"Once you lose the Byakugan… and the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki…"
"Uchiha clan—you will become Konoha's sinners."
"And when that happens…"
"This village will return to being my domain."
At the same time, inside the Hokage Tower—
Darkness filled the office.
A single ember flared.
Wearing the Hokage hat, Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi slowly drew on his pipe—twice.
His expression was unreadable.
Below the tower, nearly a hundred masked ANBU knelt in prostration.
Some of them radiated cold, cruel, razor-edged pressure.
Their presence alone made the air feel like winter.
But there was an exception.
At the edge stood an ANBU codenamed Tenzō, visibly conflicted.
After a moment, he couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Hokage-sama! Kumogakure and Iwagakure are attacking Konoha—are we really going to do nothing and just stay here?!"
The moment he spoke, several of the coldest figures turned their heads.
Their gaze slid over him like blades.
There was killing intent in it.
But Tenzō didn't flinch.
He stared right back.
They were all remnants from Root anyway—what was there to fear?
"Tenzō."
Just as the room's tension sharpened to the breaking point, the Third Hokage tapped the desk lightly, wearing a weary look.
"I want to act as well… but now, in this village, I can't. I have the will, but not the strength."
If someone didn't know better, they might've believed he'd fought to the bitter end.
As his words fell, the ANBU loyal to him clenched their fists.
The old man in that office had once been their faith.
But now…
That faith seemed… blocked.
Even Tenzō believed him.
"Hokage-sama, if you have concerns—then let this be our private action!"
He turned sharply and rose, ready to rush out toward the village perimeter.
Whoosh!
The instant he moved, several former comrades sprang up and blocked him from all sides.
Tenzō's eyes narrowed.
"Third-sama… what is this?"
This time, Hiruzen didn't pretend to be pitiful.
He adopted the posture of righteous responsibility.
"Tenzō, you're not a child anymore. You should understand what matters more—safety inside the village, or outside."
The ANBU around them looked even more fervent.
And the way they stared at Tenzō grew even more dangerous.
One wrong move—and they would strike.
"You…!"
Tenzō—who would one day be known as Yamato—stood frozen.
Some belief inside him began to crack and collapse.
Now he finally understood why an attack was happening outside…
Yet so many ANBU were gathered here.
It wasn't about "protecting the village interior."
It was—
Politics.
Even someone as rigid as him could see it now.
"Tenzō," the Third Hokage sighed again, "stay here quietly. After tonight, everything will get better."
But before the words fully settled—
A voice snapped through the room.
"Third-sama! The battle outside has ended!"
A sensory-type ANBU arrived at full speed.
His body wasn't even through the doorway before his voice hit first.
Hiruzen's body jerked.
He turned, eyes burning as he stared at the messenger.
Everything was written between the lines.
But the report—
Made him go stiff.
"Kumogakure and Iwagakure have been crushed!"
"The Raikage and Tsuchikage were captured! Not a single Konoha shinobi has died!"
The news sounded good.
But inside Hiruzen Sarutobi's chest—
Cold spread like ice water.
Clack.
His pipe slipped from his fingers again.
A few sparks scattered.
"How… how could it be like this…"
He murmured, voice trembling with disbelief.
"Just Uchiha and Hyūga alone—there's no way they could hold back the Raikage and the Tsuchikage!"
"But…"
"Uchiha Kai came back."
A lazy voice drifted down from a tree near the window.
Kakashi sat perched there, casually putting away a treasured special-edition book as he glanced downward.
"Third-sama," he said evenly, "please stay right here."
Then he swept his gaze over the other ANBU and motioned for Tenzō to come over.
In the last few days, Kakashi had wavered.
On one side—
A faith he'd carried since childhood.
On the other—
A life overturned, and a promise he'd already made.
But tonight, when the Third Hokage allowed Naruto to be taken—
Kakashi finally chose.
And Tenzō chose too.
No hesitation.
He stepped forward and stood beside Kakashi.
Below them, the Third Hokage, hearing Kai's name, turned instantly.
Going home.
His steps were frighteningly fast.
None of his old sluggishness remained.
The man who had hoped to rebuild his authority through chaos—
Had instead fallen straight into the mud.
…
Back at the Forest of Death's edge—
Ōnoki drew two ragged breaths before finally speaking.
"It was a Byakugan user brought by Kumogakure… seemingly connected to that Hyūga branch member taken from Konoha three years ago."
"And there was also a leak inside your village—someone sold out Konoha's current condition and defense layout."
As he finished, his posture sagged completely.
This time, there were no bargaining chips left.
Still, he forced himself to add one more line:
"I hope you'll keep your word. Once we gather the payment, we'll take our people back."
Kai waved dismissively.
"Of course. Once you pay, I won't keep them."
Pay?
Did they have any idea how expensive Konoha's Forest of Death was?
A tree was worth five hundred thousand ryō—
No.
A single leaf was worth five hundred thousand.
Since they came—
They shouldn't even dream of leaving.
Kai narrowed his eyes, suddenly looking forward to the Fourth Shinobi War.
So many "crops," ready to be harvested in waves.
Just now he'd taken two hundred elite invaders in one move—Lightning and Earth traits had practically been collected in an instant.
And that was only two hundred.
When the war came, the Five Great Nations would field eighty thousand allied shinobi.
The thought made Kai's lips curve.
But beside him, Hiashi Hyūga, who had just confirmed his daughter was safe, heard the implication and frowned hard.
"Impossible. That eye couldn't have been taken."
The one who'd been sent away was his brother, yes—
But the Caged Bird Seal had been placed.
If an outsider tried to rip the Byakugan out by force, it would be destroyed.
Yet Ōnoki's reply stunned everyone again.
"It wasn't taken by force," he said, shaking his head. "We controlled him and made him use the Byakugan."
Controlled a corpse.
Hiashi fell silent.
Even Kai was surprised.
Hyūga Hizashi's death followed canon—but the chain of events had, indirectly, traced back to him.
So Kai stepped forward, curiosity sharpening his tone.
"So how did you control him? How did you make him use the Byakugan?"
Ōnoki inhaled deeply, staring at the pale dawn spreading across the sky.
"It was Orochimaru."
"He brought… a forbidden technique."
Kai's mind flashed instantly—
One name.
Edo Tensei?!
Read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon -> patreon.com/SorenSwiftTL