Tobirama Wants to Deceive a Child

After the celebration, Konoha remained filled with a festive atmosphere; the signs for three-day consecutive discounts at various gourmet shops were a testament to such a lively scene.

The passing of a night of prosperity did not leave behind a sense of an ending, but rather a passion for the village's development.

This was clearly evident in Elder Kaku, who was busy pounding—or rather, instructing—the young seedlings of Konoha with a stern face during taijutsu class.

Rikusei silently rubbed his aching arm, careful not to let Naori, who was preparing to step onto the field, see it and become distracted.

Even Kaku, who was usually as calm as still water, had his inner fire ignited, let alone the other ninjas in the village.

It was estimated that the Yamanaka lady at the mission desk would have her hands full dealing with those passionate mission-seekers these days; one wondered if the village's available missions could even satisfy their fervent demands.

Suddenly, a faint sound of a door opening came from behind, and Rikusei looked over to see a silver-haired, red-eyed man gesturing sneakily for him to come out.

Kaku, of course, noticed the situation and winked at Rikusei to signal that it was fine.

Rikusei pacified Naori with a slight movement that didn't attract much attention, then walked out under the curious gazes of acquaintances like Kagami and Danzo.

"Is there something you need from me, Teacher Tobirama?"

Rikusei asked as he walked on the wooden floor, his soft inquiry echoing through the corridor.

"It concerns some matters regarding Konoha's policies."

Tobirama stopped, narrowed his eyes, and decided to tell the truth, getting straight to the point.

Rikusei turned to leave immediately; if they were asking him, a child still in elementary school at the Ninja Academy, about major Konoha affairs, he silently recited "Konoha is doomed" in his heart and turned back without hesitation.

A somewhat stunned Tobirama grabbed the boy's wrist and said softly, "Sigh, you little genius of the Uchiha clan, I just want you to provide some reference for my thoughts."

Rikusei looked at him suspiciously; he was definitely about to say "brat" just now!

Seeing him stop, Tobirama said with a look of calculated confidence in his eyes, "Do you know who is giving advice to Madara?"

In the corridor, Tobirama stared with interest at the boy who had left such a deep impression on him; the stroke of genius he had shown regarding textbooks in the office was still fresh in his mind, and he was immensely looking forward to his next answer.

He had been shocked when he first learned of Madara's ideas from his elder brother, never expecting him to have such powerful capabilities in internal affairs.

Fortunately, he had been staying in the Hokage's Office lately, keeping an eye on the suggestions being proposed and comparing them to previous ones; they were simply not on the same level.

Therefore, he had reason to suspect that someone was acting as a strategist for him, and since Kaku and Setsuna had been thoroughly analyzed, it couldn't be them.

Excluding those who could contact and influence Madara at every moment, even if the result seemed unbelievable, it was worth suspecting.

After all, the development of so many forbidden techniques had come from countless unbelievable possibilities, and years of intuition led him to prepare to bluff his student.

The answer he received, however, was somewhat unexpected.

"It was me." Rikusei decided to stop pretending and responded gracefully, "I just provided a line of thought."

Rather than hiding it forever, it was better to expose it early to win more attention from the Senju faction and elevate his position within the village.

Tobirama suppressed his inner shock, maintained his previous pace as he walked forward, and said softly, "Truly a hero among youths."

"Perhaps it's because I'm not preoccupied with the research of ninjutsu or the trivialities of life, allowing me to see things a bit more clearly." Rikusei followed quietly behind him, looking at the familiar teacher's office ahead and teasing slightly.

The office was empty; the teachers had all left early.

The class to be formed for the new students of the Uchiha clan was still in the planning stages, as the Ninja Academy wanted to recruit more students this time.

Tobirama signaled for him to sit closer, and seeing the boy approach without any defenses, he revealed a triumphant smile and vigorously rubbed his somewhat familiar face.

As expected, people of the Uchiha clan, regardless of age, were all annoying.

Watching the boy pour himself water without ceremony and sit on the stool, leisurely moistening his throat, he couldn't help but smile in amusement.

After the tea was finished, Tobirama took out a sample crafted by the Artisan Ninja from the cabinet and placed it on the table, looking at him with a smile.

