To Repay My Debts, I'll Become Hokage!

They encountered no enemies for the remainder of the journey, and after traveling for a while, they ran into a patrolling Konoha ninja squad.

After verifying their identities with secret codes, Uchiha Chonhua and the others increased their pace and entered the capital of the Land of Whirlpools.

This was the habitat of the Uzumaki Clan. As Uchiha Chonhua observed his surroundings, he noticed many people with red hair.

"Are all the members of the Uzumaki Clan here?"

Jonin Ono spoke to the Chunin who was guiding them.

The Chunin nodded and said, "Once the message from the Hokage arrived, the Uzumaki Clan Head gathered all the clansmen on the island here at the capital."

Jonin Ono's gaze shifted. "What about those who aren't part of the Uzumaki Clan?"

He was referring to those who lived or conducted business in the Land of Whirlpools but were not Uzumaki.

The Land of Whirlpools was a nation where the Uzumaki Clan formed the core population, but that did not mean people from other lands did not live there.

The Chunin's expression remained blank. "They have already been notified. Some followed the Uzumaki Clan to the capital, while others have sought their own paths."

"After all, they aren't Uzumaki, so we can only pray for their safety."

Hearing this, Jonin Ono sighed softly. "That is all we can do."

The Chunin left them after escorting them to the Daimyo Mansion of the Land of Whirlpools.

According to him, he had to go and welcome other ninja squads arriving in the Land of Whirlpools.

The main force had set out early as a rapid-response unit; since Cloud Village and Mist Village had already begun their offensive, they needed to arrive quickly to defend against the invasion.

While ninja squads like Uchiha Chonhua's were not exactly pressed for time, they were not exactly leisurely either.

Only after the main force clashed with Cloud and Mist in the first wave of battle and the situation reached a stalemate would it be their time to act.

The ninja squads were entering the Land of Whirlpools in staggered batches to rendezvous with the main force.

Next, they would begin their mission.

Escorting the Uzumaki Clan to Konoha!

"Zeren, welcome."

As they walked into the Daimyo Mansion and Uchiha Chonhua was observing the decor and layout, a gentle voice reached him.

He looked up to see a man with silver hair tied into a ponytail, a handsome face, and a calm temperament, wearing a white armband with a red triangle on his left arm.

It was an acquaintance: Hatake Sakumo.

He was also the leader of the Konoha main force in the Land of Whirlpools.

Hatake Sakumo spoke with Jonin Ono, learning about their journey.

At the same time, his peripheral vision remained fixed on Uchiha Chonhua.

So this is the child the Hokage thinks highly of—and an Uchiha child at that.

Hatake Sakumo was older than the Sannin and had seen more; having served in the Anbu directly under the Hokage, he had a deep understanding of certain matters.

He knew of the prejudice the Konoha high command held against the Uchiha Clan, even from someone as mild-mannered as Sarutobi Hiruzen.

That was precisely why Hatake Sakumo found it so strange that a Hokage who harbored bias against the Uchiha would think highly of an Uchiha child.

This made Hatake Sakumo observe him with curiosity, searching for the reason behind the Hokage's favor.

"You must be Uchiha Chonhua. Hello, I am Hatake Sakumo."

"Hello, Senior. I am Uchiha Chonhua."

Hatake Sakumo smiled. "Come inside. You need to understand the current situation so you can better escort the Uzumaki Clan."

Uchiha Chonhua and the others followed Hatake Sakumo into the room, where another person was waiting.

The man had dark, almost whitish-red hair, his arms were crossed, and his brow was furrowed as he stared at a map of the Land of Whirlpools on the wall.

Seeing Hatake Sakumo enter and glancing at Jonin Ono and the others, his frown deepened.

He turned his head to look at Hatake Sakumo in confusion.

Was a single ninja squad really worth calling to the Daimyo Mansion, especially when Hatake Sakumo, the commander-in-chief of the Konoha main force, had gone to greet them personally?

What, was there some important figure here? Did Sarutobi Hiruzen's own son arrive?

Eh? The Uzumaki Clan Head suddenly noticed the fan-shaped crests on the backs of the boy and girl.

This squad had gathered members from Konoha's ocular jutsu clans—the Uchiha and the Hyuga.

