Revitalizing the Uchiha clan starts with becoming a Kage.

Shoji really didn't expect that Kabuto would immediately connect the two Jinchuriki of the Tailed Beasts in his own village. However, this was indeed a reasonable guess, since the vitality of this cell was hundreds or even thousands of times greater than that of an ordinary person. It was almost impossible for humans to have such cells. It was inevitable that Kabuto would directly associate it with the Tailed Beasts!

Upon hearing Shoji's answer, Kabuto Yakushi's face showed a hint of regret. After all, since being led down the path of experimentation by Shoji, Kabuto Yakushi had increasingly discovered his strong interest in this area. This kind of behavior, which could discover and explore the deepest secrets of the human body, could greatly satisfy Kabuto Yakushi's curiosity. If before it was out of gratitude to Shoji and a determination to complete the task assigned by Shoji, now it was also due to Kabuto Yakushi's own initiative and interest!

Tailed beasts are the most unique existences in the current ninja world. If there were an opportunity to study the Jinchuriki, or even the Tailed Beasts themselves, Kabuto Yakushi would definitely be the type to be very interested. After all, they are the only intelligent beings in the ninja world that are recognized as being able to exist eternally!

However, the look of regret was fleeting. Although Jiang Si clearly stated that this cell did not belong to Lao Zi or Han in the village, its incredibly vigorous vitality was enough to show that the cell's owner was definitely an extremely special person. Studying such a cell would certainly be of great value!

Just thinking about this was enough to pique Kabuto's interest.

"Yes, Lord General, I will definitely meet your requirements in the shortest possible time!"

A bright light flashed in Kabuto's eyes as he spoke with the utmost determination. Although Shoji hadn't explicitly told him what he wanted him to do, Kabuto had a premonition that he was likely getting closer to understanding his master Shoji's true intentions. As someone who had firmly followed Shoji, Kabuto genuinely wanted to help him as soon as possible. Moreover, this was for Shoji and the Dean's sake; he wanted to be able to provide more assistance to Shoji and thus increase his own importance!

Unlike the original character who couldn't find meaning in life and simply drifted along, Kabuto Yakushi in this life has clear goals. He not only wants his master to live a stable and peaceful life, but also, like most teenagers, wants to become a renowned figure in the ninja world and rise to a high position in the village. Kabuto firmly believes that his master, Shoji, will definitely become the Tsuchikage of Iwagakure, and that if he can naturally become Shoji's trusted confidant, he will surely secure a place in the high ranks of Iwagakure in the future!

This also reflects Kabuto Yakushi's personal ambition.

Therefore, he had to make Shoji see his role and value, which was the main reason why Yakushi Kabuto was so serious and hardworking during that period.

"Yes, I trust you to handle things, but there's no need to rush. This experiment is completely different from the previous ones, requiring more patience and attention to detail. Also, you can't spend all your time on the experiment. You must follow the personal training plan I set for you on time, and you can't skip your daily rest time either, understand?"

Shoji first chuckled lightly, then said in a very solemn tone, "Yakushi Kabuto is a genius. Shoji doesn't want this boy to just become his personal experimental assistant or secretary. The fact that he was able to learn the Sage Mode of Ryuchi Cave later in the original work is enough to prove Yakushi Kabuto's talent in this area. Shoji intends to further hone Yakushi Kabuto's foundation while he is still relatively young."

Then, once he has fully mastered Sage Mode in the future, he can pass it on to Kabuto Yakushi. This is also a well-known Kage-level reserve force. The more talents on his side, the smoother he can carry out his plans in the future. In such a vast ninja world, he can't possibly handle every matter and enemy personally, can he?

"Yes, Sir General!"

"By the way, I need to go on a long trip soon. As for the general administrative affairs of the Jonin team, you should handle them as usual. If you're really unsure, depending on the urgency, you can either postpone them for the time being, or you can go directly to Huang Tu-san or Date-san for instructions. Understand?"

As he was giving those instructions and about to send Kabuto away, Shoji suddenly seemed to remember something, paused, and then continued, "It can be said that in Iwagakure today, Kabuto is truly Shoji's most indispensable assistant. Since Kabuto came along, Shoji has been able to take more and more time to do his own things!"

Kabuto Yakushi's efficiency and ability truly satisfied Shoji. He was indeed Orochimaru's most valued subordinate in the original work. You know, Orochimaru is very picky about people. There are very few people who can be noticed by the most crazy scientist in the ninja world.

