Konoha Notes.

Chapter 458 Determination

Chapter 458 Determination

When the season for flowers to bloom arrived, Sasuke's pace of life noticeably quickened.

The new building of the Joint Affairs Bureau has been officially opened. It is two or three times larger than the old building.

The Joint Affairs Bureau, which was originally crammed into a five-story building, now looks empty after moving to its new location.

But the gap didn't last long.

As if overnight, new departments and personnel filled those empty floors and rooms.

The first is the Education Coordination Division, which is responsible for coordinating the specific affairs of establishing ninja schools in various countries.

Next is the Security Coordination Department, which is specifically responsible for handling the requests of the daimyo from various countries who have paid the pooled funds.

Sasuke now rushes to the secret service office after training every day, and the first thing he does is run between floors with documents in his hands.

The education department is on the east side of the third floor, and the coordination department is on the west wing of the fourth floor. Sometimes a document requires the joint signature of three departments, so he has to run the entire diagonal of the new building.

The corridor is always busy.

There are two most notable changes.

One of them, located on the seventh floor, was the daimyo liaison office. Initially, it was just a few officials sent by daimyo from small countries who had participated in the funding coordination. However, within half a month, the five major powers also moved in one after another.

When the patrol team reported to Kakashi, they mentioned that the Daimyo of various countries seemed to have privately formed a coordination committee, which would meet regularly elsewhere and then formally convey the opinions formed through officials stationed here.

Another department is on the basement level.

There were no signs on the door, and a special pass was required to enter or exit. Sasuke once glimpsed what was happening inside when he went to deliver an urgent document—ninjas in dark gray uniforms were organizing their equipment.

The uniforms lacked any village characteristics, with the Joint Affairs Bureau emblem embroidered on the collar. What made Sasuke pause even more was that some of them weren't wearing headbands at all.

According to Itachi later, it was a special dispatch team drawn from various villages, specifically responsible for carrying out support tasks corresponding to the overall funding.

That afternoon, when Sasuke finally finished delivering the last round of documents and returned to the director's office on the top floor with the empty document box in his arms, the clock on the wall already pointed to 6:30.

The orange-red light of the setting sun filled most of the room.

Kakashi sat in the comfortable-looking armchair by the window, which he had opened as wide as possible.

The spring evening breeze, carrying the fragrance of flowers and a slight chill, blew in, ruffling his silver hair and turning the pages of the orange-covered booklet in his hand.

For this bureau chief, the most significant advantage of the new building over the old one is probably this large window that hasn't been sealed off by his assistant.

Sasuke even suspected that this was one of the reasons why Kakashi was so actively pushing for the relocation.

"You're back, Sasuke." Kakashi lifted his gaze slightly from his book. "You've had a hard day too."

Sasuke placed the file box back on the cabinet by the wall, turned around, and looked at his relaxed demeanor, completely in a "off-duty" state: "Don't you have any work to do, Chief?"

"Don't be so distant." Kakashi closed the book. "Look, the clock has reached this point. Strictly speaking, this is my private time. During my private time, you can just call me teacher."

On the other side of the office, Itachi had already stood up: "It's time to go back, Sasuke."

"Um."

Sasuke went to get his bag, not wanting to pay any attention to the teacher.

But Kakashi's voice still followed.

"Speaking of which, I heard that a batch of students are graduating from the Ninja Academy soon, right?"

Sasuke didn't stop moving.

"Isn't Sasuke quite popular at school?"

The sound of a zipper being zipped up.

"When I go back to school tomorrow, how about I try recruiting some people?"

Sasuke slung his bag over his shoulder and looked at Itachi. His brother had already reached the door.

Kakashi continued, his nonchalant tone growing more pronounced: "I've said it before, the Joint Affairs Bureau has a fulfilling job, a bright future, and a kind and approachable director."

"Compared to the uninspired jobs in the village, why not choose this place and move towards a brighter future?"

"Let's try this kind of promotion. If we can attract more excellent new talent, our workload might be reduced a bit."

Sasuke glanced at Kakashi expressionlessly.

Although I've gotten used to it, I still can't help but get angry sometimes.

"Those with talent," Sasuke enunciated clearly, "weren't they already forcibly transferred to the Joint Affairs Bureau for apprenticeship long ago?"

This is something Kakashi himself said.

