Defending Uchiha Glory Is the Duty of Us All

Meanwhile, Naruto had already arrived in the Capital City of Land of Fire's capital using the Gate of Hades at noon and was waiting in a corner of the Daimyo's Residence. He waited from noon until evening before the Daimyo finally returned.

Fortunately, the Daimyo did not take time out for leisure amidst his busy schedule. At this moment, the Daimyo looked a little weak, probably planning to go back to his residence to rest.

Before he even entered, the Daimyo was surrounded by a guard of over fifty men. They formed a thick wall of flesh, protecting the emaciated Daimyo completely.

The biggest difference between the nobles, ninjas, and commoners of the Land of Fire lies in their extravagance—their wealth is beyond human comprehension.

Before the advent of ninjas, the nobles of the Land of Fire were independent rulers, each ruling their own territory. Behind closed doors, they were veritable local tyrants, possessing immense wealth.

He commanded countless followers, including military officers and retainers. Their daily routine consisted of nothing but production and warfare, seizing land and people for their master.

Later, with the emergence of ninjas, the more powerful nobles gradually annexed other forces by relying on ninjas. Thus, the Five Great Nations powers gradually took shape.

Later, powerful ninjas emerged from the chaos and established their own ninja clans. These clans gained status among the nobility, which could not be driven by money alone.

Later, Hashirama Senju established the ninja village, giving ninjas their own power structure. The power of the nobles in the Land of Fire was further weakened, and fearing that ninjas would seize their property, they proposed a mercenary system.

The ninja villages are self-governing, while the Land of Fire is governed by nobles. Every year, the Land of Fire provides the ninja villages with sufficient funds to maintain their normal operation.

Since ninjas spend a lot of time training, they don't have the energy to govern a country. So they simply agreed, which way they wouldn't have to worry about the finances.

The drawback of this system is that the nobles of the Land of Fire control the economic lifeline and have a great deal of power, to the point that whether the Hokage can speak loudly depends on the Hokage's strength.

For example, the attitude of the nobles of the Land of Fire towards the First Hokage Hashirama Senju, Hashirama Senju, was one of groveling and fawning, a "you're good, I'll be good, whatever you say is fine" attitude. "You're so powerful, you call the shots."

The nobles treated Tobirama Senju, the "Uchiha Killer," with utmost respect. Tobirama was notoriously domineering, had a bad temper, and acted in extreme ways.

The nobles of the Land of Fire couldn't wait for Tobirama to die so they wouldn't have to live with swords hanging over their Tobirama.

After the deaths of Hashirama Senju and Tobirama Senju, the nobles of the Land of Fire suddenly realized that the newly appointed Third Hokage, the monkey, did not seem to be an unreasonable barbarian.

So the nobles began to reason with the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, presenting facts and discussing their interests. "Ah, we're all civilized people," they said, "That old-fashioned way of fighting and killing is outdated. Let's sit down and talk."

When Konoha War, the nobles who had been spending money on the project without seeing any returns naturally began to complain. Knowing he was in the wrong, the Third Hokage resigned from his position as chairman of Konohagakure.

The board of directors of the nobles made the decision: let the Fourth Hokage, the Yellow Flash, go, the fastest man in the Shinobi World.

The Fourth Hokage was indeed impressive. Even though he was just a commoner ninja with no family background, he managed to secure the position of Hokage through the help of acquired factors.

The nobles were overjoyed to discover that the Fourth Hokage was a Hokage of compassion. Forget about interests, just talk about feelings! Perfect! That's wonderful!

Who would have thought that the Hokage, who once had to be fawned over, would be someone everyone can sit at a table drinking and chatting with after being passed down through generations? And if you even ask him to drink, he has to finish it with a smile.

Not drinking? You bastard! Do you look down on us nobles?!

Later, when the Third Hokage returned to power for the second time, and with the war no longer a drain on resources, Konohagakure slowly recovered. Thanks to mission commissions within the Land of Fire, Konohagakure achieved a balance between income and expenditure.

If the war is over and the village can be self-sufficient again, what's the use of nobles? Of course they're useful. The war has just ended, it's not like it won't come back.

The nobles are there to contribute when necessary to cover war expenses. Or, if Konohagakure is attacked, they will contribute money to rebuild the village; all of this requires the nobles to provide funding.

However, the money still had to be spent, and Konohagakure wasn't unable to afford it. As a result, the status of the nobles was no longer what it used to be. Cutting off the economic lifeline wasn't accurate; rather, they controlled the vast majority of the Land of Fire's economic lifeline.

