Chapter 171: Senju Tobirama — "Uchiha Makoto and I Are Very Good Friends!"
Uchiha Makoto set Tobirama's letter aside.He had another matter to prepare before leaving Akatsuki Village — the Tailed Beasts.
The nine Tailed Beasts were scattered all across the ninja world.
Konoha and Akatsuki had already agreed to secretly work together to gather intelligence on their whereabouts. The team leaders were none other than Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama.
From the current intelligence, only the One-Tail's location was clearly known — but unfortunately, it had been sealed by Sunagakure in one of their temples.To avoid an international dispute, Hashirama and Madara decided to start with the Two-Tails instead.
The poor Two-Tails cat was in for a rough time.Since neither Madara nor Hashirama had ever truly witnessed a Tailed Beast's power — only read about them in their clan records — they were bound to go all out in their first encounter to ensure success and avoid surprises.
According to those ancient texts, each Tailed Beast had existed for over a thousand years, dating back to the same era as the Sage of Six Paths, and possessed immense chakra.That connection naturally raised suspicions: if even the Sage of Six Paths — a godlike being and the founder of ninjutsu — had long perished, yet these beasts still lived on… their power must be terrifyingly immense.
Before they saw the true strength of a Tailed Beast, Madara and Hashirama would surely fight with full force — meaning the Two-Tails might just be on the receiving end of a Susanoo-Buddha combo attack.
The other beasts might have better luck, probably being captured more gently — perhaps even treated as "pets."Even the strongest, the Nine-Tails, would still be subdued easily under Madara's gaze alone.
Thus, Uchiha Makoto wasn't worried about capturing them.His concern was how to properly contain and use them.
The simplest solution was to seal each beast away using fūinjutsu, and then transfer them into jinchūriki hosts.Given Akatsuki's current alliance with the Uzumaki Clan, this wouldn't be difficult to arrange.
However, Makoto wanted to study the Tailed Beasts — to repeatedly draw upon their chakra — and that was much trickier.They might not willingly cooperate.
And indeed, the Tailed Beasts would never bow down!
So first, they'd need to go into the "dark room" — the sealing chamber.
"Let's start by preparing the sealing techniques," Makoto muttered."We'll think about the rest later."
After pondering for a while, he wrote a secret letter to the Uzumaki Clan.Once he finished handling village affairs, he donned his Radiant Shadow robe and left for his appointment — a meeting in a tea house in the Land of Fire.
The tea house was elegantly furnished.
As soon as he entered, the owner greeted him warmly.When Makoto mentioned his reserved room, the owner gestured to a server — a "tea attendant" — to lead the way.
The attendant was silent and kept his head low, but Makoto's sharp eyes quickly noticed something: his hands were covered in callouses — the kind you only get from handling kunai and shuriken for years.
This man was a ninja.
Makoto was sure of it.He glanced around.
The tea house's patrons were mostly Fire Country nobles and merchants — no ordinary civilians could afford tea here.
"So this is one of Konoha's secret outposts, huh?""Interesting.""Seems Tobirama's been busy spreading his influence across the Land of Fire."
Makoto smirked as he followed the attendant to a private room.
"Here we are, sir," the man said."Good," Makoto replied and entered.
The moment he stepped inside, he felt killing intent.Three kunai whizzed toward him — whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!Makoto dodged them effortlessly.
When he looked up, he saw Senju Tobirama, dark circles under his eyes, face twisted in irritation.He looked like he hadn't slept in days — radiating resentment and hostility like a storm.
"Tobirama, you look awful," Makoto said lightly."Didn't sleep well?But that kind of 'welcome' just now wasn't funny — and it's dangerous. Not exactly polite hospitality."
Makoto smiled as he spoke, though he was already analyzing the situation — clearly, Tobirama was under a lot of pressure lately.
Tobirama glared at him for a moment, then sighed and pulled back his killing intent.He wasn't here to fight.He had called Makoto to discuss the growing conflict between Iwagakure and Kirigakure — he couldn't let Makoto stir up any more chaos while Konoha's internal situation was already unstable.
The Uchiha Clan had been acting up in Konoha lately — following Makoto's advice, they'd begun forming investment alliances with other ninja clans.
And they were using Makoto's name to do it.
Everyone knew Akatsuki Village was rich — absurdly rich.Word spread quickly across the Fire Country: Akatsuki's rapid development had become impossible to ignore.
But Konoha, still newly established, was slow to adapt.Its clans still thought like they were in the Warring States Era, focusing only on the ninja world — blind to politics and economics.And with most of the village's funds locked into long-term plans, change was hard.
Turning a giant ship takes time.
Because of all that, Konoha couldn't keep up with Akatsuki's momentum.But this time, the Uchiha elders had decided to act.
