In those days, Hashirama's idea had been a beautiful one. In order to balance the power of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, he distributed the Tailed Beasts he had captured among them.
Originally, he had intended to give them away for free. Seeing that he could not stop his elder brother, Senju Tobirama hastily came up with a way to recover some funds, having each village pay to purchase them, thus bringing back a sum of money to develop and strengthen the village.
Fortunately, the First Hokage was merely somewhat naïve, not foolish, and he kept the strongest of them—the Nine-Tails—in Konoha.
This was both a good thing and a bad thing.
The Nine-Tails was the most powerful of all the Tailed Beasts—indisputably, overwhelmingly powerful, with a clear gap above the rest.
But this nearly limitless and violent chakra was also the hardest to control among all the Tailed Beasts. Thus, while Iwagakure and Kumogakure had already produced perfect Jinchūriki capable of wreaking havoc on the battlefield, Konoha was still stuck in a stage of mutual hostility between its Jinchūriki and its Tailed Beast. Any prospect of mutual understanding between the two was a distant one.
The poor Nine-Tails was tied up like a rice dumpling on a daily basis.
The first Jinchūriki, Uzumaki Mito, relying on her own formidable strength and sealing techniques, could forcibly draw upon the Nine-Tails' power without discussion; the great fox did not even dare make a sound.
The second Jinchūriki, Uzumaki Kushina, could also do so. However, due to limitations in her own strength, it was not as stable and carried the risk of losing control.
If the Nine-Tails were ever fully released, the first thing the great fox would absolutely not do would be to help Konoha fight—it would casually flatten this wretched village instead.
Whenever it thought of how those two men had treated its proud self, stroking and toying with the mighty Nine-Tails as if it were a kitten, the hatred in its heart surged like the waters of the sea, endless and boundless.
This also resulted in Konoha possessing the most powerful Tailed Beast in name, yet never being able to form a stable fighting force with it.
Every time Konoha's shinobi faced these inhuman existences on the battlefield, the jōnin who knew the inside story could not help but ask in their hearts: where was Konoha's Jinchūriki?
Of course, she was in the village, falling in love—filling her heart with romance and making the Nine-Tails endure her public displays of affection.
Fortunately, Konoha had no shortage of extraordinary individuals. It could manage even without relying on a Tailed Beast.
...
On the battlefield where Makoto's squad was stationed, the deputy commander assisting Jiraiya was Mimura Hamaki.
This shinobi was one of those who had rendered great service in the Battle of Kannabi Bridge. After that, he not only became a devoted admirer of Namikaze Minato, but also one of his right-hand men.
Worried that any unforeseen changes on the front lines might affect his superior's prospects, he had not returned to the village to rest this time, insisting instead on remaining to assist Jiraiya.
He was now considered part of Konoha's upper echelon and naturally had access to a considerable amount of confidential intelligence regarding the shinobi world.
So when Hamaki saw Jiraiya return together with Makoto, and even carrying an Iwagakure shinobi with them, he asked in surprise: "Jiraiya-sama, could this person be…?"
"That's right. He's Iwagakure's Rōshi."
"Is that so? As expected of Jiraiya-sama—being able to capture even someone like this alive. That's truly amazing."
"Hahaha, it wasn't my achievement alone. We have Makoto to thank for trapping him."
Hamaki looked at Makoto, but what surfaced in his mind was the scene from earlier—him alone in the sky, pushing away a Tailed Beast Ball and saving all of his comrades.
That figure, for some reason, gradually overlapped with the Yellow Flash who had once slaughtered enemies on the battlefield right in front of him.
He said with renewed excitement, "Our 'Shield of Konoha' really does live up to its reputation!"
As the two spoke, the Konoha shinobi who had gathered around looked at Makoto differently now. They were no longer looking at a junior or a genius who still needed to grow, but silently placing him in their hearts on the same level as Minato and Jiraiya.
After seeing their people gather again, Jiraiya gave the order, "Make it quick. Hamaki, organize the men immediately and come with me to support Fugaku."
Then he handed Rōshi over to Kumomi. "Kumomi-jōnin, it'll be enough for Makoto to come with me alone. You will escort the prisoner back to the command post and keep him under strict guard. No one is to approach. I think, given what you used to be, you should understand this Iwa-nin's special nature."
"I understand, Jiraiya-sama. Don't worry."
Not far away, Hamaki heard Jiraiya's arrangements and immediately understood everything.
It seemed that these three elite spearhead squads that moved freely across the battlefield would also become important support forces for his superior in the future.
...
On the battlefield where Uchiha Fugaku was, the chaotic melee had already ended as well.
There were no victors here. Konoha, Kumogakure, and Iwagakure—each side had nearly bled out its very last drop.
Countless corpses lay sprawled across the ground. A motley assortment of ninja tools was scattered all around, and blood had dyed the nearby stream red.
