We Have No Enemies Ahead!

We Have No Enemies Ahead!

"Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated in a hundred battles."

"Kumogakure abducted Hinata for no reason other than to obtain the Hyuga Clan's Byakugan for research."

"I even suspect that this celebration was part of their plan."

"Even the ninja leader they sent was a speed-type ninja."

"As long as you approach it from that angle, you can figure out what they were after."

"They wanted to use this opportunity to force the Hyuga Clan to hand over the Byakugan. But they have always valued the secret of the Byakugan, even creating the Main House and Branch House system."

"Especially when Hizashi Hyuga came out to see Neji for the last time. Besides being a ninja, he was also a father."

"Lord Hokage, parting is always depressing, whether it is caused by life and death or by distance. That was why, at that moment, the way Hizashi Hyuga looked at Neji gave him away."

Xu Fan delivered the lines he had prepared in one breath.

He merely changed the irrefutable facts from the anime into his own speculation.

And such truthful lies were often the hardest to refute.

Because from beginning to end, he had not lied. He was simply recounting the brutal truth.

Yet to Hiruzen Sarutobi, Xu Fan's deductions demonstrated his reasoning ability.

After all, only a very small number of people knew what had happened that day and how Kumogakure had pressured them. None of those people could possibly have revealed the details to Xu Fan.

In truth, Hiruzen Sarutobi did not think Hizashi was someone who would talk too much.

Rather, the reason he had asked was precisely because he wanted to hear Xu Fan say this.

Moreover, Xu Fan had not described what had happened that day, as though they shared an unspoken understanding.

With Hashirama Senju's power and Tobirama Senju's mind...

Xu Fan's growth was only a matter of time.

All he needed to do was guide him onto the right path and have him inherit the Will of Fire.

Rather than let him become someone like Orochimaru or Danzo.

"Lord Hokage."

Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi lost in thought, Xu Fan spoke again.

"Hm?"

"Do you really..." Xu Fan deliberately paused, his gaze shifting toward Koharu and Homura as if hinting at something.

Hiruzen Sarutobi seemed to understand. He gestured for Koharu and Homura to leave first.

Though Koharu and Homura were displeased with Hiruzen Sarutobi's instructions, they could only leave first out of respect for the Hokage's position.

However...

That did not mean they would not learn the contents of Xu Fan and Hiruzen Sarutobi's conversation.

"Go on."

"Do you really support sacrificing the Hyuga Clan?" Xu Fan went straight for the heart of the matter.

He knew perfectly well that without Hiruzen Sarutobi's tacit approval, how could the Hyuga Main Family have sacrificed Hizashi?

He had not pointed the finger at him earlier only because he wanted to save him some face.

Looking at Xu Fan before him, Hiruzen Sarutobi quickly realized this.

"After I told you all that?"

When Hiruzen Sarutobi remained silent, Xu Fan pressed on.

Now, he did not fear Hiruzen Sarutobi at all, much less the Konoha leadership behind him.

In fact, that was why Xu Fan had chosen Tree World Descent earlier instead of erupting with Chakra and conserving his strength.

Because there was no need!

With Chakra reserves on Hashirama Senju's level, along with Hashirama Senju's Wood Release...

At this point in the ninja world, the Akatsuki Organization was short-handed, Orochimaru had yet to perfect his reincarnation technique, Kabuto could not yet use Impure World Reincarnation, and Obito had no tailed beasts in his hands.

It was no exaggeration to say that he could now declare:

Before us, there are no enemies!

That was the true reason he had chosen to use Tree World Descent: to tell the Konoha leadership—

I can use Wood Release. Kumogakure is not worth mentioning. We should strike back!

Only then would they not come back!

The Will of Fire burns on, unextinguished!

And did you Konoha leaders think that was all my strength, my peak?

If you did, then let me tell you—you were wrong!

His greatest trump card, his true peak strength, would always be the reward from his next sign-in.

Even if a sign-in mission only came once a year, he still had six or seven chances to sign in before the Naruto storyline officially began.

There was simply nothing to fear.

If they could not communicate, then he would beat them into submission—beat them to pieces!

Of course, Xu Fan was not someone who worshipped violence. If Hiruzen Sarutobi was willing to sit down, listen to his suggestions, and put them into practice, Xu Fan would save himself quite a bit of effort.

Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at Xu Fan and found not the slightest trace of hesitation in his eyes. Instead, they were filled with resolve.

He had not seen such eyes in a long time.

Though Hiruzen Sarutobi's face remained expressionless, Xu Fan's way of thinking had already shocked him deeply.

Before this, Hiruzen Sarutobi had always believed that Itachi Uchiha was the rare genius who possessed a Hokage-like way of thinking.

But he had never expected Xu Fan to be no less capable.

Itachi Uchiha was simply closer to the First Hokage, while Xu Fan leaned more toward the Second Hokage.

"Xu Fan."

After a long silence, Hiruzen Sarutobi finally spoke slowly. "You should know that this matter is not as simple as you think. Perhaps your Wood Release is powerful, but the conflict between Konoha and Kumogakure could very likely escalate into war."

"This is not something one person..."

Xu Fan cut him off directly. "I understand, Lord Hokage. But do you know how I spent these past five years?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi fell silent.

"I have been studying the history of the ninja world and all kinds of books. In one of them, I saw a method like this."

"The Northern Expedition."

Hiruzen Sarutobi: "???"

"Use external conflict to divert internal conflict."

Xu Fan paused, giving Hiruzen Sarutobi no chance to ask questions. "The Uchiha Clan is growing stronger now, and they are arrogant and lawless. If we continue to indulge them, they may very well become a problem for the village."

"So I think we might as well seize this opportunity and send them to fight Kumogakure. If they refuse, we can use that as an excuse to remove them from their posts and imprison them."

"On the other hand, if they agree, we can not only use this opportunity to return Kumogakure's actions in kind, twice over, but also weaken the Uchiha Clan and stabilize the village's balance."

"Most importantly, they would be fighting for the village. Such a battle would not only make the villagers see them in a new light, but also give them a sense of belonging."

Xu Fan finished everything in one breath, and he clearly saw it.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression changed from initial surprise to utter shock. By the end, he was standing there dumbfounded.

Preserve the Hyuga Clan, strike Kumogakure, weaken the Uchiha Clan.

In just a few casual words, it was a strategy that killed three birds with one stone!

Was this really...

The Xu Fan he knew?

It was as though he had become an entirely different person...

Thanks to Ren Qiuming and user Frost for their support and donations~