The Land of Whirlpools Finally Had Hope

"What exactly happened?" A Konoha ninja wearing a Konoha forehead protector frowned as he looked at the island across the sea, muttering, "Why have there been nothing but huge explosions?"

Could Kirigakure really be so shameless as to release the tailed beasts and plan to nuke the Land of Whirlpools? Even if you wanted to move fast, you did not have to go this fast! You actually did something so utterly shameless—where did that leave the Five Great Shinobi Villages? Ignoring the ninja world's "ban on nuclear weapons" and directly using tailed beasts to speed up the invasion... Damn it, he would definitely report them at the next Five Kage Summit.

"Lord Nara, do we really not need to send troops to help the Land of Whirlpools?" One of the Konoha ninja asked reluctantly. "But the agreement Lord Hashirama made..."

Shika Nara stretched lazily and said flatly, "It is not that we will not help them. It is simply not time yet. Wait a little longer."

As for what was truly happening, he could not possibly say it outright!

Konoha's higher-ups wanted to inherit the Land of Whirlpools' legacy, so they would wait until the Land of Whirlpools was nearly wiped out before stepping in. Perhaps they even...

He glanced at several masked figures hidden in the shadows—Root!!

Those people had come to kill! If too many members of the Uzumaki Clan escaped, they would act. After all, if there were too many people left, how could Konoha inherit the legacy? As long as only a few Uzumaki children remained, Konoha could adopt them in the name of being the Land of Whirlpools' lifelong best friend. Then, claiming that the Uzumaki Clan's surviving children were still underage, they could take custody of the Land of Whirlpools' legacy.

What a righteous justification!!

No wonder they could become village officials and rise to the position of village higher-ups. Their schemes truly ran deep!

Shika Nara sighed and shook his head helplessly. He did not know whether what Konoha was doing was right or wrong, but as a ninja, all he could do was obey orders. Clever people had always died young, so it was better for him to play dumb. He had a family to support and clansmen to manage. If he could be lazy, he would be lazy; if he could be foolish, he would be foolish!

"But the Senju Clan seems ready to act immediately." The Konoha ninja pointed toward a group of Konoha ninja standing nearby with grim faces and lowered his voice. "Won't they interfere with our mission?"

He did not dare say it too loudly. As one of Konoha's great clans—especially since the First and Second Hokage had both come from their family, and even the Third Hokage had been the Second Hokage's disciple—the Senju Clan was not one that anyone in Konoha dared offend lightly. Yet the Senju Clan was mild-tempered and kind, so the villagers all liked them. But today...

Why were they all wearing such grim expressions?

"Leave them alone." Shika Nara shook his head. "As long as they do not act, let them be."

What kind of mess was this? Was Konoha really supposed to take the blame for stabbing its allies in the back? Otherwise, once word got out, who would dare become Konoha's ally in the future? Konoha had always upheld the First Hokage's ideals, standing at the forefront of preserving peace in the ninja world and striving to contribute.

So this blame was neither too big nor too small—just right for...

Kirigakure to bear. Wasn't it obvious?

They had always wanted to help the Land of Whirlpools. Wasn't the Senju Clan so anxious that their faces had nearly turned green? Was the Senju Clan not part of Konoha? The First and Second Hokage had both been Senju.

Thinking of this, Yousa Nara sighed inwardly. What exactly were those above trying to do? Why were they constantly erasing the influence left behind by the First and Second Hokage?

"Lord Shuzen, what do we do now?" A Konoha ninja bearing the Forest of the Senju crest looked anxiously at a clansman beside him who bore the same crest. "Konoha simply refuses to let us depart."

Their Senju Clan could not bring themselves to do something so faithless.

Shusen Senju sighed, his worried gaze fixed on the direction of the Land of Whirlpools. "Remember, this is the shinobi village Lord Hashirama founded. It is also our village."

He did not know why the village had made such a decision, but he knew it was wrong. As Konoha's lifelong ally, the Uzumaki Clan had never done anything to betray Konoha. On the contrary, they had always given their all. Yet they had now fallen into such a situation. He did not know how Lord Hashirama would react to the village's decision if he were still alive, but he did know that Lord Hashirama would rush to help without hesitation. Even if he were alone, even if it meant fighting to the death, he would go.

Because he was the God of the Ninja World, the great and kind ninja who had ended the Warring States period.

The Land of Whirlpools had now become a battlefield. The Uzumaki Clan had sacrificed so much on the battlefield for Konoha's sake. Although the Senju had also suffered enormous losses, the Uzumaki Clan were not Konoha's people! The Senju were. Their sacrifices for Konoha were without regret; they were only natural. But the Uzumaki Clan had sacrificed for Konoha, only to receive such an outcome...

"It truly chills the heart." Shusen Senju sighed. What exactly was the Third Hokage doing? He had continuously reduced the Senju Clan's numbers, even though they would never do anything harmful to Konoha. And they were Hashirama Senju's clansmen!

Perhaps the Senju Clan needed to make a decision. Otherwise, they would likely end up just like the Uzumaki Clan.

For the safety of his clansmen, he could only disappoint Lord Hashirama.

Shusen Senju gritted his teeth and said to the clansmen behind him, "Prepare to depart. We are going to help the Land of Whirlpools."

"Yes!!" All the Senju Clan members shouted. Their hearts had been unsettled lately. The Uzumaki Clan's friendship with Lord Hashirama had been forged by an agreement! Yet their dear best friends were about to be betrayed by them. The Uzumaki Clan had always treated them with such sincerity, but they were now doing something that betrayed their allies.

They had truly failed Lord Hashirama!

Xun Uzumaki did not know that the Senju Clan had ultimately decided to defy Konoha's orders and come to aid the Land of Whirlpools. Nor did he know that Kushina was leading the clanspeople in the underground shelter to sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. If he had known, he definitely would have taught Kushina a few more songs, such as "Tomorrow Will Be Better" and "After the Storm Comes the Rainbow," songs more suitable for times of disaster, rather than children's songs like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and Two Tigers.

He knew that if they had to remain in the underground shelter for so long without hope or anything to do, people would break down. Especially when they knew a war was being fought outside, the restless fear would spread. Who knew what accidents might happen? He did not want to deal with such filthy matters after winning the war. It would ruin his mood too much.

"Great Elder, Clan Head, are you all alright?" Xun Uzumaki asked as he arrived at the gathering point and looked at them.

"Haha, that was satisfying." The Great Elder laughed heartily. "We're fine, we're fine." The feeling of crushing people with money was simply too wonderful.

"And you?" The Clan Head smiled. "How did it go?" Had they succeeded? How many ships did Kirigakure have left?

"Ah..." Xun Uzumaki sighed.

The Clan Head and the Great Elder's hearts immediately clenched. Had something gone wrong? They exchanged a glance, then patted Xun Uzumaki on the shoulder. "It's fine, it's fine. Don't worry. Even if you failed, it is nothing."

"We actually left Kirigakure with one ship," Xun Uzumaki said regretfully.

"What? There's still one left? You mean..." The Clan Head and the Great Elder's eyes widened. "Only one ship is left?"

Then...

"Haha!!" They both burst into laughter, tears streaming down their faces as they murmured, "We succeeded. We succeeded."

All they needed to do now was fight a war of attrition with Kirigakure. Without reinforcements or supplies, the Mist Ninja would not have an easy time living here either!

Especially since...

Kirigakure was one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages. After suffering losses this severe, how could they possibly allow the Mizukage to continue like this?

"There is hope, there is hope."

"The Land of Whirlpools finally has hope!"