Warlock Invasion of Naruto.

However, the higher-ups never expected that the Uchiha clan and the Uzumaki clan would show signs of reconciliation.

Furthermore, there have been calls within the Uchiha clan to leave Konoha and join the Land of Whirlpools. Although this group is small, it is a very bad trend.

In addition, Uchiha Issei, a top-tier member of the Uchiha clan, has been meeting frequently with Hyuga Hideto, a member of the Hyuga clan's branch family. Although they may only be meeting frequently because of personal friendship, their behavior at this sensitive time will inevitably make the higher-ups wonder if the Uchiha are colluding with the Hyuga clan.

Back then, the Uchiha and Hyuga clans had a brief collaboration in order to help Sakumo Hatake rise to power, so we must be wary of them.

More importantly, maintaining stability among other ninja clans, particularly the Uchiha clan, was always key to Danzo's control over power.

Danzo knew that Hiruzen Sarutobi was also wary of the Uchiha clan, but he had been wavering on the issue of the Uchiha. Therefore, Danzo made his own decision, which not only suited Hiruzen Sarutobi's interests, but also allowed him to play the good cop when needed. He played the good guy, and Danzo himself played the bad guy.

However, Danzo didn't care about any of that. Since the Orochimaru incident and the Kinkaku and Ginkaku incidents, Hiruzen Sarutobi had regained power. He was already doing well to keep the Root organization's power. He had to plan for the Hokage position slowly.

The Sharingan of the Uchiha clan was the key to Danzo's resurgence.

After obtaining the Sharingan from his former teammate, Uchiha Kagami, Danzo truly felt the power of the Sharingan. Especially after witnessing the power of Uchiha Fugaku's Mangekyou Sharingan up close, he could no longer suppress his desire for the Uchiha clan.

Although the Uchiha clan has reached another peak in strength, as long as they remain in Konoha, Danzo has ways to slowly subdue them.

Given the strength of the Uchiha clan, it would be difficult for the Root ninjas to evade the perception of their powerful clan leader. However, Danzo always maintained a balance, seemingly going too far but not being outrageous, constantly testing the Uchiha clan's limits.

Although the clan head, Fugaku Uchiha, was also furious, he consistently mediated between the clan members, helping them to calm down.

......

The Root ninjas quickly went to inform Danzo, and after learning that Danzo had gone to the Hokage Building, they came to the door of the Hokage's office.

"Lord Danzo, Lord Third Hokage," the Root ninja said respectfully.

"Come in."

Danzo's slightly low voice came from the Hokage's office.

The Root ninja pushed open the door and entered, seeing the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, sitting behind his desk, and Danzo beside him. He went to Danzo, knelt on one knee, and bowed respectfully.

Danzo frowned slightly and gave his subordinates a wink.

Upon noticing Danzo's gaze, the Root ninja felt a chill run down his spine and slightly turned his body to face Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Since the White Fang incident and the Orochimaru incident, Danzo and Hiruzen Sarutobi's relationship has become much more distant. The loss of control by Kinkaku and Ginkaku resulted in the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, being seriously injured and falling into a coma. Hiruzen Sarutobi has now completely seized control of Danzo's weaknesses and can take away his power at any time. Therefore, Danzo has become much more docile and has been actively involved in the Uchiha issue.

"Third Hokage, we've been tasked with monitoring the Uchiha clan's movements recently, and we've discovered that Issei Uchiha and Hideto Hyuga have been in frequent contact. Today, even Shisui Uchiha and Itachi Uchiha met with them, and they talked for several hours..."

The Root ninja described the scene they witnessed during their surveillance today.

"I understand, you may leave." Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded.

"Yes!"

The Root ninja stood up, bowed slightly, and then used the Body Flicker Technique to disappear from the office.

"It seems that the Uchiha clan really intends to collude with the Hyuga clan."

Danzo said in a deep voice.

Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head slightly and said, "Danzo, we can't conclude that the Uchiha and Hyuga are colluding just because they are sitting together chatting. They are all ninjas from the same village, and individual behavior should not be generalized to the entire ninja clan."

