The Truth Behind the Rearguard

Hearing Akaseki say this, not only was there no reason to refuse him, but Ranwu... as well as the younger generation of the Ino-Shika-Cho, all stepped forward to request to go along.

After all, the way Akaseki put it, it sounded as if the Uchiha Clan were the only ones in Konoha who still remembered the Uzumaki Clan as allies; how could the others possibly remain at the port to rest?

That very day, everyone rented a boat and set sail for the nearby Land of Whirlpools.

The Land of Whirlpools was called a "country," but in reality, it was just a cluster of small islands—the original home of the Uzumaki Clan—located very close to the mainland.

There were three small islands in that area: a flat one that housed Uzushio Village, where the people lived; a small hill rising from the sea; and a reef island that appeared and disappeared with the tides. When the weather was clear, one could even see that small hill with the naked eye from the coast of the Land of Fire.

None of the three islands were large, and they were very close to one another. Due to the unique topography, the sea area between them was special, with currents that swirled year-round. Normally, ships could only dock on the south side of the island where Uzushio Village was located; to reach the other two islands, one had to wait for the tide, or be a powerful ninja capable of ignoring the whirlpools and walking across the water.

Akaseki and the others had come to pay their respects to the Uzumaki Clan, so they naturally arrived at the flat island where Uzushio Village was situated. It was not yet dark when they reached the Land of Whirlpools.

Upon arriving at Uzushio Village once more, they were met with a landscape of broken walls and ruins...

Although Konoha had sent people to clean up the area previously, one could still see dried blood lingering in the dilapidated corners.

"This is too cruel. Uncle Torifu, who exactly did this?" Choza asked with a naive, honest expression.

Torifu did not answer at that moment; he simply walked to the Mask Storage Hall of the Uzumaki Clan to pay his respects. This place was also the ancestral hall of the Uzumaki Clan. During the genocide, it must have been sealed off, which was why it became the only place that hadn't been ransacked by the time the Konoha ninjas arrived.

As for the rest...

Not only were the wealth and heritage looted, but even the bodies of the clansmen had been taken away—it was clear that the bodies of the Uzumaki Clan were also research materials the perpetrators desired.

Seeing the solemn atmosphere, Choza did not ask any further questions, and everyone began to pay their respects together. During this time...

Choza noticed that Uncle Torifu was biting his lip, struggling to hold back his tears.

Just as he was about to offer comfort, someone patted him on the shoulder. Choza turned to see that it was Jiraiya.

He saw Jiraiya shake his head at him, then lead everyone out of the Mask Storage Hall, leaving Torifu alone inside.

"Uncle Torifu... did he have a close friend in the Uzumaki Clan?" Choza asked, his face showing his sympathy.

"Yes, and it's more than just that." Jiraiya sighed. "Torifu... and the others have truly suffered grievances during this time."

Hearing this, everyone remained silent for a moment, but...

Except for Minato Namikaze, everyone else came from established clans and naturally understood what Jiraiya was referring to.

Half a year ago, the six members of the Second Hokage's personal guard returned to Konoha, bringing the news that the Second Hokage had died in battle and, with his final breath, had entrusted the position of Hokage to Hiruzen Sarutobi...

The Uchiha Clan was ready to explode on the spot!

If Kagami Uchiha hadn't been present, the Uchiha Clan might have truly erupted.

However, even with Kagami's testimony, Jiancheng and Lanyu were extremely unconvinced, and... this was by no means just the opinion of the Uchiha family!

When Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others first returned, many ninja clans and individual jonin were not satisfied either.

For one thing, Ranwu had been incredibly furious at the time, even pointing at the Third Hokage and berating him, and the Third didn't even dare to make a sound.

The reason was obvious—how could you members of the personal guard "send off" the Hokage and then return yourselves?

And on top of that, you want to inherit the position of Hokage?

Fortunately, these members of the personal guard included people from veteran clans like the Uchiha, middle-tier clans like the Shimura, Utatane, and Mito, and the Akimichi family from the Ino-Shika-Cho...

Therefore, no one believed they were lying, but everyone clearly could not accept the death of the Second Hokage.

