Saving the Uchiha clan starts with becoming the clan leader.

Fortunately, he had arranged a meeting place with Zetsu beforehand, and Zetsu didn't waste any time. Although it wasn't far from Konoha, Zetsu was only a step behind him, which means that not a single second was wasted.

"Obito, your condition..."

Black Zetsu stared in astonishment at Obito Uchiha lying on the ground.

Before Uchiha Mugen arrived.

He had already predicted that Obito would suffer another defeat this time. Of course, he believed that even if Obito failed, he wouldn't be unable to return. But he never expected that Obito would be in such a miserable state, with both legs cut off at the thighs and blood gushing out.

If it weren't for the powerful life force provided by the transplanted White Zetsu body, they probably would have died before even escaping here.

It's not over yet,

Obito's left hand also turned into stone.

Of course, this change was limited to the left hand and did not spread to the whole body.

"I was ambushed by Uchiha Sogen and Uchiha Shisui. Alright, we can talk about that later. Now hurry up and fix my hands and feet. If this drags on any longer, I'm really going to die." Uchiha Obito fainted after saying this.

The phrase "breathing only a thread" perfectly describes his condition; he was truly clinging to his last breath, refusing to leave with death.

Black Zetsu knows what's important.

Obito... it's better for him to live than die. If he dies, all the plans are bound to be greatly disrupted. Even if he tells the truth, it may not be able to eliminate the subsequent impact of this disruption. Although as long as the Rinnegan is there, the plan will always have a glimmer of hope.

But there's no need to create unnecessary trouble for yourself, is there?

After thinking for less than a fraction of a second, Black Zetsu immediately got to work. First, he helped Obito stop the bleeding to prevent him from dying from blood loss. Then, he gave Obito all sorts of blood-replenishing and calcium-supplementing medicines. After that, he summoned White Zetsu to replace Obito's lost legs and left hand.

It's uncertain whether Obito Uchiha's will to survive was unexpectedly strong, or whether the life force contained within the White Zetsu's limbs was powerful enough, or even whether both played a role. In any case, the final result was that Obito Uchiha survived.

They pulled people back from the clutches of death.

"...I survived?"

Obito Uchiha blinked his single eye as he awoke from his coma, confirming that the person crouching beside him was Zetsu, not some kind of ghost or ancestor from the underworld.

"You survived this time, but... no one can guarantee you'll survive next time."

"That's it!"

"Now can you tell me in detail how you lost? How did you lose so badly?" Seeing that Uchiha Obito was acting profound at this moment, Black Zetsu couldn't help but ask him.

"I already told you, didn't I? Uchiha Sogen and Uchiha Shisui teamed up... I couldn't dodge Uchiha Sogen's eye technique. The moment my left hand was struck, I realized something was wrong. I thought this operation was a complete failure. As I was leaving, that bastard Uchiha Shisui stabbed me. The sharpness of that blade was truly terrifying. My legs were severed in one stroke. I think my true identity probably won't be hidden for much longer."

Obito Uchiha took a deep breath; he was a little tired from talking too much in one go.

"It wasn't a complete defeat. We managed to extract details of another of Uchiha Sogen's eye techniques, which is a huge gain in itself." Black Zetsu was truly humble and undeterred in victory. He was playing with Obito Uchiha's severed left hand, seemingly not taking this defeat to heart at all.

"That's not entirely wrong... but I still feel a bit of resentment! This is the second time already."

Out of the corner of his eye, Obito Uchiha caught a glimpse of his left hand, which had turned to stone.

A murderous intent surged within him.

He was defeated by Uchiha Sogen in the forest on the east coast of the Land of Fire, and even lost the Flame Fan that symbolized Uchiha Madara. This time, he was attacked by Uchiha Sogen again. If he hadn't reacted quickly, not only would his left hand have turned to stone.

