"Naruto: My Ninja Skills"Chapter 222: Love Like the Tides (Part 1)
"...So, the village leadership has made their final decision, Lord Retto."
After Sunagakure's meeting concluded, Kamakura conveyed the discussion process and results to the aged Kujō Retto.
Retto remained silent for a considerable time before slowly speaking:
"In that case, the village can no longer turn back. I am old and frail, no longer capable of intervening in village decisions. However... I fear the young will pay dearly for their impetuousness."
Regardless of nation or village, all so-called "Firsts" deeply cherished their villages, because to them, a shinobi village wasn't merely a tool for power struggles, but a lifetime's achievement—their legacy. To love the village was to love oneself.
The village was more precious than life itself, hence Hashirama Senju's famous declaration: as long as the village is threatened, even brothers, friends, or my own children will find no mercy.
For Retto, it was the same.
"Lord Retto, what concerns you?"
Kamakura couldn't quite grasp Retto's thoughts. During the previous meeting, after extensive analysis, their conclusion seemed reasonable—they believed Konoha's strength was nothing extraordinary.
"Kamakura, breaking one's oath brings tremendous psychological burden. Many years ago, I made a pact with a friend that Wind and Fire would never invade each other, bound in eternal friendship, with a monument as witness..."
Logically, Retto shouldn't feel such pressure, since ninja treating words like wind was commonplace, and all treaties were signed with the eventual intention of tearing them up. However, not all promises were equal.
Given Retto's proud nature, there were things he once disdained but now was compelled to do.
"You mean Lord Yūshin of the Fireflies? He was indeed a renowned figure of the previous generation, but twenty years have passed since his last appearance. He vanished without trace—surely he's long deceased... According to intelligence we've gathered from Konoha, even his successor Nara Shūji has stepped back from active duty."
Though Kamakura deeply respected Retto, he couldn't truly empathize with him—their ages and life experiences were entirely different.
Retto merely shook his head without explanation.
Though Yūshin and Nara Shūji appeared to be in a succession relationship, was it possible that Nara Shūji was actually older than Yūshin?
Retto had witnessed Yūshin's methods firsthand. At minimum, the incident where Kikyō Castle was attacked by the Hagoromo clan, and Yūshin immediately retaliated by exterminating them, remained unforgettable—Retto himself had been involved... Forming alliances worldwide, persuading the Senju, manipulating the Nine-Tails—it was utterly unreasonable.
If one intended to oppose such a person, proper psychological preparation was essential.
Though various rumors claimed Yūshin's death in recent years, none had ever been confirmed. Retto believed Yūshin still lived—if he himself hadn't died, how could Yūshin possibly be dead?
"Kamakura, inform the Second Kazekage that I'm willing to endorse his battle plan..."
Retto was willing to give his endorsement because he knew opposition was futile. If he showed approval, the Second Kazekage would have stronger legitimacy.
At least in propaganda terms, the former Kazekage's endorsement was worth its weight in gold.
But Retto wasn't betraying his convictions without reason—he had conditions.
"However, I have two conditions, and I hope the Second will agree..."
After hearing Retto's conditions, Kamakura's face showed both surprise and reluctance—at least he personally couldn't accept these terms.
"Lord Retto, such conditions... perhaps you should reconsider?"
Retto was who he was—once he made a decision, there was no room for change. He waved Kamakura away with difficulty, indicating their conversation had ended.
"Go, convey my conditions to the Kazekage and see what response he gives."
...
Within days, the "international situation" was quietly shifting, but Yūshin and Nara Shūji remained oblivious.
What were these two doing?
They were grave-robbing.
Ahem, this was their final care for an old friend... Well, not exactly final care—only after Shimizu Kiyosuke's death did these two begin expressing concern.
"Ahhh!"
"Ahhh..."
A squad of ordinary grave guards' screams echoed continuously through the night.
Nara Shūji simply manifested his Cursed Grudge Fear form, making himself resemble a terrifying scarecrow circling the grave, instantly causing the soldiers' complete breakdown.
They chose the most correct problem-solving method: running for their lives.
These two were truly idle—using their abilities to play ghost and frighten grave guards was completely inappropriate.
