Fugaku has gone mad; he's going to create a new Uchiha clan in Kirigakure.

As Fugaku Uchiha finished speaking, Mikoto Uchiha took out a small scroll from her bosom and pressed it to the ground with one hand.

"untie!"

As the white smoke dissipated, a quaint-looking movie projector with a metallic sheen appeared in her hand.

She skillfully set up the projector, pointed the lens at the huge mud wall behind Fugaku Uchiha, and gently turned the knob.

"Click".

The projector emitted the soft clicking of gears meshing, and a dazzling white light shot out from the lens, striking the dark mud wall precisely and forming a huge, clear screen.

On the screen, light and shadow began to flow.

The first thing that appears is a line of bold and powerful characters.

Unite all who can be united

Below are slightly smaller subtitles:

Director: Fugaku Uchiha

Photography: Fugaku Uchiha, Mikoto Uchiha

Starring: Fugaku Uchiha, Mei Terumi, Saburo Terumi, Kiriko Minazuki, etc...

Upon seeing this, Mizuki Kiriko, standing beside Fugaku, widened her eyes slightly, a hint of realization flashing across her cool face. No wonder Lady Mikoto had been holding that strange object in her hand that day, and couldn't help but laugh from time to time...

She shook her head, a rare hint of helplessness appearing on her face.

It's not that she doesn't understand.

She naturally knew about movies; they were a novel thing that came from the snow country in the far north. Using light and shadow to tell stories was indeed interesting, but as a Kirigakure ninja who spent her days with ninjutsu and missions, she had no interest in understanding the details of how movies were made.

...

"What exactly is this guy trying to do?"

In the distance, Black Hoshino Raiga, trapped at the edge of the mud cube, frowned, and blue lightning flickered uneasily at his fingertips.

"Let's wait and see. If he just wanted to kill us, he could have simply made the mud shrink and turn everyone into mud puppets. There would have been no need for this. Even a thousand-strong ninja army and the elders of Konoha couldn't stop him, so neither can we."

As he spoke, Suigetsu Hobuki's gaze lingered for a moment on Fugaku Uchiha's calm face before sweeping over the striking title on the curtain.

"Unite all who can be united."

This line of text is so simple, yet upon closer examination, it seems incredibly profound...

...

A few seconds later, the movie officially started playing.

The first thing that reached everyone's ears was a rhythmic "creak~ creak~" sound.

The sound echoed clearly within the enclosed mud cube.

Many female ninjas were stunned at first, then their faces flushed, and they looked at Uchiha Fugaku with strange eyes. Their eyes were a mixture of surprise, embarrassment and anger, and even a hint of disdain. So you made such a big fuss and trapped us all here just to let us see that kind of thing.

Even some of the male ninjas' expressions became subtle.

However, the next second, the scene appeared.

The screen shows the interior of a Japanese-style room.

Fugaku Uchiha was kneeling on the tatami mat, pressing his hands hard against the cushion beneath him, making a "creaking" sound. Beside him, Mei Terumi was covering her mouth tightly, her shoulders trembling, her pretty face flushed red. Clearly, if she didn't cover her mouth, she would burst out laughing at any moment.

Off-screen, one could hear Mikoto Uchiha's suppressed, silvery laughter.

After a brief silence, someone burst out laughing, and then low laughter spread through the crowd.

It turns out that the so-called "sleeping" was just an act!

In the scene, Fugaku Uchiha is seen pressing down on the tatami mats to make a sound while simultaneously writing rapidly on a scroll with his other hand.

The camera slowly zooms in, giving a close-up of the handwriting on the note.

【Mikoto, you continue your charade with Mei here. I'm going to see Mei's uncle, Terumi Saburo.】

The camera moves through the darkness, then a glimmer of light appears, breaking through the underground to reveal a simple, makeshift office.

Saburo Terumi was hunched over his desk, his brow furrowed as he worked on the documents. As a supporter who had come with Mei Terumi, his role was more like that of a butler, and he was responsible for handling almost all the trivial matters.

Suddenly, Terumi Saburo looked up alertly and saw that it was Uchiha Fugaku. Only then did he put down the kunai in his hand.

"What's the matter?"

"The plan has already begun."

Fugaku Uchiha's voice rang out.

"Soon the fish will bite the hook, and then someone might come to try to turn you against us in the name of the Ninja Clan Alliance. This scroll is sealed silt. Open it at the right time, and I can finish the job."

"Wait a minute."

"What is it?"

"Your plan is excellent, using Kotoamatsukami as bait, but after much thought, I still want to ask: what if the Sharingan you possess truly is Kotoamatsukami? What if you really control Mei Terumi? What if you truly intend to continue controlling everyone in Kirigakure?"

"Then why don't I control you first and stop you from asking so many 'whys'?"

"Hahaha..."

Another burst of laughter erupted from the audience, causing the somewhat stern-looking Terumi Saburo to blush slightly.

