Shisui truly had not expected that he would meet someone who seemed to be the target so quickly.
Through his earlier contact with those Hot Water ninja, he knew that the street ahead was a leisure street in this small town.
And on this street, all kinds of businesses could almost be found. Whether it was hot spring inns, adult entertainment shops, or gambling houses where people passed the time, everything was available.
A girl who looked very young was running toward that place, and her hair color was also the same as in the description.
This made Shisui feel that perhaps he really had found the mission target.
Turning his head, Shisui looked toward Itachi. He suddenly realized that bringing this little brother from his clan out with him had unexpectedly brought him luck.
However, the target was only suspected, which meant they still needed more time to confirm it.
Because of that, Shisui simply brought Itachi to find a place and sit down, while the other ANBU members began carrying out the tasks they should carry out.
No one said anything about Shisui openly slacking off, because the people Shisui brought this time were all members of his direct squad.
Moreover, he had been in the ANBU for almost ten years, and both his reputation and strength were very high.
On top of that, he had specially brought a newcomer this time, clearly intending to properly teach this newcomer.
Because of that, his team members had no dissatisfaction at all. Back then, after every one of them entered the squad, Shisui would personally guide them alone for a while.
In their eyes, this tradition was perfectly normal, even if Shisui was already a squad captain.
"The Land of Hot Water has really developed quite well now."
Sitting inside a tavern, Shisui looked at everything around him and could not help smiling as he spoke.
"Although it is still somewhat behind compared to our Land of Fire, and even more so compared to Konoha, it is much better than the last time I came here."
"What was the Land of Hot Water like when you came here last time, Brother Shisui?"
Itachi also saw the lively scene around them, but he truly had never been to the Land of Hot Water before.
Although he was already thirteen, and had been carrying out missions ever since he left the Ninja Academy at six.
His mission experience had basically been limited to the Land of Fire. The rare times he went farther away were to relatively safe places like the Land of Rivers.
Of course, this was also because the Uchiha had secretly made arrangements.
Although the Land of Hot Water had received the aid plan many years ago, it was basically a long-term mission.
Simply put, once one went there, who knew when they would return to Konoha?
Uchiha Fugaku did not want his son to leave for many years and not return. He still hoped his son could enter the ANBU.
Because of that, Itachi had never been to the Land of Hot Water, so naturally, he did not know what the Land of Hot Water had been like before.
"Call me Captain. There is no Brother Shisui here."
Shisui shook his head. He first seriously reminded Itachi, then looked at everything outside and slowly spoke.
"The Land of Hot Water looked fairly decent before, and its main cities were developing well enough. After all, this place lives off tourism.
"But aside from those cities, the other places could completely be described as people living in hardship.
"In the end, it is caught between Konoha and Kumogakure, and any small conflict can cause irreversible damage here.
"And even those large cities that seemed to be developing well were only bright on the surface.
"Behind the scenes, all kinds of disorder existed. Whether gangs or wealthy people, they would never care about the lives of others when it came to their own interests."
"How could it be like that?"
This was the first time Itachi had ever heard of such things, and it left him both surprised and bewildered.
After all, he had spent most of his life in the Land of Fire and had long grown accustomed to its peace and stability.
Of course, the Land of Fire still had gangs and dishonest merchants.
However, such people were little more than part of Konoha's annual mission quota. Sooner or later, ninja would be dispatched to deal with them.
To put it bluntly, the only reason they continued to exist was because Konoha chose not to wipe them out completely.
Naturally, only jōnin were aware of such matters. Most ninja knew little about them.
In any case, these groups could never cause any real trouble within the Land of Fire. Konoha could handle them however it pleased.
What Itachi had never expected was that the same sort of people, who posed no threat back home, would become such troublesome forces in the Land of Hot Water.
The realization completely overturned his understanding of the world. Countless questions filled his mind, and he simply could not understand how things had come to be this way.
"Captain, does the Land of Hot Water not have the Hot Water Village? Do they not deal with this?
"And the residents here, do they not know how to commission missions?"
"This question is actually very easy to understand. First, you need to understand what the model of a ninja village really is."
Shisui sighed faintly. After staying in the ANBU for so long, and after being forced to learn many things.