Date, a member of the Jonin class, has joked more than once that he wants Shoji to give him Kabuto Yakushi. It's not that Iwagakure is really short of people, but among the younger generation, Kabuto Yakushi's abilities are truly top-notch. Date is the kind of person who likes to mentor the younger generation, and Kabuto Yakushi's talent and abilities naturally make Date very satisfied!

At first, Kabuto was somewhat unaccustomed to it and apprehensive, afraid of making mistakes and displeasing Shoji. However, after several months of practice, Kabuto gradually adapted and is now used to Shoji's similar instructions.

"Please rest assured, Lord General!"

Moreover, this was precisely because Shoji valued him. Kabuto would only be pleased, not find it tedious. Strength, status, fame, power—aside from a very few truly idealistic individuals who are indifferent to fame and fortune, or even saints, humans cannot escape the allure of these things! (Gu Xi)

This applies to Shoji himself as well. He never claims to be a saint or anything like that. His standard of conduct is to put the interests of himself, his family, and his friends first. Yakushi Kabuto is the same.

It's impossible for a person to be without selfishness, and Shoji doesn't think that selfishness is wrong. He can feel Kabuto's respect for him, but he can also see the personal ambition that exists in Kabuto's heart. Shoji is not only not surprised, but he thinks it is very normal, and he further encourages Kabuto's 'selfishness'!

What do you want others to give in return?

Then you yourself must give something first!

This is an equivalent exchange.

"Okay! Then I'll leave everything to you!"

After settling things with Kabuto, Shoji also took some time to visit the Third Tsuchikage. This time, his departure from the village would likely take a little longer, not only to visit Granny Neko, but also to confirm the glowing pool that leads to the moon, as well as some other predictions, all during this relatively stable period.

Optimistically speaking, the round trip would take more than half a month, so naturally I would need to report to my Tsuchikage. I would also need to explain the work of the Jonin team to Kyoto and Date. It's impossible to just hand everything over to Kabuto Yakushi. If that were the case, Kabuto would be working 24/7, with no time to rest. He would have to squeeze out time for his own training.

Before leaving, Shoji checked the training and mission completion progress of the three members of his first squad. It is worth mentioning that the three of them were recognized by the Jonin squad at the beginning of the new year and were promoted to Chunin after meeting the mission requirements. Although Chunin are qualified to lead a team, considering that Itachi, the oldest of the three, is only nine years old, and that the three of them have a very good teamwork, it is impossible to break up the three-person squad.

Itachi, Kurotsuchi, and Deidara were still assigned to the mission as teammates. Shoji checked on them occasionally and was quite satisfied with their training progress and mission completion efficiency. Itachi and Deidara were not worth mentioning. Kurotsuchi had indeed inherited the talent of the Third Tsuchikage in Earth Release techniques, but whether she could master Dust Release was another matter.

However, her mastery of Earth Release techniques is almost on par with the Jonin in the village. She has already mastered the most difficult techniques, such as the Heavy Rock Technique and the Light Heavy Rock Technique. It is foreseeable that in this life, where the timeline has changed drastically, while Itachi and Deidara are hard to say, Kurotsuchi will definitely become stronger than in the original story!

Less than a year after graduation, all three were promoted to Chunin, causing quite a stir in Iwagakure. It was foreseeable that in a very short time, at least the higher-ups of the four great ninja villages would take notice of them. Geniuses are bound to attract attention, and it was even foreseeable that they would be more likely to encounter accidents than ordinary people when carrying out missions. This was the norm in the ninja world and one of the natural 'tacit' suppression behaviors among the five great nations!

Geniuses need to go through trials and tribulations to truly grow up, but just as many geniuses perish in accidents, so there is a saying: a genius who dies young is not a genius; only a genius who grows up successfully is recognized by the world as a genius!

The commander was clearly very satisfied with the three's growth and set higher standards for them. Putting aside their personal training, the next mission would not only hone their strength but also refine their abilities in all aspects.

Especially Deidara, whose personality is clearly too impulsive in the original work. This is something that Shoji feels needs to guide properly. Of course, this doesn't mean to suppress Deidara's nature. If you force it, not only will it definitely cause Deidara to resist, but even if you succeed, it will definitely destroy a future Kage-level powerhouse. What Shoji needs is to guide him according to his own aptitude and teach him to be more rational in his thinking and not be controlled by his emotions.

Honestly, in the original story, if Deidara had even half of Itachi's calm thinking during his battle with Sasuke, Sasuke would most likely not have survived. At that point, Deidara's strength was still superior to Sasuke's. If it weren't for the fact that Clay Explosion Release is countered by Lightning Release, the battle might have been easier.

