This Puppeteer Is Bit Too Strange

During this period, Shinobi Clans and skilled Wandering Shinobi continuously joined Sunagakure… The sudden influx of so many strangers in a short time caused some unease among the original villagers.

But for the clans and Shinobi who had also recently joined, it felt particularly reassuring.

Because the more this happened, the more it proved that Sunagakure genuinely wanted to expand its scale, not for some ulterior motive.

Yumi also noticed this phenomenon and felt some internal hesitation.

When Uzushiogakure was destroyed, she received the Clan Head's summons and had information on the clan's sealing techniques and barrier techniques sealed within her mind.

But she hadn't told Ryuji.

In her eyes, Ryuji was no different from the Shinobi who destroyed Uzushiogakure for their sealing techniques; he simply coveted their sealing techniques, though using a different method.

He pretended to bring them to the Mechanical City, let their guard down, then probed for information or used torture to extract it.

But after coming to Sunagakure, nothing like that ever happened.

On the contrary, they, a group of women, children, and elderly, often received care and help from the villagers. Gradually, the other Uzumaki Clan's members truly integrated into Sunagakure, seeing themselves as part of Sunagakure.

'Perhaps I can entrust these things to him after all!'

The old Clan Head's parting instructions weren't to never give the sealing and barrier arts to others, but to give them to someone trustworthy who wouldn't bring disaster to the Shinobi World… preferably using this information to secure living space for the Uzumaki survivors.

And the living space for the Uzumaki Clan… they already had it.

But if she didn't make a choice, perhaps they would lose it.

Although the news of the Shinobi World uniting against Sunagakure hadn't been announced publicly, from the conversations of the village's Shinobi, one could sense Sunagakure's situation and conflict with the rest of the Shinobi World.

Combined with Sunagakure's large-scale recruitment of clans and the rapid expansion of its strength through puppets, even ordinary people with no knowledge felt the pressure of an impending storm.

The dark clouds of war loomed over the Mechanical City, and a stifling atmosphere pervaded the entire city. Yumi felt she couldn't remain aloof any longer.

So, she went to find Ryuji.

…

"What brings you to me?"

Ryuji glanced at the woman standing before him, vaguely guessing her purpose.

He had never believed that all the Uzumaki Clan's sealing techniques were truly lost… Or rather, he believed the physical records were lost, but someone among the Uzumaki survivors must know where they were lost or buried.

But he also understood that if something wasn't obtained even by the end of the original work, using forceful methods to find it would likely yield no results.

Moreover, since the Uzumaki survivors had already joined Sunagakure, those things would eventually become Sunagakure's possessions.

It wasn't that Sunagakure would seize the Uzumaki Clan's things, but if someone from the Uzumaki Clan mastered the sealing techniques in the future… As members of Sunagakure, wouldn't their mastery of sealing techniques mean Sunagakure possessed those techniques?

After all, Sunagakure was now a brotherhood village.

If someone from the Uzumaki Clan could become Kazekage in the future, that would be their own capability.

Yumi said, "I want to tell you about our Uzumaki Clan's sealing techniques."

'As expected.'

Ryuji inwardly understood, but his expression remained unchanged as he adopted a serious posture.

The Uzumaki Clan's sealing techniques were inherited from the Sage of Six Paths and were also extremely important to him at present. Applying Uzumaki Clan's seals and barriers to the Mechanical City could increase the entire city's defense system by at least two levels.

That might not sound like much, but considering the city's vast size and the accumulated technical foundation, it was quite significant.

Yumi swallowed hard and said her prepared piece.

"First, I must apologize to you. I deceived you. The sealing techniques have been preserved with me in a special way. The reason I didn't give them to you at the time was due to distrust. I hope you can understand."

Ryuji nodded. "That's perfectly normal. No need to say more; I completely understand."

Hearing the response she wanted, Yumi sighed in relief and continued, "I know the current situation is somewhat unfavorable for our Sunagakure."

She used the word 'our'.

This was proof of a sense of belonging.

"So I also hope our Uzumaki Clan can contribute our strength to Sunagakure. Our clan's sealing techniques were sealed away in a location using a special method. Currently, only I know that place. Only I can undo the seals there; any other method would only destroy the contents."

Ryuji thought about it, and felt this method was indeed quite secure. If it were him, he'd probably do the same.

This also lent some credibility to Yumi's words.

"Where is that place?"

"In the Land of Whirlpools, within a long-abandoned ruin. I can only pinpoint the exact location once we're there."

After hearing her out, Ryuji stood up. "Without delay, we'll set off for the Land of Whirlpools immediately."

As Ryuji followed Yumi to the ancient ruins in the Land of Whirlpools, the other Shinobi Villages also gradually accelerated their actions.

Sunagakure's overt recruitment of outside Shinobi Forces gave them a sense of urgency.

To speed up the construction of their own Sky Castle, the villages reduced external mission assignments, having their Shinobi also join in the construction.

For a time, it seemed as if the Shinobi World had entered an arms race, with the great villages embarked on a flourishing construction fervor.

The upcoming war would be unlike any previous war in form.

As large numbers of craftsmen were conscripted, even the lives of ordinary people were gradually affected. The atmosphere of war, originally unrelated to ordinary civilians, began to weigh on them as well.

And the Daimyo supporting their respective villages also felt the pressure.

Although it was a war between Shinobi, the cooperative relationship between countries and their villages meant they would also be affected.

If their own village was defeated, losing their national defense force would leave them vulnerable if other countries attacked… Moreover, the victorious side might dispatch their own Shinobi to participate in the attack.

If the situation truly developed to that point, these Daimyo would become stepping stones for other nations.

Therefore, even after prolonged wars causing economic difficulties, no Daimyo was stingy with a single coin. They all exerted their greatest efforts to help their own village's development.

Even the newly appointed Daimyo of the Land of Wind, who cared little for his people's life and death, was the same.