Upon hearing this, Danzo fell silent before speaking: "Hiruzen, don't forget, Shisui is now a member of Root. Although he seems very dedicated, it's hard to say whether he's a spy sent by the Uchiha clan."

Shisui has already learned a lot of the village's secrets. You should know better than me what the consequences would be if the Uchiha colluded with the Hyuga at this time.

If the Hyuga clan truly has no intention of allying with the Uchiha, then they should continue as before.

It seems we've been too lenient with the Hyuga clan, which has led them to harbor resentment. It looks like it's time to give them a warning.

Hiruzen Sarutobi opened his mouth, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

He only wanted a peaceful retirement, but the Gold and Silver Horns incident caused Minato to be seriously injured and fall into a coma. Things that he originally didn't have the courage to do, Minato might have dared to do, but after Minato fell into a coma, he deeply felt his inability to do them.

The situation Danzo described was exactly what Hiruzen Sarutobi was most worried about.

The Uchiha clan has a history of misconduct. If Madara Uchiha hadn't betrayed Konoha and severely injured the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, causing him to die from his injuries shortly after returning to the village, Konoha could have continued to develop peacefully for another twenty years under his protection.

“Hiashi is a man of principle. The main family will manage the branch families well. We shouldn’t interfere too much,” Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered.

"Don't worry, I know what to do."

......

Outside the meatball shop.

"Issei, I'm going back now." Hyuga Eito waved to Shiraha, then looked at Shisui and Itachi and said, "Shisui, Itachi, let's eat dumplings together again next time."

"it is good."

Goodbye, senior Englishman.

Shisui and Itachi also waved goodbye to Eito.

Gazing at the sunset that illuminated the entire sky, Itachi looked longingly at Shisui. This meal of dumplings had taken too long, and the time he would have to train with Shisui from now on would probably be much shorter.

"Zhishui, come with me, I have something to tell you." Bai Yu pointed to the alleyway to the right.

"Mm." Shisui nodded.

Itachi opened his mouth, but then stopped himself from speaking.

Shisui noticed Itachi's expression, smiled apologetically, and gently patted Itachi's shoulder. "Itachi, I have something to do today. Let's talk about training another time."

A hint of disappointment flashed in Itachi's eyes, but he quickly composed himself and said with a smile, "It's alright, let's do it next time. Your business is more important, Shisui-nii."

"Goodbye then." Shisui waved to Itachi and jogged after Shiraha.

Itachi slightly pursed his lips, gazing at Bai Yu's retreating figure.

Since Shisui joined the Dark Division, the time he spends with him has decreased drastically, and he also has to share Shisui's free time with Issei (Shiraha).

Actually, Itachi could have sought help from his father, Fugaku Uchiha, regarding his training. After all, Fugaku is currently the only openly recognized member of the Uchiha clan to have awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan, making him far stronger than the other clan members.

However, when Fugaku was with him, he always adopted a lecturing attitude, and every other sentence revolved around bringing glory to the clan.

Therefore, Itachi prefers to be with Shisui.

It wasn't just because Shisui took care of Itachi like an older brother; more often, it was because Shisui could provide answers to Itachi's questions, which were good at thinking.

......

The 51st year of Konoha was quickly coming to an end.

December 20th marks 7 days until Hinata, the eldest daughter of the Hyuga main family, turns 3.

According to the tradition of the Hyuga clan, on the third birthday of a new member of the main family, a group of children from the branch families are branded with the Caged Bird Seal. The most outstanding among these children will later have the opportunity to become the personal bodyguards of the new member of the main family.

Hinata Hyuga, as the eldest and only daughter of the main branch of the Hyuga clan, is very likely to succeed as the clan leader in the future, so her third birthday naturally received great attention.

Many ninja clans that were on good terms with the Hyuga clan sent congratulatory gifts. In addition to high-ranking officials from the Land of Fire, officials from other countries also came to attend the banquet. This shows the prestige and connections of the ancient and powerful Hyuga clan.

In comparison, the Uchiha clan, which was able to rival the Senju clan during the Warring States period, seemed to lack prestige.

