The Uchiha's Path to the Top, Starting from Konoha

Chapter 96 The Shrine Maiden of the Oni Village

"This is definitely not a job we can do right now!"

Uchiha Muan lay on the ground for most of the day before he recovered. His throbbing brain made him determined that he would not attempt to explore different planes until he reached the Six Paths level.

"It seems that there are only three places left in the entire ninja world that are worth exploring."

The first place is the Land of Demons, now known as the Demon Ninja Village. There, there is a priestess with prophetic abilities, and the demons called "Mouryou" can also be used as excellent generators.

The second place is Loulan, which has been taken over by Konoha, where there is a dragon vein that can travel through time.

The third place is the New World, where Kaori Minamoto's ancestors, who sailed across the sea a thousand years ago, lived.

"We can go to the Demon Village anytime. As for the Dragon Vein, we can't figure out which timeline we'll travel to. Traveling is also dangerous. If we fly to a thousand years ago and get face to face with Kaguya Otsutsuki, or if we encounter the Infinite Tsukuyomi during the Fourth Shinobi World War, it will be troublesome and dangerous."

"Perhaps we can test the prophetic abilities of the Oni Ninja Village priestess, or even take the Great Toad Sage across the Dragon Vein. I don't believe that the old toad who knows when to advance and retreat will let himself kick the bucket."

"Once we get back, we'll have Kirigakure take people out to sea, with the Three-Tailed Isobu, who has the ability to move in the sea, as their protector on their long sea voyage."

After careful consideration, Uchiha Wu'an slowly got up from the ground, shook his head, and directly sent a note containing his plan to the Hokage Building, handing it to his shadow clone.

Then he teleported to the hot spring town of the Land of Hot Springs, enjoyed a good soak in the hot springs, and then summoned Tachibana no Sasa to the location of the Oni Ninja Village.

"Lord Wu'an, is there a ninjutsu here that allows a cat to transform into a human?"

Tachibana, nestled in Uchiha Muan's arms, wore a black tank top and gazed at the capital of the Oni Village built in the mountains, his expression showing little anticipation.

"Why did you have to turn into a human when you were perfectly fine as a cat?"

"That's up to you."

Stroking Orange Sage, who was no longer a fat cat but had a streamlined figure after rigorous training, Uchiha Muan casually said, "I've only ever heard of toads, snakes, slugs, and humans being able to train in Sage Mode, but I've never heard of a cat sage."

"Furthermore, the possibility of a cat being a Jinchūriki is also unlikely, as a cat's body can hardly contain the power of a Tailed Beast."

Now that Tachibana was in a hurry, the quickest way to defeat that damned ferret Nilugu was to become a cat jinchūriki, so she couldn't help but meow in Uchiha Muan's arms.

"Lord Wu'an, I want to become human!"

"Then let's go visit the priestess, the leader of the Oni Ninja Village."

With a flash, he entered the capital of the Oni Ninja Village. Under the rule of the priestess, the customs of this country were more similar to those of the Warring States period, which was decades ago when even electric lights had not been developed.

However, during the changes three years ago, the Oni Village, unwilling to be eliminated, opened its doors to the world and began to import new items. The utility poles that dotted the streets and alleys gave it a feel of Konoha three years ago before it had any plans.

Amidst the chaos, there was an upward vitality.

The local shrine maiden managed things very well.

After having a meal of Oni Ninja Village's specialty food with Tachibana, Uchiha Muan carried Tachibana to the innermost part of the capital, where a massive shrine and palace complex was built not far from a large waterfall.

[Tenjō Ritsuzon] scanned the area, and the entire shrine was reflected in his mind. Uchiha Takeo happened to discover an interesting scene inside.

Inside a hall of the shrine, an official dressed in hunting robes rose from his kneeling seat, waving his hand excitedly as he spoke.

"Lady Kureha, this is the dark chakra I just discovered emanating from Moryo. If we make good use of Moryo's power, Konoha will become the future Demon Village."

"This is power capable of dominating the entire ninja world!"

Seated at the head of the table was a dignified woman who wore a white inner robe and an outer robe with flying crane patterns outlined in gold and silver thread, purple hakama, a shrine maiden crown, and long hair flowing down her shoulders.

Upon hearing that the priest intended to use the power of the demons, the shrine maiden Momiji's expression changed slightly, and she sternly rebuked him.

"Sanzu, the power of the demons is a taboo within a taboo in the Demon Ninja Village. Your heart has been controlled by this power, and you are no longer suitable to serve as a priest!"

"Take him out!"

The orders of the priestess who controlled the entire Oni Ninja Village were absolute. The guards serving in the palace immediately took Santu away. Along the way, Santu kept shouting, "I did this for the Oni Ninja Village, and my will will be inherited by my son Yomi."

