"I've already sent people to explain the seriousness of the situation to the Uzumaki Clan. Hopefully, they'll hand over the Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Jutsu. Only then will we have a chance of killing Yeyue Ziyun."
Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke without looking up.
"Hmph. With the Uzumaki clan head's stubborn temper, he won't agree..." Danzo snorted coldly.
He himself had asked the Uzumaki Clan for their Sealing Jutsu many times, only to be turned away every time.
"This time, the stakes are high. If they don't agree..." Hiruzen Sarutobi left the sentence unfinished, but Danzo already knew what his old partner meant.
When it came to ruthlessness, Hiruzen Sarutobi was no less ruthless than him.
After returning to the village, Ziyun first took the Third Raikage to the hospital, then spent 30,000 points to exchange for a manual from the system: [How to Make the Navy Six Powers Suitable for Ninjas to Learn].
"Teacher Dodai, I've finished researching those Ninjutsu. I'm giving them to you now. Have all the ninjas in the Hidden Cloud Village who meet the requirements learn them. There's a good chance a major war is coming."
"Ziyun... the Hidden Cloud Village is lucky to have you."
Dodai was so moved when he received the scroll that his whole body trembled.
If the Hidden Cloud Village's ninjas could all learn those three Ninjutsu, the village's strength would increase greatly. If the Third Raikage found out, he would surely be delighted.
"Teacher Dodai, I'm a member of the Yeyue Clan and part of the Hidden Cloud Village. This is what I should do."
Ziyun remained quite calm. After asking Dodai where he had settled Mikoto and the others, Ziyun went to find Mikoto.
Dodai had settled Mikoto in the Hidden Cloud Village guesthouse, and Kushina was staying with her.
"Come on. You're both part of the Hidden Cloud Village now. You can't stay at the guesthouse, so come stay at my place."
Upon seeing Mikoto and Kushina's accommodations, Ziyun immediately decided to take them to the Yeyue Clan compound.
Mikoto didn't refuse. After all, she could only rely on Ziyun now.
Ziyun then mentioned it to the Third Raikage, and a few Hidden Cloud Chunin volunteered to help Mikoto and the others move after hearing about it.
After this incident, Ziyun's status in the Hidden Cloud Village had risen rapidly. He had gone from being the village's greatest prodigy to the hero who had saved the Third Raikage.
As a result, everything was handled quickly, and the Yeyue Clan members also said they warmly welcomed Mikoto and Kushina.
"Ziyun, how did it go? Did you really destroy Konoha?"
On the way to their new home, Mikoto asked Ziyun.
"Doesn't my safe return answer your question? Konoha has been destroyed, though its foundations probably weren't damaged."
Ziyun answered Mikoto's question with a smile.
"Really? That's wonderful..."
A delighted expression appeared on Mikoto's face.
That was right, delighted. She no longer had any affection for Konoha. On the contrary, she hated it.
After all, the Konoha High Command had sent assassins to kill her. It would have been strange if she didn't hate Konoha.
Mikoto was gentle, but she was no saint.
Over the past few days, Kushina had gradually recovered her spirits as well. She actually didn't have much of a reaction to leaving Konoha.
After all, her only slight connection to Konoha was Mito Uzumaki, along with the friendly relations between the Uzumaki Clan and Konoha.
She herself had little affection for Konoha and even disliked it somewhat.
After all, Kushina was mocked and bullied at school every day.
After this incident, Kushina hated Konoha even more, because the Konoha High Command had actually sent people to assassinate her best friend, Uchiha Mikoto.
Mito Uzumaki had even brought her from the Uzumaki Clan to Konoha solely to raise her as the next Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
So Kushina had no doubt that she too was merely a pawn of the Konoha High Command.
The one thing Kushina was more concerned about was what Ziyun had told her that day: that the Uzumaki Clan was going to be destroyed.
Chapter 31: A New Mission, Reward: Pirate Version Yomotsu Hirasaka! (Please Send Flowers and Votes!)
"Ziyun, is it true what you said about the Uzumaki Clan being destroyed?"
Seeing that Ziyun had returned, Kushina hurriedly asked.
"Of course it's true..." Ziyun replied.
"Then when will it happen?"
"I don't know either."
Ziyun spread his hands. He really didn't know, only the approximate time-it would be soon.
"Why? Who would attack the Uzumaki Clan?" Kushina was very curious.
The Uzumaki Clan was a relatively peaceable clan and hadn't made enemies of anyone else. Who would attack them?
"Possibly Konoha," Ziyun speculated.
"Konoha? That's impossible. The Uzumaki Clan and Konoha have always been on good terms, and Grandma Mito is still a Jinchūriki in Konoha," Kushina argued, though she didn't sound very confident.
In the past, she would have firmly believed it was impossible, but after this incident, she had seen the Konoha High Command's underhanded methods for herself.
