Konoha: The thirty-year-old Uchiha lacks motivation.

Chapter 110 How can a lone man and a lone woman be alone in a room?

"Sizzle~ Sizzle~~"

Uchiha Gin skillfully flipped the roasted meat on the stove with his chopsticks, the succulent fat being fully extracted by the flames to release its last trace of aroma.

The people sitting around the fire looked at the golden, glistening roasted meat, their mouths watering uncontrollably.

"Cousin! Isn't it ready yet?"

Izuna, unable to contain his impatience, wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth and looked at Uchiha Gin, who was in charge of the barbecue, and urged him on.

The others also wore expectant expressions, after all, Uchiha Gin's cooking skills were famously good, and even his simple grilled meat tasted much better than the average person's.

"Alright, alright, Xiaoguang, you eat first."

Sensing that the meat was almost cooked, Uchiha Gin picked up a piece of marbled grilled meat and placed it in Uchiha Hikaru's bowl.

"You haven't eaten in ages, hurry up and eat it while it's hot!"

The girl had been sealed away for more than ten years. After being rescued, she only ate a few bites of emergency rations on the way back. She should be allowed to enjoy this delicious food that she hadn't had for so many years.

"Thank you, Gintoki!~"

With tears welling in her beautiful eyes, Uchiha Hikaru sweetly said thank you and picked up the first piece of grilled meat.

She raised an eyebrow defiantly at Senju Itama, whose face was puffed up like a bun, then took a small bite of the fragrant grilled meat, and said happily, while resting her chin on her hand.

"Mmm~~~ Gintoki's grilled meat is so delicious!"

"Disgusting! What a pretentious old woman!"

Senju Itama cursed inwardly for not getting any grilled meat, his large eyes fixed on Uchiha Gin's hand, hoping for his share.

"Here, come here, little manager, this is for you."

"Boom!"

Instead of receiving her own portion, Uchiha Gin handed the piece of grilled meat she had reserved to a bewildered Uchiha Rinpoche. Senju Itama's hand tightened around the chopsticks, snapping the fragile bamboo chopsticks in two.

"Huh? What kind of attitude is that, you brat?"

Noticing that Senju Itama was acting a bit strange today, Uchiha Gin pressed his hand down on the kid's head and explained to him.

"This is to thank Xiao Zhili for taking care of you while I was away. Why don't you thank her right away!"

Enjoying the warmth of Uchiha Gin's large hand, the proud Senju Itama pouted and turned her head to the side in a huff, but the slight upturn of her lips betrayed her true thoughts.

Tsk~!

"Boom!"

The chopsticks in Uchiha Hikaru's hand met the same fate.

"Oh dear, the quality of these chopsticks is indeed not very good."

With a forced smile, Uchiha Hikaru tossed the chopsticks in his hand into the trash can, preparing to get up and get another pair.

"No need, the things that Dalang bought aren't good enough!"

Uchiha Gin clapped his hands together, and a pale green light shone from his palms, from which several emerald green sprouts emerged.

As he channeled his chakra, the sprouts grew rapidly, eventually becoming several uniformly sized sticks. Satisfied, he gestured with them, marveling at how much his chakra manipulation skills had improved.

"Here, use mine!"

Uchiha Gin lowered his head and distributed the chopsticks generated by his Wood Release to everyone, only to find that the spacious private room was now completely silent.

He looked up in confusion and saw that everyone except for Uchiha Hikaru, whom he had met before, was staring in shock, their mouths agape as if they had been frozen in place.

"Huh? What happened?"

Uchiha Gin nudged his younger cousin with his elbow, only to find the boy staring at him with a ghostly expression, making him feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Is this... Hashirama Senju's technique?"

The first to speak was his older cousin, Uchiha Madara, who hadn't said much until now. He frowned, picked up a Wood Release artifact from the table, examined it closely, and after confirming it was identical to the one he had encountered, looked at Uchiha Gin with a serious expression.

"How do you know this kind of ninjutsu?"

In Madara Uchiha's memory, his cousin's strength was always a mystery. He was evenly matched with anyone he fought, and his performance was like a 50/50 split. Although he usually ended up losing by a narrow margin, his effortless performance clearly showed that he was holding back.

Even so, Madara Uchiha only took it as his bad taste, but today's move forced him to start taking his seemingly carefree cousin seriously.

"Is it that difficult? Isn't it just a matter of clapping your hands, and it comes out?"

Using the same excuse that had fooled Uchiha Tajima, the thought simultaneously flashed through the minds of the people present.

Do you think we're idiots?

"You curly-haired gorilla, do you think we're idiots?"

The perfect mouth double, Senju Itama, makes his grand entrance.

"Believe it or not! Eat your meat!"

I grabbed a piece of roast meat and shoved it straight into the mouth of that talkative brat. I don't believe that eating meat can't shut you up.

"Mmm~~~"

Having been ambushed and gagged, Senju Itama could only roll his eyes and beg for help from the purple-haired girl beside him. Uchiha Shiki skillfully slapped him on the back, and the gagged meat slid down his throat and into his stomach, saving the brat who was almost choking to death.

"I'll bite you to death!"

Once she recovered, Senju Itama leaped up and flew towards Uchiha Gin, the culprit. Her delicate face was filled with murderous intent, determined to take this guy down with her.

"Host detected to be in combat; Heart Steel Chest begins to accumulate."

Just as Uchiha Gin was about to dodge the opponent's desperate attack, a familiar background music suddenly rang in his mind. His lips twitched, and it seemed that he couldn't avoid this battle.