Inside the now peaceful palace, the priestess Momiji slowly rose and walked into the inner room, where she saw an uninvited guest teasing her daughter, Miroku.

"Meow."

Tachibana greeted her politely, which made the shrine maiden Momiji tense up.

Seeing her daughter in the other party's hands, she did not make any irrational moves such as shouting. Moreover, the other party's understated yet luxurious samurai attire was not something that bandits or rogue ninjas could afford. In addition, given the orders issued by Konoha and the bloody examples that followed, no one dared to openly disobey them.

"Mother."

The adorable three-year-old Miroku, upon seeing his mother's arrival, immediately ran over happily with his short legs and was picked up by the shrine maiden Momiji.

Sensing the other party's kind gesture, the shrine maiden Momiji relaxed. The man's face also gave her a faint sense of familiarity. She asked, "My lord, what brings you here?"

"Sit down first, then we can talk."

Despite the man who was taking over the role of host, the shrine maiden Momiji was unaware of the impending death and knelt down beside the tea table in front of him.

The daughter, Miroku, blinked her eyes, got off her, and ran to grab the swaying tail of the orange cat.

"First, let me introduce myself. I am Uchiha Takehiko, the Hokage of Konoha."

"The Hokage?!"

The Sharingan that the other party revealed slightly moved the shrine maiden Momiji. Recalling the Naruto scrolls she had read, and comparing them with the man in front of her, she immediately bowed.

"Have some tea."

Uchiha Takeo poured a cup of tea for Momiji in front of him. "I'd like to drink this tea while you tell me about the demons."

Noticing the wariness and rejection on Hongye's face, Uchiha Wu'an chuckled.

"Your Highness, considering that you are the ruler of a country, I don't want to break the rules I set and resort to violence against you. However, if you insist on not telling me, things will develop in a way that will make things very difficult for you."

Being stared at by the man in front of her with his black eyes felt like being stared at by a demon or monster—a complete and utter indifference to life.

"Hokage-sama, you are already the strongest in the world, and Konoha is ruling the world. Why are you still interested in Moryo?"

Momiji had a favorable impression of Uchiha Muan. Regardless of his motives, the ninja world, except for the Black Corner Region, was peaceful and harmonious. Many small ninja villages no longer had to worry about being oppressed by large ninja villages. The spread of chakra refining techniques and agricultural ninjutsu allowed more commoners to have enough to eat.

Even the Oni Ninja Village under her rule is visibly thriving.

Under the rules of Konoha, the basic survival interests of the smaller ninja villages are protected. The conflicts in the Black Corner Region have nothing to do with the peaceful smaller ninja villages.

It's something that Momiji can hardly understand: a Hokage who has brought so much benefit to the ninja world is now curious about demons and monsters.

"There are many things that interest me: the Demon Village has demons, the Shadow Mirror Transformation Technique, and you."

The last ambiguous sentence reminded Hongye that the other party was a lecherous man who broke with convention and married two wives in a row. Her hands involuntarily covered her full breasts, which were being stretched out, and her wariness grew stronger.

"Lord Hokage, I already have a daughter."

"I was talking about your precognitive abilities, what nonsense are you talking about?"

Glancing at the embarrassed Momiji, Uchiha Muan glanced at the big-mouthed cat, Tachibana, who was playing with Miroku, and said irritably, "Alright, we're getting off topic. Tell me about the demons."

After this interruption, Kureha realized that if she didn't speak up, the Hokage in front of her wouldn't let it go. She sighed inwardly, gathered her thoughts, and slowly began to speak.

"Because the power of the priestess was too great, in order not to misuse this power, the people of the past split their hearts and minds in two, living with mutual resentment. At some point, they became known as the priestess and the demon."

"I am currently sealing away the existence of the demon with my body. When I leave this world, my daughter Maitreya will take my place."

Momiji bowed deeply and gave a solemn salute. "Lord Hokage, the power of the demon is not as simple as you imagine. It possesses the power to destroy the ninja world... Eh!"

In an instant, Kureha found herself in a cave filled with lava, where a twisted black shadow took the shape of a Yamata no Orochi and let out a hoarse roar.

"Human, how did you get in here?!"

"The Hokage?!"

The sudden change left both the priestess and the demon stunned. Uchiha Takeo glanced at the so-called demon and clicked his tongue a few times.

"Is this the demon you speak of that can destroy the ninja world?"

"It doesn't seem like much."

With a flick of his eyes, Eternal Eyes unleashed its immense power, uprooting the demon and imprisoning it into a black sphere. Red Leaf was stunned by this sight, and Red Leaf's lips parted to reveal her pearly white teeth.

