Revitalizing the Uchiha clan starts with becoming a Kage.

'Is this guy really completely weak to the core? If so, things will definitely get a bit complicated later on!'

A fleeting thought.

Just as Shoji was considering whether he should retreat decisively if he waited any longer and the agreed time limit was exceeded, and Hiashi Hyuga still hadn't appeared, he also caught a slightly profound aura from Shoji's powerful perception.

Immediately afterwards.

The sound of footsteps approaching.

The tall, straight figure, clearly visible even in the bright moonlight, was none other than Hiashi Hyuga, the current head of the Hyuga clan.

'It's finally here!'

A faint smile appeared at the corner of Jiang Si's eyes as he murmured to himself in the depths of his heart.

However, even upon seeing Hiashi's figure, Shoji did not completely relax. Instead, he fully unleashed his perception, and the chilling aura that spread out enveloped the surroundings. He needed to further confirm that Hiashi had indeed come alone and that there were no other abnormalities before he would reveal himself.

And on this point, Jiang Si was fully confident.

In Konoha, there is indeed Jiraiya who is strong enough to overpower Shoji, and who has a certain probability of killing Shoji when he enters Sage Mode. However, Jiraiya is also unable to completely avoid Shoji's detection!

With the enhanced perception of the Mangekyou Sharingan, as long as someone is within a certain range of Shoji, he can pinpoint their aura and approximate location with 100% accuracy.

"Hmph! I'm here now, shouldn't I show myself? Or do you want me to drag you out? You coward, hiding your true colors, your traces will not be able to hide in front of the eyes of the Hyuga clan!"

Even without activating his Byakugan, Hiashi could still vaguely sense a faint aura emanating from the surrounding area when he got closer. As the head of the Hyuga clan, Hiashi's strength was undoubtedly at the level of an elite Jonin, and in certain situations, his combat power was even close to that of a Quasi-Kage.

Given the close proximity of the two, Hiashi would naturally sense something.

"Of course I know very well how powerful the Byakugan of the Hyuga clan is. Hiashi-san, good evening. I am Uchiha Shoji. This should be considered our first meeting!"

Shoji didn't make a big effort to hide his aura. As Hiashi finished speaking, Shoji chuckled and stepped out from the shadows of the forest.

"Uchiha Shoji!? It's you!?"

The moment I saw Shoji's figure.

Hiashi Hyuga's pupils also contracted sharply. Despite the obviously suppressed volume, the shock was still clearly audible.

However, this shock clearly contained a deep-seated understanding. In other words, Hiashi had anticipated that Shoji was likely the person who had asked him to meet him before he arrived. However, he was still somewhat surprised when he saw him face to face, after all, it was the Uchiha and Hyuga!

Hiashi would most likely have guessed that the person he was meeting was someone else from the Iwagakure delegation, such as Kyoto or Akatsuchi, or another important member secretly hidden in the delegation. The probability of it being Shoji was the lowest. As for the possibility of it being Kumogakure...

It seems that Japan's chances are almost zero.

"It is indeed I, Hiashi-san. I originally thought you would refuse to come, but it seems you are still somewhat troubled!"

Jiang Si looked at Ri Zu with a smile in his eyes and said softly.

"Hmph, do you think those words can move me?"

Hijikata composed himself and snorted coldly.

"But you still chose to come here, Hiashi-san. That in itself is an attitude, isn't it? Or is Hiashi-san merely planning to see who invited you? And then planning to report back to Hiruzen Sarutobi and the other Konoha high-ranking officials? If so, then please go ahead, I will absolutely not stop you!"

Jiang Si raised his eyebrows and said with a hint of certainty.

The Japanese player's expression also darkened.

"That's one of my choices, isn't it? If what you say later is completely untrue, why should I choose to believe you!"

A hint of coldness also appeared in Riji's pure white eyes, and his words were slightly hoarse at this moment.

