I just returned to Konoha and found that my entire clan was gone.

"This matter won't end so simply. The timing of Sasuke's attack is too coincidental; Ye Lan isn't stupid..."

Tsunade's face was gloomy. In fact, she could guess who would do such a thing. When she sent Mitokado Homura to Root, it was completely useless. Danzo had completely sidelined him. She thought Danzo would behave himself after the last conflict, but she didn't expect him to collude with Orochimaru again.

"You mean..." Kakashi's expression froze for a moment, and with his intelligence, he understood what was going on.

"Sigh, the task of appeasing them is now in your hands." Tsunade didn't say anything more. In fact, she didn't have a good solution either. Not to mention that there was no factual evidence, even if there were, Danzo would never admit it with his shameless style.

...

A few days later, A and the others returned to the village. They first reported to the Hokage that they had encountered Orochimaru and his group and asked Tsunade for help. Tsunade told them directly about Ye Lan's actions at the time, which relieved Antelope and Gray Wolf.

The most famous ninja in Konoha right now is Ye Lan. Whether for better or worse, his strength is undeniable, which made the somewhat guilty Antelope's brows relax.

Upon hearing this information, Jia, whose body was somewhat stiff, was at a loss.

Tsunade gave him a meaningful look but didn't say anything more, and simply gave them two days off.

"Lord Danzo!" Koren, without even changing out of his Anbu uniform, went straight to the Root base and hurriedly met with Danzo.

"Have you completed the task I assigned you?" Danzo asked A, sitting on a high chair and looking down at him.

"Lord Danzo, everything was going smoothly until I heard that Uchiha Yoran also rushed over." Even if A had low emotional intelligence and couldn't express his feelings, he felt apprehensive at this moment.

"How could it be that Uchiha Yelan was still in the village a few days ago? Even if he rushed there, Sasuke would have been taken away by Orochimaru long ago..." Danzo muttered to himself in a very low voice.

Finally, he realized that he hadn't seen Ye Lan in the village for several days, and he didn't have any missions to go out recently.

Danzo himself knew that there were all sorts of incredible secret techniques in the ninja world, such as the Fourth Hokage's Flying Thunder God Technique, which could arrive in an instant even if the ninja was thousands of miles away.

If Tsunade really bestowed the Flying Thunder God Technique upon Ye Lan, given his Sharingan's dynamic vision and already excellent reflexes, it wouldn't be impossible for him to learn it.

"After we reported to Lady Tsunade, she said it was a reverse summoning technique."

Before Danzo could even begin to ponder, A gave the answer directly.

"Reverse Summoning Technique?" Danzo's face instantly turned ugly. If that were the case, Sasuke would be completely unharmed.

No matter how much Danzo disliked Ye Lan, he was well aware of Ye Lan's strength and also knew what injuries Orochimaru had suffered.

Orochimaru's only chance of victory right now is to fight to the death, but that's the least likely thing to happen.

Having worked with Orochimaru for many years, he knew all too well what kind of temper Orochimaru had.

"You mean Tsunade told you directly?" Danzo asked a seemingly unrelated question at this moment.

"That's right, they told us as soon as we got back and reported to Lady Tsunade," A said truthfully.

"I understand." Danzo seemed completely unfazed, pointing to his fingernail with his cane. "Let Ryoma take you to rest for a while; you must be tired from the journey."

A root with purple markings on its face appeared in front of Jia. It was wearing sunglasses, and the dark root seemed to have no effect on its vision.

"Lord Ryoma, there's no need to trouble yourself. I can go back by myself." Jia was afraid of Ryoma; this taciturn man was definitely the number two in Root.

As for Mitokado Homura, sorry, he's just a mascot in Root now. Apart from the few clan ninjas he brings with him, no one will obey his orders.

"No, Lord Danzo is just concerned about you. I'll see you off." Ryoma said expressionlessly, leading the armored figure away from Danzo.

From then on, Danzo had many more "armor" characters, but he never saw the one who went on missions with Sasuke again.