Shoji has different guidance plans for each of the three different types of people. Although the plot and character settings in the original work are the most important reference conditions, it must be said that Shoji himself did not realize that he was quite good at guiding others. Onoki was very happy with the growth of his granddaughter and his closed-door disciple. He expressed his satisfaction with Shoji more than once in private conversations with his son, Kodo, and was very happy that he had not chosen the wrong person.

After arranging this series of things.

In the general's own residence.

"Spiritual communication!"

Jiang Si gently bit her finger, leaving a rapidly forming mark.

"boom!"

Black lines spread out and appeared on the ground.

A cloud of white mist rose up.

As they dispersed.

Inside appeared a ninja cat with pure white fur, dressed in black, with the character "忍" (ninja) engraved on its forehead, and a face somewhat resembling a tanuki (raccoon dog).

"Meow? Oh? It's Shoji, kid. Is there something you need from this summoning session?"

When the white ninja cat was summoned by Shoji, a human-like look of joy appeared on its face the moment it saw Shoji. With a light leap, it landed directly on Shoji's shoulder, tilted its head, and looked at Shoji, saying this.

"Well, there are some things I need to discuss with Granny Cat. So, Baiyu, could you please tell Granny Cat to use the Reverse Spirit Communication Technique to send me over there? That would save a little time!"

Jiang Si gently scratched the chin of the white ninja cat and smiled slightly.

"Oh, no problem! But, you know what I mean, kid!"

On the face of the ninja cat, Shirayuki, a look of great comfort appeared, with its eyes narrowed in a comfortable manner. The next moment, its emerald green pupils slowly opened, and it looked at Shoji with a sly look before continuing to speak.

"Haha, of course I know! Here, this is for you, white jade!"

The general laughed heartily.

Then, he pulled out a glass bottle containing a pale green liquid from his pocket and flicked it lightly. The ninja cat, Hakutama, which was originally sitting on Shoji's shoulder, lit up and instantly leaped up, a speed that was three points faster than that of an average Chunin.

"Whoosh!"

In almost a fraction of a second, it swiftly bit the glass bottle that Si had thrown out. Its cat nose twitched slightly, and the familiar scent it caught brought a look of great satisfaction to Baiyu's cat face.

The beverage made from catnip is one of the favorite foods of the Uchiha ninja cat clan. Generally speaking, when the Uchiha clan needs the help of the ninja cats, they will prepare some of it. It has nothing to do with a contract; it is just a simple exchange of gifts between friends.

"Mmm, this is the taste! It's so irresistible, no matter how much you eat! Just wait, young man, I'll go and report to Granny Cat right away!"

Bai Yu turned her head slightly and skillfully put the bottle of wood lily drink into the small bag on her clothes.

After saying these words.

"puff!"

Then it turned into a wisp of white mist and disappeared instantly.

391. Grandma Cat

The Reverse Summoning Technique, as the name suggests, is a technique closely related to the Summoning Technique. Only those who have made a contract with a ninja beast are qualified to use this technique. To put it simply, it is the reverse use of the Summoning Technique, where the ninja beast summons the contractor to its side. It is the most famous and effective escape method for the strong in the original work, and it is one of the few 'space techniques' that ordinary ninjas can access!

Of course, it's important to note that these so-called ordinary ninjas refer to the elite Jonin from various ninja villages. While the Summoning Jutsu isn't an overly exaggerated technique, generally only Jonin are qualified to master it, and even then, only a select group of Jonin. Most importantly, even if you know the Summoning Jutsu, it doesn't mean you can actually use it. There aren't that many ninja beasts in the ninja world that can sign a summoning contract with you. One issue is the quantity, and the other is whether they'll even be interested in you!

Therefore, although the Reverse Summoning Technique sounds like a powerful and easily masterable spatial technique, there are very few people in the entire ninja world who are qualified to use it. Moreover, although this technique is said to be one of the strongest escape methods, it is not something that can be used casually. I will not go into the limitations mentioned earlier.

This technique is more complex than the Summoning Technique. To put it simply, it cannot be completed in an instant. It always requires a few seconds or even longer to prepare. In the original story, when Jiraiya infiltrated Amegakure and fought Pain, he lost an arm and entered the body of a toad on Mount Myōboku. He had a chance to escape using the Reverse Summoning Technique!

However, in order to further confirm the information about the Six Paths of Pain, he gave up his last chance. When he finally confirmed the information about the Six Paths of Pain and wanted to leave, Nagato would not give him such a chance again. In a battle at the Kage level, even a second can be fatal, let alone several seconds. Without this crucial preparation time, the toads of Mount Myōboku would not have been able to summon Jiraiya in reverse!

