I'm retrieving corpses in Konoha.

One of them was Tsunade. She didn't initially trust Uchiha Natsu, nor did she think Uchiha Natsu had any lofty ambitions.

In addition to the Pain incident and what he had seen and heard during his recent "wandering" in the Land of Fire, his trust in the Hokage has plummeted.

Until they completely lose faith.

But to my surprise, Uchiha Natsu's ambitions were so lofty, and yet so familiar.

She seemed to see again the two people who were once the most important to her.

The three figures gradually overlapped, causing Tsunade's eyes to redden slightly, and her vision to appear as if veiled by a layer of mist.

But she quickly realized what was happening, and while Jingyin wasn't looking, she wiped her eyes with her hand and turned her head away.

The other person who was stunned was Uzuki Yugao.

He thought that the teacher had forgotten their promise.

But unexpectedly, the teacher, who had previously forgotten about it, spoke these words with such passion.

She then remembered that before she left, Hinata Rena had comforted her, saying that her teacher could not possibly forget something so important.

Although she couldn't answer the question, the promise must have been deeply imprinted in her mind and reflected in her actions.

The teacher is still the same teacher; even after becoming Hokage, he hasn't changed.

Uzuki Yugao's lips curled up slightly.

Takisuke's heart pounded. Seeing that Uzuki Yugao was stunned and had revealed a flaw, he quickly twisted his wrist.

He swung his still-sheathed katana horizontally in front of him, deflecting Uzuki Yugao's blade with a clang.

Then he nimbly rolled backward and ran towards the door at the fastest speed he had ever been.

After realizing that Uchiha Natsu's identity was far more terrifying than he had imagined, Takisuke lost all confidence in staying there any longer.

If he doesn't escape now, this person might actually kill him.

As he got closer and closer to the door, Takisuke wished he could grow wings and fly away to get as far away from this terrifying place and this terrifying man as possible.

Uzuki Yugao reacted instantly, her katana trembling violently as she mobilized a large amount of chakra within her body.

He formed hand seals and activated the Instantaneous Movement Technique.

Under the effect of the Body Flicker Technique, Uzuki Yugao's figure disappeared in the blink of an eye, and the next moment, she appeared in front of Takisuke.

Sheathed the sword, the scabbard instantly swung back, and slammed it hard into the face of the rugged-looking man.

Before he could even react, Takisuke was sent flying.

Just like the other ninjas, the powerful force caused him to lose consciousness instantly, collapsing to the ground unconscious, his legs twitching twice.

Just now, Uzuki Yugao almost wanted to kill him, but fortunately she remembered Uchiha Natsu's words in time and knew that she couldn't kill this person directly.

Therefore, instead of using the blade directly, he first sheathed the sword and then used the scabbard to attack.

Uchiha Natsu looked at the ground and saw several people lying unconscious in different directions.

Then, with a thousand hands, he opened a scroll.

He took out a white robe with red patterns from the scroll and quickly unfolded it to stick it to his body.

The words "Fifth Hokage" were prominently displayed on the divine robe. Everyone saw those red characters representing his identity the moment it opened in the air.

The Fifth Hokage, Uchiha Natsu.

This scene shocked everyone.

Just now, when Uchiha Natsu said those words, his dignified demeanor and aura made everyone speculate about Uchiha Natsu's true identity.

Perhaps they are officials from Daming Prefecture, or the head of some town, or perhaps they are elites from Konoha.

But to everyone's surprise, this young man was actually the Fifth Hokage.

Currently, the two most powerful people in the Land of Fire are the Daimyo and the Hokage, and now one of them is standing in front of them.

Then, recalling those words, the drinkers were all extremely excited.

This is the person who can truly bring about change in Tanabata Street.

Just then, a commotion broke out outside.

Subsequently, more than a dozen people rushed into the tavern and quickly surrounded Uchiha Natsu and his companion.

Two people came in last, one of whom was an obese middle-aged man, probably in his forties or fifties.

Just by looking at his appearance, one can think of the phrase: rolling in money.

The middle-aged man was dressed very casually, not at all like a proper official, but Uchiha Natsu knew that he was the mayor of Tanabata.

As soon as the middle-aged town mayor entered the house, he saw his son lying on the ground, seemingly lifeless.

Overwhelmed with grief, he trembled and threw himself on his son, speechless for a moment.

The mayor placed all his hopes on this son, Takisuke, who is also his only descendant.

They would never say a word to someone who would normally do that, but today they were beaten up like this.

The middle-aged town mayor looked up angrily, glanced at Uchiha Natsu, and then looked at the old man who had come in with him.

He pointed at Uchiha Natsu and frantically shouted at the white-haired elder, "Clan Chief Seikaze, these people have openly committed violence! They not only injured my son but also wounded one of your clan's best ninjas. Their crimes are heinous! Arrest them! I want to interrogate them myself!"

After saying this, the mayor assumed that the head of the Chigen clan would, as he had imagined, immediately order his ninjas to capture the two violent young men.

