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(This is the second of three updates today!)

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The farce came to an end, Hyuga Hiashi slunk away with Hyuga Anya and the others, but Uchiha Yue and the others still had to continue their mission.

Furthermore, because of Hyuga Hiashi, Kushina Uzumaki was in a very bad mood, and sometimes even complained to Minato Namikaze friends. However, Minato Namikaze didn't take Kushina Uzumaki's complaints to heart, because in his view, he had already seen through Minato Namikaze 'Hyuga Hiashi true colors, and all he needed to do was keep his distance from him in the future. After all, Minato Namikaze and Hyuga Hiashi were both ninjas from Konoha, and they would see each other all the time, so there was no possibility of them directly breaking off relations.

However, if Minato Namikaze were to distance Hyuga Hiashi would still be the one to suffer. After all, Hyuga Hiashi needed Minato Namikaze's help to secure the position of the next clan leader and to elevate the Hyuga Clan in Konoha. While Minato Namikaze's current status in Konoha might not be Minato Namikaze, he had the formidable Jiraiya behind Jiraiya, making him someone no one in Konoha could afford to disregard.

Unfortunately, Hyuga Hiashi, failing to kill Uchiha Yue and Hatake Kakashi, and also losing Jiraiya's help. In Uchiha Yue's view, even if Hyuga Hiashi successfully completed his mission, he would likely have to keep a low profile for a while upon returning to Konoha. Therefore, after the farce ended, Uchiha Yue wasn't afraid of Hyuga Hiashi coming after him again. Moreover, once Uchiha Yue returned to Konoha, it was uncertain who would be causing trouble for whom.

Immediately afterwards...

After Hyuga Hiashi, Uchiha Yue Hyuga Anya the others, Minato Namikaze, together with Mikasa, the caravan leader, organized the caravan members to continue their journey. Kushina Uzumaki, however, stayed by Uchiha Yue and Hatake Kakashi's side, watching Uchiha Yue bandage Hatake Kakashi's wounds. And every time she saw blood flowing from Hatake Kakashi's body, Kushina Uzumaki couldn't help but complain, "Minato, really! He doesn't even consider the character of his friends! Hyuga Hiashi is a bastard!"

"I saw it coming a long time ago. Hyuga Hiashi had ulterior motives from the moment he approached Minato. Apart from Hizashi, none of the Hyuga Clan members are good people. I suspect that Hyuga Hiashi just wants to use Jiraiya- sensei's help to become the next head of the Hyuga Clan. Otherwise, Hyuga Hiashi would never have befriended Minato, let alone send Minato gifts every few days!"

"Oh?"

Just as Kushina Uzumaki was speaking, Uchiha Yue finished bandaging Hatake Kakashi's wounds and then asked curiously, "Kushina, did Hyuga Hiashi give Minato a gift?"

"That is!"

Upon hearing Uchiha Yue's words, Kushina Uzumaki didn't hesitate at all and immediately said, "When Hyuga Hiashi was in Konoha, he always came to Minato to reminisce, but every time he talked, he was testing Jiraiya- sensei's thoughts. I really don't know what those big clans are thinking. Are their clans really more important than the village? Would they really betray the village's interests for the sake of their clan's?"

With that, Kushina Uzumaki snorted coldly again, saying indignantly, "If I become Hokage, the first thing I'll do is eliminate the power of those clans! Konoha without those powerful clans is a truly wonderful Konoha! Hmph, when I become Hokage, the first thing I'll deal with is the Hyuga Clan. I really want to see if those Hyuga Clan guys can betray Konoha!"

"Kushina- sensei, you've gone a bit too far."

Just as Kushina Uzumaki reached this point, Hatake Kakashi frowned slightly. Clearly, Kushina Uzumaki was too angry and had forgotten that both Uchiha Yue and Hatake Kakashi were members of Konoha's ninja clans. Moreover, Kushina Uzumaki's words were somewhat directed at Uchiha Yue, given that he was a member of Konoha prestigious Uchiha Clan Hatake Kakashi's Uchiha Yue were a reminder to Kushina Uzumaki to be mindful of her words, and not an expression of anger.

Just as Hatake Kakashi finished speaking, Kushina Uzumaki clearly realized she had misspoke and immediately said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Yue, I... I didn't mean it that way."

"I know."

Knowing that Kushina Uzumaki was straightforward, Uchiha Yue simply smiled and shook his head, saying, "Actually, if possible, I also want the ninjas of our Uchiha Clan to not be too concerned with their own clan's interests, but to think about the village's well-being. After all, Konoha is what we truly need to protect, not some so-called clan honor. If I had to choose between the village and my clan, I think I would choose the village without hesitation!"

"Haha, Yue! You're different from the other Uchiha Clan ninjas!"

At this moment, Kushina Uzumaki was clearly pleased by Uchiha Yue's words, completely disregarding his injuries. She patted him on the shoulder and said, "If our Uchiha Yue Konoha had more ninjas like Yue, Kakashi, and you, I think our Konoha would definitely become stronger!" Kushina Uzumaki paused again, then looked at Minato Namikaze beside her and continued, "Alright, I won't chat with you any longer. We're about to set off; I'm going to help Minato!"

At this point, Kushina Uzumaki waved to Uchiha Yue and Hatake Kakashi, then walked straight to Minato Namikaze's side, directing the caravan members to prepare to set off. However, just as Kushina Uzumaki left, Hatake Kakashi suddenly turned his curious gaze to Uchiha Yue and asked, "Tsuki, what you just said, was it true?"

"Of course it's true."

Seeing Hatake Kakashi ask the question, Uchiha Yue replied without hesitation, "Kakashi, you should know that our family isn't well-liked by the clan, and even the commoners in the village don't like us. Therefore, I've always considered myself a Konoha ninja, not just an Uchiha Clan. Like I just said, if someone asked me to choose between the clan and the village, I would definitely choose the village, not the clan."

"Yes, just like you."

Upon hearing Uchiha Yue's words, Hatake Kakashi nodded heavily in agreement. The two then ceased their conversation and prepared to continue their unfinished ninja mission.

Without Hyuga Hiashi and the others in the group, Uchiha Yue and Minato Namikaze's progress was significantly faster. After all, Uchiha Yue's team had two Jonin, so even if some unexpected events occurred, Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki could easily handle them. Therefore, for the next dozen or so miles, Uchiha Yue, Hatake Kakashi, and the others did not experience any further battles. In fact, Uchiha Yue even took the time to train properly during this journey.

And...

After a journey of more than ten miles, Uchiha Yue and the others successfully escorted the caravan to the border of the Land of Fire.

However, upon arriving at the border of the Land of Fire, Uchiha Yue immediately realized that the fighting at the border seemed to be even more intense than he had imagined!