"Lord Genma, if we want to use a specific event to herald the founding of our Hidden Village, wouldn't there be more suitable options? For instance, forming an alliance with the Senju or the Furui clan?"
Nara Naoyuki offered his advice diplomatically. It wasn't that he disagreed with Genma's logic; he simply felt that the proposed path was perhaps a bit too radical.
The great shinobi clans had survived for a thousand years for a reason, after all.
Hane Genma shook his head.
"An alliance is too mundane. It lacks the impact I'm looking for. In truth, I don't want to deal with constant harassment from small and medium-sized forces after the village is established. Therefore, we need a significant level of deterrence... What we need is a full-scale war."
"Furthermore, we don't need allies right now. We only need to maintain friendly relations with a few of the major clans. Allies mean being bound to one another. We've already cast off our burdens so we can move light; there's no need to tether ourselves to the hostile systems of other clans."
The clan leaders present exchanged glances, the unspoken meaning clear between them.
This is about revenge, isn't it?
Does it even need to be said? It's definitely revenge.
From morning till night, Lord Genma hasn't wanted to endure this for even a second.
What are you talking about? Lord Genma has already endured it for far too long.
"The Hagoromo clan is indeed our enemy, but given their strength, shouldn't we develop for a while longer before we strike? It would be more certain that way... If we must engage in an external war, we could choose a different target."
Yamanaka Tokuya tried to pull Genma's train of thought back. They weren't opposed to retaliating against the Hagoromo; they were simply considering the power disparity. The Firefly Organization still needed time to grow.
Everyone present believed that with enough time, the Firefly Organization would eventually surpass the Hagoromo clan. If they didn't believe that, they wouldn't have joined in the first place.
But even when they possessed sufficient strength to go to war, the conflict should be gradual—a steady application of pressure. The idea of trying to wipe out a Great Clan in one fell swoop was incredibly dangerous.
If you overextend your stride, you're bound to tear something important.
Genma continued to shake his head. "We have no grievances with others, so we have no reason to move against them."
Oh, so since we have a grievance with the Hagoromo, we're going to hit them until they're dead?
"Rest assured, I never act blindly, and I certainly don't act recklessly. I am more aware than anyone of the vast gap in power between us. However..."
"The factions of the shinobi world are complex. To eliminate a Great Clan, one doesn't necessarily need to seek a power greater than theirs. You just need to learn how to stir the... I mean, as long as you learn how to use an enemy's strength against them, you can achieve the effect of using four ounces to move a thousand pounds."
"The power to annihilate the Hagoromo has always existed. We just need to string the right pieces together... Our side will act as the vanguard, and there will be those willing to serve as the main force."
Nara Naoyuki reacted instantly. Genma's idea did have some degree of feasibility, though the task of acting as the vanguard to crack the shell of a Great Clan was no easy feat.
Furthermore, how would Genma contact other clans? How would he earn their trust? That was another problem entirely.
He couldn't just keep shearing the same sheep; eventually, the sheep would run out of wool... Naturally, he thought of the Senju brothers, who were currently guests at the camp.
"Lord Genma, we can attempt this, but we must be extremely cautious."
"Don't worry. There is no one in this world more cautious than me."
Genma simply wanted to see the Hagoromo clan dead as soon as possible. As for how they died, it didn't really matter.
Since the founding of the Firefly Organization, they had suffered only one large-scale attack—the one that resulted in heavy casualties among the veteran members who had contributed so much to the organization's early days. How could Genma possibly forget that?
A person can be open-minded, but it's impossible to be open-minded about everything.
Genma's track record was solid; the schemes he set in motion were often risky but never ended in disaster. Since he had already made his decision, the others found it difficult to say more.
They couldn't stop him, so they could only do their best to help him find and fix any flaws in the plan.
Once the most important matter was settled, the atmosphere became less tense. They began discussing the logistics of the ceremony to establish the Hidden Village.
The founding ceremony was set for three days from now. By then, several of the camp's main buildings would be completed, making the scene presentable enough to avoid looking shabby.
With that, the preparations officially began. On one hand, the organization invited the Daimyo while requesting more resource support. On the other, they needed to send a formal invitation to the Furui clan. It was the perfect timing for Reito to discuss trade caravan matters with Daimyo Shimizu Kisuke.
