Uchiha Yusuke wandered the streets without a destination, muttering to himself.
"Where should I go to kill some time?"
Suddenly, he thought of one of the Sannin—Jiraiya.
That guy traveled everywhere as a wandering author, living far more freely than Yusuke did.
With Jiraiya's carefree personality, if he came to Iwagakure, he'd probably already be sneaking into a hot-spring bathhouse or a pleasure house.
Work and play—both mattered.
Finishing missions while enjoying himself…
Wasn't that the best of both worlds?
With that thought, Yusuke decisively headed for Iwa's busiest izakaya.
Since he was already here, it'd be a waste not to experience a bit of "foreign culture."
Iwagakure Tavern
Yusuke ordered some wine and small dishes, leisurely enjoying an afternoon drink.
He was disguised as a traveling merchant, so he didn't draw attention.
Iwagakure might be poor, but merchants were common.
The roads were difficult, sure—
but the profit was excellent.
Many goods sold here at surprisingly high prices.
Inside the tavern, quite a few Iwa shinobi were talking about current events.
"Did you hear? Kumogakure paid us eighty million ryō as a settlement."
"Eighty million? That's nothing! If the Third Tsuchikage-sama weren't so merciful, we'd have already marched into Kumo and Konoha!"
"Don't talk nonsense. Tsuchikage-sama has his reasons. Konoha's 'Flame Demon' Yusuke isn't easy to provoke. Have you forgotten the 'Yellow Flash,' Minato Namikaze?"
"According to rumors, Uchiha Yusuke's talent might even surpass Minato's. Picking a fight with someone like that is simply unwise."
"Exactly. Steady wins the race. Tsuchikage-sama's choice makes sense."
…
Yusuke hadn't expected his reputation to have reached Iwa as well.
The Iwa shinobi comparing him to the Fourth Hokage, Minato, was an undeniable recognition of his strength.
After all, to Iwa, the "Yellow Flash" was practically a nightmare that never went away:
If you encountered him on the battlefield, abandon the mission and retreat immediately.
Anyone who tried to challenge Minato… basically never survived.
What kind of intimidation was that?
Yusuke listened with interest for a while, and noticed that although Ōnoki was stubborn and old-fashioned, his public support was still very high.
In the original story, Ōnoki and Hiruzen were both long-ruling "old generation" leaders.
Hiruzen died in Orochimaru's "Konoha Crush Plan," while Ōnoki endured all the way through the Fourth War and only then passed the Tsuchikage position to his granddaughter, Kurotsuchi.
In the shinobi world, it was common: the Kage's heir became the next Kage.
"Work hard and you can become Hokage"?
A joke.
Might Guy and Rock Lee worked hard too—so why didn't anyone propose making them Hokage?
Without connections, rising to the top was brutally hard.
The Uchiha bloodline was powerful, and geniuses appeared constantly—
yet they never produced a Hokage.
If Madara had become Hokage, the shinobi world would've been flattened by Konoha long ago.
Hashirama liked to bow to people.
Madara liked to make people bow to him.
Night Falls — The Rendezvous
Time quickly reached night. Yusuke followed the contact signal to the meeting point.
Night was good for secret meetings, but far more dangerous than daytime.
If a stranger was discovered by Iwa's night patrols, they'd be arrested immediately as a threat.
Yusuke waited patiently for a long time—
but Yakushi Nono never appeared.
His brow furrowed.
"Did she run into trouble on the way?"
Thinking that was possible, Yusuke left a shadow clone behind and moved out to investigate.
Clashing Steel in Moonlight
"Clang! Clang!"
Under the moonlight, shinobi weapons collided, sparks flying as metal rang sharply.
Yusuke rushed over and found people fighting in the dark.
In a rocky crevice, a young shinobi wearing an Iwa forehead protector panted heavily.
It was Kabuto Yakushi—the elite intelligence operative trained by Root.
A shadow flickered across the cliff above. Kabuto stared grimly toward the shifting figures in the distance.
"Damn… I'm surrounded."
He pulled out a pocket watch, checked the time, and murmured again.
"If that thing back then never happened… it'd already be bedtime."
Looking at the watch, Kabuto couldn't help remembering the orphanage—its people, its warmth.
He had been gone for five years now.
He missed the director and the other children desperately.
But once the life of a shinobi began, it didn't stop easily.
He could only obey orders and complete missions.
His current assignment was to investigate a region—
but the moment he surfaced, someone had locked onto him.
The Director Above
Up on the cliff, Yakushi Nono had already spotted Kabuto.
Below was the child she once raised—
but under Danzo's deliberate manipulation, the "Kabuto" in her memory had already been replaced.
Nono's mission was to assassinate the man in front of her.
In Danzo's order, he was described as a traitor from Konoha's intelligence division.
Danzo promised that if Nono completed this mission, she could retire and return to the orphanage as its director.
Nono had been embedded in Iwa for over five years.
At last, she thought she could see a path back home.
But she could never have imagined the "final order" would be—
to slaughter each other: mother and child.
Spies knew too much.
Once they were no longer useful, they were silenced.
After Nono and Kabuto decided the outcome, Root would send another assassination team to eliminate whoever remained.
Only then would the "loose ends" truly be cut.
Unless something changed, one of them would die tonight.
Yusuke Sees Through It
A quick assessment of the area was enough for Yusuke to understand.
Danzo had staged a killing game.
He was trying to burn everything down.
Nono and the other spies were, on paper, already under Yusuke's authority.
There was no way Yusuke would let someone "take over" what should have been his.
If I can't have it, then neither can you.
That fit Danzo's style perfectly.
