"Ah, the Two-Tails Jinchūriki..."

  With the Konoha-Iwagakure Tailed Beast Crisis successfully resolved, Fugaku Uchiha, utterly exhausted from overusing his Mangekyō Sharingan, shifted his gaze to the unscious Yugito Nii lying on the ground.

  He pondered how to deal with her.

  Firstly, killing her was out of the question. As a high-ranking member of Konohagakure and with the knowledge passed down within the Uchiha , Fugaku khat if a Jinchūriki were killed, the Tailed Beast inside would "die" along with them.

  Being a mass of chakra, the Tailed Beast would separate from the Jinchūriki's body aually reinate somewhere else, only to be captured and sealed again by other shinobi.

  For Konoha, this would bring no bes—only the unnecessary hatred of Kumogakure.

  Should he take her back to Konoha?

  Although the Tsuchikage's words earlier were somewhat exaggerated, there was truth ihe capture of a Jinchūriki, coupled with the fact that the Kumogakure garrison ander was likely a desdant of their high-ranking officials, could greatly provoke those brutes from Kumogakure, possibly ing them to recklessly un atta Konoha.

  That would only be Iwagakure, who were watg from the sidelines.

  In the grand game betwee vilges, allowing a third party to reap the bes was uable.

  Engaging in war with another major vilge could lead to uable sequences. Uhey refrained from direvolvement and waged a proxy war—which, from the perspective of major vilge game theory, was somewhat acceptable.

  But now, Kusa no Kuni's western proxy, Kusagakure, had beeroyed by Konoha and Iwagakure w together. What extreme as Kumogakure might take were unknown.

  If they brought the Two-Tails Jinchūriki back to the vilge, Konoha would have to be prepared t the entire ninja world into flict.

  The situation in the ninja world was intricate and plex.

  After much thought, Fugaku felt a headache ing on.

  "If only Advisojo were here..."

  That way, he wouldn't have to pohese far-reag, interected matters.

  The more critical the moment, the more Fugaku admired Advisojo.

  That's what strategists in the vilge's rear are for.

  Frontline shinobi only o devote themselves to the battlefield, follow orders, fight bravely, the anders unleash Susanoo, and the rank-and-file unleash their jutsu. But strategists in the rear have to sider many things.

  As Fugaku was deep in thought,

  The sounds of battle faded.

  More and more ordinary vilgers of Kusagakure peeked out, their eyes timidly watg the shinobi lingering outside.

  They looked at the Iwagakure shinobi with fear but gazed at the Konoha shinobi with joy.

  Some vilgers even noticed the bleeding wounds of Konoha shinobi and proactively brought out bundles of bandages from their homes to offer to them.

  They weled the arrival of Konoha shinobi with open arms. Raggedly dressed vilgers wept tears of joy, shouting that with the Konoha shinobi here, justice had arrived.

  This made the Konoha Blitz unit feel quite embarrassed.

  In ninja wars, it is the shinobi who die, the vilgers who suffer, and the vilge leaders who profit.

  Before the war, vilge elders provide shuriken, kunai, and explosive tags; wealthy families offer food and mohe poor offer their children! After the war, the elders shake hands and make peace; the wealthy families earn enormous profits; and the mothers of the poor bury their children in tears.

  It was evident that the elites of Kusagakure didn't treat the poor vilgers well. They had also lost the ideological battle thhly.

  So much so that when their own vilge was ihe lower-css vilgers didn't show ament or provide opportunities for the Kusagakure shinobi to engage in guerril warfare. Instead, they proactively helped Konoha, who were, in essence, io Kusagakure.

  Just by listening slightly, Fugaku roughly uood the situation in Kusagakure.

  The batch of Kusagakure elders and shinobi they had eliminated beloo the pro-Kumogakure fa.

  Their position... mostly sisted of the old money ahy households of Kusagakure, being the biggest parasites sug the vilge dry.

  Their closeo Kumogakure was simple—they provided them with the most direct bes, aligning perfectly with their demands. Thus, they dragged Kusagakure, which alyed the geographical advantage, over to Kumogakure.

  That's how ral vilges are.

  Ohey abandon the prefix "ral," it's equivalent to giving up their geographical advantages aiangled in the plex vortex of the ninja world, fag the risk of annihition at any moment.

  "Fugaku-sama, we've brought Uzumaki Momohime."

  Hearing this, Fugaku turned his head to see Uzumaki Momohime with her signature red hair, her arms covered in bite marks. Supported by a Kunoichi from Konoha, she walked towards him.

  'Red hair...'

  For some reason, a faint sense of guilt rose in Fugaku's heart.

