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After stepping out of the Uchiha Clan's main gate, Sarutobi Saizo maintained a calm expression, seemingly lost in thought.
Originally, he had estimated that the Uchiha Clan, who were already dissatisfied with the Hokage lineage and had even long opposed it since the Second Hokage's era, would at least show some hostility towards them, even if they were slightly swayed by Sawara Kiri.
He hadn't expected Uchiha Motoya to be so clear-headed.
At this moment, anyone with a shred of sanity would understand the consequences of opposing Sawara Kiri.
However, others could afford to wait, but their Sarutobi Clan could not.
Although the members of "Substitute Hokage Council" had not immediately acted against them due to their status as a Ninja Clan a while ago, all shops involved in the Rice Riots incident had now been sealed off and forcibly requisitioned.
The Sarutobi Clan, who originally controlled Konoha's grain and oil assets, suffered a severe blow in this incident.
If this situation didn't take a turn for the better, their Sarutobi Clan would decline at a visible rate—as mentioned before, cultivating Ninja, especially a large number of Ninja Clan members, required significant resources and economic income.
It seems they need to find a way to break through from within the Uchiha or Hyuga Clan first?
Just like the Sarutobi Clan itself, every Ninja Clan was not a monolithic entity; they were divided into radical, conservative, and neutral factions, similar to political groups.
Based on previous understanding, the Fourth and Sixth Elders of the Uchiha Clan should both belong to the anti-Hokage faction.
As he was pondering this deeply.
A guard behind him suddenly leaned in and spoke:
"Sarutobi-sama."
"There are two trackers behind us."
Sarutobi Saizo's expression became serious.
At a time like this, with his status, he naturally had to guard against "Substitute Hokage Council"'s beheading tactics, so he always had two sensory Ninja with him.
However, after looking around for a while and confirming that there was no sound of a rumored meteor falling, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief and asked in a low voice:
"Which direction?"
"They are coming from the Uchiha Clan territory."
Immediately, Sarutobi Saizo's expression brightened.
Indeed.
It seemed there were many people within the Uchiha Clan who shared his aspirations.
However, he didn't know whose people they were.
After they moved to a secluded spot, the figures following behind them immediately quickened their pace.
Sarutobi Saizo turned to look, and his gaze immediately froze.
"You are..."
Soon, the two individuals who had been following them emerged from the shadows of the trees.
It was a tall, middle-aged man with severe burn scars on the right side of his face, covered by a metal plate. His voice was muffled:
"You really are forgetful, Saizo."
"Uchiha Setsuna?!"
Sarutobi Saizo's eyes narrowed slightly, a hint of surprise vaguely visible in his gaze.
This was a powerful Uchiha who had been active on the battlefield since the time of the Second Hokage. In his early years, he was the leader of the Uchiha Clan's radical faction, desperately trying to reclaim the highest position from the Hokage lineage.
However, due to various political conflicts, he was eventually imprisoned in Konoha Great Prison by Second Hokage.
Since then, there had been no news of him.
In his early years, as a trusted subordinate of Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sarutobi Saizo had fought him many times and was well aware of his strength.
"How could you...?"
Just as Sarutobi Saizo was about to ask how he had escaped from Konoha Great Prison, his mind suddenly flashed back to the rumors from a while ago about Hidden Mist Ninja breaking into Konoha Great Prison to assassinate Shimura Danzo.
The commotion caused in the Village at that time was quite significant, and as a high-ranking member of the Sarutobi Clan, he naturally knew how long the subsequent various capture operations had lasted.
"So, you escaped at that time."
"It seems you haven't gone senile yet."
Uchiha Setsuna merely smiled dismissively upon hearing this, appearing nonchalant and not at all concerned about his identity as an escaped prisoner being exposed.
Of course.
This was also because what the Leader of Sarutobi Clan wanted to do now was far more significant than the problem of him, a mere escapee.
Sarutobi Saizo calmly looked at him: "What, you suddenly appearing here, you're not just here to reminisce, are you?"
"You should know better than I why I came here."
"You want the power of the Uchiha Clan, right, Saizo?"
