Scenery

"Evil--"

Kushina looked at Katsuki and Nawaki with disgust.

"Sister, please stop looking at me like that, I'll cry! It's a misunderstanding!"

Katsuki's tears were truly about to fall. Kushina's gaze almost pierced right through him. It was all Nawaki's fault for being such a loose-lipped bastard; his words were too ambiguous, and Kushina happened to hear them.

"You really screwed me over this time!" Katsuki complained.

"Eh? Didn't I already explain things to Kushina?" Nawaki scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed.

Looking into Nawaki's sincere eyes, Katsuki suddenly felt discouraged; joking with an honest child was pointless.

"Forget it, forget it, let's just pretend I didn't say anything. Let's find a place to practice."

Katsuki stretched her arms, and the two of them quickly walked towards the edge of the village.

Ordinary training grounds simply couldn't withstand their battles. Not to mention Katsuki, Nawaki's monstrous punches alone would wreak havoc on the ground every time. But that wouldn't be so bad, since both of them knew Earth Release, repairing the ground would be easy. The real problem was that they were too noisy, and they had been complained about several times.

Therefore, they could only find desolate spots outside the village to practice their skills.

"Danzo, the target has left the village, but he's with Nawaki Senju."

"Go down."

Danzo waved his hand, dismissing the Anbu in front of him. He then pondered for a moment in the quiet room. He hadn't forgotten Hiruzen's warning, but after seeing the intelligence sent back by the Root personnel at the front, he really couldn't sit still.

The fact that Uzumaki Katsuki allegedly killed the One-Tail Jinchuriki almost made Danzo jump up when he saw this short sentence. He remembered that not long ago, this brat from the Uzumaki Clan had gone to great lengths to barely kill a Jonin. How could he take down the One-Tail Jinchuriki now? It was too fast!

Katsuki's progress was too fast, so fast that even he found it troublesome. After all, apart from the glorious achievement of killing the One-Tail Jinchuriki, Katsuki was riding the Thunderclap Chariot around in the sky. As long as one's eyes were not blind and one's ears were not deaf, one would naturally not miss him.

According to his original plan, he thought that after experiencing the baptism of the battlefield, he could use his persuasive skills to try and win over Katsuki. However, things changed faster than expected. Based on the intelligence from the front lines, it was easy to deduce that Katsuki had already stepped into the ranks of the top Shinobi World. With more training, he could firmly stand among the top Shinobi World.

Such a master cannot be accommodated by the 'root'. If Katsuki is really recruited, he will probably have to retire prematurely.

His teeth were grinding together as Danzo around the room several times before finally slumping back into his chair.

"Abandon surveillance of Uzumaki Katsuki."

The simple order was given, Danzo picked up the brand-new cane beside him, his gloomy face full of disappointment.

"Danzo's men have retreated?"

The Third Hokage stared wide-eyed, first taken aback, then realizing what he meant, and let out a cold laugh.

"In that case, we should withdraw our people. That kid doesn't need this level of protection anymore!" The Third Hokage shook his head. What Danzo could understand, he, as the Hokage, could naturally understand as well.

Katsuki's performance on the battlefield was enough to prove his strength. Not only Katsuki, but Minato also firmly remembered him. The genius boy who reproduced the Third Hokage Second's Flying Thunder God Technique was in no way inferior to Katsuki. Moreover, one of them was a descendant of the Uzumaki Clan and related to the Senju by marriage, while the other was his grand-disciple. In other words, they were both his own people.

They naturally treated their own people very well, and the fact that they were able to stay in the village for two months even when the Land of Wind was at war with them is good proof of that.

The ninja's war was conducted on a rotation system. As long as the battle was not as intense as at Black Tail Mountain, the personnel would be rotated every once in a while. After all, unlike transporting supplies, ninjas could move very quickly without any equipment, so simply rotating personnel was not troublesome.

Another reason for implementing the rotation system is that ninjas are not professional soldiers. Even though they have great strength, they are used to traveling all over the country and carrying out all kinds of Eight Gates. It is not easy for them to stay in one place for a long time. In this respect, only the members of the Anbu can be compared with professional soldiers.

"By the way, all the people we withdrew from are secretly protecting the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. Although that child has grown a lot, it's still best to be careful." Danzo exhaled a smoke ring.

"Yes."

"Also, keep a close eye on Danzo and the Elder Council. I don't want anyone to have any ulterior motives regarding the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. I'm quite satisfied with the current balance."

"Yes."

The Anbu is a very complex place, containing the combined forces of the Third Hokage, the Root's men, and the Elder Council's henchmen. Even the Third Hokage would find it difficult to unravel the intricate relationships within.

This led to the strange situation of mutual surveillance among the Anbu. For example, the Anbu who followed Katsuki were divided into two groups: one group was from Root, and the other group was from the Third Hokage. It's hard to explain the nature of their surveillance relationship unless you're directly involved.

"Knock knock!"

A knock sounded on the door, Third Hokage frowned. The Anbu at the table vanished in Body Flicker Technique.

"Come in!"

"Lord Hokage, these are today's documents." The secretary carried a tall stack of documents.

"Just put it here!"

Uchiha Clan's headquarters.

The Wakizashi clashed with the long swords as the two figures moved swiftly, constantly trying to 'read' each other's movements with their Sharingan to predict where the next attack might come from.

Otoha and Otome clashed in the courtyard.

"Otoha, you're using too much energy. Swing your arms a little smaller. Don't waste your energy on meaningless movements."

"Otome, don't just focus on reading Otoha's movements. Don't disrupt your own rhythm. You're using Wakizashi... Right, just keep pushing forward like this. Your weapon is shorter than Otoha's, so only close-quarters combat can bring out your strengths."

Sitting on the corridor Uchiha Maki would occasionally offer words of advice and guidance on his children's training.

After gaining experience on the battlefield, both of them made significant progress in their skills, and Otome also awakened her Sharingan. For this reason, he took leave, leaving behind a lot of affairs in the Konoha Military Police Force to return and specifically guide his two children—mainly his daughter. When Otoha awakened her Sharingan, he simply said "not bad" and then handed her over to Uchiha No for training.

"Don't create distance, Otome, keep that idiot occupied. His katana is too long; he can't use it effectively at close range... Yes, that's it! Well done!"

What started as guidance unknowingly evolved into teaching Otome how to deal with her own brother; Uchiha Maki's bias towards his father was extraordinary.