The Uzumaki Clan Head's brow relaxed, and his irritation dissipated; since they were from major clans, it was only right to show them some importance.

Hatake Sakumo introduced the two parties to each other.

Uchiha Chonhua took a few looks; this was the Daimyo of the Land of Whirlpools, who was also the head of the Uzumaki Clan.

"You are the first batch of ninja squads to arrive here. I apologize that I cannot let you rest for a few days."

Hatake Sakumo sounded apologetic. "You only have one night to rest; you must begin your mission tomorrow morning."

"Cloud and Mist are currently regrouping and have no immediate plans to attack this location. This is the best window of opportunity."

"Are Cloud and Mist waiting for reinforcements?"

Uchiha Chonhua spoke up suddenly, causing the Uzumaki Clan Head to pause and cast a surprised look at the Uchiha child.

The Uzumaki Clan Head replied, "Our sudden movements disrupted their preparations. They attacked the Land of Whirlpools in a rush and were successfully repelled by our clan's elites and the Konoha ninjas led by Sakumo."

Hatake Sakumo smiled, "The number of ninjas they currently have cannot take us down. They have no choice but to wait for reinforcements and proceed with their original plans."

Chapter 34: Uzumaki Clan Head: Hashirama, you were wrong

"Tomorrow morning, we will take the initiative to attack the enemy to create a relatively safe environment for you all."

Uchiha Chonhua frowned. "Relatively safe" meant there was still a sliver of danger.

Hatake Sakumo added, "There is danger, but it is nothing for your squad. Those six Mist ninjas have already proven your strength."

Especially Uchiha Chonhua.

Having learned from Ono Sawato that all six Mist ninjas were taken down by Uchiha Chonhua alone, this child already possessed the strength of a Jonin.

A squad with two Jonin, plus two other children from major clans whose strength was at least at the Chunin level—this squad was excellent. With their main force pinning down the enemy's main force, the risk from small fry was low.

After all, this squad was a big fish in every sense of the word; any small fry that came for them would never return!

Truth be told, Hatake Sakumo even wanted to integrate this squad into his main force; one could never have too many excellent ninjas.

The Uzumaki Clan Head pointed to the map on the wall. "This is the Land of Hot Water, the battlefield between Konoha and Cloud. The Third Raikage is currently stationed there."

Then, his finger moved to the heart of the Land of Lightning. "The Eight-Tails in Cloud is rioting and requires ninjas to handle it. Coupled with the two wars they have forcibly started, the number of Cloud ninjas in the Land of Whirlpools is bound to be small. On the other hand..."

The Uzumaki Clan Head pointed again to a massive island appearing before them: the Land of Water.

"The total military strength of Mist is also not high, due to the atmosphere within their country."

"Atmosphere?"

Mikoto Uchiha was curious. What kind of atmosphere?

Hatake Sakumo smiled. "The Third Mizukage does not have a good relationship with the clans, and there are frequent conflicts and confrontations. None of the ninjas sent by Mist this time are clan ninjas. According to Anbu investigations, the Third Mizukage has kept many ninjas behind to guard against his own clans."

Understood—the struggle between the Kage and the clans.

This trend existed in Konoha as well, but it was clear that Mist was a step ahead, having entered a version of "pruning the feudal lords" early on.

Looking at it this way, the situation in the Land of Whirlpools was urgent, but not yet at the point of being precarious.

Cloud had too much on its plate, leading to a severe split in forces that left the troops assigned to the Land of Whirlpools lacking in strength.

As for Mist, their leader was in conflict with his own clans, and they didn't see eye to eye. Since clan ninjas were few in number but possessed high individual combat capability, the Third Mizukage could not bet all his chips on the Land of Whirlpools; he had to keep some in reserve, so the number of ninjas Mist sent was also small.

Even so, the ninjas sent by Cloud and Mist were elites. Their failure in battle was only because their opponents were even more elite and stronger!

Uchiha Chonhua looked at Hatake Sakumo. This man was no small fry; his current strength could arguably be called Kage-level.

With a powerhouse leading them and the elite forces of Konoha, there was no way Cloud and Mist could succeed.

After discussing the details of tomorrow's mission, Jonin Ono and the others left, but Uchiha Chonhua remained.

"Lord Daimyo, we were only able to see through Cloud's conspiracy because of this child."

