Shaking his head, Rinjin cast aside the chaotic thoughts swirling in his mind and refocused on the issue of the Uchiha Clan.
The division of the Uchiha—this was something Kagami Uchiha had executed quite well.
As for the next steps, it was clear that Danzo Shimura had thoroughly grasped the essence of Rinjin's teachings.
This proved that all the times Rinjin had schemed against Danzo were far from wasted.
Danzo was not only obsessed with power but also deeply craved authority.
This made things simple. Rinjin had personally taught him, step by step, how to scheme and manipulate.
And, of course, Danzo had fallen into those traps. Only those who have felt the pain of falling into a pit truly understand the importance of digging a proper one.
Having learned his lesson, Danzo mastered the art of elevating allies while suppressing enemies, coupled with using others to do his dirty work. This allowed him not only to deflect the heat aimed at himself and push Hiruzen Sarutobi to the forefront but also to bring the internal conflicts of the Uchiha Clan into the public eye.
With the Uchiha now facing both internal and external strife, and with Fugaku, that little brat, smearing the clan leader's reputation...
What would a disgraced, distrusted, and enraged Uchiha clan leader do?
Too easy to predict—he would redirect the firestorm of public criticism!
And where could he redirect it? To the villagers of Konoha? Obviously not.
He would undoubtedly guide the anger of the clan members toward the village leadership instead.
Among the village leadership, Danzo had already made it clear that he wouldn't take the fall. This left only Hiruzen Sarutobi to bear the brunt of the blame.
The result was straightforward.
Some members of the Uchiha Clan would likely become disillusioned with both the village and the clan, as the clan leader and village leader represented the will of the clan and the village, respectively.
And this disillusionment—this emotion—was precisely what Rinjin desired.
He didn't need gratitude or anger; he needed disappointment.
Because disappointment, when it deepens, evolves into despair.
And only when they are truly disheartened will these adorable little "seedlings" willingly fall into Rinjin's embrace.
Who cares about the Uchiha name? Is the feeling of freedom not good enough? Or is making babies in Amegakure not enjoyable?
By then, no one would care about surnames like Uchiha, Senju, or Uzumaki. Everyone would be part of one big family.
Work hard to create new generations; if your bloodline is good, come to Amegakure to mix it up a little.
And then, to hell with bloodline supremacy!
"Kings and nobles—are they born to rule?"
By that point, any snot-nosed kid randomly pulled from the village would possess the Sage Body.
Everyone would be so overwhelmingly strong that there'd be no need for heroes or saviors!
Wouldn't it be better for everyone to be like dragons?
And Rinjin? He could finally live as a carefree slacker, occasionally opening the Eight Gates to help the widow in the village carry water.
As this thought crossed his mind, Rinjin's lips curled into an ambiguous, wicked smile.
Just as he entered the tea room, Rii saw this expression and immediately broke out in a cold sweat. Instinctively, she blurted out:
"Brother, why do you look like a villain mastermind from a story, smiling so sinisterly?"
Hearing this, Rinjin's face darkened, and he rolled his eyes dramatically.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, at the border between the Land of Rain and the Land of Wind, Salamander Kandachi stood awkwardly a short distance from a group of Sunagakure ninjas.
"Do not take another step forward!" one of the Sunagakure ninjas warned sternly.
At these words, Kandachi shivered and froze in place.
Behind him, his two bodyguard ninjas were just as nervous.
To be fair, their fear wasn't entirely unwarranted; the recent years had been nothing short of disastrous for Amegakure.
First, nearly four years ago, the daimyo of the Land of Rain had abandoned them.
Not only did he cut off funding, but he also branded Hanzo as an illegal bandit.
Then, Iwagakure led the charge, with various smaller villages rallying under the banner of "justice" to invade the Land of Rain and Amegakure.
The Land of Wind's Sunagakure was even more despicable. Exploiting their status as a major nation, they abducted the Rain Country's civilians during the chaos of war.
The war lasted over a year. When Iwagakure and the smaller nations failed to gain any advantage, they retreated in frustration, leaving behind a barren wasteland ravaged by conflict.
Initially, Amegakure thought they could finally rebuild and recover. But then came the harsh reality:
Amegakure was broke!
Not only that, but they had lost their civilian population, the very people they used to exploit and tax.
It wasn't until the ninjas of Amegakure began to starve that they realized their once-proud ninjutsu and chakra were utterly useless.
Could chakra fill empty stomachs?
Not only could it not, but using chakra drained what little physical energy they had left.
In the past, when faced with such dire situations, they could resort to pillaging.
But now?
Where could they pillage?
With no civilians left, what was there to take?
Would they invade neighboring countries to abduct people, only to hand them a hoe and let them fend for themselves?
Ridiculous!
After all the fighting and dying, they couldn't even feed themselves.
Left with no other options, Hanzo devised a plan: send Kandachi to the Land of Wind to negotiate the return of the Rain Country's civilians.
Unfortunately, Amegakure's status held no weight here.
The Rain Country's daimyo had long declared that Amegakure's ninjas were nothing more than a group of bandits occupying the mountains.
What once seemed like an irrelevant official status had now become an impenetrable barrier.
Without recognition from the Rain Country's daimyo, they couldn't even cross the border into the Land of Wind and were treated as potential threats to public security.
Staring at the fierce-looking Sunagakure ninjas, Kandachi's former bravado was nowhere to be seen. Trembling, he said:
"Sirs, we are envoys from Amegakure, seeking an audience with the Kazekage."
At this, the Sunagakure ninjas burst into laughter.
"Amegakure? Where's that? Never heard of it!"
"Hahaha~ Envoys? A bandit hideout has envoys now? That's hilarious!"
"Exactly! A few lowly rogue ninjas want to meet our Kazekage? You must be dreaming!"
The ridicule and mockery were relentless.
Kandachi and his two bodyguards clenched their fists tightly, their teeth grinding audibly.
As staunch admirers of Hanzo, they couldn't bear to see anyone insult the village their leader had painstakingly built.
But there was nothing they could do—they were powerless.
Under the circumstances, they had no choice but to swallow their pride.
Suppressing his anger, Kandachi spoke again:
"Our Lord Hanzo has no ill intentions. He merely wishes to thank the Land of Wind for its assistance during the previous war!
Now that the war in our country has ended, we hope the Kazekage will allow the Rain Country's citizens to return to their homeland."
At these words, the Sunagakure ninjas gradually stopped laughing.
Thud!
A soft sound echoed as the lead Sunagakure ninja lowered the puppet strapped to his back, his expression as cold as eternal ice.
"You have ten seconds to leave my sight, or I will kill you immediately!"
Hearing this, Kandachi bit his lip hard, the overwhelming sense of humiliation filling his heart.
Bastards!
Don't let us rise again, or I'll poison your rivers every day!
Seething inwardly, Kandachi turned sharply and led his two equally furious bodyguards away from the border between the two nations.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
"9 amazing fanfics available on my Patreon.
Support for 350 + advance chapters:
patreon.com/DarkGolds"