In Uchiha Setsuna's eye sockets, a pair of crimson Three Tomoe Sharingan lit up, looking directly at him, carrying an invisible sense of pressure.
"And I need to reclaim the Uchiha Clan."
"This is a mutually beneficial transaction."
Sarutobi Saizo frowned tightly: "What can you do alone? As an escaped prisoner, what kind of influence can you have within the Uchiha Clan?"
"With Uchiha Motoya's current prestige, if you make even the slightest move, you'll probably be captured by him."
"What's more, he also possesses those eyes."
Uchiha Setsuna, however, didn't mind at all, as what he said was indeed true: "That's why I came to you, or rather, the Sarutobi Clan."
"As long as you can defeat "Substitute Hokage Council" and control Konoha's economic lifeline, then putting me in the position of Uchiha Clan Leader will be incredibly simple."
Sarutobi Saizo's gaze towards him grew increasingly dangerous, and he said coldly: "If you're here to joke with me, then go back early."
Nonsense.
If he had the ability to defeat "Substitute Hokage Council" and Sawara Kiri, would their Sarutobi Clan have waited until now?
The reason they were trying to win over the Uchiha and various Ninja Clans was precisely because they lacked that ability, wasn't it?
Furthermore, if they could truly defeat "Substitute Hokage Council", what need would there be to support you, an ally, to power?
Logical dead end.
Uchiha Setsuna, however, completely disregarded his cold attitude and calmly smiled: "Sawara Kiri is about to leave the Village."
Upon hearing this, Sarutobi Saizo suddenly froze.
"How do you know?"
"I naturally have my own channels." Uchiha Setsuna's voice became softer, "In seven days, he will return to the Land of Lightning front lines for some matters, and will likely be held up by some people for one to two days."
"If you can seize this time and launch an all-out attack on Senju Residence, you can capture Sawara Kiri's sister and Tsunade's adopted daughter."
"Under such circumstances, even if we can't make Sawara Kiri side with us, we can at least make him neutral."
"To be a Ninja, one must be ruthless."
Upon hearing this news, Sarutobi Saizo's already somewhat wrinkled face couldn't help but tremble, and his eyes revealed a look of extreme excitement, yet he still reconfirmed, uneasy:
"Are you telling the truth?"
"How can I be sure?"
"You don't need to be sure, you just need to prepare." Uchiha Setsuna dropped this piece of information and turned around, "Once you have accomplished this, we will discuss the next step."
"After all, you wouldn't want the Sarutobi Clan to be defeated at your hands, would you?"
Uchiha Setsuna gave him one last look, smiled in a threatening manner, and quickly walked away.
Sarutobi Saizo remained standing in place, watching him for a long time.
He seemed to be struggling.
Sarutobi Saizo actually had no choice.
Waiting for death and a quick death were essentially both processes of dying.
It was precisely because he grasped this key point that Uchiha Setsuna's proposal seemed so deadly effective.
Currently, the biggest formidable tiger blocking their path was this young man, Sawara Kiri.
As long as they could control him, then everything else would have room for struggle.
Uchiha Setsuna walked leisurely in the direction of the clan territory, pondering in his mind.
As for whether Sawara Kiri would, like the heroes of history, completely disregard the life and death of his last family member and return to wipe out the entire Sarutobi Clan, he had actually considered this possibility.
However, after searching various sources, Uchiha Setsuna ultimately deemed this possibility extremely low.
According to the information he found, in order to stay in the Village for a long time to take care of his sister, Sawara Kiri, despite his terrifying strength, had actually remained dormant in the Village for a full five years after graduating from the Ninja Academy.
It wasn't until Sawara Yuki also graduated from the Ninja Academy and gained a certain degree of self-preservation and survival ability that he began to go out with teams.
This level of bond was definitely not something just anyone could compare to.
More importantly...
After Uchiha Setsuna instructed his subordinates to leave, he alone walked deep into the basement of his own residence.
In the center of this dark basement, within a formation lit by candles on four sides, faint Chakra light was vaguely visible.
Uchiha Setsuna formed hand signs.
Soon, a slightly blurry Chakra human figure lit up in the center of the formation.