"Actually, I'm only speculating. Your Uzumaki Clan has very powerful Sealing Jutsu, and Konoha covets them," Ziyun guessed.
After he had destroyed Konoha, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura surely hated him to death and wanted nothing more than to tear him limb from limb.
But he had killed all the ninjas in Konoha's Sealing Squad when he withdrew from Konoha, leaving the village desperately short of skilled sealing practitioners.
The Uzumaki Clan's greatest specialty was Sealing Jutsu.
Anyone could figure out that Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura would surely ask the Uzumaki Clan for help.
If the Uzumaki clan head refused to help Konoha, the Uzumaki Clan would be in trouble.
Of course, all of this was just Ziyun's speculation.
The Uzumaki clan head probably wouldn't be so stupid as to misunderstand the situation. For all Ziyun knew, the Uzumaki Clan might not even be destroyed.
"No, I have to tell the clan head about this." Kushina thought Ziyun had a point and immediately wanted to leave the Hidden Cloud Village and return to the Uzumaki Clan's home.
"If you tell the Uzumaki clan head now, will he listen to you? Do you have solid evidence? Don't tell me you can use Talk no Jutsu too?"
Ziyun placed both hands on Kushina's shoulders and tried to dissuade her.
"Then what should I do? I can't just stand by and watch the Uzumaki clan head be destroyed."
Kushina was so anxious she was almost in tears.
"Don't worry, I'll think of something. If you're confident you can persuade the Uzumaki clan head to join the Hidden Cloud Village, the Uzumaki Clan won't be destroyed."
Ziyun thought for a moment and looked at Kushina as he spoke.
Although the Uzumaki Clan wasn't particularly strong, its Sealing Jutsu were powerful. It was somewhat similar to Konoha's three Ino-Shika-Cho clans.
Although they had no top-tier prodigies, the three clans had prospered in Konoha thanks to their secret techniques, living far better than the strongest clans, the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan.
If the Uzumaki Clan could join the Hidden Cloud Village, it would also be a major boost to the village.
After all, they weren't particularly strong, so they wouldn't be likely to rebel, and their secret techniques could increase its fighting power.
But getting the Uzumaki Clan to join the Hidden Cloud Village wouldn't be so easy. Even the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, had failed to persuade them to join Konoha back then.
He didn't know whether Kushina had what it took to persuade the Uzumaki clan head. After all, she seemed to be his granddaughter.
Of course, if the Uzumaki Clan wasn't willing to join the Hidden Cloud Village, Ziyun wouldn't mind wiping them out either.
After all, they possessed quite a few powerful Sealing Jutsu that posed a considerable threat to him.
What happened next would depend on the Uzumaki Clan's choice.
After Mikoto and Kushina had settled in, Kushina suddenly turned to Ziyun.
"Ziyun, I've made up my mind. I want to go back to the Land of Whirlpools and tell Grandpa this news."
Kushina spoke firmly. She couldn't stand by and watch the Uzumaki Clan be wiped out.
"Really? Since you're confident, I won't stop you. I'll go with you, so Konoha's people don't abduct you."
Ziyun nodded and didn't stop Kushina.
That was because, during the conversation just now, the system had issued another mission:
[S-rank mission: Participate in the Night of the Uzumaki Clan's Destruction:] Mission description: Participate in the Night of the Uzumaki Clan's Destruction. Time limit: 7 days. Mission rewards: 30,000 mission points, Paramecia Door-Door Fruit; Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Flame; strength +10, stamina +3. Mission failure: no penalty.
After seeing this mission, Ziyun could be certain that the Uzumaki Clan would be destroyed within seven days.
Because the time limit was only seven days.
As for the mission requirements, they only asked him to participate in the Night of the Uzumaki Clan's Destruction. They didn't say he had to save or destroy the clan.
It seemed the system was quite considerate.
After all, if the system had required him to save the Uzumaki Clan, the mission would have been a real pain. What if the Uzumaki Clan didn't want to join the Hidden Cloud Village?
Wouldn't Ziyun still have had to rescue them?
Now he only had to participate in the Night of the Uzumaki Clan's Destruction, which meant the choice was entirely in Ziyun's hands.
Whether to destroy the Uzumaki Clan or save them was entirely up to Ziyun.
Of course, even more depended on the Uzumaki clan head's decision. If he rejected Ziyun, Ziyun would have no choice but to wipe out the Uzumaki Clan.
The rewards for this S-rank mission also caught Ziyun's eye.
The Paramecia Door-Door Fruit was an absurdly powerful fruit.
A user of the Door-Door Fruit could open doors anywhere and pass freely through them.
Doors could be opened in places including the air and on flames. No matter how hard the location was or whether it lacked a physical form, such as flames or air, a door could be created there.
The user could create doors of different types, sizes, and shapes as they wished.
It was only because the Devil Fruit User who had it in Pirate King was so weak that the fruit looked weak.