Not long after the Konoha forces withdrew, the Third Tsuchikage of Iwagakure, Ōnoki, arrived at Tenchi Bridge with two thousand Iwa shinobi.
He hovered in midair, looking down at the field below.
The ground was littered with Iwa corpses.
His expression darkened to its ugliest shade.
The moment he received word of Kikyōzan's defeat, Ōnoki had wasted no time. He assembled two thousand reinforcements and rushed toward the Land of Grass, determined to retrieve what remained of his shattered army.
More than two thousand shinobi.
And among them—
His son, Huangtu.
Ōnoki had discarded every unnecessary procedure. Abandoned every burden that could slow him down.
He flew as fast as possible.
And yet—
He was still too late.
Judging by the state of the battlefield, the fighting had ended barely an hour ago.
An hour.
That was all it took for two thousand Iwa shinobi to vanish from existence.
Of course his face looked like that.
"Report!"
Several Iwa reconnaissance shinobi sprinted back from the forest across the gorge, shouting from below.
Ōnoki slowly descended, voice cold.
"Speak."
"We pursued them to the Grass–Fire border. The Konoha forces have already withdrawn into Fire Country and are constructing defensive lines."
"Additionally, they've received reinforcements. Total force now estimated at around three thousand."
Ōnoki showed no visible reaction.
"Who is leading them?"
The scout hesitated briefly before answering.
"Konoha's Yellow Flash, Namikaze Minato… and the Red Sun, Uchiha Jin."
"They made sure we saw them."
A deliberate display.
A warning.
The scout continued.
"We also found a surviving Iwa shinobi. According to him, Orochimaru of the Sannin participated, along with an unknown powerful Uchiha."
Ōnoki's face grew even darker.
Four high-level combatants.
No opportunity for retaliation.
If he attacked recklessly, he and his two thousand men would simply join the dead.
After a long silence, he gave the order.
"Collect the bodies."
"…Then we return."
The war, for now, was over.
But Iwagakure would not forget.
Three Days Later — Konoha
Uchiha Jin and Namikaze Minato returned to the village at the head of over two thousand shinobi.
Civilians lined the streets in celebration.
Three days earlier, reinforcements sent by Nara Shikaku had arrived at the border. They remained on guard until Ōnoki withdrew fully from the Land of Grass and retreated into the Land of Earth.
Only then did Konoha finally exhale.
After delegating postwar logistics to Minato and the others, Jin led just over one hundred surviving Uchiha back to the clan compound.
When he had departed, he took five Guard Force battalions—more than two hundred fifty shinobi.
Now—
Just over a hundred remained.
In mere days, Uchiha losses surpassed years of casualties during the Third Shinobi War.
That alone showed how brutal this campaign had been.
And yet—
The survivors were all elite.
Every one of them possessed at least a two-tomoe Sharingan. More than half had awakened three tomoe.
In raw combat power alone, the clan had not weakened.
But that was not how such things were measured.
Behind each fallen Uchiha was a family.
There would be much for Jin, as clan head, to handle.
He dismissed the returning shinobi to their homes.
He did not go to his own.
Instead, he headed straight to the Konoha Police Force headquarters and sent word for Elder Setsuna, the Second Elder, and Uchiha Fugaku to assemble.
He had only just entered his office when a Police Force member knocked and entered.
Jin sat down calmly.
"What is it?"
"Captain… Mizuto Menma and Shimura Danzō from the Hokage Tower are here. They say it's urgent."
Jin paused slightly.
"They're quick."
"Bring them in."
He added:
"When the elders arrive, have them wait in the conference room."
"Yes, sir."
Not long after, Konoha elder and Hokage advisor Mito Monen (Mizuto Menma equivalent in your setting) and Shimura Danzō entered together.
Both wore neutral expressions.
But a careful observer would notice—
Urgency flickered in Menma's eyes.
Calculation and probing intent shone openly in Danzō's.
Jin smiled lightly.
"What rare guests. Please, sit."
"Minister Jin," Menma began politely, "forgive the intrusion. You've only just returned from the battlefield and deserve rest. But the matter is pressing."
"No trouble," Jin replied casually.
"What issue requires both elders to come personally?"
Menma did not waste time.
"It concerns the thirty billion ryō subsidy from the Daimyō."
Ah.
So that's why.
Menma's tone sharpened slightly.
"Minister Jin truly has impressive methods—quietly establishing ties with the Daimyō without anyone noticing."
Jin nodded as if suddenly remembering.
"Ah, that matter."
"Yes, the Daimyō allocated thirty billion ryō to the Uchiha. Is there a problem?"
Menma's brows knit.
"Minister Jin, let's be precise. That thirty billion ryō was allocated to the village, not to the Uchiha clan. Your clan is merely holding it temporarily."
Jin smiled faintly.
"You're correct, Elder."
"But not entirely."
"The funds were entrusted to the Uchiha not only for safekeeping—"
"But for distribution."
"And not just this batch."
"From now on, every allocation from the Daimyō to Konoha will follow the same arrangement."
The room fell silent.
Menma's face darkened instantly.
This—
Was no longer about temporary custody.
This was about power.
And money.
And who truly controlled the future of Konoha.
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