  Konohagakure and Uzushiogakure maintained a deep friendship and bond. If alliances in the ninja world were to be ranked, Konoha and Uzushio would undoubtedly be the highest level.

  Even now, the backs of Konoha's jōnin uniforms are embzoned with the Uzumaki symbol.

  No "Non-Aggression Pact" was o prove it; the retionship betweewo vilges was as close as sharing the same umbrel.

  But due to other nations and s fearing the Uzumaki 's sealing teiques, many tries and s utacks on the Land of Whirlpools, leading to its destru. The surviving members went into hiding, scattering across the world.

  That year, Fugaku was ten years old.

  Even at ten, he uood that between brother vilges, when one is in trouble, the other should do everything possible to help.

  But Fugaku vividly remembered that on the night the Land of Whirlpools was destroyed, Konoha did nothing—only increasing vilge patrols to ehe enemy wouldn't attack their own vilge.

  Before the outbreak of the Sed Shinobi World War, Konoha was undoubtedly the stro vilge in the ninja world, with advantages over other vilges eveer than the current Konoha.

  Yet, at that time, Konoha didn't provide any assistao its brother nation.

  No matter how ories to justify it, whether it was to preserve Konoha's strength iurbulent ninja world or for other siderations...

  It was inexcusable!

  A disgrace for all to see!

  Perhaps because of this, a seed of distrust nted in young Fugaku's heart. If they could so easily abandon their brother vilge—the homend of the First Hokage's wife—then osition should the Uchiha , which already had estras with the vilge, take?

  Back to the present.

  Looking at Uzumaki Momohime, Fugaku couldn't help but recall the st line from the essay "Stealing Military Rations Pills Not for Huhat Advisojo had written for the Uchiha :

  "The Police Chief muttered to himself, 'If a man its a crime for money, he is guilty; if a man its a crime for military ration pills, the vilge is guilty; if a man its a crime fnity, everyone in the vilge is guilty.'"

  At that moment, just like now.

  Fate—it seems like a circle...

  "So, I did say those words. But it wasn't the past me; it was the future me."

  Fugaku murmured, "This vilge is guilty; everyone in the vilge is guilty!"

  Yes, everyone is guilty! On that night, all who had the ability but didn't speak up for the Land of Whirlpools are guilty!

  Perhaps this is the true meaning behind Advisojo's essay "Military Rations Pills." It's just that at that time, he didn't have a high enough position in the vilge to mention such sensitive events.

  But now, now it's different!

  With the plete downfall of the Third Hokage, and Danzo Shimura dismissed and under iigation, this previously untouchable topic was brought into the light by Advisojo, exposed to the Will of Fire.

  "So that's why he specifically ordered us to rescue Uzumaki Momohime... This disgrace that the world has almost fotten was remembered by Advisojo..."

  "Essentially, he wants to use Uzumaki Momohime as proof of Konoha's political renewal, deg to the entire ninja world: 'Ninja world, your overlord has returhe Konoha of its most prosperous era has returned!'"

  Konoha's strength had been tinuously weakened during the Third Shinobi World War, and its status as overlord was shaky. Secretly harb terrifying sealing teiques is ohing, but openly possessing them would have pletely different implications.

  Undoubtedly, this would stir up deep-seated fears in other vilges, possibly sparking another war of annihition.

  Yet, Gojo Kaigetsu still chose t this matter to the forefront, clearly intending to use the "Rescue Uzumaki Momohime" io vey two messages to the ninja world:

  *"We in Konoha are ready once again to face the entire ninja world with the strength of one vilge!"*

  *"The olicies of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, are being pletely abolished. From now on, Konoha wields dominating power!"*

  "Advisojo, was even this within your calcutions?"

  "Using the ninja world as a chessboard, with all shinobi as pieces, maneuvering skillfully, pying with the ninja world... Just how many steps ahead have you pnned?"

  "Advisojo, do you love Konohagakure that much?!"

  From that time, Gojo Kaigetsu had already foreseen this moment, remembering the sins Konoha bore.

  As one who sidered himself among those who uood Gojo Kaigetsu best, Fugaku was moved to tears, deeply shaken by Gojo's schemes.

  "This is love... true love... loving a vilge unreservedly, defying fate for its sake!"

  Deeply moved by the great love dispyed by Gojo Kaigetsu, Fugaku seemed to have a new uanding of what love is. Stimuted by this, the tomoe in his eyes slowly distorted...

  Grasping the "great love" given by Gojo Kaigetsu, he instantly refi, and then—

  "Visual Power, Explode!!!"

  Fugaku could clearly feel that his ocur power, which had already reached its limit, was still increasing, breaking through his own shackles.

  The visual power ed by repeatedly activating Susanoo in the previous battle was rapidly replenished, and his visiouro 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray mode!