...

"Kakashi-senpai, why are you coming here every day these past few days if you have nothing else to do?" Kotetsu said with a hint of complaint as he placed a pile of documents on his workspace.

"Could it be that they're trying to steal our jobs?" Even Izumo Kamatsuki, who had a bit of a sense of humor, blurted out.

"You two...it seems this kind of mission is still too easy for you," Kakashi said, rolling his dead fish eyes.

"You can tell you're waiting for someone. Kakashi-senpai, are you in a relationship?" The two who were very familiar with Kakashi joked around.

"That's right, I was waiting for someone." Kakashi's words immediately piqued their curiosity to the maximum; they hadn't expected him to admit it so easily.

"But I'm waiting for two men."

After their initial excitement was dashed, the two complained about Kakashi's boringness and then went back to their busy work.

Bored, Kakashi pulled out a book, Jiraiya's latest work, which he had stayed up all night reading.

Even the most captivating plot made Kakashi somewhat distracted, his gaze frequently drifting towards the village entrance.

When two figures appeared at the village entrance, Kakashi's lazy expression vanished instantly, and he put the new book back into his ninja tool bag.

"Finally back."

Chapter 91 Ninja is just my profession

"Oh, your sudden disappearance really worried me. It seems you're all safe and sound."

Kakashi saw Ye Lan and the other person and walked up to them with a smile.

"Kakashi-senpai was actually waiting for Jonin Yoran, but it seems Jonin Yoran has no record of leaving the village..."

Izumo Kamui pondered for a moment. He kept a record of every ninja who left the village, but he had no idea that Yoru had left.

"That's why the Hokage asked me to come and pick them up."

Upon hearing Kakashi's explanation, Izumo and Kotetsu stopped asking questions, as matters concerning the Hokage were beyond their concern.

Ye Lan didn't speak. When he saw Kakashi, he knew that the village had pretty much figured out what was going on.

I just haven't figured out what the Hokage is thinking yet.

"Your sudden disappearance really startled me. I had to ask Lady Tsunade to figure out that it was a reverse summoning technique."

Kakashi asked casually, "Did something happen that led you to summon Sasuke?"

Ye Lan followed Kakashi into the village, with Sasuke silently following behind him.

"I've run into a little trouble." Ye Lan's face remained calm and expressionless.

Kakashi was surprised by Ye Lan's answer, and his gaze drifted into the distance. "Orochimaru is considered a minor problem? You don't even care about the former Sannin?"

Ye Lan paused. "Kakashi, I've always considered us friends. If you know something, don't pretend you don't."

Kakashi sighed. Actually, he didn't want to either, but as a Konoha ninja, he had to consider Konoha's interests. His purpose in probing Ye Lan was to find out what Ye Lan was thinking at that moment.

It's normal to feel angry when the result is unsatisfactory. What's truly worrying is when people don't even express their own thoughts.

"Trust Lady Tsunade, she's not like those people." That's all Kakashi could say now.

"Kakashi, I won't lie to you, Sasuke's attack this time was a direct betrayal by one of his teammates, who personally ambushed Sasuke when he was facing Orochimaru."

Ye Lan already knew everything that had happened to Sasuke on the way, including the conversation between Kagami and Orochimaru.

"That person's code name in the Anbu is 'A.' Kakashi, you should know better than me who he works for, right?"

Kakashi never expected Danzo to be so audacious. This was a blatant betrayal of his comrades, an act of selling out the village during a mission. He dared not imagine the consequences if Ye Lan hadn't arrived in time.

What do you want to do?

Kakashi's gaze had become somewhat serious.

"I'd like to know what Lady Tsunade will do," Ye Lan said calmly.

Kakashi thought to himself that it was alright; Ye Lan's thoughts were much more mature, at least he hadn't lost his mind.

"Where the leaves dance, the fire will never die..." Ye Lan said a phrase known to every ninja in Konoha Village, which was the Third Hokage's last words.