It was the likeness of Uchiha Madara.
Almost instantly, Uchiha Setsuna's face revealed an expression of extreme reverence and fanaticism, and he immediately knelt on the ground:
"Madara-sama!"
Over fifty years old, he had been taken in by Uchiha Madara as a personal guard since his early years, making him one of the few surviving Uchiha who had followed Uchiha Madara for the longest time.
Naturally, he also inherited Uchiha Madara's will.
Originally, after receiving the news of Madara-sama's death, he thought he would never see 'That Person' again in his lifetime.
However, to his surprise, after he escaped from Konoha Great Prison, Madara-sama contacted him in an unprecedented way, requesting him to provide various information about Konoha Village, especially concerning Sawara Kiri.
Upon receiving this command, Uchiha Setsuna began his Lurking.
A slow, aged voice came from across the formation, its tone indifferent:
"What's the result?"
"It was very smooth, Madara-sama."
Uchiha Setsuna knelt on the ground, quickly replying, "Thanks to your intelligence, Sarutobi Saizo was immediately moved upon receiving the news that Sawara Kiri was about to move."
"This subordinate has already instructed him to contact other Ninja Clans to prepare."
"Madara-sama, is there anything else this subordinate needs to accomplish?"
Uchiha Madara, whose figure was slightly blurry, showed no extra expression upon hearing this; only a few moments of deep thought were visible in his eyes. He paused for a few seconds before speaking:
"Let's talk after this step is completed."
"You've done well, Setsuna."
This seemingly ordinary praise immediately brought tears to the eyes of the man over fifty, who bowed his head and said:
"I am willing to die for Madara-sama."
After a brief exchange, the figure vanished from the center of the sealing formation.
When Uchiha Setsuna came out, everything had returned to normal.
On the other side, Uchiha Madara was slightly frowning, seemingly puzzled by everything that was currently happening.
As early as when he received the news of Sawara Kiri slaying the Third Raikage, he realized that the problem with this new generation of young people was quite significant.
Although the Third Raikage, as the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, was not a big problem for him in his prime, it would still require some effort.
However, according to the information he obtained using Zetsu, Sawara Kiri even managed to defeat the opponent with taijutsu and an unusual genjutsu after that special defensive space ninjutsu was sealed.
At the same time, this young man was only sixteen years old.
Uchiha Madara asked himself, when he was sixteen, he absolutely did not possess such combat power.
Naturally, the future of that young man on the other side made him even more worried.
For this, he even activated this hidden piece he had planted deep within Konoha, regardless of the cost, intending to first gain leverage over Sawara Kiri.
But everything that was happening now gave him a false impression of 'too easy'.
Uchiha Madara looked at the distant ceiling, frowning and murmuring:
"Sawara Kiri, a young man who can endure for five years without revealing himself, would he so blatantly place his most important trump card under others' noses?"
When the original enemy was an outside Ninja, it was understandable for him to merely protect his family within the Village barrier.
But now, his enemy was a Ninja within the Village.
Uchiha Madara instinctively smelled a hint of conspiracy.
Almost at the same time.
The Hyuga father and son, who were returning home from the Uchiha Clan compound, also had a small disagreement due to their stance just now.
Hyuga Hiashi followed closely behind his father, Hyuga Soumin, seemingly hesitating for a long time.
But seeing that there was no one on the nearby path and the guards beside them were relatively far away, he finally spoke with his question.
"Father."
"At the meeting just now, the Leader of Sarutobi Clan might have been a bit aggressive, but from the perspective of our Ninja Clans, isn't what he said exactly what should be done?"
"Why..."
Why did you remain silent just now?
Hyuga Hiashi could not understand such a conservative approach.
Hyuga Soumin turned his head and glanced at his eldest son, seeing that he had been holding it in for almost the entire way and had finally asked the question. A slight worry in his heart subtly lessened.
Still not too soft.
"Hiashi."
Hyuga Soumin turned to him: "In your opinion, what exactly is the stance of our Ninja Clans?"
Hiashi was startled by the counter-question, subconsciously saying: "Naturally, it is bloodlines, secret techniques, resources, and industries."
