Belonging

"You said you'd help us unify the Shinobi World?"

Ōnoki frowned and asked in return.

"Isn't your goal world peace?"

"It's about world peace," Pain's Deva Path said calmly. "The Shinobi World is in a terrible state right now, with constant wars and frequent conflicts. Only through complete unification can true peace in the Shinobi World be achieved."

Upon hearing this, Ōnoki fell into deep thought.

He never thought about peace in the Shinobi World; his only thought was to strengthen the village of Iwagakure so that Kitsuchi and Kurotsuchi could live in peace.

There is no need to worry about being harmed.

He has lived from the Warring States period to the present day, and he has witnessed too many cases that have taught him that weakness is the original sin.

Sometimes light doesn't shine on every corner; only by becoming strong can we avoid being harmed.

You must always keep the initiative in your own hands.

This was also the main reason why he immediately occupied Cloud Village.

Under his leadership, Iwagakure has now firmly established itself as the top of the Five Great Shinobi Villages.

Even if most of the Tailed Beast are no longer in the village, given their current combined strength, who would be willing to go to war with them?

In addition, the information he deliberately spread about the Chakra Cannon was intended to replace the intimidating power of the Tailed Beast.

Although our ultimate goals and beliefs differ, our short-term objectives align for now.

Thinking this through, Ōnoki nodded. "We can cooperate."

"I can hand over the Four-Tails Jinchuriki to you, but you must first prove that you can definitely help us and that you won't take the Tailed Beast Host and run away."

This is what Ōnoki is worried about.

If he hands over Roshi, Akatsuki Organization takes it and runs, wouldn't he suffer a huge loss, essentially giving away a Tailed Beast for free?

What do you want us to do?

Pain's Deva Path.

"Destroying a ninja village is fine, there aren't any high requirements, you can choose yourself, but it can't be a small ninja village, otherwise it's meaningless."

Ōnoki spoke as if uttering a riddle.

It seems to offer Xiao and the others a choice, but in reality, it imposes many restrictions.

He can then, at any time, express his dissatisfaction and choose to back out after the other party has finished.

"In that case, let's just wipe out one of the four great ninja villages."

Pain's Deva Path casually.

Ōnoki paused for a moment.

So confident?

However, upon further reflection, there was indeed one ninja village that could be easily wiped out.

That's Mist Village).

Although Mist Village has always been closed off from the world, over the years, other villages have long known what its internal situation is like.

"The Mist Village... that's fine. In the meantime, we'll try to keep the Four-Tails from escaping Roshi and alive. If that fails, then Roshi and the Tailed Beast will be yours."

After Ōnoki finished speaking, Pain's Deva Path turned and left, followed by the others beside him.

"Are we going to attack Mist Village...?"

Itachi Uchiha muttered to himself.

He was considering whether or not to reveal the news to Kanami.

"Never mind, as long as Sasuke is alright, there's no point in telling him."

He quickly rejected the idea in his heart.

Hyuga Residence.

"Father, your eyes!"

Hanabi Hyuga saw that Hyuga Hiashi, who had returned with Kanami and Hinata, no longer had the cloth strip covering his face, she excitedly asked...

Although it was a pointless question, her excitement was palpable to Hyuga Hiashi and the others.

Hyuga Hiashi a warmth in his heart, and his nose tingled with emotion.

Although his blindness these past few days hasn't had a significant impact on him.

But he was very clear about why Hanabi had been practicing so hard and why she was always so cautious when talking to him, no longer as lively and agile as before.

However, this matter cannot be explicitly stated.

He could only feel bitterness in his heart.

Only after the light is truly restored will we be able to see everything clearly.

Only after everyone was safe and sound did he dare to truly express the bitterness of the past few days.

The same applies to Hanabi; long-suppressed emotions erupt.

"Father."

She called out and rushed to Hyuga Hiashi's side, embracing Hyuga Hiashi tightly.

Hiashi Hyuga Hiashi down and wiped away Hanabi's tears. "Hanabi, hurry up and change into your training uniform. Today I'll cook a deluxe family meal myself!"

As he spoke, his eyes reddened slightly.

But he could endure it!

He was able to resist showing his vulnerable side to them.

However, it's hard to say what will happen when you're alone at night.

"Father, I'll help too."

Hinata wiped the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand.

Ever since she learned that her father's eyes had been taken away, she had been suffering greatly.

It wasn't just Kanami who blamed himself, believing it was his own decision that led to Hyuga Hiashi's eyes being taken away by Otsutsuki Toneri.

Hinata Hyuga felt even more guilty!

She always believed that if she hadn't chosen to go to Takigakure like Kanami, her father's eyes would never have been taken away.

She knew that Toneri's target was Hanabi and her, and if she were at home, he would most likely only take her eyes.

As for Hanabi, she will definitely do everything in her power to protect her.

However, she never overtly expressed self-blame.

More than her own sadness, she feared that if she fully expressed her emotions, it would bring even greater negative emotions to those around her.

She always overthinks things, which is a common trait among introverts. But ultimately, it's because they tend to think more than others, so they rarely truly express their emotions.

Now that things have come to a close and the outcome is ultimately good, she dares to release her emotions slightly.

Kanami, standing to the side, could sense the sadness and felt down, but he couldn't cry.

"Sigh, maybe I'm just naturally emotionally detached..."

Kanami muttered to himself.

I thought of my parents and friends on Blue Star.

When he was first reincarnated, he was curious about this world and thought that since he was here, he might as well make the best of it. However, his parents in this world were dead, and the people around him in his previous place always pointed and gossiped about him.

I regretted being transported to the Hokage world during my childhood.

Unfortunately, he couldn't go back. He moved to Konoha and settled there, and even later when he was just coasting through at the Ninja Academy, it was all because he didn't feel much of a sense of belonging to the Hokage world.

I always felt I didn't belong here.

However, his unintentional act of saving Hinata when he was a child unexpectedly changed him in the future.

As a young boy, he not only saved Hinata when she was young, but he also saved himself in the present.

It was only after Hinata revealed her feelings that he gradually developed a true sense of belonging to the Hokage world.

"I wonder how they're doing on Blue Star..."

He gradually looked up at the sky, his eyes showing a hint of melancholy.

Fifteen years have passed since that time travel.

"It's been fifteen years. My parents should have settled into a normal life and stopped looking for me..."

"Dad, Mom, I'm sorry. I've been away for fifteen years without even saying goodbye."