The two old men were on the verge of coming to blows when the door of the Hokage Building opened once again.
The Uchiha clan’s young prodigy—Itachi Uchiha—appeared.
This powerful and exceptionally talented young man was also one of the few people who was not shackled by narrow clan-based thinking.
He had joined the ANBU at a young age and walked the razor’s edge as a double agent for both Konoha and the Uchiha. Through it all, he possessed an extraordinarily strong heart.
The boy had an exceedingly likable appearance—so likable that he practically made people let their judgment follow his looks.
Short black hair and black eyes, with long eyelashes at the corners of both eyes. His delicate features resembled those of his mother, while he had also inherited his father’s tear troughs.
The words beautiful, strong, yet tragic seemed written all over his face.
At this moment, he wore an ordinary shinobi uniform bearing the Uchiha clan’s fan crest.
As an ANBU member, he wore the ANBU uniform over the foundation of the Uchiha clan’s standard attire, with a samurai sword strapped to his back.
This was the genius of the Uchiha clan, a prodigy who had been praised since childhood for his wisdom, rationality, and ability to think deeply.
At the age of seven, he had already been capable of considering problems from the perspective of the Hokage.
His appearance caused Danzō and Hiruzen to put their argument aside.
Danzō also began sizing up the boy from head to toe.
Every time he saw Itachi, the old man couldn’t help but praise Hiruzen’s methods.
What could be more devastating to the Uchiha than turning the son of their clan head against them?
It was practically cutting off the Uchiha’s future.
Compared with the Third Hokage’s overwhelming force, Hiruzen’s methods were even more difficult to guard against.
Yet when Danzō looked at the universally praised Itachi, he merely shook his head inwardly, filled with contempt for so-called geniuses.
"These so-called geniuses are nothing more than products of ordinary people’s praise. They never possess the ability to break free from their fate. Some of them even become convinced of their own superiority."
At this moment, Itachi appeared somewhat taciturn and poor at communicating.
Perhaps the death of another Uchiha spy who had constantly influenced him—Shisui Uchiha—had left him deeply confused and conflicted.
Looking at Itachi’s expressionless eyes, Danzō understood that the boy had probably learned something.
That deliberately indifferent expression was simply too forced.
Danzō had seen plenty of geniuses.
Not one of them had ever shown absolutely no reaction when facing him.
Therefore, Itachi’s apparent indifference could only be an act.
But so what?
Danzō did not consider this pitiful young man a threat.
What threat could someone who had betrayed the foundation upon which he had originally been raised possibly pose?
Clans that were not narrow-minded had mostly disappeared from the shinobi world in miserable circumstances.
And among the shinobi clans that had survived to the present day, which one wasn’t narrow-minded in its own way?
Danzō had no desire to trade barbs with Itachi.
When Hiruzen saw Itachi, however, his expression immediately became kind and amiable.
The contrast between the two men was striking.
Perhaps this was also why Danzō had always remained beneath Hiruzen’s authority.
"Itachi, are there any members of the Uchiha clan who have been living outside the village?"
Hiruzen asked the question directly.
So much time had passed since the incident, and a group of Uchiha had appeared outside Konoha.
The Uchiha clan should have learned about it by now.
Perhaps they could find a breakthrough by starting with the Uchiha themselves.
But Itachi didn’t know how to answer Hiruzen’s question.
Even among his peers—and even those slightly older than him—Itachi had always seemed unusually mature during his childhood.
That maturity had also isolated him to some degree.
Having witnessed the horrors of the Third Shinobi World War as a child, he had developed an intense hatred of war.
In order to understand the world more deeply, he constantly sought greater strength and knowledge.
Yet what was happening now exceeded Itachi’s understanding and judgment.
A group of Uchiha whose origins were unknown had somehow arrived outside Konoha without making a sound.
Although they were Uchiha, Itachi felt that the Hokage should know far more than the Uchiha clan did.
After all, to pass through Konoha’s hidden sealing traps and barriers—and those surrounding the village—without triggering anything, and arrive safely outside Konoha, was not something a group of Uchiha who knew nothing about the village could accomplish.
And before coming to the Hokage Building, the Uchiha clan had already been thrown into complete chaos.
That made it even clearer that their own people knew nothing about this group of Uchiha.
Yet the Hokage wanted to hear Itachi’s opinion?
What opinion could he possibly have?
Itachi could only shake his head without answering.
That answer satisfied neither Hiruzen nor Danzō.
Uchiha whom even the Uchiha themselves knew nothing about.
The two old men exchanged a glance.
Their eyes seemed to say:
"And you still claim this group of Uchiha has nothing to do with you?"
Because Itachi was present, neither man could openly argue.
They simply suppressed their suspicions for the moment.
After thinking for a moment, Hiruzen said,
"They are your clansmen, after all. Perhaps they came to Konoha seeking refuge with the Uchiha. However, they seem to have had some sort of misunderstanding with Konoha and have taken Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane."
