Chapter 348: A Path for the Uchiha Clan
Ishiro and Rasa paid no mind to the Chunin Exams; the two were discussing the general direction of their future in-depth cooperation.
In the end, they reached a consensus on two points. First, Sunagakure, like Konohagakure, would reach an agreement with Iwagakure to allow each other's ninja to enter their respective countries to escort merchant caravans.
Second, they would allow each other's merchant caravans to cross their national borders to trade with countries on the other side.
What did this mean?
It meant that Iwagakure could escort its own caravans through the Land of Wind to trade with nations further south, like Rouran, or even across the sea to the Land of Tea.
Similarly, caravans from the Land of Wind could cross the Land of Earth to trade with the Land of Iron and the Land of Lightning, which lay across the sea.
From the fact that Ishiro pushed for this consensus, it was clear that his ambitions were by no means limited to the areas around the Land of Earth; he was already finding ways to expand Iwagakure's sphere of influence.
But Rasa still agreed. These two agreements were detrimental to the future interests of Sunagakure and the Land of Wind. However, Rasa needed to consider his immediate interests.
After reaching a consensus, Rasa announced that he was returning to Sunagakure.
Ishiro was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "It seems the Kazekage came well-prepared."
"One should be well-prepared when dealing with the Tsuchikage," Rasa said flatly.
"Care to join forces?" Ishiro asked.
"No need!" Rasa replied without the slightest hesitation.
"Alas, what a pity! In that case, I wish the Kazekage a safe journey," Ishiro said.
The finals had only been underway for half a day, yet the Kazekage was already leaving. At the gates of Iwagakure, Ishiro handed Pakura back to Rasa, then watched him depart.
"You're just letting him go like that? Are we really not going to follow? The Land of Wind's strength is what it is; they probably can't handle Konoha," Ikura said.
Ishiro sighed. "Alas, there's nothing to be done. Rasa is wary of us. If we were to follow, the fight between Suna and Konoha would never happen. He's afraid that after we join forces to take out Konoha, we'd turn around and take them out."
Ikura also said with regret, "Indeed. If such an opportunity arose, we certainly wouldn't let it pass."
This was perfectly normal. If they could first ally with Suna to kill the Konoha ninja who might come to intercept them, Konoha would immediately lose its position as the number one power in the ninja world. This was because the intercepting force would certainly not be weak; Ishiro and Rasa's consensus was that it would be at least two Kage-level shinobi.
And once Konoha lost two Kage-level shinobi, if Iwagakure then pushed a little harder and eliminated one or two of Suna's Kage-level shinobi as well, the only one left to contend with Iwagakure for supremacy would be Kumogakure.
Therefore, Rasa was certain that if it came to that, Ishiro would make a move one hundred percent of the time.
"However, the fact that Rasa could anticipate that we might secretly inform Konoha shows he's no simple character. I imagine he has made thorough preparations," Ikura said.
"Mm, Chiyo has probably come along as well," Ishiro said. "Alright, let's head back. Have the Anbu keep a close watch on the Suna-nin, and don't let Rasa pull a surprise attack on his way out."
"Don't worry, it's already been arranged," Ikura replied.
...
As the two walked back, they ran into Kakashi just before reaching the finals arena.
Ishiro gave Ikura a few instructions, and Ikura left with a strange look in his eye.
Looking at Kakashi, Ishiro asked, "Is there something you can't figure out?"
Kakashi nodded.
"Is it about your father, or is it about the Uchiha clan?" Ishiro asked again.
Kakashi gritted his teeth. "It's about the Uchiha clan."
Ishiro internally grumbled, As expected. In the world of Naruto, friends are more important than family.
"Why come ask me? I am the Kage of Iwagakure, not your Konoha's Kage. If you have a problem, you should go to your Hokage and let her give you a brainwashing session on the Will of Fire," Ishiro said with a laugh.
"Because it was you who lured me into this ideological trap," Kakashi stated.
"This... alright, I admit it," Ishiro said. "In that case, let's walk and talk."
With that, Ishiro began to lead Kakashi on a tour of Iwagakure.
"I hear you and Shikaizumi Nara already toured the village on your first day here. Tell me, what are your feelings about our village?" Ishiro didn't get straight to the point, instead starting with small talk.
"Iwagakure is very unfriendly towards us Konoha ninja, and there's a sense that you're mocking us," Kakashi said.
"You're not wrong. This is actually a mindset I've only recently encouraged everyone to adopt. It wasn't like this before. In the past, everyone was very envious of Konoha. Even we Iwa-nin always felt somewhat inferior when facing Konoha ninja," Ishiro said. "Do you think this kind of mentality among the Iwa villagers is good or bad for our village and our ninja?"
Kakashi recalled Shikaizumi Nara's words and said, "It should be a good thing!"
"That's right, it's a good thing. I learned this from your Konoha. The last time Orochimaru, Akasuna no Sasori, and the Kumo delegation were causing trouble in your village, I was investigating the morale of your villagers. By the way, we've met before, at Ichiraku Ramen," Ishiro said smugly.
