Malphegor
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IUTT: Ch. 95
🕑 Added 2025-05-26 00:18:28 +0000 UTCAt the same time, a rumor was spreading in every corner of Konoha.
The rumor claimed that the so-called allied shinobi forces were not nearly as terrifying as they were made out to be, and the Konoha leadership was not acting out of fear.
It wasn't that Konoha lacked the ability to help the Land of Whirlpools, it was that the higher-ups in Konoha didn't want to help.
They wanted to take advantage of the chaos, looting everything the Land of Whirlpools had accumulated over the years.
Tsunade leading the ninja of Uzushio to victory was the best proof that the loosely organized allied shinobi forces were not that scary after all.
And as for Danzō looting during the crisis, his actions had already been confirmed, so there was no need for further evidence.
In no time, countless people began criticizing Hiruzen Sarutobi and the rest of the senior leadership.
And Hiruzen couldn't even defend himself.
If the Land of Whirlpools had truly been wiped out, things would have been easier to explain.
He could have said, "I was helpless. I did it for the sake of Konoha. You all saw how powerful the ninja coalition was, I simply couldn't do anything."
But instead, the Land of Whirlpools nearly annihilated the Allied Forces. That changed everything.
If Hiruzen insisted he had no ulterior motives and only gave up on the Land of Whirlpools to avoid provoking a coalition attack on Konoha, then he would be branded incompetent and cowardly.
Abandoning an ally without a single battle just for self-preservation, how could someone like that keep preaching about the "Will of Fire"?
But if Hiruzen did admit he had ulterior motives, then he'd be branded a traitor who betrayed allies and took advantage of their crisis.
How could someone so dishonorable remain Hokage?
So, feeling helpless, Hiruzen decided to send Torifu on a diplomatic visit to Uzushio, hoping to ease tensions.
But Torifu outright claimed illness and refused to go.
"Damn it, I said we should send reinforcements back then, how did all of you oppose me? Koharu kept targeting me, and the rest of you ganged up on me too. You made my life miserable. Now you suddenly remember me? Screw off!"
That wasn't his exact wording, but that's how it sounded to Hiruzen.
Having been turned away, he had no choice but to send Homura instead. Aside from him, Hiruzen didn't dare send anyone else. He couldn't send Koharu, he knew her temper better than anyone. She couldn't take even the slightest grievance. And after losing so many people around her over the past year, her temper had become even worse.
She was useful when it came to internal power struggles, but in diplomacy? She was useless.
As for Danzō, he was even more out of the question. His idiotic actions had already pushed Uzushio to the edge, to the point where they were spreading rumors in Konoha.
Meanwhile, in the Land of Whirlpools, under the watchful eyes of spies from various nations, Ashina transported crate after heavy crate to the seaside and loaded them onto more than a dozen large ships, which then sailed to a remote part of the open ocean.
He made it publicly known that all the ships were protected by barriers.
If anyone approached, the ships would explode immediately, and all the cargo would sink to the bottom of the sea, no one would get anything. During transit, a few crates were "accidentally" broken open due to spies "bumping" into them, and gold, silver, and rare scrolls spilled everywhere.
On these ships, all the real gold, silver, supplies, mineral resources, cash, and scrolls had already been taken by Tsunade. In their place were crates filled with rocks.
Ashina entrusted nearly 80% of Uzushio's non-fixed assets accumulated over the years to her. Officially, this was for "safekeeping." But 20% of the assets were given outright to Tsunade and Shin as thanks for their unmatched contributions during the war.
The rest was to be held in trust, should she ever become Hokage and the Land of Whirlpools fall into crisis again, she could use Konoha's name to help them through it. As for how much she would actually provide in the future, that would depend entirely on her conscience.
In any case, Ashina said that apart from himself and the two elders of the Uzumaki clan, no one else in the entire Land of Whirlpools would know about this matter.
In other words, that wealth was essentially a gift to her.
One had to admit, with age comes wisdom, he was frightened by what had happened and wanted to use money to buy peace. After all, he understood the difference between a country and its wealth.
As long as Tsunade became Hokage, as long as she was around, the Land of Whirlpools would be safe.
And about money? As long as it was enough, that was good enough.
It was important to understand that the Land of Whirlpools had no daimyō. Uzushio was the actual ruling authority of the country. And Uzushio was not a traditional ninja village that relied solely on missions to survive without producing anything.
Every year, the taxes collected from the entire country amounted to a significant sum. Tsunade didn't know exactly how much wealth other nations had, but the assets she now held from the Land of Whirlpools added up to over 30 billion.
No wonder so many coveted the Land of Whirlpools.
No wonder that after its fall, Konoha ended up with four new powerful clans.
Take the Sarutobi clan alone, during the Fourth Great Ninja War, they fielded over 2,000 ninjas.
Just how absurd is that number?
To put it in perspective, the total number of ninjas from the Uchiha and Hyūga clans, who had long been rivals for the title of Konoha's top clan, didn't even add up to a thousand combined.
Then add in the Shimura, Utatane, and Mitokado clans...
One could only say: the Konoha Council members were terrifying beyond measure.
Three days later, someone with an unknown identity approached the dozen or so ships anchored in the deep-sea bay, triggering the barrier set by the Uzumaki clan. All the ships suddenly exploded, and every last crate of treasure sank into the sea. And this happened right in front of spies from nearly every ninja village.
When news of this reached the villages, many refused to believe it. They thought the Land of Whirlpools had staged a bait-and-switch. But in the end, none of them sent troops to attack the Land of Whirlpools again.
Even for the Four Great Ninja Villages, losing 1,500 elite troops was a devastating blow. Not to mention, their top commanders had been captured.
For example, Kitsuchi, if Ōnoki didn't rescue him, it would shake the morale of many in his village. So even if they wanted to punish him, they had to get him back first.
And the others? Even more critical.
Chiyo was the real power behind Suna, with authority rivaling even the Third Kazekage. If she hadn't married and had children early on and lost interest in the Kazekage seat, who knows who'd be holding that title today?
And A was the son of the Third Raikage.
As for Genji, though his standing in Kiri wasn't quite at Chiyo's level in Suna, don't forget there was also Yumi to consider.
If anything happened to all of them, it would be a disaster.
At first, every ninja village thought it was deeply shameful that their top people had been captured. But after finding out that every village had lost high-ranking individuals, no one felt so embarrassed anymore.
So, after some negotiation, some concessions, and promises not to invade the Land of Whirlpools again, the captured leaders were all released and returned to their villages. As for whether they would break the treaty and come back for revenge, Uzushio made their position clear: We don't care. We'll fight the first ones to come. Whatever benefits the others get afterward is none of our concern. Good luck to you all. We've lost everything already. If you're not afraid, come at us.
And so, half a month passed.
When it became clear that the Four Great Ninja Villages truly had no intention of continuing the war, the Land of Whirlpools finally ushered in true peace.
And Shin now made his way to the most mysterious place in all the Land of Whirlpools.
