Uchiha Patriarch !

The atmosphere was a bit heavy in the temporary command center of the Cloud Ninja, set up in a hotel. The Cloud Ninja standing guard outside the office didn't dare to breathe loudly. They had no idea what was happening. They had just defeated Konoha again and seized the Kusatsu Highlands—a clear victory—so why did Lord Tutai look so serious?

"…Konoha's reinforcements, huh? It's not surprising that they've arrived. If Konoha doesn't want us invading the Land of Fire, they would definitely send reinforcements. There's nothing unusual about that. Yugito, you said you have important intelligence to report, and you even abandoned the task of establishing a defensive line in the Kusatsu Highlands. What's going on?"

The Fourth Raikage, A, a fitness fanatic, stood by the window, holding two dumbbells that looked like barbells.

Besides A, several others were present in the room. Tutai, Raikage's assistant and the strategist of the Cloud Village, sat on the sofa with a serious expression, his eyes half-closed as if deep in thought. Next to him sat Darui, who had returned with Yugito. Influenced by Tutai's mood, Darui had also curbed his usual laid-back demeanor.

A young man with blond curls and pale skin sat on the sofa opposite them. His name was Cee, one of the brightest new talents in the village, much like Darui. Both were regarded as the most outstanding of their generation, highly valued by A. In this battle, A had chosen to bring these young men, Darui and Cee, rather than the village's veterans, to sharpen them.

"Yo, Yugito, you don't look so good!" said a man sitting on the windowsill. He had dark skin, pale yellow hair, a "Iron" symbol on his right shoulder, and horn-like markings on his left cheek. Wearing sunglasses and carrying seven swords on his back, his peculiar speech pattern clearly identified him as Killer Bee, the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki and another key figure in Cloud Village.

Yugito stood in the center of the room.

All eyes were on her now.

She had claimed to have extremely important intelligence, which was why everyone had gathered.

"What I'm about to report is mostly information I received from Matatabi," Yugito began, immediately mentioning the name of Two-Tails.

"Konoha reinforcements include a member of the Uchiha clan, and not just any Uchiha—a Uchiha who has awakened Mangekyō Sharingan. I am no match for this person. If they hadn't been in a rush to leave to rescue someone, I might not even be standing here right now."

These words shocked everyone.

Everyone present knew what kind of person Yugito was—proud, to put it kindly; stubborn, to put it bluntly. She had suffered defeats before, but she never admitted it and always sought to redeem herself. 

Now, she was openly admitting she wasn't a match for the enemy? It was almost like sun had risen from west.

But soon, everyone realized the gravity of situation. Yugito was a perfect Jinchūriki, fully in control of Two-Tails' power. For her to admit defeat… how powerful must this enemy be?

"Sigh," Darui sighed.

He had already witnessed Yugito's transformation earlier and wasn't as shocked as the others.

"Mangekyō Sharingan? I feel like I've heard that name somewhere before..." A put down his dumbbells, frowning in thought. Unable to recall, he turned to Tutai, who sat on the sofa deep in thought. "Tutai, do you know what Mangekyō Sharingan is?"

"I've never seen it myself," Tutai shook his head, then added, "But Second Raikage once said that three-tomoe Sharingan isn't the true limit of Uchiha clan. Above that lies a higher evolution known as Mangekyō Sharingan. It's said that Uchiha Madara was able to rival First Hokage after awakening it."

The history of ninja world spans a thousand years, but no need to go too far back. Just within the past century, Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara stood as unrivaled forces. Having reached pinnacle of ninja world, their power was known by all. Senju Hashirama's Wood Release and Uchiha Madara's Mangekyō Sharingan were no secret in that era. Any Jonin worth their rank knew that their battles reshaped the very maps of ninja world.

That's not an exaggeration.

Every time Hashirama and Madara fought, ninja world's various factions had to update their maps, either by surveying the land themselves or stealing finished maps from other villages. In short, every village had records of the damage caused by their battles.

The reason even the Raikage was unaware of Mangekyō Sharingan was simple: after Uchiha Madara, no other Uchiha had publicly awakened it on the battlefield. Or, more accurately, no one had seen it displayed on the battlefield since then. With so many generations of ninjas dying off like blades of grass, the knowledge had faded from memory.