Then Kakashi laughed: "You have a good memory, Sasuke. You remember so clearly what the teacher said casually."

"But the best people have arrived, and some people have arrived beyond expectations. There are still some people who have not yet shown their talents."

"You can't be prejudiced against your fellow villagers, Sasuke. I never taught you anything like that."

.

Sasuke's eyelids drooped slightly, and his fist unconsciously hardened.

"I trust your judgment, Sasuke-kun."

"I can only feel at ease entrusting this kind of work to someone with outstanding eye power," Kakashi said.

Sasuke suppressed his impulse and left the building with Itachi.

As they walked along the road leading to the stadium area, Sasuke saw a figure he hadn't seen in a long time when they passed a small square on the side of the main stadium.

Uchiha Shisui was standing under a tree that had just sprouted new leaves, looking up in the direction of the main stadium.

"Shisui," Itachi spoke first.

Shisui turned his head. Seeing the two brothers, a smile appeared on his face.

"Itachi, Sasuke. Just got off work?"

Sasuke noticed that Shisui wasn't carrying his usual wakizashi; it seemed he was just out relaxing.

"It's really lively here." Shisui's gaze returned to the main stadium.

Even outside of the joint martial arts competition period, the huge building was still brightly lit, and cheers could be faintly heard coming from inside.

"There are businessmen organizing specialized events," Itachi explained. "Separate martial arts combat competitions and weapons competitions are currently in the trial phase."

"I see." Shisui nodded, then, as if suddenly remembering something, "Want to go get something to eat together?"

Some of the food stalls in the venue area have delicious dishes.

Sasuke was somewhat surprised. Shisui usually wouldn't specifically invite him at this time. He looked at his brother, Itachi, who had already nodded: "Alright."

The three walked towards the venue area.

Even at dusk, the streets here were still bustling with people.

Zhishui led them to a stall selling rice dumplings and hot tea. After sitting down at a small table in the corner, he ordered three servings of red bean rice dumplings and hot barley tea.

"Have you decided?" Itachi asked while waiting for his food.

"Mm." Shisui smiled.

After the dumplings were served, Shisui picked up a skewer and said, "There's only so much I can do."

"Illusions may be able to change a person's will, but here, these streets, these lights, the smiles on these people's faces—these are not things I can bring."

He looked up at the crowd on the street. A child ran past the stall, laughing and holding up a candied apple he had just bought.

"We're very lucky, Itachi," Shisui said, turning back. "We met people who could build these things."

After finishing the dumplings, Shisui paid the bill. He stood up and smiled at Sasuke, "That's all I can eat. Aunt Mikoto made dinner, right? If you eat too much, you'll get scolded when you get home."

"It's not that I'm stingy."

Sasuke looked at him helplessly: "Shisui-kun, stop treating me like a child."

"Yes, Sasuke has already started working after all," Shisui readily agreed, but his smile deepened. "However, he hasn't received any salary yet, has he?"

Sasuke was speechless for a moment. He had volunteered to come to the Joint Affairs Bureau for an internship, and they hadn't discussed compensation at all. Now, being suddenly asked about it, he didn't know how to answer.

Shisui laughed out loud, his voice cheerful: "No way, Itachi, work deserves appropriate compensation. As his older brother, it's not right for me to just stand by and do nothing."

"I don't need it!" Sasuke retorted, somewhat embarrassed and annoyed. "I'll talk to them myself when the time comes."

"Okay, okay." Zhishui patted his shoulder. "Just kidding. Alright, it's time to go back."

The three left the venue area and returned to Konoha Village headquarters. At the crossroads leading to the Uchiha clan's territory, Shisui stopped.

"I won't be going," he said. "I still have some things to take care of."

Itachi looked at him, said nothing, and simply nodded.

Zhi Shui turned and walked towards the western suburbs.

The lights on the first floor of the laboratory building were still on.

When Dou opened the door, Shisui was looking at the cherry blossoms by the roadside from outside.

"Sorry to keep you waiting."

"It's alright," Shisui said. "It was my unexpected visit."

After Shisui entered, Kabuto asked, "Regarding the eye care plan, what are your thoughts on the two I mentioned last time, Shisui-kun?"

"Of course, I understand how important the eyes are to Shisui-kun, especially since they are Mangekyou Sharingan. Therefore, the nutrient solution plan will indeed raise many concerns."

