I, Uchiha: Split Konoha

Chapter 138 Kakashi instructs Shisui on falsely reporting supplies

The ruins of the Land of Whirlpools: After a failed raid, the Mist Ninja seemed to have gone into hiding. While they did not launch any large-scale attacks again, small-scale incidents continued to occur in this forest.

The endless mountain ranges and the dense rainforests are fraught with danger; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a death forest.

The ninjas of Konoha and Kirigakure probed each other daily in small teams, and the battles of war were reduced to small-scale skirmishes.

Ambush, assassination, trap, interception, poisoning, and all sorts of other methods were being used. This time, both sides tacitly chose not to attack ordinary people.

Both sides began to sabotage each other's logistics, employing all sorts of methods. Although there was no major battle, daily fighting was taking place, which was extremely torturous, especially for the ninjas on both sides.

Both ninja villages tacitly chose not to escalate the war, but the similarly restricted war brought a sense of frustration and endless torment to the ninjas on both sides.

This can be seen as a microcosm of war: those in power merely offer empty words for their own benefit, while those below must fight bloody battles every day.

The forest is a battlefield, and it has become a microcosm of the war between Konoha and Kirigakure. Both sides send out ninjas every day. This is the attrition of war between great powers, to see who can't bear it first, and who will feel it's not worth it and choose to make peace.

Inside the camp at Konoha's base.

"Brother Ye, medical resources have been depleted recently, especially tourniquets and various antidotes."

Uchiha Shisui respectfully presented a report of the statistics, pausing at the end before lowering his voice and saying in a deep voice, "The consumption of medical resources was overstated by three points when reporting to the village."

Good heavens, who would have thought that even the honest Uchiha Shisui had learned this trick, overstating resource consumption by 3%? Where does this extra part go?

Uchiha Yoru, sitting upright at his desk, raised an eyebrow after hearing this, while Kakashi, with only one eye showing, calmly said, "The consumption of kunai, shuriken, and explosive tags has been enormous recently, especially since this is a jungle warfare trap, which requires even more resources. I added thirty percent to the report to the village."

What the hell!

Upon hearing this, Uchiha Shisui stared wide-eyed at Kakashi, as if to say, "You, with your thick eyebrows and big eyes, are actually... no! You're too ruthless!"

Facing Uchiha Shisui's shocked gaze, Hatake Kakashi showed no shame but instead said indifferently, "In a tropical rainforest battle, where the Mist Ninja are extremely skilled in assassination techniques, I think we can increase medical resources by at least fifty percent. After all, although we have a large number of wounded, our casualties are very few, and we owe a lot to you, Yoru."

At this point, Kakashi Hatake glanced at Yoru Uchiha without leaving a trace, "I didn't expect Yoru to be so skilled in medical ninjutsu."

Faced with Kakashi's calm tone and righteous expression as he recounted the matter of embezzlement, Uchiha Shisui, who was initially under pressure, was shocked. After all, this was the first time for him, an honest ninja, to do such a thing. Kakashi's words stunned him. Why was there such a big difference between them, both being first-timers? How could you be so calm and ruthless?

Does this also come down to talent? Is Kakashi exceptionally gifted?

In reality, this is the difference in their mindsets. Shisui was a pure ninja, while Kakashi possessed not only exceptional ninja talent but also a political mindset with immense potential. After all, he was a man who became Hokage in the original story, and he was not to be underestimated. Naturally, he understood that falsifying accounts was appropriate for the current situation.

Looking at Kakashi and Shisui, Uchiha Yoru, sitting at the table, shook his head with a wry smile. The two of them were now practically his right and left arms, indispensable to him.

"Shisui, you need to discuss this with Kakashi more." First, he subtly pointed out that Shisui was too timid in this matter, then Uchiha Yoru looked up at Kakashi and said quietly, "You can overreport the losses of supplies and logistics. If there are any oversights, you can lure the Mist Ninja to blow up one or two storage points."

Good heavens! Upon hearing this, Kakashi's eyes flashed with a look of sudden realization, while Shisui beside him looked bewildered, seemingly not quite understanding.

Uchiha Yoru's meaning was clear: a lie will always be a lie. If someone suspects something after exaggerating so much material, then you can make some changes in certain areas to make the lie impossible to verify, and that way there won't be any problems.

