I, Naruto Uzumaki, don't need your approval.

On one hand, they were waiting for Konoha to sort out the assets they had seized, and on the other hand, they planned to merge the Uzumaki base and the Uchiha base together to create a country within a country of Konoha.

Residents of Konoha are not allowed to enter or leave this area at will, but Uzushio Village can station a guard team of no more than fifty people, which can be regarded as a symbol of friendship between the two great ninja villages.

Of course, that's a nicer way of putting it; in reality, it meant allowing troops to be stationed in Wochao Village.

By leveraging the power of Uzushio Village to intimidate the Daimyo of the Land of Fire and other ninja villages, Konoha would have to pay a substantial protection fee.

After taking a deep breath, Naruto suddenly looked towards the corridor in the distance.

Shisui was rushing towards his location. Upon seeing Naruto, he immediately bowed and said, "Lord Menma, the area outside the Uzumaki base is piled high with gifts from Konoha villagers and various ninja clans. What do you think we should do with them?"

"Return all the gifts from the Konoha villagers...and the gifts from the various ninja clans?"

Naruto fell into deep thought, then chuckled and said, "Accepting these gifts would only fuel suspicion between Jiraiya and the Konoha ninja clan. However, I'm a good person, so I'll return all the ninja clan's gifts as well."

Naruto could roughly guess what the Konoha ninja clan was thinking.

Needless to say, the Hyuga clan is a force to be reckoned with. Hinata has already been confirmed as the next head of the main branch, and they will definitely support her in becoming the next Hokage.

The current head of the Ino-Shika-Cho clan has a good relationship with Minato Namikaze, so he will definitely waver between himself and Jiraiya. As for the other smaller clans, it goes without saying that if others give them gifts, they will have to follow suit.

After all, with his strength and network of connections, becoming the next Hokage would be far too easy for him.

However, these ninja clans did not expect that he disdained the position of Hokage, or rather, his ambition was far greater than that of the Hokage. He wanted more than just the territory of the Land of Fire.

Shisui nodded slightly, then remembered something and continued, "By the way, the villagers of Konoha and some of the Konoha ninjas are targeting the Sarutobi clan, seemingly trying to win your favor."

"What does this have to do with me? I'm not taking the blame."

Naruto shook his head slightly, then looked at Shisui and said, "However, the Sarutobi clan seems to have become like the Uchiha clan back then, to the point where everyone hates them. I wonder if the Sarutobi clan can survive the exclusion, or if someone similar to 'Itachi' will appear again."

Shisui immediately understood Naruto's meaning, sighed and said, "Lord Menma, the Uchiha are not from the Sarutobi clan, so they do not discriminate against ninjas born into the Sarutobi clan. Within Uzushio Village, you and the law are the most important."

Naruto ignored Shisui's flattery and asked, "How is Sasuke? Has his mental state stabilized? Has he awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan?"

"Not yet, but I hope Sasuke won't awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan... We adults will handle Itachi Uchiha, that traitor, we shouldn't let a little kid like him do it."

"That's not necessarily true. Sasuke's growth rate will probably surpass yours and Itachi's. Whether he awakens the Mangekyou Sharingan or not depends on himself. Suppressing him will only lead to bad results."

"Yes, Lord Menma, I will do my best to minimize my interference with Sasuke."

Shisui felt that Naruto's attitude towards Sasuke was a bit strange, but he didn't want to ask too much, since Sasuke and Naruto had spent much more time together than he had spent with Sasuke.

After Shisui took his leave, Naruto stretched and looked in the direction of the Hokage Building.

He had previously said he would return to Konoha openly and honestly, and now that has been achieved. The next step is to spend some time with Hinata. With Hinata's Byakugan purity and Shikotsumyaku bloodline limit, she will become an important helper for him in the future.

……

Within the Uchiha clan.

Sasuke rushed into the Uzumaki camp with great interest, ready to learn the Uchiha secret techniques from Shisui and also to inquire about more information related to his mother and Itachi Uchiha.

However, they were stopped by the guards at the entrance, who said that Konoha ninjas were not allowed to enter this place at will.

