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Leaving aside the ANBU squad, just this group of Uchiha alone—without Kazuki even needing to lift a finger—was sufficient to wage a fairly large-scale war against external forces. At the very least, steamrolling the smaller hidden villages of various nations would be no problem at all. Even the major villages would have to tread carefully.
In the presence of these Uchiha guards, the existence of the ANBU squad became rather awkward. A standard ANBU squad is led by a single jōnin, whereas the Uchiha guard team was led by an elite jōnin. Aside from the captain, its members were essentially the strongest among the chūnin, along with special jōnin. Add to that Itachi and Shisui, the two left and right guardians whose power severely exceeded standards, and the measly strength of the ANBU squad seemed downright shabby.
Before Kazuki's departure, Tsunade had remarked with a tinge of sourness, "I've never had such extravagant pomp wherever I go. You Uchiha are really something else."
Upon receiving the clan's notification, Shisui immediately set aside matters of the tutoring academy and accompanied Kazuki on the journey to the Hidden Stone Village. This alone illustrates the extent of importance the Uchiha clan placed on Kazuki. Such a display of grandeur wasn't something even Fugaku, the clan leader, could muster, let alone Tsunade, the Hokage. Her own travels were never this over-the-top.
To put it bluntly, if Kazuki were to declare, "I want to be clan leader," the Uchiha's first reaction wouldn't be one of outrage at his audacity. Instead, they would likely try to find a way to make Fugaku step down quickly and efficiently, to vacate the leadership position without delay. Some might even say, "For the sake of the clan, it's better for you to retire early and enjoy your old age."
However, having a grand entourage wasn't entirely bad. Bringing along stronger personnel made it easier to get things done. This trip to the Hidden Stone Village wasn't about Kazuki going to handle affairs; it was about going to bully others. The genuine, no-nonsense kind of bullying.
You Hidden Grass Village like to act up, don't you? Seeking help from the Hidden Stone Village to back you up? So what? Don't you believe I'll beat you right in front of the Hidden Stone villagers?
That was exactly what Kazuki intended to do. For a despicable, two-faced fence-sitter like the Hidden Grass Village, if you didn't show them some color, they wouldn't know how many eyes Lord Horse King has. They needed a thorough beating to remember their place. If the Hidden Grass Village continued its willful ways afterward, it would simply mean the lesson hadn't been sufficiently harsh. In that case, Kazuki wouldn't mind sending a few people to help them change their leader and replace a batch of their higher-ups.
In the past, anyone could push Konoha around. But the Konoha of today not bullying others was already a blessing. Want to treat Konoha as a joke? Found out what gonna happened!
Konoha had been acting like a pushover for far too long, a state it had been in since the end of the Second Great Shinobi War. If it didn't bare its fangs now, it risked truly becoming one.
"Lord Advisor."
Upon receiving Kazuki's notification, the captains of the three ANBU squads arrived before him immediately.
"You don't need to accompany me to the Hidden Stone Village. I need you to carry out a mission. Before I return from the Hidden Stone Village, infiltrate the Hidden Grass Village and gather all sorts of new intelligence. I have great use for it."
With the clan's guard team accompanying him, Kazuki had no need for the protection of the ANBU squads. To put it impolitely, if a fight broke out, it was uncertain who would be protecting whom. Rather than having them follow him around, it was better to utilize them by having them collect intelligence on the Hidden Grass Village.
This time, if the Hidden Grass Village behaved itself, all would be well. But if they were too unruly, Kazuki decided that upon his return, he would help them change their leader and higher-ups. However, precautions had to be taken against the Hidden Grass Village resorting to desperate measures. It wouldn't be good if they somehow opened that so-called Box of Ultimate Bliss from the movies—that thing was a time bomb.
That said, the internal conflicts within the Hidden Grass Village were already substantial. As long as the village itself wasn't forcibly eradicated, eliminating a portion of its people to make them behave likely wouldn't cause major waves. As for what reactions it might provoke, to be honest, Kazuki didn't care.
"Yes, sir!"
Although they weren't too keen on accepting such a mission, orders were orders. The ANBU squad captains could only obediently agree. Besides, they truly had no way to follow him into the Hidden Stone Village. At best, they could only reach its outskirts. The Hidden Stone Village would never allow ANBU ninja from another village to enter their own—that was a bottom line. You could bring guards; even a somewhat extravagant display It doesn't matter—they would welcome it warmly. But ANBU personnel? They could only go as far as the village outskirts. This wasn't unique to the Hidden Stone Village; all villages had similar policies.
"Sigh~~~"
Watching Kazuki lead his people into the distance, the ANBU squads, who hadn't yet begun their operation, gathered together. They looked at each other, feeling both deeply frustrated and helpless.
Their helplessness stemmed from the fact that Kazuki didn't need their protection and had instead assigned them another task. Their frustration came from the realization that as protectors of important figures, they couldn't even compare to the guard strength of another clan. This was a bitter pill for anyone to swallow.
On the surface, only elite forces could join the ANBU. But in reality, the true elite forces were all in the hands of the various clans. This was one of the reasons why Tobirama Senju was so desperate to weaken the power of the shinobi clans. If left unchecked, as the period of peace prolonged, the power of each clan would only continue to expand. When that time came, who would truly be in charge of Konoha was anyone's guess!
It was precisely because of these potential threats that the Senju clan was forced to become spread out. The Third Hokage, who inherited everything from Tobirama, did strive to support civilian ninja and weaken the clans. However, compared to Tobirama's selflessness, the Third Hokame's personal motives were too strong. Under the banner of supporting civilian ninja, he allowed his own clan to leech off the village. Except for his own and a few companions' clans, he was exceptionally harsh towards other shinobi clans.
"Is the Elder planning to make a move against the Hidden Grass Village?"
The ANBU personnel had left, so why still use formal address? They were all clan members; addressing him directly as 'Elder' was more straightforward.
"It depends on the situation. If the Hidden Grass Village is sensible, then it will just be about gathering some latest intelligence." Kazuki replied with a playful smile, the fierceness in his eyes barely concealed. "If they keep acting up, then helping them replace a batch of higher-ups is also something we should do. After all, this village is overly corrupt and riddled with internal conflicts."
'The Hidden Grass Village was in for big trouble.' Hearing Kazuki's words, the Uchiha clansmen knew the Hidden Grass Village was facing serious problems. This incident had left Kazuki very displeased. He had thought they would swallow their pride and accept their losses silently, but instead, they complained to the Hidden Stone Village and asked them to uphold justice? Well, he was keen to see just how the Hidden Stone Village planned to uphold justice for them. Whether Ōnoki dared to step forward and mediate fairly!!
To be honest, regarding this matter, if it weren't for the constant communication from the Daimyō of the Land of Earth and the difficulty in refusing the Daimyō's palace, Konoha wouldn't have bothered with it at all. They certainly wouldn't have made a personal trip to the Hidden Stone Village. In recent years, the Daimyō had allocated too much funding to Konoha. If not for the monk's face, then for the Buddha's face—no, for the money's face. For the sake of money, they had to give the Daimyō some face.
Kazuki and Tsunade were not like the Third Hokage, who would eat his fill, wipe his plate clean, and still dig up your roots.