"Elder, what brings you here?"
The moment Senju Tobirama recognized the visitor, he immediately rose from his seat and greeted him with respect.
Although Tobirama stood second only to one man in Konoha and was superior to ten thousand others, he still had to maintain proper courtesy when the Elder of the Land of Fire personally came to the village.
After all, no matter how powerful ninja were on the battlefield, their political status remained fundamentally inferior.
This Elder represented the pinnacle of the Land of Fire's secular authority—the first person below the Lord himself, truly second to one and above ten thousand.
More importantly, Konoha's annual operating budget required this man's personal signature before the Ministry of Finance would release even a single ryo.
In modern terms, Konoha was Party B, and the Elder was the irreplaceable Party A.
How could one afford not to show respect to their financier?
As a seasoned ninja and veteran politician, Tobirama could tell at a glance that the Elder's condition was far from good.
The recent string of "excessive" actions by the Akatsuki Ninja Village—buying land at low prices, conducting disaster relief, and deliberately winning over the hearts of civilians—had filled the Elder with barely suppressed fury.
This was blatant political interference.
Yet the infuriating part was that Uchiha Makoto had left them no handle to grab.
Every questionable action had been carried out under the banner of Takigakure, with no direct connection to the Akatsuki Ninja Village.
Without concrete evidence, anyone who dared openly accuse the Akatsuki Ninja Village would be courting death.
Buying flood-damaged land at low prices?
That was a perfectly normal commercial transaction—a tribute to the invisible hand of the market.
Providing disaster relief?
Those farmers were technically Arasaka Company employees. A company providing food and lodging for its workers was not only legal, but praiseworthy.
As for rescuing disaster victims, that was an untouchable golden signboard. No one could criticize it without inviting public outrage.
Winning over people's hearts?
That was even harder to pin down.
You couldn't accuse someone of political manipulation just because a few elderly farmers praised them.
If you could do better, then go do it yourself.
Could merchant involvement in politics be equated with warriors interfering in governance?
As long as Uchiha Makoto did not openly oppose the Land of Fire, did not publicly reveal his identity, and did not brazenly assassinate nobles, this thin, fragile barrier would never be broken.
What he was doing was nothing more than a textbook salami-slicing strategy.
Thus, despite the Elder's overwhelming anger, he had nowhere to vent it.
Still, he maintained his composure and exchanged greetings with Tobirama as usual.
In truth, their relationship had always been quite good.
Ever since Konoha had inexplicably fallen out of favor with the Lord of Fire, Tobirama had consciously sought to build stronger ties with high-ranking officials of the Land of Fire.
Offending Party A was never a wise move.
The Elder, shrewd and experienced, tacitly played the role of the good cop to the Lord's bad cop, maintaining steady communication with Konoha.
"Tobirama, your complexion doesn't look very good," the Elder said calmly.
"Just some internal village matters," Tobirama replied with a faint smile. "Nothing compared to the burden you carry, Elder. You shoulder the entire Land of Fire."
Tobirama subtly averted his gaze.
He truly was under great pressure, but family disgrace was not something to be aired publicly.
Big Brother was still Big Brother, after all.
"You flatter me. None of us have it easy," the Elder sighed.
Then his tone shifted.
"But tell me, Tobirama—what brings you such concern? Or rather, what do you think brought me to Konoha today, without notice?"
The Elder's sudden, silent arrival could only mean trouble.
As the ninja village tasked with protecting the Land of Fire, Konoha could not afford indifference.
Tobirama immediately straightened his posture.
"If there's anything Konoha can do, please speak freely. Sharing the Land of Fire's worries is our responsibility."
And, hopefully, a chance to secure a few more large-scale missions next year.
The Elder's expression darkened as he was struck at the sore spot.
"A noble family of the Qinghua lineage has been attacked," he said gravely.
"Last night, ninja infiltrated their estate. The entire family was exterminated. Not a single survivor."
"The Lord is furious."
He slammed his fist onto the table.
"This matter has been classified as an S-rank mission. The reward is one hundred million ryo."
"No matter who did it, they must be found—and they must pay the price."
Tobirama's heart skipped a beat.
A massive commission.
The Lord truly lived up to his reputation—extravagant and decisive.
One hundred million ryo.
This was undoubtedly the highest-paying mission Konoha had ever received.
Moreover, it came directly from the Lord of Fire himself.
This wasn't merely an investigation—it was a test of Konoha's competence and loyalty.
Failure was not an option.
Tobirama frowned, rapidly piecing together the situation.
High-ranking nobles of the Land of Fire were never poorly protected.
They employed elite guards who were ready to sacrifice themselves at a moment's notice.
A centuries-old noble family would have even stronger defenses.
To wipe them out overnight…
This was no ordinary assassination.
It had to be the work of one or more extremely powerful ninja.
"Elder," Tobirama asked carefully, "do you have any concrete clues?"
"A Takigakure ninja headband was found at the scene."
"That's excellent—!" Tobirama blurted out, before violently coughing.
"I mean—how utterly despicable. Takigakure's ninja are truly unforgivable. Please rest assured, Elder. Konoha will complete this mission flawlessly."