  In the distance, ōnoki, who was anding Iwagakure shinobi to rest and loot the spoils, sensed something and turned his head to look in Fugaku's dire, feeling a sudden pang of fear.

  His rge witched as he muttered, "I k... The Uchiha are unreasonable madmen... Good thing I didn't make a move earlier."

  "Ko-Konoha shinobi-sama..."

  Uzumaki Momohime said timidly.

  Seeing the Konoha Uchiha shinobi before her suddenly start shedding tears like a madman, Momohime felt a bit scared.

  She didn't know what kind of twisted fate awaited her.

  After all, Konoha had abandoned Uzushiogakure, trampling the sincere brotherhood and trust between them into the ground... There was no reason for them to pick it back up again; everyone has moments when they find things too dirty to touch.

  'Perhaps they'll kill me here to eliminate evidence of Uzushiogakure's existence.'

  Momohime thought pessimistically. Ending her hellish life like this might not be a bad choice.

  The ninja world is hell...

  But she wasn't alone; she still had Karin to take care of. To her, the ninja world was hell, but to the baby Uzumaki Karin, it was a world yet to be known.

  N-No, not just Karin; there's also this good person lying on the ground... Momohime looked at the unscious Yugito Nii, who had bee a prisoner.

  Although they had only spoken briefly, she could tell that the blonde woman was a good person.

  Summoning her ce, Momohime stood in front of the Tailed Beast Jinchūriki with her mortal body, pleading, "Sir, if you must kill someone, please kill me instead."

  "If possible... I beg you to spare Lady Yugito. She's a good person. And my child... she's i."

  Fugaku Uchiha: ?

  It seemed they were thinking in pletely opposite dires.

  'What a humble plea... She's even given up hope of living. Konoha owes the Uzumaki survivors too much.'

  'Konoha's debt to the Uzumaki is like Gojo's kio the Uchiha—it 't be repaid in a lifetime.'

  After a moment of silence, Fugaku asked, "You're barely able to protect yourself, yet you still want to proteeone uo you?"

  "I only know that Lady Yugito is a good person. The aral teags of the Uzumaki tell me... good people shouldn't have kunai poi them."

  Momohime said early. When a person breaks through the barrier of fear and musters ce, all that's left is to speak their mind without reservation.

  "Good people shouldn't have kunai poi them..." Fugaku chuckled, but the smile on his blood-stained face looked a bit eerie.

  He gnced around and saw his subordinates holding kunai, eyes fixed on Yugito Nii to prevent her from rampaging. He said, "You all heard that? Good people shouldn't have kunai poi them. Put your kunai away!"

  "Yes, Fugaku-sama!"

  Fugaku made up his mind.

  The current Konoha was no lohe heavy and weak Konoha of the past; it was a vibrant Konoha under Advisojo's leadership. He didn't o be as cautious as before, weighing pros and s for the greater good of the ...

  Even an unarmed Uzumaki survivor, her life pletely exposed uhe kunai, could muster the ce to speak up—so why couldn't he, Fugaku Uchiha?

  He possessed the ninja world's stro kekkei genkai, wielded the ultimate dōjutsu, the Mangekyō Sharingan—why couldn't he muster ce!

  Even if bringing Yugito Nii back to the vilge might provoke Kumogakure's reckless retaliation, so what? In Advisojo's pns, Konoha was meant to take oire ninja world, not just Kumogakure!

  Vision!

  Scale!

  Fugaku proudly straightened his chest and said calmly to Momohime, "Rest assured, we Konoha shinobi will not kill a ninja reized as a good person by a member of the Uzumaki . Since you say she's a good person... we will bring her back to Konohagakure, along with you and your child."

  "Bring... back to Konohagakure?"

  Momohime breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed no one had to die; this was undoubtedly the best oute. In this hellish ninja world, surviving was already the greatest luxury she could hope for.

  But deep in her eyes, a hint of fusion emerged. Returning to Konoha... it was su unfamiliar term.

  As survivors of the Uzumaki , what status would they have upourning to Konoha?

  Living under someone else's roof was not easy. The Uzumaki 's home was goo have them, now a destroyed , take refuge in the home of retives who stood by and did nothing...

  It's like two families of retives fighting over iance. After the death of the adults and the iance is secured, they hypocritically take iher family's children.

  No matter what the iions are ter on, it leaves an unrepairable scar in both parties' hearts.

  'Life in Konoha iure probably won't be easy. But surviving is already the greatest happiness; there's nothing more to hope for.'

