Chapter 19: Saying Goodbye is for a Better Reunion

Arriving on the scene, Uchiha Gin watched the two brats' antics with a strange expression. He didn't speak up to remind them until Senju Tobirama was nearly about to flip over.

If this Senju brat ended up playing Uzumaki Mito to death, he’d end up kicking the bucket right along with her.

"Ah! You're back? How's my brother?"

Seeing that the newcomer was Uchiha Gin, the girl tossed the branch in her hand aside, circled him twice, and then began running her hands all over him.

"You're not even injured? Did you not go?"

Uchiha Gin extended a finger and gave a flick to the forehead of the chattering girl.

"Ouch! What was that for?"

Clutching her reddened forehead, Uzumaki Mito spoke with tears welling in the corners of her eyes.

*[Men and women should not touch, except for mature women in black stockings.]*

Ignoring the girl's nonsense, he reached back and pulled out the still-trembling black-red bead, handing it over.

The girl, whose eyes were still misty with tears, was instantly dumbfounded. She could barely get her words out.

"You... you actually succeeded?"

Even without using her sensory abilities, Uzumaki Mito could distinguish from the aura emanating from the bead that her older brother, Uzumaki Hanado, was sealed inside.

"How do you plan to deal with him?"

The girl asked tentatively, her mouth pouting. She truly hadn't expected her brother to actually lose to this unreliable Uchiha before her.

Although her talent allowed her to sense that the opponent was by no means an evil person, sometimes the conflict of factions superseded human nature.

Narrowing his eyes, Uchiha Gin rubbed the bead between his hands a few times. Without hesitation, and amidst the girl's worried expression, he tossed the bead to her.

"Eh?"

Hurriedly catching the bead, Uzumaki Mito looked at Uchiha Gin with disbelief.

"You're just giving it back to me so casually? My brother is an important figure of the Uzumaki clan. If you turned him over to your clan, you would surely receive a massive reward."

"Acting like an adult when you're just a kid."

Uchiha Gin looked at the girl. While following her suggestion to go back would certainly result in the Clan Head arranging everything clearly for him, doing so would create an irreconcilable grudge with the Uzumaki clan.

"As the saying goes, 'more friends mean more paths, more enemies mean more walls.' If I can't make it in the Uchiha clan later, I can come to you for refuge."

Uchiha Gin rolled his dead-fish eyes, speaking with an air of indifference.

Hearing this, Uzumaki Mito gave him a strange look. She first tucked the bead into her bag, then walked up to Uchiha Gin and took his left hand.

Startled by the sudden contact, Uchiha Gin noticed a blue light emanating from the hand she was holding. Just as he was about to pull away, the girl stopped him.

"Don't move. I'm using an Uzumaki secret technique to place a chakra mark on you. If you truly end up homeless, you can use this mark to seek help from the Uzumaki clan."

Just as the girl was seriously performing the technique, she was suddenly repelled by a burst of powerful red light.

"What happened? How could it fail?"

Interrupted by the strange force, the girl leaned back in, grabbing Uchiha Gin's left hand to inspect it repeatedly. However, even using her sensory abilities, she couldn't find anything wrong.

It actually failed? Uchiha Gin pulled his left hand back, clenching and unclenching his fist to test it. He felt no discomfort. Perhaps the girl was simply inexperienced with the secret technique.

"If that doesn't work, how about the other hand? Or even a foot?"

Uchiha Gin made a move to extend a foot, scaring Uzumaki Mito so much that she lunged for his right hand instead. This time, it went smoothly.

As a cooling sensation flowed into his hand, Uchiha Gin saw a swirl-shaped mark appear on the back of his right hand—the crest of the Uzumaki clan. It vanished after a few seconds.

"What are your plans next?"

Having branded him with the Uzumaki mark, Uchiha Gin lowered his head and stared at the girl's swaying twin-tails as he asked.

"Only Father can break my brother's seal. I've been out playing for so long; it's time for me to go back."

Knowing how important her brother was to the clan, even though she wanted to continue adventuring, she could no longer stay away.

"Then, shall we part ways here?" Uchiha Gin said, raising an eyebrow.

"One is in the world, but not one's own master," Uzumaki Mito sighed with a mock-serious, adult-like expression.

