The Confidence to Speak

Konoha.

When news of Cloud Village's declaration of war arrived, Konoha's higher-ups remained leisurely. After all, Konoha had already prepared ample contingency plans for all of this, and in Konoha's view, Cloud Village's attack now was still a bit late.

Just as the Hokage of Konoha and his two Advisor were meeting to discuss how many troops to allocate to the Northern Front in relation to the declaration of war against Cloud Village, even worse news arrived.

The Cloud Village's forces, on their way back to the Land of Lightning Sunagakure, detoured and launched a surprise attack on the Konoha Camp located in the Land of Rivers. According to the intelligence Jiraiya back by Jiraiya, the losses amounted to at least two hundred men.

It was like a bolt from the blue. They were content to sit back and watch the tigers fight, but now the tiger has bitten them back. Konoha has lost both face and substance.

After the three carefully read the information Jiraiya had sent back, their expressions became even more serious.

This is not only because of the losses caused to Konoha by the Cloud Ninja's sneak attack, which, although huge, were still within Konoha's tolerance.

But the information about the Skeleton Giant mentioned in the intelligence report made the three of them even more uneasy.

For the older generation of ninjas who had witnessed Madara Uchiha, the Mangekyō Sharingan and the "God of Destruction" Susanoo that he summoned were naturally well-known.

The three members of the Uchiha Clan, who had thought that no one had ever been born with the Mangekyō Sharingan since Madara Uchiha and his brother, were filled with deep apprehension upon learning that a pair of Mangekyo had appeared.

"Hiruzen, what do we do? Those eyes have appeared again." Mitokado Homura said in a panic, his voice trembling.

"What's the panic? No matter how powerful the Mangekyō Sharingan, it depends on who uses it. Right now, the owner of these eyes is just a thirteen or fourteen-year-old boy. Are you really afraid of such a child?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi, as expected of the Hokage, quickly grasped the key point: the Mangekyō Sharingan, at least for now, is not enough to threaten the safety of the village.

"But what about the Uchiha Clan? They were already a destabilizing force even without those eyes. Now that they have those eyes, even if the owner is still a boy, will they remain obedient?"

Mitokado Homura's concerns were not unfounded. After all, the Uchiha was known for producing mentally ill individuals, and no one knew what outrageous things they might do next.

This time, Hiruzen Sarutobi also fell silent. It was indeed impossible to guarantee, but this was not the time to let the village descend into chaos.

If the Uchiha Clan were to be dealt with simply because of a pair of eyes, not to mention how happy other ninja villages would be, at least the other bloodline limit and secret technique clans of Konoha would not agree.

Seeing that Hiruzen Sarutobi still hadn't made a move, Mitokado Homura couldn't help but get anxious. He quickly came up with an idea.

"Hiruzen, the intelligence says that this ninja named Yohei directly summoned a giant in the form of a half-skeletal skeleton. This is clearly not something a newly promoted Mangekyo could do. He must have been hiding the fact that he had promoted to Mangekyou Mangekyo from everyone. He has ulterior motives!"

Furthermore, we must investigate whether anyone in the Uchiha Clan knows about this. At the very least, we need to send Anbu to monitor the Uchiha Clan to ensure their safety.

These words did indeed tempt Hiruzen Sarutobi. Although Mitokado Homura's reasoning was far-fetched—it's common for ninjas to conceal their strength—people are often hypocritical, especially when it comes to Uchiha ninjas, which often forces one to consider things carefully.

However, at this moment, Utatane Koharu, who had been silent until now, spoke up, "Why don't we call Taiichi and ask him? He was Yohei Uchiha's teammate and also his Captain, so he should be more familiar with Yohei Uchiha."

These words were a wake-up call. How could they not have thought of something so simple? They were truly blinded by concern.

Soon, Taiichi Shadow Clone who had been waiting at home, received the Hokage's summons and arrived at the Hokage's Office immediately.

"Taichi Matsushita, are you aware of your teammate Yohei Uchiha's awakening of the Mangekyō Sharingan?" Upon meeting, Mitokado Homura immediately confronted Taiichi with an aggressive demeanor.

Taiichi frowned and glanced at Mitokado Homura. "Has this guy lost his temper today? He's so hot-tempered!" Taiichi was now a proper Jonin, not much lower in status than Mitokado Homura.

Besides, you're not Danzo, so why are you hostile to the Uchiha? Did they steal your concubine? Taiichi thought to himself with a hint of malice.

