Have You Heard of Xiao?

Uchiha Shisui rose upon hearing this, walked over proactively, extended his hand, and greeted Shiba Seika with a smile.

"Hello, I'm Uchiha Shisui. As you can see, I'm a Konoha ninja."

(Uchiha Shisui)

Shisui's tone was gentle and polite, clearly a well-behaved kid, without any trace of arrogance from a major village or clan, making a very pleasant impression.

Shiba Seika stepped forward to shake hands and said, "Hello, I'm Aizen, a Rain ninja."

Shiba Seika had a decent first impression of Shisui, but that didn't stop him from smoothly offering a fake name right off the bat.

Tama beside him looked up in surprise, but Shiba Seika was quick enough to stuff a dried fish into her mouth.

"Meow~" One lick and it was spicy, Tama's eyes curved in satisfaction, too content to question anything.

Shisui didn't notice anything off, taking it as just the usual affectionate interaction between a cat owner and their feline master.

"So you're a Rain ninja? Then Aizen-kun must be quite skilled to be accepted by Cat Country."

Shisui praised sincerely.

He knew the cats of Cat Country were very picky; even when doing business with ninjas, they wouldn't lower their standards to accept weaklings as masters.

That was probably why Cat Country remained relatively unknown in the ninja world.

For the first time since birth, Shisui saw a non-Uchiha ninja in Cat Country.

"You flatter me, Shisui-kun. I'm just a mere chunin."

Shiba Seika was very modest, but also made up his mind: he wouldn't reveal any personal information.

If he didn't happen to have no other village headbands on hand, he wouldn't even want to admit to being a Rain ninja.

Then, with the Gray Cat Shopkeeper's introduction, Shiba Seika and Uchiha Shisui smoothly began discussing the purchase of ninjutsu scrolls.

Shisui didn't agree immediately but replied, "Sorry, I'm afraid I can't decide on this alone. I need to go back and consult our clan head."

Shiba Seika nodded in understanding and probed, "Is the current clan head of your clan Mr. Fugaku Uchiha?"

Shisui was slightly surprised and answered honestly, "Yes. I didn't expect Aizen-kun, far away in the Land of Rain, to know so much about our Uchiha clan."

"The Uchiha are a renowned noble clan in the ninja world, one of Konoha's two founding families. Even we Rain ninjas hold such a prestigious clan in high regard, so it's only natural to pay attention."

This instantly dispelled Shisui's doubts and even earned him some goodwill.

He said sincerely, "I understand. Rest assured, Aizen-kun, I will definitely convey your request to the clan head."

What a naive, good kid. Shiba Seika thought to himself.

At the same time, his mind raced, considering the benefits of connecting with Uchiha Shisui.

Given Shiba Seika's nature, he was never going to just be friends with Shisui, no matter how good the first impression.

First and foremost, he could use Shisui to gather intel on Konoha, especially regarding Root and Danzō.

He was still figuring out the specifics.

But a week later, before Shiba Seika could make a move, Shisui took the initiative during their second meeting in Cat Country.

"Aizen-kun, this might be a bit abrupt, but since you're a Rain ninja, have you heard of an organization called 'Akatsuki'?"

Shiba Seika's fingertips twitched slightly, but his expression remained calm, maintaining a gentle smile as he spoke slowly.

"I've heard of them. They mainly operate in the southern part of the Land of Rain and have recently been acknowledged by Lord Hanzo. They're a very active organization. Why do you ask, Shisui-kun?"

With a few casual words, Shiba Seika distanced himself from the Akatsuki, leading Shisui to believe he was a loyal subordinate of Hanzo the Salamander.

This fit the typical stereotype of Rain ninjas at the time.

Shisui sighed with some difficulty and said, "Ah, Aizen-kun, you might not know, but there's been a lot of talk about this 'Akatsuki' in our village lately. The clan head agreed to your trade request, but with one condition: he hopes to get some intel on the 'Akatsuki' from you."

Hearing this, Shiba Seika's heart skipped a beat. He thought, Damn, have we already caught Konoha's attention this early?

But his acting was impeccable; he suppressed his shock and continued to ask casually, "Oh? Why is that? Is there some hidden reason?"

Only after Shisui explained the situation with a worried expression did Shiba Seika finally breathe a sigh of relief, barely holding back a laugh.

Rewind to over a week ago.

With the outbreak of the Great Ninja War, the intelligence networks of all major villages were working at full throttle.

In Konoha, Shimura Danzō, who controlled the vast intelligence apparatus of Root, had regained considerable power and was enjoying smooth sailing.

But that day, a piece of intelligence brought back by his subordinates completely ruined his good mood.

It recorded the statement Minato Namikaze had made public, which Shiba Seika had deliberately spread earlier.

It heavily emphasized Minato's status, practically announcing to the entire ninja world that the next Hokage was already decided.

In Root's base, Danzō roared in fury: "Damn it! How dare he?! That Minato, how dare he?! What gives him the right to speak for the village on his own?! And can he just declare himself the next Hokage like that? Did I approve it? Did the elders agree?! Does he have any respect for the village?!"

The Root ninja who brought the report was bewildered.

He initially thought Danzō's anger was because some organization called "Akatsuki" in the Land of Rain had the audacity to spread such a statement without consulting Konoha, provoking Danzō's wrath.

But he never expected Danzō's meltdown to be over this.

This seems... absurd yet somehow reasonable.

But the next moment, this young Root ninja quickly buried his head deep, forcing himself to immediately banish such disrespectful thoughts toward Lord Danzo from his mind.

No one echoed him. Danzo stewed alone—the more he endured, the angrier he grew; the more he backed down, the more he felt the loss!

Unable to bear it any longer, he immediately stormed to the Hokage's Office and slammed the intelligence scroll onto the desk of the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen.

"Danzo, what are you doing now?" Sarutobi Hiruzen puffed on his pipe, looking at him impatiently.

"Hiruzen, look at what Minato Namikaze has done! He's selling out the village's interests! How can Konoha so casually bow to a small ninja village like Rain?"

Before Hiruzen, he wouldn't admit that he'd been triggered by Minato being hailed as the Next Hokage.

First, slap a hat of harming the village on the other party—this was Danzo's usual tactic.

Unfortunately, this time, the flustered Hiruzen had no patience to deal with him.

"Danzo, we're already juggling battlefields in Sunagakure and Kumogakure, and Kirigakure and Iwagakure have been making moves near the border lately. They could join the war at any moment. At a time like this, we simply don't have the strength to campaign against the Land of Rain.

Besides, Minato has already explained the situation to me. His main priority was rescuing his own students. I believe he did nothing wrong in this matter."

But Danzo couldn't care less about that.

Minato did nothing wrong? Meaning you've tacitly approved him as the Next Hokage?

"Hiruzen, you're too lenient with Minato! You'll regret this!"

"Enough!" Sarutobi Hiruzen pulled the pipe from his lips and barked, "Danzo, I am the Hokage now!"

And as expected, the conversation ended with a "bang" as Danzo slammed the door and left.

And so it was—the name "Akatsuki Organization" from the Land of Rain was forever etched into Danzo's memory!