Do you truly not believe in Konoha's future?

When Satoru heard Minato's question, he found himself drifting into the past.

In his memories, had he not once truly believed in it?

Yes, he had.

There was a time when he wholeheartedly believed in Konoha's future. The passion of youth burned bright in his memory, untarnished by the years of disappointment that followed.

Back then, he had defied his clan's objections and personally joined the war for Konoha's sake.

When Satoru fought in the Great Ninja War, the young commander standing before him likely hadn't even been born.

But what was the outcome of that belief?

His closest friend, another member of the Hyūga main family, sacrificed their life in the war for the sake of the village.

Even now, one of his friend's Byakugan eyes was brazenly used as a trophy by a jonin of Kiri.

And yet, all that he and his friend fought for was ultimately returned to the other villages when the last Grreat Ninja War ended—all of it handed back by Hiruzen.

All for… a piece of paper promising peace.

Perhaps it was at that moment that Satoru changed.

He became a "typical" main family elder. Gone was the fire that once drove him to the frontlines. He became what he had to become. The village demanded their loyalty but offered no protection in return.

He no longer impulsively took personal risks. He no longer directly involved himself in the brutal battles of war. The battlefields he now fought on were in meeting rooms and council chambers.

Wherever he went now, he was always accompanied by numerous branch family guards.

He began to cherish his own life, to grow numb. Words like "clan," "prestige," "bloodline," and "legacy" became his vocabulary.

His Byakugan grew ever sharper, but the light in his eyes was gone. The pride of the Hyūga now meant more to him than any Will of Fire.

If the war had unfolded according to the original trajectory, Satoru—no matter how disillusioned he was with the village—would still have supported Minato.

Not for any noble reason, but simply to leave a good impression on the next Hokage, who was destined to rise, and secure a better future for the Hyūga clan.

Politics, after all, was just another form of warfare.

If everything had gone smoothly and victory came as expected, then even with no light in his eyes, he would have appeared to be a loyal supporter of the Will of Fire.

But the problem was… victory didn't come.

So, when Minato had asked him, "Do you truly not believe in Konoha's future?"

Satoru simply chuckled lightly.

"I do believe, Minato-sama. I've always believed in Konoha's future. I believe the war will eventually end, and Konoha will remain standing." Let the boy hear what he wants to hear.

"Then why do you still—" Minato began to retort, but stopped mid-sentence.

He understood Satoru's meaning.

Satoru did not doubt Konoha's future. What he feared for was the future of his clan—the future of the Hyūga family.

"Satoru-san, your way of thinking is wrong. If every ninja clan thinks only of preserving itself, the village will inevitably decline and splinter. When the trunk of the great tree falls, no leaf will escape unscathed."

"Then tell me, did you say the same to the Sarutobi clan? From what I know, it's not just Hyūga clansmen who have recently returned to the village, is it?"

"…" How much of this anger has been building beneath the surface? How many other clans harbor these same thoughts?

Minato felt his throat dry up. He was left speechless.

It was only then that he realized how much of a mess his predecessor had left for him. The image of Konoha's leadership he had held was cracking like a mirror struck by stone.

Until now, he had always felt respect and gratitude toward Hiruzen. The old man's guidance had been a constant in his life, a foundation he had built his beliefs upon.

Even though he was aware of some of Hiruzen's mistakes and had disliked certain actions of his, Minato's own smooth journey through life had shielded him from experiencing the consequences of those mistakes.

Success had blinded him to the deeper wounds festering in the village's heart.

But today, when his streak of victories on the battlefield was finally broken, and he encountered setbacks and failures for the first time, all the conflicts that had been buried beneath Konoha's victories erupted at once.

He saw how terrifying the accumulated issues of the village truly were.

In the end, he could only rely on his authority as the frontline commander to pressure the Hyūga clan into contributing more squads.

Satoru nodded in agreement, but there was no submission in his eyes. Only the same cold calculation that had replaced his youthful fire so many years ago.

But Minato found no solace in this. Because he knew the problem hadn't been solved—it had only been suppressed once more. Like a wound hastily bandaged, the infection continued to spread beneath the surface.

If there were another battle, and they found themselves at a disadvantage, the ninja squads under his command would never fight with the same self-sacrificing resolve as Akatsuki did that day.

Later, Minato returned to the command center in a daze. By evening, he finally met two companions he could confide in—his teammates Chōza and Shibi.