Nono leapt down from the cliff.
Kabuto, using the reflected moonlight off his pocket watch, sensed the approaching attacker.
A flashing kunai and a chakra-infused palm blade were about to decide life or death—
when Yusuke suddenly appeared, like a blink.
In the next instant, he stopped both of their hands.
Shocked, both cried out at once.
"Who are you?!"
Yusuke cleared his throat and answered calmly.
"Hokage Advisor—Uchiha Yusuke."
The name hit them like thunder.
Hokage Advisor Uchiha Yusuke?
Why would someone like that appear here?
In the war against Kumo, Yusuke's name had shaken the entire shinobi world.
Even undercover in Iwa, Nono and Kabuto had heard the stories.
Defeating the Fourth Raikage and capturing the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki—
that kind of feat couldn't not explode into rumor.
Ōnoki couldn't ignore it either.
Iwa's decision not to demand a settlement from Konoha was, to a large extent, because of Yusuke.
The shinobi world respected strength and bullied weakness.
Back when Hashirama and Madara existed, who dared wage war on Konoha?
Ōnoki himself had once gone to Konoha with his teacher for peace talks—
and Madara had forced him into "dancing" for half the day.
That was how untouchable Konoha used to be.
Only after Madara left and the First Hokage died did the restless nations grow bold.
The world stayed unstable because there was no longer an overwhelming power to suppress everyone.
When no one was clearly above the rest…
everyone picked fights.
Proof
Even with Yusuke stating his identity, they couldn't immediately believe him.
Suspicion was a spy's survival skill.
Nono asked cautiously.
"How can you prove who you are?"
Without changing expression, Yusuke revealed his three-tomoe Sharingan.
The Sharingan was the Uchiha's unmistakable mark—hard to fake.
Even if a single eye leaked outside the clan, it would only create a half-baked imitation like Ao of Kirigakure.
Having a complete pair was extremely rare.
With the Sharingan revealed, Nono and Kabuto finally lowered their guard.
Recognition — and Confusion
Moonlight slipped through drifting clouds, illuminating the ground.
Kabuto finally saw Nono's face clearly.
"Director?"
"It's you! Director!"
"How are you here?!"
But Nono looked blank.
"Y-you are…?"
Kabuto grew emotional.
"It's me, Director!"
"Don't you remember?"
Seeing Nono dragged Kabuto's memories to the surface—
Danzo's cold voice, ordering Nono:
"Konoha needs someone to infiltrate Iwagakure long-term."
"The only one capable is you—the wandering shrine maiden."
Kabuto stared in disbelief.
Had the director been continuing that mission all this time?
Nono hesitated, still uncertain.
"You… who exactly are you…?"
Thinking maybe her vision was poor, Kabuto quickly removed his glasses and offered them to her.
"Put these on and look properly."
"I'm Kabuto!"
Nono put on the glasses…
but still couldn't recognize him.
Root had shown her photos over the years—
yet the Kabuto in her memory didn't match the person in front of her at all.
Kabuto's expression became urgent.
How could the director not know him?
That shouldn't happen.
Patrol Incoming
"There's movement over there."
"Go check it out."
Two Iwa night patrol shinobi approached.
Yusuke said in a low voice.
"We're changing locations."
Not long after the three left, the Iwa patrol arrived.
"Damn…"
"Did they get away?"
By the River
They quickly reached a small river deep in the forest.
Yusuke stopped.
"We should've shaken them."
"Let's talk here."
Kabuto splashed water on his face, still full of confusion.
Why didn't the director remember him…?
Nono quietly stepped beside Kabuto.
"Y-you really are Kabuto?"
"Then why… why don't you look like the Kabuto in the photos?"
Yusuke walked forward.
"Let me answer the questions you're holding."
He looked at Kabuto and spoke evenly.
"The reason Nono can't recognize you is because Danzo tampered with things."
"After you left the orphanage, Danzo told Nono the 'real reason' you left."
"To buy your freedom back, Nono had no choice but to obey him."
"Since you couldn't meet, Nono could only understand your growth through photos."
"And during that process… Root spent a long time swapping someone else in as 'you.'"
"In other words—Danzo planned from the very beginning to kill both you and Nono."
Kabuto's face turned pale with shock.
"W-what does that mean?"
"We risked our lives gathering intelligence for the village… why would he do this?"
Yusuke replied calmly.
"As spies, you were excellent."
"But intelligence can be deadlier than powerful jutsu or even war weapons."
"To Danzo, both of you are now dangerous."
"The moment you started collecting secrets for him… your ending was already decided."
"Mutual slaughter—was Root's 'fate' prepared for you."
Even if they'd braced themselves, hearing it stated plainly froze their blood.
Nono stepped forward, shielding Kabuto.
"Uchiha Yusuke… are you here because Danzo sent you to erase us?"
Kabuto's pupils tightened.
He also became guarded, staring at Yusuke at close range.
Yusuke shook his head and smiled faintly.
"If that were true, would I have stopped you from killing each other?"
"I act only by my own will."
"Danzo isn't qualified to command me."
Hearing that, both of them finally breathed out.
If they fought Yusuke, there was only one outcome: death.
Someone Else Is Here
Yusuke's tone shifted.
"I'm not here to kill you—but Root did send killers."
He turned toward the calm river surface and said quietly:
"Since you're here, stop hiding."
"Come out."
The moment he finished speaking, a cold, eerie voice spread out from the water.
"Only acting by your own will?"
"As expected of Uchiha Yusuke…"
"I feel as if I've found a kindred spirit."
A figure rose from the river.
All three on the bank widened their eyes.
"Orochimaru?"
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