Saving the Uchiha clan starts with becoming the clan leader.

Considering Zabuza's situation of being targeted by the Hyuga clan's Byakugan, it's not hard to conclude that Konoha is targeting their young, skilled ninja from the Mist Village.

"Is there even a need to think about this?"

Hozuki Mangetsu glanced at him sideways, "Does our Mizukage have any countermeasures?"

Mei Terumi pursed her lips, ultimately having nothing to say.

Countermeasures?

What solutions are there?

Lately, the Mizukage has been doing nothing but ordering all his troops to attack, without having any other plans whatsoever.

"That bastard!"

Hozuki Mangetsu's face was gloomy.

The thought that he had suppressed several times before suddenly resurfaced uncontrollably.

"Or maybe we should just kill the Fourth Hokage!"

[110. Chapter 110: The Fourth Hokage's surname doesn't seem to be Uzumaki?]

The seeds of a coup in Kirigakure have been sown again. Beneath the calm surface, undercurrents are surging ever stronger. Due to this chaotic war, the daily increase in the alarming casualty figures has led to a growing number of Kirigakure ninja dissatisfied with the Fourth Mizukage's rule. However, for the time being, no one has stepped forward to be the first to do so. The Kirigakure ninja, accustomed to stabbing each other in the back, are all waiting for someone else to make a move.

only,

If we don't act now, we might not have another chance.

After experiencing many risks and setbacks, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and his group finally arrived at the Black Tide Mountain Castle just in time for their meal. Naruto was well protected and didn't even have a hair on his head. In contrast, Kakashi, Shisui, and Guy, who were responsible for escorting Naruto, seemed a bit weak. They didn't show any external injuries, but their chakra was quite depleted.

"Chief of the Aburame Clan, Chief of the Akimichi Clan."

Zongxian greeted the two clan leaders, whose auras were also somewhat weakened.

"The journey looks like it's going to be a bit rough!"

Aburame Shiki remained silent, his sunglasses and turned-up collar obscuring most of his face, making it impossible to discern his change in attitude. Akimichi Choza, however, revealed a bitter smile that was a mixture of anger and relief upon hearing this. "It was quite dangerous. If it weren't for the Uchiha clan leader's reinforcements arriving quickly, and Shisui's helping hand, I might have fallen into the hands of those damned Cloud Ninja."

His words were full of anger and hatred towards the Cloud Ninja.

"It's good that it came in handy."

After receiving the letter, Sogen summoned Shiguro Aburame and Koren Yamanaka, instructing them to lead a team to meet the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and his group. He himself was tied up with keeping an eye on Yagura Karatachi, and besides, he saw Shisui and Guy's names on the escort list. Unless the Fourth Raikage personally intervened, otherwise…

"Are the attackers really Cloud Ninja?" Zongxian asked.

"Yes."

Speaking of that detestable name, the forced smile on Akimichi Choza's face vanished, and he gritted his teeth, saying, "It's those mountain barbarians. Lightning Release ninjutsu can't lie. There was no evidence on those wandering ninjas that they were the masterminds, but this morning at dawn, several experts among the attackers used Lightning Release ninjutsu. I was almost killed, but Shisui's Body Flicker Technique was fast enough to block that fatal blow. When Shiguro and the others came to help, they saw that things were not going well and retreated."

When Uchiha Shisui is mentioned, Akimichi Choza feels only deep gratitude.

It was really just a hair's breadth away back then.

He was about to go to the Pure Land to pay homage to the Six Paths Immortal.

The route from Konoha Village to this eastern border is entirely within the heart of the Land of Fire, not at all near the northern border. Logically speaking, even if the Cloud Ninja's spies could accurately gather relevant intelligence, the Cloud Ninja wouldn't have had time to send skilled individuals to infiltrate the Land of Fire and carry out their operations.

Or perhaps the Cloud Ninja have stationed highly skilled individuals in the Land of Hot Water and the Land of Frost...

They might even be lurking within the Land of Fire?

This conjecture is not impossible.

After all, they had successfully intimidated and extorted Konoha before, so it was only natural that they became bolder after tasting the benefits.

"The Cloud Ninja... we'll settle this score with them later." Zongxian narrowed his eyes, the narrow slits revealing a blood-red glint of killing intent, but he quickly suppressed it. There were priorities; the most urgent task was to completely subdue the Mist Ninja first.

"Clan Chief Aburame, Clan Chief Akimichi, please go and rest! I will take care of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki."

Yu Nuzhi stood still without moving.

Instead, he asked, "Clan head Uchiha, are you preparing to go out?"

In the short time he stood at the castle gate, he had already seen many fully armed ninjas hurrying in and out. In addition, Uchiha Sogen had also changed into a set of crimson layered armor, and was carrying the [Flame Fan], which the Uchiha clan had lost for decades, on his back.

This commotion,

This appearance,

They looked like they were about to do something big.

"Yes."

Zongxian nodded in agreement, “This war has gone on long enough, and it’s about time to put an end to it.”

Choza Akimichi blinked, momentarily confused. Shiki Aburame, however, remained silent for a few seconds before asking, "Ending the war... is it a decapitation strike? Muneaki-kun, are you planning to destroy the Kirigakure command center?"

"I'm not going to destroy, I'm going to form alliances! Don't forget the trump card we have," Zongxian said with a smile.

trump card?

The woman's eyebrows twitched behind her sunglasses as she remembered that name.

"The Fourth Mizukage?"

Just as he was muttering to himself, the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi, appeared before them. This short-statured Mizukage with a baby face looked around at the disorganized attack team and frowned. "Aren't you ready yet? You're dragging your feet."

