Chapter 530: Konoha’s Commission

Chapter 530: Chapter 530: Konoha’s Commission

Kagami had clearly achieved his objective, but upon hearing that Uchiha Madara might still be alive, both the Third Hokage and Utatane Koharu wore expressions of disbelief.

"H-How is that possible?"

Setting aside the question of his age, after the battle at the Valley of the End, the Second Hokage had personally examined Uchiha Madara’s corpse and confirmed his death. As the Second Hokage’s disciple, the Third knew this very well.

The Third refused to believe that his sensei, the Second Hokage, could have made such an elementary mistake. That was why he had never believed Obito’s claim of being Uchiha Madara in the first place.

Kagami chuckled. "We Uchiha possess quite a few forbidden techniques capable of blurring the boundaries between life and death and deceiving fate itself. So I can tell you with absolute certainty that Uchiha Madara did not die at the hands of the First Hokage. In fact, he even obtained the First Hokage’s power during that battle!"

Koharu frowned. "Then are you saying he founded the Akatsuki?"

Kagami nodded. "You could think of it that way."

The Third Hokage asked gravely, "Then was he also responsible for the Nine-Tails’ attack on our village?"

The Third had never been able to let go of the Nine-Tails’ attack.

It was precisely that incident that had cost Konoha two Kage-level combatants in a single night—the Fourth Hokage and the Nine-Tails’ jinchuriki—leaving the village in the difficult position of having no suitable successors to fill the void.

"Lord Hokage, you’re asking too many questions. Kamigami has no obligation to provide intelligence to your Five Great Shinobi Villages!" After a brief pause, Kagami continued, "Let’s return to our previous discussion. How exactly do you intend to pay that money? I trust I don’t need to remind you of the consequences of defaulting on your debt, do I?"

The Third hurriedly replied, "Please rest assured. I will not go back on my word. Every last ryo will be paid. I merely hope to establish a closer cooperative relationship with Kamigami so that we can better deal with the threat posed by the Akatsuki."

During the secret Five Kage meeting held after the war, the Five Kage had reached a consensus: only Yama, the leader of Kamigami, could keep Nagato, the leader of the Akatsuki, in check. Therefore, winning over Kamigami was the only way for the Five Great Shinobi Villages to maintain their ruling positions.

No competent Kage would allow a dispute over money to create a conflict with Kamigami.

Utatane Koharu also spoke up. "If your leader is equally wary of Uchiha Madara, then cooperating with Konoha would certainly benefit Kamigami as well."

Kagami glanced at Koharu and said indifferently, "Set aside your arrogance. You need to get used to the fact that the shinobi world is no longer under your control. More importantly, you need to learn to think from the perspective of the weak, and the sooner you do, the better."

Koharu snapped angrily, "You...!"

The Third stepped forward and stopped her. He then turned to Kagami and said, "As Hokage, I would like to express Konoha’s heartfelt gratitude to Kamigami. Thank you for the assistance you provided us during the previous battle."

With that, the Third gestured toward the captain of his Shadow Guard.

The captain immediately brought forward two large cases and placed them in front of Kagami.

Pointing at the cases, the Third said, "These two cases contain 100 million ryo in cash. As for the remaining 165 million ryo, we will pay it to you in installments over the next three months."

Kagami took out a storage scroll. Without even bothering to count the money, he directly sealed the two large cases into the scroll.

He then turned and headed toward the exit of the Hokage’s office.

Seeing that Kagami was about to leave, the Third spoke again.

"Please wait a moment."

Kagami turned his head. "Is there something else?"

The Third took a puff from his pipe and slowly said, "I wonder... does Kamigami accept commissions?"

Kagami raised an eyebrow. "What kind of commission?"

"Sigh, our village’s jinchuriki was abducted by Orochimaru during the chaos of the battle. If Kamigami can rescue our jinchuriki and bring him back to Konoha, we are willing to pay a reward of 50 million ryo."

Naturally, Konoha would not place all its hopes of rescuing Naruto on Kamigami. However, having Kamigami as an additional ally would undoubtedly greatly increase the chances of bringing Naruto back. This was precisely why the Third had proposed the commission.

After all, the Nine-Tails was simply too important. Especially now that the Akatsuki had revealed its intention to collect the Tailed Beasts, protecting their own Tailed Beasts had become an urgent priority for the Five Great Shinobi Villages.

Kagami smiled. "The Nine-Tails’ jinchuriki, huh? I’ll keep an eye out."

The Third said helplessly, "Then I’ll leave it to you."

In front of Kamigami, the Third simply couldn’t afford to take a hard stance.

For one thing, Kamigami was far too powerful. Konoha’s reputation held no deterrent power over them whatsoever.

For another, Konoha owed Kamigami an enormous debt of gratitude for the previous battle. If Kamigami had not intervened that night, the Third didn’t even dare imagine what the consequences would have been.

After leaving the Hokage Building without obstruction, Kagami was preparing to depart the village when two figures blocked his path.

These two were none other than Uchiha Fugaku, the current clan head of the Uchiha, and Uchiha Shisui, publicly recognized as the clan’s strongest shinobi.

Fugaku immediately activated his Sharingan and scrutinized Kagami, who was currently controlling his Fire Release clone, from head to toe.

Shisui, meanwhile, stood beside Fugaku with a somewhat awkward expression. Evidently, Fugaku had practically dragged him here.

Kagami curled his lips.

"Well, well, if it isn’t the esteemed patriarch of the Uchiha clan. What can I do for you?"

Fugaku said with a stern expression, "Since you’re a member of our Uchiha clan, you should return to the family. As long as you’re willing to come back, I can arrange a position for you..."

Before Fugaku could finish, Kagami teased, "Sure, I can come back, but you’ll have to give up your position as clan head!"

Fugaku froze for a moment, then fell into contemplation.

Kagami had expected Fugaku to reject the proposal outright. To his surprise, Fugaku actually began seriously considering such an absurd proposition.

He thought to himself, "As expected of the indecisive Uchiha clan head!"

The fact that Fugaku would instinctively hesitate and waver even over such a crucial matter undoubtedly demonstrated that he was not a suitable candidate to serve as clan head and command the entire clan.

After a moment, Fugaku said, "Come back. If you can defeat both Shisui and me, the position of clan head isn’t entirely out of the question."

Kagami laughed. "Sorry, I was only joking. I have no interest in becoming the patriarch of the Uchiha clan."

Hearing this, Fugaku’s brows knitted tightly together.

If even the position of clan head was insufficient to entice this fellow clansman, who possessed the Mangekyo Sharingan, to return to the family, then he truly had nothing else to offer.

Just as Kagami was passing by Fugaku and Shisui, Fugaku spoke again.

"I have a commission. If Kamigami can help me rescue my youngest son, I’m willing to pay a reward that will satisfy you!"

Hearing this, Kagami couldn’t help but laugh.

Whether it was the Third Hokage’s commission or Fugaku’s commission, both undoubtedly proved one thing:

The image of Yama as an invincible existence, unrivaled under the heavens, had truly become deeply ingrained in everyone’s minds...