Kakashi: "..."
I deliberately didn't bring this up, so why are you bringing it up?
"Although Konoha's internal strife is severe, and the Third Hokage's policies towards the major ninja clans are baffling, he has indeed done a good job in building the villagers' self-confidence," Ishiro lamented.
As they spoke, they arrived at a training ground. Ishiro pointed to a few children practicing inside and said to Kakashi, "What do you think of our younger generation in Iwa?"
Kakashi looked where Ishiro was pointing and frowned. These children were clearly Ninja Academy students, and every one of them had average talent. In Konoha, students like this wouldn't even enter his sight.
"Look at that one, the one on the very edge shouting while practicing his kunai throwing. What do you think of him?" Ishiro pointed to one of the children.
Kakashi heard this, stared at the child for a while, and then said, "This one has the worst talent. He'll probably have difficulty graduating."
"Haha! That's right. He's the dead-last of this year's top class. His name is Tenbin Chūkō," Ishiro said with a loud laugh.
"Tenbin?" Kakashi was a little surprised. He knew this name was related to Iwagakure's Third Tsuchikage.
"Yes, but that wasn't his original name. His original name was Uchiha Sōkai," Ishiro said nonchalantly.
Then, ignoring the shocked Kakashi, Ishiro shouted towards Uchiha Sōkai, "Chūkō, come over here for a moment."
Sōkai was startled to see Ishiro but obediently came over. He didn't know why Ishiro was looking for him; the two hadn't spoken since their conversation after he first awakened his eyes. Amidst the envious gazes of his peers, Sōkai came to Ishiro's side.
Ishiro led Sōkai and Kakashi towards a secluded spot, saying, "Let me make an introduction for you two."
"Uchiha Sōkai, whose name in Iwagakure is Tenbin Chūkō. Sōkai was originally someone I snatched from the Uchiha clan, but I later received Fugaku Uchiha's approval. He is now a member of our Iwagakure's Ninja Academy."
"Hatake Kakashi, a Konoha ninja, and the teammate of your Uchiha clan's Obito Uchiha. Before Obito died, he gave his Sharingan to Hatake Kakashi."
After speaking, Ishiro gave the two a moment to digest the information. When they reached an empty area, Ishiro performed a seal towards Sōkai's head. "Release."
As Ishiro formed the seal, Sōkai suddenly felt as if a layer of restraint had been lifted from his eyes. Subconsciously, he activated his Sharingan: still a single tomoe in his left eye, and two tomoe in his right.
Kakashi was shaken. "Sharingan?!"
He then lifted the protector over his own left eye, revealing the three-tomoe Sharingan within.
"Only members of the Uchiha clan can freely activate and deactivate the Sharingan. So, Kakashi, you shouldn't have any doubts about Sōkai's identity, right?" Ishiro said to Kakashi.
Kakashi nodded.
"When an outsider has a Sharingan transplanted, there is a strong rejection effect. Only a Sharingan transplanted with the true will of the original owner can be barely used by someone else. So, Sōkai, do you have any questions about Kakashi being a Konoha ninja?" Ishiro asked.
Sōkai thought for a moment and said, "No."
"Good. You two chat first. I'll listen," Ishiro said, giving the two of them time.
Next, Kakashi asked in detail about Sōkai's entire journey to Iwagakure and his experiences over the years. Sōkai, in turn, asked about the current situation of the Uchiha clan.
After a long time, when the two had finished talking, Ishiro said to Sōkai, "Sōkai, you can go back to your training." He then reactivated the seal on Sōkai's eyes.
"Kakashi, let's walk some more," Ishiro said to Kakashi after Sōkai had left.
Kakashi watched Sōkai's departing figure until it completely disappeared, then sighed and said, "Lord Tsuchikage, I want to know if you have a way to resolve the Uchiha clan's crisis."
Seeing this, Ishiro said, "First, you must be clear that my interests and Konoha's are in conflict. I will not act for Konoha's benefit."
Kakashi nodded. He was clear on this; he had known from the very beginning that Ishiro's intentions were not benevolent.
"Alright then, I'll tell you my thoughts. To resolve the Uchiha's predicament, there are three directions we can try."
"The first direction is to resolve the conflict between the Uchiha clan and the Konoha leadership. However, the root of this conflict does not lie with the Uchiha. In fact, the Uchiha clan's patriarch, Fugaku Uchiha, is a pacifist. He does not want to be enemies with the Konoha leadership. If he could see a glimmer of hope for the Uchiha clan, he would unify the voices within the clan."
"It is the Konoha leadership that has been making things difficult for the Uchiha clan. So, from this first line of thought, the only way is to change the perspective of the Konoha leadership."
"This method was impossible before, but it's different now. Konoha has a new Hokage. Tsunade is a Hokage who is not hostile to the Uchiha clan."
"But Tsunade does not have absolute authority. Facing Hiruzen Sarutobi, who is both her teacher and the former Hokage, she is powerless to change the relationship between the leadership and the Uchiha."
"Therefore, if you can kill Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Uchiha clan's crisis will be completely resolved."
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