"Good things come to those who wait, please be patient, Lord Mizukage."

Zongxian remained calm and composed.

Yagura Karatachi didn't argue, since he knew he couldn't win anyway, and even if he did, it wouldn't do him any good. He walked to the side, sat down in the shade of a tree, and closed his eyes to rest. Sogen didn't pay any attention to him, but simply invited the two clan leaders into the castle and arranged for Suzaku Nara to host a welcoming dinner for the two clan leaders and Might Guy.

······

Naruto saw Uchiha Fujika pushing a wheelchair from afar and immediately waved and greeted her excitedly. He ran over to meet her in a flash. Kakashi hesitated for two seconds, but stood still. He decided it was best not to interfere in the interaction between the children.

but,

Is Naruto's only friend a member of the Uchiha clan?

Subconsciously, he thought of Obito trapped under the rock. He hadn't kept his promise to Obito, he hadn't protected Rin... Every time he thought of this, his heart ached dully, and a gloomy aura enveloped him.

"Wisteria, it's been a long time!"

Naruto smiled broadly.

"Naruto?"

Teng Hua blinked in surprise, "How did you get here?"

Sitting in her wheelchair, Kurama Yakumo also looked at Naruto with a strange expression. Although she was young, she was precocious and exceptionally intelligent. She had read many books and often talked to her daughter about things in the village. Kurama Yakumo vaguely understood that Naruto's identity was unusual and that he shouldn't have left the village so easily.

"..."

Naruto was stumped by this question.

Why was he here? He pondered for a moment and realized that he didn't understand why he was here either. It seemed that he had just been in the park for a while, lost in thought, when he met Fujika's grandfather. After exchanging a few words, Fujika's grandfather asked him if he was afraid of dead people. If not, he could go and see the battlefield of the ninjas.

And then,

For some reason, even the Fifth Hokage made an appearance. Naruto didn't quite understand whether he was acting as the new Hokage or not. He only knew that his grandfather, the Third Hokage, had passed away, and this chubby old man was the new Hokage. In any case, the Fifth Hokage gathered a group of people to travel with him. Among these people, there were some he knew, like Uchiha Shisui, but he didn't know or have ever seen most of the others.

Anyway, he agreed without really understanding what was going on.

He didn't care much about ninja wars or battlefields; he only remembered that he was there to find a friend.

But now that we've met, I'm too embarrassed to say it.

"Sigh! You're still as stupid as ever! Don't you even know why you came here?" Teng Hua sighed with great distress. Having such a dim-witted follower was really annoying. "Never mind, no matter how you got here, I'll protect you now that you're here."

The little girl took on everything with great confidence.

"Oh!"

Naruto agreed, scratched his head, and a bright smile appeared on his face.

"What are you laughing at! This is the front line! Let's see if you'll still be laughing when we see the corpses!" Fujika glared at Naruto, then pushed the wheelchair towards the castle gate. The two of them were also going to participate in today's operation. According to Sogen, going deep into the command center of the Mist Ninja was a rare opportunity to broaden their horizons.

As for whether bringing the little girls along will be a hindrance...

The answer is, of course, no.

Wiping out the entire Hidden Mist Village would naturally be very troublesome, but when Sogen got serious, wiping out the army of Hidden Mist ninja brought out by Yagura Karatachi was not difficult at all. However, killing was not the result Sogen sought. He was not a bloodthirsty killer. War was never the goal, but a means to achieve it.

Destroying such a Mist Ninja army would only add to his fearsome reputation, and would bring him no other benefit.

Instead of eliminating the Mist Ninja, we should try to tame them.

If a truly solid and stable alliance can be formed, it will not only provide an additional ally to bolster our strength, but it will also be of some use in dealing with the Akatsuki or Black Zetsu in the future.

Outside the main gate of the castle,

The ninjas skilled in Earth Release techniques had already leveled the ground under Sogen's orders, and now a large number of people had gathered on the wide, flat land. Jonin from clans such as Uchiha, Hyuga, Aburame, Yamanaka, Inuzuka, and Kurama had all come together here.

Uchiha Fujika and Kurama Yakumo easily found Uchiha Chihaya in the crowd.

Even among so many Jonin, Chihaya is very easy to recognize, not only because of her beautiful face, but mainly because of her aura that keeps strangers at bay. Even in the Uchiha clan, not many people like to deal with this straightforward, unpretentious, and unfortunate beauty who always unintentionally touches the sore spots of others.

"Chihaya-neechan".

Fujika greeted Uchiha Chihaya politely.

"Yakumo, Fujika, and... Little Yellow Hair." Uchiha Chihaya thought for two seconds but couldn't remember Naruto's name, so she simply called him Little Yellow Hair. This bothered Naruto a little, and he whispered, "My name is Uzumaki Naruto!"

only,

Mentioning the name immediately brings that rumor to mind.

If I remember correctly, the Fourth Hokage's surname wasn't Uzumaki.

[Chapter 111. Your task is to defeat the Mist Ninja blocking your path.]

It was still early, and Uchiha Sogen was nowhere to be seen. Uchiha Chihaya led the three little ones to the shade of a tree. There were many towering ancient trees around, and their lush green canopies were like large umbrellas, shielding them from the scorching sunlight.

Naruto hesitated, wondering whether he should tell Fujika about the rumor at this moment.

Judging from this scene,

If I don't say it now, I'm afraid I won't have the chance to say it again for a while.

"Um..." Naruto mustered his courage. It was really hard to keep this on his mind. It wasn't that he was thinking about what would happen if he really was the Fourth Hokage's child. He just wanted to confide in his friend about his frustration.