A few days later, Uchiha Madara and Izuna returned.
Both of them were covered in wounds. At the same time, both Uchiha Madara and Uchiha Izuna had awakened their Sharingan.
A trace of shock flashed through Arisu's eyes.
'Just catching a group of bandits and they awakened the Sharingan?'
'What kind of fragile-hearted Uchiha is this?'
"Great-Grandfather, mission accomplished. Luckily the Anbu big brothers helped us. If not, Izuna and I probably would have…"
Uchiha Madara handed in the mission and said as he knelt on one knee.
Arisu frowned slightly. This shouldn't be the case.
Even though Uchiha Madara was young, he shouldn't be unable to deal with a few bandits.
"Were the bandits strong?" Arisu asked.
Izuna, his face bruised and full of anger, spoke up, "Great-Grandfather, those weren't bandits at all. They were Senju ninja!"
Arisu immediately understood upon hearing this. He nodded and stepped forward to comfort them. "You've both worked hard."
As he spoke, healing chakra gathered in Arisu's palm, and he used the Mystical Palm Technique to heal the two of them.
The two stared at Arisu's hand in surprise.
"Grandfather, this is?", Uchiha Madara asked, slightly shocked.
Arisu nodded faintly. "A technique I created. I'll spread it later."
"You did very well. But due to the unexpected situation, this B-rank mission is upgraded to A-rank.", Arisu announced directly.
Joy flashed through Madara and Izuna's eyes. They nodded immediately, and Arisu gestured for them to leave.
Once the office was left with only Arisu alone, "It seems something's gone wrong on the Senju side…"
"They've actually reached the point of pretending to be bandits just to make a living…"
Arisu smiled faintly.
This was within his expectations.
Konoha had monopolized the missions of the Land of Fire. Even neighboring great nations and many small countries had begun to seek out Konoha.
With missions monopolized by Konoha,
Other ninja clans couldn't get any work.
How were they supposed to survive?
So, the Senju clan began disguising themselves as bandits, going out to rob for food and money.
"The Senju and the other major clans won't be able to sit still for long. I just hope they choose to come willingly, instead of trying to destroy Konoha…", Arisu said calmly.
"If they choose to form an alliance and attack Konoha, then I won't be to blame…", As he spoke, Arisu made a sweeping motion with his hand.
———
[Senju Clan]
The atmosphere was heavy, with none of the dignity of a great clan.
"Sigh… the Senju have fallen to this state, yet Father still insists on refusing to join Konoha?"
Senju Hashirama stood under the corridor, his fingers clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white. "After all these years, everything has proven that Konoha is no conspiracy. What exactly is Father being so stubborn about?"
Along the way, the clan members were barely scraping by. Even having enough to eat had become a luxury.
Yet as the clan leader, his father still clung to his obsession, making the entire clan suffer with him.
Several elders in the clan were even more stubborn, completely unwilling to listen.
"Father and the elders know very well that joining Konoha would lift the entire clan out of this situation."
"But they can't let go of the power in their hands."
"Once they join Konoha, their status will drop sharply. They won't be able to act on their own anymore and will have to obey Konoha's Great Elder, Arisu."
Beside him, Senju Tobirama spoke calmly, his clear gaze seeing straight to the root of the problem.
After all these years, Konoha's original intention in building the village had long been known to everyone.
The Uchiha truly wanted to create a stable ninja village. It wasn't some fake trap.
Yet even with such obvious benefits, the elders' greed for power couldn't be stopped.
"Damn it!"
Senju Hashirama suddenly raised his head, anger and pain surging in his eyes. "For their own selfish interests, for that little bit of power, they're letting the clan go hungry!"
Over the years, Hashirama's relationship with his father had already fallen to freezing point.
The two constantly clashed in ideals. Every argument ended badly. His father had never treated him like a son.
"Big brother, calm down."
Senju Tobirama placed a hand on Hashirama's shoulder, his tone carrying a trace of helplessness, "You know Father's temper best. Last time, you just casually mentioned submitting to Konoha, and he flew into a rage."
"In his eyes, we've never been family. It's only ever been the relationship of clan members and leader."
"Sigh…"
Senju Hashirama took a deep breath. His tense shoulders slowly slumped, and he finally loosened his clenched fists. "I know… Tobirama, I know."
Before he finished speaking, two figures came running hurriedly from the alley. It was Senju Kawarama and Senju Itama.
Because of Arisu, both of them were still alive.
The two were panting heavily, their faces full of urgency. "Big brother! Father is looking for you, it's urgent!"
A trace of confusion flashed through Hashirama's eyes. He suppressed the frustration in his heart and nodded. "Got it. I'll go now."
———
Inside the Senju meeting hall, the atmosphere was even heavier.
A clan member rushed in and reported anxiously, "Clan Head! Elders! The people we sent out disguised as bandits to rob food were killed by Konoha!"
Bang!
Senju Butsuma slammed his fist onto the table. The redwood table cracked apart instantly!
"Damn Konoha! They're trying to cut off our way of survival, completely snatching away our livelihood!", Senju Butsuma roared.
Over the years, Konoha had monopolized all commissions in the Land of Fire with its perfected mission system. The Senju clan couldn't get a single job and had long lost their source of income.
Butsuma had personally sought help from the Fire Daimyo, but the Daimyo had long been aligned with Konoha. With just a few words, he shut him down completely.
"Do you know how much tax Konoha pays to the Land of Fire every year?"
"Konoha is the strongest pillar of my Land of Fire. How could I possibly help you oppose them?"
The Daimyo's words still echoed in his ears.
'Simply put, Konoha is my biggest supporter, my financier, my backbone.'
'You freeloaders should be grateful I even let you stay in the Land of Fire.'
"Clan Head, our reserves are already empty. We've cut down on food and clothing…"
A clan member lowered his head, his tone bitter and helpless.
"Suffering?"
An elder slammed the table, his voice cold and harsh.
"If the clan suffers, then so be it! We absolutely cannot join Konoha's sugar-coated trap! Once we join, we'll have to obey the Uchiha. Where would the Senju clan's hundreds of years of pride go?"
"Exactly! I'd rather die than submit to the Uchiha!", Another elder echoed.
"Konoha looks like it's giving benefits to the clan, but in reality, it wants to swallow us whole! If we join, the clan may be stable, but what about us elders?"
"We've fought the Uchiha all our lives. Are we supposed to bow our heads and obey them now?"
These words immediately gained unanimous agreement from the elders.
They understood better than anyone the benefits of joining Konoha. But whether the clan lived well or not had never been their main concern, they only cared about their own power and status, about control of the Senju clan. They would never allow it to fall into Uchiha hands.
Senju Butsuma took a deep breath, suppressing his anger, and suddenly said, "My eldest son awakened a bloodline limit last year. He can control Wood Release."
"Why not let him do business with Wood Release to sustain the clan's expenses?"
Butsuma's words were met with approval.
"Ah, all this discussion is making me hungry. I want venison today, and tuna, and some wine from the capital of the Land of Fire.", Senju Butsuma said in a low voice.
This suggestion was also agreed upon by the elders.
"Yeah, yeah, I can already smell the wine!"
"Hey, no matter what, we can't let ourselves suffer!"
Bang!
A loud crash exploded as the wooden doors of the meeting hall were kicked open from outside.
Senju Hashirama stood at the entrance, his clothes slightly disheveled, a long-suppressed anger burning in his eyes as he stared at his father and the elders inside.
He said, "Enough!"