Not because they suddenly became enlightened — but because they wanted to bypass Tobirama's authority by using the Police Force as a base to form a new economic bloc.
A "happy accident," in a sense.
If the Uchiha were willing to open Konoha's doors to Akatsuki's capital, Makoto was more than happy to oblige.This would make Konoha wealthier, push its clans to grow, and drive progress through competition and ambition.
But that would also mean Tobirama's control over Konoha would weaken.And knowing Tobirama, he would never stand idly by while the Uchiha became so influential.
So now, with Makoto stirring up chaos in the outside world, Tobirama was completely thrown off balance.Could this have been planned between Makoto and the Uchiha elders from the start?
Tobirama clenched his teeth.
"Uchiha Makoto!""Hmm? Yes?""Are you the one behind the Iwa–Kiri conflict?!""You realize you might start a war, right?! Do you really want to drag the entire ninja world into chaos?!"
He yelled angrily, though of course he didn't mention his real worries.He hid them behind his favorite line — "For the sake of world peace!"
Makoto smiled.
"As expected of you, Tobirama. You guessed right!"
"I knew it! You damn evil Uchiha brat!"
Makoto admitted it so casually that Tobirama froze for a moment — not expecting such blunt honesty.He quickly began trying to decipher Makoto's motives.
Revenge on Iwagakure?That seemed plausible — they had interfered in Akatsuki's war with Kumogakure, ruining Makoto's big push at the third defense line.But Makoto was not one for simple revenge.He always had hidden agendas — and he always profited greatly.
This time would be no different.If he was being this honest, he probably needed Konoha's cooperation for something.
"So what's your real goal? It can't just be revenge.""Revenge? Tobirama, do I look that petty to you?""Yes.""…Fine. Maybe just a tiny bit."
"But it's mostly business. Remember what I told you before — about our canned food factory and the fishing rights near the neighboring countries?""Well, now's the perfect opportunity.""If we take care of Kirigakure, the small nations' fishing grounds will all be open to us!"
Makoto explained, and even Tobirama had to admit it was a tempting idea.Solving that "fishing rights" issue would boost the factory's productivity — and since Konoha got a share of the profits, it would mean more income for the village.
That factory was one of Tobirama's major political achievements — even if Akatsuki held most of the shares, the fact that Konoha profited was something he could brag about.A great talking point for propaganda — and an excuse to undermine Uchiha influence.
The only problem: Tobirama didn't really understand commerce.He could brag about the factory, but running businesses wasn't his skillset.
So he thought of partnering with the Arasaka merchants, who had long sought ties with him.They didn't care if it was Uchiha or Senju — money was money.
Makoto didn't mind either, though Tobirama found their background questionable.
Makoto continued:
"Of course, that's not all. I also want to build a positive image — to show the world that we stand for justice and peace.""This Iwa–Kiri conflict is both a crisis and an opportunity. We can act as mediators, showing the world that the great villages have the power to maintain order. If we manage that… our reputation soars.""And afterward, we'll make a movie about it."
At that, Tobirama's expression visibly softened — even his dark circles seemed to fade.Strengthening Konoha's external image would also help domestically.
And a movie?That hit his weak spot perfectly — Tobirama had long wanted to make one to "rehabilitate his image."He'd just been too busy.
Now Makoto was handing him the chance on a silver platter.
"Why didn't you say so earlier! Konoha will absolutely take part in this.""For the sake of world peace, Konoha must not stand idly by!""And that movie — Konoha has to be in it!"
Tobirama's righteous tone was shameless — he had just been shouting at Makoto minutes ago.But Makoto didn't argue; after all, Akatsuki would profit the most anyway.
He just didn't mention the Bird Droppings Island intelligence — the real treasure lay there.Once this all played out, he'd make sure to give Tobirama a good "surprise" later.
And of course, since Tobirama wasn't the Hokage, the main spotlight in the movie would go to the Light Shadow (Makoto) and the Hokage (Hashirama).
With the "misunderstanding" cleared, the atmosphere eased.The two men sat down for tea and a game of shogi.
Both smiled and spoke of "justice" and "peace,"but in truth — their minds were full of profit and politics.
Still, they shared an unspoken rule: Fairness.Always fairness — as long as it benefited both sides.
If Kirigakure was willing to pay up, all good.If not, they'd side with Iwagakure until Kiri yielded —and once it did, they'd turn around and pressure Iwa instead.Balance restored. Fairness achieved.
"Tobirama, I like talking with you," Makoto said, smiling."Do you know why?""Why?""Because our hearts are pure.""Pure as in…?""No selfish motives — only peace for the ninja world!""A great cause!"
Clink!
Their teacups touched.
(End of Chapter)