In the battle a few days earlier, the areas under Chōza and Shibi's command were among the few that hadn't completely collapsed under Pain's assault.

Seeing his injured but recovering comrades brought Minato a rare moment of comfort, though their bandaged forms served as another reminder of the cost of war.

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"Chōza, you participated in the last Great Ninja War, didn't you?"

The Akimichi froze at the question, momentarily setting aside the chips he was eating—an act that even drew a curious glance from Shibi.

The topic clearly hit a nerve with him.

Chōza, being slightly older than Minato, had risen to prominence earlier due to his status as a ninja clan member. As a result, his memories of the last Great Ninja War were much clearer.

After some thought, he finally replied, "Yes, I fought alongside Shikaku and Inoichi in several key battles."

"Were you able to accept the outcome of that war?"

This time, Chōza took even longer to respond.

After a long silence, he finally said, dejectedly, "It would be a lie to say I did. We gave so much, but in the end, it felt like nothing changed, like we gained nothing at all."

Chōza continued, "Did you know? By the end of the war, we couldn't even bring back the Second Hokage's remains because Kumo never relented."

"And Sandaime-sama... to push for peace, he ultimately chose to compromise. Because of that, Tobirama-sama still lies in the Land of Lightning."

"That alone is enough to make Torifu refuse to fight anymore."

Torifu, a peer of Hiruzen and Danzō, had also been a student of Tobirama. Now, however, no one had heard news of him in years.

Minato had always thought Torifu retired early for personal reasons. But today, he learned the truth behind it.

At that moment, doubt and confusion flooded his mind.

He saw Satoru's mocking eyes from earlier that day.

He envisioned countless Konoha ninjas, broken by war, reduced to lifeless shells. Each face he saw was someone's friend, someone's family—all sacrificed for a peace that never seemed to last.

Until now, Minato had never wavered in his belief that he was fighting to protect Konoha. The answer had seemed so clear, so simple.

But now, even though his resolve to protect Konoha remained unshaken, he couldn't help but feel lost.

Faced with a war destined to change nothing, how could he convince others to follow him and sacrifice themselves?

Has Konoha… truly gone astray?

---

While Minato was overwhelmed by the fallout of military defeats and other pressing issues, the Land of Rain was steadily advancing in an organized manner.

On this day, the coffins of fallen ninja from the frontlines finally arrived at Ame.

The townsfolk had been notified two days earlier, so by the morning the coffins arrived, the avenue leading to the village gate was lined with people on both sides. The crowd had spontaneously gathered to welcome their heroes home.

"My son might be among them," a woman murmured, clutching her shawl tightly.

"They died protecting us. The least we can do is be here," the man beside her responded.

Kabuto was also brought there by Rai and stood among the crowd lining the road.

At first, he didn't feel much about what was happening. He couldn't understand why such a grand display was necessary.

That was until a nearby man, who looked somewhat familiar, couldn't help but grumble, triggering a scene that left Kabuto utterly stunned.

"Honestly, ninja dying in battle is their destined end. Why go to all this trouble? This is going to cost a fortune again today," the man complained.

The one grumbling was none other than Kakuzu, who had stayed behind in Ame.

He harbored considerable resentment towards this "extravagance" ordered specifically by Shin in a written directive. Another wasteful display of that manipulative brat's propaganda, Kakuzu thought darkly, mentally calculating the costs.

For a moment, Kabuto found himself agreeing with the man. It seemed reasonable. Reflecting on the training and education he had undergone in Root, he remembered being repeatedly taught that a ninja's destiny was to die for their village.

It was an obligation, like fallen leaves returning to the soil. They were instructed never to question what the village gave them but rather to ask themselves what they had done for the village.

So, at first, he thought the man might have a point.

That was until, the moment Kakuzu finished speaking, the surrounding crowd erupted with angry glares.

"Who are you to insult the heroes who died in battle?" a young woman stepped forward.

"These Akatsuki brothers and sisters fought to the very last moment for the Land of Rain. They deserve all the honor they can get!" an elderly man joined in.

"Exactly! Without their sacrifices, you wouldn't even have the chance to spout nonsense here!"

In an instant, the crowd's heated defense of the returning war heroes left Kakuzu speechless.

Witnessing this, Kabuto was completely stunned. His glasses slipped down his nose as he watched the scene unfold.

