I founded the "Bragging Cult" in Naruto.

Chapter 109: Many things don't need to be investigated too deeply, except for the failure to pay wages.

"Boom boom boom~"

An explosion rang out in the woods, several figures moved about, and a rather hoarse, childish voice rang out.

"As expected of the elite ninjas of the Land of Rain, they can react so quickly even after accidentally falling into a trap."

"Tatsuma Sakamoto?!"

Another angry and horrified voice rang out at this moment, but Tatsuma did not respond. A white light flashed in the forest, and after a few weak sobs, the rainforest fell silent again.

The unusual absence of a system announcement puzzled Tatsuma, but he didn't dwell on it. Instead, he looked at the two who had also finished eliminating the enemy squad and asked, "No surprises, right? Minato, Fugaku-senpai?"

Minato gave a reassuring smile, and Fugaku shook his head calmly, while glancing at Tatsuma a few more times.

They had been teaming up for quite some time, and he had gained a deeper understanding of the two of them, but he still couldn't comprehend Tatsuma's thought process.

If you're going to fight, then fight. Why talk so much? Even if you do talk a lot, the others are just spouting trash talk to provoke the opponent and make them reveal weaknesses.

And Chenma? His mouth is as sweet as honey, his words as sweet as a diabetic's urine. Most importantly, he's not a two-faced person; that kind of approval can't be faked.

Most importantly, Tatsuma's "sweet words" are not only spoken to enemies, nor are they only spoken during battle.

Fugaku felt he would never forget what that kid had said a couple of days ago: "As expected of a fully developed man, XX is XXX, but I will definitely pee farther than you."

The most crucial point is that he lost, not because he couldn't pee as far as Tatsuma, but because Tatsuma was standing next to him and he couldn't pee at all.

Who stands next to someone urinating? Don't they even understand basic common sense like keeping a distance of at least one body length?! Foreigners really have no manners at all!

Tatsuma didn't notice Fugaku's increasingly resentful look, and said, "Then I'll go and clean up the corpses of the Sunagakure ninjas, and then rearrange the interior. You two rest for a bit."

After saying that, he left again. After Tatsuma left, Minato revealed his right hand, which had been behind his back, and slowly treated a wound on his arm with medical ninjutsu.

When Tatsuma returned, Minato's wound had healed, and he no longer hid it, but openly showed his hand. Tatsuma glanced at it, but did not point it out, instead frowning.

After Tatsuma returned, Fugaku Uchiha finally calmed down and said, "The Land of Rain has been making more and more frequent moves lately. I guess they can't sit still anymore."

Minato nodded and continued the conversation, saying, "I guess our repeated battles with Sunagakure have made the Land of Rain want to seize some of our interests."

Neither of them noticed that Tatsuma's expression was very strange, even solemn.

The two exchanged views for a while and agreed with each other. It was then that Minato realized Tatsuma hadn't spoken for a long time. He turned around and asked, "Tatsuma, are you alright?"

Tatsuma shook his head and said, "Things aren't that simple."

Upon hearing this, Fugaku frowned and asked, "What do you mean?"

He was having a great time chatting with Minato, expressing his views that he wouldn't dare to say in the village or within his family. He felt that he was putting his political talents to good use, but Tatsuma's words were like a denial.

Tatsuma then raised a ninja tool bag in his hand and said, "Those people may not be ninjas from the Land of Rain."

Minato looked at the ninja tool bag in Tatsuma's hand with a puzzled expression. In the dim rainforest, he couldn't see anything wrong with it, but he still frowned in confusion.

He believed that Tatsuma was not a person who spoke without reason, and Minato believed that Tatsuma must have discovered something to say such a thing.

Compared to Minato, Fugaku Uchiha, as a member of the Uchiha clan, had much better eyesight. Even in the dim rainforest, and even though he was farther away from Tatsuma, he immediately noticed that something was wrong.

The edge of the ninja tool pouch buckle had a few red fuzzy bits. Fugaku immediately determined that the red color was not from blood, but rather from something that had snagged on red fabric.

He quickly stepped forward and took the ninja tool bag from Tatsuma's hand, examining it carefully. After a while, he uttered the word "Iwagakure"!

"Iwagakure Village?!"

Minato looked surprised. This war was fought entirely by the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire, with the Land of Rain occasionally sending people to harass them. There was no sign of other countries or villages participating.

But now that traces of Iwagakure have suddenly appeared, how could Minato not be surprised?

Especially considering the impact of Iwagakure's involvement in the war, with three of the five great nations participating, it could even be described as a Shinobi World War.

For example, the previous Ninja World War was a war between the four nations of Fire, Water, Earth, and Lightning. It did not break out to the point where all countries and ninja villages were involved. However, because the four nations were fighting, it seriously affected the entire ninja world, which is why it was called the Ninja World War.

Now that the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire are at war, and the Land of Rain seems poised to get involved, if the Hidden Stone Village were to also intervene, the scale of the war would truly rival the Fourth Shinobi World War.

