Half a month later.
Unaware that he had already been assigned this task, Shen arrived at a heavily guarded house within the Uzumaki clan compound.
"Everything's going to be fine, right?"
"Just give it a try. If it doesn't work the first time, there's always round two."
The Third Hokage still felt somewhat worried. Was this sealing technique, developed only two months ago, actually reliable?
"You talk about an old man having a young heart, yet you look so hesitant. No one would believe it if they heard," muttered Shen, who deeply looked down on such behavior.
"Hmph! Brat! Do you think I can't hear you?" The Third Hokage, now shifting from concern to anger, played along as expected.
It must be admitted—Shen not only eased his anxiety but also helped relax Mito, who had been tense all along.
"Grandma Mito, I'll use my Sharingan to enter your spiritual space next," said Shen.
Upon hearing just the first half of this sentence, the Third Hokage became worried again: "What? You're going to face the Nine-Tails in person?"
Shen clenched his fists, already wanting to kick the old man out.
"I finally got the tension to ease up... and just like that, you brought it back," he thought, exasperated.
"Great Sage, why don't you go bug someone else instead?" With that, Shen took off with a big step, wearing an indifferent expression.
Now Hiruzen grew anxious: "Fine, fine! Old man believes in you already!"
Mito, who hadn't spoken until now, simply gave some straightforward instructions: "The Nine-Tails won't show mercy to any ninja. Once inside, you may face an attack."
"Don't worry, Grandma Mito," Shen replied confidently while quietly revealing a secret, "because I'm none other than Shen Banshen—the half-immortal seer famed for unmatched wisdom!"
This caused the Third Hokage's headache to flare up again.
Shen Banshen? He, as a ninja, believed no deities except the Sage of Six Paths.
"Hmm? Why does this scene feel oddly familiar somehow?" Obviously, forty-year-old Hiruzen Sarutobi had definitely developed forgetfulness.
Rolling his eyes, Shen ignored the Third and pulled the necessary sealing materials from his pendant.
"Forget brushes, ink, paper, and inkstone, but why do you have a TV and snacks too? And what even is this DJ setup?"
Without responding to the old man's question, Shen continued pulling out a sound system and his mobile phone.
"Kid, what exactly are you doing? Let me tell you, these gadgets won't raise the slightest interest from the Nine-Tails."
Ignoring him once more, Shen laid out a large sealing scroll and carefully checked each item after unboxing them before individually sealing them away.
"? ? ?" x2
Both the Third Hokage and Mito wore puzzled expressions filled with question marks; neither understood the point of this operation.
"Hey kid, are you trying to pull another prank on me again?"
Upon hearing those words, Mito recalled an incident from a few years ago.
Back then, she had overheard news claiming Rain ninja were leading an unknown plot against the Uzumaki clan.
Coincidentally, the Third Hokage had left early that morning to attend matters in Sunagakure, and being upset, she was planning to call on the Senju and rush straight to Uzugakure to save people.
"Milady Mito," said the Anbu, "Lord Third has already dispatched many of my comrades to provide support. Please rest assured, your clanspeople will be safe."
Just made her feel even worse.
What good were Anbu? Aside from espionage and assassination missions, how much chance did they have in direct combat?
If an enemy launched a [Ninjutsu] over there, would the Anbu dodge or block? Without one-hit kill capability, the Uzumaki clan would all be in danger!
So Mito secretly gathered a large group of Senju clansmen, deciding to dedicate themselves to defending Uzushio Village at all costs.
However, just as they were about to take their vows and drink farewell sake, an annoying electric sound rang out.
At that moment, she and the whole group of Senju clansmen felt extremely awkward—the cups hadn't even been smashed yet—when Konoha's Troublemaker pulled another stunt.
"You know, milady Mito," said a clever young man from the Senju residence, bravely offering a theory, "I heard their Team One isn't on its way to Uzugakure?"
After listening, Mito walked outside, glaring fiercely with eyes full of killing intent at the few Anbu who secretly protected her.
The Anbu immediately freaked out—big mistake letting her find out about the Uzumaki crisis.
Now if someone detected something suspicious too, wouldn't they need to shift positions?
Getting fired was manageable, but if they got locked up in prison for suspected leaking classified information, things would become seriously amusing.
Anyway, whether they spoke up or not, their fate had already been decided—and staying silent now meant getting beaten too.
They had a collective lightbulb moment—screw it—and spilled the beans: Team One had saved the Uzumaki clan and were currently en route to Konoha.
Later, Mito's mood went from rock bottom to sky-high in an instant—and she fainted on the spot.
Fortunately, she had simply been overwhelmed with excitement and soon regained consciousness.
That past incident taught Uzumaki Mito one thing for sure—that anyone coming from Uchiha carried poison!
Hmph, wait, scratch that—good things always come after a string of disasters!
No way was she ever going to admit she almost fell for someone else's charm.
"Madara? Good thing he's dead. Otherwise I, Mito Uzumaki, would go finish him myself!" At the time, seeing Hashirama holding Madara's corpse, happiness filled her heart like never before.
Back in reality, Mito saw that sealing scroll containing many sealed items being tossed directly toward the Third Hokage by Shen.
He muttered while tossing it, "Old geezer Third, looks like today's your lucky day."
"I absolutely do not accept bribes. These are donations to Konoha," said the Third Hokage with a particularly sly expression.
"Tightwad old coot who values face more than anything."
"Impudent brat with zero manners."
"Cheapskate freeloader!"
"Troublemaking little punk!"
Watching the old man and the cheeky brat go at it with their banter left Mito in high spirits. She couldn't help asking, "Monkey, is this really how you usually communicate?"
"Indeed, Mito-sama," the Third Hokage replied warily, glancing to the side. "You should be careful not to fall for this brat's tricks."
Could Shen really swallow such a blatant smear?
The very next moment, he stepped between them and shouted, "Granny Mito, have you ever seen anyone make a child work and not pay them?"
Shen kept sneaking glances toward the Third while amusing Mito even more. "Now now, kiddo, just tell Granny who that man is?"
"I'm too scared to say. If I do, that penny-pincher will make me work overtime." Even as he spoke, Shen's face showed no sign of fear whatsoever.
He even dared to turn around and arch his brows repeatedly, glaring straight at the now visibly trembling Third Hokage.
"Haha!" Mito burst out laughing at Shen's antics. "Haha, Third, don't you dare pick on Shen again! Now he's got me watching his back!"
"Certainly not, Lady Mito," the constipated-looking Third Hokage replied reluctantly.
Then, he shot a subtle 'just wait till later' glare at Shen, who was practically smug as can be.
"Thanks, Granny Mito," Shen said, pouting slightly, before flashing her a defiant stare.
If their battling auras could manifest physically, they'd probably be as mighty as a Susanoo (the storm god) towering over a Daibutsu!
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
Want to read the subsequent content in advance?
Please follow my Patreon:patreon/Tansnovel
Tans Novel - The Fastest-Updating Naruto Fanfiction Account
Read 100+ chapters in advance, with at least 3 new chapters updated every day! More free chapters! 20+ Naruto fanfictions!
Just three steps:
1. Download and open the "Patreon" app
2. Search for "Tans Novel"
3. Click on the collection and enjoy to your heart's content
<><><><><><><><>