A portion of the ninjas from the east line returned to the village first.
A large number of villagers stood by the road and cheered loudly, calling for the dawn of peace.
When Yuuji crossed the gate and entered the village, this major welcoming ceremony reached a peak.
"It's really lively. These people who call for peace... I really hope that things like war will never appear."
Yuuji waved around with a smile on his face. Behind him were many injured people wrapped in bandages. These were the first batch of ninjas to return to Konoha.
But unfortunately, it was only an extravagant hope in the end.
"Is that person Lord Yuuji? It is said that he joined forces with Lord Jiraiya to defeat Sandaime Mizukage at the front line!"
"So young..."
"The war on the eastern front is over. As long as Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Minato defeat Iwa ninja and Suna ninja, everything will be over!"
Many people revealed deep expectations and joy on their faces.
In the four years of bloody battle, they had lost too much and sacrificed too much, finally seeing the dawn of peace.
Many of Yuuji's peers also stood in the team and looked at Yuuji with complicated expressions.
"He has already left us far behind," Kurenai said in a low voice.
Asuma gritted his teeth. Although he was unwilling in his heart, he could only agree with a low voice. —He was rebellious, but not a fool.
Moreover, facing a monster like Yuuji, he temporarily could not see any hope of surpassing him.
"Is such a guy who inherits The Will of Fire really right? The old man is right, I am wrong?" Asuma was a little doubtful about life.
Shisui was also in the village team, looking left and right excitedly. His name, Shisui, also became famous in this battle.
"Senior Yuuji, many people are calling your name!" Shisui said excitedly.
"Calm down, Shisui, this is just a routine operation." Yuuji patted Shisui on the shoulder.
"Yes! As expected of Senior Yuuji. So you were prepared for such a scene?"
"Yes, I guess so. They not only cheered for us, but also for peace. All warriors who can bring peace to them will be sought after. Shisui, you have to remember this. Everything I have to do is to achieve eternal peace."
"Senior Yuuji... Is this realization of the inheritor of the will of fire?"
Shisui looked at Yuuji's back and was greatly shocked.
He found that not only the level of strength and thinking, but even the vision of this senior was far ahead of him.
Shisui was shocked to find that he, who was obsessed with the competition between a clan and a village, had unconsciously become narrow-minded, which made Shisui feel extremely ashamed.
"...? Shisui, don't look at me like that."
Yuuji was a little puzzled.
'What is wrong with this depressed Shisui?'
'Is he starting to be depressed now?'
'How could this be?'
'This guy's eyes were very useful. He couldn't commit suicide like the original work.'
....
After the ceremony, Yuuji finally welcomed his freedom.
The first thing he did was to go to Root's base to meet Danzo.
"I heard about you at the front line. You are indeed my disciple." Danzo nodded coldly as if everything that Yuuji had done was just normal. "I heard that you got Byakugan?"
"Yes, I took back this precious eye from the enemy."
Yuuji took out a glass container, which contained a Byakugan.
"Byakugan... Hyuga clansmen are getting worse and worse. He tried his best to develop the Bird in the Cage to protect Byakugan, but he was taken away by Kirigakure." Danzo sneered.
"Sensei, why don't you let me deal with this eye? I am very interested in the bloodline of a thousand-year-old clan like Hyuga..."
'Hmm?'
Danzo gave Yuuji a deep look. For some reason, the more he looked at him, the more pleasing he became.
'To be able to ask for Byakugan in such a straightforward manner and even say that he wanted to decipher the secrets of Hyuga and clansmen's bloodline…'
'Heh, as expected of this old man's disciple.'
"Although I don't know how proficient you are in human experiments, this old man didn't stop you because this old man doesn't care about the life and death of that genius... Do you understand what this old man means?"
"Of course, don't worry. I won't destroy this precious Byakugan." Yuuji said with a smile.
It was indeed easy to deal with Danzo. Many things only needed to be mentioned, and the gloomy Danzo immediately understood.
He didn't even bother to pretend.
"Hmph, in that case, there is no need for this old man to hide it from you. Actually, this old man is also ordering Root to conduct some necessary human experiments. All of this is for Konoha!"
Yuuji also said solemnly, "Everything is for Konoha."
Danzo nodded.
The master and disciple were silent for a while.
Danzo suddenly asked, "You used a brand-new secret technique again? The technique to imitate Bijuu's coat?"
Yuuji nodded calmly. "That's right. I was only trying. I didn't expect it to really succeed..."
"You must have obtained some kind of spirit beast and tried to create Bijuu. Was the Kumen Sowaka* from before was prepared for this?" Danzo asked.
[*TL Note: Kumen Sowaka is a chanting that's used to summon Nine Masked Beast (Kumenjuu) by Menma; Road to Ninja: Naruto the Movie]
"Ah, Danzo-sensei actually saw through the problem at a glance..."
"Hmph, not just me, even Hiruzen and the others can think of it."
"Please don't worry. This is also the power that I have grasped. It's just that the spirit beast is more troublesome and likes to sleep..."
"As my disciple, I must not be threatened by a beast. There are many sealing techniques and brainwashing techniques in Root. Take them all. It's not enough for me to take them. I will find them for you from the Book of Seal. In short, you must find a way to tame that lowly beast."
With the walking stick in hand, Danzo knocked heavily on the ground. It spread far in this dark underground base.
Yuuji looked moved. This attitude made Danzo very satisfied. He could not help but nod secretly.
"In addition, if this old man asks you to hand over the method of artificial Bijuu..."
"Danzo-sensei, of course, I am willing to hand it over. But the problem is, other than me, no one can repeat this technique. So, Danzo-sensei..."
Yuuji said with a smile.
Danzo subconsciously frowned and was a little unhappy. At the same time, he remembered that Yuuji's ability seemed to be involved in the operation of molecules and atoms. This did not match him.
'Kumen Sowaka... Forget it, compared to Hashirama's cells and Sharingan, it was not worth mentioning.'
After a cold snort, Danzo did not say a word and turned to leave.
Just as his entire body was about to disappear into the darkness, he spoke again.
"If your lifespan is not enough, you can come to find this old man."
"In addition, you are very compatible with this old man's will. It is time for you to carry out some secret missions... This old man has some connections with the Amegakure's Hanzo. This is done without Sandaime's knowledge. On the 12th of next month, you will lead a team of Root's ninjas to Amegakure to meet that dangerous fellow, Hanzo."
"This mission is not difficult. The two sides are going to strengthen their trust and launch a joint operation. The goal of the mission is to destroy a local armed organization in Amegakure."
"The name of that organization is…"
"Akatsuki!"