"Of course, the choice is still in your hands. I, Uchiha Shoji, never do anything against the will of others. Even if we become enemies in the future, it will not affect my judgment at this moment. However, Hiashi-san, if you choose to continue listening, there will probably be no turning back! You should understand what kind of people we Uchiha clan are!"

Jiang Si still maintained a relaxed demeanor, but in the next sentence, he changed the subject and deliberately emphasized his words.

This is a statement that bluntly expresses an attitude.

This silenced Japan once again.

It's unclear how long this heavy silence lasted, but Shoji kept looking at Hiashi in the opposite position with a faint smile.

It seemed as brief as a second, yet also as long as eternity.

When Rizu looked up again, the words he uttered to Jiang Si in the opposite seat deepened the smile on Jiang Si's face.

"Speak!"

Emotions are the most important basis for any human choice.

There is no creature in this world that can completely abandon its own emotions. Even ordinary animals are like this, let alone humans who are affected or even controlled by the seven emotions and six desires!

This applies to saints and great men as well.

They can achieve a higher level of self-control than ordinary people, and can avoid being controlled by their own emotions and desires, but they can never say that they can completely eliminate the influence of emotions and desires on themselves.

Those who can do this are not human, they are monsters!

Or perhaps it's a cold, impersonal machine.

Emotions are the true core of a human being.

Hiashi Hyuga is a case in point. As long as he is not truly indifferent to Hizashi's death, and as long as he truly harbors even a trace of resentment towards Hiruzen Sarutobi and the Konoha leadership, this conversation today is destined to proceed smoothly!

The only difference lies in what words and conditions Shoji will use to persuade Hiashi, and to what extent the head of the Hyuga clan will be convinced. That's all, but what will the final result be?

But the moment Hiashi appeared and was willing to continue talking with Shoji.

Shoji's plan was a success!

The only difference is the magnitude of the effects it will have in the future. This conversation obviously did not last long, ending in less than an hour!

During this process.

Hiashi's expression changed constantly as Shoji's words became more in-depth. When he finally reached the critical point, one could clearly see the extremely strong hesitation in Hiashi's eyes, as well as a deeply hidden trace of madness.

Even a rabbit will bite when cornered!

Let alone humans?

The original work only states that there is no external force that can assist the Hyuga clan, which means that even though Hyuga Hiashi is indeed better off than those completely corrupt main family elders, he still has to succumb to the cruel reality.

But what if there's external assistance now?

Will Hiashi Hyuga make a different choice?

Even though some jokingly call the Hyuga clan domesticated dogs by the Konoha leadership, there's a saying that goes, "Even a cornered dog will jump over a wall!"

Who knows, maybe one day they'll 'run away from home' too!

"Alright, I've said what I needed to say. From now on, the choice you make is entirely up to you, Hiashi-san. Well then, I'll excuse myself for today!"

Shoji looked at Hiashi, who had been silent for a long time, and said with a smile.

Then, as he bowed slightly and was about to turn and leave, he seemed to remember something, turned to look at Hiashi, who was bowing his head slightly, and said with a light laugh, "By the way, I'll take that little fellow from the Hizashi family with me. I'm letting you know in advance so you won't be caught off guard. Also, let me add that the little fellow is coming with me voluntarily; there was absolutely no coercion involved. And you don't need to worry about me instilling any misleading information in him. I will tell him the truth about the Hizashi incident in detail, without bias. I guarantee this in the name of the Uchiha clan!"

After saying these words, Hijikata's expression suddenly changed drastically.

"you!"

Before Japan could say anything more.

With a leap, Jiang Si left the spot and disappeared completely from Hiashi's sight!

Only Hiashi, his face filled with shock and anger, remained standing there, staring blankly in the direction where Shoji had left.

Wanting to do something, but powerless to do anything, he slowly withdrew his right hand, which he had unconsciously reached out earlier. The shock and anger disappeared, and a faint, bitter smile of worry returned to his face.

All the emotions and thoughts ultimately turned into a low sigh.

