Uchiha's personal opinion

The lord nodded repeatedly, once again leaving the eunuchs bewildered by his commands.

"Your Highness, how about I, a humble monk, go and meet the envoy from the shogunate?"

Seeing that the daimyo had returned to calm, Jiroku volunteered.

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Lord Lu..."

Da Ming also felt a great sense of relief.

……

Outside the Daimyo's residence, Uchiha Shisui led a team of special ninjas at the city gate, facing off against Hattori Heiji, whose face was pale but whose expression remained resolute. The samurai behind him were already drenched in sweat, trembling with fear, seemingly on the verge of collapse.

Uchiha Shisui wasn't in a hurry to storm the city immediately. In any case, the longer he stayed at the gates of the Daimyo's mansion, the more his prestige would be damaged.

After a while, a person flew out from the direction of the Daming Palace and landed between the two sides.

This man was none other than Jiriku, who had volunteered to come and receive the shogunate's envoy.

"Jonin Shisui, please come with me."

Jiro said in a deep voice, "His Highness the Great will receive you in the main hall!"

"Ah...then I'll have to trouble you, Mr. Lu!"

Uchiha Shisui also directly called out Jiraiya's name.

The first round of verbal exchanges was fairly evenly matched, indicating that both the daimyo and the shogunate possessed information about the other's high-ranking figures.

Uchiha Shisui did not use the Body Flicker Technique. Instead, surrounded by a group of special ninja, he slowly entered through the city gate and walked towards the Daimyo's palace. Along the way, he made many comments, praising and criticizing the Daimyo's residence, while Jiraiya remained silent.

It wasn't until they arrived at the palace gate that Uchiha Shisui felt somewhat surprised.

However, a dozen or so Jonin stood guard at the palace gate, and the chakra fluctuations inside the palace were surging and turbulent. Moreover, each of them looked fierce and imposing.

"What does Shisui-kun think of the daimyo's close attendants?"

Di Lu asked calmly.

The current display of force has already emptied the daimyo's ninja army's coffers, with the aim of giving Uchiha Shisui, the envoy, a taste of his power.

"It looks pretty good."

Uchiha Shisui nodded.

"How do they compare to the Anbu ninjas trained by the Hokage throughout history?"

Jiraiya's gaze fell upon the special operations ninja following behind Uchiha Shisui.

These ninjas were all former Anbu ninjas who were recruited after the destruction of the Hokage lineage.

But they remained unmoved, which disappointed Di Lu somewhat.

"They're far from it. Compared to special operations ninjas, these so-called Jonin are nothing but empty shells."

Uchiha Shisui also retorted sarcastically, "But if Chief Inspector Minato saw this, he'd probably be overjoyed!"

"...Why is that?"

Di Lu raised an eyebrow and said calmly.

At the same time, Jiraiya recalled the person Uchiha Shisui had mentioned, only to find that he was just a figurehead erected by Uchiha Tokumitsu—what was there to care about a “promising nobody”!

"Chief Inspector Minato has been stuck at the position of deputy director for some time now. According to the rules of the shogunate, if he can capture and kill ten more Jonin, he can be promoted to the rank of director and police superintendent!"

"Even I would be tempted by such easy and immense wealth!"

Uchiha Shisui's sweeping attack immediately enraged all the daimyo's direct subordinate jonin present.

If Di Lu hadn't stopped them from making any moves with a look, they probably would have attacked as a group!

Uchiha Shisui remained unfazed and ignored the reactions of the group of Jonin directly under the Daimyo, striding directly into the palace.

Chapter 451 The Great Rites Controversy: Drawing a Clear Line

"I am Uchiha Shisui, a military officer and attendant to the Shogun. By order of my lord—Lord of the Land of Water, Lord of Kirigakure, Governor-General of Konoha, and General Tokumitsu—I pay my respects to the great lord, the head of the Minamoto clan!"

His words shocked everyone present!

Great Lord!

This is a complete denial of the Daimyo's legal right to rule over the Land of Fire!

