The Mizukage's office fell into complete silence.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Even Uchiha Setsuna, who was known among the Uchiha for his fierce and uncompromising personality, felt that his Young Clan Head was going a little too far this time.
After all, the topic under discussion was not something trivial.
They were talking about the Daimyo of one of the Five Great Nations.
The political authority of such a figure was far beyond that of a small country's ruler like the Daimyo of the Land of Waves.
Challenging such authority was not something a normal ninja village would dare to do.
Finally, Gensui swallowed nervously and spoke.
"You… you're joking, right?"
His voice was cautious.
But Uchiha Su only sneered slightly.
"Do I look like I'm joking?"
His tone was cold.
"There's no need to inform the Daimyo about this matter."
"If he has any objections…"
Su paused slightly before finishing the sentence.
"I will personally go and discuss it with him."
The meaning behind those words was obvious.
The room instantly became tense again.
But before anyone else could respond, Hōzuki Gengetsu spoke.
The Second Mizukage had already regained much of his composure.
"We cannot break ties with the Daimyo right now."
He leaned back in his chair and spoke seriously.
"The Hidden Mist Village's finances are currently weak."
"Every year we rely heavily on the Daimyo's funding."
"Without that funding, maintaining the village's military forces would be extremely difficult."
Gensui glanced at Gengetsu with a complicated expression.
"Mizukage-sama… this…"
He hadn't expected the usually straightforward Mizukage to suddenly speak so boldly.
Even suggesting that the village might challenge the Daimyo sounded dangerously close to treason.
Su tapped the table lightly as he thought.
After a moment, he nodded slightly.
Gengetsu's reasoning was indeed correct.
Now was not the right time to confront the Daimyo.
At least until the First Ninja World War began, acting against the Daimyo would cause unpredictable consequences.
If he openly challenged the feudal system now, the other nations might unite against him.
It would be like facing eighteen armies suppressing a rebel.
At that point, Su himself might end up being treated like a historical tyrant.
Even worse, nearly all ninja villages relied on funding from their respective Daimyo.
This included even the powerful Hidden Leaf Village.
When someone controlled your funding, your actions naturally became limited.
Su personally controlled half of the commercial income of the Land of Waves for the next ten years.
He also possessed access to a high-quality ice-free port, which had enormous economic potential.
However, even with those advantages, supporting an entire ninja village was still extremely difficult.
After thinking for a moment, Su asked another question.
"How many ninjas are currently in the Hidden Mist Village?"
This had always been something he found mysterious.
While watching historical records of the ninja world, it never seemed like there were that many ninjas in each village.
Yet during the Fourth Great Ninja War, the allied forces somehow assembled eighty thousand shinobi.
The numbers never seemed to add up.
Gengetsu answered.
"We currently have over five thousand ninjas."
He frowned slightly.
"This number has already exceeded what the village can comfortably support."
"In fact, last year the Daimyo even suggested that we should reduce our military strength."
He snorted angrily.
"He claims this is a peaceful era."
"He thinks the village does not need such a large standing force."
Gengetsu shook his head in frustration.
"The Daimyo simply doesn't understand the reality of the ninja world."
"The current situation is already extremely unstable."
"If it weren't for those two still being alive…"
He stopped mid-sentence.
Then he glanced awkwardly toward the head of the table.
"…the ninja world would already be tearing itself apart."
The two people he was referring to were obvious.
Uchiha Madara.
And Hashirama Senju.
Madara's lips curled slightly.
"So…"
"You're saying that Hashirama and I…"
"…have been standing in your way?"
His tone was calm, but the room suddenly felt colder.
Madara leaned back in his chair.
"I already knew that Hashirama's method would never succeed."
He spoke slowly.
"If true peace is to be achieved…"
"…then an unprecedented jutsu must be created."
"A technique powerful enough to control the entire ninja world."
Setsuna's eyes immediately shone with admiration.
"Madara-sama's vision is truly extraordinary!"
"Only someone like Madara-sama could have such courage!"
Setsuna had always been Madara's most loyal supporter.
No matter what Madara said, he would agree without hesitation.
Su silently watched the scene.
His thoughts were complicated.
He now felt certain.
Madara was already thinking about the Eye of the Moon Plan.
A plan to trap the entire world inside an eternal illusion.
A dream where conflict no longer existed.
Su tapped the blackboard lightly.
The sound broke everyone's concentration.
"Let's leave the development plan for the Hidden Mist at this stage for now."
He pointed to the first item written on the board.
"First, build the bridge."
