"Could it be... Lord Haseo of Konoha?"
As they drew close enough, Yahiko seemed to recognize Haseo's identity.
Amegakure and the Land of Grass were neighboring countries. It was quite possible that when Haseo caused trouble here, the three-man team from Amegakure just happened to be nearby. Once sensing the conflict, they naturally came over to investigate—not out of curiosity, but necessity.
In the Ninjutsu World, violent chakra confrontations like this were unheard of under normal circumstances, and even in abnormal situations such intense clashes were rare. Major disturbances always drew attention.
Besides, Haseo's actions were like setting off a massive firecracker right at someone else's doorstep. Naturally, the homeowner would come out to check what was going on.
"Why do you all look so shocked and uncertain when you see me? I don't think my appearance has changed that much, right?"
Haseo wasn't pleased by their surprise. He hadn't changed his appearance much, so why wouldn't they recognize him?
But that was exactly the issue. He should have been an old man with aging features, yet this "old man" had undergone extremely effective "beautification and anti-aging." Of course that felt strange.
Why couldn't he be more like the Third Tsuchikage? At his age, Haseo should've been balding, hunched over a cane, and moaning about back pain by now.
"Lord Haseo, it's truly been a long time. We're just surprised that after so many years, you still look exactly the same."
Once confirming the person opposite them was indeed Haseo and his Uzumaki shinobi, Yahiko and the others relaxed slightly before walking closer.
On one hand, they still trusted Haseo to some extent; on the other, what good was there in being wary of him? Haseo could do as he pleased regardless.
Meeting Haseo again gave Yahiko the feeling of encountering a ghost—after all, the man had vanished without a trace for twenty full years. Yet one thing remained unchanged—the powerful impression Haseo had left in Yahiko's mind had never faded.
Regardless, neither Yahiko nor the other two had any intention of challenging Haseo.
But the question lingered—why had Haseo disappeared for years, only to suddenly reappear now? Could it be related to Konoha's recent internal chaos? Yahiko couldn't figure it out, but he thought it necessary to make contact with Haseo.
When a figure like "this Lord" began moving, it usually meant something major was about to happen in the Ninjutsu World—there was no logic behind this hunch, but somehow, Yahiko was absolutely convinced of it. Pure mysticism, really.
And who knows—who might end up caught in the crossfire again.
"That's true. You've all grown up quite a bit.
Judging by your ages, you've all become fully mature shinobi now. If Jiraiya saw you as you are today, he'd surely feel very happy."
Haseo's gaze casually swept over the trio as he spoke meaningfully.
Nobody could tell whether those words were aimed at all three of them—or just one.
In truth, Haseo didn't know these three well. They'd only crossed paths a few times, each meeting brief and separated by long gaps.
They had come a long way—from children to seasoned ninjas, from wandering outcasts to rulers of Amegakure. Naturally, their transformations had been immense.
Of course, there were also things about the trio that had never changed.
Nagato walked silently behind the other two. Yahiko wore an eye patch over his right eye, while Konan's face was unusually clean—except her left eye had never opened again.
"Yahiko, you've really become Amegakure's leader? I heard both the village and even the Land of Rain itself are improving."
Although it hadn't been that long, Konoha's intelligence network had kept up with the updates in good time.
"Yeah, we still have countless things to do. Changing a village isn't simple… After all, for decades Amegakure's atmosphere has leaned toward gloominess.
Unfortunately, Lord Hanzo resisted until the very end, so we had no choice but to kill him."
If those words truly came from the heart, then it would be hard to say whether Yahiko was holding firm to his ideals or simply being indecisive. Trying to minimize killing while uniting and saving everyone—sure, it sounded noble, though someone still needed to decide who was worth saving.
"A man like Hanzo deserves to die fighting. Otherwise, he wouldn't truly be himself… Young man, did you actually expect Hanzo to surrender to you?"
Haseo shook his head. He didn't buy into Yahiko's idealism—not even a little.
Outmatched in skill and dying on the battlefield—that was Hanzo getting exactly what he wanted. Haseo personally held a decent opinion of Sanshō'ō Hanzo. On several occasions, he'd had the chance to finish off his opponent, yet considering Hanzo and Amegakure's role as a buffer zone between major nations… plus orders from the Third Hokage, he had chosen not to act personally.
Amegakure's problems were for Amegakure to resolve. Hanzo's death certainly marked an ending for himself, but such a conclusion wasn't necessarily bad. In fact, Amegakure was renewing itself.
It was obvious that Hanzo would never surrender to Yahiko. So faced with Haseo's question, Yahiko could only remain silent.
After a short pause, Yahiko deliberately dropped the topic before turning back to Haseo and asking, "Why is Lord Haseo here in the Land of Grass anyway? Moreover, this town has long been abandoned. There shouldn't be anything particularly worth paying attention to…"
Technically, Yahiko shouldn't have asked about Konoha-related missions, yet he couldn't help himself.
His gaze had already shifted to the restrained figure—the Five-Tails' jinchūriki, held down by Uzumaki clansmen.
Even unconscious, this large fellow still exuded a powerful presence.
"Oh well, I can see why you're curious about me being here. Since you're really pushing for answers… Yeah, looks like you've noticed that guy too. We came here specifically to capture him.
As for his identity… He's the Five-Tails' Jinchuriki from Iwagakure."
Yahiko vaguely recalled hearing that Iwagakure's Five-Tails Jinchuriki was surprisingly enormous, and the description matched… Honestly, though, this wasn't the right moment to be dwelling on that.
"In that case, we shouldn't interfere with such matters. Lord Haseo, we'll take our leave first."
Yahiko immediately turned to leave, only for Haseo to suddenly place a hand on his shoulder, stopping him.
Hold on. Why are you bolting all of a sudden? We haven't seen each other in years—don't tell me we're already done talking?
"Yahiko felt flustered and uneasy. 'Lord Haseo... Konoha capturing Iwagakure's jinchuriki? That kind of incident will spark a war.'"
"Who said Konoha was capturing Iwagakure's jinchuriki? You kids, jumping to conclusions just because you see something on the surface! Try to stay calm, will ya?"
"This jinchuriki showed signs of betraying Iwagakure. You know how dangerous a wandering jinchuriki can be in the Ninja World, right? So after receiving intelligence, we immediately took action and decisively brought him under control."
"Does this mean Konoha accepted a request from Iwagakure?"
"Oh, not exactly. You should know how stubborn the Third Tsuchikage is. How could he possibly entrust such matters to Konoha?"
"..."
Yahiko was stunned. The nature of the incident hadn't really changed.
"Lord Haseo, do you really need a grand comeback?"
Did this person feel restless unless stirring up trouble and seeking excitement? The war had only just ended a few years ago!
Yahiko felt his earlier intuition was correct.
"What are you thinking? As someone who loves peace, we certainly don't want conflicts with those stubborn, warmongering Iwagakure. Therefore, we plan to return the jinchuriki to them. As long as they can keep him under control and prevent him from roaming around the Ninja World, it would benefit everyone, wouldn't it?"
"That makes sense in theory... but..."
"Therefore, an opportunity for Amegakure to enhance its international influence has now presented itself. Yahiko, as our new leader, you also need a proper opportunity to introduce yourself to the entire Ninja World, right?"
"..."
No, actually, he didn't need one at all.
"To avoid conflicts, Konoha shouldn't directly contact Iwagakure."
"..."
Then why go and do something like this?
"Also, I don't want rumors about me being in Konoha blowing out of proportion."
Even without bringing up the Five-Tails thing, you'd still let things spiral out of control anyway?
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