Chapter 33: What Does the Original Owner's Birth Have to Do with Me, Uchiha Gin?

After Uchiha Ryue finished explaining the situation, he did not linger and took his leave.

Left in a state of bewilderment, Uchiha Gin found it impossible to piece together any useful truth from these fragmented clues. After weighing his options, he decided to focus on the work at hand.

Since he had figured out that the files were categorized by color, organizing them became twice as efficient. Before long, he had sorted the chaotic mess of scrolls. Looking at the three piles of different colored scrolls before him, Uchiha Gin began the next stage of organization. The files not only needed to be divided by dungeon but also required each prisoner’s profile to be clearly labeled and indexed for precise reference.

He decided to start with the cyan scrolls.

"Shimura Shinji: Shimura clan. Poisoned the water supply of the Uchiha district, resulting in the deaths of twenty-three Uchiha clansmen. Proficient in Wind Style and poisons."

Too despicable; he must be placed in the first tier.

"Sarutobi Takinosuke: Sarutobi clan. Ambushed an Uchiha supply unit, resulting in twelve deaths and five permanent disabilities. Proficient in Fire Style, Earth Style, and Summoning Jutsu."

Too brutal; he must be in the first tier.

"Yamanaka Ichino: Yamanaka clan..."

As he flipped through the cyan scrolls, Uchiha Gin discovered that most of these prisoners hailed from prominent clans that would become well-known in the future. It seemed that even in the Warring States period, it was difficult for civilian ninjas to thrive; the standouts were almost exclusively clan-based ninjas.

The number of cyan scrolls was small, as only the most heinous criminals were confined to Dungeon No. 1. These prisoners were generally powerful and difficult to capture, so there were only a dozen or so.

He quickly finished organizing the cyan scrolls. While doing so, he checked the capture records and found that they were all from more than six years ago, with no suspicious subjects among them.

Scratching his curly hair, Uchiha Gin turned his attention to the blue scrolls, hoping to find some valuable clues. Unfortunately, he reached the halfway point without discovering any suspicious individuals.

The prisoners in the blue scrolls were mostly from minor clans or were rogue ninjas. Their strength was not notable, and their crimes mostly involved espionage or ambushing isolated Uchiha clansmen. After looking through them, he found that Kaguya Takezuke’s crimes were actually the most severe among the blue scrolls, yet he had been demoted to Dungeon No. 2 due to mental instability that made communication impossible.

There were many more scrolls for Dungeon No. 2 than for Dungeon No. 1. By the time Uchiha Gin had looked through more than half of them, his eyes felt sore and his head throbbed—a feeling remarkably similar to the symptoms of wanting to skip work in his previous life.

"Work requires a balance of effort and rest," he consoled himself, putting down his work and closing his eyes to slack off.

Just as he was resting with his eyes closed, a cautious knock sounded at the door.

"Please, come in."

Hearing the knock, Uchiha Gin immediately opened his eyes and picked up a scroll to "work."

The person who pushed the door open was Uchiha Rucha, whom he had met the day before. Rucha carefully peered inside to ensure no one else was there; upon seeing only Uchiha Gin, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Lord Gin is so dedicated to his work; you are truly a role model for us all."

Seeing Uchiha Gin holding a scroll and reading with intense focus, Uchiha Rucha immediately laid on the flattery.

"Not at all, not at all. I am simply doing my duty."

Uchiha Gin waved his hand modestly. "I wonder, Brother Rucha, what brings you here?"

"Lord Gin, you flatter me too much. Just call me Rucha."

"It’s no matter, Brother Rucha. What advice do you have for me?"

Seeing that there was no one around, Uchiha Rucha stepped forward and whispered, "Lord Gin, I have already found a lead on the matter you requested."

After accepting the task from Uchiha Gin yesterday, Uchiha Rucha had immediately sprung into action. He had inquired at all three dungeons, and finally, his persistence paid off when he managed to pry some information from an older jailer.

