A Conversation with Yuan Shi

"This is the village you wanted to protect, Hashirama," Madara murmured, his voice filled with both love and hatred.

"Send more White Zetsu clones into Konoha to gather information on the Uchiha Clan. Find an Uchiha descendant capable of bearing my name as soon as possible. My body will not hold out much longer." After a moment, having composed himself, Madara Uchiha gave the order to White Zetsu's main body.

"Lord Madara! There is one more thing. My clone in the Land of Lightning uncovered some news. The Third Mizukage sent a letter to the Third Raikage, inviting the Hidden Cloud Village to join forces in attacking the Land of Whirlpools and seizing their sealing techniques!" White Zetsu added.

"The Land of Whirlpools, the Uzumaki Clan?" Madara Uchiha muttered to himself. After considering it, he said to White Zetsu's main body, "Whether it is their sensory abilities or their sealing techniques, this clan could affect my plans in the future. Since Nagato is already nurturing my Rinnegan, it seems this damned clan should be eliminated first."

Whether Madara Uchiha had remembered Hashirama Senju being taken from him by Mito Uzumaki, or whether he truly believed the Uzumaki Clan would threaten his plans, he sent a large number of White Zetsu clones to the Land of Whirlpools as well, gathering intelligence and preparing to strike the country alongside Hidden Mist and Hidden Cloud.

The scene returned to Qing Si.

After Qing Si returned home, he immediately went to see Yuan Shi, intending to tell him about the Land of Whirlpools.

"Little Qing Si is back!" Yuan Shi was clearly delighted to see Qing Si return.

Although he had great confidence in Qing Si's strength, and Qing Si had not been assigned a combat mission this time, it was still his eldest grandson's first trip abroad. Yuan Shi could not help feeling the concern any elder would have for a younger family member traveling far from home.

"Grandpa! I'm back!" Qing Si was equally happy. Ever since gaining Yuan Shi as family, this was also the first time he had been away from home for so long.

After sharing a moment of grandfather-grandson affection, the two began discussing serious matters.

"Grandpa, did you know that Lord Mizukage is plotting against the Land of Whirlpools?" Qing Si asked. He needed to first determine whether Yuan Shi already knew about this. Although his grandfather held a high position in the village, he had not involved himself in village affairs for some time.

"I knew. In fact, I was the one who suggested that Lord Mizukage send you to deliver the letter to Hidden Cloud." Yuan Shi smiled. He knew what Qing Si wanted to ask.

"After Lord Second Mizukage Gengetsu perished together with the Second Tsuchikage, Hidden Mist Village no longer had any top-tier powerhouses apart from the current Third Mizukage. We still have some Kage Level fighters, but they are only ordinary Kage Level. What we lack are powerhouses capable of delivering a decisive blow and changing the tide of the battlefield. Therefore, at Lord Mizukage's suggestion, we began experiments involving jinchūriki," Yuan Shi continued.

"However, Hidden Mist Village lacks a legacy of sealing techniques, and we have never produced a powerhouse skilled in sealing techniques. As a result, the experiments progressed extremely poorly. We tried shinobi at every level of strength, yet not a single one succeeded. No one was able to survive after borrowing the power of a tailed beast. Those who were lucky enough to survive soon lost themselves when the tailed beast went berserk. Many outstanding shinobi died without accomplishing anything." Yuan Shi's expression darkened. He let out a long sigh before continuing, his voice heavy with sorrow and unwillingness.

"The sealing techniques inherited by the Uzumaki Clan of the Land of Whirlpools are precisely what we urgently need. And taking action to seize them during the coming Shinobi World War is our only chance to obtain that inheritance. Otherwise, once Konoha has time to spare, we will have no possibility of getting our hands on those sealing techniques. Although the Uzumaki Clan is only Konoha's ally in name, Konoha will never allow another village the opportunity to covet them. That is why Lord Mizukage proposed this plan."

"Grandpa, which two tailed beasts does Hidden Mist possess?" Qing Si asked. This was something he cared about and was also curious about.

Qing Si knew that Hidden Sand Village possessed One-Tail Shukaku, while Konoha Village possessed the strongest tailed beast, Nine-Tails Kurama. During a recent mission, he had learned that one of Hidden Cloud Village's tailed beasts was Eight-Tails Gyūki. As for the whereabouts of the other tailed beasts, even though he now controlled the Underground Bounty Station, he still did not know much. After all, having witnessed Nine-Tails jinchūriki Mito Uzumaki take action during the First Shinobi World War, every village had treated its tailed beasts as strategic nuclear weapons and tightly sealed away all information.

"At first, Konoha obtained eight tailed beasts. At the First Five Kage Summit, the First Hokage, Lord Hashirama Senju, sold the seven tailed beasts other than the Nine-Tails to the various villages. Hidden Sand Village already possessed the One-Tail, so it did not take any others. Hidden Rock Village acquired the Four-Tails and Five-Tails. Our Hidden Mist Village received the Three-Tails and Six-Tails, while Hidden Cloud received the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails. As for the final Seven-Tails, it was given to the Hidden Waterfall Village, which was also quite powerful overall at the time." Yuan Shi answered Qing Si's question in detail. Qing Si was his beloved eldest grandson, and his strength was now formidable enough as well. With the strength of an Elite Jonin, he ranked among the best in Hidden Mist Village, so there was nothing about such secrets that could not be told to him.

Three-Tails Isobu and Six-Tails Saiken? Qing Si thought.

(Note: The tailed beasts did not hate humans from the beginning. At first, they maintained good relations with humanity, only later being repeatedly captured by certain people who pursued power. Although Qing Si had not watched much Naruto in his previous life, with Isshiki's thousand years of memories, he clearly knew each of the nine tailed beasts' names.)