"Hm?"
After quickly scanning through the updated panel, Uchiha Ren froze for a moment before letting out a helpless laugh.
What else could he even say?
He truly had not expected the system to be this bizarre.
Everything else was normal enough. His abilities had not changed much on the surface—
aside from the fact that he had become even stronger.
But the newly refreshed sign-in location…
that one genuinely caught him off guard.
The next sign-in target was actually—
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya herself.
For a moment, Ren did not know whether to laugh or curse.
At the same time, he gained an entirely new understanding of the system's strange sense of humor.
Still…
how exactly was he supposed to sign in on Kaguya?
Thinking about it carefully, Ren could not help falling into deep thought.
Meanwhile—
"They're dead…"
"Both invaders were killed?"
"Lord Fifth Hokage Uchiha Ren is simply unbelievable!"
"Unbelievable? This is beyond unbelievable! It's terrifying!"
Watching Urashiki's complete defeat through their telescopes, Queen Loran, Princess Sara, and the ministers slowly recovered from their shock before bursting into excited discussion.
There was nothing else to say.
The Fifth Hokage was just overwhelmingly powerful.
Of course, that atmosphere did not last long.
A few minutes later, Ren's figure flashed and appeared directly above Queen Loran and the others.
"Ancient Loulan has already been destroyed," he said calmly. "Even if it's rebuilt, it won't be the same anymore."
"So…"
"Are you willing to move to Konoha?"
There was no denying it.
After the catastrophic battle between Ren, Urashiki, and Kinshiki, the once-glorious kingdom of Loulan had become little more than ruins.
Cracked earth.
Collapsed structures.
Endless scars carved into the land.
With Ren's current power, restoring the city would not actually be difficult.
But there was no real meaning in doing so.
Without the Dragon Vein, Loulan no longer possessed the value it once had.
And that was simply reality.
The moment those words fell—
silence covered the area.
Queen Loran, Princess Sara, and the ministers all revealed conflicted expressions.
They understood Ren's meaning.
The old Loulan was gone.
Even if rebuilt, it would only be an empty shell.
But—
this was still the homeland where generations of their people had lived.
Leaving it behind was not easy.
Finally, Queen Loran took a deep breath.
"Lord Fifth Hokage," she said carefully, "this is the homeland our people have lived in for generations."
"If we move to Konoha…"
"Then we must receive the same treatment as ordinary Konoha citizens."
Pfft.
The sudden negotiation attempt made Sara burst into laughter.
She had thought her mother was about to say something emotional—
only for the conversation to immediately turn into bargaining.
As expected…
her mother really was clever.
Ren looked at Queen Loran for several seconds.
The pressure in his gaze alone made her lower her head nervously.
Then—
"Fine."
From today onward—
"you are citizens of Konoha."
The moment he agreed, Queen Loran quietly released the breath she had been holding.
Only now did she feel the pressure around her ease slightly.
Ren's mere presence was oppressive enough to suffocate people without him even trying.
Now that he had agreed, everything felt far more manageable.
"So we're really becoming part of Konoha?"
"Hahaha! We'll finally enjoy the same treatment as Konoha residents!"
"I can't wait to move there already!"
The ministers quickly became excited, their earlier hesitation disappearing almost instantly.
Compared to remaining in ruins, joining Konoha was obviously the better future.
Sara, however, was thinking about something else entirely.
"So…"
"I can attend ninja school too?"
The thought alone made her heartbeat quicken slightly.
If she wanted to stand beside Uchiha Ren someday—
then she needed strength of her own.
Otherwise, she would not even have the confidence to stand before him.
"Alright."
Ren smiled faintly.
"Pack your things."
"We're returning to Konoha."
"Yes, Lord Uchiha Ren!"
"Yes, Lord Fifth Hokage!"
Excitement instantly exploded among the people of Loulan. Many even knelt instinctively on the spot.
Looking at the scene before him, Ren's eyes narrowed slightly.
"The shinobi world is about to enter complete chaos…"
Originally, he had assumed that after Urashiki and Kinshiki died, Hagoromo and Hamura would finally reveal themselves.
But they never appeared.
Not even a trace of their presence leaked out.
They had hidden themselves completely.
Like turtles retreating into their shells—
and refusing to come back out.
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