"Uh, whatever makes you happy."

With lines of exasperation on his face, Uchiha Gin waved goodbye to Uzumaki Mito as she shouldered her massive bundle once more.

As they were parting, the girl stopped after a few steps. She tilted her head at a 45-degree angle, her eyes wandering, and said

"Mr. Human Trafficker, we will meet again, won't we?"

"Definitely."

Knowing full well the girl's future destiny, Uchiha Gin nodded without hesitation.

"Oh."

Hearing this, the girl turned her head. With her back turned, the corners of her mouth curled up slightly as she walked toward home with a jaunty step.

Watching Uzumaki Mito's receding figure, Uchiha Gin turned back into the cave and kicked the unlucky little brother, Senju Tobirama, who was lying unconscious on the ground with his eyes closed.

"Stop playing dead, little brother. It's time for us to go too."

Exposed, Senju Tobirama opened his eyes helplessly, his gaze filled with pleading.

"As long as you promise not to spout any more nonsense on the way, I'll take the sock out," Uchiha Gin said, understanding his meaning.

The kid nodded repeatedly, nearly crying from urgency.

After removing the stinky sock from his mouth, Senju Tobirama greedily inhaled the fresh air. Then, as if remembering something terrifying, he curled up and began to gag violently.

It wasn't until the kid had vomited almost all his bile that Uchiha Gin hauled him up and began heading toward the battlefield to regroup with Uchiha Ryoichi and the others.

He moved with incredible speed, a complete contrast to when he was first panting heavily while carrying the kid.

*The Uzumaki bloodline is truly practical. As expected of a clan that inherits the Sage Body in the original story,* Uchiha Gin thought to himself, feeling the explosive power and vast chakra contained within his body.

[Ding! Host has successfully rescued the Uchiha Fire-Sealing Squad from a desperate situation. Gained: 50 Points, 4 Random Orbs.]

The sudden notification caused Uchiha Gin to pause mid-stride. He hadn't even arrived yet—how was the mission already completed?

Without delay, he sped toward the battlefield like the wind.

By the time Uchiha Gin arrived carrying Senju Tobirama, only the members of the Uchiha squad remained.

Uchiha Fuuka was on guard, Uchiha Tsuru was bandaging Uchiha Ryoichi's injured arm, and Uchiha Darou, who had no serious external wounds, was meditating nearby to recover his chakra.

"Uchiha Gin! You're alive?"

Having learned from Uchiha Fuuka that Uchiha Gin had chosen to stall Uzumaki Hanado, Uchiha Ryoichi couldn't help but activate his Sharingan to scan him when he saw the man appearing before them completely unscathed.

"Just luck," Uchiha Gin replied. He was also curious about how the battle had ended, as there were no Uzumaki corpses at the scene. "Where are the Uzumaki people?"

"That long-haired Uzumaki seemed to sense something during the fight and suddenly unleashed a strange ability," Uchiha Darou explained, opening his eyes.

"What kind of strange ability?" He asked curiously.

"He suddenly lashed out, producing many chakra chains from his body. They were very difficult to deal with, but the opponent didn't seem interested in continuing the fight. He took the opportunity to grab the injured Uzumaki members and fled," Uchiha Fuuka added, walking over.

"Gin, how did you escape?"

Having clashed head-on with Uzumaki Hanado, Uchiha Fuuka knew very well that with Uchiha Gin's strength, he should have been crushed to dust in a single encounter.

Looking at the Uchiha Gin before him—not only unharmed but in excellent condition—Fuuka felt more confusion than relief.

"That Uzumaki wasn't after my life; his main goal was his sister. It just so happened that the girl I caught was his sister. I told him that when I first escaped, I hid his sister in a secret location and placed a genjutsu on her. If he didn't provide the correct password, she would die on the spot."

Uchiha Gin calmly delivered the excuse he had prepared on the way.

"And then he just let you go?"

"Exactly!"

"The Uzumaki really are as single-minded as the legends say!" Uchiha Fuuka couldn't help but complain, recalling the reputation of the Uzumaki clan.

"Alright, from now on, we move at full speed. We must reach the clan grounds by tomorrow!" Uchiha Fuuka commanded with a wave of his hand.