Chapter 251: Departure for the Hidden Rain Village
"Yes."
Morino Ibiki accepted the order and prepared to leave.
Fugaku didn't keep him. He signaled for Kisame to escort Ibiki out, then returned to the inner room, where he promptly stretched out on his sofa and returned to playing games. His shadow clone continued sitting behind the Hokage desk to maintain appearances.
For the next three days, he continued slacking off like this.
Then, one morning—
Fugaku suddenly realized he couldn't continue living so carelessly.
The sudden appearance of the previous Transmigrator had jolted him awake.
Even though he was nearly invincible, what if multiple Transmigrators with cheat-like abilities showed up in the future?
Better to prepare a resurrection method in advance.
If he was ambushed and killed, he needed a guaranteed way to revive.
Once the idea struck him, he acted immediately. He knew exactly where Nagato was located.
After informing Hokage Assistant Nara Shikaku that he would be leaving the village for a while, Fugaku departed from the Hokage Building.
This time, he didn't send a messenger. He went home personally—he didn't know how long he might be gone.
If Nagato couldn't be controlled with Kotoamatsukami, he would head to Sunagakure or Kusagakure instead. There were multiple resurrection methods across the ninja world; if one failed, he could obtain another.
When Fugaku arrived home, only Uchiha Itachi was present.
"Where's your kaa-san?" Fugaku asked.
Itachi, surprised to see his father home before lunchtime, replied,
"Kaa-san went out to buy groceries."
Fugaku nodded. He wasn't in a rush; he could wait until after lunch to leave.
"Father, did something happen?" Itachi asked.
Fugaku didn't hide it.
"I have a mission that requires me to leave the village for a while. Maybe a week, maybe half a month. I came home to tell your mother."
Itachi's heart stirred. He hadn't been on a mission for over a month—his bones felt rusty.
"What kind of mission? Can I come with you?"
"Take you?" Fugaku raised a brow. "Aren't you supposed to be training Naruto and Sasuke?"
Itachi explained,
"They've learned enough recently. Teaching them too fast isn't good. I planned to let them consolidate what they've already learned. For now, there's nothing more to teach."
"What level are they at now? Could they graduate early?" Fugaku asked.
Itachi considered before replying,
"Sasuke and Naruto both have excellent talent. Each has mastered one B-rank jutsu and several C-rank jutsu. Their shurikenjutsu has improved as well. I would say they're above normal Genin level but not quite Chunin. Passing an early graduation exam shouldn't be an issue."
Fugaku thought about it, then shook his head.
"No. This trip is dangerous. I'm not bringing you."
A faint disappointment flashed in Itachi's eyes.
Ten minutes later, Uchiha Mikoto returned carrying a small bag of groceries.
She paused in surprise when she saw Fugaku sitting on the sofa.
"Husband? Why are you back?"
Usually Fugaku was too lazy to return home for lunch, choosing instead to eat downstairs at a restaurant near the Hokage Building.
Was today special?
Fugaku grinned.
"Because I missed you."
He stood up and took the shopping bags from her hands.
"You're too old to be saying sweet things like that," Mikoto scolded lightly, rolling her eyes.
"Alright, alright. Truthfully, I'm going out of the village for a while," Fugaku said.
Mikoto wasn't worried; she knew better than anyone how strong her husband was.
"How long will you be gone?"
"No idea. If things go smoothly, a few days. If not… maybe a week or half a month."
Mikoto nodded. "When are you leaving?"
"After lunch."
"You should've told me earlier. I would've bought more ingredients and made a nicer meal," Mikoto said, a little regretful.
"It's fine. The usual is perfect."
"Alright, stop hovering. I need to cook. You go rest."
She pushed Fugaku out of the kitchen and began preparing lunch.
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After eating, Fugaku prepared to leave.
He didn't summon his Susanoo inside the village. Instead, he walked out of the village gates first. Once he was far beyond prying eyes, he unleashed Susanoo and took off into the sky.
There were always spies from other villages lurking inside Konoha. It was best not to reveal the full extent of his abilities.
Even though he had just destroyed Kumogakure and demonstrated overwhelming power—
If the other villages united out of fear and hatred, they might dare attack Konoha while he was gone.
At this point, Konoha's true military strength relied almost entirely on him. Once he left, the village's true vulnerability would be exposed.
The promising young powerhouses hadn't fully matured yet. There were no fully independent, battle-proven Kage-level shinobi.
Itachi, after Fugaku extracted his Mangekyō abilities, was only barely at the threshold of Kage-level. He would need luck to defeat an actual Kage-level opponent.
Jiraiya and Tsunade were indeed Kage-level. They wouldn't ignore an attack on Konoha, but two Kage-level individuals were far too few.
Orochimaru existed too, technically making three, but that still wasn't much.
After obtaining a resurrection method, Fugaku planned to nurture more Kage-level shinobi as soon as possible.
Or… he could simply eliminate a few more major ninja villages and solve the problem at its root.
Cultivating Kage-level fighters took time.
But destroying a village—or assassinating its Kage—was much simpler.
His destination for this trip was the Hidden Rain Village.
Depending on what happened there, Iwagakure or Sunagakure could be next.
Sunagakure was the weakest of the major villages; destroying it wouldn't accomplish much. If he were to act, targeting Iwagakure would be better.
After Kumogakure's destruction, the remaining major villages were Iwagakure, Sunagakure, and Kirigakure.
Among them, Iwagakure clearly held the greatest strength—a village comparable to the former Kumogakure.
Sunagakure, after losing the Third Kazekage, had fallen to the bottom of the Five Great Villages.
Hidden Mist had also declined severely due to Obito's manipulation, but at least Yagura was a Jinchūriki. His personal power far exceeded Sunagakure's Fourth Kazekage, Rasa.
At this point, the two villages were practically racing each other into decline.
Iwagakure, however, could likely overwhelm both simultaneously.
If Fugaku killed Ōnoki, Iwagakure would lose its greatest pillar.
He considered controlling the old Tsuchikage, but he needed to reserve Kotoamatsukami for Nagato.
So killing him might be the cleaner option.
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