Mei Terumi was also giggling nearby.

"Second Uncle, when was the first time he found you?"

"It was... the afternoon of the day after the battle with Konoha ended..."

"That's not..."

Upon hearing this, Mei Terumi blushed. It was that afternoon that she lost her first kiss...

"He told me that after he woke up, he found that his abilities had evolved again. The sword could sink into the ground and turn into a large area of ​​silt to monitor the surroundings. Then he discovered the person who controlled the Fourth Hokage and came up with the idea of ​​using another 'Kotoamatsukami' that didn't exist before as bait. He came to me because he thought I could be an undercover agent in their camp..."

...

While Mei Terumi was talking to her second uncle, the scene changed again.

This scene depicts Minazuki Kiriko visiting Uchiha Fugaku's temporary residence at night.

Seeing her own image appear on the screen, Mizuki Kiriko subconsciously turned her face away, her ears turning slightly red. In the image, she was actually untying her clothes, trying to use "seduction" to get close to Fugaku.

In the shot, she has her back to the camera, her kimono slowly slipping off her shoulders to reveal a fair, jade-like back. Her beautifully sculpted shoulder blades gleam softly in the dim light, and further down, her slender waist is faintly visible...

"Oh~~"

A low, suppressed gasp immediately rang out from the scene.

Fortunately, the scene only showed Mizuki Kiriko's shoulders and a small part of her back before stopping. The next second, accompanied by the surging mud, Uchiha Fugaku instantly appeared in front of her, holding a note in front of her containing information about being monitored. He also helped Mizuki Kiriko put her clothes back on...

"Haha, what an interesting fellow!"

In the distance, Raiga Kurosuki couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"This is not funny."

Pipa Juzo gave him a cold glance, his voice heavy with seriousness.

"If I'm not mistaken, that ability to instantly traverse through the mud, while not as powerful as Konoha's Flying Thunder God Technique, is remarkably similar to the Kaguya clan's ultimate bloodline limit, 'Shikotsumyaku: Early Fern Dance.' In positional warfare, with enough mud, he's practically invincible."

"But this is good news."

The previously silent Watermelon Pufferfish suddenly spoke.

Both of them looked at him at the same time.

Suigetsu Hozuki didn't explain, he just continued staring at the curtain...

As the scene played, after the scene of Minazuki Kiriko being "controlled by Kotoamatsukami" ended, the scene showed Terumi Mei sitting on the tatami mat. The camera zoomed in, and you could see that her eyes were red.

She was crying, or rather, she had just cried; her eyes were brimming with tears.

"I sacrificed so much for the Ninja Alliance. I thought we were together, comrades, but they harbored so many ulterior motives, even plotting to betray me..."

This scene caused many members of the Ninja Clan Alliance to lower their heads.

"You must understand the difficulties faced by smaller clans."

Off-screen, Fugaku Uchiha's calm voice rang out.

"For them, just surviving is already exhausting, so the survival philosophy of most small tribes is 'follow whoever wins,' like weeds, bending whichever way the wind blows; they have no choice."

"People like Kiriko, who dare to step forward to repay a debt of gratitude even when they know it's a dead end, are certainly precious, but the rest of us shouldn't be sentenced to 'death' because of that."

"Furthermore, when you sit in the position of leader, you should no longer have personal likes and dislikes. Just like how I released those prisoners from Konoha, from my personal point of view, killing them might have been very satisfying, but I am the clan leader. I am not thinking about satisfaction, not about the present, but about the future..."

"I led the Uchiha clan to join Kirigakure, bringing them benefits. That's why Kirigakure is willing to confront Konoha for my sake. But if I kill those people and anger Konoha, making the benefits I bring to Kirigakure less than what Kirigakure pays, do you think Kirigakure will still be willing to accept our Uchiha clan?"

"Of course... I don't want to."

"So, this is the core. Don't worry about anything else. Just do one thing: from the perspective of the interests of the Land of Mist and the Hidden Mist Village, re-examine and redefine the 'components' of the Hidden Mist Village."

Mei Terumi stared at him blankly, clearly not quite understanding.

"What I mean is that, starting with you, Kirigakure will no longer distinguish between 'ninja clans,' 'bloodline factions,' and 'non-bloodline factions.'"

"But..."

"Anyone who undermines the interests of Kirigakure is an enemy."

"Whoever is building up and protecting the interests of Kirigakure is a friend."

"Whoever wavers with the wind is the centrist who can be won over."

His voice echoed clearly in the dimly lit basement, each word striking a chord in the room, resonating in everyone's heart...

"Have no illusions about the enemy; eliminate them completely, because the struggle for interests is the core of all struggles."

"For your own people, you should distribute rewards according to their work, and those who are capable should receive more. Take Chief Wuzi as an example. She risked her life to help you, so you must never let her feel disheartened afterward."

