A special thank you to my patrons:
—Jacob Mooe, kevin Williams, ZaberZ, Archer, Acedia, kurtis newman, Fredrik Dahlman, Nithin Samuel, Little Sand, Dradin Hebrhal, Luca August, Kyle.S406, Alin Kadas, Sarah Ann Thomas, sediaz, Xanex44.
You can read 30 chapters ahead of everyone on p@treon.
P@TREON - [email protected]/lessaservantofcosmos
(just replace the "@" with "a")
ps: Please support me on P@treon. I can really use your help!
————————————————————
"And for a while, the Hyūga clan's situation won't be good. From the village's standpoint, even with the negotiation, I need to show a certain personal attitude."
How could things immediately turn favorable just because there was a negotiation?
Don't even think about such a good deal!
In fact, Kazuki would still target the Hyūga a bit, to teach those elders a lesson.
"I know."
The public issue was resolved, but the private had not.
Given his position, Kazuki would be unhappy. So targeting the Hyūga was only right.
Hiashi agreed with Kazuki's approach, even though it was the Hyūga being targeted.
This was a normal part of the process.
After a moment's silence, Kazuki asked, "What about those elders..."
"Executed. If I hadn't dealt with them first, nothing would have been resolved. These pests in the clan should have been cleaned out long ago." Hiashi's tone remained calm.
"I just regret not having been as ruthless as Fugaku earlier. If I had, the clan's reforms wouldn't have been so difficult."
"...Alright."
Was this a case of "keep good men company and you'll be counted one of them"?
After spending so much time with Fugaku, even Hiashi had become black-hearted.
Fugaku, at the front-line camp, had no idea he'd been framed.
Why he could be ruthless? Whether it was due to Fugaku's influence...
Hiashi didn't say, nor did he intend to explain how he dealt with those ninja.
And Kazuki didn't ask. There was no need.
Just knowing they were dead was enough.
These old bastards were even more cancerous than the Uchiha's former pacifist and radical elders. The sooner they were dealt with, the better.
It would prevent the Hyūga situation from dragging on endlessly, with a few bad apples constantly causing trouble.
The death of a few elders wouldn't affect the Hyūga much.
Even if they were Main House elders.
It was just a few deaths. Not annihilation.
Choosing suitable people to fill the positions would solve everything.
The new elders wouldn't even need Hiashi's help; they would clean up his mess to show their loyalty and ability.
Hiashi's public apology had a huge impact – at least in Konoha.
Many villagers thought they'd misread. Only after checking several times did they confirm it really was Hyūga Hiashi, the clan leader.
A major clan leader publicly apologizing, and just for internal clan conflicts – this was a first in Konoha. The villagers had quite the eye-opening experience.
The clan leader's personal appearance, coupled with a sincere apology, significantly turned the Hyūga's reputation around.
Watching the Hyūga's slick move, the Sarutobi and Shimura clan leaders beat their chests in frustration.
Why didn't they think of that?
If they had apologized earlier, would the villagers be less hostile?
But it was too late to imitate. Everything has a beginning. The first person to eat the crab gets the meat. Those who follow seem insincere.
If the Sarutobi or Shimura clan jumped out now, many villagers might think they were just copying the Hyūga, completely insincere.
Another clan leader apologizing – nothing new. It seemed even more insincere.
As if they were apologizing just to gain forgiveness.
Then, the apology could backfire.
SLAP!
"This is too much!!!"
At the camp command post, Ōnoki angrily slammed an intelligence scroll on the desk, grinding his teeth.
"Does Konoha really think this old man won't fight them to the death? What is the meaning of this?"
Itachi being sent out by Kazuki to cause trouble on the battlefield – Iwagakure hadn't anticipated that, leading to heavy losses.
And when they tried to trap him, it failed. He withdrew.
Ōnoki had accepted that.
It was his plan that was flawed. He'd underestimated Itachi's strength. By the time his reinforcements arrived, it was too late.
That was Ōnoki's problem.
He accepted it.
Now, Itachi had disappeared from the battlefield, appearing only occasionally, yet that still terrified his ninja. Ōnoki was worried about this, and then something even more exciting came.
The Third Hokage had personally come to the battlefield.
Damn it! Do you really think this old man won't act against you?
Ōnoki exploded with curses on the spot.
Uchiha Kazuki!! Didn't we agree on small-scale attrition warfare?
What's going on with Konoha? Playing games?
Taking turns messing with me, Ōnoki?
I've already pulled the defense line back to the border, and Konoha still wants to push further, step by step – truly inhuman.
Furious, Ōnoki slapped Kazuki with the label "untrustworthy."
Unfortunately, Kazuki didn't know. If he did, he would certainly protest.
Konoha was indeed fighting a small-scale attrition war with Iwagakure. Unless they were at the gates, it was still small-scale.
Just because Itachi and the Third Hokage appeared on the battlefield, Kazuki had broken his word?
How was that untrustworthy?
Your, Ōnoki's, credit is pretty low. If you're so capable, throw your village's strong ninja onto the battlefield too.
Oh, sorry. Your village doesn't have many strong ninja who can stand alone. And those few are on the Land of Waterfalls battlefield, fending off Kumogakure's attack.
But... what does that have to do with Konoha?
Not having strong ninja to guard the battlefield is Iwagakure's problem. Don't drag Konoha into it just because you lack them.
I wouldn't care if you, Ōnoki, came to the battlefield yourself.
"Conduct business as usual. Don't engage them too heavily. That old bastard will probably withdraw after a while."
Gritting his teeth, Ōnoki decided to endure. After the New Year, the weather cleared. Kumogakure seized the opportunity to press Iwagakure hard.
The Land of Waterfalls battlefield was under pressure. Ōnoki didn't want to provoke Konoha at this time.
He even thought about leaving the camp and going to the Land of Waterfalls battlefield to take charge.
But the Third Hokage's arrival halted his plans.
Iwagakure's war with Konoha had been somewhat lackluster. Lacking strong ninja, lacking an army of ninja, Ōnoki had set aside everything to come to the camp personally.
And now, he was stuck here. Konoha kept sending new things for him to see.
The Third Hokage's intent was clear: he was here for revenge and to annoy Ōnoki.