"well...."

After taking one last deep look in the direction where Shoji had left, Hiashi turned and strode back to his clan's territory. The information he had received from Shoji that evening had made the head of the Hyuga clan feel very heavy-hearted. He needed to go back and analyze it carefully so that he could make the right choices in the future.

Whether it's oneself or one's clan.

The future of the ninja world is destined to be turbulent.

As for Shoji, who had already left, he wouldn't care about Hiashi's thoughts at all. In essence, tonight's meeting was a kind of opportunistic investment. If it succeeded, he would be happy; if it failed, he wouldn't be worried. Anyway, Shoji didn't really give anything. He only revealed a part of the truth about the ninja world, especially the content related to Konoha, to Hiashi.

Jiang Si can guarantee that the vast majority of it is true. At most, some of the most crucial content has been omitted, and a couple of false sentences have been added to certain key areas!

This was a foreshadowing that Jiang Si had laid in advance.

Shoji is very interested in what kind of impact this will have in the future!

That depends on Hiashi Hyuga's own choice; Shoji doesn't have the time to worry about it for the time being!

Now that this matter has come to a complete end, Jiang Si must shift his focus to himself, whether it's the problem with his eyes, the problem of cultivating immortal arts, or the problem of strengthening other aspects!

all in all.

One's own strength is the foundation for executing everything!

That's the most important link!

371. An Unexpected Meeting and Response

If we were to say before this great battle...

If Jiang Si still harbored a sliver of hope that he could solve everything with his current strength, that last bit of wishful thinking was completely extinguished after this battle. In the end, he only had the strength of a Kage. Not to mention that he still had to deal with Obito Uchiha, Black Zetsu, and Madara Uchiha who could be resurrected at any time, just the powerful beings of the Five Great Nations and the Six Paths of Pain were absolutely beyond his current ability to handle!

Moreover, there is the major limiting condition of exhausting the power of the Mangekyou Sharingan. It is possible that after just one or two high-intensity battles, he will go blind. At that time, it will be a big question mark whether he can maintain his strength at the quasi-Kage level. How can he then protect his family and carry out his plans?

Making myself stronger and cultivating as many outstanding helpers as possible is what I should do next. I have been in this world for three years now. In the past, I have been more concerned about how to save my clan from the crisis of destruction. Now this problem has been fundamentally solved.

If last year, Shoji had to worry about the integration of his clan into Iwagakure, by the second half of this year, he no longer needs to worry about this issue. Even minor flaws will not affect the overall situation!

The Uchiha clan has been completely integrated into Iwagakure.

It's time to really look ahead. If I want to destroy the other four great ninja villages, stop the ambitions of Madara Uchiha, Black Zetsu, and Obito Uchiha, realize my dream, and build my own ideal country, I must have stronger strength!

'The research on Wood Release cells must be accelerated, as must the training in Sage Mode and the work on the descendants of Hamura Otsutsuki on the moon—all of these need to be put on the agenda within the next few years!'

As Jiang Si stealthily made his way back to the headquarters of his ninja village delegation, he silently pondered the first two points. Although they were difficult, Jiang Si had already gained some ideas. After all, there were similar examples in the original work that could be used as a reference, especially the research on Wood Release cells. The most difficult part now was the ratio of extraction to fusion, as well as the issue of adaptability!

A glance at Danzo's fate in the original work makes it clear.

If the Wood Release cells were to go berserk, they could directly devour the person who was injected with them. The biggest reason why Shoji's research has been so difficult and even stalled for the past year or so is because he has some concerns. But the current situation is forcing Shoji to take the next step in his research!

Fortunately, while others in the clan don't have any, there are still extra Sharingan eyes available. These can be used as research materials for now. Once the appropriate proportions are achieved, Shoji can directly use himself as experimental material!

risk?

A ninja's life is inherently accompanied by corresponding risks; if you want to become stronger and realize your ideals, this is the inevitable path.