean."
He didn't mention transplanting Hashirama's cells, Kagami wouldn't do that anyway.
"Uchiha Madara once replaced his eyes with Akio's, gaining the Eternal Mangekyō and preventing blindness," Akio added.
Kagami smiled faintly and fell silent.
"Right now, you're the only Uchiha left with a Mangekyō Sharingan. You must use it sparingly or not at all."
Kagami drew a deep breath. "I understand."
Seeing his downcast expression, Akio sighed. "Power always comes with a price. The Sharingan is called the eyes of a curse for a reason."
At that, Akio suddenly froze.
"A curse…?"
He looked at Kagami with deep thought.
"Could it be that curse?"
"Then what about the Senju's…?"
"Whose curse is it?"
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