I'm an Uchiha and have Tobirama's talent!

Just like that, Root, originally intended to be established in preparation for the possible outbreak of the Second Great Ninja War, was formed several years ahead of schedule because Hiruzen couldn't bear the pressure of public rumors and gossip.

Moreover, the elders were completely unaware of this matter. The only two people who knew were Hiruzen and Danzō.

However, Hiruzen was angry, not insane, he didn't immediately agree to Danzō's request to start demanding geniuses from the various clans. He only permitted Danzō to recruit people from the ANBU or to select outstanding ninja from among the civilian population.

The initial number of Root members was set at 17, and each had to be the elite of the elite, and absolutely obedient. But above all else, secrecy was still the top priority.

---

After returning to Konoha, Tsunade and Shin spent an entire night in wild passion. Once their bodies and minds were completely satisfied, they embraced each other and fell into a deep sleep. The next morning, the two visited Mito and told her everything that had happened in the Land of Whirlpools, from start to finish.

After hearing their story, Mito was deeply moved. She never expected that the war would actually be won. Though the victory was mostly due to the disunity and backstabbing among the major ninja villages, which gave them the opportunity to defeat them one by one, a win was still a win.

Tsunade's reputation soared to unprecedented heights. Her fame was no longer confined to Konoha; it had spread throughout the entire shinobi world.

Minato, Kushina, and Nawaki, who were all nearby, listened intently to Tsunade and Shin's story with great interest.

Especially Minato.

Already walking a different path, he carefully considered the deeper meaning behind every action Shin had taken. Without needing Shin to say a word, he was already planning to write a detailed analysis report to submit to him for review and further discussion. Seeing firsthand how Shin accomplished so much through intellect rather than brute force made him realize even more that a sharp mind was the true foundation of all power.

Strength was important, but without the intelligence to match it, strength alone was meaningless. After all, he had heard Shin tell the story of a terrifyingly powerful Uchiha elder who was deceived by a creature.

That old man was strong enough to overthrow the shinobi world, yet was completely manipulated by that creature, spending every day lost in unrealistic fantasies he could never escape.

One could only wonder what Minato would feel if he ever discovered that this "story" was actually true.

Since Mito wanted Tsunade to spend more time with her, after dinner, Shin took Minato back home with him.

Along the way, Minato bombarded him with questions, and Shin answered each one in great detail. He was especially excited when asking about how Shin had monitored the entire Land of Whirlpools.

After all, Minato himself was a sensory-type ninja, and an exceptionally gifted one at that. According to Shin, Minato's sensory talent was no less than his own, at least, before Shin's sensory abilities had been upgraded.

If Minato could master the third stage of the Flying Thunder God, could he then use the same information-gathering methods Shin had used in the Land of Whirlpools?

Could he one day control an entire battlefield on his own?

"You're thinking about running before you even know how to walk," Shin scolded playfully after hearing Minato's question. "You haven't even mastered the first stage, and you're already thinking about stage three?"

"Don't worry. It won't be long before I've mastered the first stage, and this time, it won't be half-baked," Minato said confidently. "And I want to be just like you, defeating the many with the few, beating the strong while being the weak. That's so cool!"

But Shin suddenly stopped in his tracks and said seriously,

"Remember this: in this world, there is no such thing as defeating the strong with the weak, or winning with fewer people. But in the war in the Land of Whirlpools, Uzushio clearly had fewer ninjas and seemed to be the weaker side."

"That's only what it seemed like," Shin explained. "But didn't you notice? In every battle we won, we created local situations where the strong overwhelmed the weak, and the many overpowered the few. And intelligence is also a crucial weapon. When we have accurate intel and the enemy is essentially blind, only seeing what we want them to see, the balance of power can shift in an instant. If we had blindly clashed with the enemy head-on, we would've had no chance of victory."

Minato lowered his head, deep in thought. After a long pause, he asked, "Is it the same in battles between individual ninjas? That only the strong defeat the weak?"

"Exactly," Shin nodded firmly. "Maybe you've heard many stories about the weak defeating the strong. But what is the standard by which you judge strength and weakness? Is it the number of jutsu one knows? The amount of chakra? The strength of one's will to fight? Those stories you've heard were either cases where the seemingly strong party became complacent and underestimated their opponent... Or the so-called weak side made use of their own advantages and exploited the other's weaknesses."

"Those advantages and flaws can come in many forms, including psychological or personality flaws. But in my view, when someone loses because of carelessness or underestimation, they were already the weaker one. Of course, I'm talking about real life-and-death combat, not sparring. Some people always lose in sparring matches but don't necessarily lose in real battles. There's a big gap between training and actual combat."

"But..." Minato hesitated. He recalled so many stories where people had defeated seemingly unbeatable foes through sheer willpower. It left him feeling conflicted.

Shin laughed. "How about we find a place and have a sparring match? You can use any means. I'd really like to see how you plan to defeat the strong with the weak."

"That's not fair!" Minato grumbled. "The gap between us is way too big. I can't even deal with your Flying Thunder God Technique, that alone completely blindsides me."

"So you do realize it," Shin said. "Which is why the so-called 'defeating the strong with the weak' only works when the gap in power isn't that large to begin with."

"I get it now!" Minato nodded solemnly. "What you're trying to tell me is that I shouldn't make excuses for my failures, that's what weaklings do. To become truly strong, I must always remain vigilant and never underestimate any opponent."

"Exactly." Shin smiled with satisfaction. "Countless prodigies and powerful warriors have lost because they underestimated their enemies. Always keep a backup plan, it will never fail you."

"Got it! Hehe..." Minato scratched his head and chuckled at the praise. "But I still want to have a match with you."

"Alright," Shin agreed cheerfully. "Let's check in. Then we'll go back to the room, and I'll take you to a special place."

"Okay!"

To avoid making the Namikaze couple worry, Shin's shadow clone had been regularly appearing at home over the past month. So when they returned, the couple wasn't surprised.

After a quick greeting, he brought Minato back to the room.

Then, using the Flying Thunder God Technique, he transported them both to a massive, pitch-black, empty space. With a snap of his fingers, lights began to turn on one by one, slowly revealing the true appearance of the space.