This made Kakashi and Sasuke both look at Ye Lan, wondering what he meant by saying that.

"It's a pity that the starting point was good, but it has become a dogma for some people to control power."

Kakashi was startled and warned in a low voice, "Uchiha Yelan, your idea is too dangerous!"

If Ye Lan showed anger, he would comfort her even if she felt aggrieved, and he wouldn't think things would escalate too much. However, Ye Lan's current thoughts were beyond his comprehension.

"Danger? Just telling the truth." Ye Lan chuckled. "Don't tell me you believe in this kind of thing, Kakashi."

When Orochimaru invaded the village, he saw everything clearly. Few of the major ninja clans actually contributed their efforts; the main battlefield was fought by a group of special Jonin.

If he hadn't managed to control the tail in time, the damage to the village would have been far greater than it is now.

"Ye Lan, as a Konoha ninja, you must understand that sometimes we are not in control of our own lives, and there are some things that are not for us ninjas to consider."

Kakashi remained silent for a while before trying to comfort Ye Lan.

"A ninja?" Ye Lan turned around and looked at Kakashi.

"Are you mistaken? I am first and foremost a human being, secondly a member of the Uchiha clan, and lastly a ninja. Being a ninja is just a profession to me."

Kakashi was shocked by Ye Lan's words and broke out in a cold sweat. "What exactly do you want to do?"

"What should I do? I always observe what the other person does before making any decision. I won't say anything more. I'll go and report to Lady Tsunade first."

Ye Lan ignored Kakashi, who was still standing there in a daze, and walked directly towards the Hokage Building.

In some ways, Kakashi is similar to the Uchiha clan. His father, comrades, and teachers died one after another in front of him, and he was powerless to do anything about it. He could only go with the flow, relying on Konoha as a stronghold, and remain silent and unexpressed.

He drifted aimlessly through each day until he began leading Team 7, at which point Kakashi felt a glimmer of hope in his life. He devoted himself to his teacher's orphans and his comrades' clansmen, believing that his students would one day change the state of Konoha.

However, Ye Lan's appearance shattered his perception. Ye Lan, who was only a teenager, was already famous in the ninja world. Unlike his own reputation on the battlefield, which was largely exaggerated, Ye Lan had real achievements.

What chilled Kakashi the most was Ye Lan's thoughts. He could tell that Ye Lan was not someone who could be manipulated and harbored resentment over the extermination of his clan, and might have been secretly investigating all along.

Kakashi was unsure what would happen then.

"Lady Tsunade's last hope rests on your shoulders..."

Kakashi looked at Ye Lan's back. Tsunade's task for him had completely failed. He couldn't win an argument with Ye Lan in terms of language. Unlike Sasuke, Ye Lan's thinking was not unpredictable.

"Kakashi-sensei." Sasuke looked at Kakashi; this was the first time he had called Kakashi-sensei that.

Kakashi had been thinking about what Ye Lan had said, and that's when he realized that Sasuke hadn't left yet.

Sasuke's address of "teacher" made him feel somewhat pleased, but he also had a bad feeling about it.

"I don't understand some of what Ye Lan said, but there's one thing I agree with: he and I are first and foremost members of the Uchiha clan, and secondly, ninjas of Konoha."

Sasuke now has a deep bond with his comrades in Konoha; they study, eat, play, and do missions together. This has opened up the heart of the previously lonely Sasuke.

He wasn't stupid. The fact that a certain high-ranking advisor in Konoha was frequently targeting him and Ye Lan was definitely due to historical conflicts left over from the Uchiha clan. In the end, Ye Lan would likely turn against the high-ranking officials, and Ye Lan, with his strength, certainly had the confidence to do so.

What will Sasuke choose? Ye Lan never asked him, but as one of only two Uchiha in the village, he already had the answer in his heart.

"Sasuke, you..." Kakashi suddenly felt that both Ye Lan and Sasuke had become very unfamiliar.

Or perhaps I've never truly understood them.