Konoha ninjas are not allowed to enter the Uzushio village, but he is the only Uchiha in Konoha and will eventually join Uzushio village and become a member of the Uzushio Uchiha clan.

Naruto, the leader of Uzushio Village, was his classmate, and Shisui, the head of the Anbu, was his cousin. Why couldn't he enter?

After leaving the Uzumaki camp dejectedly, Sasuke returned to the clan's training ground, preparing to vent his resentment through intense training.

After the Chunin Exams ended, he learned that his enemies were not only Itachi Uchiha, but also the Third Hokage and Danzo, the two high-ranking officials of Konoha. These two were the root cause of the Uchiha Night.

But he didn't even get a chance to avenge those two; they had already died at the hands of others.

The feeling of having your revenge taken first is like punching cotton – weak and powerless.

It seems that Shisui and the others have already planned to deal with Itachi Uchiha, but he can't do anything about it. These people simply look down on his strength and think he's still that weak and helpless child, Uchiha Yoru.

With that thought in mind, Sasuke gathered his chakra into his fist and punched the boulder in front of him.

As the boulder cracked open, a wormhole suddenly appeared in the distant sky. Two figures, one large and one small, fell from mid-air, barely managing to steady themselves before jumping onto a nearby tree.

Are they ninjas from Uzushio Village, or spies from other ninja villages?

Sasuke frowned, then concealed his presence and quietly followed them. He wanted to investigate the two on his own and prove that he was now a capable ninja, no longer the Sasuke who had been underestimated.

Soon, Sasuke arrived near the two mysterious figures and was taken aback when he saw their similar attire to that of Konoha ninjas.

Chapter 257 Sasuke's Misunderstanding

Deep in the dense forest.

Two figures, one large and one small, shook off the dust and looked at the talking turtle in their hands.

This turtle named Plow is a treasure of the Otsutsuki clan, possessing the ability to travel through time. In their battle with Urashiki, it accidentally disrupted Urashiki's time travel plan and arrived in an earlier era than Urashiki.

After finishing its explanation, the turtle, having exhausted its chakra, fell into a deep sleep.

After hearing the turtle's explanation, Boruto frowned and said, "Sasuke-sensei, did we really travel back to the past through it?"

Feeling his chakra almost completely depleted, Sasuke nodded slightly and said:

"Judging from the current situation, we should have arrived a few days earlier than Urashiki. During this time, we must make preparations in advance to prevent Urashiki from traveling through time and space to steal the Nine-Tails."

"Then how do we find our father? Come to think of it, I've never even seen Konoha before..."

Boruto put his hand behind his head and said with a grin.

Just then, Sasuke covered Boruto's mouth and stared at the figure emerging from the bushes. Boruto struggled for a moment, then followed Sasuke's gaze and saw Sasuke emerging from the bushes.

So it was Sasuke's teacher when he was a child... Boruto thought to himself, a smile appearing on his lips.

Sasuke couldn't laugh. The two figures in front of him, one large and one small, not only gave him a sense of familiarity but also brought him a great sense of oppression. In particular, the one-armed youth wearing a trench coat seemed to have seen right through him.

Gripping the kunai in his hand, Sasuke forced himself to calm down and asked, "Who exactly are you two? Why have you trespassed into Konoha's territory?"

As he spoke, Sasuke formed hand seals, and dazzling lightning erupted from his palms.

Sasuke put away his weapon, stared at Sasuke for a few moments, and said, "We are travelers who have traveled the world and usually make a living by performing acrobatics. We got lost and ended up here by mistake."

"This is Uchiha clan territory. And how can you prove you are travelers?"

After a pause, Sasuke stared at Boruto and asked, "The Anbu have noticed this place and will be here soon. What are your names? You'll find out who you are in a moment."

Boruto glanced at Sasuke beside him and then said, "I am Boruto, and he is my teacher."

Upon hearing the name Boruto, Sasuke's hostility diminished considerably.

Boruto's pronunciation is very similar to Naruto's, and his hair color is also similar to Naruto's, so he must be a relative that Naruto found in Uzushio Village.

These two ninjas who broke into the Uchiha clan's territory were most likely from Uzushio Village, so he withdrew his ninjutsu and said expressionlessly:

"I can pretend I didn't see it this time, but the Konoha Anbu won't. You'd better be careful."