Once the meeting adjourned, everyone departed to attend to their own tasks. At the very least, they had to select the most capable shinobi from their respective clans to join that thirty-man combat unit.
This matter concerned the organization's combat capability, mutual trust, and internal resource allocation. No one wanted to lose face, and no one was going to slack off.
Quite the opposite—this was currently the highest priority.
Genma was left alone in the meeting room. Suddenly, someone vaulted through the window... it was Uchiha Sasuke.
"There's a door, yet you use the window. Did someone forbid you from walking normally?" Genma watched the window-climbing antics, somewhat speechless.
In truth, his earlier assessment was correct. When Nanami summoned this man, she had really dropped a massive problem in his lap. At this point, Genma had no idea what to do with him.
Given Sasuke's personality, he clearly wouldn't be subservient. The man was far too much of a lone wolf.
Should he just kill Sasuke? Genma felt that would be a waste. Wouldn't that be equivalent to throwing away all the ocular power Nanami had spent?
To be honest, if the person summoned had been Hatake Kakashi, he would have been ten thousand times more useful than Sasuke. Even a twelve-year-old Kakashi... at least Kakashi, after understanding the situation, would know the correct and necessary course of action.
Yeah, for the sake of the Leaf and peace, he'd definitely be working hard for me.
But Sasuke? Sasuke didn't see it that way. However, he had already found what he believed he should do in this era.
"I don't know why you harbor such hostility toward Senju Tobirama, but as you've seen, don't try to move against him in front of his brother. That's just seeking death."
Genma continued to play the role of a local from this era. Setting aside his acting skills, Sasuke's thought process was inherently flawed; he rarely paid attention to the physical or subtle emotional details of his conversation partners. In front of this man, even the acting skills of his "idol" older brother would probably seem miraculous.
"I don't know why, but since coming to this era, I feel like my chakra has been slightly weakened," Sasuke said expressionlessly.
Stubborn? Is he trying to save face after his performance the other day? No need for that—I already know exactly how strong you are.
Just as Genma thought this, he had a sudden realization. He looked Sasuke over and said meaningfully:
"Every era has its own protagonists. The protagonist of this era is not me, and it certainly isn't you."
It was a pity Genma lacked the ability to sense the lingering chakra of spirits from a thousand years ago; otherwise, he could have confirmed a few things.
Then, Sasuke spoke:
"Contact with the Senju was a mistake. I remember you now. You and your organization will eventually join the Konohagakure led by the Senju clan. But you will lose the struggle for the position of Second Hokage—the village leader—to Senju Tobirama. Not long after that, you disappeared. It seems you died of a broken heart."
Genma's eyes widened. It wasn't because Sasuke's words were shocking, but because they were so hilarious. He had to struggle to keep a straight face to maintain his "local" persona. Sasuke had even been "kind" enough to explain to him what a Hokage was.
Me, fighting for the position of Second Hokage and dying of a broken heart?
Oh no, I can't hold it in.
If nothing else, if Genma brought the Firefly Organization into Konoha and genuinely competed for the title of Second Hokage, what kind of situation would he face?
Without a doubt, he would have overwhelming support.
Tobirama might have the backing of the great clans, but Genma would undoubtedly have much broader grassroots support. How could he possibly lose?
Did this version of Genma also run around Konoha naked for five years, becoming the "Good Man of Konoha" to the point of destroying his own reputation?
That seemed unlikely.
Pfft. He finally let out a laugh.
Sasuke just glanced at Genma, finding it baffling. Is there something wrong with your head? You find out you died in obscurity and you laugh?
"Ahem, please continue. I'm listening... Yes, your intelligence is very important."
Sasuke thought Genma was on the first level while he was on the second, but in reality, Genma was on the fifth.
Genma knew he had no interest in being Hokage. In fact, being the leader of the Firefly Organization was already exhausting enough. In his view, a role like a lone wanderer was far more satisfying.
To have power, to be free of interpersonal entanglements, to do whatever you want—isn't that happiness?
Unfortunately, people are often driven by circumstances beyond their control.
The "history" coming out of Sasuke's mouth was unreliable. It could basically be classified as "unofficial history." History passed down to later generations is prone to distortion, and more importantly, Sasuke never cared about history to begin with. He had a half-baked understanding of everything that happened during the founding of Konoha.
