Koharu Utatane gritted her teeth and said, “Yusuke, as a member of Konoha, you actually refuse to consider the village’s future and intend to let the Nine-Tails go. What exactly are you plotting?”
Oh?
Trying to put a label on me?
Hearing the old woman’s words, Yusuke found it amusing.
Did she think he was as fragile-minded as Hatake Sakumo?
In his previous life, Yusuke had worked an ordinary job.
What kind of keyboard warriors and monsters had he not encountered?
These people weren’t even qualified to enter the Zuan district.
“Haha, it’s a misunderstanding. I’m just trying to give this opportunity to all of you esteemed members of the Council of Elders, aren’t I? After all, ever since you took your positions as elders, you haven’t accomplished much, have you? Isn’t this a perfect opportunity for you now~?”
Yusuke spoke in an exaggeratedly sarcastic tone.
Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado, and the others were practically furious.
Wasn’t this obviously a veiled insult saying that they had accomplished nothing and were merely occupying their positions without doing any work?
Yusuke admitted that he wasn’t good at playing dirty political games.
But if they wanted to insult each other face-to-face, he’d grown up in Zuan.
Was he supposed to be afraid of them?
“Hmph!”
At this moment, the Nine-Tails, whose enormous body towered over them like a mountain, let out a cold snort and turned toward Konoha’s gates.
Clearly, the Nine-Tails agreed with Yusuke’s suggestion and had chosen to leave.
Although its strength was enough that it didn’t take people like Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzo seriously at all, it had also noticed Tsunade nearby, who was using the Slug Technique to heal the wounded throughout the village.
She had inherited the bloodline of Senju Hashirama.
On top of that, there was this swordsman in front of it.
If these people joined forces against it, things would indeed become troublesome.
It had been imprisoned inside Uzumaki Mito’s body for nearly thirty years.
Now that it had finally escaped, if it were imprisoned again, wouldn’t that be humiliating beyond belief?
Thinking this, the Nine-Tails ultimately chose to compromise and turned around to leave.
In any case, it had already gotten its revenge.
Seeing the Nine-Tails preparing to leave, Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others’ expressions changed.
The Second Shinobi World War had yet to completely end.
The village had been destroyed to this extent, and so many people had died.
“Haah~ If Lord Third wants to chase after it, feel free. I fought the Nine-Tails too hard just now, so I’m exhausted. I’ll go get some late-night food first.”
Yusuke yawned and walked toward his home.
He had no idea whether his house had been blasted into pieces by a Tailed Beast Bomb.
“On the other hand, if you’re planning to chase the Nine-Tails, go ahead.”
“Ri… Ri?”
Seeing Yusuke’s increasingly distant back, Danzo shouted furiously, “Hiruzen! Are you really going to do nothing?!”
He knew better than anyone how serious losing the Nine-Tails would be.
No matter how foolish he was, he could never fail to understand that.
What angered Danzo even more was that Yusuke, who had been nothing more than an unknown nobody just one day ago, actually dared to openly defy him!
“…What we need to do now is reorganize the village and recuperate in preparation for other nations. We can leave capturing the Nine-Tails for the future.”
After silently thinking for a moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen made his decision.
Konoha had now lost two-thirds of its territory and more than fifteen hundred shinobi.
It was almost certain that it could no longer firmly hold the title of the “Greatest Shinobi Village in the Shinobi World.”
Yusuke, who had inherited White Fang’s power, had openly refused to capture the Nine-Tails.
Sarutobi Hiruzen did not dare casually send people on a mission to capture it.
First, Konoha had lost far too many shinobi this time.
If they wanted to capture the Nine-Tails, they would need at least two Kage-level shinobi and another five hundred shinobi.
Konoha could no longer afford such a force.
Even if Uzumaki Kushina became the new jinchuriki, she could not be immediately deployed.
The cost would outweigh the benefits.
Second, even if they sent people after it, they might not be able to capture it.
That was the Nine-Tails.
With Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara already dead, even Senju Tobirama probably wouldn’t dare claim that he could definitely defeat the Nine-Tails.
What if they failed to capture it, and another nation launched an invasion of the Land of Fire at precisely that moment?
They would only lose everything and gain nothing.
Therefore, Sarutobi Hiruzen chose to temporarily abandon the operation to capture the Nine-Tails.
Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado had been Sarutobi Hiruzen’s partners for nearly half a century, so they immediately understood what he meant and nodded in agreement.
Shimura Danzo remained silent, but he too understood the severe situation Konoha was facing. Read this novel at g.com for the best experience.
However, he silently committed Yusuke’s name to memory.
He would find an opportunity to settle this score someday.
“Everyone, begin rebuilding Konoha.”
Sarutobi Hiruzen turned around and shouted to the remaining Konoha shinobi.
“Yeahhh!!!”
The remaining thousands of Konoha shinobi raised their arms and cheered, their voices echoing through the heavens.
They had survived.
There was nothing more worth celebrating than that.
…
…
After learning that the Nine-Tails had already left the village, the civilians who had originally been evacuated outside Konoha by the other shinobi gradually returned.
However, most of their homes had been completely destroyed by the Nine-Tails.
Until the village could be rebuilt, places such as the Ninja Academy, training grounds, and security headquarters had to be cleared out and converted into temporary shelters for the villagers who had lost their homes.
“So lucky, Dad. Our house is still standing.”
Looking at the relatively intact house before her, little Yuhi Kurenai turned to Yūhi Shinku.
“Mm.”
Yūhi Shinku nodded, then let out a long sigh and looked around at the devastated village.
“I wonder if Konoha can make it through this disaster…”
“Oh, right, Dad. I heard that the big brother from two days ago was the one who drove the Nine-Tails away. Is that true?”
Yuhi Kurenai suddenly remembered the rumors she had heard on the way back to Konoha.
“Uh? Y-yes…”
Yūhi Shinku recalled the scene of Yusuke fighting the Nine-Tails and couldn’t help getting goosebumps.
That kid was actually that strong!
He was practically like his old friend Hatake Sakumo brought back to life!
But what shocked Yūhi Shinku even more was that Yusuke had actually dared to openly stand against Shimura Danzo, whose position was second only to the Hokage.
“Yo~ Little Kurenai, and Uncle Shinku. Hello~”
Just then, a voice that Yūhi Shinku really did not want to hear rang out.