Times are constantly changing, and technology is advancing rapidly. The reason why nobles still exist is because ninjas still exist. As long as there is war and ninjas continue to fight, there will be a need for someone to manage the country and contribute money and effort.

Naruto is short of money right now, and the first people he thinks of besides the now-deceased Lord Gato are these nobles. He's short on cash, so borrowing some from them shouldn't be a problem.

As for when it will be repaid, if the borrower is Sasuke Uchiha, then this money will never need to be repaid. Is money from a rogue ninja still money?

Sasuke Uchiha is now the sole surviving member of the Uchiha Clan, and he also carries the reputation of a rogue ninja. Recently, there has been little news about him, and he has almost disappeared without a trace.

How can this be? I must defend the glory of the Uchiha Clan.

In a flash, Naruto had changed his appearance, looking exactly like Sasuke Uchiha. This Transformation Jutsu was truly amazing, and with Naruto's familiarity with Sasuke, his movements were incredibly lifelike.

Even if Karin arrived, it would be difficult to distinguish the real from the fake for a moment. The effect is probably only slightly worse than that of the Six-Eared Macaque, and this is also a Six-Eared Uchiha Sasuke.

What the hell is Six-Eared Macaque Uchiha Sasuke? At this moment, Sasuke Uchiha met Kabuto.

"Long time no see, Sasuke." Kabuto had transformed into Jackie Chan, and the snake head on his tail looked rather terrifying. His inhuman and ghostly appearance disgusted Suigetsu.

However, fearing the oppressive aura emanating from Kabuto, Suigetsu dared not say anything and could only turn her head to the side. Out of sight, out of mind; she could simply listen to the sounds.

"Hmm." Sasuke responded indifferently, his eyes lifeless, showing no surprise at Kabuto's new skin.

For a fleeting moment, Kabuto felt a strange sensation, but his expression remained unchanged. He recalled the scene when Sasuke Uchiha walked out of Orochimaru's base in the Land of Land of Rice, his expression just as cold.

He remembered that evening when he rushed to the base; the Reanimation Ritual had long since ended. But the cave was completely silent, with only faint flickering Kakkō.

Before he could even enter the cave, Sasuke Uchiha had already slowly emerged from the dimly lit passage. His eyes were cold, his pupils were black, his chest was broad, and a sword was tied at his waist.

Back then, Sasuke Uchiha looked down on everyone, regarding me as if I were an ant, and he didn't even bother to draw his long sword. He coldly told himself that he had taken everything from Orochimaru.

Just as he originally intended, he has now achieved it.

Several years passed in the blink of an eye. Kabuto had heard a lot about Sasuke Uchiha, knowing that he had joined the Akatsuki Organization and then disappeared after the Akatsuki Organization disbanded.

Sasuke was still the same Sasuke, oblivious to the dust. But Kabuto was no longer the weak, bespectacled medical-nin he once was; he had surpassed Orochimaru!

"I was also recruited here. It's not that I agree with Zetsu's philosophy, but I just wanted to find an answer," Kabuto said frankly.

"What answer?" Sasuke asked.

"Find your true self." Kabuto smiled. "People like you with a sense of purpose won't understand, but that's not important."

"I'll be your advocate, Sasuke, but I don't think you need to listen to long lectures. You can get what you want here."

"What?"

"Revenge." Kabuto slowly uttered the two words.

Sasuke showed no expression upon hearing this. If it were a few years ago, before Itachi Uchiha Danzo, he might have been obsessed with revenge.

But now Itachi Uchiha is dead, and he even left his eyes to him. Is that hateful? The hatred of slaughtering the entire clan is certainly hateful, but the real culprits are Danzo.

But the Third Hokage died with the title of hero, Danzo is dead, and the remaining two old advisors are waiting to die. Sasuke Uchiha has no desire to continue entangled with Konohagakure. He now wants revenge, but is more confused than anything else.

He drew his sword and looked around, his heart filled with confusion. Damn it, all his enemies were dead. Should he dig up their graves and whip their corpses? That wouldn't be revenge; that would be madness.

Besides, the Third Hokage's judgment was final; Danzo was killed, so his reputation wasn't particularly good or bad. He's dead, so there's nothing more to it, and everything has settled down.

That person died a while ago, and now he's the only Uchiha left alive. Revenge. How to take revenge, who to take revenge on, and what should he do?

Sasuke hadn't figured all of this out yet.

"Revenge? Who?" he asked.

"The Shinobi World," Kabuto said with a smile, then he launched into his usual ninja-centric theory, describing it as a filthy world and going on and on.