After saying that, Sasuke turned and headed towards the training ground.

After exchanging a glance, Sasuke and Boruto decided to follow, and began to use their chakra to block out sound, communicating in hushed tones.

"Sasuke-sensei, were you like this when you were a child? You were much more aloof than you are now."

"People always change. At that time, I was blinded by some things from the past..."

Sasuke responded to Boruto with a few words here and there, gazing at his younger self's back with a very serious expression, glancing around from time to time.

He remembered that during this period, he should have gone to Orochimaru and joined the Sound Village.

How did he end up in Konoha? Did that turtle deceive them, causing Urashiki to return to an earlier timeline and alter the future?

After a moment of internal debate, the two followed Sasuke to the Uchiha training grounds.

Looking at the mannequins in the training field, Sasuke revealed a nostalgic look, while Boruto seemed to have noticed something and pointed to the Shadow Rock on the distant horizon.

"Why is there a statue of Jiraiya carved on the Shadow Rock? Isn't Tsunade the Hokage?"

Boruto's voice was loud, attracting Sasuke's attention. He glanced at the person in front of him and then said indifferently, "Although Tsunade, one of the Legendary Sannin, has power in Konoha comparable to that of the Hokage, the Fifth Hokage is Jiraiya."

"The Fifth Hokage was Jiraiya?"

Boruto looked at Sasuke with an incredulous expression, then glanced at him.

Sasuke stared expressionlessly at the Hokage Rock, his heart already churning with turmoil. He instantly appeared beside Boruto, left a single sentence, and then vanished from the spot.

"I need to leave for a while, so please don't reveal our identities."

"Don't go..." Boruto looked at the disappearing Sasuke, feeling a little disheveled in the wind, but he quickly composed himself and walked towards Sasuke.

If you can build good relationships with your former teachers, you might be able to learn some embarrassing stories about them.

Sasuke also noticed that Big Sasuke had disappeared and came over to say, "Your captain left you here alone to go on a mission? It seems he still treats you like a child."

Boruto quickly replied, "What mission? We're just travelers who make a living by performing acrobatics."

Sasuke gave him a knowing look and then said, "This kind of excuse might fool others, but it won't fool my eyes. That uncle should be an Uchiha, right? And your name should be Uzumaki Boruto, right?"

"How did you know?" Boruto was shocked, never expecting that Sasuke had seen through him and his teacher.

Sasuke casually tossed more than ten kunai, all of which landed in the bullseye, and then said calmly:

"Your disguises were too clumsy. That uncle was clearly an Uchiha ninja. Apart from me, all the other Uchiha in the ninja world are from Uzushio Village. As for your hair color, it reminds me of Naruto. You must be a relative of Naruto, a ninja from the Uzumaki clan."

"I am a ninja from Uzushio Village?"

Boruto was a little overwhelmed by all the information he received at once.

However, in his mind, the Uchiha clan should only consist of Sasuke-sensei, Sakura-aunt, and Sarada. Could there be other Uchiha in this era?

What are Uzushio Village and the Uzumaki Clan? I've never heard of them before.

At this moment, Boruto suddenly remembered Sasuke's sudden departure. Could it be that Sasuke-sensei discovered something wrong with this era, so he left to investigate on his own?

Thinking of this, Boruto decided to play along and said with a smile, "I didn't expect that even though my teacher and I disguised ourselves so well, you still found out. Are you training right now?"

"If it's possible, can we cultivate together?"

Sasuke glanced at Boruto, didn't think much of it, nodded and said, "Okay, this is a good opportunity to test the average level of the genin in Uzushio Village. I don't believe that all the genin in Uzushio Village are monsters like Karin and Haku."

After saying that, Sasuke stepped forward and formed a seal of opposition with Boruto.

Chapter 258 The Vanishing Rasengan

While Boruto and Sasuke were sparring, Sasuke had already infiltrated the streets of Konoha to begin gathering intelligence.

After using genjutsu to hypnotize several Konoha ninjas, Sasuke obtained the information he wanted, but the content of the information made him frown.