Hearing Akaseki say that, not only was there no reason to refuse his request to go, but Ranwu... and the younger generation of Ino-Shika-Cho all volunteered to join him.
After all, the way Akaseki had put it made it sound as though Konoha only had the Uchiha Clan to remember their Uzumaki Clan allies. How could everyone else stay behind at the harbor to rest?
That very day, they rented a boat and set out to sea for the nearby Land of Whirlpools.
Though it was called a "country," the Land of Whirlpools was really just a cluster of small islands—the place where the Uzumaki Clan had once lived—and it was very close to the mainland.
There were three small islands in that area. The flat one was Uzushio Village, where the clan had gathered. Another was a small mountain rising from the sea, while the third was a reef island that appeared and vanished with the tides. On clear days, that little mountain could even be seen with the naked eye from the coast of the Land of Fire.
None of the three islands was large, and they stood close together. Due to the unusual terrain, the waters between them formed a peculiar sea region where currents swirled in whirlpools year-round. Normally, boats could only dock on the southern side of Uzushio Village's island. To reach the other two islands, one had to wait for the tides—or be a powerful ninja capable of ignoring the whirlpools and walking across the water.
Since Akaseki and the others had come to pay respects to the Uzumaki Clan, they naturally headed for the flat island where Uzushio Village had once stood. When they arrived in the Land of Whirlpools, night had not yet fallen.
Returning to Uzushio Village, they saw nothing but ruins as far as the eye could see...
Although Konoha had previously sent people to clear the area, bloodstains could still be seen lingering in the shattered corners.
"This is horrible. Uncle Torifu, who did this?" Choza asked innocently.
Torifu did not answer. He merely walked over to the Uzumaki Clan's Mask Storage Hall and began to pay his respects—this was also the Uzumaki Clan's ancestral hall. It had likely been sealed away during the clan's destruction, making it the only place that had not been looted by the time Konoha's ninja arrived.
As for everything else...
Not only had their valuables and inherited knowledge been stripped clean, even the clan members' bodies had been taken away—clearly, Uzumaki bodies themselves were research material the enemy desired.
Seeing the solemn atmosphere, Choza did not ask any further questions. Everyone joined in paying their respects, and during that time...
Choza noticed that Uncle Torifu was actually biting his lip, desperately holding back his tears.
Just as he was about to comfort him, someone patted him on the shoulder. Choza turned around and saw Jiraiya.
Jiraiya shook his head at him, then led everyone out of the Mask Storage Hall, leaving Torifu alone inside.
"Uncle Torifu... did he have friends in the Uzumaki Clan?" Choza asked, his face full of sympathy.
"Yes, and it's more than just that." Jiraiya sighed. "Torifu... they've truly suffered a lot these past days."
Hearing that, no one spoke for a moment, but...
Other than Minato Namikaze, everyone came from some kind of clan, so they naturally knew what Jiraiya meant.
Half a year ago, the six members of the Second's personal guard had returned to Konoha. They brought news that the Second had died, and that on his deathbed, he had entrusted the position of Hokage to Hiruzen Sarutobi...
The Uchiha Clan had nearly exploded on the spot!
If Kagami Uchiha had not been there, the Uchiha Clan might truly have exploded.
Yet even with Kagami's testimony, Jiancheng and Lanyu had remained deeply dissatisfied, and... this was by no means the Uchiha Clan's opinion alone!
When Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others had first returned, many ninja clans and individual Jonin had refused to accept it.
To say nothing of anyone else, Ranwu had been furious at the time. She had even pointed at the Third Hokage and cursed him out, and he had not dared utter a word.
The reason was obvious—you personal guards had somehow "sent off" the Hokage, then returned alive yourselves?
And now you wanted to inherit the position of Hokage?
Fortunately, the personal guard included members of an old, powerful clan like the Uchiha Clan; members of core ninja clans like the Shimura, Utatane Clan, and Mito; and someone from the Akimichi Clan of Ino-Shika-Cho...
