Izuna, restore the glory of the Uchiha!

Chapter 9 Visiting the Prison

Izuna continued walking until he finally stopped in front of a heavily guarded building.

The guards on duty, carrying long blades and clad in heavy armor, immediately stood at attention and saluted upon his arrival, their armor clanging together with a crisp sound.

"Lord Izuna!"

"Thanks for your hard work."

As I pushed open the door, the light dimmed abruptly, and a damp, bloody smell hit me.

This is the dungeon of the Uchiha clan's territory, where the Senju prisoners captured in this battle are held.

His appearance immediately caused a commotion.

Angry curses and vicious insults echoed from the darkness, along with faint pleas for mercy from those whose will had broken.

Izuna paid no heed, his footsteps echoing in the empty corridor. Soon, the competent guards silenced the noisy band with their scabbards and cold shouts.

"Open."

He stopped in front of the last cell at the end of the corridor and gave a low order.

The guard deftly unlocked the heavy iron lock.

The man imprisoned here is none other than Tobirama Senju.

But the treatment in this cell was clearly vastly different from that in other single cells—

The dry floor was covered with wooden planks, and a few precious rays of sunlight shone through the vents. There were even simple tables and chairs and a mattressed bed.

It's more like house arrest than imprisonment.

Izuna moved a stool and sat down beside his bed. He skillfully took out scissors, tweezers, and a tray from the wooden box he carried with him and laid them out on the table.

"Today is the day your stitches are removed."

As he put on his specially made thin leather gloves, he casually joked:

"I have no problem with you celebrating if you want. But this bottle of alcohol is for disinfection, so don't secretly drink it."

Tobirama lay flat on the bed, expressionless as Izuna lifted his shirt.

The scar across his chest had scabbed over, and the black sutures lay like centipedes on his pale skin, looking particularly gruesome.

Regarding the suturing of internal organs, Izuna was grateful that the Uchiha clan doctor at the time actually had such a rare thing as catgut sutures.

As for the surface skin, in order to ensure a firm healing, relatively tough silk threads are still needed, so Tobirama inevitably had to suffer the pain of having the stitches removed.

Izuna's eyes were focused, and his fingers were steady.

The tweezers gently lifted the end of the thread, the scissors precisely touched the skin, and with a soft "snip," the knot broke. Then, with extremely subtle force, he pulled the end of the thread out.

One, two...

Although the movements were extremely gentle, the subtle pulling sensation of the threads being pulled away from the skin still sent chills down one's spine.

"alright."

After bandaging the wound and confirming there was no redness or infection, Izuna began packing her things.

He deliberately lingered on the table for a moment longer before slowly picking it up.

"If I were to actually drink this stuff, I wouldn't need to trouble you."

Tobirama slowly sat up and tried to move his somewhat stiff body. Although the pain from his wounds was still a little intense, the heaviness had mostly disappeared.

He looked at Izuna, who was organizing the equipment, his gaze complex.

"Anyway, I still want to thank you."

If his clansmen hadn't lived next door, Tobirama Senju's gratitude would probably have been even more sincere.

"It's nothing."

After the demonstration, Izuna put the alcohol back into the box and then took out paper and pen from a hidden compartment.

"Since I'm hiring you as my temporary assistant, I need to provide corresponding conditions."

My original lab is temporarily closed to you due to some confidentiality reasons. Therefore, I'll have to trouble you to provide a list of what you need so I can have them procure it as soon as possible.

As he spoke, he pushed the paper and pen forward.

Tobirama's expression instantly turned serious, his mind racing.

Is this a test to see how far my experiment has progressed?

Although Izuna's understanding of human anatomy far surpasses mine in terms of surgical techniques, he may not be superior in combining ninjutsu development with chakra application.

If it's merely about explaining some experimental progress in exchange for the opportunity to learn valuable techniques, then it's harmless.

Moreover, based solely on a list of experimental equipment, the other party may not be able to accurately deduce what core secrets he is researching.

After hesitating for a moment, Tobirama accepted the paper and pen.

The pen tip scratched across the paper.

He not only wrote down the experimental materials that were urgently needed, seemingly to take revenge on the Uchiha or to test their bottom line, but he also added a lot of rare materials that he had never been willing to use in the past.

High-purity chakra-conducting metals, rare herbs, and even precision instruments that are usually only available in the Daimyo's mansion.

He slowly filled most of the paper with notes, and even marked precise measurements, origin requirements, purchasing channels, and precautions after each material.

After checking several times to make sure nothing was missed, Tobogawa handed back the paper filled with writing.

Izuna took the list and quickly glanced at it. He didn't even raise an eyebrow at the obviously excessively expensive materials, as if they were just a few scallions and garlic.

While Tobirama secretly waited, hoping to see either a pained expression or a look of rejection in his eyes, Izuna calmly put away the items and instructed:

"Get plenty of rest. Your learning time depends on how quickly you recover. I don't want my assistant to be sickly."

After saying that, Izuna picked up the box, turned around and left.

All of Tobirama's ninja tools and personal belongings had already been looted, so even with his back to him, Izuna wasn't worried that this weak and injured man could cause any trouble.

"etc!"

Seeing that Izuna was really about to leave, Tobirama, who had been suppressing his emotions, couldn't help but call out to him.

"You intend to subdue the Thousand Hands. What about my people?"

He knew very well that in the Warring States period, the losers were often slaughtered.

Izuna stopped in his tracks without turning around. In the dim light, Tobirama couldn't see his expression, only his slightly pausing back.

"You and I hold similar positions within the family, as you should be well aware of. How we deal with them involves the interests of the entire clan, and it's not something my brother and I can decide on our own."

The expected answer made Tobirama's face darken.

"but……"

Izuna spoke earnestly, seemingly out of compassion for all living beings.

"As long as you cooperate well and use your smart brain in the right way, I am still willing to make some efforts to save their lives."

As for other things, I can't guarantee that.

Can I trust you?

Tobirama both mocked himself and questioned himself, realizing that he had actually stooped to believing a promise from an Uchiha.

"I can even spare your life and heal your wounds."

Tobirama, you should know that I am now the gentlest Uchiha in the entire clan.

He was speechless.

Indeed, if it were anyone else, his head would already be on the altar at the Nanga Shrine.

Whether it will work out or not depends on your performance.