Although he was constantly thinking about Mitokado Homura in his heart, on the surface, Taiichi was still a good child who respected his elders.

He said with a smile, "I know, it's still me—"

"Knowing that you knew about this but didn't report it, what are your true intentions?"

Before Taiichi could finish speaking, Mitokado Homura immediately interrupted Taiichi and accused Taiichi of something serious.

Taiichi was displeased. Did they really think he was so good-natured? Was he made of clay? He was a ruthless man who could kill enemies without batting an eye on the battlefield and rub Shukaku to the ground.

Taiichi's smile vanished, his eyes narrowed as he stared at Mitokado Homura. A chilling aura emanated from him, rushing directly towards Mitokado Homura was not far away.

Are you questioning me?

The icy words, coupled with the Taiichi aura, sent chills down Mitokado Homura's spine, leaving him speechless.

"Enough!" Hiruzen Sarutobi roared, breaking the tense atmosphere in the arena.

"Yan, if you're going to ask a question, just ask it properly. What's with that sarcastic tone you're using?"

He then turned to Taiichi and sternly reprimanded him, "And you! Yan is an elder of Konoha, your Senior. What's wrong with him asking you a couple of questions? Why are you reacting like this? Do you want to fly to the sky?"

Taiichi immediately feigned grievance, crying out with a face full of injustice, "Hokage, you must stand up for me! You saw what just happened. This elder's attitude was bad from the start when he asked me, but I didn't say anything then and even answered his questions with a smile."

But look at him! He interrupted me before I even finished speaking, and with that tone, he asked what my intentions were. Was he talking about me? He was talking about Jiraiya- sensei, Teacher Tsunade, and you!

Taiichi rambled on and on, finishing his sentence in just a few breaths. Hearing his words, all three people present twitched at the corners of their eyes; he was really good at talking nonsense.

But you can't deny that Taiichi point. He's not a criminal, and he was very cooperative at first. It was Mitokado Homura who took it too seriously and tried to bully Taiichi.

But little did they know they'd kicked a hornet's nest. Taiichi's backing was incredibly strong, tracing back all the way to the Third Hokage —a true member of the inner circle.

Utatane Koharu glanced sympathetically at Mitokado Homura, shaking her head slightly. She couldn't understand what had gotten into her companion today; targeting the Uchiha was one thing, but why was she targeting Taiichi as well?

"Alright, alright, that's enough. Elder Yan was just being impulsive and wasn't targeting you. Let's leave it at that."

Hiruzen Sarutobi an end to the previous conflict between the two, turning the page, but everyone could see that he was clearly biased towards Taiichi. After all, Taiichi had committed insubordination, and it was all swept under the rug with just a few words.

"Is there anything else you wanted to say? Continue."

"Oh~ Oh~" Taiichi nodded quickly, knowing when to stop. "I know about Yohei Mangekyo. He was promoted during the Northern Battlefield, and I told him to keep it a secret. No one is allowed to tell anyone."

"Oh?" Hiruzen Sarutobi looked up at Taiichi and asked curiously, "You asked him to keep it a secret, why?"

"Sigh, I know that some of the village's higher-ups don't get along with the Uchiha Clan, but we're all from the same village after all, so some conflicts are inevitable."

As he spoke, Taiichi gave Mitokado Homura a sly look, which made Mitokado Homura snort and turn her head away in anger.

Taiichi just pursed his lips and continued, "Of course, there must be problems within the Uchiha Clan as well. I saw relevant records in the materials left by Teacher Tsunade. There is a group of self-centered Radical Faction within the Uchiha who have never been of one mind with the village."

Therefore, I was also worried that Yohei's Mangekyo would be used by them, which is why I instructed Yohei not to reveal anything about the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's lips twitched involuntarily. He sighed inwardly, realizing that Tsunade had truly given Taiichi secrets, even a scroll containing high-level secrets.

"How can you be sure that Yohei Uchiha will follow your instructions? You know, even if he tells someone else, you might not know the truth."

Utatane Koharu then asked a question, which was exactly Taiichi Tai had wanted. It was a handle that he had prepared long ago so that the higher-ups would feel they could control Yohei.

"First of all, Yohei's Mangekyo has been awakened for more than half a year. If he had revealed it to the Uchiha higher-ups, they should have made some changes by now, but in fact they haven't."

Furthermore, from this Cloud Ninja ambush incident, it is not difficult to see that Yohei loves the village; otherwise, he would not have risked exposure to summon Susanoo to resist the Eight-Tails.

