Hokage: Immortal, I Open Unlimited Eight Gates

The voice of a strange white creature with a swirling face echoed through the space.

The so-called 'Madara' he referred to was the Shura who once shocked the ninja world—Uchiha Madara.

Although Uchiha Madara was no longer young, with graying hair and wrinkled skin, his aura of superiority still commanded respect.

Hearing this, Uchiha Madara, who had been resting with his eyes closed, opened them and stared at White Zetsu with sharp eyes.

This strange creature had been cultivated by him using the Gedo Statue and Hashirama's cells.

Of course, that's what he believed.

What he didn't know was that creatures like White Zetsu had already existed since the time of the Sage of Six Paths.

The creator of White Zetsu was none other than the source of chakra—Ōtsutsuki Kaguya.

"Big news? I hope the information you're bringing back this time won't be as trivial as before," Madara remarked with indifference.

He didn't have high hopes for White Zetsu, who often wasted time asking others trivial questions, such as how it felt to pull Xiang all day.

A Fei chuckled and said, "Master Madara, I guarantee this news will surprise you."

Seeing A Fei still talking nonsense, Uchiha Madara glared at him, his sharp gaze piercing through him. "I don't want to repeat myself."

"Don't worry, I'll tell you right away," White Zetsu said eagerly.

A mischievous grin appeared on his face as he thought about the news he was about to report.

"Madara-sama, remember you asked me to go to Konoha to gather information? Well, last night, I found an interesting Uchiha kid."

"Do you know what he said? He wants to marry Senju's granddaughter. Can you believe that, Madara-sama? An Uchiha wanting to marry a Senju!"

Uchiha Madara, who had lived for decades, was taken aback. He had never heard of such a situation before.

An Uchiha wanting to marry a Senju woman, and not just any Senju, but the granddaughter of his old rival—Senju Hashirama.

However, this news stirred only a small, insignificant ripple in his heart, which had long been dead to emotion.

Nevertheless, it sent him into a deep train of thought.

From his first encounter with Senju Hashirama, to the epic battle in the Valley of the End, and Hashirama's last words to him…

If one of them had been a woman, would things have turned out differently?

Would he have not betrayed Konoha? Would Hashirama not have died so young?

"As people get older, all kinds of strange thoughts cross their minds," Uchiha Madara muttered with a self-deprecating smile.

Then, his eyes became sharp again as he turned to White Zetsu. "White Zetsu, I asked you to gather important information about Konoha. Is this the best you could find?"

He had tasked White Zetsu with finding secret intelligence about various nations in the ninja world, not trivial matters like this.

White Zetsu fell silent. Madara had listened with interest just a moment ago, but now he was chastising him.

If the news White Zetsu had found had been anything of importance, he wouldn't have spent an entire night traveling across the Fire Country to report back.

But under Madara's intense gaze, White Zetsu could only admit his mistake.

"Madara-sama, this is my dereliction of duty. I will return to Konoha to collect more relevant information for you right away."

Konoha.

After confessing to Uchiha last night, Uchiha Chiba felt much better. However, he had warned Uchiha that this was a secret only the two of them should know. Not even her father, Uchiha Inada, should be informed.

Now, he simply wanted to focus on his own growth and didn't want anyone disrupting his plans.

"Hey, Chiba, what did my sister say to you yesterday? She seemed really happy when she came back," Nawaki asked in a low voice during practical class.

"Nothing, I just received a lot of books, and I go to your house once a week to cook for your sister," Uchiha Chiba responded, a little disappointed. Before they even became a family, he was already acting as a husband.

"Oh? If that's the case, I'm also blessed, right?" Nawaki said, looking surprised. He never expected that one day he would benefit from Uchiha Chiba because of Tsunade.

Seeing Nawaki's proud expression, Uchiha Chiba felt uncomfortable.

He would have to find a chance to teach this future brother-in-law a lesson.

Since Nawaki enjoyed his cooking, maybe it was possible to teach him a lesson through food?

Thinking of this, Uchiha Chiba asked, "By the way, does your family have any taboos?"

Nawaki looked puzzled. "Why do you ask?"

"I'm asking for your own good. If you tell me what you don't like, I won't make it."

Nawaki, oblivious to Uchiha Chiba's plan, happily replied, "Oh, you're so thoughtful, Chiba. Well, I'll tell you."

He listed the foods his family members, including Tsunade, disliked.

Tsunade didn't have any particular food taboos, but Nawaki had one thing he hated—green peppers.

They reminded him of the little kid who dances around like an elephant all day.

Just as Uchiha Chiba was considering what green pepper dishes he could prepare for the weekend, Senju Yusuke's voice interrupted.

"Keda Kojiro wins! The next match is Nawaki vs. Akamichi Choza."

The weekend was approaching.

Uchiha Chiba woke up early and went out after breakfast.

When he arrived at the Senju clan, he went directly to the Senju guards, as Nawaki wasn't around.

"Hello, I'm here to see Tsunade-sama. Can you let me in?"

"Are you Uchiha Chiba?" one of the guards asked.

Uchiha Chiba nodded.

"Then go ahead," the guard replied.

Uchiha Chiba was confused—why would they let him in? He was an Uchiha.

The guard seemed to understand his confusion and explained, "Tsunade-sama told us a young man named Uchiha Chiba would come to see her every week, so we've been instructed not to stop you."

Now that he understood, Uchiha Chiba nodded.

"Thank you, I'll go in now."

As he walked into the Senju compound, the guards looked at the Uchiha fan pattern on his back, wondering what made him so special that Tsunade had given such explicit instructions.

When he arrived at Tsunade's house, Uchiha Chiba ran into Uzumaki Kushina, who was about to leave.

"Eh? Chiba, what are you doing here? Are you here to see Nawaki?"

"No, I'm here to see Tsunade-sama. What about you, Kushina? Where are you going?"

"Me? Of course, I'm going to find Mikoto."

Uchiha Chiba nodded, deciding not to ask Kushina about her private matters. It was better not to pry into such things.

"Okay, then go ahead."

Just then, Nawaki ran out.

"Chiba, you came really early. My sister hasn't woken up yet. Do you want me to call her for you?"