After a moment of silence, Hatake Sakumo suddenly spoke. "Lord Xiao, how should I proceed? Should I tell Lord Hokage?"
Uchiha Xiao shook his head. "There's no need. The order came from Lord Hokage himself. It's good to have a mind of your own, but if you tell Lord Hokage now, you'll be forcing him to reverse his orders."
"Even if you do something good, it'll only make the Hokage think less of you. Better to... play along. Set out tonight and go to the location marked on the map, then..."
He whispered the last few words into Hatake Sakumo's ear. Sakumo nodded. "I understand, Lord Xiao!"
Uchiha Xiao glanced out the window. The moon shone brightly amid a sparse scattering of stars, and a cool breeze blew in, making him shiver. He sighed. "Pretend I never came tonight. Oh, and one more thing, Lord Sakumo: a tree that towers above the forest is bound to be battered by the wind. Remember to keep a low profile. Konoha isn't as simple as you think."
With that, Uchiha Xiao rose and walked out of the study. He reached the door, grasped the handle, and pushed it down. The door opened.
Uchiha Xiao looked up in surprise. Lady Meiko was standing guard at the entrance, apparently very focused.
When Meiko saw the door open and Uchiha Xiao come out, she gave him a formal smile, then opened the front door.
Uchiha Xiao nodded and left the Hatake Clan residence. He could guess who was behind this, but it wasn't appropriate to tell Hatake Sakumo. The more you knew, the more weary you became.
Hatake Sakumo was a blade, so sharp that even the person wielding it had to handle it with care. Any mission he undertook was completed to perfection.
And it was precisely this great talent, combined with his failure to conceal it, that made the Third Hokage wary of him and Shimura Danzō jealous of him. In the end, Sakumo couldn't get past his own conscience and took his life.
Even in his old age, the Third Hokage knew Sakumo was a loyal and exceptional ninja. But he didn't dare take a chance. What if, one day, Sakumo's supporters urged him to compete for the Hokage's seat? Would Hiruzen's position still be secure?
As everyone knew, Sarutobi Hiruzen became so obsessed with power that he held on to it until the moment he died. What about the Fourth Hokage, you ask?
The Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato, was indeed a civilian-born ninja. He was Jiraiya's student and Sarutobi Hiruzen's grandstudent. After becoming Hokage, he didn't build his own faction, out of respect for his grandmaster.
He consulted the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, on everything. This greatly satisfied Hiruzen's desire to control power. In other words, the Fourth Hokage was Hiruzen's puppet.
Fugaku had even gone to see Namikaze Minato back then, hinting at it both subtly and directly several times. Minato only talked about trivial matters, never politics, leaving Uchiha Fugaku deeply worried.
The other clans were watching, too. After all, compared with Sarutobi Hiruzen, they preferred the politically naive, mild-mannered Namikaze Minato.
Uchiha's rebuff also made the other clans give up their own plans. They stopped visiting Namikaze Minato.
But that's beside the point. Let's get back to the story.
This time, Uchiha Xiao had told Hatake Sakumo to deliberately fail the mission, and he'd also prepared various explanations for him. The rest was up to Sakumo.
He'd said all he needed to say. Whether Sakumo listened was up to him. Being a victorious general who won every battle sounded impressive, but it also easily aroused a ruler's suspicion.
Having too much power could threaten the ruler's position. That wasn't just a saying. Just as Uchiha Xiao left the Hatake Clan grounds, five Uchiha ninjas appeared in front of him.
They all knelt. "Sixth Elder, the clan leader instructed us to escort you to the meeting."
Uchiha Xiao paused, then smiled. "All right, get up. We're all members of the same clan. Don't go kneeling every time. A man's knees are worth their weight in gold. You don't need to kneel when you see me. Lead the way."
Uchiha Xiao's words about a man's knees being worth their weight in gold made the Uchiha ninjas pause. Their hearts stirred. None of the other elders had ever said anything like that.
Even the Fourth Elder of the Dove Faction, who had a gentle expression, still carried an elder's innate sense of superiority. But Uchiha Xiao didn't. They could feel that he truly meant what he said.
The others looked to the ninja at the head of the group. After a moment's thought, he said, "Everyone, do as the Sixth Elder says. Get up first!"
Then the lead ninja spoke. "Sixth Elder, I'm Uchiha Don. Please follow me."
Uchiha Xiao nodded. "All right. I'll remember you, Don."
"Yes!" Uchiha Don nodded, then led the other four ninjas on ahead. Uchiha Xiao smiled faintly and followed.
Ding! Congratulations, host. You have gifted the 2090 Blast-Proof Suit to Nawaki. Rewards will be issued after the battle with Sunagakure. Ding! Congratulations, host. You have slightly changed Hatake Sakumo's way of thinking. Reward: five thousand points and the Body Flicker Technique.
The chakra pathways for the Body Flicker Technique appeared in Uchiha Xiao's mind in an instant. He grinned at the ninjas ahead, flowing chakra without forming Hand Seals.
In a flash, Uchiha Xiao leaped several times and pulled alongside the ninjas in front. "Hey, Don, I'll wait for you at the entrance to the clan grounds!" With that, Uchiha Xiao used the Body Flicker Technique several times in succession.
The five Uchiha ninjas stared at him, dumbfounded. They'd seen the Body Flicker Technique before, but never used so fluidly. And the technique consumed a lot of chakra. How did Uchiha Xiao seem to have an endless supply?
The five ninjas exchanged glances, gritted their teeth, formed Hand Seals, and used the Body Flicker Technique. But they still couldn't catch up with Uchiha Xiao, who kept flickering ahead.
A short while later, Uchiha Xiao appeared at the entrance to the clan grounds. Seeing him, the Uchiha guard hurriedly bowed. "Sixth Elder, please come in. The clan leader is holding a meeting."
Uchiha Xiao shook his head. "I'll wait. There are still people who haven't arrived." There was a hint of amusement in his voice.
Hadn't arrived? The guard looked puzzled, but didn't dare ask. He returned to his post and stood motionless, guarding the entrance to the clan grounds.
About three minutes later, Uchiha Xiao looked back the way he'd come, a smile spreading across his face. The five little ones had arrived. He waved. "Hey! You're finally here!"
Uchiha Don and the other four hadn't used the Body Flicker Technique for the last stretch. They'd run instead. Good grief, that technique consumed way too much chakra. One more use, and they might have run out completely!
Struggling through their chakra-drained exhaustion, they ran up to Uchiha Xiao. He wasn't even red in the face or out of breath. He was still smiling at them.
As expected of the youngest elder, the Sixth Elder really lived up to his reputation. The five of them were thoroughly impressed.
Uchiha Xiao laughed. "You young people need to exercise more." He patted Uchiha Don on the shoulder.
Uchiha Don's face was red. He stammered, "E-Elder... you're... so strong! W-We're no match for you!"
Uchiha Xiao shook his head. "Want to rest for a bit?" Seeing Uchiha Don like this made him feel a little guilty. He'd been so caught up in enjoying himself that he'd forgotten to think about everyone else.
Uchiha Don shook his head, took a deep breath, and forced himself to perk up. "Please, Elder, follow me." Then, trembling, he led the way.