With the last body dropping to the ground, I slowly pulled all my bones back into me, turning them into pure chakra; they had grown from it and could become it again, with only minimal loss. It truly was one of the most supreme Kekkei Genkai in existence — elegant, efficient, mine.
My Rabbit Hair Needle was a Kekkei Mōra technique, on the same exalted level as my original Byakugan or my All-Killing Ash Bones.
Even weakened as I currently was, it was no less than something like the Mangekyō Sharingan.
More than enough to slaughter Danzo's discarded playthings.
With both bone and hair returned to where they belonged, I brushed off the last fragments of dust and finally moved again. Kanna was clutching Karin so tightly the child whimpered, her knuckles white, her whole body trembling.
"Come," I said, turning away from the corpses. "Let us continue."
"But…" she tried, her voice small and unsteady.
"No buts," I cut in sharply. "They came for us. And our fates would have been worse than theirs had I not been strong enough. Have no pity for the pitiless."
I began walking.
Kanna hesitated only a heartbeat before hurrying after me, afraid to fall behind.
For a long moment, neither of us spoke. The wind rustled through the grass, carrying away the scent of death, and the road ahead seemed almost peaceful. A lie, of course. Peace was merely the breath between storms.
Karin peeked over her mother's shoulder at me — not afraid, merely curious. Innocent. Untouched by what had just unfolded. I wondered, briefly, how long that would last.
"Kaguya-hime…" Kanna finally whispered, her voice more timid than ever. "They were from Konoha… weren't they?"
"Yes."
"And… they tried to take us?"
Her hands tightened around her daughter.
"Yes."
"But…" She swallowed, gathering her courage. "Isn't Konoha supposed to be allied with Uzushiogakure?"
Her question made me sigh. The fall of Uzushiogakure had happened while I was living in Konoha as Yuki Hyūga, so I didn't have the same divine perspective on the events as I had with those that happened while I was watching the world from inside the moon.
But I did know a thing or two, though much of it was speculation. I, too, thanks to my Earthly memories, knew about the theories that Konoha had a hand in Uzushiogakure's fall.
And sadly, what I had experienced since arriving in this world didn't make that any less a likely theory.
"Konoha changed much over the years, in particular after the Second Hokage's death. The Third lacked the strength of the first two," I slowly began to talk as we walked.
"While the strength of the Second wasn't all too impressive compared to his brother, he was still a strong man, a brilliant mind, and someone who could get things done when it needed to be." I had some respect for the man.
After all, without him I would still be inside the seal, waiting for Zetsu to free me and put my chakra into Madara's body. Not to mention that his ability to invent a ninjutsu that could call back the dead was beyond impressive.
Despite having watched him do it, I couldn't figure out how it worked, only that it did.
"Not only is the Third's strength weaker than the Second's, but the Konoha he inherited wasn't as strong either, having lost some of its strength in the First Great War, and having the Second die."
"But Kaguya-hime… what does that have to do with Uzushiogakure?" Kanna interrupted, clearly confused and not following.
"It is a complex topic, involving history and politics that led to the current situation with Uzushiogakure and the Uzumaki clan's situation within Konoha — or rather, the situation of Kushina Uzumaki, the only one they have." I explained patiently, as I had very little else to do as we walked.
And it was an interesting topic.
"Now, as I was saying, Konoha saw a lot of changes happening around the time Uzushiogakure fell. For one, Konoha was no longer under the control of the Senju clan, and all the clans, including the Senju, weren't happy with the new Hokage." Indeed, when my lessons on politics started, a lot of it was about him and why he was the worst Hokage in history.
While both he and the Senju brothers all saw Konoha as their own, the way that played out was very different. The two Senju brothers had done everything they could to increase the power and wealth of Konoha as a whole.
This benefitted everyone who had some investment in the village, which included all the clans. Since they saw Konoha as their own, they naturally invested in the village.
Hiruzen Sarutobi also saw the village as his, but rather than invest in it, he used it to invest in his Sarutobi clan, and allowed his friends to do the same, drawing wealth and power from the village to their own clans.
This didn't make him very popular with the other clans at all. "The Senju clan was weakened at the time, and knew this, so they sought to strengthen themselves, trying to draw on the influence of the Uzumaki clan."
The Land of Whirlpools hadn't been particularly large, but it had been wealthy and powerful. With the Uzumaki clan leading it, it was the number one place for any sealing need; for many years they benefitted from this.
Until someone showed the world just how powerful their seals could be.
