The Role of Comparison

This was a clear signal.

It signaled Minato Namikaze's stance: once Li Ke grew up and his strength was sufficient, he would pass the position of Hokage to him or Kakashi during the next Ninja World War.

With that, Li Ke felt at ease.

"In any case, keep working hard, Qingtan."

Minato Namikaze encouraged Li Ke once more, but just as he was about to rest, Shikaku Nara walked in, waving a report in his hand and smiling at Li Ke.

"Minato, there are some war contributions here that need your confirmation. Are you available now?"

Minato Namikaze gave a wry smile, pulled a secret medicine for chakra recovery from his pocket, swallowed it in one gulp, nodded at Li Ke, and went off to handle the distribution of war merits, leaving Li Ke to continue resting.

However, the noisy sounds all around made it impossible for Li Ke to fall asleep.

After all, while their mission was complete, the strangulation of the Mist Shinobi was far from over.

"Come to think of it, will Madara Uchiha send more people to attack? I certainly hope so; I'm still short on some war merits..."

Hearing the screams of the wounded nearby, Li Ke thought of that moronic plan to attack the Konoha Village camp with the Three-Tails. The plan was so idiotic that it lacked any feasibility; it was clearly designed solely for Obito to witness Rin Nohara being killed by Kakashi.

But that didn't stop him from taking advantage of it.

"The current Mizukage is still the Third, not the Fourth, Yagura Karatachi. Yagura should still be a Jonin right now, which means he likely only secured the position of Fourth Mizukage after obtaining the power of the Three-Tails. It is highly probable that the Three-Tails inside Rin Nohara is real."

If he could get his hands on the Three-Tails, his standing would rise once again, and he would be able to unleash Wood Release with a legitimate excuse, further boosting his reputation.

"If Madara Uchiha's plan remains unchanged... Obito, even though we were classmates, if I let you kill the Fourth in the coming year, I'll have to wait until the Sixth to become Hokage. So, you'd better go back to Konoha Village obediently, like Asuma, and watch the wedding of the person you love to someone else."

Li Ke raised his hand. He was simply too young; he couldn't succeed the position immediately after the Fourth's death.

Moreover, if Konoha suffered a heavy blow, his plans would be thwarted.

Therefore, to avoid any accidents, he needed to prepare to kick down Madara Uchiha's door right now.

"But it would be best if I could summon Hashirama Senju and find Madara Uchiha as soon as possible before things explode, to cut off the Eye of the Moon Plan at the root."

Li Ke clenched his raised hand, his eyes filled with determination.

He was thinking of Minato Namikaze's actions during the Night of the Nine-Tails and the chain reaction that followed.

"Come to think of it, the fact that Minato Namikaze had time to whisper sweet nothings to his wife while sealing the Nine-Tails, but no time to leave any intelligence for the village, is just mind-boggling..."

Especially for the Uchiha Clan, the impact of this was comparable to Madara Uchiha staging a rebellion.

Because Minato Namikaze left behind no information or intelligence that could clear the Uchiha Clan of suspicion—he didn't even leave a message stating that the enemy had been marked with his Flying Thunder God Mark—it became incredibly difficult to verify whether the Uchiha Clan had truly participated in the Nine-Tails Incident.

After all, no one knew if the Uchiha were hiding something.

Consequently, the situation of the Uchiha Clan became very awkward. However, the true cause of the Uchiha massacre actually lay with a certain someone.

Thinking of this, Li Ke couldn't help but look outside the tent.

At that moment, the voices of Fugaku Uchiha and two other Uchiha clansmen drifted in.

"Clan Leader, you've made a great contribution this time; you should be able to be elected Hokage, right? That's great! As long as you become Hokage, no one in Konoha Village will look down on our Uchiha Clan anymore! We can get along better with the people in the village!"

But another Uchiha clansman spoke up.

"Tch, what's there to be proud of? Those people will only call us cowards. You guys always think you can get along with them, but have you ever considered whether they are willing to get along with us? Have you forgotten how we've been ostracized? Once the Clan Leader becomes Hokage, we must take revenge!"

The two began to argue, and aside from a few words of persuasion at the start, Fugaku Uchiha failed to say anything that could convince either of them. It wasn't until other shinobi arrived that he finally made the two Uchiha stop.

"Enough! Both of you, stop arguing. We will discuss this at the clan meeting when we return. Do not continue this here!"

Fugaku Uchiha's voice carried authority, but Li Ke only felt speechless.

