Mastermind of the Akatsuki

Upon realizing the newcomer was Byakuya, Yahiko and the others immediately relaxed their guard.

Seeing Byakuya's forced smile, Yahiko furrowed his brow, clearly irritated, and asked, "Byakuya, where have you been lately? We haven't heard from you at the organization's base."

Konan chimed in, "The last time I tried to go to the base to find you, I was told by Akane that you'd been gone for quite some time. What exactly have you been doing?"

Byakuya shrugged and replied, "I've been busy. I went to the Land of Snow for a while, then took a trip to the Land of Fire. Only now do I have a chance to come back."

"You went to the Land of Fire?" Yahiko's eyes narrowed as he realized something. He asked with a strange expression, "The Uchiha massacre night in Konoha, and the invasion of the Land of Fire by Iwagakure... you wouldn't have anything to do with that, would you?"

At this point, Yahiko's face grew more serious as he suspected he had uncovered the truth.

Byakuya rolled his eyes and responded, "The Uchiha massacre? What does that have to do with me? The conflict between Konoha's higher-ups and the Uchiha clan has been brewing for a long time. It was bound to happen sooner or later. It doesn't really matter whether it happened earlier or later."

"You know about the Uchiha massacre?" Yahiko asked, his expression shifting.

Byakuya nodded and said, "Of course, I know about it. However, Konoha's official statement is a lie. The losses the Uchiha suffered were nowhere near as extensive as they claimed, and the attack on them wasn't as simple as they made it seem."

"What do you mean?" Yahiko looked at Byakuya, his breath quickening.

Byakuya casually found a place to sit and said unhurriedly, "Yahiko, a lot of things can't just be taken at face value. You need to think deeper."

"On the surface, the Uchiha were attacked by Itachi, but how much benefit did Itachi actually gain from it?"

"Not much," Yahiko agreed, "Not only did he lose his clan, but he also became a rogue ninja wanted by Konoha. His future is going to be hard."

"So what do you think is the real story behind the Uchiha massacre?" Byakuya asked with a sly smile before continuing.

"In my opinion, even if Itachi really did turn on his clan, it must have been because of someone's instigation, either through a sense of duty or through threats. Itachi was… forced to take action against his own family."

Yahiko hesitated, "And once the Uchiha clan was eradicated, the group that benefited the most was Konoha's higher-ups."

"Are you saying that Konoha's higher-ups orchestrated the Uchiha massacre?" Yahiko widened his eyes. He found it hard to imagine that Konoha, the village that represented the Will of Fire, would target its own people in such a way.

Although Yahiko didn't have much fondness for Konoha, the principles behind Amegakure had drawn from Konoha in many ways. To see the village he once admired fall so far was a bitter pill for him to swallow. He didn't even know what to say.

Then it seemed Yahiko remembered something, and he spoke up, "Did you go to the Land of Fire this time to bring back the remaining Uchiha survivors?"

Byakuya didn't deny it and gave a slight nod.

On the matter of accepting the remaining Uchiha, he didn't feel the need to hide it from Yahiko. After all, handling the affairs of hundreds of people couldn't be kept secret from him.

Upon hearing this, Yahiko sighed lightly but didn't say anything further.

From the perspective of Amegakure's leader, Yahiko should have reprimanded Byakuya, sending the Uchiha back to Konoha while clarifying things with the village.

If not, it could easily cause misunderstandings between the two sides, potentially leading to war. However, after seeing Konoha's actions in recent years, Yahiko was deeply disappointed. Konoha no longer felt like the ideal village he once admired; it had turned into a place that hid filth and corruption.

It was Konoha ninjas who had attacked Amegakure and killed Nagato's parents.

It was also Konoha ninjas who had nearly wiped out the Akatsuki organization, and yet, the Akatsuki had never owed Konoha anything. It was Konoha that had hurt him again and again.

Even with his connection to Jiraiya, Yahiko found it difficult to maintain any fondness for Konoha. At most, he didn't take advantage of their misfortunes when they were under attack.

Yahiko withdrew his wandering thoughts and turned to Byakuya. "Where have you placed the Uchiha? Do you need any supplies from the village to support them?"

Byakuya shook his head. "No need for supplies. I plan to settle the Uchiha in a secluded area. They can't show themselves yet, and the villagers must not know about them."

Yahiko nodded in agreement with Byakuya's decision before asking, "Now that the Uchiha issue is handled, what do you think about Iwagakure's attack on Konoha?"

Byakuya pondered for a moment before replying, "Sit back and watch maybe? Or maybe lie down and watch would be better."

Yahiko was left speechless. He wanted Byakuya's opinion, but Byakuya was brushing him off. Was this really an appropriate response in such a serious high-level meeting?

Byakuya's expression turned serious. "Yahiko, that's my opinion. The war between Iwagakure and Konoha doesn't concern us much. We don't need to get involved in their war."

Yahiko nodded, acknowledging that Byakuya's point was valid. Amegakure didn't need to get involved in this conflict.

Before the war reached a certain point, even if Amegakure intervened to mediate between Konoha and Iwagakure, it would only draw the fire to Amegakure, without solving the fundamental issue.

Konan, however, seemed to have realized something and glanced at Byakuya a few more times.

Her intuition told her that Iwagakure's attack on Konoha was definitely connected to Byakuya. Their conversation a few months ago, with Ōnoki, must have involved today's war.

Otherwise, Byakuya wouldn't have been active in the Land of Fire for the past few months, leaving the village.

However, Konan hesitated on whether to bring this up to Yahiko. She wanted to point out these details, but Byakuya's judgment had never been wrong.

Every decision that seemed absurd at the time always brought the Akatsuki the greatest benefits.

In less than ten years, Byakuya had led the Akatsuki from a small organization in Amegakure to a massive organization spanning multiple countries, far surpassing ordinary ninja villages in power.

After discussing the topic of Iwagakure and Konoha's war, the high-level meeting gradually drew to a close.

Byakuya, who had been deep in thought for some time, addressed Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan, asking, "Yahiko, Nagato, Konan, how do you think the organization and the village have been developing these past few years?"

Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan exchanged surprised glances before answering in unison, "The village and the organization have developed well. The living standards of the people in our territory may not be as high as the major cities in the Land of Fire, but compared to the rest of the ninja world, it's more than enough."

Byakuya nodded in acknowledgment before asking, "And what do you think about the current situation in the ninja world?"