It could be said that Shisui's vision was truly not something the original version of him could compare to, although he would still act foolishly sometimes.
But overall, he was indeed a Shisui who had already changed.
Perhaps his strength could not compare, but his vision and thinking truly went far beyond that of the original story.
"The development model of a ninja village is, on one hand, to accept missions, then complete them and receive payment.
"After that, it uses this payment to train the ninja within the village, allowing them to have the strength to accept more and harder missions, forming a good cycle.
"On the other hand, it relies on large amounts of support funds. With this support money, it continues to train ninja and greatly develop the village's basic construction.
"But this support is truly not so simple to obtain. The people who can give you support naturally want money, and once you receive that support, you naturally have to pay something in return.
"Take our Konoha, for example. What we receive is support from the Daimyō of the Land of Fire.
"And what we must do is protect the Land of Fire, while also protecting the Daimyō's personal safety and property.
"The Land of Hot Water has no Daimyō, yet they established a ninja village. Think about it. Where did their money come from?"
Shisui did not speak quickly, and Itachi was also a smart person. After carefully listening for a while, he suddenly understood.
"The Hot Water Village's money came from those major merchants, so what they have to protect is the interests of those merchants, not the Land of Hot Water.
"But Captain, there is still one thing I do not understand.
"According to what Captain said, the Hot Water Village was restrained by those major merchants.
"Although it is somewhat disrespectful, there is also a fact in Konoha, and that is that the Daimyō does not seem to restrain us.
"The Hot Water Village is still a ninja village, after all. Why would they…"
"Do you think the former Hot Water Village could be as strong as Konoha?"
Facing his little brother's question, Shisui sighed helplessly.
This little brother was smart, yes, but his vision was still far too narrow.
It seemed that coming to the ANBU was the right choice. Although the days ahead would be more cruel, it was still better than knowing nothing.
"If those major merchants could hire the Hot Water Village, then naturally, they could also hire stronger ninja who would do anything for money.
"Investing in the Hot Water Village was only to let them better control the Land of Hot Water. Local forces are much easier for them to use for profit than outside forces."
At this point, Shisui paused slightly. He saw the ANBU teammates walking toward him, then spoke to Itachi with deeper meaning.
"You are still young, and there is a lot you need to learn. Settling down in the ANBU and learning properly will be good for you."
Hearing this, Itachi also nodded seriously, then spoke with unusual seriousness.
"I understand, Captain!"
...
"Damn it. They actually would not let me write an IOU. Do they really think I cannot pay it back?"
Tsunade walked out of a casino in a sorry state with a dark expression, and she felt as if she was about to explode from anger.
Right now, she was buried in debt. Because of that, she had no choice but to use her sealing technique to turn herself into the appearance of a little girl in order to avoid her creditors.
She could still be considered someone with a ninja's principles, and had never thought of using her own strength to violently refuse repayment.
But it was also because of this that she had no choice but to live a life of hiding everywhere, although she herself did enjoy this kind of life.
She had already been in the Land of Hot Water for some time. If possible, she actually would not have wanted to come to the Land of Hot Water.
Because she had heard that everything in the Land of Hot Water had actually been built with Konoha's help.
Unfortunately, her reputation in the other small countries had already become terrible, and only the Land of Hot Water was somewhere she had never come to before.
So even though she was unwilling, in the end, the only place she could choose was here.
However, what made her despair was that every entertainment venue in this damned place had been reorganized.
The result was that these places did not give you any chance to owe money at all.
The first thing after entering was that they checked whether you had enough assets to play.
Once you failed the check, then sorry, you could go back to wherever you came from.
This kind of strict policy truly made Tsunade feel like coughing blood. Although she was not completely penniless, she definitely could not afford to play big anymore.
However, wasn't the whole point of coming to a casino to play big? With that option gone, all of Tsunade's plans had fallen apart.
This left her deeply frustrated, but there was nothing she could do.
"But then again, the Land of Hot Water really has been developed quite well now."
Although Tsunade felt unhappy inside, she also had to admit that the current Land of Hot Water was no longer the Land of Hot Water from before.
Having experienced war, she had indeed visited the Land of Hot Water before, so she naturally knew just how chaotic this damned place had once been.
