Chapter 280

Tsunade sighed. "Those two old geezers are really a pain to deal with."

Then she turned to Riku and asked, "So, how do you plan to handle this?"

Riku raised his head, looked at Tsunade, and smiled. "Didn’t they ask you?"

Tsunade gave him a look. "Then I’m asking you."

Riku chuckled. "Honestly, if you really want to strip that guy of the Nine Tails’ chakra, I have a way. But right now, I plan to use him as bait to lure out the ones who stole the body. I think those thieves are connected to him somehow—or maybe their reason for stealing the body is tied to him."

Tsunade nodded. "I think so too. But those two elders clearly don’t want the Nine Tails’ chakra falling into the hands of anyone outside Konoha."

That line of thinking wasn’t wrong. After all, the Nine Tails was Konoha’s strategic weapon. Even a small fragment of its chakra wasn’t something they could afford to let others possess.

Riku grinned. "Just wait a bit. Once I figure out what they’re really after, I’ll strip the Nine Tails’ chakra from him."

Tsunade had no choice. But she knew—if anyone could do it, Riku could.

Over the next few days, word arrived in Konoha: several small shinobi villages within the Land of Fire had been massacred.

Tsunade frowned deeply. "Looks like they’ve started making their move."

Riku nodded in agreement.

In response, Tsunade summoned all available shinobi who weren’t on missions and dispatched them to the surrounding villages to investigate.

Among the dispatched teams was Naruto and the others.

Standing beneath the setting sun, Tsunade’s expression was heavy. "I don’t know what they’re after, but their actions are beyond cruel."

These small shinobi villages, while independent, were technically allies of Konoha—more reliable allies than Sunagakure in many ways.

So when Tsunade learned several had been wiped out, she was furious. She hadn’t expected this enemy to act so decisively—and so viciously.

Riku, however, remained indifferent.

He had already anticipated this outcome.

He hadn’t stepped in to stop it—not because he didn’t care, but because he had no way of knowing which villages would be targeted. There were at least eighty small shinobi settlements scattered across the Land of Fire, possibly more. Preventing all attacks was impossible.

Many of these "villages" were really just minor shinobi clans.

They didn’t have large numbers or strong forces.

Their ability to defend against external threats was extremely limited.

And yet, they still refused to integrate into Konoha. They valued their independence too much, choosing to remain separate.

When Konoha was founded, only the Senju and Uchiha clans formed its core. Over time, other clans joined.

But many of those early clans weren’t particularly powerful.

The Sarutobi and Shimura clans, for instance, were among the first to join—but their strength back then was modest at best.

Only after Konoha grew into a major power did prestigious families like the Hyuga clan agree to join.

This is also why even the Hokage struggles to challenge the Hyuga clan’s traditions—their family rules have existed for over a thousand years, while Konoha has only been around for a few decades.

The Hyuga only joined a few generations ago.

Many smaller clans were deeply reluctant to merge into Konoha. They feared losing their identity and cohesion.

And that fear wasn’t unfounded.

Once a family becomes part of a village, the question naturally arises: what comes first—loyalty to the village, or to the clan?

That conflict was inevitable from the day the shinobi villages were founded.

It’s a problem without a clear solution.

So when small clans refused to integrate, it wasn’t because they didn’t want Konoha’s protection. It was because they feared the loss of their heritage, their bonds.

And they had reason to fear.

Konoha is full of clans that have faded into obscurity.

Aside from the Hyuga and the ostracized Uchiha, few clans maintained full independence.

Even among the Uchiha, most members of the branch families had placed the village first. Just not to the extremes of someone like Uchiha Itachi or Uchiha Shisui.

Danzo, too, came from a clan—the Shimura. They were one of the first to join Konoha.

But now, only a few Shimura remain. The clan is all but scattered.

Knowing Danzo’s personality, he likely didn’t care much for preserving his clan anyway.

As for the families who refused to join Konoha, they preserved their identities—but at the cost of vulnerability.

When someone like the Oni clan’s spirit slaughtered shinobi to absorb their chakra, these isolated villages had no defense.

Such a thing would never happen in a major shinobi village like Konoha.

The small clans simply couldn’t resist power on that scale.

And when a major war like the Shinobi World War breaks out, even they are forced to send shinobi to fight.

Their casualty rates are always high.

So in truth, these small villages don’t want another war.

But what happened this time—it went too far.

Multiple villages were wiped out.

Kazuma, the one behind it, was also a shinobi from the Land of Fire.

Yet with his extreme ideology, he believed there should only be one true authority in the Land of Fire—and it should be the Daimyo, not the Hokage.

But his thinking was far too radical.

The Daimyo rarely interfered in Konoha’s affairs. Likewise, the Hokage didn’t interfere in the inner workings of the Fire Daimyo’s court.

Yes, after the Shinobi Wars, peace negotiations often involved things like territorial concessions, which the Hokage helped oversee.

But those decisions were ultimately made by the Daimyo. After all, the Daimyo lacked military power. It wouldn’t be safe for him to attend such talks himself.

Still, this division of power made Kazuma believe the Hokage was overstepping—stealing the Daimyo’s authority.

Even the Daimyo himself saw Kazuma’s views as extreme.

Riku remained calm.

He’d seen too much already—from the Oni clan’s spirit to Kazuma’s ruthless crusade.

These minor villages now found themselves in the spotlight, but surely not in the way they wanted.

Looking at Tsunade, Riku said evenly, "Now that they’ve made a move on the small villages, Konoha is next. They’re preparing something. Keep a close eye on that spatial rift."

Tsunade nodded. "I’ve already dispatched the ANBU to monitor it."

Riku himself wouldn’t go.

Even though he was the strongest shinobi in the village, his role was to serve as the Hokage’s personal guard. He couldn’t afford to waste time on routine surveillance.

Otherwise, what would be the point of having a Hokage guard at all?

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