"And you said your identity will be exposed... Is it because of that severed leg?" Black Zetsu pondered for a moment, then shook his head helplessly. "Forget it, so be it! Anyway, you've already lost twice, and you're starting to lose your Uchiha Madara's airs. The key is Nagato. You need to spend some time coming up with a good excuse, otherwise it won't be so easy for me to influence Nagato alone."

"I know what I'm doing."

Obito Uchiha nodded slightly, mainly because he was extremely tired and didn't have the strength to do anything strenuous.

How to deal with that stubborn idiot Nagato?

He still has some feelings for me.

"Compared to such trivial matters, we should be considering how to defeat Konoha in its current state." Obito Uchiha took a breath and said seriously, "Uchiha Sogen, Uchiha Shisui, and Uchiha Fugaku alone are already a huge problem. Without removing these stumbling blocks, the plan cannot be implemented smoothly."

“I understand what you’re saying, but you should also know that unless Nagato personally takes action and uses the power of the Rinnegan to crush Konoha, even if all the Akatsuki’s current forces except for Nagato are gathered, it will be difficult to defeat Konoha. The Akatsuki… is still not strong enough.”

Black Jue's face was dark, and his expression was unreadable, but his slightly somber tone revealed that he was not in a good mood.

"Kazuma was lucky and reacted quickly enough to slip away, but Hiruko... I was originally thinking of bringing him into the Akatsuki organization, but he was captured by Uchiha Mugen. As a result, the Akatsuki organization still can't get any more manpower."

Is there really no good news at all?

"Uchiha Obito asked."

"No, that's not it. White Zetsu has discovered the whereabouts of someone we hadn't been able to find before."

[Chapter 319. Hiruko, who has become like a piece of chewing gum]

After the last regenerating serpent was captured alive by the sealing team's professionals, the flames of war were extinguished, the crisis finally came to an end, and Konoha safely weathered this crisis that was of uncertain danger.

If you ask why it's not good and how dangerous it is...

The main reason was that Hiruko's initial attack was so fierce that many ninjas who had experienced the Nine-Tails Night thought that even if the village could survive this ordeal, many comrades would have to sacrifice themselves. However, after the Hokage's assistant clarified the potential threats in the village, he made a move that crushed Hiruko with overwhelming force.

victory,

In the blink of an eye, it was acquired.

After the administrative staff worked overtime, a rough statistical list was obtained.

The number of casualties reported did not even reach three digits.

There were quite a few injured, with over a hundred seriously injured and nearly a thousand lightly injured. However, given Konoha's medical technology, even if someone was missing an arm or leg, as long as the severed arm or leg could be retrieved, it could be reattached. As for the lightly injured, there was even less to worry about.

then,

Under the vigorous promotion of relevant departments,

This is yet another great victory achieved under the leadership of the Hokage!

Just like the two battles against the Mist Ninja and Cloud Ninja in previous years.

"Thanks to the Hokage assisting you! Otherwise, the village would have been in even worse shape this time."

"That's right! The village gate was destroyed. Luckily, our house was alright, otherwise we would probably have to live in a tent again. Five years ago, when the fox demon caused trouble, our original house was destroyed by the fox demon. We lived in a tent for almost a month before the village gave us some compensation. Sigh, if it weren't for the fact that we still had some savings in the bank, to be honest, that little bit of compensation wouldn't have been enough for us to rebuild our house."

"It's all because the Fourth Hokage sacrificed himself! If the Fourth Hokage were still alive... Thankfully, we have the Hokage to assist you now!"

"That's right, thankfully we have the Hokage to assist you, sir!"

Street corners, taverns, and teahouses.

In these places where idle people gather, more and more people are praising "Hokage's assistant". At first, half of the people saying these things were paid trolls, but as the momentum grew, such statements became the mainstream view.

Especially among ninjas,

Zongxian's already considerable prestige experienced another explosive growth.

There was no need to specifically arrange an online army. Almost all the Konoha ninja who witnessed Sogen's overwhelming defeat of Hiruko became his fanatical supporters. In hospital wards, on patrol paths, and at tavern tables, they constantly boasted to their fellow patients, colleagues, and drinking buddies about their experiences that day, inevitably exaggerating the strength and reliability of the Hokage's assistant.