"Bang!!!"

Senju Itama's powerful headbutt slammed into Uchiha Gin's chest, the immense force sending him sprawling backward.

After a moment of dizziness, Uchiha Gin, lying on the ground, looked at the brat clinging to his chest, a helpless smile tugging at his lips, and began to soothe the child as if coaxing him.

"I never expected your headbutt to be so ferocious, the strength of which is beyond the reach of ordinary people. I, Uchiha Gin, humbly admit defeat and declare you the Invincible Iron Head!"

What seemed like a jumbled mess of words was, in fact, extremely irritating to Uchiha Hikaru, who was standing to the side.

The naive girl mistook it for a doting smile, and a feeling of gloom rose in her heart. A dark aura coiled around her brow, and the little black creature that had been lying dormant for so long revealed its legs once again.

"Host failed. Gained 10 Anima. The Heart Steel Treasure Chest reward can be unlocked after three more battles. (Current total Anima: 10)"

Hehehe, a new round of eating steel has begun.

He smiled with satisfaction, stood up, and picked up the little brat with stars in his eyes. You should know that Uchiha Gin's current physical strength is so strong that it frightens even himself. The various Six Paths bloodlines that the magic orb opened up intertwined together, making him a veritable mini-Tsutsuki of the ninja world.

"We'll talk about it when we get back. Let's eat first."

Seeing his younger cousin standing to the side, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back, Uchiha Gin waved his hand, indicating that any questions could be asked later, and that eating was the most important thing now.

As the dishes were served, Senju Itama, awakened by the aroma of grilled fish, forgot all about Uchiha Gin who had just wronged her, grabbed the grilled fish and began to devour it. The others also started to help themselves, and the atmosphere at the table became lively.

"Brother, you're in jail, are you looking down on me by not taking my money?"

When it came time to pay the bill, Uchiha Taro refused to accept Uchiha Gin's payment, and the two argued until they were red in the face. In the end, Uchiha Gin slammed his gold brick down, indicating that he would either keep the money or accept it out of politeness.

"This will not happen again, this will not happen again."

Knowing he couldn't win against Uchiha Gin, Uchiha Taro, who had lost his fighting ability, had no choice but to reluctantly stuff the heavy gold brick into his pocket. Luckily, his belt was tight, or he would have embarrassed himself on the spot.

"I'll go see my uncle tomorrow. We can talk about any problems then."

Before leaving, Uchiha Gin said something to Uchiha Madara, who was deep in thought, then waved goodbye to his two brothers and led the girls in the opposite direction.

The purple-haired girl escorted Uchiha Zhi to his doorstep and politely expressed her gratitude for the meal.

"Mr. Yin, my mother has been thinking of you a lot!"

She invited Uchiha Gin to her home for dinner sometime, adding that it was just her and her mother at home, and that he was welcome to come anytime.

Feeling a surge of pressure from both ice and fire behind him, the tempted Uchiha Gin solemnly and righteously rejected the girl's kindness. Amidst her smiling face radiating darkness, he led the remaining two away in a hasty retreat.

Returning to his Wood Release creation, the Great House, Uchiha Gin stroked the door, which showed no signs of age after so many years, marveling at the effectiveness of his house-building technique. It remained pristine and new even after all these years, and could even repair itself after any bumps or knocks.

However, it seems insufficient now. There are only two or three rooms upstairs: two bedrooms and a study. Now that there is another person in the family, the once spacious house now feels somewhat cramped.

"Kid! Stay at the old house tonight."

It was clear that Uchiha Hikaru and Senju Kyouka didn't get along, and not wanting to disturb the girl's rest, Uchiha Gin spoke up to make arrangements.

"ha?"

What a jerk! He forgets his old love as soon as he finds a new one?

Senju Itama hardened his fist!

"!"

Upon hearing this, Uchiha Hikaru's face instantly turned red, and at the same time, various censored images flooded the girl's mind.

"cut!!!"

With a disgruntled expression, Senju Itama stood up, glanced at the smug-looking Uchiha Hikaru, and turned to leave like a defeated dog.

"Hey, hey, what's the rush? Take my bed over too. It's not convenient for a lone man and woman to sleep here. I'll go sleep over there too."

Uchiha Gin had just finished planning how to renovate the Great House in his mind when he saw Senju Itama leaving alone, and said strangely,

Is it appropriate for a grown man like myself to live under the same roof as Xiao Guang?

"what?"

Upon hearing this, Senju Itama looked up in surprise, not expecting that Uchiha Gin would choose to live with her.

She intended to refuse as usual, but for some reason, a strange emotion rose in her heart. Suppressing her pounding heart, she turned her head, the smile on her lips uncontrollable.

"Boom!~"

In stark contrast to Senju Itama was Uchiha Hikaru, who had just thought his time had come.

Unexpectedly, Uchiha Gin's words struck like a bolt from the blue, nipping her budding romantic feelings in the bud.

Unable to refute it, she saw the glaring smile on Senju Itama's lips, and the lingering resentment in her heart rose once more.

"I'm going to rest now."

The dark aura climbing up her brow grew thicker and thicker, and the girl couldn't help but feel a little irritated. She said something coldly, turned her head and walked upstairs.

It seems that Xiaoguang is really tired. Let her rest quietly!

Thinking he understood the girl's thoughts, Uchiha Gin thought to himself, and after watching her go upstairs, urged the grinning Senju Itama to leave quickly.

"Hurry up, I want to sleep inside tonight!"

"???"

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(End of this chapter)