Vacuum

Three days after Naruto left, Uchiha Ling stood atop the Hokage Rock, overlooking the bustling reconstruction of Konoha below. With that boisterous blond kid gone, the village seemed to have quieted down all at once, leaving even his small courtyard feeling unaccustomed and desolate.

He knew this feeling was loneliness, but he had no time to savor it. No sooner had Jiraiya and Naruto departed than the atmosphere in the village changed visibly. The superficial balance that had been maintained even amidst the undercurrents during the Third Hokage's reign had been completely shattered.

Danzo's moves were barely concealed.

First, the allocation plan for reconstruction funds was repeatedly obstructed by members of Root during council meetings, with the focus heavily skewed toward areas and departments under their control. Then, several border patrol missions originally handled by the Third's direct Anbu were forcibly reassigned to Root under the pretext of "insufficient manpower, requiring concentrated efforts for priority reconstruction."

What made Uchiha Ling even more vigilant was that peripheral members of "Dawn Wind" he had planted among ordinary villagers and low-ranking ninja reported that strange rumors had begun to spread quietly at the grassroots level. They claimed that "Uchiha Ling's origins are unknown and his power is eerie," and that "most Dawn Wind members are rogue ninja and bloodline monsters, not to be trusted." Some even vaguely attributed Orochimaru's invasion during the Chunin Exams to the misfortune attracted by his "special existence."

The methods were not particularly clever, but they were highly effective. Some civilians and ninja who had originally felt grateful toward Uchiha Ling and Dawn Wind for their performance during the war now looked at him with renewed suspicion and alienation.

"He is testing us, and he is isolating us." That evening, at the Tanzaku Town stronghold, Uchiha Ling spoke to the few people gathered around. The candlelight reflected off his expressionless face.

"Bah! That old geezer, he only knows how to play these dirty tricks!" Zabuza spat, slamming his Executioner's Blade into the ground with a dull thud. "If you ask me, we shouldn't be polite either. Since he's spreading rumors, we should just spill some of his own shady business!"

"No." Uchiha Ling shook his head. "Without concrete evidence, it will only alert the enemy and give him more excuses to purge us. If we clash head-on now, we will be the ones to suffer."

"Then are we just going to wait here while he puts the noose around our necks step by step?" Uchiha Izumi's tone carried anxiety. She was responsible for internal coordination and felt that invisible pressure the most.

"Of course not." Uchiha Ling looked at Haku and Kimimaro. "How did the mission I gave you go?"

Haku sat up straight immediately and reported earnestly: "Kimimaro and I scouted three suspicious areas on the edge of the Forest of Death. Two of them had residual chakra confirmed to be from previous battles. But in the deepest part, that 'decaying' aura was strongest, and... we found some of this." He carefully took out a small cloth-wrapped box from his robes and opened it. Inside were several withered leaves, as if all vitality had been sucked out by some force, with extremely faint, unsettling chakra lingering on them.

Uchiha Ling picked up a leaf. A cold, deathly silence traveled from his fingertips. Unlike the cold, slick nature of Orochimaru's chakra he was familiar with, this felt more like a kind of... pure "extinction."

"It's not Orochimaru." Uchiha Ling said firmly, his brow furrowing. This strange residual chakra gave him a bad premonition.

"Do we need to investigate deeper?" Kimimaro asked. As long as Uchiha Ling gave the order, he could step into the most dangerous area at any time.

"No, stop for now." Uchiha Ling put down the leaf. "The primary goal now is to stabilize our situation in the village. Make a note of this unknown thing for now."

He turned to Uchiha Izumi: "Pacify the clan members and the families of Dawn Wind members to ensure they aren't affected by the rumors. All external activities in the near future must be done in groups to avoid being alone. Zabuza, take a few skilled hands and keep an eye on those Root subordinates who are jumping around the most. Figure out their patterns, but remember: just watch, don't act."

"Understood." Uchiha Izumi and Zabuza replied in unison.

After making these arrangements, Uchiha Ling returned to Konoha alone. The night was deep, and instead of returning directly to his courtyard, he went to the lower reaches of the Naka River, where he used to meet Itachi. The river flowed with a rushing sound that carried far in the silent night.

He needed to clear his thoughts. Danzo was pressing step by step, unknown threats were emerging, Naruto was not by his side, and Jiraiya was on a long journey... All the pressure was concentrated on him alone. He could not panic, and he could not make mistakes. One wrong step could lead to total ruin.

System. He whispered in his heart.

[I am here.]

[God-Level Choice triggered!]

[Option 1: Take the initiative, gather concrete evidence of Danzo's First Hokage cell experiments, and make it public. Reward: High-level intelligence acquisition channel x1. Risk: Extremely high; may face an all-out counterattack from Root, the chain of evidence may be severed, and failure means an irreconcilable feud with Danzo.]

[Option 2: Temporarily endure, focus on consolidating the interior of "Dawn Wind," improve personal strength, and wait for Tsunade's return or an external opportunity. Reward: Total chakra capacity increased by 10%, slight increase in organizational loyalty. Risk: Medium; Danzo may grow stronger during this period and completely seize control of Konoha.]

[Option 3: Divert the disaster, use anonymous channels to leak information about the "decaying chakra" to Konoha officials or bounty hunters, guiding them to investigate and shifting Danzo's focus. Reward: Random B-rank ninjutsu scroll x1. Risk: Medium-low; may alert the enemy and trigger unknown chain reactions.]

Three options represented three different paths.

Option one was too radical; he did not yet have the certainty of victory. Option three seemed clever, but the unknown threat made him wary; acting rashly could lead to unpredictable consequences.

It seemed only option two would suffice. Endure and accumulate strength. This aligned with the core of how he had always operated.

"I choose two."

[Choice confirmed. Rewards will be distributed gradually during the mission execution.]

After making his decision, Uchiha Ling felt the heaviness in his heart lighten slightly. With the direction clear, the rest was execution.

He turned to leave. Just then, at the edge of his perception, he suddenly caught a trace of an extremely faint but high-speed chakra reaction, galloping toward Konoha from the northwest! The chakra carried a sense of anxiety and panic, and... it felt vaguely familiar.

It wasn't Jiraiya, nor was it Naruto. Who could it be?

Uchiha Ling's eyes narrowed, and he immediately activated the Flying Thunder God, his figure vanishing from the riverbank.

The next moment, he appeared atop a watchtower on the northwest outskirts of Konoha. Under the moonlight, he saw a Konoha Anbu ninja covered in blood and dust, his forehead protector askew, stumbling toward him, on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion. Uchiha Ling recognized the style of the mask; it was an Anbu directly under the Hokage, one of those who had followed Jiraiya to handle affairs!

The Anbu also saw the suddenly appearing Uchiha Ling. As if grabbing the last straw, he used his remaining strength to shout: "Lord... Lord Ling... quick... Lady Tsunade... she was ambushed... Lord Jiraiya... is trapped..."

Before he could finish, he collapsed to the ground and fell unconscious.

Uchiha Ling's heart sank.

Tsunade was ambushed? Jiraiya was trapped?

Danzo's moves were this fast? Or was it... that another force had intervened?

He immediately leaned down to check the Anbu's injuries. They were severe, but mostly flesh wounds and exhaustion from chakra depletion; there were no fatal wounds. He quickly performed emergency treatment on the Anbu and then hoisted him onto his back.

Without any hesitation, Uchiha Ling activated the Flying Thunder God, appearing directly in the plaza in front of the Hokage building. He had to inform the two advisors of this news immediately, and... see what Danzo's reaction would be.

The first real storm of Konoha's power vacuum seemed to have arrived faster and more violently than expected.