In the end, Uzumaki Ashina still bid a formal farewell to Uchiha Su.
Despite the many disagreements and arguments they had exchanged during the past few days, the departure between the two was surprisingly solemn.
Before Ashina left, however, Su spoke again in a serious tone.
"The Uzumaki Clan's sealing techniques are recognized as the strongest in the entire ninja world."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"Would Uzushiogakure be willing to send some Uzumaki clansmen to the Hidden Mist Village to teach sealing techniques?"
Ashina frowned slightly but did not immediately respond.
Su continued calmly.
"Of course, the Hidden Mist Village will not simply take advantage of your village without offering anything in return."
"In exchange, we will dispatch several ninjas who are highly proficient in Water Release to Uzushiogakure to teach there."
Su spoke with careful consideration.
"Since sealing techniques are far more valuable than Water Release ninjutsu, we are also willing to offer additional concessions regarding mission assignments."
At these words, Ashina, who had originally intended to refuse, suddenly stopped.
His eyes sharpened as he looked at Su.
"What kind of concessions?"
Su smiled slightly.
"We can selectively transfer a portion of the missions assigned to the Hidden Mist Village to Uzushiogakure."
"Of course, the Hidden Mist Village will still take a certain commission from these transferred missions."
This was an offer that was extremely difficult to refuse.
For a ninja clan or a ninja village, survival depended heavily on the availability of missions.
Without missions, ninjas would have no reliable source of income.
If ninjas could not take missions, two things usually happened.
Either they would gradually develop resentment and begin engaging in criminal activities…
Or they would simply starve.
A ninja's regular income was extremely limited.
Most shinobi relied almost entirely on mission rewards to sustain themselves.
Some individuals also accepted shady or illegal tasks to make ends meet.
However, both of these income sources were highly unstable.
Unlike ordinary occupations, ninja villages rarely paid fixed salaries to their members.
Only certain positions—such as Ninja Academy teachers or members of specialized units like the Anbu—received regular payments.
For the majority of ninjas, their financial security depended entirely on missions.
This meant that lower-ranking ninjas had almost no protection against financial risks.
Among all the villages in the ninja world, Konoha possessed the greatest number of missions.
In fact, Konoha's mission supply was so abundant that its ninjas could sometimes choose the missions they preferred.
This overwhelming advantage was also the reason why Konoha had become the primary target of resentment during several Ninja World Wars.
The resources of the ninja world were limited.
If one village consumed a larger share, the others naturally received less.
For this reason, every ninja village dreamed of surpassing Konoha and gaining greater influence in the ninja world.
If they could defeat or weaken Konoha, more clients would send missions to their own village instead.
For a ninja village, this was not merely about pride or reputation.
It was about survival.
Even if achieving that goal required igniting another great war.
After listening to Su's proposal, Uzumaki Ashina nodded slowly.
"This arrangement is reasonable."
He did not appear surprised.
In fact, the commission system Su described was completely normal in the ninja world.
When missions were accepted through a village, the village would naturally take a percentage of the payment.
If Su had offered to transfer missions without any commission, Ashina might have suspected that something suspicious was happening.
After thinking briefly, Ashina spoke decisively.
"We can finalize this cooperation immediately."
"As soon as I return to Uzushiogakure, I will dispatch several sealing technique specialists to the Hidden Mist Village."
"They should arrive before this afternoon."
Ashina's tone was surprisingly eager.
It almost seemed as if he was afraid Su might change his mind if the agreement were delayed.
Su opened his mouth, intending to say something else.
But before he could speak—
Ashina suddenly used the Body Flicker Technique and vanished from the spot.
Su stood there silently.
"…."
After a moment, he scratched his head.
Then he turned around and walked back toward the Hidden Mist Village with the others.
Not long after Ashina left, a piece of news arrived that was powerful enough to shake the entire ninja world.
The message spread rapidly across every major village.
A great battle had taken place between Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama.
The battle had ended with Madara's death.
Meanwhile, Hashirama had been gravely injured.
This information had already circulated for two days.
Even though Su had already known how this battle would end, hearing the news directly still left a faint feeling of sadness in his heart.
