Their Hero, My Enemy

"Is that all you have to offer, just following my orders?" Uchiha Tenshu shook his head. "You were already a trusted ninja cultivated by Elder Raimon, and furthermore, you are a loyalist to Lingyue. As I am the heir to Elder Raimon and Lingyue's designated fiancé, your obedience is only natural! That cannot serve as a wager. You must choose another!"

"Then what do you want!" Uchiha Sakurako was filled with confusion; she had nothing else to offer besides that.

Could it be...

Not knowing what she was thinking, Uchiha Sakurako's face changed instantly, flushing a deep red, her eyes flickering with hesitation.

"Where is your mind wandering!" A black line appeared on Uchiha Tenshu's forehead. Does this big-breasted woman have all her nutrition concentrated in her chest, causing her to always think of such things?

Although they were indeed large.

And she was very beautiful.

But at this moment, he was genuinely discussing serious matters, not these improper distractions.

Well! In any case, she is Lingyue's ninja.

She won't be able to run away in the future anyway.

Naturally, there is no need to be too impatient.

Thinking this, Uchiha Tenshu continued, "Rest assured! My wager with you is that if these things truly come to pass, you must trust me wholeheartedly. After all, you may not understand many of the things I do, but I hope you will follow my arrangements completely and trust me implicitly!"

"After all, in terms of foresight, I possess a vision that exceeds the ordinary. You may not grasp the significance of my actions, but you must support me with all your heart."

"Therefore, absolute trust is what I require!"

"Fine! It, it's a deal!" Uchiha Sakurako said quickly, as if trying to cover something up.

Following this.

The two ended their communication within the Genjutsu.

Half an hour of travel later.

A black dot appeared at the edge of the trio's vision; that was their target for the day.

The territory of the Otomo Clan.

Harvest City.

Harvest City was the finest and largest town on this vast plain in the northwestern part of the Land of Fire. Nearby farmers celebrated the harvest here every year, and people from all over enjoyed coming here to celebrate festivals and pay their grain taxes. It was a well-known grain hub in the region.

Consequently, there was a massive flow of people. With the internal peace in the Land of Fire over the past few years, this traffic had doubled, leading to an extremely high frequency of consumption. The presence of numerous hotels, inns, casinos, and money shops allowed the Otomo Clan to hold these cash cows, expanding their power to the point where they even had their own controlled ninja forces.

"In particular, the grain storage technology passed down from Hashirama Senju of Konoha was mastered by the Otomo Clan. I heard they even improved it significantly; at the very least, it can store grain for twenty years! Because of this, even grain merchants from far away transport their goods here to sell. The Otomo Clan places no restrictions on purchasing, supposedly using it as raw material for brewing sake! However, those are secrets; I only learned of them by chance when I was tallying grain for the Otomo Clan previously!"

Outside the city gate.

Nakayama Hiroshi and Uchiha Tenshu, transformed into men of noble birth, spoke in low voices.

Hearing what Nakayama Hiroshi said, a strange look appeared in his eyes. He couldn't help but glance at Uchiha Tenshu, and under the cover of Genjutsu, he transmitted a message: Is the Senju clan really this shameless? They used your achievements and even spread them to the outside world.

"Don't worry! Follow me, and you will see even more explosive operations from this Senju-aligned group in Konoha in the future!"

Uchiha Tenshu hinted, then began to survey his surroundings, scrutinizing the Otomo Clan's city.

In Uchiha Tenshu's eyes, this was one of the premier cities in the Land of Fire. At the very least, on the road from Konoha to here, no other city could compare to this one.

"It seems that while the Otomo Clan here is wicked and robs outside merchants, they aren't stupid. They have developed their territory into a thriving, vibrant place." Uchiha Tenshu evaluated. Just by looking at the flow of people and the occasional smiles on the faces of the commoners, it was clear they were at least not on the verge of death.

Uchiha Tenshu then began to randomly select a few people on the road outside the city to inquire about the situation.

Relying on the ability of the Transformation Jutsu.

He used different identities to question people of different social classes. When a wealthy merchant questioned a commoner, the latter was honest and dared not utter a single lie.

After a series of operations.

Following a period of observation and understanding, Uchiha Tenshu finally had a clear grasp of the situation in this city and the surrounding area.

In Nakayama Hiroshi's eyes, the Otomo Clan was a group that committed every evil imaginable, rotten to the core. They didn't just take advantage of crises to bully the weak; they loved to burn, kill, and pillage—they were simply inhuman demons.

However, unexpectedly, the situation within the territory governed by the Otomo Clan was different. Although they could hardly be called good people, they had their own set of "rules" that maintained order.

For the average farming class, the taxes levied by the Otomo Clan were ten percent lower than those of other lords, standing at only fifty percent, and they did not add any extra tax items. Of course, this was mainly because the farmers had no ability to pay other taxes besides farming their land.

Furthermore, the Otomo Clan performed quite well in management. They operated the city's commerce in an orderly fashion, ensuring that various industries could develop and be regulated reasonably.

In particular, the Otomo Clan did not rob merchants heading to their own city; they only targeted those passing through. Finally, the goods in the shops operated by the Otomo Clan itself were famous for being high-quality and inexpensive.

Hearing this, Uchiha Tenshu's murderous intent grew even greater. After all, since the Otomo Clan's management was so outstanding and he had already secretly offended them, he naturally had to strike first, wipe them out, and uproot their foundation.

Moreover, one man's hero is another man's villain.

One man's honey is another man's poison.

No matter how well they did things.

He had to distinguish between friend and foe.

So what if the Otomo Clan was good to these people!!

Could they provide the displaced people he needed to build his future forces?

Of course not.

Their actions only gave the people of this land a glimmer of hope, keeping these commoners trapped firmly on this land. They were the great enemies standing in the way of his progress!

So what if the Otomo Clan managed their merchants well?

Could they bring him the supplies he needed for trade?

They could not!

Their large-scale plundering of merchants passing through here severely hindered trade between the small nations and the Land of Fire. Since he intended to leave the Land of Fire, the small nations to the west were his most likely refuge.

Furthermore, all of their actions had inadvertently blocked his path.

Therefore, no matter how one looked at it.

There was every reason for them to disappear.

On the contrary, killing them and plundering all their wealth, money, and beauties.

Not only would it help him complete his initial accumulation of capital once again.

It would also win over the heart of a talent like Nakayama Hiroshi, absorbing him completely into his ranks and securing his loyalty.

This was what he needed to do.

As time passed, the sky gradually darkened.

After entering the city, Nakayama Hiroshi led them to the edge of the outer district of Harvest City and found a random guesthouse.

People came and went, and it was bustling with activity, but since their target was the Otomo Clan in the main city district, the outskirts were more discreet.

Leaving Nakayama Hiroshi behind.

Uchiha Tenshu and Uchiha Sakurako began their operation. Taking advantage of the night, they carefully avoided the crowds and crept toward the inner city. The guards in the inner city were noticeably stricter than those in the outer district, and patrolling samurai passed by from time to time, the murderous aura on their faces indicating that they were undoubtedly elites.

But for ninjas.

The two were on completely different levels; these ordinary samurai had no way of detecting their movements.

Yet Uchiha Tenshu signaled for them to hide.

He observed the patrol patterns of the guards; there were clearly hidden ninja sentries present. Given the dozens of ninjas the Otomo Clan possessed, it was impossible for them not to have defenses set up in their own stronghold.