"Tsunade, is Senior Torifuki going to retire?"

"Why do you say that?"

"My ears aren't deaf yet!"

“Ah! That’s true. Jiraiya, you’ve changed a lot. The old you… wouldn’t have thought about this kind of thing.” Tsunade’s face was flushed, and the table was almost full of empty sake bottles. “But you guessed right, that fat old man is going to step down.”

"So, Konoha is really going to produce a Hokage from the Uchiha clan."

Jiraiya held his sake cup, overwhelmed with emotion.

He had just returned. He wasn't in the village when Hiruko attacked it, and only after returning did he realize how big the incident had been. After all, the area near Konoha's main gate was truly devastated, with a large number of construction workers busily carrying out reconstruction work.

"What? Jiraiya, you don't think you're like Sarutobi-sensei and the others, do you? You think the Uchiha are an inherently evil clan? No, wait, it was my great-uncle who first said that. Anyway, it's all pretty much the same." Tsunade, under the influence of alcohol, became increasingly unrestrained in her speech.

"I'm just saying that, in my eyes, the Uchiha are no different from everyone else."

Jiraiya sighed helplessly.

He did not inherit the Third Hokage's wariness and hostility towards the Uchiha clan.

Precisely,

Even the three legendary Sannin did not inherit such a 'legacy'.

He paused for two seconds, then asked, "By the way, Tsunade... have you seen Hiruko?"

"No."

Tsunade put down her wine glass. "What? You want to visit that guy?" The fact that Hiruko was still alive hadn't been widely publicized in the village, but there were still quite a few people who knew about it. The so-called secrecy was mostly reserved for those who didn't have enough power or strength.

"I want to ask, what exactly did he do this for? Researching forbidden techniques, betraying the village, attacking the village, I don't understand them... What was the purpose of all this?" Jiraiya stared down at the swirling wine in his glass, his reflection blurred in his eyes.

"Why are you telling me all this?"

Tsunade looked impatient.

However, through the fair and delicate skin on the back of his hand holding the wine glass, which was not at all like that of a fifty-year-old, one could see tiny, slightly protruding blood vessels.

"Just asking if you're interested? We can go check it out together."

"boring."

Tsunade tilted her head back and finished the sake in her cup, then stood up. "Let's go!"

"Go now?"

Jiraiya was taken aback for a moment.

"How long do you want to drag this out? Wait until tomorrow? There's no need for that, and there are fewer people at night."

"It feels like we'd be causing trouble for others if we went at this time... But whatever, let's go!" Jiraiya put down his wine glass, paid the bill, and walked out of the tavern with Tsunade. Shizune followed closely behind like an invisible person.

It was a little after nine o'clock in the evening.

The moon was bright and the stars were few, while the lights on the ground were like a sea. The attack two days ago had already been forgotten by the villagers. After all, the damage caused by that attack was negligible. The number of civilian casualties was less than a handful. Most of the dead were ninjas fighting on the front lines. In addition, the damaged areas of the village were only the main gate and the vicinity of Ichiraku Ramen. Most people did not even suffer any damage to their personal property.

Life is no different from before.

If we were to play a spot-the-difference game, the only difference would be that the name of the Hokage's assistant appears more frequently in people's mouths than in the past.

Tsunade and Jiraiya arrived at the Hokage Building.

Hiruko was imprisoned in the police department's dungeon. According to past practice, such serious criminals should be imprisoned in the Anbu. However, since this was a criminal captured by Muneaki himself, and the Anbu happened to be outside Muneaki's jurisdiction, Muneaki ultimately chose to throw the criminal into the police department's dungeon.

As for why not go directly to the police department...

Of course, it's because without the permission of Hokage Uchiha Munen, even they couldn't just barge into the police department's dungeon to see Hiruko, a serious criminal.

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