Yet now, everything had changed, even though many people had lost their lives in the process.
But she understood very well that if Konoha wanted to take control of this place and change it, certain people had to be removed.
And it was precisely because those people were gone that the Land of Hot Water had undergone such tremendous change.
Although Tsunade had left Konoha many years ago for various reasons and had never been willing to return, she had to admit that Konoha was thriving now.
And that junior from her clan had truly done an exceptional job.
She had always known that some members of her clan had been quietly working toward the clan's revival.
But she had truly never given them any help. She had not even had any contact with those people.
Now they had succeeded and changed everything in Konoha. While Tsunade was sincerely happy, she also felt extremely awkward.
Because she had never made any contribution, and when Konoha was in difficulty, she had also done nothing.
This caused her to hear that Konoha's higher-ups, that newly appointed Fifth Hokage, were very dissatisfied with her.
Not only her, Jiraiya was the same. She had met Jiraiya, and Jiraiya had also told her that the Fifth Hokage had given him a mission.
He was to track Orochimaru until Orochimaru's problem was resolved.
The meaning of this mission was extremely clear, and that Fifth Hokage had also expressed his dissatisfaction without the slightest concealment.
This was telling Jiraiya, and even telling her, that since they did not want to return to Konoha, then they should not come back.
Moreover, the mission was issued by Natsuhiko, and how it was judged was also up to Natsuhiko.
This meant that even if they completed the mission, if the Hokage did not let them return, they still could not return.
And only when that Hokage wanted them to return could they return.
Such a strong style and such a merciless way of doing things made Tsunade feel dissatisfied inside, but she also understood.
Even if she wanted to return to Konoha now, it was basically no longer possible.
"I never thought I wouldn't even have a home to return to anymore."
Every time she thought of this, Tsunade could only smile bitterly inside.
Now that she had come to the Land of Hot Water, and from time to time saw ninja wearing Konoha uniforms on the streets, it truly stirred up some feelings in her.
"Hm?"
But as she walked, Tsunade suddenly frowned.
After all, she was a top-class ninja. Even if she did not possess powerful sensing ability, she still had the vigilance she should have.
She naturally noticed that someone was following her, and this made her secretly frown.
She did not think she could have provoked anyone now. After all, she had already left Konoha for such a long time.
Could it be that her creditors had hired ninja? She could naturally sense that the ones following her were ninja. If they were not ninja, it would have been impossible for her to only discover them now.
What a bother. I do not even know what kind of people they are.
Tsunade silently muttered in her heart, then immediately made a countermeasure.
She hated being followed, so there were naturally a few things she had to do first.
Spotting a corner ahead, she used the blind spot created by the obstructed line of sight to conceal herself. Then, with the Body Flicker Technique, she slipped from her original position and circled around to the rear.
Rushing into the corner would have allowed others to surround her, but if she waited here for them to catch up, then she would be the one surrounding them instead.
However, after waiting for quite some time, Tsunade realized that those people showed no intention of following her at all.
This left her puzzled. Could her senses have been mistaken?
The moment the thought arose, she dismissed it.
As a ninja, there was no way she could misjudge something like that.
In that case, there was only one possibility: the people tracking her were far more capable than she had imagined.
Tsunade's expression immediately turned serious. She spun around, intending to leave at once.
Yet at that moment, she finally noticed that the area around her had already been quietly sealed off by a group of people who appeared to be ordinary civilians.
"Who are you?"
Tsunade frowned tightly, and terrifying chakra instantly burst out from her seemingly small body.
"Stop playing tricks here. Let me guess, you are ANBU, right?"
"Yes, Lady Tsunade."
Shisui slowly walked out from the shadows at the side with Itachi. He was not wearing a mask, because there was no need.
"Lady Tsunade truly is impressive. We are indeed ANBU."
"Then which ANBU are you?"
When Tsunade heard ANBU, she became even more alert. The ANBU had never been an easy place to deal with.
"In reply to Lady Tsunade."
Shisui spoke calmly and slowly, but when he said this, there was also some pride in his tone.
"We are from Konoha's ANBU."
...
Natsuhiko sat in his office, bored as he looked at the report in his hand. Although Uzumaki Mito's damned sensing ability had exposed some things, it had almost no effect on him.