Those two Uchiha had been arguing right in front of him for nearly three minutes! And during those three minutes, Fugaku Uchiha hadn't said a single word!

"Fugaku Uchiha really doesn't have the bearing of a clan leader at all. It seems I need to cultivate an Uchiha who is willing to listen to me; otherwise, it's just a waste of the Uchiha's power..."

Li Ke made his sharp assessment.

Fugaku Uchiha swayed back and forth, leading no one to consider him one of their own, and he represented no one. Letting him be a leader meant nothing would ever get done. He could even be coerced by his own clansmen; as a leader, he couldn't even restrain his own people.

The biggest blame for the massacre lay with him, though the Third also had his share of the fault.

The Third was basically on the same level as Fugaku Uchiha, perhaps even more of a failure, only realizing what was happening after Danzo, that piece of trash, had already gone rogue. To be a leader to that extent was truly a failure.

The destruction of the Uchiha Clan was definitely primarily the responsibility of Fugaku Uchiha and the Third.

One could even say that in the handling and response to the two events—the Nine-Tails Incident and the Uchiha massacre—not a single person involved, including Minato Namikaze, acted like a human being.

In short, the first thing he would do after taking power was to kill—a massive slaughter. Kill civilians, kill shinobi, kill the Daimyo, and kill the samurai. He would kill whoever opposed him, adhering to the basic principle of wiping out entire families, learning from the advanced experience of the Mongols, and obliterating the so-called Ninja Village system and the five great Daimyo.

As for what came next? How to govern after the killing? New distribution of interests?

That would be the Seventh's problem. It would be none of the Sixth's business once he went home to hold his wife and children. He thought Orochimaru would be very suitable to be Hokage.

He, Murata Qingtan, didn't understand politics at all, did he? Besides, wouldn't it be better to spend the time he would have spent on politics making more children with Kurenai? Living his life like Naruto in Boruto was just pure brain damage.

If his wife were Hinata, he would ensure his father-in-law would be exhausted from babysitting.

"But the most important thing now is to rest. Still, the thought that it's this bunch of idiots who will be notifying Konoha Village is truly sad. But the saddest part is that this world is just a cesspit..."

An exhausted Li Ke closed his eyes, preparing to rest.

However, just as Li Ke was struggling to get some sleep, deep underground near Mount Kikyo, Madara Uchiha looked at the Flying Thunder God Kunai in his hand, his eyes filled with fury.

"This is indeed Senju Tobirama's Flying Thunder God Mark and his chakra... In other words, did Konoha Village resort to the Reanimation Jutsu to win this battle? That makes sense. Senju Tobirama is the only person left in this world who understands the Flying Raijin Jutsu. If he utilizes the infinite chakra of the Reanimation Jutsu, he could certainly achieve the effects seen on this battlefield."

So...

"So it really was you who used Izuna! Senju Tobirama!!"

He threw the Flying Thunder God Kunai, which had lost its tracking effect, onto the ground with a vicious snarl. The intense movement forced him into a fit of violent coughing.

Just then, a black, humanoid creature approached. Watching Madara Uchiha cough incessantly, it spoke up.

"Are you truly going, Madara? In your current state, you cannot sustain a prolonged battle. If you fail..."

"It matters not. If I don the White Zetsu, I will have ten minutes of combat time—enough for me to resolve this. But if I allow Senju Tobirama to remain active, our plans will easily be seen through. Furthermore, he went out of his way to summon Izuna; I suspect he has discovered something."

Madara Uchiha raised his head. The Sharingan in his eyes spun faster and faster, showing signs of merging, yet ultimately failing due to his advanced age.

Time—even for Madara Uchiha, who could once single-handedly annihilate other nations, his power had severely declined due to aging. Were it not for other treasures helping him extend his life, he would have perished long ago.

Yet, even at this stage, as long as he was willing to disregard his own life, he could still unleash formidable combat power.

"Very well. If it is indeed Senju Tobirama, he is certainly worth being wary of."

Black Zetsu nodded. In truth, he did not want Madara Uchiha to die, but Madara's Yang Release cultivation was insufficient to grant him eternal youth.

However, he knew that the reason Madara Uchiha insisted on taking the field personally was because he had sensed Izuna Uchiha's chakra and confirmed that Senju Tobirama had utilized the Reanimation Jutsu.

Madara Uchiha could endure many things, but the desecration of his brother Izuna Uchiha's soul was something he would never accept under any circumstances.