Rikusei set down his teacup and picked up the object to examine it closely; it resembled a tea kettle. Through the strangely cold sensation in his palm, he knew it was forged from a special metal. When he channeled chakra into it, it indeed glowed with a blue light.

"This is a sample for sealing a Tailed Beast."

Tobirama's words left him in silence. Had Konoha become so wealthy and extravagant? Using such rare, precious metal capable of conducting chakra to make a sample?

Tobirama, who was carefully observing his expression, knew his inner thoughts from the shifting look on his face, because when he had first seen the kettle, their expressions had been exactly the same.

"I can't help with sealing a Tailed Beast; let's talk about schoolwork instead."

Rikusei hurriedly grabbed the table of their grades that was laid out on the desk, using it as a shield.

"I know, of course, that you can't help with that. I want to hear your clever ideas." Tobirama now fully realized that the boy in front of him was the type who wouldn't scatter the eagle until he saw the rabbit. He sighed and continued, "My brother—no, the Hokage—wants to give the captured Tailed Beasts to other Hidden Villages."

"Give them away for free?" Although he knew the iconic scene from his memories, Rikusei still asked with slight surprise.

Tobirama nodded helplessly, his eyes seemingly losing their luster. Even these children understood the logic, so why couldn't his brother understand it? He said, "He wants to..."

"Stop! I know what the Hokage wants to do." Rikusei hurriedly interrupted; he didn't want to hear the famous line.

The ideal was good, but not everyone in the ninja world could possess a heart as pure as Hashirama's, capable of opening their arms to embrace others.

"Does the teacher know?" Rikusei asked softly.

"No," Tobirama replied immediately.

"Why not tell the teacher and see if he will beat up the Hokag—" Seeing Tobirama's unfriendly gaze, Rikusei hurriedly corrected himself, "—see if he will make the Hokage change his mind."

"Good lad, you're quite good at fanning the flames. I'll have you, an Uchiha who dares to stir up trouble in Konoha, removed right now." Tobirama raised his hand in a threatening gesture, his tone grim.

Rikusei caught the smile that Tobirama couldn't quite suppress at the corner of his mouth, knowing that he also had the urge to beat up his own brother. He immediately straightened his back, sat upright on the stool, and said with a serious expression, "So, what are Teacher Tobirama's thoughts?"

"Sell them." Tobirama listed the expected prices for each Tailed Beast on the paper.

Looking at the boy who was frowning and staring at the paper with anticipation, he couldn't help but interrupt and ask, "Is the pricing reasonable?"

"It's not appropriate." Rikusei shifted his gaze from the paper and said softly, meeting his red eyes.

"Have you decided how to distribute the Tailed Beasts?" Rikusei took the pen and drew question marks next to the numbers one through nine on the paper.

Seeing Tobirama shake his head, he continued, "If I remember correctly, the Four-Tails' abilities are difficult to utilize in the Land of Water. You could sell it to them, and so on—this is what I propose as the Adaptation-to-Local-Conditions Method."

"The Adaptation-to-Local-Conditions Method?" Tobirama pondered for a moment before saying, "It shouldn't work; the major nations will certainly only buy what is advantageous to themselves."

"Have you considered how much of a hidden danger this will bring to future generations?" Rikusei asked, his voice tinged with anger.

"But what if—"

"Why couldn't the peace from when the Sage created the world be sustained? Can it really be achieved by just a few Tailed Beasts?" Rikusei pierced through the illusions in his heart, speaking the words he had hidden deep within.

Tobirama helplessly drained the water from his teacup and looked at the empty cup with a touch of gloom, asking, "Then what should we do?"

"You can divide the Tailed Beasts into countless pieces so that every Hidden Village can obtain one." Rikusei's whisper, like that of a demon, lingered in his ears, plunging him into deep contemplation.

The crisp sound of the school bell rang out, echoing throughout the entire school, and students from the upper floors swarmed toward the exit.

A purple figure moved quietly outside the door; Rikusei glanced at the dazed Tobirama and walked out.

Tobirama, sitting blankly in his chair, only snapped back to reality when Kaku arrived, watching him leave with a smile.

Standing by the window and looking out at the curling smoke rising from Konoha, Tobirama tapped his head gently while looking at his reflection in the glass, murmuring, "That's right, Tailed Beasts are life forms made of materialized chakra. How did I not think of dividing them?"