However, this matter also made him realize that he needed to be a little more careful. Even if he did not care about the power of the tailed beasts, for ordinary people, tailed beasts were not something so simple.
No jinchūriki in any village had an easy life, because after people processed and spread stories about the tailed beasts, it created the fixed impression that "tailed beasts are death and disaster."
The purpose of doing this was very simple. Aside from the fact that tailed beasts were indeed terrifying, another reason was to create mutual deterrence.
Ever since Senju Hashirama subdued the tailed beasts and distributed them among the villages, they effectively became strategic weapons for every major nation.
And the value of such strategic weapons does not lie in their actual use, but in the fear they inspire.
As a certain Soviet leader once said, a nuclear weapon is at its most powerful not when it is launched, but when it is quietly sitting on the launch platform.
The same logic applied to the tailed beasts. After years of exaggerated propaganda, even ninjas came to fear them deeply.
Once war broke out, both sides would constantly worry whether the other might deploy a tailed beast. This mutual fear created a form of deterrence that prevented the conflict from spiraling out of control.
No matter how intense the fighting became, once it reached a certain point, it would inevitably be pulled back into negotiation rather than escalating into total war.
This was because both sides feared pushing the other too far, only to have a tailed beast unleashed in retaliation, causing irreversible and catastrophic losses.
Tailed beast warfare, in essence, was the kind of war everyone feared deep down and was least willing to accept.
This was also why every village that possessed a tailed beast quietly chose to exaggerate their threat.
However, that kind of exaggeration could also be seen as a form of containment. It kept the tailed beasts in check—but at the same time, it made the jinchūriki within their own villages suffer greatly.
Even so, the fear surrounding tailed beasts was not entirely unfounded. From ancient times to the present, they had always been synonymous with terror and disaster.
But the jinchūriki themselves were the ones who truly bore the misfortune. After all, a terrifying tailed beast was sealed inside them.
So if one day they lost control and went berserk, wouldn't everyone else end up suffering as well?
Because of this, hatred toward jinchūriki almost became the accepted norm. Villages with weak sealing methods had no real defense, while even those with strong sealing techniques still suffered from the same underlying fear.
However, there was truly no way to explain or resolve this kind of perception. After all, ordinary villagers did not understand whether a seal was strong or weak, nor did they care about such distinctions.
They only knew one thing: there was a tailed beast inside you. And because of that, they assumed you were nothing more than its incarnation.
Just look at Naruto in the original story, and one would know how miserable his life was after his identity as the Nine-Tails jinchūriki was exposed.
Almost everyone placed the destruction caused by the Nine-Tails onto Naruto, that poor guy.
Although part of this was because Konoha deliberately exposed and spread Naruto's identity in order to shift attention and influence, so Konoha could recover and rebuild.
If there had not been that long-standing fixed impression from the past, Naruto would not have been so unlucky.
Moreover, Naruto's life was only a reflection of all jinchūriki.
Even a guy like Killer B suffered quite a lot of exclusion when he was young.
Natsuhiko now had five tailed beasts placed inside him, and the impact of this matter was ridiculously huge.
One tailed beast alone was already enough to be world-shaking. With five inside Natsuhiko, in the eyes of ordinary people, it was almost as absurd as transporting a Tsar Bomba straight into Moscow.
Natsuhiko's current identity was fundamentally different now, which meant there were far more things he needed to be cautious about. The five "Tsar Bombas" inside him absolutely could not be exposed.
However, being reminded of that was one thing—his dissatisfaction with Uzumaki Mito was another matter entirely.
Perhaps it was because she had died at a fairly old age, and Sarutobi Hiruzen had also shown her great respect during his time as Hokage.
So when she saw how young Natsuhiko was, and sensed the overwhelming power of the tailed beasts within him, she had unconsciously taken on the attitude of an elder offering guidance.
Even so, Natsuhiko knew she hadn't truly done anything wrong. Still, who didn't have secrets of their own?
Even if this secret could be called terrifying to her, to Natsuhiko, it was only that much.
So when it came to fully reviving her, Natsuhiko very directly held it back.