The Uzumaki Clan Head looked at Uchiha Chonhua in surprise. "It was you!? You are the child who saved Kushina?"

The Uzumaki Clan Head stood up and bowed in gratitude. "Thank you for discovering Cloud's conspiracy. Otherwise... the consequences would have been unimaginable."

"You are too kind, Lord Daimyo," Uchiha Chonhua said, waving his hands repeatedly. "This was merely my conjecture. It was the Hokage who truly implemented it. It was the Hokage's wisdom that led him to trust my wild words."

"I didn't expect Cloud to actually have plans to attack the Land of Whirlpools."

The Uzumaki Clan Head stood up and sighed, feeling both proud and helpless. "My Uzumaki Clan is famous in the ninja world for our sealing techniques. This once made me feel proud, but I never expected it to become the root of our disaster."

"Thinking back now, perhaps Hashirama was wrong back then. He distributed the Tailed Beasts and achieved a balance, and he made Mito the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. Other ninja villages followed suit and began to entertain the idea of creating Jinchuriki."

"From that moment on, the fate of my Uzumaki Clan was sealed. This calamity was destined to befall us."

Hatake Sakumo and Uchiha Chonhua remained silent; it was inappropriate for them to comment on the predecessors.

The Uzumaki Clan Head seemed to notice the stifling atmosphere and quickly changed the subject. "In the end, we still need the protection of a great nation. We must entrust our Uzumaki Clan to your Konoha."

"Lord Daimyo, you should also come with us to Konoha."

Their main Konoha force was still holding off Cloud and Mist here. The reason they had a ninja squad escorting the Uzumaki Clan to move to Konoha was precisely because a group of hot-headed and stubborn Uzumaki clansmen wanted to stay behind, determined to defend their homeland and fight Cloud and Mist to the bitter end.

If not for this group, they could have fought while escorting, fighting and retreating simultaneously.

Instead of being stuck in this stalemate as they were now.

"Say no more, Sakumo! This is the place where our ancestors have lived for generations. You want me to hand it over to those two ungrateful wretches? Dream on!"

The Uzumaki Clan Head puffed out his beard and glared, filled with fury!

They could let the old, the weak, the women, and the children take refuge in Konoha, but those of them with spirit—these old men—would fight to the death for the Land of Whirlpools and the land their ancestors had lived on for generations!

Even if they died here, they would be able to smile in the afterlife and comfort their ancestors! They would not flee!

Uchiha Chonhua and Hatake Sakumo exchanged a look and stopped trying to persuade him; they couldn't anyway.

As a junior, even if Uchiha Chonhua was their benefactor, it was not his place to persuade them further.

As for Hatake Sakumo, he had already spoken until his throat was dry, yet he still could not sway the Uzumaki Clan Head's mind.

What else could be done? He had no choice but to comply.

"We can only hope the enemy retreats; that is the only way to preserve the Land of Whirlpools and their lives."

Hatake Sakumo personally saw Uchiha Chonhua off.

Upon hearing this, Uchiha Chonhua asked, "After that, will the displaced Uzumaki Clan return to the Land of Whirlpools?"

Hatake Sakumo shook his head. "No. It is an inescapable fact that the Uzumaki Clan has been targeted by the great nations; only a great nation can stand against another great nation."

"From now on, Konoha will welcome new members... hm, no, that's not right. The Uzumaki Clan are allies of my Konoha. Should we consider them old friends who were drifting abroad finally coming home to settle down?"

Hatake Sakumo turned his head and smiled. "How do you see it, Chonhua?"

"It is a good thing. With Kushina's kin coming to live in Konoha, she will no longer be alone."

He only hoped that Kushina's kin would not harbor any prejudice against her status as a Jinchuriki.

Hatake Sakumo stopped in his tracks; they had reached the main gate.

"Go back and get a good night's sleep. We will meet at the city gate tomorrow."

Uchiha Chonhua nodded, bade farewell to Hatake Sakumo, and left the Daimyo Mansion.

Hatake Sakumo watched Uchiha Chonhua's retreating figure until he turned a corner and vanished from sight.

"Truly an outstanding child. I hope my future child can be as excellent as he is."

Hatake Sakumo sighed with emotion, harboring expectations for his future child.

Chapter 35: Nagato Uzumaki

The night passed without incident.