As for the losses, it's simple. In the midst of battle, it's normal for one or two supply depots to be destroyed by a sneak attack. As for the specific amount of losses, let's not overreport them, but at least fill in the gaps as they are. Do we need someone to teach us that?

After a long while, Shisui seemed to understand something. He stared at the two of them with wide eyes, as if to say, "You can do it like this? It even makes sense."

"These funds must be kept safe, because their families need them because of the war."

Uchiha Yoru's melancholy words immediately made Uchiha Shisui's heart sink, and he secretly made up his mind that he must put more effort into this aspect in the future, and if necessary, learn more from Kakashi-senpai.

"I've decided to divide this portion of the funds into four parts, which will be jointly managed by Kakashi, Shisui, Hizashi, and myself."

Upon hearing Uchiha Yoru's words, Uchiha Shisui immediately and solemnly replied, "These funds can be entrusted to Brother Yoru for safekeeping; I don't need them!"

However, before Shisui could finish speaking, Uchiha Yoru raised his hand to stop him, while Kakashi nodded slightly and said, "Yoru, I think Shisui is right."

However, Uchiha Yoru smiled and shook his head, saying, "This is a battlefield. Even if it weren't, Kakashi, you should understand one thing: there are no invincible ninjas in the world. If something were to happen, would you want all this money to disappear?"

Uchiha Yoru's words were quite clear: if anything were to happen to him, wouldn't all this money go to his grave?

Upon hearing this, Shisui revealed an angry expression. "Brother Ye, anyone who wants to harm you must step over my dead body first."

Shisui's words, which were practically a declaration of allegiance, prompted Uchiha Yoru to smile and wave his hand to stop him. Kakashi, however, was more mature; after a moment of silence, he solemnly nodded in acceptance.

In Kakashi's eyes, Shisui's strength was very strong, even he himself was not confident of defeating this boy, but his thinking was too immature. The enemy might not be from another country, but could also be from within.

It was obvious that Ye was worried; if something were to happen to him, these funds wouldn't all be lost.

"Alas, although Hizashi led the branch family to break free from their fate, such a large group had no way out once they joined the Seventh Division. The fate of the Caged Bird meant that the branch family members were almost always on the most dangerous front lines. There were too many orphans and widows in the branch family, which was a heavy burden."

Once they take the money, they're all in the same boat, and the Hyuga branch family also needs these funds.

In Kakashi and Shisui's eyes, while breaking free from the fate of being a caged bird was the long-cherished wish of the Hyuga branch family, the behavior of the Hokage's higher-ups was also too ugly.

You split the Hyuga clan, and then you treat the branch family like trash and throw it aside. That seems a bit too much, even though politics is always cruel.

As for your claim that this is the Root? Without the collective tacit approval of the Hokage's higher-ups, how could the mere Root possess such immense power?

Now, not only Kakashi, but even Shisui understands just how egregious Orochimaru's actions were. And what was the result? Danzo was just dismissed, but because of a statement that Konoha's situation was tense and Root needed a leader who could quickly grasp the overall situation, Shimura Danzo was reinstated.

Kakashi and Shisui, acting as outsiders, saw it clearly: Root was nothing more than a dirty glove used by the Hokage's higher-ups, and the glove naturally acted under the command of the person in control.

"By the way, Kakashi, please exaggerate the severity of some of the wounded soldiers' injuries on the reports based on the actual situation. But be sure to do it slowly and don't rush it, after all, they haven't been home for many years."

Kakashi, with his political acumen, instantly understood what Uchiha Yoru meant. He nodded and said in a deep voice, "Understood. I will implement it step by step, allowing these frontline heroes to return to the village as wounded."

To put it bluntly, it means exaggerating the injury report. Don't send too many people at once, as it will be too obvious. These ninjas are heroes who have been bleeding on the front lines, and they also have families.

Shisui, standing to the side, was clearly a few beats slower to react, but at least he understood. He couldn't help but show a dissatisfied expression, "Brother Yoru, almost all the Sarutobi clan ninjas hold important positions, and there are hardly any on the front lines. And they've been on the front lines for so long already, shouldn't they be here soon?!"

Uchiha Yoru reached out again to stop Shisui's outburst, and warned him in a deep voice, "Shisui, your words are dangerous. Remember to watch your mouth. You can keep these things to yourself, but don't let them fester. Do I need to teach you the lesson that loose lips sink ships?"