Thus, no one believed they were lying. Still, no one could accept the Second's death.
Wasn't it just Kinkaku, Ginkaku, and the twenty Jonin they had brought?
Couldn't they have turned around and fought back? One against three, and still come out one ahead!
Lanyu, a Uchiha Jonin, had pointed out at the time that they had only just succeeded in their coup and killed the Second Raikage. They would be overconfident and complacent, so Konoha should have struck them head-on... arrogant troops were bound to lose!
How could it possibly have come to the Second, who knew the Flying Thunder God, dying instead?
That period could be called the month Konoha had come closest to splitting apart since its founding—when Madara Uchiha left Konoha, the Uchiha Clan had distanced itself from him, so there had not been much of a disturbance...
But during that month, a different ninja clan slammed its hands on the Hokage's desk every day.
Then the Uzumaki Clan was wiped out, and everything changed.
The Uchiha Clan immediately changed its stance and supported the Third Hokage—this was also what Lanyu had wanted to say outside the Forest of Death when he suspected Shimura Danzō of plotting something shady... If the Uchiha Clan had not taken the lead, the Third Hokage might not have kept his seat secure!
To "children" like Akaseki and the others, this meant the adults had finally realized that if they did not unite, Konoha would perish.
Clouds drifted across the sky, blocking the moonlight and plunging the surroundings into even deeper darkness.
Combined with the ruined walls all around them, the place felt even more desolate...
"Alright, everyone has traveled all day. Get some sleep early. Tomorrow, we'll meet up with the client," Jiraiya said, clapping his hands.
Akaseki wanted to ask something, but the moment he opened his mouth, Minato stopped him.
After seeing the signal Minato gave him, Akaseki immediately understood what he meant...
That night, everyone obediently went to rest—though Uzushio Village had nothing left, it was still better than sleeping in the wilderness.
But...
Late at night, when it was Jiraiya's turn to stand watch, two sleeping bags opened with a rip, and Akaseki and Minato crawled out.
Only a moment later, Ranwu's sleeping bag beside them opened as well.
"Hm? Why aren't you three asleep?" Jiraiya asked, though he clearly already knew why.
"Jiraiya-sensei... have they found the ones who destroyed the Uzumaki Clan?" Ranwu asked directly.
Jiraiya: ...
Jiraiya fell silent for a moment. But seeing all three students staring at him with burning eyes, he said, "Not really. After all... there's no evidence."
As he spoke, Jiraiya walked off to one side, and the three immediately followed.
Only after they had put some distance between themselves and the Ino-Shika-Cho trio did Jiraiya continue, "But most likely... it was Kumogakure."
Akaseki and Minato exchanged a glance.
It was not really surprising. After all... the ones who had abducted Kushina before were from Kumogakure!
"What? Cloud Ninja? Weren't they trying to form an alliance with us?" Ranwu immediately asked.
"That's right, but... that was before." Jiraiya paused before continuing, "And more precisely, that was the Second Raikage."
Hearing Jiraiya subtly separate Kumogakure from the Second Raikage, Akaseki and Minato both realized something, though neither could put it into words.
"What exactly happened? Could it be that from the very beginning... it was all their scheme?" Ranwu was undoubtedly the one who cared most, since her grandfather had died because of it.
"Do you remember what I told you before, about how the First stopped the outbreak of war?" Jiraiya asked.
When the three nodded, Jiraiya continued, "Then do you know how the First convinced everyone?"
"His words were almost pleading?" Akaseki guessed.
"That only allowed the other villages to feel the First's sincerity, but... of course, that wasn't enough!" As Jiraiya spoke, he revealed the matter of the Tailed Beasts.
Jiraiya knew no more than Akaseki about the origins of the Tailed Beasts—after all, Akaseki possessed the Uchiha Clan's ancient inheritance, which vaguely recorded the Tailed Beasts' origins. Though it was not entirely accurate, he at least knew the Sage of Six Paths had created them.
But as for the more recent events... what the First had done, Akaseki had only just learned the details.
Before you continue