It could no longer be described as merely brutal.
The remaining Kumo-nin and Iwa-nin had already withdrawn. This place was too close to Konoha's command post; enemy reinforcements could arrive at any moment.
As for their comrades' bodies—after the war ended, there would be a negotiation and handover process for that.
Four-year-old Uchiha Itachi moved through this hell on earth, the cruelty of war deeply shaking his young heart.
"Wa~ter… wa~ter…"
Among the corpses, an Iwa-nin groggily let out a plea for help.
Kind-hearted Itachi paid no attention to the other's identity. He helped him up and gave him water to drink.
What he received in return was a sudden attack from the Iwa-nin.
Itachi's body reacted on instinct and struck back. By the time he realized what had happened, the Iwa-nin he had just saved had already had his throat slit by his own hand.
Behind him stood his father, Uchiha Fugaku.
It was unclear whether he had just arrived or had been watching from the side all along.
When Makoto arrived here together with Jiraiya as reinforcements, what he saw was this scene of father and son standing amid the battlefield. If not for the corpses scattered everywhere, this might have been a suitable place to teach a child a lesson.
"Jiraiya-sama!"
"It seems you're finished here as well, Fugaku!"
"Yes, it's over—just like this war."
Jiraiya said nothing in response and directed the troops to begin clearing the battlefield.
Looking at the number of Konoha shinobi corpses—roughly the same as those of the other two villages—Makoto asked, "Fugaku-ojisan, do you still consider this a merit now?"
"Sigh." Fugaku did not answer. He only looked at the tragic battlefield and let out a long breath before turning to handle the aftermath.
What merit could there possibly be? When a war ends up like this, even victory is nothing to boast about.
He had known the final decisive battle would be brutal. What he had not expected was that it would be this brutal.
The most helpless part was that he had willingly taken this burden upon himself. It could only be said that his foresight in controlling the course of events was still far inferior to that of the Third Hokage.
Itachi stood beside Makoto. His small face bore its usual blank expression, but the slight trembling of his hands revealed that his heart was far from calm.
"Itachi, you shouldn't have come to the battlefield. It's too early."
"But Makoto-senpai, aren't you only a few years older than I am?"
Makoto looked at him seriously. "The difference between us isn't just age and strength. There's something more important."
Itachi saw the look in his eyes. Even in the face of corpses covering the ground, there was no ripple in them—not numbness, but as if he had already seen through this hell.
Unable to hold it in, Itachi recounted what had just happened. Then he voiced the same doubt he had asked his father: "Makoto-senpai, why did that Iwa-nin try to kill me? I didn't do anything to him. I even saved him."
"Because this is war. Anyone who isn't your comrade is your enemy. It's that simple. On the battlefield, if you don't kill others, they will kill you."
"War? Then, Makoto-senpai, do you think this kind of killing between strangers has meaning?"
"How could it have no meaning? They are invaders. If we don't kill them, are we supposed to watch them invade the Land of Fire, invade Konoha? If that happens, everything you cherish—the village, the clan, your comrades, your father and mother—will all be killed."
"So the meaning of killing is to protect?"
"Yes. We wield power not to oppress others, but to have the ability to protect everything we hold dear. That is the meaning of Konoha shinobi's existence."
"But if everyone in the shinobi world thinks this way, why is there still war?"
"Itachi, don't ask why there is war. You should ask who started the war and what their purpose is." Makoto pointed to the countless corpses on the ground. "These people are not qualified to start a war. They are merely tools of war."
The little Itachi widened his eyes. "Who is it? Makoto-senpai, do you know?"
"Itachi, have you ever played cricket fighting?"
"No. That's too childish. But I've seen in magazines the Ninja Beast Arena. I've heard there are even ninja arenas in the shinobi world."
Makoto knew such things existed. He replied, "More or less the same. The ninja beasts and shinobi who participate in those competitions are no different from crickets. The decision to fight is never in their hands."
"In the hands of the owner, right? Makoto-senpai, when the tools die, the fight ends—like now. If too many tools die, does the war end?"
"No. It never will. Because the owners will have new tools. Even if you kill the owner, a new owner will arise."
Four-year-old Uchiha Itachi fell into confusion. "Makoto-senpai, then how can all of this be ended?"
Makoto smiled. "Here's a piece of advice. Study more. Research how the shinobi world operates. In time, you'll find your own answer. Before you come of age—at least before you find that answer—do not believe any explanation others give you. Because their purpose is often not to resolve your doubts, but to turn you into a new tool. Do you understand?"
"I understand, Makoto-senpai."
Itachi agreed instinctively. Although he did not fully comprehend it yet, his young heart was deeply shaken.
---
I will post some extra Chapters in Patreon, you can check it out. >> patreon.com/TitoVillar
---