Uchiha Subaku's face stiffened, looking a bit awkward...
"...Um... Elder, can I still come to the council hall for meetings tomorrow?", Uchiha Subaku spoke in an extremely obedient tone.
Arisu let out two light laughs. At his age, he couldn't be bothered to argue with these juniors.
But keeping Uchiha Subaku around would probably only create trouble for Tajima's future governance.
He might as well let Uchiha Subaku retire and go back home.
This was how Arisu handled things.
When dealing with opponents, if they won, they ate and drank well; if they lost, they still went to prison to eat and drink well.
But when dealing with enemies, there was no room for mercy.
Exiling them to the Pure Land was already considered kindness.
"Subaku, leading troops into battle doesn't suit you, and handling internal affairs isn't your strength either. How about this, from now on, you go to the Naka Shrine and keep the Six Paths Sage company!"
Arisu tapped his cane on the ground and issued the order immediately.
Hearing this, Uchiha Subaku felt like crying but had no tears. Damn it, when he tried to rally support, no one followed. If all the elders had pressured together, the outcome might not have been certain.
But these elders dropped to their knees the moment they saw someone with seniority.
"I am willing to go to the Naka Shrine to accompany the ancestors of the Uchiha, and to accompany the Six Paths Sage."
Uchiha Subaku lowered his head and accepted the order, then was directly carried out.
After settling these matters, Arisu smiled as he looked at Uchiha Tajima.
Originally, he had planned to let Uchiha Tajima take things slowly. After all, in the original story, Tajima also became clan head.
But that day, when Tajima was chatting casually with Arisu, he had said, "Grandpa, I want to make a move."
So Arisu thought it over carefully.
There was no need to make Tajima suffer unnecessarily.
With him around, he could just step in and push him into position directly.
And so, today's events came to be.
"Gra..."
Uchiha Tajima walked up to Arisu nervously, just about to call him grandpa, but immediately realized something was wrong.
"Elder!"
"With the trust you've placed in me, I will not fail you! Nor will I fail the Uchiha!", Uchiha Tajima knelt on the ground as he spoke.
Arisu took the Uchiha flame fan handed over by a guard and calmly placed it into Tajima's hands.
Tajima accepted the fan, a solemn light flashing in his eyes.
"The new Uchiha clan head has been born!"
Arisu raised Tajima's hand and announced loudly.
"We pay our respects to the clan head!"
All the elders and Uchiha members bowed in unison.
———
[Pure Land]
Black Zetsu continued the introductions.
"This is Senju Hikari, a legendary tank. Uchiha Katsu was certainly strong, but Senju Hikari forcefully held off Uchiha Katsu's offensive."
"This is the most different Asura reincarnation I've seen. Unlike the others who are somewhat gentle, he's actually a bit fierce."
Black Zetsu looked at Senju Hikari and commented, "Sigh, you don't understand. Being born in my era, if I had been like the others, I would've been crippled by Uchiha Katsu long ago. If I had shown mercy, the Senju would have been wiped out!"
"The matter of Clan Head Mio happened precisely because of gentleness, which led to the Senju being severely damaged. The times shaped me.", Senju Hikari said calmly.
"I'm sorry. It was me who put the Senju at a disadvantage. I didn't expect it to turn out like this..." Senju Mio said guiltily to Senju Hikari.
"Alright, alright, wait until I finish introducing everyone before you discuss. All the deceased from every era are here in the Pure Land. You can go find them later.", Black Zetsu said.
Hearing this, a strange light flashed in everyone's eyes.
The Pure Land truly was one of the greatest creations.
If they had known earlier that they would come here after death, there would've been no need to fight so desperately for every fleeting moment.
"A graceful figure in an immortal painting, sitting in a shrine, enjoying offerings in vain."
"Better to enter my embrace, far better than being a lonely immortal guarding an empty chamber!"
"Uchiha Yui, the only female reincarnation of Indra.", Black Zetsu recited slowly.
Hearing this, everyone saw the only female reincarnation among Indra's line.
"Interesting, there's even an opening poem!"
Uchiha Yuto glanced at Uchiha Yui with some amusement.
"This poem feels a bit off..." Uchiha Katsu frowned.
Indra also looked at Uchiha Yui, hoping this female reincarnation would bring him a surprise.
Only Uchiha Yui showed an expression both awkward and embarrassed.
'This is bad. Why does someone still remember that poem I wrote back then!?'
'Wait, I wrote it at the Six Paths Temple. The Six Paths Sage must have seen it!'
'That's even worse! It's already lucky he didn't punish me!'
"Everyone, this poem was written by Uchiha Yui for the Six Paths Sage."
Black Zetsu said with a sly grin, reminding the crowd.
"Oh... I see... Huh!? Wait! Written for who!?"
The moment those words came out, everyone jolted, their expressions either horrified or barely holding back laughter as they looked at Uchiha Yui.
Indra looked shocked, but then a strange smile appeared on his face. 'Oh, she did something I've always wanted to do but couldn't...'
Uchiha Yui helplessly bowed. "It was this young woman's impropriety, failing to recognize a true immortal."
"Clan Head Yui, you really are lucky. The Six Paths Sage didn't take it to heart. You were born in a good time."
"As for me, I was born on the eve of the Sage's demon-slaying, and he casually wiped me out.", Uchiha Shuhaku said with a bitter smile.
"Well, still, the Ancestor really is handsome. To be fair, it's only human nature."
"In the past, many female disciples of the Ninja Sect also made mistakes when looking at the Ancestor's portrait."
"Who could blame them, the portrait was just too good-looking... If it had been drawn as an old man, this wouldn't have happened.", Asura said with a laugh and a shrug.
"I remember that painting was drawn by Hagoromo. In that case, it's my biological father's fault again.", Indra said flatly.
Asura's expression stiffened. "Well, who told the Ancestor to be that handsome..."
"I don't dare comment on Sage's true appearance, but it really is peerless.", Uchiha Katsu praised.
"Oh my, oh my, oh my, the Great Sage's true appearance, that divine radiance was dazzling! It almost blinded my eyes, hahaha!", Uchiha Shuhaku laughed as he praised.
"When I was alive, every time I went to the Six Paths Temple, I could feel the Great Sage's heroic aura rushing toward me!"
"Even through the portrait, I could sense the Sage's divine might!", Senju Hiruka praised.
"Hahaha, looks like we all think alike. When I was little, I also thought the Sage was incredibly heroic!"
Uzumaki Itsuki immediately chimed in.
"It feels a bit familiar. I always feel like one of the elder grandpas in my clan looks quite similar to the Great Sage."
One of them looked at the portrait thoughtfully.
"I envy the Six Paths Sage's sons. They can openly call him Dad...", Senju Syura said.
"Thinking about how the Ancestor's portrait can be seen by everyone, I actually feel a trace of jealousy..."
Indra sighed.
Seeing everyone chatting away, Black Zetsu felt a bit speechless.
As expected, when talking about other things, these reincarnations might start fighting.
But when it came to this, everyone got along just fine.
Another day, he should gather the people in the Pure Land and rank the looks of famous figures from past generations, from best to worst.
"Hey, hey, hey, that's enough, everyone. Who knows if Lord Six Paths can actually hear you!"
Black Zetsu interrupted them.