Three days later.
In a sparse pine forest along the northern border of the Land of Fire.
Several figures were hidden among the thick leaves, staying alert at all times.
In fact, to protect the clan members escaping together, Shimoku, as the young clan leader, had naturally put tactical arrangements in place.
He broke the clan members into smaller groups.
The elderly, women, and kids in worse shape were quietly smuggled out in small groups aboard merchant caravans heading toward the Land of Rice Fields.
The younger ninja with slightly better stamina traveled through dangerous terrain like dense forests and rocky areas. While laying false trails, they also employed misdirection techniques to throw off any Konoha pursuers.
He even personally stayed behind with several Jonin to serve as rearguard.
Striving to ensure total safety.
This location was one of the main roads leading from the Land of Fire to the Land of Rice Fields.
If Konoha ninja pursued them,
they would most likely pass through here, and be discovered by the Uchiha ninja lying in wait.
Right now, Shimoku was hiding here alongside three capable Uchiha Jonin,
keeping one last watch.
"Young clan leader, how much longer are we going to keep waiting here?"
"About another hour and a half. By then, the last batch of our clanspeople should have crossed the border of the Land of Fire and reached the Land of Rice Fields."
"Once they're on foreign territory, even Konoha ninja won't dare act recklessly anymore. We can consider them safe by then."
Shimoku gave his estimate after a brief calculation.
"Honestly, aside from a few small fry Konoha scouts along the way, we haven't really run into any large-scale pursuit teams. I was actually expecting Konoha to go completely crazy hunting us down!"
Uchiha Toki let out a sigh, joking lightheartedly.
Back then, many of the clan's more radical members chose not to defect precisely because they feared retaliation from Konoha.
After all, nobody wanted to live in constant fear for the rest of their lives.
"They were totally scared off by the young clan leader's insane strength! No way they'd dare come after us now!"
Beside him, Uchiha Gin—sixteen years old and idolizing Shimoku like a hero—cheerfully bragged.
What could he do?
Three months ago, when the young clan leader first awakened the Mangekyō [a powerful eye technique], who did he use for practice during testing?
That battle left Uchiha Gin—who was already a Jonin at sixteen—completely shook up.
Nowadays, in his eyes, there simply wasn't a stronger ninja than the young clan leader!
Naturally, Shimoku didn't indulge in such flattery.
"I suppose my contingency plan worked."
"That guy Itachi is indeed reliable!"
"For now, Konoha probably won't send out large groups of ninja chasing us anytime soon."
"We should have a relatively peaceful period to build up our strength."
"But later… those coming after us will likely be other clan members still inside Konoha…"
"Oh man! Does that mean we'll end up fighting our own people?!"
"That damned Konoha bastards! So despicably ruthless!"
Uchiha Gin spat angrily, clearly furious.
"Rest assured, I already have a plan. When the time comes, no one will be forced into an uncomfortable position."
Shimoku's eyes flickered as he said gravely.
Clearly, he'd already prepared countermeasures.
"By the way, young lord. I also have a question. Why are we fleeing to the Land of Rice Fields?"
"The Land of Rice Fields is a small country, far less powerful than the Land of Fire. If Konoha exerts pressure on it through the Land of Fire in the future, this tiny nation might just betray us, right?"
"Why not escape to one of the other four great nations instead?"
Shimoku glanced sideways at Terumi Uchiha standing beside him.
This young man had potential! What a great question!
He thus proceeded to explain carefully.
"The complexity of power struggles between great nations far exceeds what ordinary ninja villages can imagine. The five great hidden villages keep each other in check through a delicate balance of power. Even slight ripples could disrupt this equilibrium."
"To preserve this balance and prevent other villages from sheltering their own rogue ninja."
"For ninja like ourselves who defected from Konoha, seeking refuge in other major countries would almost certainly result in rejection. At more radical villages, they might even kill us all and return our corpses to Konoha."
"In that case, they could damage Konoha's reputation while making Konoha owe them a favor. Such a two-in-one benefit would be hard for other ninja villages to resist."
"Not to mention, our Uchiha Clan differs from regular ninja families. Our Sharingan, our Kekkei Genkai — these make us look like treasure, a walking gold mine to any village!"
"You mean... other four great hidden villages would see us as such a big piece of meat served on a platter?"
"Exactly!"
Terumi Uchiha suddenly understood, roughly grasping the pros and cons only now.
Likewise, the other two couldn't help letting out astonished gasps, their eyes gleaming with excitement.
Obviously, Shimoku's analysis of great power politics left them all awestruck!
It was truly unimaginable — their young lord was only ten years old, yet already so cunning and brilliant in strategy!
Indeed, following their young lord promised boundless prospects!
"But why didn't we choose a smaller country farther away from Konoha? This Land of Rice Fields seems too close to Konoha!"
"The reason we chose the Land of Rice Fields is also because..."
"Hold on. I'll explain next time. Company's coming."
"You three go first. Protect the last batch of clanspeople crossing the border. I need to have a little chat with my future 'good neighbor'!"
Shimoku abruptly stopped his explanation and gave instructions to the three beside him.
Without hesitation, the three immediately complied with their orders.
After exchanging glances,
they quickly leapt up and rushed toward the direction where their clansmen were exiting.
...
No sooner had the three left
than
from the huge tree trunk behind Shimoku,
a snake-like figure gradually emerged.
"Orochimaru, you still show up in that disgustingly slithery way you always do!"
"Tsk tsk tsk! Lord Shimoku, this is only our third meeting, right... How can you say it's 'as always'?"
The pale-faced snake lady extended her unnaturally long tongue.
Licking his lips while cackling ominously.
This young body before him was simply too tempting!
Only ten years old, yet possessing enormous chakra! That perfect Mangekyō Kekkei Genkai!
For Orochimaru, this boy was truly a one-of-a-kind vessel for transference.
He had longed night and day to inhabit this youthful, vibrant form!
Too bad he just couldn't defeat him...
Shimoku glanced at Orochimaru sideways. Not that he could just say out loud that from his past life, he'd already grown completely tired of the sight of that snake-like figure.
So he quickly changed the subject.
"You're here, which means you've finished arranging things in the Land of Rice Fields?"
"Of course. My subordinates have already picked up your clansmen. They're currently guiding them toward the location you selected."
"Basic housing has already been built there. Make do with tight quarters, and it should easily accommodate a few hundred people."
Orochimaru slithered toward Shimoku, stretching his body as he circled around him while speaking.
Sometimes he marveled at just how different people could be!
Two months ago, when this ten-year-old Uchiha brat showed up claiming he wanted to ally with him and defect from Konoha, he thought the kid had gone mad!
Never did he expect everything to actually become reality tonight.
This child really had managed to escape from Konoha alone, bringing out so many of his clansmen by himself.
What the hell?!
Is this kid really only ten years old?!
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