"Once that is completed, we can proceed with the next step."
The meeting slowly came to an end.
One by one, the village leaders stood up and prepared to leave.
But Su suddenly called out.
"Gensui."
Gensui turned around.
"Yes?"
"When preparing the land for the Uchiha clan compound…"
"Choose an area slightly farther from the village center."
Su explained calmly.
"That way it won't interfere with the village's future expansion."
Gensui nodded.
"Understood."
Then he asked another question.
"Do you have any specific architectural requirements?"
"The building styles of each nation are quite different."
"For example, the Hidden Mist Village uses mainly stone buildings."
"The sea breeze here is very strong, so wooden structures would deteriorate quickly."
Su thought for a moment.
Then he smiled.
"Since we've already come to the Hidden Mist…"
"We should follow local customs."
"As for the size of the compound…"
He gestured toward Setsuna.
"Discuss the details with him."
Su called Setsuna over and gave him several instructions.
After that, the two men left the office together.
Once the room was mostly empty, Su called another Uchiha member over.
Uchiha Nami stepped forward.
"You wanted to see me?"
Su smiled slightly.
"Yes."
"I need you to spread a rumor."
Nami looked puzzled.
"What kind of rumor?"
Su's smile widened mischievously.
"A rumor about something very interesting."
He leaned closer and whispered.
"Spread the story that…"
"…the true legitimacy of Konoha now resides in the Hidden Mist Village."
Nami blinked.
That statement sounded completely absurd.
But Su seemed extremely satisfied with the idea.
At the same time, Su felt a faint excitement.
Once this rumor spread successfully…
He would finally complete a special mission.
And once the mission was complete—
He would awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan.
The Sharingan was said to be an eye that reflected the heart.
Su was extremely curious.
What kind of power would his own Mangekyō possess?
Meanwhile…
Far away in the Hidden Leaf Village.
Hashirama Senju sat alone on a hilltop.
From there he could clearly see the Hokage Rock carved into the mountain.
His expression was unusually gloomy.
Footsteps approached from behind.
"Big Brother…"
Tobirama Senju spoke softly.
Hashirama did not turn around.
"Oh, Tobirama."
"Is something happening in the village?"
Tobirama shook his head.
"The village is fine."
He hesitated briefly.
"I was just worried about you."
Hashirama smiled faintly.
"Don't worry."
"I'm fine."
He picked up a leaf from the ground.
Then he stared at it thoughtfully.
"I've been thinking about a question recently."
Tobirama frowned slightly.
"What question?"
Hashirama raised the leaf in front of his eyes.
"What is a true dream?"
Tobirama was startled.
That sentence sounded nothing like something his carefree brother would normally say.
But Hashirama quickly explained.
"Madara asked me this question…"
"…the night before he left Konoha."
Hashirama sighed quietly.
"At the time, I didn't understand what he meant."
Tobirama asked carefully.
"And now?"
"Do you understand it?"
Hashirama shook his head slowly.
"Not completely."
"But I do know one thing."
He stood up and turned toward Tobirama.
"You were wrong back then."
"The Uchiha are also part of Konoha."
"You shouldn't have used the election system to restrict Madara."
Tobirama froze.
"I…"
But Hashirama raised his hand, stopping him.
"Tobirama."
"Tell me something honestly."
He looked directly into his brother's eyes.
"Was the elected Hokage truly the Hokage that Konoha needed?"
Tobirama felt as if lightning had struck him.
Hashirama continued quietly.
"The people who voted were mostly Jonin loyal to you."
"Except for the Uchiha, nearly everyone voted in your favor."
"Tobirama…"
"You like playing with power too much."
Tobirama suddenly felt unable to speak.
He had never imagined his brother would say something like this.
After a long silence, Hashirama sighed.
"That's enough."
"There's no need to argue about it now."
He waved his hand gently.
"Just treat the Uchiha who remained in the village better."
"They trusted us."
"That's why they chose to stay."
Tobirama nodded slowly.
"I understand."
"I will treat them better in the future."
He thought for a moment before adding,
"Coincidentally, I'm currently looking for a Hokage assistant."
"Perhaps I could appoint an Uchiha to that position."
Hashirama shrugged.
"You're the Hokage now."
"You can decide such matters yourself."
He turned back toward the Hokage Rock.
As he stared at the stone faces carved into the mountain, a strange feeling appeared in his heart.
A quiet premonition.
Somehow…
Hashirama felt certain of one thing.
Someday—
Madara would return to Konoha.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)