As he spoke, Hiruzen stood up and faced the direction in which the Uchiha had retreated, deliberately turning his back to Itachi.
"I want you, as the Uchiha’s heir, to make contact with them and bring Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane back."
"Yes, sir."
Itachi, who had hurried here, gave a concise response and departed.
As soon as Itachi left, the two old men in the Hokage Building once again fell into a game of mutual probing.
If neither of them had the ability to deal with the Uchiha outside, didn’t they at least have the ability to shift the blame onto each other?
The two most powerful political figures in Konoha had already concluded in their hearts that the other party had some inescapable connection to those Uchiha.
Even if there wasn’t one, there had to be.
Because only then could they force the other person to step forward and deal with the situation.
Who knew what would happen to Konoha if they failed to resolve the presence of this group of Uchiha?
A single pair of Mangekyō Sharingan during the night of the Nine-Tails’ attack had already been terrifying enough.
The two men who were always preaching about the Will of Fire and "self-sacrifice" clearly possessed far less courage than their words suggested.
If they truly had that kind of courage, there would have been no need for the young and physically vigorous Fourth Hokage to sacrifice himself.
Meanwhile, at the birthplace of the Uchiha clan—the Nanga Shrine—the group of Uchiha had once again taken up residence.
Looking at the desolate surroundings, Koshiro couldn’t help sighing.
"When Lord Kei brought us here back then, it wasn’t nearly this run-down."
Gen’nosuke remained as cheerful as ever.
"That was ten years ago!"
Izumo Kamizuki, who had been a member of Ibiki Morino’s Interrogation Corps, continued seriously investigating and gathering intelligence despite being a prisoner.
"Ten years... Lord!"
From only a couple of simple exchanges, Izumo understood that this was an organized group of Uchiha with some connection to Konoha’s past.
Ten years ago...
Had any Uchiha disappeared?
Izumo fell into deep thought.
Kotetsu Hagane, who had also been captured, was filled with worry.
Yet he didn’t seem concerned about the fact that the two of them were openly discussing these matters.
Either their captors weren’t afraid of exposing information, or they had no intention of allowing the prisoners to leave alive after learning so much.
Either possibility demonstrated how dangerous their situation was.
Kotetsu closed his eyes and seemed to accept his fate.
Born a commoner, the moment he became one of the Fourth Hokage’s guards had been the high point of his life.
From that day onward, he could finally indulge in things such as vegetable hotpot, raw tuna topped with yam sauce, and malt candy.
But after the Fourth Hokage’s death, everything changed.
From an ordinary commoner at the bottom of society, to becoming one of the people everyone envied as a member of the Hokage’s guard, and then falling all the way down to becoming one of Konoha’s gatekeepers...
The dramatic rise and fall of his life had taught Kotetsu many things.
Unlike the sharp-tongued Izumo, he had become somewhat resigned to his fate.
Koshiro and Gen’nosuke, however, had no interest in what the two prisoners thought.
"Then let’s rebuild Nanga and erect a divine statue of Lord Kei!"
Gen’nosuke was still overflowing with enthusiasm.
He threw his arms into the air as though embracing the sun itself.
Compared with Gen’nosuke’s boundless enthusiasm, Koshiro stood atop the high ground of Nanga and stared silently at Konoha.
His cold eyes contained a hint of madness.
"Gen’nosuke, tell me something."
"If we find a way home, what would be the best gift we could bring Lord Kei?"
Gen’nosuke was still immersed in the joy of designing a Nanga Shrine according to his own aesthetic tastes and dedicating it to his beloved Lord Kei.
Koshiro’s question caught him completely off guard.
"What do you mean?"
"Are you saying we should use the Third Hokage’s head to make an offering before Lord Kei’s divine statue?"
As he spoke, Gen’nosuke wrapped an arm around Koshiro’s.
"Although Lord Kei really hates the Third Hokage, that guy is so weak. He couldn’t even defeat Jūbei before Jūbei awakened his eyes."
"The two of us against him would be bullying him too much, wouldn’t it?"
The conversation terrified the two prisoners.
The invincible Third Hokage...
How could he be so worthless in the mouths of these Uchiha?
Were these arrogant Uchiha overestimating themselves?
Or had they been overestimating Hiruzen all along?
Seeing how relaxed the two men were, the prisoners began doubting everything they knew.
Koshiro easily broke free from Gen’nosuke’s embrace, fanaticism appearing in his eyes.
"One Third Hokage’s head isn’t worthy of being Lord Kei’s gift."
He pointed toward the Uchiha clan’s territory.
"What I mean is, if we bring Lord Kei more than a thousand pairs of Sharingan as a betrothal gift, perhaps Lord Kei’s complaints against us would be reduced to a minimum."
"What?!"
"What?!"
"What?!"
Exclamations erupted from every direction.
Koshiro had clearly frightened everyone.
He was obsessed with returning to Nanga.
If he could remain in Nanga, who would willingly go to the Land of Rivers and eat sand?
Marrying Zhujun had indeed made him happy.
