Chapter 46

"There won't be any missions for a while, so you can move around freely, but don't get too relaxed. Maintain combat readiness."

"Understood!"

After lunch, Shoumou found the three of them, gave them a brief reminder, and then they all went their separate ways.

Naturally, Shiro and Ruri returned to the mansion in the Uchiha clan's territory.

Because it had been a few months since they last returned to the village, Shiro felt that things had changed a lot, yet nothing seemed to have changed at all.

"How do you plan to spend the next few days, Ruri?"

The break wouldn't be too long, but it wouldn't be too short either. They would likely face another difficult mission in about half a month.

"Training."

Ruri answered succinctly.

"True to your style. I've had some new ideas lately, and after these few months of missions, I think we can create some practical tools to assist in combat."

"How so?"

Ruri seemed very interested.

"Smoke bombs are good, but they can be easily countered by wind-type jutsu, and their duration is not long. They can be used for surprise attacks... but what if we add some poison gas to the smoke bombs? Even if the enemy uses wind jutsu to disperse the smoke, they will have already inhaled a lot of poison gas, significantly reducing their strength."

Shiro explained his idea, believing it to be feasible.

"Ninjas generally have some resistance to poison, especially Sand Village ninjas. If the poison isn't strong enough, it won't have much effect on them."

"Even with the best resistance, there is a limit. If we use poison gas, we need to prepare antidotes in advance and have our own people take them to avoid accidental harm."

"Suitable for small-scale battles, but in large-scale battles, the effect might be counterproductive."

Shiro nodded in agreement with Ruri's insightful comment.

In large-scale battles, the production of antidotes would be a problem, and even with antidotes, the smoke would still obstruct vision for a short time.

However, Shiro didn't intend to promote this tactic widely; it would be enough to use it within Shoumou's team.

After so long, Shiro had already understood that their team mainly carried out dangerous and important secret missions. Developing tactics suitable for Shoumou's team was very necessary.

As they approached the long-absent mansion, they suddenly saw a man and a woman standing at the entrance, waving at them.

To be precise, they were waving at Ruri, looking very happy and excited.

"Do you know them?"

Shiro hadn't seen this man and woman in the Uchiha clan in the past two or three years and turned to look at Ruri.

"My parents."

Ruri answered calmly.

"!?"

Shiro was a bit flustered.

This was the first time he had met Ruri's parents; he had only heard about them from Ruri.

Since Shiro had been staying at Ruri's house, he had never seen Ruri's parents return home.

Even during the New Year, they only exchanged photos and letters. Ruri's birthday and New Year gifts were always simple, just a passbook.

The passbook started with a 1, followed by many zeros.

This was the birthday and New Year gift Ruri received every year, simple and uninteresting.

"It's been a long time, little Ruri. Have you missed your parents?"

The woman was dressed in luxurious and noble attire, with her hair neatly tied up and adorned with many accessories.

She looked a bit too flamboyant and showy, but she didn't give off a vulgar aura.

How to describe it, she seemed to have a natural aura.

She immediately hugged Ruri and rubbed her face against Ruri's, making Ruri's small face wrinkle. Shiro was afraid Ruri would spit a fireball and turn her mother to ashes.

"Be quiet, I've told you many times not to get your saliva on my face."

Ruri's face was tense, as if she was seriously scolding her mother.

"Don't say that, Ruri. Mom hasn't seen you in a long time. Let me love you like when you were little..."

Boom!

Shiro facepalmed.

He knew this would happen.

A wall of the mansion was blown through by a fireball, smoking.

Ruri's mother was now sweating profusely, her neck turning mechanically, as if rusted, and her smile became extremely forced and stiff.

"Really, little Ruri isn't as well-behaved as when she was little. In the past..."

"Do you want to be thrown out? Or burned? Drowned is also an option."

Ruri's eyebrows twitched, seemingly at her limit.

The woman in luxurious attire sighed and gave up on the idea of hugging and tormenting Ruri.

Such a cute daughter, if only she had been a boy, it would have been more fun.

Her daughter was not at all well-behaved.

"Dear, how about we have another one? Little Ruri has grown up and doesn't need her parents anymore."

"It's your fault, you know Ruri has grown up."

The man, who had been watching the harmonious scene between mother and daughter, seemed troubled and scratched his head.

His daughter had always been very strong-willed and dominant at home, and as a father, he was already used to it.

"Oh, you must be the little Shiro that Ruri often mentions in her letters?"

The woman finally noticed Shiro.

"Ah, yes, please take care of me."

Finally noticed, Shiro hurriedly bowed politely.

"Don't be nervous. It's rare for Ruri to find a good friend. When she was little, Ruri often chased after a group of boys."

Hearing the woman say this, Shiro could already picture the scene in his mind.

