Uchiha Kō's eyes showed a hint of heartache. "Is it heavy?"
Uchiha Rou picked up a bento box with one hand, shook her head, and smiled, saying, "It doesn't hurt! Well then, Dad, I'm going to school!" With that, Uchiha Rou turned back to say goodbye to her father and walked towards the door.
"Huh?" Uchiha Kō waved his hand, then shook his head. This kid is nothing like him; he's so impulsive and reckless!
Now that he had finished making his daughter's bento, it was time to cook something delicious for his wife. With that thought, Uchiha Kō turned and headed towards the kitchen.
Kumogakure
The Third Raikage sat cross-legged on the Raikage throne, his face revealing neither joy nor anger. His gaze slowly settled on the ninja Ma Liu, who was prostrate on the ground below.
"Speak, how did things go?" The Third Raikage was like a dying dragon, his every word and action filled with oppression, and Ma Liu, who was crawling on the ground, was trembling all over.
"Lord Raikage, I've used the Corpse Dissolving Water to destroy the evidence of that Tu Feiyuanwu. Mission accomplished, but..." Ma Liu hesitated, raising his head slightly to tentatively look into the Third Raikage's eyes.
That brief eye contact sent a shiver down Ma Liu's spine. He immediately lowered his head, a stench of urine emanating from his crotch, and dared not utter a sound.
"What is it? Speak freely. Just the fact that you executed that idiot Tu Feiyuanwu is a great achievement. Whatever mistakes you made, I will forgive and forget them." After saying that, the Third Raikage waved his hand and said with a smile.
Ma Liu looked up at the Third Raikage again. The Raikage's smile, instead of being a pleasant surprise, sent a chill down Ma Liu's spine. "Reporting to Lord Raikage, after dealing with Tu Feiyuanwu, I was caught red-handed by Uchiha Itachi."
"Oh? You got caught red-handed by that guy and you still managed to come back? I didn't realize you were so capable!" Young Lord A raised an eyebrow, as if from that moment on, he was re-evaluating Ma Liu.
"No, no, young master, it was Uchiha Itachi who sent me back to deliver a message to the Raikage, so he didn't do anything to his subordinates!" Ma Liu dared not lie about such a matter, but he chose to conceal the fact that he had handed over the list of spies from Kumogakure.
The Third Raikage, who was sitting above, suddenly became interested. He put his feet down and walked towards Ma Liu. The sound of his shoes hitting the ground was pattering as he walked step by step towards Ma Liu.
The sound seemed to pound on Ma Liu's heart, causing him to feel utterly terrified. He curled up even more tightly, praying that Lord Raikage wouldn't notice anything amiss.
Otherwise, given his betrayal of all the Kumogakure spies and the Third Raikage's ruthless and merciless attitude, he would surely die! His family might even be implicated. He didn't want to choose either option, and he couldn't choose either!
Therefore, Ma Liu had to withstand this psychological pressure and fear. Only by holding on could he and his family avoid dying. The Third Raikage's eyes were now cloudy. He walked up to Ma Liu and stopped.
Ma Liu's heart skipped a beat. Was it coming? Just as he was racking his brains for a way to deal with it, the Third Raikage suddenly squatted down and looked him in the eye!
Ma Liu never expected that the Third Raikage would use this method to communicate with him. In the end, the Third Raikage's aura was too overwhelming, and Ma Liu couldn't hold back and quickly retreated.
The Third Raikage grabbed his shoulder with his large hand. "Why are you running? I'm just old and senile, I can't hear clearly. I just want to get closer, see what you look like, and hear what you have to say."
Seeing that the Third Raikage truly had no other intentions, Ma Liu finally felt relieved. He endured the sticky feeling of his pants being soaked with urine, and knelt down. Upon seeing this, the Third Raikage smiled and sat on the ground with his legs spread apart.
"Tell me, what message did Uchiha Itachi ask you to deliver?" The Third Raikage laughed, the reason for his laughter unclear.
"Reporting to Lord Raikage, Uchiha Itachi said that this time it was an individual in your village who had a problem with their brain, and I will not pursue the matter. However, if there is a next time, regardless of whether it is my daughter or someone from another clan, I will wage war against you." As soon as Ma Liu said this, the entire place fell silent.
Ma Liu looked around and noticed that everyone's faces were ashen and not good, especially Young Lord A, whose face was full of humiliation. For the past eight years, he had worked diligently all by himself, and for the past eight years, he had been walking on thin ice. Eight years, eight years!
They managed to force the future Fourth Raikage, who was originally a mindless, busy man, into becoming someone who could use his brain in a simple way, even though he knew in his heart that this was Uchiha Kō's warning to their Kumogakure.
But his fiery temper still made him glare wide-eyed, "Father, this Uchiha Kō is going too far!"
"Sit down!" The Third Raikage's aged voice rang out.
