Spit Out What You Ate

As expected, a rift had formed between the Sarutobi Clan and the Ino-Shika-Cho families, though it remained unnoticed for the time being.

During this ambush, the Ino-Shika-Cho families suffered heavy losses, while the Sarutobi Family, thanks to Senju Nawaki's orders and their own cautious style, suffered minimal casualties.

Escorting the remaining half of the grain, they left the Land of Fields in a state of tension, encountering no obstacles whatsoever.

This came as a great surprise to the Konoha ninja.

They had already discovered that the ninja who attacked them were from the Senju Clan.

After the battle at the City of Wood, the two sides had completely burned their bridges; why, then, would they allow them to leave with the grain?

They brought the precious grain back to Konoha and returned with the intelligence, waiting for Sarutobi Hiruzen's orders while leaving a small number of ninja to protect the Land of Fields.

This was Senju Nawaki's true objective; he had never cared about the grain, but rather about what rightfully belonged to the Senju Clan.

Senju Nawaki had already burned the Senju Clan's share of the grain, and next would come the punishment for those who had betrayed them.

Furthermore, there was the most precious thing in the Land of Fields: its fertile soil.

These lands had only achieved such high crop yields because of the contribution of Senju Hashirama's Wood Release, and the Senju Clan, who were skilled in Earth Release, having used their chakra and heart's blood to alter the landscape and change the soil's nutritional composition.

After such a war, the Land of Fields was left in shambles.

The once-prosperous Land of Fields was left with only a small amount of rations.

The Daimyo was immersed in endless regret.

Their country could only pin its hopes on a good harvest in the coming year.

How could Senju Nawaki possibly give the Land of Fields such a chance?

The Konoha team departed via the ancient road in the north of the Land of Fire.

Senju Nawaki and Senju Tojian stood on high ground, watching them leave.

Beneath their feet lay a peak formed of rubble, looking as though it might collapse at any moment.

Senju Tojian's eyes were filled with confusion; doing this felt like letting the Sarutobi Clan off too easily, allowing them to escape unscathed while taking away the grain they had dreamed of.

"Clan Leader, are we just going to let them go so easily?"

At some point, Senju Tojian had changed how he addressed him, no longer treating Senju Nawaki as a junior, but as a clan leader capable of bearing the responsibilities of the Senju Clan.

He watched the Sarutobi Clan depart, worried about the subsequent situation, fearing that the Sarutobi Clan would drag the entirety of Konoha into the fray; at that point, the Senju Clan would not find facing all of Konoha as easy as it was now.

"They are taking away grain that belongs to the Land of Fields. The misfortune of the Land of Fields is entirely due to the Daimyo's wrong choices. If I only kill these people, it won't be enough to serve as a deterrent. What I want is to destroy the entire Land of Fields."

Senju Nawaki crouched down and grabbed a handful of sand and soil.

The land here, having not been transformed by Senju Hashirama and the Senju Clan, was fundamentally unsuitable for growing crops; this was what the land of the Land of Fields had originally looked like.

"Destroy the Land of Fields? And have them continue to rely on us? I fear we don't have the strength for that."

A look of astonishment flashed across Senju Tojian's eyes.

The current Land of Fields was somewhat of a burden to the Senju Clan, requiring a full year before there would be any new grain production.

His gaze fixed on the handful of sand in Senju Nawaki's hand, as if it were gripping his heart.

How could such soil possibly grow crops?

He seemed to understand something in his heart.

He had been walking on the soil of the Land of Fields during this time, and that black earth was completely different from the sand in Senju Nawaki's hand.

Only then did he recall that all of this had been the work of their Senju Clan.

This black soil was fertile land formed after trees had rotted; it was only because Senju Hashirama had led the effort, with the entire Senju Clan mobilized, that the Land of Fields had been transformed.

"There is no need to control the Land of Fields. If they can betray us once, they can betray us a second time, and we lack the strength to hold it. Sunagakure and Kumogakure Village are already preparing to enter the fray. Once the Sarutobi Clan returns to Konoha, a new army of ninja will arrive within three days. There is no need for the Senju Clan to sacrifice themselves on such a chaotic battlefield. What they seek is the fertile land. I will turn it back into barren soil, restoring it to how it once was. The entire Land of Fields will return to its former state of starvation; it will no longer be a major grain producer or a point of contention between ninja villages, but merely a buffer zone between the battlefields of Kumogakure Village and Konoha."

Senju Nawaki tossed the sand from his hand and explained patiently to Senju Tojian.

Such a move not only demonstrated the power of the Senju Clan, but by eliminating a source of grain, the Senju Clan's influence would become even stronger.

Everything he did was to take back what had once belonged to the Senju Clan from the hands of traitors.

The grain burned this time was also the share that belonged to the Senju Clan.

Konoha had taken the rations of the citizens of the Land of Fields.

If the Daimyo of the Land of Fields wanted to make his own people suffer, then let them continue to suffer.

Let's see if they can hold on once they have left the Senju Clan.

"This?"

Senju Tojian's heart shook violently, his pupils constricting as his throat trembled.

If the Land of Fields truly returned to its state before the transformation, then less than one-tenth of its population would remain. In the past, this place had been even worse than the lands of Sunagakure.

He continuously simulated what Senju Nawaki had described in his mind.

With the level of Wood Release they both possessed, they could indeed achieve the effect Senju Nawaki spoke of, reverting the Land of Fields back into a barren wasteland.

Even if their current Wood Release skills were inferior to Senju Hashirama's, destruction was always easier than construction.

The consequence would be that the Land of Fields would no longer be a nation rich in resources, but a barren country unable to even feed itself.

"I will follow the Clan Head's orders."

After only a moment of hesitation, Senju Tojian made his decision.

Traitors would eventually pay the price.

They had given the Land of Fields many chances, but they had failed to cherish any of them.

"Sixth Granduncle, you can use this opportunity to become more proficient with Wood Release.

My Granduncle Senju Hashirama's Wood Release was used to build nations and transform the environment.

He helped the Land of Fields and the Land of Fire, reshaping the land and environment to be more suitable for human survival; he was practicing his own Ninja Way.

The two of us need to find our own path for Wood Release.

You observed the plants of the Ninja World a while ago and found that mutated Venus Flytrap, which fits your path perfectly.

You can try to develop in that direction."

Senju Nawaki gazed into the distance, looking at the mountains and clouds of the Ninja World, always feeling a sense of incongruity with it all. He then pulled back his thoughts and spoke softly to Senju Tojian.

What Senju Hashirama had done was recognized by the Ninja World as great, but this greatness was a detriment to the Senju Clan.

Now that he was about to destroy the miracle Senju Hashirama had once created, he felt a sense of loss in his heart.

He was not as noble as Senju Tojian; he only wanted to protect himself and the Senju Clan, and to make those who had once harmed or betrayed him pay the price.

It would start with erasing the influence of Senju Hashirama. Those thoughts and actions of his and Senju Tobirama's that were detrimental to the Senju Clan and the village had to be corrected, one by one.