Was it not just Kinkaku, Ginkaku, and the twenty jonin they brought with them?

Could you not have fought back? It was one against three, and you even had an advantage in numbers!

Lanyu, a jonin of the Uchiha family, pointed out at the time that they had just succeeded in a coup and killed the Second Raikage, making them arrogant soldiers; that was the moment they should have been struck head-on... for arrogant soldiers are bound to fail!

How could it ever have come to the Second Hokage, who possessed the Flying Thunder God, dying?

That period could be said to be the month Konoha was closest to splitting apart since its founding—when Madara Uchiha left Konoha back then, the Uchiha Clan had distanced themselves from him, so there wasn't much of a stir...

But during that month, different ninja clans were slamming their tables in front of the Hokage every single day.

And the turning point for all of this was the destruction of the Uzumaki Clan.

The Uchiha Clan immediately changed their stance and supported the Third Hokage—this was also what Lanyu had wanted to say when he suspected Shimura Danzō of playing dirty tricks outside the Forest of Death... if the Uchiha family hadn't taken the lead, the Third Hokage might not have been able to sit securely in his seat!

In the eyes of "children" like Akaseki, this was the adults finally realizing that if they didn't unite, Konoha would perish.

At this moment, dark clouds drifted across the sky, blocking the moonlight and making the surroundings even darker and gloomier.

Coupled with the surrounding ruins, the sense of desolation grew even stronger...

"Alright, everyone has been on the road all day, so get some sleep early. Tomorrow, we have to meet up with the client," Jiraiya said, clapping his hands.

Akaseki wanted to ask something else, but just as he opened his mouth, he was stopped by Minato.

After seeing the look Minato gave him, Akaseki immediately understood what he meant...

At night, everyone went to rest obediently—although Uzushio Village had nothing left, it was still better than the wilderness.

However...

Late at night, when it was Jiraiya's turn to keep watch, two sleeping bags unzipped with a soft sound, and Akaseki and Minato crawled out.

And just a step behind them, Ranwu's sleeping bag opened as well.

"Hmm? What are you three doing instead of sleeping?" Jiraiya asked, knowing full well the reason.

"Master Jiraiya... have you found the culprit behind the destruction of the Uzumaki Clan yet?" Ranwu asked directly.

Jiraiya: ...

Jiraiya remained silent for a moment, but seeing his three students all staring at him with burning gazes, he finally said, "Actually, not yet. After all... there isn't any evidence."

As Jiraiya spoke, he walked off to the side, and the three of them immediately followed.

Once they were at a slight distance from the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, Jiraiya continued, "But I suspect... it must have been the people from Kumogakure."

Akaseki and Minato exchanged a glance.

They weren't really surprised, after all... the ones who had kidnapped Kushina before were from Kumogakure!

"What? Kumo-nin? Didn't they want to form an alliance with us?" Ranwu said immediately.

"That's right, but... that was before." Jiraiya paused before continuing, "And to be more precise, that was the Second Raikage."

Hearing Jiraiya's words, which subtly separated Kumogakure from the Second Raikage, Akaseki and Minato realized something, though they couldn't quite put it into words.

"What exactly is going on? Could it be that from the very beginning... it was their conspiracy?" Ranwu was undoubtedly the most concerned, after all, her grandfather had died because of it.

"Do you remember what I told you before about the First Hokage stopping the outbreak of war?" Jiraiya asked.

Seeing the three of them nod, Jiraiya continued to ask, "Then do you know what method the First Hokage used to persuade everyone?"

"Words that bordered on pleading?" Akaseki asked tentatively.

"That only allowed the other villages to feel the sincerity of the First Hokage, but... of course, that wasn't enough!" Jiraiya said, then began to speak about the Tailed Beast.

Regarding the origin of the Tailed Beast, Jiraiya didn't know much more than Akaseki—after all, Akaseki had the ancient heritage of the Uchiha Clan, which vaguely recorded the origin of the Tailed Beast; even if it wasn't accurate, at least he knew it was something created by the Sage of Six Paths.

However, as for more recent events... Akaseki had only just learned the specifics of what the First Hokage had done.