Hyuga Soumin asked again: "Then do you still remember why our Ninja Clans gathered in this Village and became a part of Konoha?"
"Because, Shodai-sama's grand aspiration to end the Sengoku period's chaos?" Hyuga Hiashi seemed to realize the problem, but couldn't quite pinpoint where the problem was, his tone becoming increasingly cautious.
"That's right."
Hyuga Soumin sighed deeply: "Simply put, it's because 'Shodai-sama wanted it that way,' it's that simple."
Hiashi's expression froze.
Soumin's voice, however, did not pause at all: "Whether it was the First War or the Second War, they were essentially just the second and third rounds of re-balancing caused by the unequal distribution of interests and imbalanced power among the Five Great Nations."
"So, if they didn't agree with this distribution from the beginning, then why did they initially divide into five Ninja Villages in such an unremarkable and uneventful manner?"
"Isn't it because Senju Hashirama-sama was strong enough?"
Hyuga Soumin stopped, looking up at the sky: "Forty years have passed since then, and even I, your father, have aged from a child of those days to this point."
"During such a long period, naturally, many new Ninja have emerged, who inherently believe that those of Ninja Clans are superior, born Ninja, and true powerhouses."
"But, when I was young, I truly saw what kind of existence the so-called 'powerhouses' were."
At this point, he turned to look at his eldest son, the destined heir of the Hyuga Clan: "Do you know? To the First Hokage-sama of yesteryear, whether it was Ninja or commoners, even the monsters now bearing the name of Kage, or the Tailed Beast that ordinary people cannot resist..."
"In their eyes, they were merely playthings like ants."
Upon hearing this, Hyuga Hiashi's pupils couldn't help but contract.
He was no hothouse flower, but a true Jonin-level powerhouse who had experienced the battlefield.
"Isn't this a bit..."
"Too exaggerated?"
Hyuga Soumin couldn't help but smile, as if he could understand his thoughts, and calmly said: "Before I witnessed it with my own eyes, I also thought it was a rumor, because your grandfather from the Sengoku period who once fought against the Senju Clan... that is, my father, often kept silent about it."
"Until, I, your father, witnessed that battle at the Valley of the End with the Second Hokage from a distance."
"Sigh."
Countless complex emotions and words yearning to be spoken all melted into this long sigh of a lifetime.
That was the power of a god.
It was also an irresistible power.
Hearing this, Hyuga Hiashi, who was still only a young man in his twenties, became even more curious about the powerhouses of that era.
"In short, the current Sawara Kiri also possesses some of the demeanor of those two great individuals."
"As for others, whether you listen or talk, just never become his enemy."
Hyuga Soumin sighed: "The reason why our Hyuga Clan has been able to survive from a thousand years ago until now, besides our own strength, is nothing more than the three words 'knowing the times'."
What's more...
He thought to himself, silently opening his Byakugan, looking around him.
Tiny, firefly-like Chakra lights constantly illuminated the bodies of one small insect after another in the forest, like flickering flames.
Ever since they came out of the Uchiha Clan compound, these tiny insects had been following them, up until the recent conversation.
Just by sensing these insects, Hyuga Soumin understood.
Whether it was the Uchiha Clan or the Sarutobi Clan, anyone who harbored rebellious thoughts probably wouldn't win.
Long before this meeting began, many outcomes had already been decided.
At the same time, there were simply too many people who, like their Hyuga Clan, were quick to adapt to the times.
"..."
"Still a step behind, huh."
Hyuga Soumin sighed softly in his heart, then suddenly spoke to his eldest son, who was deep in thought beside him: "Hiashi, don't go to the Clan compound yet. Come with me to the Hokage Building."
"Eh?"
Hyuga Hiashi was startled by the words, still with a hint of hesitation.
We just finished discussing how to oppose the Substitute Hokage Council faction, and the Ninja Clan meeting ended less than twenty minutes ago. Is it really okay to rush to the Hokage Building now?
He still had some reservations in his heart.
Hyuga Soumin, however, said helplessly: "We have to go."
"If we're any later, I'm afraid there won't be any spots left."
"Ah?"
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