Even though most of the counties in the Land of Fire are now under the control of the shogunate, and the daimyo and court nobles can only control the Kinki region and a few counties, the law is still the law. The minds of the court nobles and their ninja servants, which seem to be branded with the steel of thought, never imagined that one day the sacred rule of the daimyo would be so suddenly denied!

No one expected that Uchiha Shisui would be so direct and show no respect to the Daimyo!

But anyone can guess the meaning behind such rudeness!

Moreover, everyone understands that this must be the intention of the shogun, the so-called Uchiha traitor in their eyes!

The nobles and officials wanted to rebuke Uchiha Shisui for his rudeness, but seeing their colleagues' hesitant expressions, they swallowed their words, making the scene in the hall quite awkward.

Although the Jonin who were allowed to enter the palace showed anger, they controlled their emotions after seeing that the nobles remained silent. They just stared at the composed Uchiha Shisui with angry eyes.

If looks could kill, Uchiha Shisui would already be torn to pieces by now.

However, the more astute nobles reconsidered. Uchiha Shisui had apparently referred to his daimyo as "Head of the Minamoto clan," indicating that the Uchiha clan, in terms of etiquette, still acknowledged the Minamoto clan's status as the ancestral domain of the emperor. Therefore, perhaps the changing situation wasn't so bad after all.

As for whether the Uchiha clan truly understood the meaning behind these elaborate rituals, they didn't think much about it, or rather, they didn't dare to even consider it.

After Uchiha Shisui made his arrogant declaration, the daimyo's body involuntarily froze.

But what disappointed him even more was that none of the nobles under his command, who had been living in luxury for generations, spoke up to rebuke him. Instead, they looked at each other and became like quails. On the other hand, the Jonin under his command, who came from humble backgrounds, were all furious and had their hands on their weapons, as if they were just waiting for an order to rush up and kill Uchiha Shisui on the spot!

The daimyo turned his gaze to the ninja monk Jiraiya, only to see that although he did not utter a word, his brows were also furrowed, and beneath his calm face, it seemed that a fierce anger was brewing and rising. His hands, hidden in his sleeves, were also pointing in the direction where Uchiha Shisui was standing, as if he was also ready to attack.

The situation is still largely under control...

Although he was particularly dissatisfied with the nobles and courtiers who usually demanded the most bribes, the performance of his personal ninjas and ninja monks still relieved the daimyo—at least he still had some forces he could rely on!

Having decided to make trouble for these spineless nobles afterward, the daimyo turned his gaze to Uchiha Shisui, who was looking directly at him.

"I had always heard that the Uchiha clan was a prestigious ninja clan, and I thought they would be quite elegant, but I never expected that a high-ranking member of such a prestigious clan as Shisui would behave in such a vulgar manner!"

Helpless, with his subordinates proving incompetent, the daimyo had no choice but to personally break the deadlock: "General Deguang is a peerless powerhouse who has long enjoyed the country's favor and is revered by the people. How could he have such an arrogant and conceited servant by his side!"

"The Uchiha clan values ​​power above all else, not profit or fame!"

Uchiha Shisui replied proudly, "Worldly slander and praise are worthless to us ninjas! Just as nobles never care about the lives of commoners!"

"If the Uchiha clan is only intimidated by power and does not focus on virtue, then one day they will face destruction when a new strongman is born in the ninja world!"

Jiraiya couldn't bear to see the daimyo condescend to argue with a mere Jonin like Uchiha Shisui, so he took the initiative to speak up and rebuke him: "Even the Senju clan, which once overpowered the Uchiha, were extremely respectful before Lord Genji. How dare the Uchiha clan be so rude!"

Daming finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Debating with Uchiha Shisui would be humiliating if he won, and even more so if he lost. Besides, he was used to being high and mighty and was not used to such a confrontational verbal exchange. Jiraiya's intervention was a relief for the daimyo.

"The powerful and virtuous Senju clan was almost completely wiped out in the First Shinobi World War!"

