Minato Namikaze fell silent.
He wanted to sound Uchiha Kai out, and Kushina had advised him to draw Kai closer.
But in truth—
he still hadn't made up his mind.
After all, Kai's strength was comparable to that of the village's highest leaders.
What if, in slaying one tiger, he merely invited another wolf into the den?
"Kai-kun, answer me honestly," Minato said after taking a deep breath.
"Once we've completely purged the corruption from the village… What then?
What will the Uchiha do?
You're a great clan—I cannot ignore that threat."
Uchiha Kai chuckled, genuinely amused.
He hadn't expected Minato to be worried about this.
Without the slightest hesitation, he replied with a grin:
"Minato-nii, your concern is misplaced.
You already heard from the Nine-Tails what's really happening in this village.
Then you should also understand the Uchiha.
We're idiots. Do you think we could actually play politics?
For the Uchiha, the ultimate goal is simple—
to restore our clan's lost honor.
Running the village? Lining our pockets?
That's beyond us.
Our heads are still stuck in the Warring States Era.
As for me—forget it.
All I want is to live lazy and carefree.
As long as the Uchiha aren't targeted, I couldn't care less about becoming Hokage.
Here, I'll put it this way:
Once Hiruzen Sarutobi's faction is gone, I'll retire outright.
I can even imitate your teacher Jiraiya—leave Konoha behind and live somewhere else in the ninja world.
Unless the village comes begging for my help, I won't return.
That's my guarantee. How's that sound?"
Kai's words were firm.
He truly had no interest in power.
Everything he was doing now was just to secure a safe rear base for himself.
As Nara Kazama had said, with his overwhelming strength, he had little to fear from plots.
But unless he remained single and childless forever, he had to think about his descendants' safety.
That was one of the few reasons he schemed at all.
As for leaving behind wealth?
Nonsense.
Kai had no intention of that. He'd seen too many spoiled heirs in his past life.
Leaving a fortune to children without ability would only ruin them.
He would train his descendants as best he could.
Whether they thrived afterward was up to them.
Each generation must fight its own battles.
The network he'd built up would be more than enough to ensure his children lived lives no worse than that of Naruto Uzumaki—the village's golden boy.
—
Minato was stunned by this answer.
It wasn't what he had expected at all.
But thinking back on Kai's history, it made sense.
Yes, he had misunderstood.
Kai's rise had always been about survival.
And his reputation for indifference—Minato had heard it often enough.
Smiling now, he said,
"Very well. I accept.
You don't need to leave the village, nor retire.
Kai-kun—I trust you.
From today, we are comrades."
Kai nodded, pleased.
This was better than he had dared hope.
In his original plans, simply keeping Minato neutral would have been a victory.
But Minato's sense of justice was stronger than expected.
That was huge.
With Minato on his side, his chances against the Hokage's faction rose dramatically.
If Minato stood with him, then Jiraiya was effectively neutralized.
Teacher and student—knowing Jiraiya's nature, he would likely stay neutral.
And with Minato leading the way, even Tsunade might choose neutrality in the end.
Did people really think she didn't know the truth behind Nawaki and Dan's deaths?
She had simply been unwilling to destroy the village her grandfather had founded, so she had stepped back.
If it were Uchiha alone rebelling, she might have struck them down.
But with Minato involved?
Then no problem.
He might be a Hokage from humble birth, with no clan backing him,
but his reputation and his connections were second to none.
"Good. Comrades, then!" Kai said with a grin.
"With you on board, Minato-nii, our odds just got a lot better.
Oh, and since we're comrades now, let me give you a word of warning.
Your teacher Jiraiya is a good man, but don't tell him about this.
It's not that I don't trust him—I don't trust Mount Myōboku.
Think about it, Minato-nii.
The White Snake Sage of Ryūchi Cave is simple—
seek disciples to train in Sage Arts. If they succeed, they contract with Ryūchi Cave.
If they fail, they're eaten. Straightforward.
The Slug Sage of Shikkotsu Forest almost never seeks contractors,
and only signed with the Senju.
It just wants to watch humanity's evolution from a detached perspective, to pass the time.
But Mount Myōboku? Something is wrong there.
They are too proactive.
Jiraiya had no summoning target at the start. Yet his summoning sent him straight to Myōboku.
You could call it coincidence.
But such convenient coincidences always stink of design.
And they go on about 'finding the Child of Prophecy.'
But the very idea of a savior is a false proposition.
If anyone in history was closest to a savior, it was the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju.
His power dominated the ninja world.
He founded Konoha, ending the endless clan wars.
And what happened after he died?
The First Great Ninja War broke out immediately.
And the death toll dwarfed anything from the clan wars.
Tell me—what did that change?
Even if another savior arises, maybe there's peace while he lives.
But when he dies, the cycle repeats.
So in my eyes, 'saviors' mean nothing.
Yet Mount Myōboku is obsessed with one.
And through Jiraiya, they spread their own legend.
He even abandoned his Konoha forehead protector to wear theirs.
I don't know what they're scheming, but too many coincidences add up to intent.
My gut tells me Mount Myōboku is not right.
They are too involved, too invested in human affairs.
Why?
They're not human.
If humanity were wiped out tomorrow, it would mean nothing to the toads.
Shikkotsu's Slug and Ryūchi's White Snake—that's the normal attitude.
Detached, almost amused.
Whether humans live or die is irrelevant to them.
But Myōboku?
They care too much.
And that, in itself, is unnatural.
So, with all that in mind—
until we figure out what those toads are really after,
let's keep them out of our plans."
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