  Fugaku's Sharingan seemed to see through people's hearts. At this moment, as if possessed by the Great Loving Ninja Gojo Kaigetsu, he gave his assurance:

  "The regime of the Third Hokage, which stood by and did nothing for the Land of Whirlpools, is irely a part of history. The current Konoha is uhe governance of the Fourth Hokage. I assure you, the Uzumaki will receive the highest honor in Konoha to atone for the sins Konoha bears."

  "You will live the best life in Konoha! I swear it in the name of the Uchiha!"

  Fugaku's face was solemn.

  Swearing in the name of his was the most reassuring promise he could give. In a way, it was more credible than a bd-white "Non-Aggression Pact."

  "M-My lord, you mustn't!"

  Momohime was startled, nearly bursting into tears—not from being moved.

  Having beerayed before, how could the Uzumaki survivors trust Konoha again? If Konoha were to betray them once more... would the Uchiha, who swore in the name of their , let them go?

  "Hoo..."

  Fugaku waved his hand, signaling his subordi forward the captured Kumogakure garrison ander and the remaining five Kusagakure elders, who looked uneasy.

  Notig the bite marks on Momohime's arms, Fugaku coldly asked, "Lady Momohime, did any of them bite you?"

  "Eh...? L-Lady?"

  The honorific startled Momohime. She timidly g the fierce-looking Eguchi and the Kusagakure elder wearing a dog mask.

  "This is the promise I make on behalf of Konoha to the Uzumaki survivors: The Uzumaki will receive the highest honor in Konoha. Those who have harmed the Uzumaki will be eradicated from this world without exception."

  Fugaku drew his kunai once more.

  "Please feel free to identify them."

  "Yes..."

  Summoning her ce once again, Momohime raised her hand and shakily poi those who had bitten her, "Him... and him."

  "Very well!"

  Fugaku nodded in satisfa.

  Daring to step forward and identify the culprits—the initial trust was established. This robably the limit of what Fugaku could achieve. How to repair retions with the Uzumaki the future would depeirely on Advisojo!

  Fugaku turned his head, looking at the Kusagakure elders who had all taken a step back, isoting the elder wearing the dog mask.

  "You should be grateful that you haven't harmed members of the Uzumaki , or else the entire leadership of Kusagakure would be wiped out."

  "As for you... and you..."

  Sensing the icy killing i in Fugaku's eyes, Eguchi, a noble of Kumogakure, finally felt fear. He had thought that given his status, uhe Konoha shinobi were utterly ihey would spare his life to exge freater bes with Kumogakure.

  Who would have thought... the Uchiha shinobi are plete madmen!

  This leader actually inteo kill someone as esteemed as him for an Uzumaki survivor?!

  Afraid that Fugaku didn't know his value, Eguchi shouted, "Are you crazy, Konoha shinobi? Do you know who I am?"

  "My grandfather is the Great Elder of Kumogakure! If you kill me, be prepared to faending revenge from all of Kumogakure!"

  Fugaku sneered, unmoved. Pointing toward the Iwagakure camp in the distance, he said, "Iwagakure killed your Third Raikage, yet we haven't seen your Fourth Raikage unending revenge."

  "Are you saying your status is even higher thahird Raikage's?"

  How could this be pared?

  Even his grandfather's status wasn't higher thahird Raikage, but hadn't the vilge's political climate ged? The Great Elder had upgraded from an ordinary elder to the regent elder—the weight of that position was evident.

  In Kumogakure, Eguchi was among the small group who enjoyed endless wealth and prosperity, regardless of policy ges.

  But is this something he could say? If the Raikage found out, he'd skin him alive.

  "Of course not..." Eguchi denied vehemently.

  Fugaku tinued, "Then you're saying we in Konoha are inferior to Iwagakure?"

  "That's... not what I meant. Konohagakure has always beero in the ninja world; that's on knowledge among us Kumogakure shinobi, not to mention those Iwa bumpkins." In internal discussions, Eguchi always cimed Kumogakure was the best and greatest vilge, but now, to save his life, he couldn't care less about pride.

  As long as he could ftter this Uchiha madman and survive!

  "Since your status isn't higher thahird Raikage, and Konoha is strohan Iwagakure, why 't I kill you?" Fugaku looked puzzled, like a curious student.

  "Ah...? You... I..."

  Realizing he was being pyed, Eguchi became toied. But in his sight, the approag kunai showed no sign of stopping.

  Finally, his eyes filled with terror and unwillingness as his head fell heavily to the ground. It rolled a few times on the ground, bumping into the head of the Kusagakure elder wearing the dog mask.

  Fugaku wiped the blood off his kunai. ging from his cold demeanor during the killing, he showed a gentle smile to Momohime:

  "This is the attitude our Konohagakure will have toward the ninja world iure."

  "Wele home, friend of the Uzumaki ."

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