The genius Uchiha Shisui suppressed his frustration and finally lowered his head, but the anger simmering inside his chest grew stronger and stronger, and one day it would erupt like a volcano.

"Alright, Shisui. With the situation stabilizing at the front, news has arrived from the village and clan that Itachi and the elite of the younger generation of the clan will be transferred here. You will be in charge of this matter."

It's clear that the Uchiha clan is honing its younger generation. This may be a privilege of powerful clans, but it's also a way of supporting the front lines.

Kakashi, standing nearby, sighed inwardly. As the oldest and most prestigious family, they all knew to support the front lines. Although some of them might use this as an excuse to train their own younger generation, it was still support no matter what.

Meanwhile, the Sarutobi clan, which is growing stronger within the village, enjoys the most stable and gradual advancement in their missions. Although the battlefield is dangerous, it is also a place where geniuses rise to prominence.

No wonder the Uchiha clan always produces a constant stream of geniuses. On the other hand, the Sarutobi clan, which is growing stronger and has the potential to rival the Uchiha clan, has a strong foundation but no outstanding members.

Sarutobi Shinnosuke? Upon thinking of this person, Hatake Kakashi smiled sarcastically to himself. His strength was barely enough to be the head of the Anbu. He was probably only slightly stronger than the head of the Barrier Division among the six major departments of Konoha.

He might be able to manage as the head of the Anbu, but as for leading a village's Kage, even Kakashi himself was somewhat sarcastic, let alone the others.

No wonder the Sarutobi clan, despite its powerful foundation, cannot produce a single decent strongman among its younger generation. If they had even one, the village would probably have already chosen the Fifth Hokage.

"Is Itachi coming?" Although he already knew, upon hearing the news, Uchiha Shisui took a deep breath and solemnly nodded, saying, "Don't worry, Brother Yoru, leave the clan's affairs to me."

After all, Uchiha Yoru is now in charge of the heavy responsibility of frontline commander, so he naturally wants to share the burden of clan affairs to the best of his ability.

"The next batch of reinforcements from the village will also arrive. Kakashi, you will be in charge of selecting the escort team. With the arrival of the reinforcements, our wounded should go back to the village to rest."

"Yes."

Holding a scroll report, Uchiha Yoru revealed a sarcastic smile upon seeing the list of visitors. This scene naturally did not escape the eyes of Shisui and Kakashi.

"Brother Ye, is there anything wrong with this batch of reinforcements?"

When Shisui asked him a question, Uchiha Yoru looked up and saw Kakashi's eyes. He sighed softly, "Be careful in the future. The village's higher-ups still don't trust us. There are traces of Root members among them. Be careful in the future, and don't give them any leverage."

"We still have the Genma Squad to use; their loyalty is beyond question." Upon hearing Uchiha Yoru's last words, Shisui snorted coldly, somewhat annoyed. "They're just more of those rats hiding in the shadows, only good for attacking their own people."

Kakashi, having served in the Anbu for so many years, was naturally aware of the Root's existence and sighed, "Yoru, you must be careful too."

Root! These are no ordinary ninjas; they are a group of cold-blooded machines devoid of emotion, willing to do anything for a mission.

"Don't worry, but you all need to be careful too. Don't give anything away. Doing things yourself and working a little harder will help you avoid any oversights."

"yes!"

Shisui and Kakashi understood what was going on, especially since they were going to lie and overstate nearly half of the supplies, so they naturally had to be careful.

As Uchiha Yoru looked at the names on the relief list, he narrowed his eyes. Although the name 'Yakushi Nonou' was inconspicuous among them, he noticed it immediately.

It seems that Danzo's Root organization wants to spy on the Uchiha clan. After all, it's difficult to make a move within the village, but the battlefield is a mixed bag of people, mostly young Uchiha ninjas, which makes it a better opportunity to gather intelligence.

Unfortunately, he already knew the name and had grasped the other party's weakness.

Known as the strongest spy ninja in Konoha, the "Walking Shrine Maiden," Danzo really thought highly of her. In order to deal with her, he actually sent her over. It's just unknown what methods he used, but Yakushi Nonou didn't reveal the secret that he already knew her identity.

Are Root targeting him now? Or are they on guard against him? Is it because he has a dual identity as Orochimaru's disciple and Uchiha? Or is Root lurking in the shadows plotting something?

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(End of this chapter)