The people responsible for that were none other than Hashirama Senju and his wife, Mito Uzumaki. When they sealed not just the Nine-Tailed, but captured the others and handed over sealing methods to the other villages, everyone suddenly realized the true power of the Uzumaki clan's seals.
"Which drew the attention of the other villages," Kanna said.
"Yes," I said. "And not the good kind of attention."
Kanna's expression tightened. She already suspected where this was going — but she wasn't ready for the full truth. Few ever were.
"Once the world realized what your clan could truly do," I continued, "they also realized something else: the Uzumaki clan's existence was a threat. A threat to every nation incapable of matching your seals. A threat to any village who feared the idea of a perfect Jinchūriki being made elsewhere."
I flicked a bone splinter from my sleeve, letting it dissolve back into chakra.
"It didn't help that the Five Great Nations were still young, insecure, and still bloodthirsty after the First Great War."
Kanna lowered her head. "So they… they feared us."
"Feared," I agreed. "And coveted. At the same time. A foolish but common combination."
The wind picked up, rustling the tall grass along the road. Karin babbled softly, unaware of the weight hanging in the air.
"Now," I continued, "imagine you are the Raikage, or the Tsuchikage, or the Mizukage — and you look across the sea and see a clan capable of binding the very Bijū themselves. A clan whose seals could fortify cities, weapons, bodies… and potentially break your own."
I paused.
"And then you learn that this same clan has an ancient alliance with the Senju. That their women marry into Konoha. That their strength flows directly into your rival's hands."
Kanna swallowed hard.
"It was… inevitable," she whispered. "Wasn't it?"
"Yes."
There was no gentleness in my tone.
The truth rarely deserved any.
"Uzushiogakure was destroyed because it was powerful," I said. "Because it was valuable. And because it was alone."
Kanna looked at me with wide, wounded eyes. "But… Konoha was supposed to help us."
I sighed again — slower this time.
"Konoha could have helped," I said. "Should have helped… but while Uzushiogakure was a valuable ally to the Senju clan, and to Konoha, it was a political issue for the current Hokage, as the Uzumaki clan supported one of his own political rivals — the Senju."
Kanna blinked. "Rival? But… the Hokage is supposed to lead everyone equally."
"So the ideal claims," I said dryly. "Reality is different."
The dirt road stretched on ahead of us, quiet and empty, but my words seemed to hang heavy in the air, like storm clouds waiting to break.
"Hiruzen inherited a village built on Senju strength," I continued. "But he was not a Senju. And worse — the Senju did not trust him. The clans did not trust him. Even the civilians whispered of incompetence. He was a Hokage sitting in a seat that no longer belonged to him."
"Then… why was he Hokage?" Kanna asked.
"Because Tobirama named him," I answered simply. "And because no one wanted to fracture Konoha during a war."
A small smirk touched my lips. "Even if that war killed more talented shinobi than anything else."
Kanna frowned, confusion mixing with disbelief. "And that… led to the fall of my home?"
"Indirectly," I said. "But the chain of consequences was simple."
I lifted a hand, ticking each point off like a list of crimes.
"One: the Senju clan weakened and politically sidelined."
"Two: the Uzumaki clan still closely aligned with them."
"Three: Hiruzen's advisors — Homura and Koharu — urging him to distance Konoha from anything that strengthened their political rivals."
"Four: Danzo whispering poison in the dark, insisting that helping Uzushiogakure would be a bad idea."
Kanna's face paled with every word.
"And five," I finished, voice flattening, "the other villages saw a moment of weakness and acted. They struck while Konoha's leadership hesitated."
I spread my hands slightly.
"And Uzushiogakure was abandoned."
The wind quieted for a moment. Even the birds seemed to fall silent.
"So yes," I said. "Konoha was supposed to help. And the Senju tried. But the Hokage did not move quickly enough, and when he finally did, it was far too little, far too late."
Kanna looked down, her eyes glassy. "So my clan… my family… died because of politics."
"Most people die because of politics."
I didn't soften the blow. Mercy would not help her now.
"And because of that, Konoha now has only one Uzumaki left — Kushina — and she is too valuable to risk. Do you understand what that means?"
Kanna looked confused. "…What does it mean?"
"It means," I said, "that you and your daughter are now priceless. You are a resource Konoha desperately wants. And a reminder of their failure they cannot allow to live free."
Her breath hitched.
"And Danzo," I added coldly, "would rather break a jewel than let another hold it."
Kanna hugged Karin tighter, trembling. "So… there is nowhere safe for us."
"There is with me," I answered without hesitation.
Not kindness. Not compassion.
Just fact.
"I will not let them touch you."
(End of chapter)
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