His grasp of history was about on par with someone who watched too many clickbait videos.
Sasuke didn't have much substance in his head to begin with. Being interrupted by Genma, he temporarily didn't know what to say.
"How about this? Why don't you start by naming the successive Hokage?"
"The First was Senju Hashirama. The Second was Senju Tobirama. The Third was Sarutobi Hiruzen. The Fourth was Hanemiya Gen-aoi..."
"Who?"
Wait, something seemed wrong.
Very wrong.
"Is there a problem?"
"Nothing. I just thought one of those names was a bit unusual... a bit of a tongue-twister."
Genma suppressed the chaotic thoughts in his mind, constantly reminding himself to stay in character. He let Uchiha Sasuke maintain his sense of superiority as a traveler from the future.
After all, if you knew everything that was going to happen, wouldn't you feel superior?
"You come from Konoha, which means the Uchiha clan also joined the village. But some of your actions suggest the situation for the Uchiha in the future wasn't very good?"
Sasuke fell silent. After a moment, he said:
"Coming to this era was never my intention. I hope you can send me back to my original timeline because I still have many things to do... I heard you mention that there is an Uchiha shinobi who can send people to the future."
"She passed away. Because of your Uchiha clan."
Sasuke didn't care about the reason. He was about to say the words "Reanimation Jutsu," but then he remembered that Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei hadn't been invented yet.
He usually spoke without thinking, but he had at least some level of intelligence. If he hadn't, Genma would have had to slap him again.
"If I am forced to stay in this era, then there are things I must do... stop the Uchiha clan from joining Konoha, and kill the Second, Tobirama, and the Fourth, Aoi."
"Uh, I think you should try killing Tobirama first. That has the highest probability of success."
Would Sasuke's actions succeed? Impossible. The fact that he was born in Konoha proved that. It was a simple matter of logic.
But did Genma need to remind him? No. Even if Sasuke understood all of this, he would still stubbornly charge ahead with whatever he had decided to do.
"I think you're underestimating the difficulty. In this era, whether it's us, the Senju, or even the Uchiha, everyone hopes to end this chaotic age. Multiple clans uniting to form a Hidden Village is an inevitable trend. Trying to stop the village's formation is like swimming against the tide of history."
"Let's put it this way: when most clans wake up from the endless slaughter, even if they realize the Hidden Village system is a poison that will kill them in a few years, they will still choose to swallow it. Do you know why?"
"Because rather than worrying about whether they'll be poisoned in the future, they're more concerned with whether they'll starve to death right now. So... they'll eat. Even if it kills them, they have to eat."
Every era has its own context. Genma's words were meant as earnest advice.
What could Sasuke do alone? If he successfully stopped the Uchiha from joining Konoha, the Uchiha would either have to join another village or be wiped out by one after isolating themselves.
Would life be better in another village?
As for leading a village themselves—not to toot his own horn, but leadership requires talent. Especially when leading a group of people who were killing each other not long ago. A leader has to know when to be dignified and when to be humble.
Humility? From an Uchiha?
And don't forget, Black Zetsu and White Zetsu are lurking in the shadows.
"Man proposes, but fate disposes. The destiny of the Uchiha must change."
Naturally, Sasuke didn't take a word of Genma's advice to heart.
"Fine. How about this? Go out, turn left, and find a man named Sarutobi Sasuke. Once you can at least beat Sarutobi Sasuke, then you can talk about changing destiny. It'll be slightly more convincing."
This was a malicious suggestion. Sasuke was going to get beaten like a dog.
Unlike the "cheat-code" violent suppression of Hashirama or Madara, Sarutobi Sasuke would show Uchiha Sasuke exactly how large the gap was between the Ninjutsu and Taijutsu of different eras.
Then, Genma had a sudden inspiration.
"If you want to prevent the Senju and Uchiha from merging, you first need to further damage the relationship between them. I happen to have a plan. Do you want in?"
"What plan? I'll disguise myself as another Uchiha and assassinate Senju Hashirama?"
"Uh... sure, that works too. Your plan is better than mine. Straight to the point."
Sasuke clearly didn't understand how "death" was spelled.
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