Chương 132: There is still hope

In Konoha, the Land of Fire, the streets are bustling with people as always. Passing through the bustling streets, one gradually arrives at a secluded residential area, the ninja clan's territory, where majestic and ancient mansions and high walls rise and fall.

On the road, the occasional white-eyed man in a white kimono walks by, his face full of the same rigidity and solemnity.

This is Hinata; no one can hide from Hinata's watchful eye.

At this moment, in a dilapidated and secluded courtyard in the clan's territory, a ninja wearing a mask and a black hood, equipped with ANBU gear, hid in an alley and peered into a wooden hut deep inside.

Inside the hut, a disheveled humanoid figure lay on dry weeds, its face hidden beneath a scarlet fox mask, its empty eye sockets staring up at the ceiling.

After leaving the hospital, Hyuga Akitsu originally had her own little place, but due to the division of the family, her place was taken over, and she was left here. If it weren't for the fact that the other party also needed to take away her monthly disability pension from the main family and the village, she would have been dead by now.

It was a small, dimly lit hut, seemingly used for storing odds and ends. Mosquitoes swarmed around it, occasionally landing greedily on the motionless woman lying on the withered grass, awaiting her seemingly inevitable death.

It seemed like a long time later, and Akitsu, unaware of the passage of time, heard a series of annoying footsteps.

The man pushed open the door and entered, cursing and shouting.

As light streamed into the hut, revealing the foul-smelling, filthy woman lying on the hay, a flicker of disgust crossed the man's eyes.

"Come on! Let's eat!"

Akitsu cannot move, or rather, she is not yet able to move.

"You piece of trash!"

Cursing, the man stepped forward, frowned, held his breath, and raised his hand to pour the mixture of unknown substances onto Akitsu's mask.

As time passed, the strands of hair imbued with demonic power dissipated, allowing the mask to fall off. As food was poured over it, the mask slid off, revealing an ugly and hideous face. The crisscrossing scars on the face resembled maggots, slowly wriggling with the facial expressions.

"What an ugly monster."

Akitsu silently opened her mouth, letting the rotten food flow into it. This was better than nothing. She had been used to this kind of mistreatment in her tribe since the Warring States period.

Not only did the main family oppress the branch families, but the infighting between the branch families was also extremely serious.

Ultimately, it comes down to who has the bigger fist.

After a long while, the man threw down the gourd while cursing and said, "You scapegoat, what exactly did you do? Why did the village send secret agents to monitor you?"

As always, the man muttered to himself.

A mocking smile appeared on Akitsu's lips.

"What did I do? Didn't the main family tell you? Didn't the village announce it?"

That's just like Tobirama-sama's style. As always, he adheres to the ninja secrecy rules, and the specific details of the mission will not be disclosed to the public.

The man muttered and cursed as he talked about something.

Outside, he was a pushover whom everyone could bully, but inside this house, in front of this good-for-nothing, he was the strong one.

"Seriously, I see how stupid this village is now."

You don't understand anything; you just blindly follow everyone's opinions and express them in a herd-like manner.

However, as a result, Akitsu keenly sensed that not only within the clan but also in the village, the political climate had shifted somewhat, with everyone harboring dissatisfaction towards Senju Hashirama.

"A perfectly good tailed beast, just given away like that? What, are you waiting for other villages to bring their Jinchūriki to attack us later? Are you out of your mind?!"

"I didn't dare mention that name," the man said.

"In my opinion, we should just use overwhelming force to wipe out the other four ninja villages. That way, there won't be so much trouble later. Otherwise, when war breaks out, we'll have to go to the front lines and risk our lives! What a joke! Is your brain filled with shit?!"

No one could persuade the God of Ninjas to change his mind, not even his brother.

No one even dared to express their dissatisfaction in front of the God of Ninjas.

Akitsu just wanted to laugh.

Seemingly feeling frustrated, the man stepped forward and kicked Akitsu twice hard, saying, "Are you full? If you're full, I have to go to the village entrance to see the Hokage off."

This is the third time Hashirama Senju has openly left the village, escorting tailed beasts. Where is he going this time?

Akitsu was thinking about this.

The man left cursing, and the broken wooden door closed again.

At the village entrance, many villagers were seeing off the Hokage. Everyone was full of enthusiasm. In the crowd, little Jiri squeezed next to the adults' feet. When she looked at the tall figure at the front of the group, her gaze swept over the cold face of a white-haired man, and she couldn't help but shrink back in fear.

She knew that the man wouldn't like her; in fact, he would loathe her. So, it was best to stay out of his sight.

Just because my surname is Uchiha, I'm disliked...

I don't understand, but that doesn't stop her from cleverly staying away.

At the front of the group, Tobirama Senju spoke up, "Brother, let's go."

The Senju brothers personally escorted the group. No ninja in the ninja world had ever dared to rob them. At the rear of the group, two ninjas each carried a large jar, which contained the Three-Tails and the Six-Tails.

After glancing at the group, Hashirama Senju said in a deep voice, "Then, let's go!"

As the villagers watched them leave, the group walked out of the village gate. On the rooftops, the Sengoku ninjas from various clans watched coldly as Hashirama Senju left with the tailed beasts.

"Choosing Hashirama seems to have been a mistake."

"In the story of Pig, Deer, and Butterfly," the man with the pineapple-shaped haircut said softly.

"We and our children and grandchildren will pay the price for this mistake."

Pig and Butterfly both looked very serious.

Elsewhere, high up, perched on a water jug, Sarutobi Sasuke watched Hashirama Senju's procession recede into the distance. Behind him, Hiruzen Sarutobi whispered, "Father, what are you looking at?"

"Heh," Sarutobi Sasuke said, "An arrogant, stubborn madman has personally handed over the blade that will slaughter us in the future."

Hiruzen Sarutobi, puzzled, looked into the distance.

"Shouldn't we be striving for peace? According to the Hokage's plan, the five great villages can maintain a stable peace by keeping each other in check..."

"You'll see, Hiruzen, and then you'll laugh at his naiveté from the bottom of your heart."

Even if you're my dad, you can't laugh at my idol!

"The Will of Fire, isn't that..."

"Hiruzen, stop listening to that boring Will of Fire!" Sarutobi Sasuke interrupted, looking at Hiruzen with a gloomy expression.

Faced with his father's authority, young Hiruzen simply clenched his fists.

In the distance, Shimura Danzo watched the procession, then turned to look at his aunt beside him.

His father died young during the Warring States period, and he was raised by his father's sister. At this moment, his aunt's face was gloomy, and her eyes were cold and ruthless.

"Let's go! Danzo! Sending you to school for a carefree childhood was a mistake! I will be strict with your training! Be prepared!"

Upon hearing this, Danzo shuddered.

"Don't end up like my brother, who died young, dying a shameful death on the battlefield. Danzo, remember this: never give up on your life easily. Live on, live on at all costs! There is always hope!"