Aside from the Uchiha, the one who understood the abilities of the Mangekyo Sharingan best was this poor fox. Ever since meeting Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha, its good days had come to an end.
Mito Uzumaki had the ability to open a small window for it to see the outside world and even chat with her occasionally. Life had been somewhat boring, but not unbearably bad.
But now, seeing its next host—a mere brat—could she possibly have the same capabilities as Mito?
If she couldn't control things properly, the one taking punches would still be the Nine-Tails.
Just thinking about it made Kurama feel anxious.
Surrendering might buy some freedom, but that would seriously damage the pride of a Bijū.
Too hard!
Kurama lounged in the Black Room, peering through the tiny window at the young boy outside.
Though portrayed in a bad light across various manga, this kid's comics really were pretty great. If living inside his body meant access to those comics, then maybe submitting wouldn't be so bad after all.
After all, being able to enjoy comics every day sounded pretty delightful.
Unfortunately, this kid belonged to the Sakuma clan—his constitution was weak, and he knew nothing about sealing techniques.
"Wait a minute... if I've already submitted, why the hell would I even need a sealing technique?"
Kurama paused thoughtfully.
Actually, that wasn't a bad idea. Perhaps later, once Mito Uzumaki grew old, he could bring it up with her.
With that thought, Kurama lay back down, ready to continue sleeping.
Unaware of Kurama's thoughts, Akaba was just talking casually with Mito Uzumaki.
Mito sat upright and shot him a glance, her tone gentle as she spoke, "Don't worry, Kyoyuki isn't that delicate a child. Also, we should start working on changing her surname. Let the name 'Uzumaki' remain in history."
"I still don't understand," Akaba asked quietly, "why she was sent to the Sakuma clan instead of the Senju clan?"
This question had puzzled him ever since she was placed under his care. Though he could guess part of the reason, the core remained unclear.
Why could the Senju protect nine others, yet deliberately send Kyoyuki to the Sakuma clan?
"You can't put all your eggs in one basket. Both the Senju and Uzumaki bloodlines are deeply feared and resented in the Ninja World. As for who is ultimately manipulating or guiding this whole situation, we simply don't know."
"If one day even the Senju fall into ruin, at least the bloodline will survive through the members of the Sakuma clan."
Mito spoke softly, almost whispering, audible only to Akaba beside her.
Akaba remained silent for a moment.
A hidden hand behind everything?
Thinking carefully, he felt there really might be such a possibility. The coordinated strategic moves by all the nations against the Land of Whirlpools were far too suspicious. According to the Third, Hanzo had likely been hired to dispatch the Assassination Team.
Then, was there someone deliberately orchestrating and pushing forward all these coordinated actions behind the scenes?
In the manga, had the Senju truly lived peacefully?
Take Nawaki walking into an ambush, for example.
If his death had been isolated, there wouldn't be much suspicion. But not only did he die from it, his internal organs also vanished entirely.
Viewed from this angle, Mito Uzumaki's concerns weren't unfounded.
However, very few individuals across the entire shinobi world were capable of doing something like this—either Madara, who hadn't died yet, or Black Zetsu.
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They walked for a while, and Sakumo brought up many details about the war. His narration was extremely thorough, covering nearly every minute detail.
At first, Akaba thought he was just looking for someone to talk to, but later on, something felt off.
Sakumo wasn't usually this talkative unless necessary, and he remembered all the details too clearly, as if he'd drafted an outline beforehand.
What exactly was going on?
A strange feeling crept in.
Akaba pondered for a few seconds before interrupting, "Hold on, Sakumo. We've been teammates for so long. Don't pull this act—just speak plainly. What's really going on?"
"Teacher wants you to create a virtual training illusion based on the War of the Land of Whirlpools."
Sakumo replied truthfully.
Akaba nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.
I wasn't even there for that battle, and now he wants me to create a full training dungeon based on it? That's asking way too much.
"I'll explain the details afterwards. It's pretty complicated."
Sakumo sighed lightly.
The battle itself had been incredibly twisted and difficult to describe in words.
Without thinking much, Akaba casually suggested, "How about this? You go back and think it through. Just draw it out so I can visualize it better."
"Draw it out?"
Sakumo froze, glancing at his hands. "You mean... draw a manga?"
"Pretty much. Otherwise, I won't be able to picture all those details clearly. For simple illusions, I wouldn't mind, but a training illusion requires perfection down to every last detail."
Ideally, they would make their own animated video or something similar, but obviously, the Fire Shadow World didn't have such technology yet, so they had to settle for second best.
"Well… alright, I'll give it some thought."
Sakumo, being an honest person, found the logic sound and couldn't really refuse. After much consideration, he finally agreed.
Right after saying that, he immediately pulled out a manga from his pocket.
It was the manga *One Piece*.
Lately, Sakumo liked *One Piece* more than *Naruto*. As soon as he returned, he hurriedly bought unread volumes.
After mastering the Dual-Blade Style, he had been growing increasingly flamboyant.
Even Kakashi Windseer could do little about it.
In truth, Sakumo's sword skills were terrifying on the battlefield. With both blades flashing and his speed boosted by Lightning Release chakra enhancing his physical body, mid-to-lower-ranked ninja fell like melons being sliced. Once, using the Chidori Blade Strike, he even assassinated a Jonin with a single stab.
With such achievements, what more could be said?
Sakumo happily finished one volume and immediately reached into his waist pouch for another.
It had been a long time since he last read it—many earlier parts were forgotten—but now, flipping through again, the memories surged back.
[Three Thousand Realms]
When Sakumo saw the fight between Zoro and Dracule Mihawk, vivid images of Zoro's Three Sword Style furious techniques flooded his mind.
One slash ending everything—such power was simply absurd.
But now...
Even with his ultimate technique activated, Zoro was still mercilessly crushed by Dracule Mihawk, unable to resist at all.
After finishing the volume, Sakumo didn't grab the next one immediately. He paused briefly before asking, "By the way, how's Nightdance's Sword Clone research coming along?"
"Not sure. I just got back recently. Haven't seen him in quite a few days."
Akaba answered.
"I'll head back and check first."
Sakumo pocketed the manga and prepared to return to the Hatake Clan compound.
Nightdance's swordplay and speed were actually fine—it was just her physical stamina that lagged a bit. Sakumo hoped she would keep improving, rather than being held back by her constitution.
He took a few steps forward before suddenly stopping. "If I want to learn drawing," he asked, "should I go for the One Piece style or the Hokage Ninja style?"
"Either works. It depends on your preference. As long as you can draw key scenes and battle moments clearly, it'll make my job of recreating them much easier."
"Oh, okay."
Sakumo slid his blade into its sheath and spun gracefully to leave.
That was the real him—just how he should be.
Akaba nodded inwardly.
As for the Illusionary Exercise issue, he already had someone perfect for the job. The Yumekuma Clan surely had more than just Zhi Meng capable of dream-manipulation techniques. Otherwise, they couldn't have caused so much chaos in the Summoning World.
So long as there was manga material, the Yumekuma could begin production.
Though it lacked full five-sense immersion, this approach had the advantage of mass production and plenty for all. Plus, each time they pulled someone into the dream world, the Yumekuma would absorb residual spiritual energy—an outcome they'd certainly welcome.
A triple win!
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