The night before the expedition.
The Imperial Palace of the Land of Fire was not steeped in an atmosphere of impending doom.
Instead, there was a quiet, oppressive stillness, like the calm before a storm.
After Di Yan finished handling the last of his military and political affairs, he strolled to Uchiha Mikoto's sleeping quarters.
Pushing open the palace doors, the sight before him made him raise an eyebrow slightly.
Mikoto, who always presented herself with a gentle and graceful image, had, at this moment, shed her luxurious kimono.
She had changed into a form-fitting, dark purple Ninja battle suit!
Although she wasn't fully armed, the crisp cut and forehead protector clearly indicated her readiness.
She was prepared to go to the battlefield at any moment.
She even seemed to intend to sleep in her clothes, ready to depart with the army at dawn.
Seeing Di Yan enter, a flicker of almost imperceptible tension crossed Uchiha Mikoto's eyes, but it was overshadowed by a greater sense of resolve.
Di Yan walked forward, naturally extending his hand and drawing her into his embrace.
The fabric of the battle suit was slightly cool, yet he could feel the warmth and slight tension of her body beneath it.
"There's no need to be so nervous…" Di Yan's voice carried a hint of reassurance, his fingers gently stroking her tied-up long hair. "I am here for everything. You only need to stay safely by my side."
Mikoto, however, gently shook her head, looking up at him.
Her beautiful eyes, usually filled with sorrow, were now exceptionally firm: "Your Majesty has been good enough to Mikoto…"
"You gave me a place to belong, and you gave me hope for revenge."
"I cannot forever remain just a protected canary."
"This time to Konoha, I… I want to help, even if it's just a little."
She knew her strength might be insignificant in Di Yan's grand ambitions, but she no longer wanted to be a mere bystander and a protected person.
That land held her past and her clan.
She wanted to witness the downfall of her enemies under Di Yan's command and contribute her own strength to it.
Di Yan looked at the persistence in her eyes.
He said nothing more, only tightened his arms.
As they embraced, their conversation unconsciously drifted back to many years ago, to those days in Konoha.
At that time, Di Yan was just a fourteen-year-old son of a fallen Daimyo, residing in the Uchiha clan leader's home under the guise of "studying."
"Thinking about it now, it was truly the beginning of… a fated entanglement," Mikoto murmured, resting her cheek against Di Yan's chest, her voice a little wistful.
Suddenly, she thought of something and began to laugh softly, almost foolishly, her shoulders shaking slightly.
"What are you laughing about?" Di Yan asked curiously.
Mikoto raised her head, a hint of mischievous and nostalgic amusement in her eyes: "I remembered certain people, who, though still a half-grown boy back then, were precocious and terribly possessive."
"He actually… actually told me, quite seriously, not to let Fugaku touch me again…"
"Thinking about it now, those were truly the words of a little brat."
As the absurd and forbidden past was brought up, a trace of unnaturalness also flashed across Di Yan's face.
It quickly turned into helplessness. He said, "That's normal, isn't it? What man doesn't want to completely possess what belongs to him?"
"Especially… someone as charming as Mikoto-jie."
His words carried the directness and aggression of an adult.
He deliberately pressed her, tightening his arms around her waist: "Just tell me, did you let him touch you later, or not?"
Mikoto's face instantly flushed crimson. She lowered her head shyly, her voice barely a whisper, yet with a strange hint of pride: "Of… of course not…"
"Actually… actually, Fugaku… he hadn't been quite 'able' for a long time…"
She had always thought it was due to her husband's years of busy clan affairs and stress.
Di Yan's expression became somewhat strange upon hearing this.
He certainly wouldn't tell Mikoto that Fugaku's "inability" was largely due to the secret tricks he had played back then.
Those special medicines, quietly mixed into his diet, that could affect certain functions… To completely monopolize this beautiful clan leader's wife, his teenage self had dared to use any means necessary.
'A true hero doesn't boast about past glories,' Di Yan muttered to himself, skipping over the topic.
He scooped Mikoto into his arms and carried her towards the bed in the inner chamber.
"Next time," he whispered into her ear as he laid her on the soft brocade quilt, his voice filled with undeniable ambition, "I can… have you in the Hokage's office."
This statement, full of symbolic meaning and conqueror's desire, made Mikoto's body tremble slightly, and ripples appeared in her eyes.
She extended her arms, gently encircling Di Yan's neck, her gaze hazy and affectionate.
As if making a great decision, she softly said in a tone almost like a sacrifice: "Your Majesty… Mikoto doesn't know how to repay you in this life…"
"Please… please let Mikoto bear a child for you…"
Di Yan's movements paused slightly.
Have a child?
His first reaction was resistance.
He hadn't even unified the world yet; wouldn't producing an heir just be asking for trouble? It would be a distraction, not to mention a weakness in the future.
In his grand ambitions, the option of "offspring" was not yet present.
But as the saying goes, one of the most direct ways to gauge if a woman has completely given her heart is to see if she is willing to bear your child.
Mikoto's request at this moment undoubtedly bound her everything, including her future, completely to Di Yan's chariot.
Di Yan naturally wouldn't dampen her enthusiasm at this moment, extinguishing this rare and deeply belonging passion.
He lowered his head and kissed her forehead, soothing her with a vague yet suggestive response: "Good… when I return from Konoha… when the overall situation is stable…"
"I will give you… our child."
Give Uchiha Itachi and Sasuke a half-sibling?
The thought was quite stimulating… His words were gentle, but the promise was distant.
For now, a fate-deciding war awaited him to win.
The long night, the warmth before the expedition, brief yet real… Ready to be put on the shelves!
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Main Text
51 It's All Danzo's Fault; Arrival at Konoha
The next morning, outside the capital of the Land of Fire, a strangely atmospheric procession set off grandly, heading directly for the Hidden Leaf Village.
At the heart of the procession was an extremely luxurious, enormous dragon carriage, pulled by eight magnificent horses.
Di Yan, in his dark-colored dragon-patterned military uniform, was not riding inside the carriage.