The moment he heard the name Takigakure, Tobirama's eyes lit up with uncontrollable excitement.
In the next second, he forcibly suppressed it, realizing how inappropriate it was to appear pleased when an entire family had been slaughtered.
Even so, his enthusiasm was difficult to hide.
This was a pillow delivered right when he was sleepy.
He had been struggling to find an excuse to persuade his elder brother to take action against Takigakure.
And now, Takigakure's ninja had gone so far as to massacre a noble family of the Land of Fire.
Such a crime deserved divine punishment.
With the Lord's direct pressure, even Hashirama would have no grounds to obstruct decisive action.
"Tobirama," the Elder said coldly, "don't be so quick to draw conclusions."
"A headband alone doesn't prove Takigakure's guilt."
"Of course," Tobirama nodded immediately.
"It's entirely possible that someone was impersonating them."
He paused, then continued methodically.
"Did the Qinghua family have any recent disputes with the Land of Water?"
"To my knowledge, they never interacted with those barbarians."
"Then… did they offend anyone recently?"
"A family that has lasted for centuries naturally has countless enemies," the Elder replied slowly.
"For example, the Arasaka Company—newly established by the Akatsuki Ninja Village—recently had a major commercial dispute with them."
He pretended to think, listing several hostile forces one by one.
At the very end, he deliberately slowed his speech.
"The Akatsuki Ninja Village."
The air froze.
Tobirama took a deep breath, the Elder's words echoing in his mind.
Was he implying that the Akatsuki Ninja Village was responsible?
If it was Uchiha Makoto, then—given his personality—resorting to violence over a commercial dispute was entirely possible.
Using physical force to eliminate competitors was unethical, but incredibly cost-effective.
After all, the Akatsuki Ninja Village had no shortage of ninja willing to die.
But without irrefutable evidence…
This mission was almost impossible.
No wonder the Elder had personally come to Konoha.
Even the Land of Fire couldn't hold Uchiha Makoto accountable without proof.
Acting rashly might provoke consequences too terrible to imagine.
A hot potato had landed squarely in Konoha's hands.
And Konoha itself wasn't much better off.
Without solid evidence, what could they do to the Akatsuki Ninja Village?
Nothing.
Worse still, premature accusations risked retaliation.
And even if evidence was found—what if Uchiha Makoto simply denied everything?
Would Konoha forcibly punish an allied ninja village?
Assassinate their ninja?
The very thought was absurd.
The truth was obvious.
Uchiha Makoto was involved.
But proving it was another matter entirely.
If Hashirama fully supported Tobirama, this would be simple.
Fists could solve everything.
But Hashirama was overly compassionate—even when Takigakure had undeniable evidence against them, he hesitated.
Against a far more dangerous force like the Akatsuki Ninja Village, his mediation instincts would be in full force.
In short, the distorted system of the ninja world—and Senju Hashirama's peace-obsessed extremism—had created an unmanageable anomaly.
The Akatsuki Ninja Village was a bug that could not be selected, attacked, or removed.
Tobirama remained silent for a long time.
Refusing the mission crossed his mind.
But it was impossible.
Konoha had no right to reject a legitimate order from the Land of Fire.
"Tobirama," the Elder said quietly, "I know this matter places you in a difficult position."
"But this incident is too serious to ignore."
"The truth must be uncovered. An explanation must be given—to the victims, to the Lord, and to the Land of Fire."
Tobirama felt as though he were being repeatedly struck by Uchiha Makoto's Great Fireball, his nerves burning.
He could neither advance nor retreat.
Dealing with the Uchiha had never felt so suffocating.
"At the very least," the Elder continued, "the Lord's dignity must be preserved."
"As long as his anger is appeased, Konoha will be considered to have completed the mission."
At last, the Elder revealed the true intent behind his visit.
His voice was heavy with bitterness.
The emotions in his eyes were complex and conflicted.
Damn it.
The root of this entire crisis was Konoha itself.
In the past, an Elder of the Land of Fire would never fear a ninja clan threatening noble families.
One order was enough for countless clans to eliminate the problem—no evidence required.
The Uchiha, Senju, Uzumaki, Hyuga, Kaguya…
Powerful clans were always at the nobles' beck and call.
But times had changed.
Monsters like Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama had rewritten the rules.
Ninja clans became ninja villages.
And villages possessed power on an entirely different scale.
The Akatsuki Ninja Village had already proven this through its war with Kumogakure.
Now, the Land of Fire's high officials had no choice but to fear that power.
Could they truly push Uchiha Makoto too far?
If rebellion occurred, how many would die before Konoha intervened?
Thus, compromise became inevitable.
The Lord knew he couldn't punish the real culprit.
But his dignity had to be preserved.
At any cost.
If one hundred million ryo wasn't enough, then more would be added.
As long as Konoha could produce "evidence," force a written apology, and arrange symbolic punishment…
Everyone could walk away satisfied.
The Akatsuki Ninja Village would remain loyal.
The Lord would retain his authority.
And the nobles would remain untouchable.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)