News of the Senju Clan's defeat quickly spread throughout the human world, and almost every ninja clan knew about it.
What shocked the ninja clans even more was that, taking advantage of the Senju Clan's defeat, the Uchiha Clan expanded rapidly and had already annexed one-third of the Land of Fire's territory!
Suddenly, clans throughout the Shinobi World began to harbor different thoughts. If the Uchiha could do it, and even successfully occupy one-third of the Land of Fire's territory, why couldn't they?
This was especially evident within the Land of Fire; in other countries, at least the daimyo and some families had cooperated with them to suppress the situation.
The Senju Clan, originally used for suppression within the Land of Fire, was kicked away by the Uchiha, prompting various clans within the Land of Fire to raise the banner of independence.
With the Senju Clan defeated, the Uchiha Clan independent, Uzumaki Clan having fled, none of the three major clans will care about them now. If they don't become independent now, when will they?
The Sarutobi Clan was the first to raise the banner of independence, occupying a large area of plains and jungles in the southwestern part of the Land of Light of Land of Fire established by the Uchiha Clan, and establishing the Land of Gold!
The Yamanaka Clan and Akimichi Clan relocated their clan headquarters, joining forces to move to the northwest of the Land of Fire, where they established Land of Harmony in Land of Fire jungles and parts of the plains within the northwestern territory.
The Land of Fire could only watch helplessly. At this point, they had no power to stop it from happening. The Senju Clan's forces were already extremely small, only able to defend the central plains of the Land of Fire.
As for suppressing the independence movements of these families, that's completely impossible.
The Land of Fire, which had been passed down for over a thousand years, was completely shattered and fragmented. Apart from the core central plains, the rest of the land was completely out of control.
The daimyo of the Land of Fire, witnessing all this, was naturally filled with immense rage, but unable to vent his anger, he could only direct it at the Senju Clan.
Within the capital city of the Land of Fire's residence
"Thump—" The daimyo, seated at the highest position, slammed his hand on the armrest, his eyes filled with rage. All the ministers below him knelt on the ground, trembling, not daring to utter a word.
" The Senju Clan! What else do you have to say? What are you even doing?" The Daimyo of the Land of Fire was utterly exasperated by the Senju Clan's stupidity.
"Your army was wiped out right outside the Uchiha capital! This has deprived us of the power to suppress the other clans."
Everyone knows the Land of Fire is incapable of resolving the issue of ninja clans becoming independent! Now the entire border region of the Land of Fire is out of control. Are you satisfied now?
The Land of Fire, a land with a history spanning thousands of years, is now completely divided. What kind of future do you intend to bring upon the Land of Fire? Is this how you treat my trust?
The newly appointed head of the Senju Clan, Oto Senju, stood below, head bowed, silent, until the Daimyo of the Land of Fire had vented his anger, at which point he slowly spoke.
"Your Excellency, we will not shirk our responsibility for the Senju Clan's crimes, but right now, our most important task is to defend against the Uchiha's upcoming invasion."
The Senju Clan, utterly weakened by this battle, is no longer able to stop the counterattack. We must now organize a defense and absolutely prevent the Uchiha Clan from entering the capital.
Although the Senju Clan has lost its main force, it still possesses defensive capabilities. We haven't been defeated yet; we still have a chance!
"Opportunity? What opportunity? Your main force was wiped out by the Uchiha in one fell swoop. Tell me, what opportunity do you have left? Do you think your remaining troops can stop the Uchiha's chariots?"
The leader sat in his chair and roared, "If any of you were even slightly useful, you wouldn't be completely useless! You're all a bunch of trash!"
Fū Senju stood below, pursed his lips, and said, "Your Excellency, there is no other way at the moment. Currently, the only military force the Land of Fire possesses is that of our Senju Clan."
If the Senju Clan is abandoned, the Land of Fire will completely lose its ability to suppress other clans and will lose all possibility of reclaiming its original lands.
Therefore, we have no other choice. If I remember correctly, the Land of Fire previously built border fortifications in the central plains to prevent rebellions in the border regions, corresponding to several surrounding border areas.
The border fortress was constructed using steel and rock, a mixture of the most durable Chakra ore, and was painstakingly built by artisans from the Land of Fire, making it extremely sturdy!
We should now abandon all the land outside the border and completely withdraw our defenses inside the border, using this impregnable border to confront the rebels.
Use this time to accumulate strength, and make plans when you are powerful enough!
The Daimyo of the Land of Fire glared at Oto Senju, the head of the Senju Clan, through gritted teeth. Though he didn't want to admit it, what Oto Senju said was true.
The only thing the Land of Fire can rely on right now is the Senju Clan.
Furthermore, the Senju Clan has been severely weakened and is absolutely unable to reclaim these lands. They can only follow Oto Senju's advice and retreat to a defensive posture, waiting until they become stronger before taking them back.
" The Senju Clan, while your words may not be wrong, can all the crimes you have committed be absolved because of these reasons?"
I tell you, no! From this day forward, your Senju Clan will be marked as sinners. You will be sinners of the Land of Fire, and your descendants will have to atone for the Land of Fire's sins!
The mark of sin on you will only end when you reclaim the land outside; until then, each of you must atone for it!
Oto Senju: "... We refuse! If you really insist on doing this, then we would rather surrender to the Uchiha!"
At this point, Oto Senju completely abandoned all pretense of civility. After all, they now controlled the entire Land of Fire Land of Fire's military power.
Although they rely on the logistics provided by the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, if the Daimyo of the Land of Fire were to truly condemn them all as criminals and exploit them, they wouldn't mind suffering mutual destruction!
After all, Oto Senju wasn't that coward Fū Senju; he would never abandon the dignity of the Senju Clan to pursue other interests.
"You... you all!" The Daimyo of the Land of Fire gritted his teeth. The Senju Clan now held military power, and he dared not go too far with the Senju Clan.
So the Daimyo of the Land of Fire could only wave his hand and say, "In that case, the Senju Clan will be temporarily relegated to commoners of the Land of Fire, and your previous noble status will be revoked."
"Only when you are able to reclaim your outer lands can you become nobles of the Land of Fire. This is my final bottom line."
Oto Senju responded softly, "Yes, that's for the best, Your Excellency."
The Uchiha Clan ignored the Land of Gold and the Land of Harmony, as their primary enemy remained the Land of Fire.
The Uchiha, also known as the Land of Light, did attempt to amass a large army to decisively defeat the Land of Fire, but their forces suffered a crushing defeat at the eastern border of the Land of Fire.
After suffering a massive defeat and losing their main force, the Senju Clan completely retreated into a shell.
They remained holed up in the impregnable central border fortifications built by the Land of Fire in its early days, refusing to come out no matter how the Uchiha provoked them or used their schemes.
The central border fortifications were built specifically to prevent rebellions or loss of control in the border regions; their structure was extremely sturdy.
Even the Uchiha wasn't confident they could breach this pass without paying a heavy price, so Uchiha Takashi naturally wouldn't be willing to attack at such a cost.
Thus, the two countries returned to a state of confrontation.