But in reality, the clan leader named Chigen Seifu did not do as he had imagined.

Instead, he took a few steps forward with his cane and knelt down in front of Uchiha Natsu.

His thin, graying head drooped slightly as he respectfully said, "Fifth Hokage."

Upon seeing this, the town mayor was dumbfounded.

Because the words "Fifth Hokage" were written on the back of his robe, and Uchiha Natsu was facing him, the town mayor did not know that the young man in front of him was the Fifth Hokage.

Although the town mayor was unaware, the patriarch of the Qianyuan clan remembered it very clearly.

Because, at the conference where the ninjas of the Land of Fire were united, Chigen Seika represented the Chigen clan at the meeting.

Chigen Seikaze remembered the Fifth Hokage's youthful face all too clearly.

This person is very capable; even the village chief of a ninja village of the level of Sanhu Village was directly killed by this young Hokage.

That time, Chigen Seifu was deeply shocked.

At the same time, he also felt a chill down his spine.

This has been going on for many years, involving the assistance of the mayor of Tanbata Street in embezzling public funds.

During this period, both the town mayor and the Qianyuan clan benefited greatly.

After attending the meeting, Chigen Seikaze realized that the power structure of the Land of Fire was about to change, so he wanted to stop while he was ahead.

But after much hesitation, he couldn't make a decision and even lied to himself that Konoha was far away.

Moreover, their small organization wasn't assigned any Konoha ninjas for management at the time, so they might have been able to get away with it.

Since then, every time he wakes up in the middle of the night, he wants to stop this behavior immediately, but when he wakes up the next morning, he can't help but think of the sweetness he has enjoyed over the years.

Ultimately, I spent the rest of my time in hesitation.

Today, things finally turned out badly. What he feared had become a reality. Qian Yuanlaifeng wished he could go back in time and slap his wavering self to bring him to his senses, so that this wouldn't have happened.

[A book-reading app recommended to me by a friend I've known for ten years, Wild Fruit Reading! It's damn good! I use it to read aloud and listen to books while driving or before bed to pass the time. You can download it here.]

But it was too late to say anything; the deed was done. Chigen Seifu could only hope that the Hokage would be forgiving and give him a chance to turn over a new leaf.

Uchiha Natsu looked indifferently at the old man with graying temples before him and coldly asked, "Do you know your crimes?"

Chigen Seifu lowered his posture even further, his voice trembling slightly as he said, "I know I was wrong. I beg the Fifth Generation Lord to give us a chance to reform."

Uchiha Natsu snorted coldly, his eyes sharp: "Tell me yourself, what kind of punishment do you want? The future of the Sengen clan is entirely decided by your word."

The Sengen clan ninjas, who were already kneeling on the ground with their clan leader, trembled upon hearing this, and cold sweat poured down their foreheads.

Chigen Seifu's lips trembled; he didn't know how to answer.

This is a matter of life and death decided by a single sentence; the slightest mistake could destroy the entire family.

The overweight middle-aged town mayor now knew what was going on and was filled with fear.

Seeing that no one was paying attention to him, he quietly moved to the doorway, hoping to slip away.

Just then, two masked ninjas suddenly appeared and blocked the doorway.

Upon seeing these ninjas, the mayor turned ashen-faced.

The name of the Dark Guard wasn't just known to ordinary people. Officials and high-ranking officials feared them just as much.

After the ninjas of the Land of Fire were unified, the Anbu would also target ordinary people or officials who were not ninjas.

The Hokage is directly under the Anbu, which in the past was specifically tasked with dealing with ninjas who posed a threat to Konoha.

Now, the Dark Division will eliminate anyone who threatens the stability of the Land of Fire.

Not long ago, an organization that kept killing people appeared in a small town in the south.

The local regular police force was unable to handle the situation, so the secret service was dispatched and the murder organization was wiped out in an instant.

They truly annihilated them, leaving not even a corpse or bone fragments behind; their methods were extremely cruel.

Since then, the reputation of the Dark Division has spread far and wide, and the entire Land of Fire is terrified of this organization.

The mayor took two steps back and slumped to the ground, his flabby body trembling.

He knew he was finished, completely finished.

Chigen Seifu also noticed the situation at the door, and his face became even more bitter upon seeing the figures of the Anbu.

Not only at the entrance, but also on the east and west sides of the house, figures from the shadows appeared.

Chigen Seifu didn't know how many people Uchiha Natsu had brought, but as far as he knew, the Shadow Guards from the Anbu alone could easily wipe out their entire clan.

The Shadow Guard, as the name suggests, almost always follows the Hokage.

There's no room for wishful thinking anymore. Uchiha Natsu's decision to let him choose for himself clearly conveyed his meaning.

Lai Feng, lying prostrate on the ground, said in a trembling voice:

"The fact that the joint mayor oppressed the common people was entirely my doing, and has nothing to do with the rest of the family. Please punish me, Fifth Hokage."