Uchiha Shisui continued to retort, "And the shogunate established by the Uchiha clan, which only obeys force, will be the ruler of the entire ninja world!"

Upon hearing this, Da Ming couldn't help but gasp.

This is also the first time that members of the Uchiha clan have publicly declared their goals in front of the current rulers!

And behind this goal, coupled with such a blatant attitude...

The thought of losing his family's fortunes and the downfall of his clan sent shivers down the daimyo's spine.

The tragic fates of powerful clans like the Land of Wind and the Land of Water after losing their kingdoms deeply saddened him.

"And in this cruel and desperate world, those who only talk the talk but don't walk the walk, and who have caused the ninja world's war to never end, are none other than you self-proclaimed noble and virtuous people in this hall!"

Uchiha Shisui's voice grew louder and louder, even to the point of roaring: "I ask you, my esteemed lords, what have you brought to this world?!"

"So, according to your logic, as long as one possesses enough power, even destroying the Uchiha clan would be just?"

Jiraiya's face was pale, but he still stubbornly argued, "If this unbridled evolution continues for so long, the demise of the Uchiha clan is inevitable!"

As for the positive and negative impacts that the daimyo, nobles, and courtiers had brought to the ninja world, he was too lazy to argue.

Even the monks of the Fire Temple knew that the so-called rule and management of most nobles was less effective than having a pig tied to their position—at least a pig wouldn't do anything else besides eating and sleeping!

"According to Lord Tokuko, we Uchiha ninjas never engage in debates; we simply use kunai and ninjutsu to make others submit!"

Uchiha Shisui continued arrogantly, "Therefore, I urge the head of the Minamoto clan to heed the decrees of our lord!"

"In the name of the Shogun of the Land of Fire, the current wicked head of the Minamoto clan has secretly sent ninjas to spy on Konoha, attempting to sow discord among the ninja clans. This is by no means a friendly act and should be treated as a hostile provocation!"

"However, considering the merits of the Minamoto clan ancestors who, together with the founding fathers such as Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha, ended the chaotic era, and also taking into account the lineage of the Minamoto clan's direct descendants, the following lenient treatment is hereby granted—"

Uchiha Shisui paused, while the expressions of everyone in the hall became even more tense.

"Konoha Village is severing its alliance with the head of the Minamoto clan, effective immediately!"

"The territories under the jurisdiction of the shogunate are hereby severed from the kinship ties of the Minamoto clan!"

"The name of the Land of Fire will be retained, but it will no longer be the private property of the Minamoto clan!"

"The territory ruled by the Minamoto clan is limited to the five counties of the former Land of Fire in the Kinki region and the three eastern counties. From now on, each shall guard its own territory!"

"No one shall obstruct nobles and samurai in the outer counties who voluntarily sever ties with the Minamoto clan!"

"The movement of business personnel between the two sides is entirely free and must not be obstructed!"

"The ninja army of the Minamoto clan belongs to their patriarch, but if the shogunate needs it for war, they should do their utmost to allocate and dispatch them to participate in the war!"

Uchiha Shisui read out the seven conditions, then folded the manuscript, wrapped the paper in chakra, and used a concealed weapon technique to shoot it at the Genji daimyo on the high platform.

Jiraiya flashed forward, caught the manuscript wrapped in chakra, then dispersed it with a single strike before respectfully presenting it to the daimyo.

Genji's face was deathly pale; he was staring intently at the thin sheet of paper, lost in thought.

"I have said my piece. If anyone disagrees..."

Uchiha Shisui smiled and said, "Simply send troops to start the war!"

Having said that, he ignored everyone in the hall and strode away.

The once menacing daimyo's direct subordinate jonin were no longer as fierce as before, and they all looked somewhat listless, while the nobles and courtiers were like quails, not daring to utter a sound.

"...The title of Great Lord is truly well-deserved!"

After a long while, the daimyo of the Genji clan chuckled and said, "Speaking of which, shouldn't we thank Uchiha Tokumitsu for his great kindness?"