Chapter 70

Chapter 70

Chapter 70: Not Only Stealing the Show, but Also Crashing the Stage!

*At the Uchiha Clan Grounds*

"Lady Mito."

Today, the head of the Uchiha clan greeted with utmost respect, as the person before him was the First Hokage's wife and the current leader of the Senju clan in Konoha. Since the death of the First Hokage, how long had it been since the Senju and Uchiha formally met like this?

"Hehe, I believe I don’t need to spell out the reason for my visit," Uzumaki Mito said with a calm smile. Both sides were aware of what she meant without needing further explanation.

"Rest assured, Lady Mito. The Uchiha clan, co-founders of Konoha with the Senju, are more than willing to face all challenges together!"

The Uchiha leader's face flushed with excitement. How many years had it been? Finally, during his leadership, the clan was on the brink of returning to the center of power.

Mito's smile grew even more satisfied.

"Rest assured, the bond between the future Nine-Tails jinchuriki and the Uchiha will be as steadfast as it was with Kagami."

The Uchiha leader's eyes widened at the promise—this was an assurance that if they stood out and attracted attention, the Uchiha would gain a place among the upper ranks.

All they had to do was take the hit?

Everyone in the shinobi world knew it—the Uchiha were famed for their strength! "As for Mikoto, I’d like to meet her personally," Mito added, cautious as always.

This left the Uchiha leader a little embarrassed, and he waved it off. "No need to worry, Lady Mito. Mikoto—"

But under Mito’s knowing look, he couldn’t help feeling sheepish. Clearly, she’d caught on to his and Elder Setsuna’s previous plans to encourage Uchiha Yosuke to charm Tsunade.

"Yosuke is a good kid; I trust him, just as Tobirama once trusted Kagami," Mito said calmly. Despite her wariness of the Uchiha due to their past coup attempts, she felt assured about Yosuke, who had already proven himself by acting alone. And as for the idea of him seducing her granddaughter Tsunade? She had to stifle a laugh, seeing it more as Tsunade mesmerizing the young man.

"Of course, I'll bring Mikoto here right away," the Uchiha leader replied, barely able to contain his excitement. At last, the Uchiha were on the verge of resurgence.

Yet, just as the two smiled, feeling as though each had achieved their goals, a signal flare suddenly shot up over Konoha Village.

Through the window, the Uchiha leader froze, dumbfounded, while Mito, usually so shrewd, looked equally shocked.

"Who did this?"

The Uchiha leader's face contorted in anger. It was a signal flare from the Police Force—what was going on?

“Clan head, bad news!” At that moment, a clan member burst into the room without even looking around, shouting furiously, “An enemy spy bypassed the Police Force's patrol and abducted a shinobi from the village!”

“What did you say?”

The leader’s eyes went wide. Wasn’t this supposed to be a covert operation? How did this become a public incident?

The reporting shinobi, oblivious to the situation’s complexity, only added, "It was Uchiha Yosuke! He discovered the incident and alerted the Police Force. Captain Fugaku has already taken ten elite squads to pursue the spy. And with that signal, every available officer has joined the chase!"

The clan head’s face turned pale, and Mito, after a brief moment of bewilderment, seemed to understand what was happening. She turned to him with a faint smile. "It seems Tsunade was right about Yosuke after all. I look forward to meeting Mikoto even more now."

Mito, wise from age, quickly saw through the tactics at play. She began to laugh heartily. This was an open strategy—a challenge that could only be accepted, no matter the prior schemes.

**Elsewhere in Konoha**

As evening descended, countless shinobi looked up, startled, at the flare in the sky.

"What happened?"

"Why is the Police Force acting like this?"

"I heard a spy infiltrated the village and kidnapped someone important. The Uchiha are going wild, rushing out of the village like madmen."

In the midst of this chaos, shinobi without active missions sped across rooftops towards the Hokage building, seeking guidance from their leader.

In the Hokage’s office, Homura Mitokado, Koharu Utatane, and Hiruzen Sarutobi stared, stunned, at the display outside. Danzo Shimura was the first to speak, slamming his hand on the table in outrage.

"Hiruzen! I told you this would happen!"

"Danzo, I am the Hokage!"

Hiruzen replied, equally enraged. Koharu could only sigh, "It’s as expected. Lady Mito must have had a hand in this. We received word from the Anbu that she arrived at the Uchiha compound just before this started."

Hiruzen coldly hummed, watching as the shinobi converged toward the Hokage building. “Send word to the Anbu. Move forward with the plan immediately; it must be completed before the Police Force catches up.”

**Konoha Main Gate**

The two chunin guards looked on in shock as Uchiha shinobi with crimson Sharingan eyes stormed out of the village, one after another.

In the lead, a middle-aged Uchiha with a two-tomoe Sharingan shouted, “Damn it, spies kidnapped a fellow shinobi right under our noses! Our honor has been trampled on!”

He bellowed, “Pursue them! Uchiha honor will be cleansed with their blood!”

“Kill them!”

The Uchiha charged forward in fury, their killing intent unmistakable.

Their role as the Police Force was to maintain village security and counter internal threats. Now, with an enemy spy infiltrating and kidnapping a shinobi within their territory, the Uchiha were incensed.

This insult demanded retaliation!

“Kill them!”

In the forest, Uchiha Yosuke led more than thirty elite Uchiha in relentless pursuit, fury etched on his face.

“Follow the trail of red hair! It’s our clue—catch up!”

The Uchiha raced forward, eyes filled with blazing rage as they followed the strands of red hair left in the wake.

“Let’s go!” Yosuke roared. He wasn’t foolish; he knew this was a staged opportunity. However, the stage had been meticulously prepared by the Third Hokage and included every part of Konoha’s security forces. If he just followed along, he would likely be shut down.

Thus, his best option was to take as many others onto the stage as possible, rewrite the script, and draw every shinobi in Konoha into the act, completely dismantling the performance.

“Yosuke!” At first, caught up in the fervor, Fugaku had charged out without a second thought. But now, seeing the scattered red hair, he began to realize the implications, his face paling.

“Could this be Uzumaki—” he muttered in horror. If something happened to her, it could ruin the newly formed friendship between the Uchiha and Senju.

“Everyone, forget conserving chakra! After them!” Fugaku’s eyes were bloodshot. He’d only been briefed on the operation’s goals, not the full details.

This mission had turned out to be far more dangerous than he could have anticipated.