82. Konoha's Situation Takes A Sharp Turn For The Worse

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Senju Tobirama's joy was beyond words. Although Ishigami Hara couldn't see him at the moment, he could feel the joy in his words.

Nawaki was the grandson of the First Hokage and also related to Senju Tobirama. It was understandable that Tobirama was delighted that such a close relative had mastered Wood Release, a power belonging to his eldest brother.

Ishigami Hara did not explain the reason. In his opinion, this kind of thing was nothing unusual.

"Hey, Hara!"

Feeling Hara's arrival, Nawaki immediately became excited and raised his hand in greeting.

"How is it going?"

Nawaki said excitedly, "It's going well. It probably won't be long before I can try the secret of Wood Release."

Ishigami Hara raised his eyebrows. "Nativity of a World of Trees?"

"Yes, yes, yes."

Nawaki became even more enthusiastic, eagerly talking about the power of Wood Release and its various applications.

"Let me tell you, I've developed two good Wood Release ninjutsu. Look."

Excited, Nawaki quickly formed seals with both hands and then slapped the ground.

"Wood Release: Four-Pillar House Technique!" (T/N: Yamato, is that you)

Crack, crack, crack!

Before them, a tree trunk rapidly rose from the ground. The trunk split and intertwined, soon forming a tree house. Although it wasn't as refined as a normal building, it had a basic structure and was clearly habitable.

Ishigami Hara felt slightly bemused, and Senju Tobirama made a timely comment.

"Yes, this child has talent for developing ninjutsu."

"Which eye of yours saw that Nawaki had talent in developing ninjutsu?" Ishigami Hara thought to himself, staring at the rough tree house made of thick wood. He didn't know how to evaluate it for a moment, so he simply nodded and said, "It's a good idea. You could refine this technique further."

"Haha, yeah, I think so too."

Nawaki beamed with happiness.

Ishigami Hara didn't disturb him further. After chatting for a while, he left Nawaki, whose enthusiasm still hadn't faded, and returned to the laboratory.

Upon arriving, Senju Tobirama fell silent. But as Ishigami Hara began his experiment, Tobirama couldn't hold back any longer.

"Are you... conducting blood experiments?"

On the test bench in front of them, there were various instruments, many containing blood and body tissues. However, the samples looked strange, as if they had grown freely rather than being taken from a normal person's body.

Seeing through the experiment immediately, Senju Tobirama's sharp perception didn't surprise Ishigami Hara. After all, this was the man who had conducted countless experiments of his own and had far more experience in these matters.

"I remember your Ishigami clan disbanded after the village was established."

"Yes, I reintegrated it. As for the reason, you should be able to guess."

Senju Tobirama was silent for a moment. When he spoke again, his tone had turned serious.

"Is it because your bloodline was activated that others noticed the other members of your Ishigami clan?"

"Indeed, you're right as always, Hokage. It couldn't be hidden from you."

"So, who's responsible for it?"

Senju Tobirama's political instincts were sharp, honed from his time as Hokage. He quickly deduced the situation and even had some guesses.

"I'll provide a few names. How about you guess, Hokage?"

Ishigami Hara kept working with his hands while speaking in his mind: "Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen, village advisors Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu, Root leader Shimura Danzō. Alright, guess."

Senju Tobirama was silent, seemingly surprised that Ishigami Hara asked him to make a choice. After a moment of hesitation, he gave his answer.

"It's Danzō, right?"

"Haha," Ishigami Hara chuckled and nodded. "Yes, it seems Hokage knows these people very well."

"I see."

Senju Tobirama didn't respond directly to Ishigami Hara's words, but instead reflected, "The Root... was it established for the benefit of the monkey? If I'm not wrong, it should have been used for training Anbu. But knowing Danzō, the current Root likely has its own autonomy, correct?"

Indeed, just from this level of insight, Sarutobi Hiruzen wasn't even worthy of carrying Senju Tobirama's shoes.

Ishigami Hara's smile grew, and he bluntly said, "That's true. It's a pity you, the Second Hokage, died too early; otherwise, the village wouldn't be like this now."

"What do you mean?"

Ishigami Hara didn't hold back and said, "The village leaders implemented your ideas, Second Hokage, making targeting the Uchiha their top priority. Root leader Danzō even killed Uchiha Kagami and took his Sharingan, hoping to use it to control Uchiha's power."

"A**hole!" 

Senju Tobirama suddenly became furious and shouted, "Target the Uchiha? Why would they do this?"

This time, Ishigami Hara was the one surprised, and he couldn't help but ask, "Why is the Second Hokage reacting like this? Didn't you hate the Uchiha?"

Senju Tobirama snorted coldly but explained, "It's true I distrusted the Uchiha, but I hated those Uchiha who distanced themselves from the village, not the entire clan. Otherwise, I wouldn't have kept Kagami by my side. There are those in the Uchiha who love the village. If they can't distinguish between these groups and simply target the whole clan, that approach is pure stupidity!"

Ishigami Hara raised an eyebrow, put down the utensils in his hand, and asked with a smile, "Then why did you say the Uchiha are 'evil'?"

"Humph! The 'evil' of the Uchiha stems from their intense emotions. They are a clan of love. If they fail to understand those emotions, they fall into extremes. Such Uchiha are indeed dangerous."

"A clan of love."

Ishigami Hara mulled over this, nodding slightly. "That's quite an appropriate description."

"So, kid, are you aligning with the Uchiha?"

"Of course not," Ishigami Hara shook his head. "I'm not leaning toward the Uchiha, but I'm not entirely aligned with the village either."

"You don't love the village?" Senju Tobirama asked directly.

Ishigami Hara considered the question carefully. It wasn't an easy one to answer. After a moment of silence, he said, "I wouldn't say I love it, but I'm not opposed to it either. I don't have as deep an attachment as you do to Konoha, but I genuinely hope the village becomes stronger."

Senju Tobirama remained silent.

Ishigami Hara, unfazed, continued his work and then spoke again. "I want to create a special ninja clan and, through that, unite other ninja clans and even ordinary ninjas and villagers to strengthen the entire Konoha. Second Hokage, do you think I can succeed?"

"I don't know," Senju Tobirama replied solemnly, "but I will keep an eye on you. If you do anything to harm Konoha, I will stop you."

"Haha, really? I'm looking forward to it."

Ishigami Hara fell silent again, focusing on his experiments.

Days passed in the laboratory. There were some results from the experiment, though not significant. Progress in such areas required patience. Ishigami Hara wasn't anxious, but the atmosphere in the village grew more tense during this time.

The reason was simple: Kumogakure and Iwagakure had united.

Ishigami Hara knew that the death of the Second Raikage at the hands of the Iwagakure forces in the original timeline hadn't occurred. Whatever deal was struck between Ōnoki and the Second Raikage was unclear, but in the end, the two villages had united.

Though their union wasn't entirely to oppose the outside world, they still posed a united front against Konoha.

"Humph, indecisiveness. The failure to deliver a fatal blow to Iwagakure at the critical moment... the monkey is really leading Konoha backward," was Senju Tobirama's blunt evaluation.

He had come to learn about many events, including Ishigami Hara's actions on the battlefield, leading him to criticize Sarutobi Hiruzen.