“Heh… I didn’t expect you to think so much, Ruofeng. You really are like your mother. She was this intelligent from a young age as well.”
Grandfather chuckled warmly before continuing.
“There are two reasons why no one dares to touch our family’s wealth.
“First, the protection of First Hokage Senju Hashirama.
You should know that many of our family’s businesses were secretly established by Uchiha Madara, and very few people knew about them.
But the First Hokage knew.
“After Madara was killed by Hashirama, perhaps because he remembered their relationship, or perhaps because he felt some guilt toward Madara, Hashirama deliberately protected those businesses.
“There was even a time when he came looking for your grandfather.
By then, your grandfather had already faked his death and was hiding under another identity, yet the First Hokage still found him and said a few meaningful words.
“Because of this, the major clans have never dared to provoke our family.
“Second, there is my ability.
“You should know that I am also a shinobi, one who survived all the way from the Warring States period.
Naturally, I possess some unusual abilities.
“In fact, this ability has been passed down through my clan.
My clan was never large, and during the Warring States period, we were even weaker.
However, our clan possessed a special ability: powerful sensory abilities combined with the ability to conceal ourselves.
“You could say that my clan was born to be intelligence agents. Unfortunately, we had little combat strength. The reason we were able to survive for so long during the Warring States period was mainly because we could sense a person’s potential!”
Ruofeng became curious.
During the Warring States period, shinobi were divided according to their clans, and every clan possessed different abilities.
Could his maternal grandfather possess some kind of bloodline limit?
Grandfather continued.
“My clan has no real combat ability.
However, through spiritual power, we can sense a person’s physical constitution, spiritual power, coordination, and other qualities.
“In other words, through our unique sensory ability, we can determine a person’s overall potential.
From this information, we can estimate how much that person can grow in the future and how strong they might eventually become.
“That is why, whenever Konoha recruits new shinobi each year, I use this ability to sense the students’ potential.
I then select those with particularly good talent and provide them with financial support.
“Over the years, many of those students have eventually entered Konoha’s middle ranks.
“With so many people at that level, no one in Konoha’s middle and lower ranks would dare to provoke us.
As for the higher ranks, there is still the First Hokage’s warning.
“Jiraiya became so powerful not only because of the support I once gave him.
I also gave him some of Uchiha Madara’s shinobi combat notes.
Those notes were extremely helpful for a shinobi’s growth.
“That was one reason Jiraiya was able to grow so quickly.
“Of course, Jiraiya’s true rise to prominence came from Mount Myoboku.
But this is already enough.
As one of the Third Hokage’s disciples, combined with his own strength, Jiraiya is someone the major clans would never dare to provoke.
“You should know that the greatest contribution the Third Hokage has made since taking office was eliminating the friction between the various clans.”
Ruofeng swallowed hard as he looked at his grandfather with newfound admiration.
He truly had never expected his grandfather to possess such an ability, let alone wield such influence within Konoha.
Perhaps Konoha’s middle ranks did not appear particularly powerful, but troublesome subordinates could be more difficult to deal with than powerful leaders.
The middle ranks might not hold much authority individually, yet many of Konoha’s affairs were handled by them.
The disciples of the major clans were mostly concentrated among the higher ranks or the ANBU.
As for the middle ranks, very few clan members participated in them.
In other words, the higher ranks were dominated by the major clans, while the middle ranks were dominated by civilian shinobi.
And among those middle-ranking shinobi, many had received support from Ruofeng’s grandfather.
With this network in place, many of Ruofeng’s family businesses naturally had protection.
Grandfather smiled kindly.
“Ruofeng… your talent is extremely high.
In my entire life, you are the person among your peers whose spiritual power I have sensed to be the strongest.
“Of course, I am only comparing you with people of the same age.
As you grow, your spiritual power will continue to increase.
“As for your physical constitution, there is nothing to criticize either.
Your overall potential is even greater than that of the Third Hokage when he was young.
“Your spiritual power is simply too vast.
It can even make people wonder whether you are really a child.
“Perhaps you inherited your mother’s talent.
Her spiritual power was naturally powerful, but her physical constitution was too weak.
“In a few days, I will teach you how to use your spiritual power for sensing.
Then you can examine the students in your class and select those with good potential.
“Perhaps you can cultivate a few outstanding future teammates—or even a few capable subordinates.”
Ruofeng was speechless.
His grandfather was already thinking about his future team assignments.
As the saying went, the older the wiser.
His grandfather certainly lived up to that description.
Night had fallen, and his grandfather had already left.
Ruofeng’s heart was still filled with astonishment.
He truly had never expected such a hidden secret to exist.
He looked out the window and muttered,
“It’s unbelievable.
The secret I searched for countless times was actually inside my own bedroom.
“Could this really be what they mean when they say the safest place is the most dangerous place?
“Heh…
Grandfather really is incredibly shrewd.
“And today’s revelations were like a bolt of lightning to me.
The identity of the Uchiha clan, the origins of my grandfather…
Grandfather even knows whether Uchiha Madara is alive or dead.
“Looks like the Naruto world really is a complete world. What the manga described was merely one small part of it.”
As he murmured to himself, his eyes unconsciously kept drifting toward the corner of the room.
That was where the entrance to the secret chamber was located, and he already knew how to undo the seal.
Ruofeng let out a breath.
“I’ll sleep for now.
Tomorrow, I’ll take care of the school matters before coming back to examine these things.
“Besides, Grandfather said that aside from the powerful ninjutsu, the scrolls left behind by Uchiha Madara contained none of the ordinary techniques. Perhaps Madara simply didn’t think much of those techniques.”
Ruofeng shook his head and stopped thinking about it.
He slowly drifted into sleep.