When Mito Uzumaki questioned whether Uchiha Ryun had intentionally approached Kushina, his expression immediately darkened.
"What are you saying, Grandma Mito?" Kushina finally spoke up, unable to hold back any longer.
The topic had shifted to her, and she hadn't understood the earlier conversation at all, so she hadn't dared to make a sound. But now, sensing the tense atmosphere and the nature of the question, she felt that if she didn't speak up, something terrible might happen.
"I know many things and was willing to share them with you purely out of consideration for Kushina. But that doesn't mean you can use that to maliciously speculate about me..."
Ryun stared at her calmly, but his voice carried a cold edge.
Hearing this, Kushina immediately jumped to her feet. Though she wasn't the sharpest, she could still grasp the implied meaning.
"Grandma Mito, Ryun isn't the kind of person with ulterior motives, and he would never have any ill intentions toward me. I was the one who approached him first. You must have misunderstood him..."
Their words made Mito Uzumaki freeze for a moment. Then, with a look of regret, she lowered her head.
"I'm sorry... child, I shouldn't have doubted you!"
As she spoke, tears began to fall again, making Kushina's heart ache. She quickly stepped forward to comfort her.
To be fair, Ryun didn't have to explain so much to her. His willingness to clarify was purely out of goodwill. Regarding Nawaki's situation, he had even given a kind warning in advance.
Despite knowing it would invite suspicion, he still chose to speak up. Wasn't that enough to prove whether he was good or bad?
Hadn't she investigated his background thoroughly enough?
So what if he knew many secrets and intelligence? He clearly wanted Nawaki to survive and genuinely cared for Kushina.
With these points, wasn't that enough to earn trust?
Thinking this, Mito Uzumaki felt too ashamed to face Ryun again.
She kept her head bowed and apologized repeatedly. Seeing this, Ryun could only wave his hand helplessly.
"It's fine. You're just overly concerned about Kushina... I understand."
He didn't blame this elderly woman who had suffered so much in her later years. Faced with the pain of losing her grandson, she had managed to keep her emotions in check, which was already remarkable.
Besides, he did have suspicious aspects to begin with.
"Grandma Mito, please take care of yourself... if not for anything else, then for Kushina's sake."
Ryun spoke these meaningful words, then stood up to leave.
"Wait, it's raining so hard. Don't rush off..." Kushina hurried forward and grabbed his arm.
"My clothes were already wet. I'm not afraid of the rain... You take care of Grandma Mito. I'll go now."
Ryun smiled and patted her head, then walked straight into the heavy rain.
Kushina watched his retreating figure with worry.
After standing there in a daze for a long time, she returned to Mito Uzumaki's side.
Rain Country Battlefield
After a brutal and bloody battle, both sides suffered staggering casualties.
The Sannin fought at full strength for the first time, immediately summoning giant summoning creatures and driving the Rain-nin into a rout.
Later, Hanzō of the Salamander joined the battle. The Sannin witnessed the terrifying power of the "Demigod" at his peak for the first time. They suffered their first major defeat and nearly died on the Rain battlefield.
Hanzō's poison was too deadly. Konoha-nin collapsed in droves under the toxic mist. Seeing the situation was dire, the Sannin had no choice but to retreat.
Even if they wanted to avenge their fallen comrade, they had to consider the lives of their allies. Without a way to counter the poison mist, even the three of them risked death, let alone the other ninja.
The first major battle between the Fire and Rain Countries ended in victory for Amegakure, led by Hanzō. This outcome shocked the ninja world.
The major nations began reassessing Konoha's combat strength. This so-called "strongest ninja village in the world" apparently wasn't as invincible as they had thought.
Konoha's defeat triggered a series of disastrous consequences. The other great nations no longer feared Konoha, believing it to be nothing more than a "paper tiger," one that could be pierced with a single poke.
Why should they occupy the most fertile land in the ninja world?
Why should they have the most resources?
Why should their descendants live in the most habitable environment?
Once such resentment took root, changing it would inevitably require bloodshed.
Konoha's initial defeat in the Second Great Ninja War indirectly influenced the Third Great Ninja War. Everyone wanted to take a big bite out of the "fat meat" that was the Land of Fire.
Seeing that a direct assault was ineffective and casualties were too high, Konoha adopted a more conservative strategy. After high-level discussions, they changed their war tactics. The Land of Fire began a battle of attrition with the Land of Rain, focusing on economic blockades, trade cuts, assassinations, and sabotage. Konoha deliberately dragged Rain into a prolonged war, clearly intending to fight a war of endurance.
Hanzō saw this but had no solution to the fundamental problem.
After over a month of intense fighting between Fire and Rain, the Ninja Academy welcomed a new semester.
Due to the ongoing war, Konoha decided to shorten the sixth-year curriculum. New students like Ryun would face heavier workloads, and graduation would be accelerated.
When Ryun accompanied Kushina into the Ninja Academy, a group of Uchiha children immediately caught his attention.
"Ryun-sama!"
"Ryun-nii!!"
"Little Brat!!!"
Most of the Uchiha children in the Ninja Academy bowed to him in unison.
It felt like gang underlings greeting their boss. Ryun was left speechless.
Ryun was now extremely famous among the younger generation. Many in the clan spread rumors of his incredible strength, claiming he had personally defeated the genius Chunin Uchiha Fugaku.
Fugaku had strictly ordered the details of that battle to be kept secret, even sending a Jonin to warn Uchiha Seimaru and Uchiha Senya not to leak anything.
But despite Fugaku's efforts, he couldn't stop the betrayal of his "big-mouthed subordinate," Uchiha Kazuhiko.
Thus, many learned the outcome of that battle, leading to Uchiha children calling him "boss" on the first day of school.
In the eyes of children, the strongest was the boss. Whoever was the strongest earned their respect.
"Little Brat" became an object of admiration for ordinary Uchiha children. They dreamed of one day becoming as outstanding as Ryun, of stepping on the privileged clan elites who usually looked down on them.
"If you have nothing to do, scatter. Go do whatever you need to do. Don't crowd around me, and don't try to follow me."
Ryun found these Uchiha kids extremely annoying.
Unfortunately, his wishes weren't fulfilled. The first one to openly defy him was none other than his closest companion... Kushina Uzumaki!
"Listen up, Ryun is my underling. If any of you want to be my underlings, say so now. Call me 'Big Sis' when you see me, and I'll consider taking you under my wing..."
As soon as Kushina finished speaking, many Uchiha children cheered excitedly.
"I'm in!!!"
"Me, me!"
"Big Sis, from now on, I'm your person..."
And thus, the first female school bully in Ninja Academy history was born!
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