Naruto World, Iwagakure.
Ōnoki and Kitsuchi returned to their home.
The two stood by the window, their gaze fixed on the iconic building of the Tsuchikage Office in the distance.
"Father, Uchiha Sasuke doesn't trust us," Kitsuchi said, looking at Ōnoki, who was floating, his feet not touching the ground, and expressed his speculation with emotion.
"That's normal. Compared to Deidara, that young man named Sasuke already possesses the magnanimity of a Kage. Although his actions are still a bit naive, it doesn't matter."
As long as his heart is with Iwagakure, that's enough," Ōnoki nodded.
"Going to the Tsuchikage Office just now confirmed one thing for me: Uchiha Madara should be injured, but I don't know the extent of his injuries," Ōnoki looked up at his son.
"The information gathered from there... a blue giant and a purple giant were fighting."
"After that, several mountain ranges on the Land of Fire border were destroyed, and the ground also had more green plants similar to those grown by Wood Release."
"Father, what do you think that was?"
"Most likely Susanoo, I'm not certain," Ōnoki said after a brief thought.
That scale of battle even surpassed the one at the Valley of the End.
Even the spies still lurking in Konoha only dared to approach and investigate much later.
"Oh, right, did Sasuke take any action after that?"
Basically, the power of Iwagakure had been handed over to Sasuke to manage, but for some important information, a copy of the data would be sent over by his secret agents.
"Sasuke's assassination attempts on Konoha ninja have stopped," Kitsuchi pondered, then seemed to recall something and said, "From the information sent back by the spies in Konoha, it seems the ones assassinating Konoha ninja were the deceased Second Hokage and Third Hokage."
"Edo Tensei?"
"There's a possibility, but it's not certain," Kitsuchi said, "Sasuke once asked the Iwagakure spies lurking in Konoha for specific information on Konoha ninja."
"The deceased... seem to all be from that list."
"Can you find out the reason?"
"There aren't many commonalities. Most of the deceased ninja were from Danzō's Root, a small portion were Konoha Anbu, while overt mid-to-high-level ninja were relatively few."
Ōnoki stood with his hands behind his back, thought for a moment, and proposed a hypothesis.
"Do you think it might be related to the Uchiha Clan Massacre?"
"Uchiha Clan Massacre!?" Kitsuchi was startled.
"You mean..."
"We've also seen Uchiha Sasuke's Susanoo. He should be 16 this year. Could he have silently eliminated the Uchiha Clan without Konoha discovering it?"
"That... that's impossible." Kitsuchi was silent for a while, then shook his head.
"Exactly. Not everyone is Uchiha Madara. Even Uchiha Madara probably couldn't have done that at that age."
"It is said that when the Uchiha Clan Massacre occurred, Uchiha Itachi was only 13. Even if he had awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan, whether he had Sasuke's current strength is debatable."
"Even if he was much stronger than the current Sasuke, what are the chances of him completely eradicating the Uchiha Clan in Konoha without Konoha noticing, and then safely retreating?"
Ōnoki stated his deduction and then asked rhetorically.
Was the security in one of the five major powers that poor? If that's the case, the Kage would have been assassinated multiple times.
"Father, do you mean... someone turned Uchiha Itachi, and worked with him from the inside?"
"Think about Uchiha Sasuke's actions, having the Third Hokage and Second Hokage kill Konoha ninja. From Sasuke's behavior, he is not a bloodthirsty person. Without deep-seated hatred, he wouldn't do such a thing."
"There's only one reason he would do this: the deceased Konoha ninja participated in the Uchiha Clan Massacre."
"Konoha, destroyed the Uchiha clan!" An expression of disbelief appeared on Kitsuchi's face.
The Uchiha and Senju were both ancient clans, yet within a few decades of Konoha's establishment, they ended up like this. It's truly lamentable.
The two stood by the window, silent for a long time.
Finally, Kitsuchi couldn't help but ask:
"So, what about our relationship with Uchiha Sasuke and Uchiha Madara...?"
"As usual," Ōnoki said two words.
"Father, will he use the lives of Iwagakure ninja to avenge the Uchiha Clan?"
"That child won't," Ōnoki said, "Putting aside Uchiha Madara's situation, Uchiha Sasuke, as the Fourth Tsuchikage, has been competent so far."
"He has no intention of retaliating against the Konoha Higher-Ups at all costs, nor has he shown excessive emotional outbursts."
"Even when he has spies gather intelligence, he ensures their safety while collecting information. If there's a risk of exposure, he'd rather not collect it."
"Being able to do this means his heart is with Iwagakure."
"That's enough."
Ōnoki looked at the brightly lit "Kage" office building of Iwagakure, then turned his head to Kitsuchi.
"You might not see it, but I see it very clearly."
"Whether it's Orochimaru or Uchiha Madara, they both implicitly defer to Uchiha Sasuke."
"I don't know how that boy did it, but I think we can bet the entire Iwagakure on his desire to unify the Ninja World."
"First Hokage and Second Hokage also shared this idea."
"Konoha missed the best chance to unify the Ninja World, but our Iwagakure will not miss this opportunity."
"Moreover, Orochimaru also said that the First Hokage is currently in his hands."
Ōnoki's voice softened as he spoke, his expression gradually becoming serious.
"The advantage is with us. Even if we fail, we have a chance to start over."
"Besides, I don't believe there's any ninja village now that can stop our Iwagakure's progress, unless the Sage of Six Paths is resurrected."
"That's true, what you're saying is not wrong." Kitsuchi hesitated, he understood his old man's thoughts.
He wanted to make a final push before he died.
The opportunity to unify the Ninja World and leave his name in history was right before his eyes; no one could give it up.
Except for strange people like the First Hokage.
"Father, the battle in the Land of Fire..."
"Uchiha Madara didn't die. If he had, Uchiha Sasuke wouldn't be so calm."
After all, he was a sixteen-year-old boy; many things could be seen clearly on his face.
Ōnoki had eaten more salt and walked more roads than Uchiha Sasuke had eaten rice.
"I went to the Tsuchikage Office earlier to confirm this point as well."
"I see. As expected of Father, I still can't keep up with your thinking."
"Otherwise? I am the inheritor of the Will of Stone."
"Kid, you still have a lot to learn and see!"
Ōnoki patted his chest, looking very proud of himself.
Kitsuchi, standing by, was speechless.
Crack!
A sound of something breaking.
"Ouch--"
Ōnoki cried out in pain, "Quick, quick, help... help."
"I... I twisted my back."
Kitsuchi: "..."