"But, Father!" Young Lord A looked at the Third Raikage sitting on the ground, his face filled with disbelief.
"I told you to sit down!" The voice was so loud that it echoed throughout the Raikage's Office, and even the ninjas guarding the building entrance outside couldn't help but tremble.
Young Lord A opened his mouth, but in the end he nodded, then sat on the ground, sulking.
The Third Raikage looked at Ma Liu, "You've worked hard, kid. Go home now." The Third Raikage didn't notice anything unusual, nor did he act like he used to when he was younger, grabbing anyone who brought bad news by the neck and demanding to know if the information was accurate.
Now, he is old and frail, no longer as reckless and dictatorial as he once was. Looking back on his life, he finds that he always manages to choose the wrong path, and he begins to reflect on how each of those wrong paths is linked to Konoha.
As the days passed and his health deteriorated, he seemed to have made up his mind to do something for Kumogakure!
He stood up and looked at his own son, patting him on the shoulder with his large hand. "Ai!" Father and son exchanged a glance. Young Lord A felt a tightness in his chest and was somewhat flustered. He seemed to realize something!
He was about to speak when the Third Raikage shook his head. "From today onwards, you are the Fourth Raikage! From this day forward, you will dedicate yourself to the development of Kumogakure until your body can no longer move, understand?"
Young Lord A —no, he should be called the Fourth Raikage A at this moment—had tears welling up in his eyes. He already knew what his father was going to do. With his father's pride, he would never allow him to die on his sickbed!
Now that Kumogakure has finally recovered, he couldn't bear to send troops to attack Konoha or Iwagakure. He couldn't make up his mind to fight to the death with either side!
Konoha has already stated that they do not want to start a war against Kumogakure over this matter. This is not to show Konoha weakness, but rather that Konoha does not want to fight them.
Since that's the case, Iwagakure became Kumogakure's number one target. The Third Raikage's health was deteriorating, and aging was inevitable. While he was still able to move, he wanted to help his son remove all pressure and obstacles.
He wanted to use his crippled body to cause some final trouble for Iwagakure!
After giving all these instructions, the Third Raikage opened his eyes and rushed alone towards Iwagakure. His speed was such that even the Fourth Raikage A, could not catch up with him even when he exerted all his strength!
"Father!!!" The Fourth Raikage's voice was loud, and many people and ninja clans heard it. However, they all sighed and guessed what the Third Raikage was about to do!
The sound carried for a long time without response. The Fourth Raikage knelt on the ground, tears streaming down his face and dripping onto the ground. He continued to murmur "father."
Outside Iwagakure
The Third Raikage ventured here alone, instantly killing any ninja who tried to stop him. He continued forward, and finally, he stood at the entrance to Iwagakure).
Ōnoki had already received the news and ordered the army to prepare for battle inside the gate. At this moment, the fighting spirit of Iwagakure had reached its peak. Ōnoki looked down from the sky at the Third Raikage, the old man he had fought for most of his life.
"Hey! What wind blew you to my Iwagakure today? Where is your army?" Ōnoki's voice was also old, but it sounded quite strong!
"To attack your Iwagakure, we don't even need an army. I alone am enough!" With that, the Third Raikage raised his Chakra to its limit, straightened his hunched body, and flashed lightning in his eyes.
Ōnoki was a bit dumbfounded. Wait, he's using his ultimate move right from the start? And why is A all alone?! Before he could react, the Third Raikage A, extended a finger and roared, "One-Finger Nukite!" as he blasted it towards the village gate.
A massive bolt of lightning, accompanied by his roar, slammed into the Iwagakure of Iwagakure, instantly shattering it into dust. Even Ōnoki gasped in shock.
"Everyone, kill him! We can't let him break into Iwagakure, or our wives, children, and elderly will all suffer!" Ōnoki shouted, then began to gather his strength, Dust Release Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!
The Third Raikage, his white hair flying wildly, his muscles bulging, and his Chakra radiating outwards, looked at the massive army of Iwagakure before him. Instead of retreating, he roared, "Come on!"
The Third Raikage did not choose to attack the village because Ōnoki might desperately try to stop him, thus thwarting his plan. He wanted to use his crippled body to take a few more Iwagakure ninja with him to the Pure Land!
To ease some of the pressure on Kumogakure and his son! At this moment, Ōnoki hadn't realized what was happening, and had even forgotten to ask Konoha for help. He was being beaten to the village entrance by the Third Raikage alone, and he was burning with rage!
"In that case, you shall stay here, A!" Ōnoki thrust out both hands, and a white beam of light shot towards A. A picked up an Iwagakure ninja and threw it at him with his Dust Release. The ninja provided two seconds of blocking time, which was enough for the Third Raikage A, to escape the range of Ōnoki's Dust Release attack!
"Damn it!" Ōnoki roared!