Looking at the ninja tool bag in his hand, Fugaku Uchiha felt immense pressure. This matter concerned the entire ninja world, and he should have reported it directly to his superiors. He couldn't handle this situation.

However, we have too little evidence at hand, just a few strands of red down, which is not enough to prove that those ninjas are from Iwagakure. Maybe the ninjas just like to wear red belts at home?

The standard ninja uniform of Iwagakure is red, but that doesn't mean only Iwagakure ninjas can wear red. After all, no ninja village would forbid other ninjas from wearing their village's signature color.

If this were reported and attracted the attention of the village's higher-ups, and an investigation revealed it to be just a misunderstanding, then Fugaku Uchiha—no, the entire Uchiha clan—would be branded with infamy.

Wasting the village's ninja resources, causing unrest among the villagers, and most importantly, potentially damaging the "friendship" between the two countries—the Uchiha clan doesn't want to take the blame for this.

But ignoring it wouldn't work either. If Iwagakure really joined the war, and he, as the frontline defender and scout, failed to discover it, it would at least be considered a failure in his duties.

Most importantly, he had already discovered something amiss, and someone knew he knew about it—those two brats.

Seeing the change in Fugaku's expression, Tatsuma took the initiative to say, "After we finish, I'll report to Lord Orochimaru and ask him to investigate whether these hairs are actually from the uniforms of the Iwagakure ninjas."

"Senior Fugaku, please contact the Uchiha clan members and ask them to intensify their investigation. New evidence would be best."

Upon hearing this, Fugaku suddenly realized what was happening, quickly shook his head to shake off the terrifying thought that had suddenly arisen in his mind, and then handed the ninja tool bag back to Tatsuma, saying:

"Tatsuma, thank you for your help with this. By the way, try not to make this public. We don't know if it was Iwagakure who did it, and even if it was, they don't know their purpose. The fewer people who know, the better for us."

Tatsuma nodded solemnly. In truth, he was inclined to believe that this was the work of Iwagakure. As for Iwagakure's purpose, it was the same as that of most countries that took the initiative to join the war midway: it was for profit.

He remembered that in the original story, Iwagakure did indeed take action during the Second Shinobi World War. Although it was uncertain whether they fully participated in the war, it was certain that they did.

Moreover, he was very familiar with the people who were attacked by Iwagakure: his teacher and his two teammates, who would become the future Legendary Sannin.

At this stage, the Sannin were not particularly powerful, and Hanzo was not the only one who drove them to the brink of defeat.

When Jiraiya was surrounded by Iwagakure ninja, he was seriously injured. Orochimaru even considered killing Jiraiya so that he and Tsunade could escape.

Tatsuma remembers the line, "One person can't do it, two people might be able to, but three people will surely die," very clearly.

Ultimately, if it weren't for Konoha's timely support, the Sannin might have been scattered or even lost many members. Orochimaru's actions in this incident are also the reason why Tatsuma, despite receiving Orochimaru's goodwill more than once, still subconsciously fears him.

If given a choice, Tatsuma would definitely not choose Orochimaru as his first target for negotiation.

However, Orochimaru is currently the camp commander, and compared to Tsunade's personality, Orochimaru is obviously much more reliable in this matter. At the same time, Orochimaru is also the highest-ranking ninja that Tatsuma can come into contact with.

He can't contact the elders or the Hokage above him now, and they are far away in the village. Unless he uses the communication equipment provided by the mountain clan in the camp, it is impossible to send messages back.

By this time, Fugaku had already surveyed the surrounding area and said, "Let's call it a day. This matter is clearly more important."

In reality, these few hours were nothing compared to the long war, but Fugaku wanted to give the two children a sense of security, and he wasn't sure if they had noticed his thoughts.

However, as long as this information is given to a third party, and a third party that he, Uchiha Fugaku, cannot deal with, then even if these two brats discover his emotional change, they will feel much more at ease.

Unfortunately, Minato is still just an innocent kid, and Tatsuma is also immersed in his memories, so he doesn't notice Fugaku's attempt to make amends, or even know why he did it.

They simply thought Fugaku was being too hasty, so the two nodded in agreement, and the three of them quickly headed towards the main battlefield. Fugaku did not inform the other Uchiha members of this news.

The withdrawal of a small squad wouldn't have a significant impact on the overall battle, but if all of them withdrew, it could leave a large opening for the enemy.

Back on the main battlefield, both sides were now fighting with low-ranking ninjas, but the difference was that the ninjas from Sunagakure did not seem to have much fighting spirit.

Fugaku wisely waited on the outside, while Minato also chose to stay behind. Tatsuma found Orochimaru, who was directing the battle, and handed him the ninja tool bag. Orochimaru was a little puzzled, but with his talent, he quickly noticed something was wrong with the ninja tool bag, and his expression became serious.

"Are you all back?"

Orochimaru's hoarse voice, coupled with his deliberately lowered volume, made his tone incredibly eerie. Tatsuma nodded, and only then did Orochimaru breathe a sigh of relief, speaking in a normal tone and volume:

"That's good. I'll handle this. You go back to the rear and take care of the wounded."

(End of this chapter)