Everyone fell silent, their thoughts tangled and heavy.
After a long while, Tsunade finally asked, "Where did you get this information?"
"From secret archives in my clan's compound," Wen Lan replied calmly.
Shizune spoke anxiously, "Then why don't you spread this information? This affects the lives of everyone in the shinobi world!"
"Heh—naive." Wen Lan shook his head helplessly and looked at Shizune, then turned his gaze back to Tsunade.
"Ask Lady Tsunade herself—does she fully believe what I just said?"
Tsunade didn't answer, but the distrust in her eyes was obvious.
What Wen Lan had said sounded far too fantastical.
"See?" Wen Lan leaned back in his chair.
"If Lady Tsunade doesn't believe it, how could anyone else?
Only when the enemy truly stands right in front of them will they be willing to believe… and unite."
That, in fact, was Wen Lan's goal.
He wanted to ensure peace in the shinobi world—without becoming the villain himself.
So the Eye of the Moon Plan had to begin.
Let Obito become the villain, just as in the original timeline.
Let him slowly ignite war, forcing the Five Great Nations to unite against a common threat.
Only under overwhelming danger would the villages abandon their prejudices.
Only then could true peace be born from the flames of war.
As for how many people would die?
That had nothing to do with him.
As long as the people he cared about survived, that was enough.
He was never that noble—never someone who wanted to save everyone.
Great achievements required sacrifices.
As Nagato once said:
"Peace itself is something bought with blood."
Wen Lan poured Tsunade another cup of sake and continued, "Lady Tsunade, some things can't be escaped just because you want to avoid them.
Just now, I changed the topic—and you didn't stop me.
That means you were already trying to avoid the truth.
Back then, the Third Hokage wouldn't have done it himself.
You were his student, and he was your grand-uncle's disciple.
So Nawaki's death was connected to him—but he wasn't the mastermind.
As for Homura and Koharu, they don't have that kind of courage.
Which leaves only one person…"
"Danzo."
Tsunade clenched her teeth, crushing the sake cup in her hand.
"Exactly." Wen Lan looked calmly into her trembling eyes.
"And I've already thrown Danzo into prison.
Don't you want to see how the Uchiha deal with him?"
Tsunade shot to her feet, fingers digging into the table, knuckles white.
"Where did you lock him up?!"
Wen Lan took a sip of his drink.
"Konoha's underground prison. Third level.
He's still alive—waiting for you to interrogate him."
"…What do you want?" Tsunade asked hoarsely.
"Simple." Wen Lan replied evenly.
"The two things I mentioned earlier—and your return to Konoha, to assist the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze."
Tsunade took several deep breaths, forcing herself to calm down, though her eyes still burned with emotion.
Suddenly, she formed hand seals and slammed her palm onto the floor.
"Summoning Circle!"
With a puff of smoke, a palm-sized slug appeared, its tentacles twitching gently.
"Lady Tsunade." Katsuyu lifted her head and looked around curiously.
When she saw Wen Lan and the others, she paused.
"This chakra… such strong Yin energy. Is this Uchiha?"
Wen Lan nodded.
"Katsuyu-sir, I am Uchiha Wen Lan. I wish to sign a contract with you."
Katsuyu was silent for a moment, then looked at Tsunade.
"Lady Tsunade, is this also your will?"
Tsunade nodded slowly.
"Yes. Katsuyu-sir, please."
Katsuyu crawled toward Wen Lan and asked,
"The Uchiha wield Yin chakra, while our slug clan embodies Yang chakra.
Why do you wish to do this?"
"Sage Arts." Wen Lan answered bluntly.
"I walk the path of taijutsu and swordsmanship.
Among the Three Great Sage Lands, only Shikkotsu Forest's senjutsu suits me best."
"That path is extremely difficult," Katsuyu warned.
Wen Lan nodded without hesitation.
Katsuyu took a deep breath, then spat out a scroll that landed on the floor and unfurled.
Glowing contract characters slowly surfaced across it.
The scroll was covered in sticky mucus, but Wen Lan didn't mind at all. He picked it up and glanced over it.
Senju Hashirama.
Senju Tsunade.
Only these two names were written.
Without a pen, Wen Lan bit his finger and wrote his name on the scroll in blood.
Only then did he finally relax.
With senjutsu chakra, his future combat power would skyrocket.
He would gain the foundation to contend with tailed beasts—and even Ten-Tails jinchūriki.
As the blood seeped into the scroll, a gentle light flickered.
The scroll rolled itself up, and Katsuyu swallowed it.
"From this day forward, I will teach you to the best of my ability.
Whether you succeed or not… depends entirely on you."
"…Yes, Katsuyu-sir."
With a final puff of smoke, Katsuyu vanished.
Wen Lan had chosen Katsuyu for a reason.
She might look disgusting at first glance—but she was actually quite adorable.
Scheming, cute, and masterful at playing pitiful.
In the original story, when Tsunade sent Katsuyu to help Naruto and Sakura, she had clearly used a space-transfer technique—
yet she claimed she had crawled over mountains and seas, crossed deserts, and even been sprinkled with salt by passersby.
She completely fooled Sakura.
"Then let's move on to the next step," Tsunade said as she stood up.
"I'll step outside for some air. Let Shizune handle this minor procedure."
Shizune nodded and stood, moving to Hikari's side.
Tsunade walked to the door and was just about to open it.
"Lady Tsunade," Wen Lan said calmly, lifting his cup,
"Do you really not plan to treat your hemophobia?"
Tsunade froze, her back stiffening for a split second—but she didn't turn around.
Shizune shuddered and stared at Wen Lan in shock.
"There was once a great man who said," Wen Lan continued lightly,
"the best way to overcome fear is to face it head-on.
Do you really think you can escape it forever?"
Tsunade gripped the doorframe tightly, her voice low and trembling with suppressed anger.
"What do you know?"
Wen Lan set down his cup and looked straight at her back.
"I've walked through mountains of corpses and seas of blood.
I've seen too many people die because they retreated in fear.
If you don't face your inner demon, it will eventually consume you."
Tsunade fell silent for a moment—then pushed the door open and walked out.
Shizune glanced worriedly at Tsunade's departing figure, then turned back to Hikari.
"…I'll begin."
Hikari nodded quietly.
True to Tsunade's disciple, Shizune worked swiftly.
She carefully removed Hikari's eyes, placing them into two glass containers filled with preserving solution.
Then—
It was Wen Lan's turn.
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