Plans Changed, Prepare to Go All In

"..."

By this point, Uzumaki Takumi had already realized that, objectively speaking, Kirigakure really was a good place. First, its terrain was easy to defend and hard to attack. Second, aside from trade, it had no particularly abundant resources. At the very least, compared to invading the Land of Fire, invading the Land of Water simply was not worth the cost.

His previous refusals had merely been instinctive, emotional rejections. Thinking it over carefully, Kirigakure... wasn't so bad?

Still, such a major matter could not be decided so casually. At the very least, they needed to gather the elders and discuss it before making a final decision.

Besides, whether Konoha would actually send reinforcements was another question. Konoha standing by and watching them die was only his own assumption. What if they agreed to join Kirigakure here, only for Konoha's reinforcements to arrive right afterward? Wouldn't that be ridiculous?

By rough estimate, the front line could hold for another three days. If Konoha still failed to give them a clear answer within two days, then they could not blame the Uzumaki Clan for being heartless!

Thus, Uzumaki Takumi avoided answering Hozuki Shingetsu's question directly. He merely said that he needed to consider it and told him to go back and wait.

Yet his change in attitude alone was enough to reveal Uzumaki Takumi's shift.

As for how much he had changed... it was at least from "tea" to "serve tea."

Hozuki Shingetsu already knew that Konoha would never send troops to rescue them, so he did not mind at all. He gave Uzumaki Takumi ample time to think, then left the Tenshukaku.

"So... the Uzumaki Clan is really preparing to join us?" Karatachi Yagura was still somewhat dazed. He could not believe that the Uzumaki Clan, famed throughout the Shinobi World and powerful enough to establish a nation on its own, was joining Kirigakure so easily. The hot-blooded youth who loved his village did not know what to say for a moment.

"Don't talk nonsense. They haven't joined yet!" Hozuki Shingetsu corrected his slip of the tongue with utmost rigor. However, judging from the smile on his face, he too believed it was almost a certainty.

"But the Mizukage never promised them any of that. What if the Uzumaki Clan joins Kirigakure and discovers it was all a lie?" After giving it some thought, Yukinagi realized there was still a fatal loophole: Hozuki Shingetsu had forged the Mizukage's orders.

"What then? Once they're in Kirigakure, are we supposed to let them leave? Besides, if I bring such powerful support to Lord Mizukage, he'll be thrilled. Why would he trouble me?" Hozuki Shingetsu did not care about Yukinagi's concern in the slightest, his expression completely relaxed.

"..." Karatachi Yagura and Yukinagi looked at each other.

Something was wrong, but they could not say exactly what.

"Are those... Konoha people?"

As they chatted, they suddenly spotted a group of four approaching the Tenshukaku from another direction under the guidance of Uzumaki Clan ninja.

Those spiral-patterned forehead protectors made it obvious that they were from Konoha.

"What are Konoha people doing here at a time like this?" A sudden sense of unease rose in Hozuki Shingetsu's heart. According to his calculations, once his contingencies took effect, Konoha should not have sent anyone. So what were these people here for?

However, he could hardly walk up and question them directly. He could only return to the embassy district with a belly full of doubts.

"Are those... Kirigakure people?"

When Hozuki Shingetsu spotted the Konoha ninja, the Konoha ninja naturally spotted his group as well. This Konoha squad was led by Nara Shikachō, a diehard subordinate of Sarutobi Hiruzen and the "Shika" of Ino-Shika-Cho.

He had brought along members of the Yamanaka Clan and Akimichi Clan, as well as a member of the Hyuga branch family, forming a four-man squad. Their goal was to take a highly gifted Uzumaki clansman from Uzushio Village back to Konoha to serve as the Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki. To avoid being attacked, they had specifically brought a member of the Hyuga branch family to serve as their eyes and ensure that nothing went wrong.

The reason for choosing Nara Shikachō was simple: only the Nara Clan's high intelligence could barely fool the Uzumaki Clan into agreeing to let Konoha take one of their people.

Thus, the moment Nara Shikachō saw Hozuki Shingetsu's group, he realized something was wrong.

Why had Kirigakure come all the way to Uzushio Village for no reason at all? Shimura Danzō had received no response from his subordinates for a long time, so he had not informed Sarutobi Hiruzen that Hozuki Shingetsu had been sent to Uzushio Village. As a result, Nara Shikachō did not know about it either.

So, naturally, he inferred Kirigakure's purpose based on his own understanding. Of course, he could never have imagined that Hozuki Shingetsu intended to pack up and take away the entire Uzumaki Clan. He merely guessed that Kirigakure wanted to fish in troubled waters and gain some benefits from Uzushio Village while it was in peril.

This caused him to promptly adjust his wording when he met Uzumaki Takumi.

"Lord Daimyo, Konoha's reinforcements are already on the way."

That opening sentence immediately put Uzumaki Takumi at ease. As long as Konoha was sending people to rescue them, everything was negotiable.

"The most important purpose of our visit is to inform you of this news. We hope your clan can hold on. Konoha's reinforcements will reach the battlefield within two days at most."

Whether intentional or not, that time frame landed precisely on the edge of Uzumaki Takumi's tolerance. One could only say that he was worthy of being a high-IQ talent from the Nara Clan.

"To guard against any eventuality, we hope that Lord Daimyo can entrust several gifted Uzumaki children to us. We will escort them somewhere safe. After all, war is blind, and no one can guarantee anything."

Under Nara Shikachō's calm bearing and concise rhetoric, Uzumaki Takumi clearly understood these children to be hostages, or perhaps the price for Konoha's intervention. Uzumaki Mito was already advanced in years, and Konoha urgently needed the next Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. Naturally, Uzumaki Takumi knew this, so he took it for granted that this was a transaction.

A transaction that would trade those children for the Uzumaki Clan's safety.

For the head of a clan, it was an easy choice, wasn't it?

As for whether Konoha would deceive him—unless Konoha was willing to throw away all dignity, how could it possibly do such a thing?

Clearly, although Uzumaki Takumi had spent his entire life as both Daimyo and clan head, his political acumen was not even on Hyuga Tofu's level. He had simply played too many low-level games and started believing he was actually good at them.

So he immediately ordered that the most talented children in the clan were to set out with the Konoha group early the next morning.

Uzumaki Kushina happened to be among them.

That evening, when the uneasy Hozuki Shingetsu tried to visit the Daimyo again to make another attempt, he inadvertently learned from an Uzumaki guard that Konoha's army would be arriving soon. It was undoubtedly a devastating blow.

Of course, he knew Konoha would not send reinforcements. That meant the news was most likely something those Konoha envoys had made up. Taking it a step further, why had they lied? To stabilize the Uzumaki Clan and achieve their own goal. And that goal...

Hozuki Shingetsu's eyes narrowed as he quickly realized what they were after.

A vessel for the Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki: Uzumaki Kushina.

"Plans have changed. Prepare to go all in."

He immediately informed Karatachi Yagura and Yukinagi, announcing that night's plan.

"Shingetsu, isn't this a little too disrespectful to the Uzumaki Clan? How about we use courtesy first and force afterward?" Karatachi Yagura's heart skipped a beat upon hearing Hozuki Shingetsu's plan, and he hurriedly tried to persuade him. However, Hozuki Shingetsu cut him off with a dismissive wave.

Damn it, they're already trying to steal this from us, and we're still supposed to reason with them?

Kill them!