"Why not? Don't tell me Mount Myōboku is that prejudiced against outsiders?"
Jiraiya shook his head.
"Not exactly. It's just that there's friction among the Three Great Sage Lands—especially between Mount Myōboku and Ryūchi Cave. Since you've already signed a summoning contract with Ryūchi Cave, you can't go to Mount Myōboku anymore."
"I see…"
Rokuro said no more. He continued eating and chatting with Jiraiya, the mood light and pleasant.
Of course, Jiraiya had no idea that the boy sitting across from him was the same masked man who had once given him a solid beating outside Orochimaru's hideout—otherwise, this meal would have been far less enjoyable.
As for the sealing techniques of the Three Great Sage Lands, Rokuro had already planned to visit Ryūchi Cave for that. Hearing confirmation from Jiraiya that Mount Myōboku also possessed similar knowledge merely gave him another layer of assurance.
Back in their room at the hot spring inn, Rokuro took out the bottle containing the True Byakugan, studying the eye within—an exquisite work of art in its own right.
"In the original timeline, even someone as powerful as Orochimaru couldn't withstand the overwhelming natural energy concentration of Ryūchi Cave. That must've been after his first Living Corpse Reincarnation—his body was already unstable."
"Which means, anyone whose physical body isn't strong enough can't even enter Ryūchi Cave alive."
"I'm an Uchiha, and our clan's strength lies in spiritual power, not physical endurance. Maybe someone with a Mangekyō could manage, but in my current state, definitely not."
He picked up his notebook and began jotting down a new research plan.
"In the original story, Eternal Mangekyō Sasuke was roughly on par with Sage Mode Naruto—Naruto at that point had mastered the Nine-Tails' chakra cloak."
"And once Naruto added natural energy atop the Nine-Tails' chakra—his Sage Fox Mode—he completely outclassed the Eternal Mangekyō."
"If Naruto could stack power-ups, then so can I. Eternal Mangekyō plus Sage Chakra… let's call it 'Sage Eye Mode'? Hah, sounds more like the name of a gatekeeper deity from some old myth."
He chuckled at his own joke before refocusing.
"Sage Fox Mode Naruto could already rival early-level Rinnegan users. Remember, he fought Obito as the Ten-Tails' host, and that massive Sage Rasengan of his went head-to-head with the Truth-Seeking Orbs without losing ground. If Obito hadn't relied on the God Tree, he might've lost right there."
"So in theory, Sage Fox Mode sits at the entry level of the Six Paths tier. The same should go for combining Eternal Mangekyō with Sage Chakra—an entry-level Six Paths power. If I can reach that level, I'll have my ticket to the final battle."
Too many factors remained unpredictable, so Rokuro decided to stop his planning there for now.
After a week of vacation in the Land of Hot Springs, Rokuro and his family finally returned to Konoha.
As for Jiraiya, he had already gone off somewhere—either chasing Orochimaru or gathering "research material," no one knew for sure.
Upon returning to the village, Rokuro was about to visit Uchiha Setsuna to discuss perfecting the Uchiha bloodline when Hyūga Hizashi suddenly came knocking.
"All used up already? Captain Hizashi, you need to be careful. At this pace, the Hyūga Main Family will notice soon."
"I know. Honestly, I knew from the start that this couldn't stay hidden forever. After all, our clan's Byakugan can literally see through anything."
Rokuro immediately understood.
Even if the Main Family was filled with useless members, they still took missions from time to time—and every mission required them to use the Byakugan.
During Gentle Fist practice too, activating the Byakugan was unavoidable.
Although the Branch Family wore forehead protectors to conceal their Caged Bird Seals, those seals were meaningless under the Byakugan's gaze.
In other words, once the Branch Family members began removing their seals, it was only a matter of time before someone noticed.
For now, Hizashi and the other freed Branch members avoided contact with the Main Family as much as possible, but it couldn't last forever.
So Hizashi made up his mind—if exposure was inevitable, then he would strike first.
He would use the remaining time to expand their alliance, strengthen their forces, and prepare for full rebellion once discovery came.
"How many scrolls do you need this time?"
"At least fifty. And they must all be ready within half a month. I can keep the secret that long—but after that, no promises."
Rokuro nodded. That was fine with him—each scroll sold for five million ryō, so fifty meant two hundred and fifty million. The more they ordered, the more he earned. No downside there.
Since Hizashi was in a hurry, Rokuro postponed his Uchiha bloodline refinement project.
That research, if revealed, would cause far greater turmoil anyway.
Ever since the Second Hokage's era, Konoha had treated the Uchiha Clan as potential traitors, always keeping them under watch.
And the Mangekyō Sharingan was labeled a forbidden eye—if Hiruzen learned that Rokuro planned to study it, he would immediately unleash Danzo to "handle" things.
Rokuro knew full well that the Uchiha were no match for Konoha's leadership yet. Even he himself, without the Nine-Tails' power, couldn't defeat Hiruzen in his prime.
So, for now, the bloodline refinement project would have to wait.
Half a month passed. Rokuro fulfilled his agreement with Hizashi, delivering fifty Wings of Freedom scrolls and receiving 250 million ryō in payment.
With that kind of funding, he could finally restart his experiments.
He immediately tried contacting Orochimaru to purchase lab equipment—but Kabuto replied instead, saying Orochimaru wasn't at the base.
"Not at the base? Don't tell me he's already joined Akatsuki?"
Rokuro frowned, thinking back to the timeline.
Orochimaru joined Akatsuki through Sasori's connections, and his motive had been to steal Itachi's body.
So before Itachi's massacre, Orochimaru likely hadn't even heard of the organization yet.
"Wait… that means—he's probably undergoing his first Living Corpse Reincarnation right now. Since it's his first body transfer, there must be complications. Kabuto's just covering for him."
Once he figured that out, Rokuro didn't bother pursuing the matter further.
He certainly didn't plan to kill Orochimaru either—after all, in his plans, Orochimaru was an indispensable scientist.
"If I can't use the Orochimaru route for now, that leaves two options—the Cat Granny and the Underground Exchange."
"The Cat Granny's a major player in the black market. She could easily procure lab equipment for me, but…"
Rokuro frowned. Given her ties to the Uchiha Clan, she might report his purchases straight to Uchiha Fugaku.
And among all the people Rokuro disliked, Fugaku ranked in his top three.
Maybe he wasn't evil—but his indecisive nature had doomed the entire Uchiha Clan.
There was no way Rokuro would let that man find out.
"If the Cat Granny's off the table, then the only route left is the Underground Exchange."
END OF CHAPTER
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