Naruto: Starting with Tsunade

Chapter 186 Receiving the Lunch Box

Uchiha clan territory, Naga Shrine.

In the dimly lit, secret room, two torches crackled and popped.

"Elder Itachi, are you really going to do this?"

The Uchiha clan head, in a somber voice, made his final inquiry.

Elder Itachi remained silent, his face flickering in and out of the firelight. After a long while, he spoke heavily, "There's nothing we can do about it."

"But... this is utter nonsense." The Uchiha clan chief's voice grew louder and more agitated: "Why is it that when the tailed beasts of Iwagakure went out of control, the first thing they did was blame the Uchiha clan?"

Elder Itachi closed his eyes for a moment, then slowly spoke, "But they did see the Sharingan, didn't they?"

The Uchiha clan chief disagreed: "That's just Iwagakure's side of the story."

Elder Itachi exhaled: "The Yamanaka clan has already examined the witness's memories and confirmed that they saw the Sharingan."

The Uchiha clan head still refused to believe it: "Could it be a transformation jutsu?"

"At this point, the truth is no longer important." Elder Itachi sighed and shook his head with a heavy expression. "Iwagakure has suffered such great destruction. If we don't give them a satisfactory answer while they are still angry, war will definitely break out."

"I don't understand, out of so many people in our tribe, why was you chosen?"

"That's precisely where Iwagakure's brilliance lies..."

The decision made by Iwagakure was influenced to some extent by Madara Uchiha, who was behind the scenes.

「!?」

"The downfall of a nation often begins from within, and the same is true for a village. Iwagakure is using this as an excuse to sow discord between our Uchiha clan and the village, thereby achieving its goal of internal sabotage. As for why they chose me, it's probably because Iwagakure values ​​my position within the Uchiha clan, my old age and declining health, and the fact that I seem to have killed quite a few people from Iwagakure in the past, accumulating a lot of hatred. For the sake of the greater good, the Konoha leadership will certainly not choose to go to war with Iwagakure for the sake of an old man like me. Whether they fight or not, Iwagakure will achieve its goals."

The Uchiha clan leader scoffed, "What's there to be afraid of in a mere Iwagakure village?"

When the village was first established, this groundbreaking move naturally met with opposition from many old forces. They were unwilling to let Konoha become the only dominant force and break the balance, so they united to attack Konoha. However, in the face of two top masters, Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha, everything was in vain.

Elder Itachi sighed and expressed his concerns: "Once the war breaks out, it will not just be a battle between Konoha and Iwagakure. The Land of Fire is a fertile land that many countries have long coveted, and they may take this opportunity to get a share. As the war continues to spread, it will inevitably lead to the Second Shinobi World War."

"..."

"Sacrificing myself for a brief period of peace, I don't think it's a bad thing. Besides, new eyes are growing, and I need to use my death to buy enough time for them to grow."

The Uchiha clan head exclaimed in surprise, "New eyes? Are you referring to Aokiji?"

"What this world has in abundance is geniuses. Before a genius matures, he is just a genius. I have seen too many talented people die before they can fully develop."

"With the war breaking out, everyone in the village is inevitably drawn into it. Aokiji's strength is now quite good, but that's only among his peers. He's still too young. On the battlefield, he'll face all sorts of enemies, outnumbered, with his abilities outmatched, and his age a disadvantage is all too common. All I can do is try to minimize that risk. Where the leaves dance, the fire will never die."

Upon hearing such righteous words, the Uchiha clan leader's eyes welled up with tears. This old man had dedicated his last drop of blood to the prosperity of his clan until his very last moment.

He is the true inheritor of the Will of Fire.

Elder Itachi, displeased by the man's tears, frowned and reprimanded him, "What's with your tears? Can your tears save the Uchiha?"

Hearing this admonition, the Uchiha clan chief wiped away his tears, his respect for him growing even stronger: "I'm sorry you had to see this."

Elder Itachi closed his eyes and took a breath: "This is the last thing I'd like to ask of you."

The Uchiha clan leader respectfully said, "What is it? Elder Itachi, please feel free to give your instructions."

"After I die, do not tell Aokiji the truth."

The Uchiha clan leader pondered for a moment: "Is it to protect Aokiji?"

Itachi replied with a sigh, "Don't let his carefree attitude fool you. He's actually a very sensitive person. If he knew the truth, he might do something foolish."

Madara Uchiha, the mastermind behind it all, wants to use Elder Itachi's death to provoke Aokiji, but not now. He plans to wait until Aokiji kills Tsunade before informing him of the plan.

"Until the very last moment, Elder Itachi was still thinking of the clan..." The Uchiha clan head said sincerely with admiration.

"After I leave, the heavy responsibility of protecting the Uchiha clan will fall on your shoulders."

"Yes."

………………

………………

Inside a room.

Looking at the room full of gold and silver valuables, everyone couldn't stop smiling.

Before this, they had made enough money to last several lifetimes by kidnapping and extorting the son of the daimyo of the Land of Fire.

One of the short men in the group, his eyes gleaming with greed as he looked at the money, exclaimed, "King Ye, we've struck it rich this time!"

Aokiji was in a good mood and hummed in response.

They have committed the biggest crime in history, which has attracted worldwide attention. The Daimyo of the Land of Fire will surely be investigating them frantically to save face.

After finishing this job, Aokiji was ready to retire.

Since we've already made enough money, continuing this risky business could lead to disaster.

Going forward, we should try to develop our business in legitimate ways to make money.

When it came time to divide the money, the short man asked a question that everyone present was concerned about: "King Ye, how should we divide the profits this time?"

Aokiji disagreed: "The old rule, 30/70 split."

He and Kakuzu together take 70%, with the remainder divided equally among the other members of the gang; this has always been the way the profits are split.

The old, predictable way of doing things made the short man uneasy. His expression immediately turned dissatisfied, and he objected, "That's not right, why is it still a 70/30 split?"

Aokiji glanced at the guy.

This guy was making a fuss about wanting a bigger share last time, and now he's jumped out again. He must be tired of living.

Before he could speak, Kakuzu, a supporter standing to the side, stepped forward, his expression changing: "What, do you have a problem with that?"

Facing those murderous eyes, the short man, though small in stature, was quite bold: "Of course I have a problem with it. Why is it always a 30/70 split? There are ten of us in total, and the two of you alone take 70%, while the eight of us only get 30%. Isn't that a bit unfair?"

"fair?"

Kakuzu seemed to find this extremely amusing, and scoffed, "Don't get me wrong. If it weren't for the two of us, you'd still be stuck doing that wretched job of a bounty hunter, living on the edge every day, earning a pittance of money. Working yourself to the bone like an idiot."

As he said that, Aokiji glanced at Kakuzu, thinking to himself, "You used to do the same thing, and you seemed to enjoy it a lot..."

(End of this chapter)