"Alright, the demon is now in my hands."

Momiji, whose consciousness returned to her body, stared with a complicated expression at the small black ball being tossed around by Uchiha Takeo. She couldn't believe that the demon that had troubled generations of priestesses and caused them to die young had been so easily subdued.

Overwhelmed with turmoil, she couldn't help but bow deeply. "Lord Hokage, thank you for your help in rescuing the priestess from the nightmare that has been passed down through generations. However..."

Uchiha Takeo gazed at the mature shrine maiden performing a dogeza (a deep, prostrate posture), her voluptuous buttocks accentuated by the taut crimson hakama (traditional Chinese jackets). The man, who had once harbored fantasies about the profession, couldn't help but reach out and lift Momiji's rounded chin, whispering, "Just what?"

In the past, even if the other party was the Hokage, Kureha would have slapped such a frivolous gesture away and reprimanded him loudly. But at this moment, her chaotic mind made her lose her composure. When she looked into the stern eyes of her subordinate, she felt like she had returned to her teenage years, shy and confused.

"Mother, what's wrong?"

The childish voice startled Hongye awake. She quickly sat up, hugged the approaching Maitreya in her arms, and glared at the man who seemed completely unaffected with a hint of anger in her eyes.

"Mother, your eyes are red. Is it because you got sand in them, just like with Maitreya before?"

"Let Maitreya blow on it for you."

Uchiha Muan didn't disturb the interaction between the mother and daughter. He sensed the power of the demon in his hand, which was similar to that of the Zero-Tails. Both could generate dark chakra and absorb the dark side to grow. Unfortunately, its popularity was not as strong as that of artificial tailed beasts.

Konoha is currently working overtime to produce the second, third, and fourth Zero-Tails, otherwise they won't have enough chakra energy reserves for the later stages.

Uchiha Muan basically viewed Zero-Tails as an oil field that could produce oil indefinitely, and that was completely natural and pollution-free, and would never run dry as long as humans existed.

Electricity, wind power, and thermal energy are truly inferior to chakra.

"Lord Hokage."

A little while later, Momiji, who had been letting Miroku continue playing with Tachibana, called out to Uchiha Takeo, who was admiring the waterfall outside the window, and pulled him back to reality. The shrine maiden, having regained her composure, adopted a solemn posture.

"Please, Hokage, entrust the demon to me for sealing. I will handle it properly."

The existence of the demon is the biggest destabilizing factor for the priestess clan. They are worried about angering Uchiha Takeoshi, but Momiji is even more worried that Miroku is not guaranteed protection and will have to face the demon that breaks out of the seal in the future, which will be even more difficult to deal with.

Do you know about the Tailed Beasts?

The sudden question startled Hongye, who nodded.

"Konoha is currently mass-producing the Zero-Tails. The Zero-Tails exists because of the dark side of humanity, and this dark side is then transformed into chakra to power Konoha's development."

"The teleportation arrays that are now found in various countries are one of them."

"The demon you fear was also born from the dark side of the priestess's heart. It is not much different from the Zero-Tails, and its fate will be the same as the Zero-Tails'. It will be placed in the Konoha Academy of Sciences to contribute to the benefit of the ninja world."

Seeing the dumbfounded Kureha, Uchiha Takeo gave her some time to think before teleporting the demon back to the Hokage Building and moving on to the next topic.

"The Shadow Mirror Transformation Technique. Consider this technique my reward for dealing with the demons for you. Give it to me."

"Please wait a moment."

Coming to her senses, Kureha walked briskly to the side room inside the house, took out a scroll, knelt down next to Uchiha Takeo, and respectfully presented it to the man with both hands.

Upon opening the scroll, one finds that the contents are derivatives of transformation techniques, some of which also involve physical activation techniques. In terms of the difficulty of mastering them, they can all be considered forbidden techniques.

(I wonder if Orange Cat, with its big mouth, can learn that.)

He summoned Tachibana, and Uchiha Takeo reached out and touched her forehead, transmitting the training materials for the Shadow Mirror Transformation Technique into her mind.

Thanks to the teleportation array on that seat, Uchiha Takeo's use of mental power became increasingly skillful and refined.

"Go back and master the technique first. Come back to me when you're familiar with it. Absolutely do not attempt anything on your own, understand?"

"Meow understands."

"Meow, I'll head back now."

Excitedly, Tachibana circled around Uchiha Muan once, then vanished with a bang, returning to the empty area of ​​the ruins. Amidst the meows of the ninja cats, his whiskers trembled, and his cat face was smug.

"Your Highness, I'm currently in Oni Ninja Village, and you're the last person I'm interested in."

Under the man's dark eyes, Hongye tensed up.

(End of this chapter)