"For things that can be fought for, we must learn to compromise. Compromise within reasonable limits can minimize losses. Just like those ninja clan members, as I said before, when faced with the threat of Kotoamatsukami, they only wanted to survive, nothing more..."

In short, it boils down to one sentence.

"Stand on the foundation of Kirigakure's interests and unite all those who can be united."

...

The screen went black again.

A brief silence fell over the mud cube.

The ninjas all seemed to be deep in thought...

The entire cube was so quiet that the only sound was breathing...

...

"No wonder..."

After a long while, Terumi Saburo, who was looking at the curtain, turned around and couldn't help but sigh.

"Second Uncle, no wonder what?"

Mei Terumi looked at her second uncle.

"No wonder, no wonder you were completely fooled by him."

There seemed to be a hint of resentment in Terumi Saburo's words, like someone who had cultivated a cabbage for over a decade only to have it pulled up by someone else...

"Second Uncle!! I didn't..."

"Hehe, I raised you from infancy, I know what you're like."

"Second Uncle! I'm ignoring you..."

After glancing at Mei Terumi's retreating figure, Saburo Terumi's gaze returned to the curtain, his smile vanishing completely. He knew very well that Fugaku Uchiha was even more formidable than he had imagined, not only in terms of strength but also in his mind—something ninjas often overlook. A powerful ninja without an equally powerful mind is nothing more than a tool.

What kind of changes will such a person bring when they join the Hidden Mist Village? Who can say for sure?

...

Sizzling..

Sizzling..

The screen remained black, but sound appeared...

The sound was somewhat distorted, as if it had been recorded through some medium, but the content of the conversation was still audible.

"One Kotoamatsukami per hour, that's terrifying efficiency..."

"During tomorrow's negotiations, launch an attack on him. You go and inform the Fourth Hokage's people. At the same time, secretly find an opportunity to kill a few more people, make sure everyone starts fighting..."

"As long as war breaks out, as long as people die, no one can stop!"

"Once they've all started fighting, seize the opportunity and take Kotoamatsukami!"

...

Upon hearing this, suppressed angry curses erupted from the crowd of the Ninja Alliance.

Meanwhile, the ninjas of the Hidden Mist Assassination Squad also turned cold; no one likes to be led by the nose from behind the scenes.

The face of the Watermelon Pufferfish Demon was even more gloomy and terrifying.

He felt there was something wrong with the sudden order at the time, and now it seems that the person who controlled the Fourth Hokage not only wanted to steal his eyes, but also wanted to completely destroy Kirigakure's power through internal strife. One can imagine that when the Shinobi Alliance and the Kirigakure assassination squad completely break ties, the flames of war will engulf the entire Kirigakure village.

Finally, the entire screen went dark, and clearly, the so-called movie had ended.

"Splash..."

Almost simultaneously, the muddy canopy that had enveloped everyone crumbled and fell to the ground like melting ice from a rooftop in spring...

"What... happened?"

The ninjas of the Ninja Alliance, who had been pondering this "movie" just a moment ago, were like frightened birds, but after waiting a while, they found nothing, except for Uchiha Fugaku, who was panting heavily...

"This guy..."

Seeing this, Suigetsu Hozuki couldn't help but laugh out loud, not in a mocking way, but in a relieved way.

"Rotten watermelon, what are you laughing at?"

"I'm laughing at you for using that hoe; you're a fool."

Watermelon Mountain Pufferfish Demon pointed to the silt in the distance.

"It's obvious that this guy fooled everyone. The secret technique he just used was just a facade."

"So, all this guy went through all that trouble for was just to let people watch a movie?"

"Isn't that enough? In my opinion, this thing is far more useful than any other god..."

Watermelon Mountain Pufferfish Demon sighed.

"I understand everything now: interests, background, who the enemies are, who the allies are, and why we need to distinguish between the bloodline faction and the non-bloodline faction."

"The core issue is who is protecting the interests of Kirigakure. The Ninja Academy that I've always longed for was founded by the Second Hokage, who was a member of the Hozuki clan, a standard bloodline successor. There are quite a few non-bloodline successors who, after gaining power, have become even more corrupt than those bloodline successors. I've personally killed countless of them..."

"So, now you two understand, right?"

After saying that, Suigetsu Hozuki glanced sideways at his two comrades beside him, Hiwa Juzo and Kurosuki Raiga.

"The reason I say 'his strength is good news' is that I believe Kirigakure will need his help to regain its former glory in the future."

"You're going to pledge allegiance to him?"

"I am not loyal to anyone, I am only loyal to Kirigakure..."

Having said that, he picked up the Samehada sword.

"The Ninja Alliance!!!"

The voice of the Watermelon Pufferfish Demon resounded like a great bell throughout the Mist Hidden Camp.

"If you agree with Fugaku Uchiha's point of view, then set aside your differences for now and cooperate with our assassination squad. From now on, we will monitor each other, seal off the area, and whoever leaves here now is the rat that plagues Kirigakure, and will be killed without exception!"