Even more inappropriate: each wielding a shovel, they flattened the daimyō's grave in moments, and while continuing to dig, accidentally scratched Shimizu Kiyosuke's newly crafted coffin.
"Lord Yūshin, should we open the coffin for examination?"
Engaging in such inappropriate behavior actually improved Nara Shūji's mood considerably... Indeed, it should—at his age, recapturing childhood feelings of playing in mud and exploding cow dung was certainly cause for joy.
"Was Konoha's autopsy satisfactory?" Yūshin asked.
"No problems, otherwise burial wouldn't have been permitted."
"Then let's not open it. At this point, Lord Shimizu would be too embarrassed to meet visitors."
The daimyō had been a refined man in life—in a state of decay and stench, he certainly wouldn't want to face old friends.
"True."
With that, Nara Shūji produced a compass from his pocket, placing it on the daimyō's coffin lid. After careful measurement, he said with slight regret:
"Sigh, the living truly don't take the dead's affairs seriously... Lord Yūshin, the coffin's orientation is indeed incorrect—off by five degrees."
The deceased's coffin should be placed north-south, with north being honorable, so the head must face north and feet south—perfectly aligned.
Fortunately, these two friends had excavated the grave; otherwise, who would have discovered the daimyō's posthumous mistreatment?
Lord Shimizu's coffin being five degrees off would throw the feng shui off by five li—how could descendants' fortune be guaranteed?
"Sigh, young people don't even understand 'honoring the dead.'"
With that, Yūshin kicked the coffin forcefully, and the misaligned orientation was perfectly corrected.
"No need for thanks, Lord Daimyō. It's only proper."
Something inside the coffin shifted with a dull sound—Yūshin interpreted this as the daimyō's gratitude... Indeed, gratitude was warranted. The daimyō's body, previously decomposing unevenly, had now been properly redistributed.
The two didn't open the coffin or desecrate the corpse. After correcting the coffin's position, they dutifully refilled the grave and restored the mound.
Next, they shared a meal before the daimyō's tombstone—thus formally completing their tribute.
After dawn, the frightened soldiers would inevitably return to investigate. Before then, Yūshin and his companion departed for the nearby Land of Fire capital.
After their daily good deed, they felt spiritually refreshed.
Elderly people easily empathize with the deceased. Perhaps young people didn't care about proper coffin alignment, but Shimizu Kiyosuke certainly would, so Yūshin and Nara Shūji's "grave excavation activity" might possibly perhaps maybe not be mere idle mischief.
This was a virtuous act.
Nara Shūji was more concerned about what changes the Land of Fire's political situation would undergo with a new daimyō, so he decided to remain in the capital several days to observe.
However, his concerns were somewhat excessive. The son Shimizu Kiyosuke had described as "dull" was actually quite competent... His policy was having no policy—whatever his father had done, he would continue doing after assuming power, making no changes unless absolutely necessary.
Surprisingly, this non-disruptive approach quickly won the new daimyō support from all sides.
Shimizu Kiyosuke's decades of rule had created an impenetrable power structure. His son's stability maintained everything... After so much time, their greatest political rival, the Sonoshi clan, had long since vanished.
No one knew exactly why—the Sonoshi clan had simply disappeared like an endangered species, naturally extinct.
Three days later, as Yūshin and Nara Shūji ate at a roadside stall, another Fireflies ninja approached.
Konoha had new major notifications for Nara Shūji, but...
Was this truly major?
The messengers were merely three children around ten years old. Employing child labor was inappropriate, but for them, message delivery was essentially equivalent to running errands—such tasks could be considered elementary extracurricular assignments.
However, given the letter's importance, these three children were clearly Konoha's—at minimum the Fireflies'—carefully cultivated next-generation ninja.
Why such cultivation? Simply writing their names answered this question...
Inoichi Yamanaka, Shikaku Nara, Chōza Akimichi.
Nara Shūji received the letter, read it hastily, then encouraged the trio before dismissing them.
"The children performed excellently—actually managing to locate you."
After their departure, Yūshin also offered praise.
"The guardian ninja here certainly reported my whereabouts to Konoha, but their ability to find me within an entire city was truly impressive... Their squad definitely includes a sensory ninja."
