The Lord's Third Thought

After witnessing the man's departure, the sand ninjas exchanged stunned glances.

"How is this possible?" one asked in disbelief.

"How strong is he?" Another chimed in, eyes wide with amazement.

Despite his relentless use of ninjutsu and shadow clones, his chakra seemed to haven't diminished.

This left some of the ninjas on their knees, clutching the sand beneath them, and trembling uncontrollably. The weight of two previous defeats had left them feeling defeated and lacking in confidence. Even their highly skilled leader, the Kazekage, had been knocked out.

In the face of such overwhelming strength, the ninjas were left feeling uncertain about their future. They knew that regaining their spirit would take time, and they wondered how they could even begin to fight back.

As the man departed, Fugaku offered a parting warning, a smirk on his lips.

"Remember this well," he said. "The next time you attack, you will feel the terror of Uchiha again."

They had attacked the Suna's camp, and they had accomplished what they had set out to do. Under the dark blanket of the night sky, two Konoha ninjas, disguised as Iwa operatives, scurried back towards their camp.

"Kekeke, Fugaku-sama is impressive. His fire-style ninjutsu was so potent," one of them exclaimed.

With a sigh, Fugaku interrupted, "Now we can relax for a while, but don't think I can forget that you didn't help me at all."

"What are you talking about? You told me to stay back, remember? Besides, Fugaku-sama didn't need my help at all," the other replied.

Fugaku knew Orochimaru was right, but he found him to be irksome. The darkness gradually faded, and the desert of the Wind Country was illuminated by the first light of dawn.

"Fugaku-sama…"

They were met at the border of the River Country by Shikaku and his team in Konoha ninja attire, a minor injury to Inoichi aside.

They seemed to be waiting for them. They had changed Konoha's clothes. Inoichi had a minor injury, but the rest of them are fine.

"How did you manage to do it?" Inoichi asked, marveling at Fugaku's unscathed exterior.

Fugaku gave a smirk and replied, "It was just luck."

"Luck?"

The Ino-Shika-Cho trio were astounded by Fugaku's modesty, and Orochimaru rolled his eyes at it. He had raided the Suna camp, fought the Kazekage, and returned unscathed, and yet he attributed it to luck?

Fugaku sensed that he was being too modest and hastily changed the subject to avoid any further awkwardness.

"Enough about that. Let's change into our Konoha attire and head back."

While some folks might view excessive modesty as a sign of self-importance, Fugaku refused to let pride consume him. He reflected on the Otsutsuki clan, suppressing his inflated ego.

Comparing himself to Uchiha Madara, who could still outmatch the Five Kage despite being in a debilitated state, made Fugaku's own accomplishments seem unremarkable.

Though uncertain if he could take down the Mizukage in his current condition, he recalled that it would be no easy feat. Especially challenging were the Raikage's ninjutsu and the Tsuchikage's dust release, both of which posed significant challenges.

Regrouping his thoughts, Fugaku pushed aside these worries to focus on the task at hand: finding the flying summoning beast.

Once that's done, he can finally sneak back to check on his son.

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Five days later, the Third Hokage sat in his office, his expression one of utter shock as he read the report on his desk.

It stated that Uchiha Fugaku had led a team to attack the Suna camp, injuring the Fourth Kazekage and retreating.

It seemed unbelievable that he would have had the audacity to attempt such a thing.

Not only was it too risky, but he could have run out of chakra or, worse, faced the wrath of Rasa.

That mission was simply ridiculous. Danzo and the other three advisers were equally surprised. Could Fugaku really be that strong? Rasa is a new Kazekage, but he must not be pushed over.

"I thought his defense battle, where he won against a larger force with minimal losses, was his limit. But this time, he surprised me even more," Koharu Utatane said calmly to the other advisers.

The Third Hokage exhaled a deep breath before blowing a ring of smoke. "He has definitely surpassed me in strength. I'm sure of it."

Danzo, his usual grouchy self, commented, "With this kind of power, if he rebels, the consequences will be disastrous."

The Third Hokage took a deep breath before warning, "Danzo, I know you care about Konoha, but don't mention the Uchiha rebellion again," cautioning him with a firm tone.

Danzo was furious. "You... Hmph, I told you to deal with him earlier, but you didn't listen. Now his power is out of our control. This time… Damn it!"

His Root and the Hokage's Anbu were not powerful enough to match the Uchiha. Only a surprise attack might suffice. However, now that Fugaku's strength was revealed, he knew he had to find a way to eliminate him.

The Third Hokage continued, "Based on his previous attitude, he shouldn't rebel. And the news that Tsunade brought back, I'm almost certain of it."

"Tsunade? Is she reliable?" Homura Mitoka asked slowly, unsure if it was wise to rely on her news.

The Third Hokage nodded and replied, "It should be reliable. Tsunade can judge the importance of the news.

She can also monitor his movements in the Konoha camp and bring back useful information. Even if something happens, we can plan ahead."

Koharu and Mitoka nodded, but Danzo closed his eyes with a gloomy face, lost in thought.

The Third Hokage had something else in mind but opted to stay silent. If push came to shove one day, who knew if he would be willing to give up his Hokage position?

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Give me stone, and I'll give you bonus chapters. How does that sound? It's a new week ranking reset, and with the reader aware of the target ranking, I believe we can reach it this week.

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