The main reason is that although the Hyuga clan treats its own people, especially the branch family members, very harshly, they have always been friendly to outsiders and have made many good relationships. Therefore, in terms of reputation, they are naturally more famous than the Uchiha clan, which is stronger.

Unexpectedly, Kumogakure, which had made peace with Konoha but had not resumed trade and close exchanges, suddenly sent an envoy to establish a closer alliance with Konoha.

Konoha suffered heavy losses in the Third Shinobi World War. First, they lost Hakuba and Kushina, then Orochimaru defected, and Minato Namikaze, a top ninja of the new generation, was seriously injured and fell into a coma. The biggest winner of the Third Shinobi World War was no longer Konoha Village, and Konoha's position as the overlord of the ninja world was somewhat unstable.

However, recently, Konoha's ally, the Uzumaki clan, joined forces with the Uchiha clan to severely damage Kirigakure, allowing the world to witness Konoha's strength once again. Now, Kumogakure has taken the initiative to send people to strengthen the alliance, which is a rare piece of good news for Konoha.

Therefore, the Konoha leadership attached great importance to this matter. The Third Hokage personally received the Kumogakure delegation and subsequently sent Jonin leader Nara Shikaku to receive them.

On December 26th, the day before Hinata Hyuga's birthday party, Shiraha, far away in the Uzumaki clan, received bad news from his subordinates.

Bang!

Bai Yu slammed his hand on the table and stood up, instantly shattering the desk.

"What did you say? Shion is missing?!"

"Yes...yes." The ninja who came to deliver the message lowered his head nervously and stammered. The terrifying aura emanating from Bai Yu was overwhelming, making him feel like he was about to suffocate.

"I understand. You can go back now and tell Maitreya not to worry. I will handle this matter."

Bai Yu quickly regained his composure.

"Yes." The messenger ninja, feeling as if he had been granted a pardon, bowed respectfully and quickly left the office.

Bai Yu was able to sense through bloodline connection that Zi Yuan was safe.

However, her exact location could not be detected because she was constantly moving, indicating that she had been taken away by someone.

Only by getting closer and closer can one pinpoint the location of Aster through bloodline.

Kodama is still in the Land of Rain to continue monitoring the Akatsuki.

Yekura, on the other hand, pretended to be a wandering, defecting ninja, waiting for an opportunity to join the Akatsuki organization.

Bai Yu had recently ordered Kakuzu and Sasori to be stationed permanently in the Land of Demons. With their strength, although they could not fight against top-tier powerhouses like the Third Tsuchikage Onoki, ordinary Kage-level ninjas were no match for them.

Even a perfect Jinchuriki who has mastered the power of a Tailed Beast could not possibly abduct Shion silently right under their noses.

Previously, Iwagakure's actions were all probing. Bai Yu released some signals, and the other side, knowing the relationship between the 'Serpent Spirit' Medical Group and the Uzumaki Clan, should not do such a thing.

"I want to see who's so foolish as to dare do such a thing!"

Bai Yu's eyes were icy cold. As his mental power was about to enter the 'crystallization' stage, the killing intent he exuded seemed to materialize, causing the temperature in the entire office to drop.

Although Bai Yu had no feelings for Miroku, Shion was, after all, his bloodline descendant, so he left some backup plans for Shion.

Since the demonized items on Ziyuan's body did not trigger, it means that she is not in any immediate danger.

Once the demonized item is activated, Bai Yu can determine its location based on the mental imprint he left inside, but Bai Yu doesn't want that to happen.

Since the other party kidnapped Ziyuan, it must be for profit, and it is unlikely that they would directly harm Ziyuan.

Bai Yu felt agitated.

Click click...

Cracks gradually appeared in the surrounding walls and floors, spreading rapidly throughout the room like a spider web.

Noticing the commotion, Bai Yu activated "Clarity Spell" to calm himself down.

Since he learned the "Clarity Spell" and created the "Aura Elixir," he has not been affected by the emotional influence of his biological instincts.

But this time, his bloodlust seemed to have awakened.

Because the emotions were so intense, even the "emotional chain" showed signs of being automatically triggered.

---Aside---