After brief conversation, Nara Shūji's expression grew serious as he said:
"The village just received news—Amegakure has declared war on Takigakure. Both sides are already fighting... Looking back now, Lord Yūshin, your foresight and long-term vision were truly extraordinary."
"Lord Yūshin's designed weather vane is functioning—small nations fighting likely indicates certain great powers are also stirring."
When the Land of Fire was established, Yūshin had overseen border demarcation, including splitting the Land of Rain's eastern former territory north-south between the Land of Waterfalls and Land of Wind.
Now Amegakure was also launching territorial recovery movements, targeting Takigakure. Though seemingly unrelated to Konoha...
Such actions themselves demonstrated Konoha's deterrent power was completely exhausted.
The borders Konoha had demarcated were no longer recognized.
"You flatter me—I didn't think so far ahead at the time."
Yūshin firmly denied this. Nara Shūji's interpretation treated him like a mastermind, stirring up trouble everywhere.
"Setting aside Amegakure and Takigakure, Lord Yūshin, will the conflict spread? You previously said there were still two years before a major war might erupt..."
"It inevitably will. My prediction was based purely on conventional patterns, but now it appears various nations are either panicking or intending to panic... Prepare for war."
The previous war wasn't devastating enough, so this war began early. Unless casualty rates reached certain levels, apparently no nation would be satisfied.
"Lord Yūshin, could we attempt to suppress the war?"
Nara Shūji clearly didn't want to witness war's outbreak, hence this impractical question.
"That's far too demanding. Medicine cannot save the Shinobi World. However..."
Yūshin considered briefly before continuing:
"Your thinking is wrong—it lacks operational feasibility. War is difficult to obstruct, or rather... Instead of obstructing inevitable war, it's better to let nature take its course and accelerate the war's progression."
The "beginning" was inevitable and hard to prevent, but if one could achieve "Has it started? It's already over," war wouldn't cause excessive damage.
"Accelerate the war's process? Lord Yūshin, specifically what should we do?"
"Execute decapitation operations—the simplest and most efficient method. Eliminate the leadership, and enemies will naturally fall into chaos."
This sounded simple enough, but the question was specific implementation. Eliminating leadership meant killing enemy Kage and their surrounding high-ranking officials—no easy task for ordinary ninja.
Given certain enemies' special nature, Yūshin apparently had no choice but to act personally.
Thus he continued: "Watch Iwagakure's movements. If Iwagakure harbors designs against the Land of Fire and Konoha, I'll eliminate Dust Release."
During the previous Shinobi World War, Konoha and Iwagakure had maintained peace, so Dust Release was irrelevant. However, regarding the upcoming war...
The title of "Demigod" apparently needn't continue circulating.
"Excellent idea, Lord Yūshin. For current Konoha, Dust Release is indeed difficult to handle."
Nara Shūji immediately expressed agreement. He vaguely sensed that the so-called bloodline elimination Dust Release might not pose much challenge to current Lord Yūshin.
Yūshin also felt handling Dust Release would suffice. That annihilation-attribute attack was indeed difficult to counter, but after eliminating Dust Release, the war would have little remaining suspense.
"Then let's depart... Shūji, are you returning to Konoha?"
"Lord Yūshin, I'll accompany you."
"Also acceptable."
Nara Shūji was retired and didn't want to meddle in Konoha's grand strategy. Comparatively, conducting lone wolf operations with Lord Yūshin was more enjoyable and uninhibited.
After abandoning subordinates, logistics, and routes, combat became pure.
Amegakure and Takigakure were fighting, and the Shinobi World seemed to have only ignited small sparks, yet Yūshin had already begun moving unhurriedly toward the Land of Earth.
Because the Shinobi World War was inevitable.
However, just as Yūshin and Nara Shūji traveled halfway, another message suddenly arrived, forcing them to change direction...
Sunagakure had declared war on Konoha.
The aged former Kazekage Kujō Retto served as vanguard commander of the advance forces.
Previously, Retto had agreed to Sunagakure's battle strategy in exchange for two conditions, which were quickly accepted.
First, he would personally lead the advance forces attacking the Land of Fire.
Second, Magnet Release user Kamakura must not leave Sunagakure during this war, nor participate in any combat operations.
Yūshin felt his old friend's summons, thus was compelled to temporarily set Iwagakure aside.
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