"Please, go on, Brother Rucha."

Uchiha Gin raised an eyebrow upon hearing this, thinking that this fellow’s efficiency was quite good; he had found a lead in just a single day.

"According to an old jailer here, this dungeon did not have its current layout in the past." As he spoke, Uchiha Rucha pointed to the dungeon map hanging on the wall, gesturing to the space between Dungeon No. 1 and Dungeon No. 2. "There used to be four dungeons here. About six years ago, Elder Yan decommissioned one of them, leaving only the three we have today."

Uchiha Rucha traced a circle in the large blank space between the first and second dungeons to indicate where the fourth had once existed.

"If it was decommissioned, does that mean it isn't in use anymore?" Uchiha Gin asked, applying common sense.

"I don't know if it's in use or not, but that old jailer said that before it was decommissioned six years ago, someone had been secretly imprisoned there," Uchiha Rucha said mysteriously.

"If it was a secret, how would he know about it?" Although the news of a secret prisoner was tempting, Uchiha Gin wondered if this old jailer knew a bit too much.

"Ah... that... I didn't ask." Uchiha Rucha was momentarily stumped by this sharp question. He hadn't stopped to consider why the other party would so easily share this secret with someone he had never met before. Was it just because he had revealed that he was a trusted aide to the clan leader's new nephew?

"Forget it. Continue. What else did that old jailer tell you?" The sudden appearance of this mysterious old jailer made him feel that something was wrong; the timing was just too convenient.

"He told me that after that person was locked inside, they never came out. Shortly after that, Elder Yan announced that the dungeon was being decommissioned due to disrepair." Uchiha Rucha swallowed hard to soothe his parched throat.

"What kind of person was imprisoned there?" Could it have been one of the people who attacked the Uchiha district six years ago?

"I asked the old jailer, but he didn't say anything else after that," Uchiha Rucha said, looking a bit embarrassed.

"Where is that old jailer now?" Uchiha Gin did not want to give up now that he finally had a lead.

"He is in Dungeon No. 3, because... for personal reasons, he is doing custodial work." Uchiha Rucha found it difficult to explain.

"How so?"

"That old jailer is blind." Uchiha Rucha’s gaze darted away, feeling guilty.

???

The person who knew these things was actually a blind man? The accuracy of this information was highly questionable. No wonder Uchiha Rucha had found information so quickly; he hadn't even spared a blind man.

"Thank you, Brother Rucha. If there is any more news, please let me know as soon as possible."

Having learned that the source was an elderly blind man, it seemed highly likely that the story was fabricated. After all, how could a low-ranking jailer know about such a clandestine secret transfer?

"I wouldn't dare. It is my honor to serve you, Lord Gin." Uchiha Rucha looked terrified.

Uchiha Gin frowned and searched the original owner's memories. In those memories, although the original owner had a strange temper and would sometimes use his status as the clan leader's nephew to bully and provoke his clansmen, he hadn't displayed any extreme behavior toward those who meant him no harm. So why were the average clansmen so terrified of him?

"Brother Rucha, how do the clansmen usually view me?" Uchiha Gin asked.

Faced with such a life-or-death question, Uchiha Rucha’s eyes wandered, and he didn't know how to phrase his response. Although the past two days of interaction had made him feel that the Uchiha Gin in front of him wasn't as bad as the rumors suggested, he couldn't be sure if the other party was "fishing" for a confession.

"Brother Rucha, given our current relationship, please feel free to speak your mind." Uchiha Gin gave a friendly smile and patted Uchiha Rucha on the shoulder, signaling that he was one of his own and didn't need to hold back.

"If you say so, then I will."

Seeming to have made a firm decision, Uchiha Rucha gritted his teeth and looked up with an expression of reckless resolve. After carefully choosing his words, he squeezed out a sentence:

"As far as I know, Uchiha Gin is a total piece of trash."