Sasuke's gaze grew increasingly solemn as he listened. He wasn't immediately convinced, but he had found a purpose in life. His thirst for revenge was still burning; he would trace it back to its source.

Ultimately, the tragedy of the Uchiha Clan stemmed from a problem in the world itself. Ninjas fought amongst themselves, and wars raged between nations.

"I can join you, but only in my way," Sasuke said. "I want to unify the Shinobi World, stop the wars between the major nations, and create a new world."

"Okay." Kabuto had his own agenda; he was only saying these words to get Sasuke Uchiha join him.

With Obito Uchiha dead, someone has to take his place. If it's just him and Zetsu left, they'll be overwhelmed. After all, 100,000 White Zetsu —even if it were 100,000 pigs, that's a terrifying number.

If Sasuke Uchiha were to join, their control over the situation would increase, since there would be three other members of Hawk Team besides Sasuke Uchiha.

Too few people won't work, but too many will be a burden. Adding a Hawk Team is just right.

As for what Sasuke said, Kabuto considered it all irrelevant; he didn't care what Sasuke's purpose was. Whatever, he'd deal with it later.

Black Zetsu, Kabuto, Sasuke had different goals, and after losing the middleman Obito Uchiha, they miraculously ended up coming together.

"When will it begin?" Sasuke asked.

"No rush. White Zetsu needs to be strengthened for a while. It will be about time once Zetsu brings the target back." Kabuto smiled. "However, there is one thing right now that I need you to do."

"What?"

"Go to Kumogakure first. The enhanced White Zetsu can catch up with you by water and underground. When you cause a ruckus, distract them." Kabuto smiled. "Have three thousand White Zetsu infiltrate Kumogakure and assassinate the main force of Kumogakure through disguise, and use Kumogakure to declare war."

Sasuke didn't ask why it was Kumogakure, he just stared at Kabuto for a few more seconds, and didn't respond.

"White Zetsu goes first, then we'll go."

He had already suffered from the unreliable and incompetent attitude of these people, and after running back and forth under Obito Uchiha several times, he had given up on the Tailed Beast he had obtained.

But in the end, Obito Uchiha died.

Sometimes Sasuke didn't know how these people's thought processes worked. They failed to capture the Tailed Beast Tailed Beast, and back then, they were so eager for revenge that they fell into that idiotic trap.

He won't fall for it so easily this time.

Sasuke had no outlet for his anger before, but now he has a second chance. He absolutely refuses to set off early. What if something unexpected happens here and the mission is interrupted again?

Isn't that just walking the dog? Traveling all that way only to slink back like that, what kind of behavior is that?

Kabuto was unaware of what had happened before. When he heard Sasuke refuse, he was first taken aback, then laughed.

"That's okay too."

The Capital City of the Land of Fire.

Naruto carried a short sword up to the Daimyo's palace, carefully pried open the glazed tiles, and glanced at the group of ninjas in the courtyard.

There were ten people in each of the four cardinal directions, including ninjas and samurai, and the security team was a motley crew of all sorts of Gyūki. Naruto smiled to himself, thinking that this Daimyo was quite cautious.

However, the devil is always one step ahead of the saint. This time, they've run into the Uchiha Glory Defenders, and these lousy guards are utterly useless.

This is a good opportunity to demonstrate the newly learned Expansion Jutsu after everything is accomplished.

Through his tireless efforts, in order to better promote the Uchiha's nuclear art, Naruto combined the Expansion Jutsu and the Transformation Jutsu, creating an effect similar to Play-Doh.

Originally, he just wanted to change the appearance of the Nine-Tails' blood-red phantom, trying to Susanoo the Susanoo armor. Later, he accidentally discovered that, damn it, he could just change the color and mold it into the shape of Susanoo.

Naruto just happened to have seen what Sasuke Susanoo, what a coincidence! Why bother changing the appearance, just Susanoo directly!

Around midnight, Naruto silently landed on the roof, looked around, and quickly walked to the Daimyo's bedside. Without saying a word, he reached out and slapped him.

Snap!

Daimyo was suddenly awakened from his sleep, but someone covered his mouth. In the darkness, he couldn't see the person's face. He could only vaguely make out an outline, a young person.

"Don't make a sound! Otherwise..." Naruto pressed his short sword against the Daimyo's neck, the meaning of which was self-evident, before slowly releasing his grip.

"Who are you?" Daimyo asked tremblingly.

"Sasuke Uchiha," Naruto replied, his voice now sounding like Sasuke's cool, aloof voice.

Daimyo Uchiha's teeth chattered. "What exactly do you want?"