So, to be honest, this technique is somewhat useless for escaping. Compared to techniques like the Flying Thunder God Technique and the Divine Might Technique, which truly allow for free space travel, it is fundamentally different.

However, this technique is an excellent choice for traveling.

The ninja cat clan led by Granny Cat doesn't live in the usual summoning space where ninja beasts exist alone. Instead, they actually live in this real world, in a ruined city of a small, long-destroyed country in the southern part of the Land of Wind. If Shoji were to travel from the Land of Earth, it would take at least four days. The Reverse Summoning Technique allows Shoji to save that time. Of course, on the way back, he would have to walk.

But it also happened to be a good opportunity to do some things I wanted to do.

As Jiang Si sat cross-legged in his seat, pondering his next plans, he suddenly felt a stirring in his mind. This was a clearly perceptible fluctuation of the summoning contract, occurring less than a minute after the ninja cat Bai Yu had left.

"puff!"

As a faint spatial ripple spread out...

Jiang Si's figure also turned into a wisp of white mist, and after it spread out, Jiang Si's figure had already disappeared.

Until the next moment.

As the commander opened his eyes again.

The scene before us has undergone earth-shattering changes.

"Meow meow?"

"Meow?"

"Meow meow?"

Not only did it transform into a slightly dim underground space, but there were also more than twenty cats of different shapes, sizes, and colors all around, some sitting and some lying down. The moment Jiang Si appeared, they all looked at him with a hint of curiosity.

Clearly, these cats are just ordinary cats, not the kind of ninja cats that can use chakra and speak like Hakutama. It's worth mentioning that among the so-called ninja cat clan, there are very few ninja cats that can actually talk and possess chakra. Compared to humans becoming ninjas, it is much more difficult for cats to become ninja cats. The exact age of Granny Cat is unknown even to the Uchiha clan, but she is at least several hundred years old, because the Uchiha clan and Granny Cat have had a summoning alliance contract for two or three hundred years!

During this period, the Uchiha clan recorded less than thirty ninja cats that could be summoned. Unlike Granny Cat's terrifying age, these ninja cats, although their lifespan far exceeded that of ordinary cats, still experienced birth, aging, sickness, and death. As far as Shoji knew, Granny Cat only had four or five ninja cats left. Despite his delicate appearance, the ninja cat Hakutama was actually more than twice Shoji's age.

The reason why Granny Cat chose to stay in the real world instead of living in the spirit world was so that she could take in some stray cats and then select some of them who were qualified to be trained into ninja cats.

Even the ordinary cats that couldn't refine chakra and become ninja cats would become more human-like under Granny Cat's training. These kittens could clearly distinguish between ordinary humans and Uchiha.

Upon seeing the Uchiha clan crest on Shoji and smelling that special aura, the cats instinctively moved closer to him. This wasn't Shoji's first time here. Back in late 49, when the clan planned to leave Konoha, Shoji and Fugaku visited Granny Cat and traded many items from her, including some very rare sealing scrolls—the perfect choice for carrying supplies easily!

Shoji was very familiar with the cats here, and with a gentle smile, he gently stroked the few kittens that approached him most readily.

"Hmph, what brings you here today, kid, wanting to see this old man like me!"

Then, just a few seconds later, at the far east end of this spacious room, a red door opened, and a slightly burly figure stepped out. She had an aged face and fan-shaped hair, but unlike ordinary people, her prominently exposed furry cat ears and slightly blackened cat nose clearly distinguished her. This person was none other than Granny Cat, the largest, or rather, the sole leader of the cat-lover clan who had made a pact with the Uchiha clan!

"Grandma Cat, it's been a long time since I last greeted you. This humble boy has been rude!"

The moment I saw Granny Cat appear.

Jiang Si quickly stood up, took small steps to Grandma Cat, sat down cross-legged, and bowed slightly with a respectful expression.

This is their clan's greatest ally. It wasn't explicitly shown in the original work, but since arriving in this world, Shoji has clearly realized how important Granny Cat is to their Uchiha clan. Don't underestimate the importance of those basic supplies. It's a different story if you're alone, but for a powerful ninja clan that wants to stand firm in the ninja world, these supplies are especially important. Moreover, Granny Cat's ninja cat clan can also provide their clan with necessary intelligence!

This is also one of the important factors that enabled their clan to establish itself as the number one powerful clan in the ninja world. This help alone is enough to make Shoji respect Granny Cat very much, not to mention that Granny Cat is many times older than Shoji!

This also shows the respect that should be shown to the elderly.