Samurai, Ninja, Hounds

Hashirama offered a strained smile, shook his head at Tobirama, and answered. Seeing this, Tobirama furrowed his brows and spoke to him once more.

"I never imagined that the taciturn blind man from back then would be the mastermind behind all of this. Big Brother, we must change our future plans!"

Hashirama caught his breath, sat cross-legged on the ground, and looked at the contemplative Tobirama, saying, "What do you want to say? Just say it!"

Tobirama crouched halfway, one hand pressed to the ground while the other supported his chin, and spoke in a deep voice. "The Uchiha Clan's current state is clearly an attempt to use the prestige held by those in power to force the ninja clans to submit one by one. You must realize that while the many ninja clans of the Land of Fire hold various titles, they all ultimately belong to the Land of Fire. Therefore, they must inevitably follow the laws of the Land of Fire. No matter how dissatisfied they are, they will inevitably bow their heads to the Uchiha Clan!"

Having said this, Tobirama suddenly stopped. He looked at Hashirama, unsure of how to continue explaining, as these matters were completely contrary to what Hashirama intended to do, yet the results were infinitely better than what Hashirama's approach would yield. Hashirama seemed to have noticed Tobirama's hesitation; he stared intently at him and demanded, "And if I say no?"

"...!"

Tobirama did not answer, but his silent expression only made Hashirama feel more irritated. He shouted an order at him: "Speak!"

"Those who submit will prosper, and those who resist will perish!"

Tobirama knew this paper window had to be pierced, otherwise, his Big Brother would never wake up to reality today. He spoke quickly. Upon hearing Tobirama's words, Hashirama lowered his head and fell into a long, deep silence. Just as Tobirama was about to speak up to persuade him, Hashirama suddenly burst into laughter.

"Hahaha! This is the friend I recognized... Hahaha... As expected of Mingye and Madara... Their methods are truly worthy of applause. Not bad, not bad... It is indeed so... Matters of righteousness should be solved in a righteous way... I thought too much in the past... I never expected Mingye to have already thought this far ahead!"

"Big Brother...!"

Seeing Hashirama laughing wildly, Tobirama was unsure of what the other was truly thinking. Just as he was about to say something, he was interrupted again by Hashirama.

"Tobirama, say no more. We are returning to the clan now. I want Father to cede the position of Clan Head to me!"

Hearing Hashirama's firm reply, Tobirama was astonished. He had not expected Hashirama to develop such ambition in that instant. This word, which had never existed in Hashirama's heart, was now etched across his face. Feeling a bit uneasy, he confirmed, "Big Brother, you aren't joking, are you?"

Hashirama's face remained pale, but a sense of vitality radiated from within his body. He stood up and said to Tobirama, "Father is already old; it is time for him to rest! What I intend to do requires the position of Clan Head!"

General Sato's Martial Pavilion was only opened during times of war. This morning, General Sato, having been startled awake, received news that left him deeply shocked: for days, strange ninjas had been coming and going from his estate as if it were their own backyard. This sent a chill through Sato.

Dressed in military attire, Sato sat in the main seat with one hand resting on his long sword, glaring coldly at Mingye, who knelt before him. An unknown amount of time passed between them before Sato drew his long sword and threw it toward Mingye. The blade spun five or six times in the air before piercing accurately into the wooden floorboards directly in front of Mingye.

"Shouldn't you be reporting the things I want to know?"

Mingye handled the situation calmly. He bowed, pressed his forehead to the ground, and said apologetically, "Reporting to the General, those who invaded the General's pavilion are from the Forest Senju Clan—Tobirama Senju. This man is skilled in concealment, assassination, and Water Release; he is an exceptionally talented assassin. It took me, Okayama, seven full days of investigation to track his movements. It is my incompetence that I did not report this to the General sooner!"

Hearing the name "Forest Senju" once again, Sato was clearly furious. He asked, "The Forest Senju again! Are they here to assassinate me?! Why!"

Mingye felt nothing but disdain in his heart. I am enduring you and kneeling to you now only because you are already a dead man in my eyes. Of course, despite his inner curses, Mingye played the part to the end and replied respectfully, "This subordinate does not know. The Forest Senju Clan and my Uchiha Clan are mortal enemies; we also do not know what they are planning!"

Sato was not a man without intelligence. Over the past few days, he had learned something of the issues and history between the two great clans. After calming down slightly, he asked Mingye with a dark expression, "I want the Senju Clan wiped out, leaving not even a dog or chicken behind! Can your Uchiha Clan do it?"

Hooked! Mingye laughed inwardly and replied respectfully once more, "My Lord, annihilating the Senju Clan is the long-cherished wish of our Uchiha Clan. However, I can only tell you here that the strength of our Uchiha Clan and theirs is evenly matched; we do not have the absolute certainty to eradicate them completely!"