It was only then he realized: in the Land of Rain, the mindset was completely different from what he had known in Root.

Here, people did not take it for granted that ninjas should give everything for their village or organization. Instead, the environment taught them to hold the utmost respect and gratitude for ninjas fighting on the frontlines.

This realization left Kabuto strangely moved.

Not long after, unable to withstand the increasingly sharp rebukes from the crowd, the man let out an annoyed huff and walked off.

Kabuto followed the man's retreating figure with his eyes. When he saw him going towards Ame's research institute, he suddenly remembered who the man was.

"That was Kakuzu? Oh my god!"

He exclaimed aloud, startling Rai, who turned to look at him and asked, "Kabuto, what's wrong?"

Kabuto anxiously tugged at Rai's sleeve and frantically said, "Rai, you have to make sure those people who spoke earlier leave quickly! The person they just insulted is Kakuzu."

Rai paused for a moment.

As a ninja with keen senses, he had naturally heard the surrounding conversations earlier. Now hearing Kabuto's warning, he first showed an amused expression before gently patting Kabuto on the head to reassure him.

"Don't worry, Kabuto. Things are different here from Root. No one will be punished for accidentally insulting an important figure in Akatsuki. The leader here is nothing like Danzō; he wouldn't care about such trivial matters."

Kabuto looked at him with some skepticism, only for Rai to flick him lightly on the forehead.

"Don't you trust me? Or are you doubting your mother's judgment? She was the one who chose this place."

Kabuto finally relaxed and stopped talking.

This reaction nearly made Rai want to flick him again. "So you're not denying the part where you don't trust me, huh?"

Before he could act, a commotion at the village gate caught their attention and interrupted their exchange.

"The heroes have arrived!"

Someone shouted, and the crowd erupted into excitement, only to fall into absolute silence at another loud command.

"Silence!"

The same voice continued, "Salute! Fire the salute cannons!"

What seemed like ceremonial fireworks shot into the sky, accompanying the procession.

At that moment, Rai finally understood Kakuzu's earlier complaint—Akatsuki had truly gone all out. The ceremony must have cost a fortune in resources and planning. But seeing this... maybe it was worth every ryō.

Yet, even knowing this display was deliberately orchestrated by Shin, he couldn't help but feel a deep sense of admiration and longing.

After all, he had fought for Konoha for so many years, but never received such treatment... Not even a proper thank you when he returned from suicide missions.

Many things in this world were like that. Even when you knew something was manufactured, you couldn't help but feel inspired and want to follow it.

The crowd's silence, broken only by muffled sobs and whispered prayers, proved the power of this calculated display.

After all, ninjas were still human. Who wouldn't want their sacrifices to be widely acknowledged?

For this reason, Shin never abandoned propaganda and education, no matter how much money it cost.

So far, the results were outstanding.

Outstanding enough to astonish Kakuzu himself.

---

A few days later, while Kakuzu was agonizing over the nation's dwindling funds in his office, Konan flew back from the frontlines with a strategy personally devised by Shin.

Her paper wings dissolved as she landed, her expression serious as she presented the document.

"Issuing war bonds? Is such a ridiculous idea really feasible?" Kakuzu's face darkened as he read through the proposal.

Having spent decades as a diligent mercenary, he was deeply skeptical of such "unorthodox" methods.

Konan's reply was brief, "This is Shin's order. If you implement it well, there will be bonuses."

That single sentence lit a fire in Kakuzu's heart.

In that moment, he even began considering whether he could "eliminate" a few nobles to indirectly expedite the Shin's plan.

A few convenient accidents could encourage others to be more... generous.

Yet only two days later, the reports left Kakuzu utterly dumbfounded.

"You're saying… how much money has been raised?"

The subordinate, intimidated by Kakuzu, stammered, "As of now… it's only been two days since we issued the bonds, and we've already raised 600 million." He clutched his clipboard tighter, as if it might shield him from his superior's reaction.

The subordinate's use of "only" made Kakuzu question reality.

He wanted to grab the man by the collar and demand, "Listen to yourself! Does that even sound human?"

His fingers twitched with the urge, but he remained frozen in his seat, still processing the astronomical figure.

This number made his decades of hard work as a mercenary feel like a joke.

The subordinate shifted nervously, wondering if he should leave. Finally, Kakuzu waved him away with a distracted gesture.

As the door closed behind the retreating subordinate, he leaned back in his chair and let out a long breath.