If it was Ruri, it was very possible.

"By the way, when do you two plan to get married? When you do, make sure to have a boy. I suddenly feel that boys are more fun than girls."

The woman asked with a smile.

"..."

The sudden change in topic made Shiro's brain freeze, completely blank.

A cross appeared on Ruri's forehead, and she started forming seals.

Boom!

◎

Ruri's mother is named Uchiha Midako, 28 years old, in her prime, fond of luxury, and likes to wear beautiful and noble clothes, like a princess.

Ruri's father is named Uchiha Sosuke, 36 years old, a mature-looking man in a well-fitted suit, appearing much more serious and down-to-earth than his wife Midako.

But thinking that Ruri is 12 years old and her mother Midako is only 28, in other words, Midako was only 15, a minor, when she got pregnant with Ruri.

Looking at Uchiha Sosuke's honest face, Shiro no longer found him honest at all.

Because they had no talent for being ninjas, they still only had the strength of chunin... by Ruri's standards, being a chunin in their 20s or 30s might really mean they had no talent for being ninjas.

Over the years, they had been working outside, using the Uchiha clan's connections to manage their business, which they said was barely manageable.

In recent years, they had not been absent from Konoha, but due to their busy business, they only met Ruri briefly at the village entrance before leaving.

This is why Shiro had never seen them at Ruri's house.

Ruri and her parents were reunited, and Shiro wisely stayed away, as joining in would only add to the awkwardness.

Shiro returned to the underground laboratory. Because they had to go on missions, many of the experimental instruments had already been moved, but some less important ones were left behind.

The basement and equipment were covered in dust, and Shiro needed to clean them thoroughly.

After cleaning, footsteps were heard from the stairs leading up, and Ruri came down the steps.

"What, so soon done with the family reunion? No need to rush over."

"Any time is good for catching up."

"It seems Uncle and Aunt will be staying in the village for a long time. Is it because of the war?"

Shiro asked, thinking of something.

"They don't do business around the Fire Country, but in the far west of the continent, so the war here won't affect their business."

"Are they using their real names?"

"No, they use aliases. They know some jutsu, but their information is not recorded in Konoha. With the help of some elders in the clan, they can operate their business safely. Over the years, they have also hired many well-known bounty hunters, samurai, and ninjas to ensure their safety."

After all, the Uchiha clan is a prestigious family with a history of over a hundred years, and their connections and resources are formidable.

For example, the Uchiha clan's ninja equipment is never purchased from the Land of Iron or the village but from the summoning animal, the Nekomata clan.

The Nekomata clan often acts as spies for the Uchiha, gathering intelligence.

This is the Uchiha's network.

And there are likely many more allies like the Nekomata clan, information that even Konoha finds hard to obtain.

Similarly, the Hyuga clan, another prestigious bloodline clan, has many hidden connections, known only to the highest leaders of the clan.

True prestigious families are not just about power and heritage; their networks are also a formidable force.

Later, Ruri used a summoning jutsu to summon some Nekomata, each carrying scrolls containing large research equipment. They just needed to unseal and reconnect the equipment.

Shiro, Ruri, and the Nekomata worked together to set up the equipment in its original position and reconnect the wiring.

After two hours, Ruri let the Nekomata go, and they left with a human-like resentful look, only brightening up when Ruri promised to give them good cat food next time.

Shiro looked at the large laboratory and really wanted an assistant.

But for now, he shouldn't think about it, as many secrets here couldn't be made public and had to be kept secret.

Fortunately, this was the Uchiha clan's territory, and the Hokage's direct ANBU had no authority to search here, given the formidable Uchiha security force.

There were many jounin and special jounin in the clan, and most adults who entered the ninja ranks were at least chunin, a very high ratio.

Especially after awakening the Sharingan, the Uchiha ninjas' strength would increase dramatically, not to be underestimated.

The next research goal, Shiro had already found.

Poison-infused smoke bombs and matching antidotes.

Of course, the research on natural energy would continue. Although their stay in Konoha wouldn't be long, he couldn't waste this precious time.

Just as Ruri was about to leave, leaving Shiro alone, Shiro suddenly said, "By the way, Ruri, can I ask you for one more thing?"

"What is it? Need new equipment?"

"No, this is enough for a long time."

"Then what?"

"Human experimentation."

Shiro simply said these four words.

Ruri's pupils dilated slightly, then she looked at Shiro seriously, and Shiro met her gaze calmly.

"Do you know what this means?"

"Human experimentation is not entirely evil."

According to Shiro, many forbidden techniques were developed through human experimentation.

The most famous example is the former Hokage, Hashirama Senju.

It can be said that many of the unique jutsu learned by Konoha ninjas today originated from this Second Hokage.

Ruri nodded thoughtfully and said, "I'll bring what you need tomorrow."