Inside the temporary Kumogakure camp, Dodai and the dozen surviving Cloud shinobi were tightly bound. Their chakra had been sealed, and they all sat there with defeated expressions, heads lowered in silence.
Around them, hundreds of Uchiha clan members were cleaning up the battlefield.
Many of them still had their crimson Sharingan activated, their blood-red eyes particularly striking in the darkness.
Thud.
"This one is Kumogakure's Two-Tails jinchūriki. There should be plenty of useful intelligence in her brain. Seal the body and bring it back."
Uchiha Ren walked forward and casually tossed Yugito Nii's corpse onto the ground.
"Yes, sir!"
One of the Uchiha immediately stepped forward, pulling out a storage scroll and sealing Yugito's body inside.
Dodai and the other Cloud shinobi gritted their teeth when they saw this scene.
The hatred in their eyes was so intense that they looked ready to tear Ren apart.
Yet none of them said anything.
Because they all knew that Kumogakure would do the exact same thing.
In fact, every village in the shinobi world operated this way.
Dodai's gaze flickered as he looked at Ren .
"You must be Uchiha Ren , the current head of the Uchiha clan, correct?"
Ren nodded calmly.
"And what advice does Elder Dodai have for me?"
Dodai glanced at the storage scroll containing Yugito's body.
"Kumogakure and Konoha have already signed a ceasefire agreement."
"Although we were the ones who made the first move this time… your Uchiha clan's retaliation seems excessively ruthless."
"Aren't you afraid of reigniting war between our two villages?"
Ren couldn't help but chuckle.
"You attacked first, yet now you're blaming us for hitting too hard."
"Are all you Cloud brutes wired like this?"
Dodai shook his head.
"Yes, we struck first."
"But we exercised restraint. Our goal was only to rescue the Eight-Tails jinchūriki."
"We didn't cause large-scale destruction in Konoha."
"But you killed over a hundred elite Kumogakure shinobi, and even killed our Two-Tails jinchūriki."
"That's a blood feud that cannot be reconciled."
Dodai's eyes narrowed slightly.
"And from what I've heard, the Uchiha clan's position in Konoha isn't exactly favorable."
"If a new war breaks out between our villages because of the Uchiha… how will your clan survive within Konoha?"
During his stay in Konoha, Dodai had learned about the tensions between the Uchiha clan and the village leadership.
He hoped to exploit that information and stir up trouble inside Konoha.
"So?"
Ren asked indifferently.
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
Dodai hesitated briefly before replying.
"There's something you might not know."
"This operation by Kumogakure… actually had a certain level of understanding with some of Konoha's leadership."
"I'm sure you noticed some strange behavior from Konoha's response last night."
"So this time, the Uchiha haven't only offended Kumogakure."
"You've also offended Konoha's leadership."
Ren smiled faintly.
"You're talking about Shimura Danzō, right?"
Dodai froze.
He looked at Ren in surprise.
Ren snorted lightly.
"I understand Konoha's leadership far better than you."
"Hiruzen Sarutobi, Utatane Koharu, and Mitokado Homura are all conservatives. They prefer stability and comfort."
"They rarely stir up trouble."
"The only one who constantly causes problems is that old man Shimura Danzō."
Ren smirked.
"In Konoha, there's even a saying."
"If something bad happens and you can't find the culprit… just blame Shimura Danzō."
"There's a high chance you'll be right."
Dodai was momentarily speechless.
He knew Danzō had a bad reputation.
But he hadn't expected it to be this bad.
No wonder Danzō had been so confident when cooperating with them.
Ren paused before suddenly smiling in a teasing way.
"Besides, you've overlooked something."
Dodai frowned.
"What?"
"Danzō is someone who will stop at nothing to achieve his goals," Ren said calmly.
"He's extremely radical."
"His ideology directly conflicts with Hiruzen and the others."
"For example, when Konoha recently signed a ceasefire with Iwagakure, Hiruzen wanted to end the war quickly."
"But Danzō wanted to fight to the end."
"When he couldn't persuade Hiruzen, he personally went to the Rain Country frontlines to escalate the conflict."
"And this time with Kumogakure…"
"Danzō has always opposed the ceasefire."
Ren looked at Dodai meaningfully.
"Have you ever considered that his cooperation with you was simply a trap?"
"A way to ignite a war between Kumogakure and Konoha?"
Dodai's eyes widened.
It felt like a thunderbolt had exploded in his mind.
Following Ren 's logic, he replayed the entire sequence of events.
Then he realized something terrifying.
Kumogakure had suffered heavy losses.
And at the same time, they had completely offended Konoha.
Meanwhile, Shimura Danzō had lost almost nothing.
If everything had truly been part of Danzō's plan from the beginning, then the leverage Kumogakure thought they held over him was nothing more than a joke.
And if Danzō's real goal had always been to provoke a war between the two villages…
Then Ren 's current confidence suddenly made perfect sense.
Dodai's expression shifted repeatedly.
His limbs turned cold.
Ren watched this reaction with a faint smile, a hint of disdain flashing in his eyes.
So what if it's manipulation and sowing discord?
It's not like I can't do it too.
At that moment—
"Ren , something's happening."
Tobi, his body hidden beneath a cloak, stepped beside Ren and spoke quietly.
Ren glanced at Dodai, who had clearly perked up his ears to listen.
But he didn't bother hiding the information.
"Go ahead."
Tobi stopped lowering his voice.
"Just now, the Fourth Raikage led two thousand Kumogakure shinobi, bypassed Konoha's defenses, and headed straight here."
"The strange thing is… Konoha's border forces seemed to expect it."
"The moment the Fourth Raikage crossed the border, they immediately contracted their defensive lines, cutting off his retreat."
"At the same time, Konoha has dispatched a second wave of reinforcements from the village."
"They're moving to encircle this area."
Tobi tilted his head.
"Looks like Konoha is planning to trap and eliminate."
Ren raised an eyebrow.
Apparently, something had happened in Konoha that even he didn't know about.
But before he could respond—
Dodai suddenly jumped to his feet, furious.
"Damn it!"
"That cursed Shimura Danzō!"
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