In any case, Natsuhiko had promised Kakashi that once they found Obito's remains, he would help revive him. With the order already set like this, Natsuhiko was not afraid to say it.
After Uzumaki Mito left, it seemed she also had a deeper conversation with Senju Hashirama.
And this conversation made her understand that although, strictly speaking, she had not made a mistake, she had in some sense offended the new Hokage.
She also learned that this new Hokage's strength was indeed even more terrifying than Senju Hashirama's.
And his way of governing was even more forceful than Senju Tobirama's. While this made her sigh over Natsuhiko's strength, she also could not help feeling happy.
Because after learning of the decline of the Senju clan, she was naturally happy now that she had seen the Senju clan rise again.
Especially since the Uzumaki clan had also fallen, and the descendants of that clan had also been brought back by this Fifth Hokage many years ago.
This also made her sincerely grateful to this Hokage. Unfortunately, because she had been too anxious for a moment, she had ended up offending him.
"Forget it. I will not think about her anymore."
Natsuhiko gently put down the report in his hand. He shook his head and could not be bothered to think about these things.
"Although she made me very unhappy, this matter also let me see Senju Hashirama's change. That is very good news.
"In truth, even if I revive her, it is only for Senju Hashirama's sake.
"With this matter, I think she will not dare do anything again. Annoying her a little is enough. I do not plan to ruin my relationship with Senju Hashirama.
"After all, there are truly too many places where I can use Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama."
Senju Hashirama was almost naturally bound together with Senju Tobirama, and Natsuhiko was unwilling to make their relationship too stiff.
Moreover, these two had contributed far too much to Konoha now, and on top of that, there was the personal relationship built over these years.
Natsuhiko was also unwilling to make things especially ugly between them because of some small matters.
He tilted his head slightly, and Natsuhiko shifted his gaze elsewhere.
Although it was daytime now, he could still sense the moon's position through chakra.
He had not gone to the moon for a long time. At this point, his eyes had almost adapted, and he felt that he should make a trip to the moon.
"Besides, recently I have always felt somewhat uneasy, as if something is about to happen.
"Although the strength of those two may not necessarily be stronger than mine, their existence can still be used to do many, many things.
"For example, protecting some people who must be protected…"
...
"Are you joking? Do you really think that just because he, Senju Natsuhiko, is Hokage, we must leave when he wants us to leave, and we must return when he wants us to return?"
Inside a hotel in the Land of Hot Water, Tsunade looked coldly at Shisui Uchiha and the others in front of her.
At this moment, her anger had flared up again. When she heard that Shisui and the others had come from Konoha, she had already felt a bad premonition.
And as expected, once Shisui directly stated that he had come to find Tsunade and bring her back, she knew her suspicion was correct.
But being right about it did not mean she was willing to return. Given the current situation in Konoha—and Natsuhiko's attitude—even if she wanted to go back, she wasn't sure she could live comfortably there.
Because of that, even when faced with the invitation, she remained visibly hesitant.
However, when she attempted to refuse outright, Shisui told her bluntly that this was not an invitation—it was a demand.
Senju Natsuhiko was ordering her return to Konoha, and she was not allowed to refuse. She was expected to comply.
The moment she heard that wording, Tsunade's anger surged instantly.
Although she knew this Hokage from her own clan was extremely forceful—and possessed the strength to back it up—
With such power at a young age, it was only natural that he carried a sharp and domineering edge.
But being forceful to this extent, even to the point of trying to impose authority over her, was something Tsunade could not accept.
The First Hokage was her grandfather, the Second Hokage her granduncle, the Third Hokage her teacher, and even the Fourth Hokage could be considered half her disciple.
And in terms of clan hierarchy, her generation was arguably even slightly above Natsuhiko's.
Within Konoha, although Natsuhiko now held the position of Hokage, she had once been one of the Sannin.
When she was bleeding and risking her life for Konoha, it was still uncertain whether Natsuhiko had even been weaned yet.
Moreover, unlike Jiraiya, she did not hold much goodwill toward the position of Hokage. Expecting her to submit so easily was nothing more than wishful thinking.
"Lady Tsunade, please calm down."
Shisui's expression was not very good now, but he still suppressed his anger and looked at Tsunade calmly.