Finally, and this is the point I'm most certain of, overuse of the Uchiha Mangekyo will cause blindness, but I can alleviate that symptom!

"What!"

This time, it wasn't just one person who was surprised, but three people exclaimed in surprise at the same time.

"That's impossible. Even Tsunade couldn't cure blindness caused by overuse of the Mangekyo. How old are you?"

It was Mitokado Homura again, but his question reflected the thoughts of everyone else.

"It's not a cure, it's just a temporary relief," Taiichi explained. To make his point, he raised his right hand, and a dense, vibrant green Chakra appeared in his palm.

"This----"

The Hokage and his two Advisor exchanged glances. The quality and vitality of this Yang Release Chakra were rare to them. At this moment, they seemed to feel the immense vitality of the First Hokage once again. Although there was still a considerable gap, they had at least seen a glimpse of it.

Utatane Koharu, as the Advisor was most skilled in Medical Ninjutsu here, personally stepped forward and felt the chakra in Taiichi's Chakra. The life-giving aura, if combined with superb Medical Ninjutsu, might not be impossible to alleviate the blindness caused by the overuse of the Mangekyo.

She nodded slightly to the Third Hokage and Mitokado Homura, confirming Taiichi's statement.

Now that Hiruzen Sarutobi's mindset had become more flexible, and with a means to maintain balance, things would be much easier to handle afterwards.

Moreover, Taiichi was right Taiichi. Judging from Yohei Uchiha's behavior, he is also loyal to the village. In addition, with this method, although we cannot guarantee his loyalty, we don't need to worry too much.

His worries about the Uchiha subsided, but his anger at the Cloud Ninja's sneak attack immediately surged up again.

"Taiichi, you must have heard about the sneak attack on the Southern Camp by the Cloud Ninja, right?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama, I heard about it before I came. If it weren't for Senior Disciple Brother Minato and Yohei's timely return, the front-line Camp would have been in serious trouble." Taiichi immediately composed himself and answered seriously.

"Alright, alright, I won't forget their contributions. Now I want you to share your thoughts on this matter." Hiruzen Sarutobi his hand, interrupting Taiichi's attempt to continue, and went straight to the point.

"Of course we should fight back hard! Konoha isn't easy to bully. Cloud Ninja the war without declaring war, which already broke the rules. If we don't retaliate in kind, will the other ninja villages think Konoha is weak and easy to bully?"

Taiichi's reply was also resolute. At times like these, one must be decisive. Whether it's a person or a village, if someone bullies you, you must fight back.

Hiruzen Sarutobi showed a satisfied expression and nodded slightly. "I plan to send you back to the Southern Camp. It has just been attacked, and both its medical resources and Camp strength are lacking. I wonder if you are willing?"

"No problem, Hokage-sama tells me to go, I'll go without hesitation."

Taiichi's answer was even more decisive this time, without the slightest hesitation. Whether Hiruzen Sarutobi knew that he would go secretly even if he wasn't sent, or whether he had some other considerations, this was exactly what Taiichi wanted.

"You have the Flying Thunder God, go back and pack your things, then hurry over there. They need your power."

"Yes, I'll go pack it right away." After saying that, Taiichi the Hokage and the two Advisor and elders, and then immediately left the office.

Once Taiichi's figure disappeared, Mitokado Homura could no longer contain himself and turned to Hiruzen Sarutobi, asking, "Do you really believe what he said? The Uchiha are fickle. Yohei might be on our side today, but who knows, his attitude might completely change tomorrow. Hiruzen, we must be careful!"

"Yan, the situation you described could happen to anyone. We can't target a family just because something like this hasn't happened yet."

Furthermore, Konoha cannot afford any internal discord right now. Our enemies are waiting for us to make a mistake, and we cannot give them that opportunity.

For now, we can only trust Taiichi.

It is located east of the Land of Rivers, about a hundred kilometers from the sea.

Minato Namikaze followed the Cloud Ninja from a distance, stopping every now and then to press one hand to the ground and check if they were going the wrong way.

At this moment, his face was calm, without any of his usual smile. Every move he made seemed to be brewing a storm, just waiting for the moment when it would pour down.

Jiraiya's order to Minato was to follow, not to act rashly, but Minato understood that since he had come, how could he leave empty-handed?

He was waiting, Jiraiya -sensei felt the same way, waiting for that one person to arrive.

As the Cloud Village ninjas approached the shore, a slight ripple appeared beside Minato. He knew that the person he was waiting for had finally arrived.