At the time, joy had clouded his judgment.
But now that he thought about it, although possessing territory in the Land of Rivers was certainly impressive, what difference was there between that and exile?
Koshiro needed a gift capable of moving Lord Kei’s heart so that he could return to the sacred land of Nanga.
And his insane words had frightened not only Gen’nosuke but also the Konoha prisoners who had heard them without being excluded from the conversation.
The two prisoners exchanged a glance.
"They’re going to massacre the Uchiha!"
Gen’nosuke stared at Koshiro in horror.
You’re going to attack your own people?
Koshiro’s idea was so shocking that it completely challenged Gen’nosuke’s values.
Gen’nosuke had always considered the Uchiha of Konoha to be his own people.
After all, what did "one’s own people" mean?
It meant people who were doing something Lord Kei liked.
Koshiro, however, thought Gen’nosuke was making far too much of a fuss.
Even if this was a world whose circumstances they knew nothing about, the Uchiha of the Land of Fire in their own world were divided between Nanga and Konoha.
If it could win Lord Kei’s favor, Koshiro wouldn’t even mind raising his blade against the Uchiha of his own world.
Why would he hesitate here?
"Do you really intend to establish a family and career in the Land of Rivers forever? I certainly don’t!"
Koshiro was clearly dissatisfied with Gen’nosuke’s attitude.
The prisoners had just obtained another astonishing piece of information.
Gen’nosuke, however, felt there was nothing wrong with staying.
Wherever Oboro wanted to be, that was where Gen’nosuke wanted to be.
"That is Lord Kei’s command."
"Securing the Land of Rivers for Lord Kei is our responsibility!"
After all, the Land of Rivers had been Oboro’s dowry.
He himself was merely a son-in-law who had married into his wife’s family.
Hearing Gen’nosuke say this, the Red Eyes nodded in agreement.
They had been born in the Land of Rivers.
Although they were loyal to the Uchiha, they also hoped to live and prosper in their homeland.
"Loyalty!"
The Red-Eyed Uchiha voiced their stance.
They would faithfully carry out Lord Kei’s orders.
Koshiro stepped forward.
He stared at the Hokage Rock in Konoha and found it increasingly offensive.
Konoha only needed one symbol of faith.
And that was Uchiha Kei.
At that moment, Uchiha Koshiro drew his blade and pointed it toward the Hokage Building.
"Surrounding ourselves around Lord Kei—that is our true destiny!"
"And whatever Lord Kei likes is the greatest gift we can offer him!"
The orthodox Nanga Uchiha stood behind Koshiro.
Their Zanpakutō were drawn, and their faces were filled with killing intent.
The extent to which Jūbei’s achievements had been praised by Nanga was genuinely enviable.
If they had the opportunity, they wouldn’t mind creating another glorious achievement of their own.
The last time, however, it had been accomplished by more than two hundred Red Eyes together with a dozen or so orthodox Uchiha.
At that time, the Uchiha’s Zanpakutō had not yet been strengthened.
Now, these orthodox Uchiha believed their strength had risen another level.
With forty of them, together with Lord Koshiro and his Mangekyō Sharingan, they felt they could accomplish what Lord Jūbei had achieved back then.
Only this time, they would be hunting the eyes Lord Kei liked as a gift for him.
Whether those eyes belonged to their clansmen was irrelevant.
If Lord Kei considered them his people, then they were.
"Glory!"
The Uchiha’s voices were filled with fanaticism.
The old and composed Jakuan, however, noticed the younger generation’s lack of caution and reminded them:
"There’s one thing..."
"If this really is a world completely unrelated to ours, then wouldn’t there be Red Eyes here too?"
Jakuan’s words made both sides fall into a moment of silence.
Then everyone’s eyes lit up.
The number of Red Eyes would be even greater.
There could be several thousand pairs!
Seeing everyone’s reaction, Jakuan continued:
"Remember, the Sharingan’s side effects make transplantation and modification costly."
"But the Red Eyes have no such side effects."
"Lord Kei actually prefers the Red Eyes to the Sharingan."
Jakuan sighed.
"The number of branch-family Uchiha is obviously insufficient."
His words excited the Red-Eyed Uchiha as well.
They had families of their own.
Being able to obtain a pair of Red Eyes for their family members was one of their greatest ambitions.
"Loyalty will inevitably follow Glory!"
The divided Nanga Uchiha once again united as one.
Without Uchiha Kei’s restraint, Koshiro and Gen’nosuke had brought the Uchiha to regard this world as a hunting ground.
The sheer amount of information they had learned left Kotetsu Hagane completely despairing.
"We’re not going to survive this. Absolutely not!"
After learning this much, there was clearly no chance that they would be allowed to live.
Izumo Kamizuki was equally unable to process everything he had heard.
"The main family? The branch family?"
"Did the Hyūga Clan’s disgusting traditions spread to the Uchiha as well?"
"Why has there never been any record of this in the shinobi world?"
At that moment, Itachi Uchiha had also arrived at the foot of Nanga.
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