Roshi heard footsteps approaching from outside and looked up to see five people entering.
The person leading them was the Uchiha ninja who had defeated him, and from his eyes, it was likely Uchiha Kagami, the head of the Uchiha clan, whom the Third Tsuchikage had warned him about.
Behind Uchiha Kagami was Hatake Sakumo, and the other three girls were not familiar to Lao Zi, but he vaguely remembered them as Sakumo's subordinates.
"Tsk, I really didn't expect that the legendary Mangekyo Sharingan was real," Roshisaid first, before the others could speak, his voice tinged with resentment.
"Are you feeling resentful?" Uchiha Kagami said calmly, without the arrogance of a victor, only with a profound peacefulness, which in a way could be called gentleness.
"I'm not that much of a sore loser!" Roshi understood that ninjas were not samurai or martial artists; they didn't need to fight fair and square.
In fact, fighting too straightforwardly would be seen as lacking true ninja aptitude, and anyone who dared to call an opponent despicable would only be laughed at.
Any mature ninja who had truly received ninja training would not feel angry no matter how clever or insidious the opponent's methods were; such ninjas could only be described as naive.
Genjutsu was one of the ninja arts, and being defeated by it was not something to be criticized in a ninja battle.
Uchiha Kagami's stealthy infiltration was also part of the ninja intelligence war, and there was nothing to criticize about that either.
Therefore, Roshi didn't feel that his loss was unfair, but he was very unwilling to accept that he had been captured so easily, which wounded his pride.
Because of his childhood experiences, Roshi had developed a strong mindset through setbacks, but also an unshakeable pride that most people couldn't comprehend.
As a Jinchuriki, he had relied on these qualities to get to where he was today; his strength and power were the capital that earned him respect within the Iwagakure ninja village.
Yet now, he was so easily defeated by an Uchiha ninja, even if the opponent was a student of the Second Hokage, the head of the Uchiha clan, and possessed the legendary Mangekyo Sharingan.
Roshi simply couldn't accept such a result.
Unfortunately, under the tight restraints of the sealing jutsu and chains, no matter how much Roshi struggled, his face only turned red, his body trembled slightly, and the restraints remained unyielding, leaving him helpless.
"I'm not here to torture you, and we don't intend to do anything to you," Uchiha Kagami said.
"One reason is that we hope capturing you will make Iwagakure retreat faster and end this war sooner."
Roshi was slightly taken aback and asked in surprise, "You don't intend to do anything to me? But I'm a Jinchuriki!"
Roshi wasn't unaware of Konoha's pursuit of peace, but he believed that these convictions would become fragile in the face of the tailed beasts' power.
If it were Iwagakure, given Konoha's current advantage, they wouldn't fear retaliation even if they took a tailed beast, and their own side would gain immense power.
Yes, if it were Onoki from Iwagakure, it would definitely be like that, Roshi had no doubt about this, so he was very shocked by Uchiha Kagami's words.
"The policy of equally distributing the tailed beasts was established by our previous Hokage," Uchiha Kagami replied.
"We are not so shameless as to personally undermine that."
If, for some special reason, for example, the tailed beast within Roshi was stolen by others and Konoha retrieved it, then they could justifiably claim the tailed beast as their own, and no one else could morally criticize them.
The moment it was stolen by others, it meant that the other party had lost the tailed beast.
Then, if Konoha retrieved it through its own power, it would have reason to demand compensation.
Returning the tailed beast in exchange for other things would naturally be acceptable, but if they didn't return it, others would have no reason to say anything, because Konoha itself had invested manpower and resources to retrieve it from those who sought the tailed beast, and it had little to do with other ninja villages.
Fumori Masaki believed that if the Land of Fire were to become the ruler of the ninja world in the future, it absolutely could not lose its credibility as a great nation.
It had to maintain a moral high ground so that in disputes with other countries, it could occupy the highest moral position, which often had the potential to influence the development of the situation.
Fumori Masaki understood that national politics could not be entirely pure, but at most, things would be done in secret, while public morality had to be maintained.
Therefore, even if Konoha coveted the enemy's tailed beasts, it would not openly take them when they were war captives.
Because that would go against morality.
The equal distribution of tailed beasts was a policy established by the previous Hokage.
If, due to the animosity between the two sides, Konoha could brazenly destroy the previous Hokage's system, then in the future, if Konoha established any other system, what reason would there be for people to believe that successors wouldn't find excuses to destroy it?
Although it could be done covertly, it was absolutely forbidden to do so openly.
Coupled with the future strategy towards Iwagakure, the Konoha high command ultimately chose not to extract the Jinchuriki from Lao Zi's body, but merely to use him as a bargaining chip.
Roshi hadn't considered it to this extent, but when he heard Uchiha Kagami say that Konoha wasn't so shameless, his gaze couldn't help but show a hint of respect.
To be able to resist the temptation of the tailed beast's power to this extent, no matter what, Roshihad to admire their restraint.
"Then what's the other reason?" Roshi couldn't help but ask, as he had heard Uchiha Kagami say this was just one reason.
"The other is a request from our Hokage," Uchiha Kagami asked.
"He wants to speak with the tailed beast inside you.
I wonder if you would agree to that?"
"Speak with it?" This answer once again stunned Lao Zi.
Why would he want to speak with a tailed beast? If anyone were to speak, it should be with him.
How could he speak with a tailed beast that had been imprisoned in a mental space all this time?
"Because it's a private matter that cannot be disclosed to you, I can only say it's related to the Sage of Six Paths," Uchiha Kagami said.
"I can assure you it's just a conversation and nothing more."
Roshihad no idea what Konoha's Hokage wanted to say to the tailed beast.
He himself didn't have much in common with the Four-Tails, so what could a Hokage from another ninja village have to say, especially regarding the Sage of Six Paths?
He established Konoha to revere the ancient Sage of Six Paths, and under the leadership of the Third Hokage, a new theory of the Sage of Six Paths was developed based on the traditional one, which he himself had read some of in his daily life.
"This, it depends on it," Roshi thought for a moment, deciding not to make the decision himself, giving the other party some face.
"If the tailed beast agrees, I can agree too.
Heh, but if I refuse, you'll probably force it anyway, right?"
"That's for sure," Uchiha Kagami didn't lie, but nodded in agreement, "However, we still hope to respect your personal wishes, that would be better."
"...I don't know whether to call you naive or what." Lao Zi's mood was somewhat complex.
For a Jinchuriki who could only be treated as a weapon, the other party showing such respect was, it must be said, somewhat touching for a Jinchuriki with a sensitive mind.
"In any case, please, I'll go talk to it first." Uchiha Kagami's eyes turned red, and the power of the Sharingan immediately invaded Lao Zi's mind through his gaze.
Roshicould only maintain his mental stability, trying not to be affected by the genjutsu, but instead transferred it to the tailed beast.
In the enemy's main camp, although he was somewhat pleased by the other party's respect, Roshi could not lose his stance as an Iwagakure ninja and could not allow the other party to use this to gather intelligence.
Of course, facing the Mangekyo Sharingan, he might not necessarily be able to resist, but what else could Roshi do at this point?
Perhaps he could only trust the morality spoken by the other party.