Even those who survived didn't constantly remind the younger generation about the glory days of Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara.

Thus, the Mangekyō Sharingan, like Wood Release, became a legend of past.

Only a few elders or people like Tutai, who enjoyed reading, had any chance of learning about Mangekyō Sharingan. After all, compared to the easy-to-understand Wood Release, Mangekyō Sharingan was a much more complex subject to explain, even in Madara's era.

"Big brother."

"Mangekyō Sharingan is no joke. If you ever encounter one, be extremely cautious. Gyūki just told me to watch out if I ever meet a Uchiha with Mangekyō Sharingan," said Killer Bee, scratching his head.

When Yugito had mentioned Mangekyō Sharingan, the Eight-Tails inside Killer Bee had immediately stirred—not to break free of its seal, but to warn Bee to be careful in the future and not to wander recklessly just to practice rap or hold concerts.

"Even the Eight-Tails says that?" A picked up his dumbbells again and resumed his workout without breaking a sweat. "Yugito, is this all you wanted to report? If there's nothing else, go back to working with Darui. Finish constructing the defensive line in Kusatsu Highlands. Once we're ready, I'll deal with this Mangekyō Sharingan myself and see if it's really as powerful as you say!"

Tutai opened his mouth several times, but ultimately remained silent.

The Raikage's calm composure wasn't a bad thing. In fact, as Raikage, he had to be unshaken, even if the sky were falling. Otherwise, how could he lead the village's tens of thousands of Cloud Ninjas? Even though Tutai believed they shouldn't underestimate Uchiha clan, there was no need to confront Raikage head-on at this moment.

The battle with Konoha wouldn't erupt immediately. There was still time to gather information on Uchiha clan and Leaf ninja with extraordinary taijutsu that Darui had mentioned. Konoha's resources ran deep—despite sending so many spies, they still hadn't uncovered all of Konoha's secrets.

"Yes, Raikage-sama," Darui stood up and responded firmly.

However, as he moved to leave, he noticed Yugito standing still, unmoving. A sense of unease crept into his heart—was Yugito about to say something else? A moment later, his instincts were confirmed.

After a brief hesitation, Yugito spoke again, "Raikage-sama, can't we… negotiate peace with Konoha?"

Her words left everyone dumbfounded.

Even Tutai, who had been deep in thought, jerked his head up so quickly that he nearly sprained his neck, his face showing utter disbelief.

Was this really the proud, battle-hungry Yugito he knew?

"Konoha has sent more reinforcements. Even if we win the next battle, we're bound to suffer significant losses. I think it might be better to take what we've gained and negotiate peace now. Even though we didn't manage to invade Land of Fire, we've still made substantial gains in Land of Hot Water. If we make peace now…"

"Yugito!" A cut her off. "Are you questioning my orders?"

"No, Raikage-sama, I just don't want to see too many of our comrades sacrificed."

"Then use Two-Tails' power. The stronger you are on battlefield, the fewer of our comrades will have to die." A didn't lose his temper, but he raised his voice. He frowned at Yugito's defiant expression, his brows knitting even tighter. "Alright, Yugito. If you're too tired, go rest. Darui will take care of constructing the defensive line in the Kusatsu Highlands. Cee, go help him."

"I understand," Cee, with his pale skin, blond curls, and handsome face, stood and nodded.

Yugito said nothing more this time, but her stubborn expression made it clear she hadn't changed her mind.

"Yugito, go take a break! Once you're fully rested, I'll assign you another task." A raised his dumbbell and motioned for the two-tailed Jinchūriki to leave. Yugito silently bowed to Lord Raikage, then flicked her long braid as she walked out of the office, leaving everyone else staring at each other in confusion.

What on earth just happened?

"C, use your sensory jutsu to check on Yugito's condition," said Dodai, right after the door closed behind the departing Jinchūriki. C, one of the top sensory ninja in the village, glanced at Lord Raikage, who nodded in agreement.

Without delay, C formed hand seals and activated his sensory jutsu to probe Yugito's state.