"There will be huge opposition even within the Uchiha clan."

"We'll have some data on cell implantation soon, Shisui-kun, please wait a bit. Although Kotoamatsukami is temporarily unavailable, your other abilities will still be effective."

"Don't worry, Shisui-kun."

Shisui remained silent for a moment.

"Which method can help Kotoamatsukami recover faster?" he asked.

"The nutrient solution approach is relatively safe. As for the timeframe—" Dou carefully chose his words, "because there's no precedent data, I can't give a precise estimate. It could be a few months, or it could take longer."

"Cell implantation will be faster, and the body's own powerful vitality will allow the pupils to recover more quickly."

Shisui tapped her knee lightly with her fingers.

"Implantation experiments take a long time, right?"

Kabuto expressed his approval, then hesitated for a moment before saying, "If Shisui-kun is really in a hurry to recover..."

"Lord Shuji is the possessor of Hashirama cells, if it's him—"

The rest of the sentence was left unsaid, but the meaning was already quite clear.

"Please take me to see him," Shisui said.

"I understand." Kabuto led Shisui to the underground laboratory.

Tobirama Senju is still in that position.

"The simulation of water-style chakra is 80% complete."

"But the special thing about Tailed Beast Chakra is that it is not just a property, but also carries fragments of consciousness. Simply filling in the chakra nature may not be able to fully simulate the existence of the Three-Tails."

"The possibility of a replacement is still too low."

Just then, Shuji turned around and saw Kabuto and Shisui walking in.

His gaze lingered on Shisui's face for a moment, then shifted to Kabuto, his brow twitching slightly.

"Lord Shuji," Kabuto bowed slightly, "Shisui-kun has some matters he wishes to discuss with you."

Shisui stepped forward. The laboratory lights fell on him, casting a clear shadow on the ground. His expression was calm, but his eyes, which always held a warmth, seemed unusually serious at this moment.

"There's something I hope you can help me with, Shuji-kun."

"I want to restore Kotoamatsukami's abilities as soon as possible so that they can be used in subsequent wars. But the existing plans all require a considerable amount of time."

Shuji looked at him: "Don't worry. Even the next duel won't be for at least six months. By then, we'll have other plans to deal with the Edo Tensei."

"I understand." Shisui nodded. "So, this is just my own selfish wish. I hope to restore my power as soon as possible, and for that, I would like to ask Shuji-kun for help in repairing the pupil power of these eyes."

Shuji glanced at Kabuto again. Kabuto stood still, head slightly bowed, not meeting his gaze.

After a long pause, Xiu Si spoke: "Let's test the actual effect of the nutrient solution first, to stop the water."

His voice was gentler than usual.

"When it's truly necessary to use your eye technique, I won't hesitate."

"They might just take it by force."

Upon hearing this, Shisui smiled.

"That would be wonderful," he said, his voice light with relief.

He turned to Dou: "Then, thank you for your help."

Kabuto replied, "Please follow me, Shisui-kun. The preparation of the nutrient solution will take some time."

After the two left, Tobirama Senju shifted his gaze from the control panel to Shuji.

"Although Jing died young," he said, "his will has been passed down."

Shuji walked to the observation window on the other side.

"Speaking of which, I've never asked before," Shuji said with his back to Tobirama, "Do you know about Madara Uchiha's eye techniques?"

'

Tobirama's expression was hard to describe; it wasn't anger, nor disgust, but rather a mixture of sarcasm.

"You probably already know something about the Uchiha Mangekyou Sharingan."

"When those eyes open, they will be endowed with corresponding abilities based on the owner's deepest regrets, anger, and desires."

"The more intense the passion, the more useless a person is in the eyes of the Uchiha, the more powerful the eye technique they often acquire in that moment of regret."

"And those who pursue power from the very beginning, even deliberately creating tragedies to open their eyes—"

"They attributed everything to the fact that their eye power was not strong enough, and their strength was not strong enough."

"Such a simple and direct wish yielded clearer feedback, but nothing particularly special."

Shuji asked, "So, it's Amaterasu?"

Tobirama neither confirmed nor denied it.

"Whether it's Madara or Izuna, they are people who actively seek out the kaleidoscope."

"Therefore, there is no need to consider Madara's eye technique."

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