"Lord Natsuhiko is our Hokage-sama. As a ninja of Konoha, you need to respect him, Lady Tsunade."
"Hmph, respect him?"
Tsunade looked at Shisui with a cold smile, then shook her head in disdain.
"I have seen far more Hokage than you have, brat.
"Even Senju Natsuhiko is only a brat in my eyes.
"I admit that he has done very well, and I also admit that his strength is very powerful, but that is not a reason for him to pressure me."
"Lady Tsunade, I will warn you again. Please show Hokage-sama the respect he deserves."
At this moment, Shisui's expression became even colder, and even the chakra inside his body began to stir.
It was not only him. All the ANBU members who had followed him here could not help circulating their chakra.
They were basically all veterans of the ANBU, so naturally, they had also accepted Natsuhiko's attitude and view toward the Sannin.
Moreover, they themselves worshiped Natsuhiko deeply. In the ANBU, Natsuhiko's meaning was not only that of the Hokage.
He was the pride of the ANBU. He was the ANBU's greatest commander.
Among all ANBU members, there was not a single one who did not respect Natsuhiko.
Now Tsunade was standing before them, without the slightest intention of showing Natsuhiko respect.
Leaving aside the fact that the ANBU was the Hokage's direct force and naturally needed to protect the Hokage's authority and interests.
Just the reputation Natsuhiko had left in the ANBU was enough for them to naturally protect it.
It could be said that Tsunade showing displeasure toward Natsuhiko in front of the ANBU was no different from lighting a powder keg.
"What, do you want to fight?"
Seeing this scene, the cold smile on Tsunade's face became even stronger, and the dissatisfaction and anger in her heart could no longer be suppressed.
"Then try it. I just happen to be curious. Konoha's ANBU has always been called the elite among elites, so let me see how you perform.
"And whether you respect the Hokage is your business. Do not casually drag me into it.
"I understand what the Hokage is far too well, because the Hokage is nothing but a curse.
"My grandfather and granduncle carried the name of Hokage, and in the end, both of them died in battle.
"My teacher may be fine, but I still know how much he paid for the sake of the Hokage.
"Forget about him. My younger brother dreamed of becoming Hokage since he was small, but he died on the path of trying to reach it.
"My lover also wanted to become some Hokage, and in the end, he died on the battlefield.
"Even your Fourth Hokage, has it really been that long and you have already forgotten?
"Although he did not die, it was still because he carried the title of Hokage that he has now retired and is resting somewhere unknown.
"Do you really think Hokage is some amazing position? Let me tell you, even if Senju Natsuhiko stood in front of me, I would still say the same.
"The Hokage is a curse. There is nothing amazing about it. Those who become Hokage are also fated to die early."
"Enough!"
At this moment, Shisui could no longer endure it. He suddenly stood up and glared angrily at Tsunade.
That pair of crimson Sharingan was also revealed at this moment, and three black tomoe slowly spun in his eyes.
What was even stranger was that their speed began to slowly increase.
Since he was young, Shisui had received Uchiha Shin's teachings. His attachment to and desire for the Hokage was so great that it was hard to imagine.
And after he entered the ANBU, although he did not directly follow Natsuhiko.
To put it bluntly, he had grown up watching Natsuhiko's legendary experiences.
Especially when he saw Natsuhiko become Hokage, it was as if he had seen the dream of an ANBU ninja becoming Hokage come true before his eyes.
Especially as Natsuhiko's reforms in Konoha continued, Konoha became stronger and stronger, and the surrounding areas under Konoha's influence also became more and more peaceful.
His worship and respect for Natsuhiko also grew stronger and stronger.
In his heart, Natsuhiko was equal to the Hokage, not simply that Natsuhiko was the Fifth Hokage.
Now Tsunade was saying such things in front of him, and saying them in such an excessive way.
This was no longer as simple as lighting a powder keg. Furious emotions had already completely wrapped around his heart.
Even though he knew he was not her opponent, he was already prepared to act without hesitation.
If… if my strength were a little stronger, I could defeat this person who insulted Hokage-sama.
If I had stronger power, I could definitely restore Hokage-sama's dignity!
As his thoughts moved, the three tomoe in his eyes spun faster and faster, and his chakra also grew stronger.
--------
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