"Young Master…"
Uchiha Nami spoke hesitantly.
"Please don't worry too much."
"There is a possibility that this news is false."
"Given Lord Madara's strength, even the First Hokage should not have been able to kill him…"
Her lips pressed together tightly.
For the Uchiha clan members who had followed Su to the Hidden Mist Village, this news felt like the sky itself had collapsed.
Madara was their pillar of strength.
Without him, everything seemed uncertain.
However, Su remained calm.
"I'm not worried."
Although sadness still lingered inside him, his expression gradually became colder and more composed.
"Nami," he said calmly.
"Spread this news throughout the Hidden Mist Village immediately."
Nami froze.
"…Spread it?"
"Yes."
"Make sure everyone in the village hears that my uncle died in battle."
Then Su continued giving instructions.
"Also invite Uchiha Hikari, the Second Mizukage, Genji, and the heads of all major ninja clans."
"I will hold a meeting."
His voice was steady and decisive.
Nami hesitated.
"Shouldn't we keep this news strictly confidential?"
"You know very well that the Uchiha clan gained control of the Hidden Mist Village mainly because of Uchiha Madara's power."
"It was his military strength that secured our current position."
"If people learn that he has died…"
Su interrupted calmly.
"The news cannot be hidden."
"Other villages already have their own intelligence networks."
"If we try to suppress it, the truth will eventually leak out."
He looked out the window toward the village streets.
"It is better to release the news openly."
"Then we can identify anyone who becomes restless because of it."
A faint cold smile appeared on his face.
"And eliminate them all in one stroke."
Nami felt her anxiety slowly fade as she listened to Su's calm analysis.
For some reason, Su's words carried a strange reassurance.
It was as if everything remained under control.
"Go," Su said softly.
He stood up from the Mizukage's seat and walked toward the window.
From there he could see the entire Hidden Mist Village.
Villagers and shinobi moved through the streets as usual, completely unaware of the political storm about to arrive.
Su looked down quietly and spoke.
"Even if something truly happened to my uncle…"
"The sky of the Hidden Mist Village will not collapse."
Nami nodded firmly.
"I understand."
Her usual decisive attitude returned.
Without another word, she left to carry out Su's orders.
Konoha — Year 19, Late October
Inside the Hokage Building, tension filled the air.
"Hokage-sama, three spies from the Hidden Cloud Village were captured today."
Another Anbu stepped forward.
"Two spies from the Hidden Sand Village were discovered on my patrol route."
A third report followed.
"There is a shop owner inside the village who was identified as a spy from the Hidden Mist Village."
"He escaped before we could arrest him, but teams have already been dispatched to capture him."
One report followed another.
Listening to these updates, Senju Tobirama rubbed his temples.
"I didn't realize the village had been infiltrated so thoroughly."
His tone carried obvious irritation.
"It seems anyone can enter the village, gather intelligence, and leave without difficulty."
For several days, Tobirama had barely slept.
Since Hashirama had been hospitalized with severe injuries, the entire burden of leadership had fallen onto his shoulders.
The pressure felt like a heavy mountain pressing down on him.
When his elder brother had been healthy, Tobirama often criticized him for being overly idealistic.
Now that Hashirama was gone, however, Tobirama suddenly realized just how much responsibility his brother had been carrying all along.
The current situation in Konoha was extremely tense.
The Anbu forces under Tobirama's command were already stretched to their limits.
Some units had to monitor various ninja clans whose loyalties were uncertain.
Others had to patrol the village boundaries to guard against infiltration.
Tobirama also kept a particularly close watch on a certain group.
The Uchiha clan members who remained inside Konoha.
Their red eyes made them difficult to trust.
At this point, the shortage of Anbu personnel had become so severe that Tobirama no longer had personal bodyguards stationed near him.
After another long sigh, Tobirama forced himself to focus.
"How is my brother's condition?"
He looked toward the Anbu standing nearby.
"How is he doing in the hospital?"
The Anbu ninja—Baku—answered nervously.
"The First Hokage is still unconscious."
"However, according to the doctors at the hospital…"
"He should wake up within the next two days."
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)