Nevertheless, Madara Uchiha maintained his composure. He knew clearly that luring away Minato Namikaze was not enough; he also needed to draw out the other user of the Flying Raijin.

And he was certain that this second user was Senju Tobirama.

With the opponent's chakra and his unique Flying Thunder God Mark as proof, how could it be anything else?

"Your return means the Three-Tails is in position, then? Let the plan begin. The Konoha ninja must be feeling triumphant right now, yes? But the more triumphant they are, the more careless they become... Black Zetsu, if I die along the way, you are to tell him our plan. But before that, Black Zetsu, take my chakra to the Konoha battlefield as bait. If it is Senju Tobirama, he will surely come to investigate. Once he leaves, we shall proceed with our plan."

He raised his head, his withered face appearing incredibly ferocious, and those blood-red Sharingan were enough to make one's blood run cold.

"Black Zetsu, if I die along the way, tell Obito my plan!"

Black Zetsu nodded. Although it was clear Madara Uchiha intended to go and crush Senju Tobirama, as long as Obito could successfully awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan, the matter would not be a significant issue.

To be precise, as long as the Rinnegan remained, it was not a problem for Black Zetsu.

After all, there would always be ambitious men in this world!

Thus, while Kirigakure was busy dealing with Konoha's counterattack, the Kirigakure Sealing Team received an order they found impossible to describe.

"We are to capture Minato Namikaze's disciple, Rin Nohara, seal the Three-Tails inside her, control her with a curse mark, and upon her return to Konoha Village, release the Three-Tails to cause destruction..."

The Jonin of the Kirigakure Sealing Team who received the order couldn't help but look up at the sky, feeling that whoever issued this command must be severely mentally ill.

In this plan, although the curse mark would control the temporary Jinchuriki, Rin Nohara, preventing her from committing suicide or revealing the Three-Tails within her, she could simply choose not to return!

A curse mark could not control a person's actions without leaving a trace!

Moreover, with their sealing technology, to seal the Three-Tails in such a short time while ensuring that sensory ninja could not detect that she was a Jinchuriki was, theoretically speaking—

"This is nothing but a pipe dream."

It was simply impossible! Any skilled sensory or sealing ninja would immediately sense something was wrong. The plan could never be completed, and they might even lose the Three-Tails for nothing.

But...

It was an order from above, so no matter how foolish it was, they had no choice but to execute it.

While they prepared the materials for the sealing, Li Ke, far away in the Konoha Base Camp, finally drifted off to sleep. But no sooner had he fallen asleep than bizarre and surreal images appeared before his eyes.

"Newcomers again?"

Awakened, Li Ke felt this was absurd. These newcomers were arriving too quickly; his cheat was truly a bit too overpowered.

But it didn't matter. The stronger the cheat, the better! Li Ke had never been afraid of having too much power!

Quickly entering the Black Mist Space, Li Ke looked up and saw something truly shocking.

He saw two men whose styles were completely different from everyone else.

One of them was written with the word 'tough guy' from head to toe. Just by standing there, Li Ke could feel a barrage of sound effects manifesting around him.

But when Naruto Li Ke looked at the other man, he only felt that the man was exceptionally thin and small. If not for the fact that his facial features were vaguely recognizable, he would have thought he had come to the wrong place.

Naruto Li Ke hurriedly went over to shake hands and introduce himself, and then he understood why these two were so distinct and possessed such a melancholic, perhaps even depressive, aura.

The first, the tough-guy-style Li Ke, was born in a post-nuclear wasteland. His parents died of radiation sickness when he was a child. He had clawed his way up, surviving on a bit of medical knowledge and repair skills, but the village he relied on for survival had been wiped out by thugs a while ago.

Currently, he was wandering the wasteland with a gun and a dog, searching for clean water and a place to build a settlement, planning to live out a real-life version of Fallout 4.

He had just wiped out a village that treated passersby as food right before entering.

As for the second Li Ke, how to put it? The good news was that his world had magical powers.

The bad news was that it had nothing to do with him.

But it wasn't entirely unrelated. When he was three, his father was burned to death by mercenaries wielding swords and magic. At four, his mother died from exhaustion and grief. At five, his grandparents were tortured to death by a debt-collecting lord using magic. He was now living with his uncle, struggling to survive.

A famine had recently broken out, so the village chief gathered everyone together, claiming a god could help them. When he went, half-doubting, he discovered the name of this god was Nurgle.

So, after sharing their memories, Naruto Li Ke suddenly felt that...

The Naruto world was actually quite alright.