"Oh, right. Mashiki is coming to Konoha next month. You haven't met him yet, have you? I'll introduce you," Mito Uzumaki said to Uchiha Yi, as though something had just occurred to her.
"Mashiki?" Uchiha Yi nodded thoughtfully. Mashiki did have a surname: Senju. He was the son of Hashirama Senju and Mito Uzumaki, and the father of Tsunade and Nawaki. But he had gone to the Daimyō's Residence thirty years ago. To avoid suspicion, he never returned to Konoha, not even for the holidays.
Mashiki had come back to Konoha once before, but Uchiha Yi had been on the front lines at the time. They had missed each other by chance.
"Yes. Meeting Mashiki will benefit you both." Mito Uzumaki paused, then continued, "You'll become Hokage sooner or later. Through Mashiki, you can learn a little about what's happening at the Daimyō's Residence.
"Of course, don't expect too much. That branch of the Senju Clan joined the Daimyō's Residence, so they can't reveal anything too important to you. If they did, the daimyō would never tolerate it."
Uchiha Yi nodded in understanding. "But they're still members of the Senju Clan, aren't they?"
"Actually, I'm curious. What trump card does the daimyō have?" Uchiha Yi then asked Mito Uzumaki.
As a living relic of the Shinobi World, Mito Uzumaki knew far more than most people.
Besides, the Uzumaki Clan had once defied the entire world by founding a country of their own.
That had surely crossed the daimyōs' line. The Uzumaki Clan was a distinguished clan in the Shinobi World, but they were still different from the daimyōs.
Who do you think you are, compared to us?
You're mere ninja. Do you think you can take our place? The daimyōs could never accept that. If other ninja realized they could