Sato did not think much of anything else. The Forest Senju were like a bone stuck in his throat, and he would not be satisfied until they were removed. Now possessing a flicker of ambition, he stood up, walked to Mingye, pulled his long sword from the floorboards, and pointed it at Mingye's shoulder, signaling for him to stand and answer.

"What would it take for you to be able to do it?"

Mingye stood before Sato and bowed slightly to show respect to the General. He paused for a long time before asking, "Does the General believe in the status of our Uchiha Clan in the ninja world?"

"Why so much nonsense!"

Sato glanced at Mingye impatiently, clearly disliking this way of speaking. Mingye paused for only a moment before continuing, "My Uchiha Clan is one of the strongest in the ninja world, yet even so, there are many who can contend with us. To be strong but not the strongest—this is the distress that plagues our Uchiha Clan, just like the General at this very moment!"

"Mingye!"

Mingye's words struck a nerve. Sato pressed his long sword against Mingye's neck and roared at him. Mingye remained expressionless; his eyes, though hollow, seemed incredibly sharp as he stared back at Sato. "General, under the vast heavens, all is the King's land; all who dwell within the borders are the King's subjects. There can only be one sun in this world. Our Uchiha Clan wishes to be the sun of the ninja world, and we hope that our master can also become the sun for all people under heaven!" After Mingye finished speaking, the entire hall fell into a deathly silence. Everyone held their breath, and even the servants and the guards standing by the doors could not help but turn their gaze toward Mingye and Sato.

Sato's face did not darken at Mingye's words. It was as if what Mingye said was a fuse, and the "explosive" known as ambition, once ignited, erupted completely at that moment. The long sword returned to its scabbard; the sound of the hilt guard clashing against the sheath was like a command. All the ninjas on the roof descended.

Twelve ninjas moved with lightning speed, slaughtering every servant and guard present in the hall. Blood quickly turned the entire hall into a purgatory.

Sato looked at Mingye with a blank expression. Only after everyone was dead did he speak again.

"I do not wish to see any more news regarding the Senju Clan. If your Uchiha Clan cannot wipe out the Senju, then everything is just empty talk. I will use every resource I can command in the Land of Fire to hunt down your Uchiha Clan!"

Sato's words sounded like a threat, but they also indicated that he was now prepared to use his full power to help the Uchiha Clan facilitate the war. Thus, Mingye knelt on one knee once more.

"I await your command, My Lord!"

"Speak!"

Having received permission, Uchiha Mingye Hozuki Gengetsu revealed the true purpose of this mission.

"We must legitimize ourselves! We shall become the official state-sanctioned ninjas of the Land of Fire!"

Sato frowned slightly. The status of a legitimate ninja was unprecedented; in this era where clans ruled the world, ninjas were nothing more than private death squads raised by their own families. No one had ever considered nationalizing the ninja force or bringing them to the table for political discourse. However, Sato, whose ambition had already been ignited, felt that such a move might not be a bad thing. He then questioned Mingye once more.

"Heh! This is no easy task. But since you have proposed it, I cannot dismiss it outright. Lay out your entire plan for me!"

Mingye knew that while no one had done this before, Senju Hashirama would soon be the first to raise this banner. By ending the chaotic era, he would bring ninjas to the very forefront of the world. This glory had to be seized by his own brother first; only then could they suppress the Senju Clan completely within a certain timeframe.

Because time was tight and human learning capacity was unparalleled, he knew he could not hide these actions from the Senju Clan for long. Once they got wind of it, the notoriously wise Tobirama would certainly be able to copy his plan and create a standoff between the Senju and Uchiha clans in the Land of Fire. This was a situation Mingye absolutely did not want to see. To gain the upper hand, he had to stay one step ahead at every turn. If he took one wrong step, the fate of the Uchiha Clan would inevitably be forced back to its original path. Thinking of this, Mingye spoke up again.

"Although the Senju of the Forest are our mortal enemies, their strength is indeed on par with ours. We do not have the absolute power to wipe them out, but we can take a different path: gather all the ninja clans in the Land of Fire. Even if the Senju Clan is powerful, their end would be inevitable. Furthermore, My Lord, don't you think the current military strength of the nation is far too weak? If the Shogun truly has the ambition to become the sun of the world, why not organize a ninja army? You have seen the power of ninjas yourself; when they are formed into an army, wouldn't they be even more formidable?"

"Do you have a detailed plan?"

"Please, My Lord, take a look!"

After a moment of contemplation, Sato asked again. Mingye immediately took out the proposal he had prepared in his robes. Sato did not hesitate and opened the document. Looking at the comprehensive and detailed organizational plan within, he nodded heavily. Sato knew well that in these chaotic times, no one was absolutely loyal to their master; those who were blindly loyal often met miserable ends. Clearly, the Uchiha Clan did not belong to the category of the blindly loyal.