Avengers of the Whirlpool Family.

Chapter 308 Choice
One step wrong, step by step wrong.

If before when Menma followed Orochimaru to defect, Mizuto Kado En and others only felt shame and extreme anger without any other emotions, now with the news of Menma's horrific battle records again and again, the mentality of Mizuto Kado En and others has already changed greatly.

This can be said to be a common human trait.

After all, in the beginning, neither Mito Kado En nor Shimura Danzo felt that Menma was much of a threat. Even before the incident in Spring Country, Danzo still felt that as long as there was no interference from external forces, he could simply send out a larger elite Root team to successfully capture Menma.

What does a boy of twelve or thirteen need to be afraid of?

In their Konoha ninja village which is known as the cradle of geniuses, the most talented representative figure, Namikaze Minato, did not possess the power to shock the ninja world until he was nearly 20 years old, and most of this was due to the Flying Thunder God Jutsu.

This is not an exaggeration, because with the power that Minato displayed when he was young, if he really didn't have the Flying Thunder God Technique, he would at most be a quasi-kage to ordinary kage level, and it would be impossible for him to easily kill a jonin, or to fight against many enemies alone.

Flying Thunder God brought a qualitative change to the young Minato.

Even so, Minato only became truly famous during the Third Ninja World. Before that, the title that Minato held was merely that of 'Jiraiya's disciple'.

Therefore, even though Menma is the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, in the past ten years, Menma has never been seen to adapt to and master the power of the Nine-Tails. Who could really know that Menma could be so strong! ?

This was a development that Mizutomon En and others could not have predicted.

Therefore, let alone Mito Kado En and Utatane Koharu, even Shimura Danzo, the extremely powerful old silver coin, is finding it very difficult to deal with.

No matter how conceited he was, he would not think that his own Root people could defeat Uzumaki Menma. The best proof of this was that he had previously ordered the Root people who had been attacking on the front line to temporarily obey Jiraiya's orders.

Unless he takes action himself.

For one’s own strength.

Danzo was still quite confident. This was evident from the fact that in the original work, while he was dealing with Sasuke, he still considered holding back to suppress Obito who was watching the battle from behind.

After all, in Danzo's view, he already possessed the two ultimate powers of Wood Release Cells and Sharingan. Even though he was still quite far behind the other two, he had definitely reached the pinnacle of the current ninja world.

Just a Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.

With his Mangekyō Sharingan and Wood Release, can't he suppress it?!

But he can't leave the village easily now.

"Tsunade, do you have any problem with Jiraiya and Shikaku?"

Utane Koharu on the side slowly opened her eyes, looked at Tsunade on the main seat with a solemn expression and asked.

The decision is not so easy to make.

If they take any wrong step now, even Konoha will not be able to bear the side effects that will result.

They must treat it with caution.

"Shikaku's suggestion is to try to mediate the war between the Cloud and Rock Ninjas. If that doesn't work, we should at least gather the strength of the Mist and Sand Ninjas to launch another attack. If we are alone in Konoha, let's not talk about the issue of victory or defeat. Even if the final result is in our favor, we will inevitably need to consider other issues."

Tsunade shook her head slightly and said with a slight sigh.

Mito Kado En, Utane Koharu, and Shimura Danzo also fell silent after hearing this. Although the words were not said very directly, the three people present could easily get the meaning behind them.

To put it bluntly, it is still a matter of being vigilant against each other.

There can be no real trust and friendship between ninja villages. Everything still depends on interests and the actual power that one possesses.

If Konoha cannot give the Mist and Sand Ninjas the benefits they want, and then drag them into adventures together, it would be almost 100% impossible.

Shikaku didn't seem to say anything.

But in fact, everything was said.

Through Tsunade's mouth.

The meaning conveyed is also well expressed.

Danzo and the other two could also hear it clearly.

"Then pay some price. What is our primary goal? Wasn't it made clear at the beginning?"

There is no room for any comment.

and so.

Unlike Mito Kado En and Utane Koharu who were still struggling and hesitating, Danzo at the side snorted, raised his eyelids, and spoke in a slightly cold tone.

From here we can see the gap between Mito Kado En and Danzo. In fact, regardless of their stupidity due to old age, decades ago, when they were accepted as disciples by Senju Tobirama, Danzo and Sarutobi Hiruzen had always been Tobirama's most proud and valued disciples. No matter how incompetent Danzo was, at least in terms of courage and decisiveness, he was still better than the other two.

in a sense.

If Danzo wasn't so extreme in his personality.

Perhaps he could indeed become a good leader. Of course, his extreme personality might also be caused by the fact that he did not become a leader.

But all of this is just hypothetical and does not have much practical significance.

When Tsunade heard Danzo's words, a hint of surprise flashed in her beautiful eyes.

This is a blatant practice of giving away benefits.

This was not something Tsunade had the impression that Danzo would agree to, or even take the initiative to propose.

Generally speaking, this old guy is the kind of person who will not give up even a little bit of his own interests, and will fight with other ninja villages to the end.

And today he changed his personality?

Tsunade couldn't help but mutter in her heart.

"It's easy to say that we'll pay a price, but where's the bottom line? Whether it's the Mist or the Sand, both families won't release their eagles until they see the rabbit. Danzo, you should also know the personalities of Yuanshi and Chiyo very well. Unless the price paid is high enough, how can we get the two families to take action together? I think we should take a long-term view."

Mitomon En shook his head slightly and objected.

A choice made based on inertial thinking.

It’s not that Mitomonen really can’t see the harmfulness of facial hemp.

But there is a saying that goes, the more conservative a person is, the more likely they are to make so-called "moderate" decisions after constant weighing of the pros and cons.

Was Mizutomon En's choice wrong?
Not necessarily.

But it is definitely the most passive one.

This practice of giving all the initiative to others is a common trait of people like Mito Kado En. When they were young, they were led by Sarutobi Hiruzen. Later, when Sarutobi Hiruzen himself became extremely conservative, even a little timid, the Hidden Leaf Village became a giant with all its equipment and parts solidified and rusted, and every step they took seemed so stiff and reluctant.

Never willing to take a charge.

Always think about ending all conflicts with the minimum loss.

The case of the kidnapping of Hyuga Hinata is the best proof. A normal ninja village leader would come up with the idea of ​​handing over companions from his own ninja village to appease the so-called anger of the enemy ninja village, right?
This is no longer just conservative.

It was cowardice and stupidity. And now Mitomon Yan's approach is exactly the same, adhering to the ideas of his past decisions, everything is still based on the so-called "safety".

"Let's take a long-term view!? Yan, is your brain getting worse as you get older?? To what extent has Uzumaki Menma's personal strength and power expanded now?? Are you going to continue to let it go?? That brat is only 13 years old! 13 years old! Do you understand what this means?? If one day that brat grows up to the level of the Shodaime, what will we do in Konoha? Wait for him to destroy us? Now is the last chance, we must completely kill Uzumaki Menma here and recapture the Nine-Tails, no matter how great the price we have to pay!!"

Danzo slammed his cane on the ground and said with a stern expression.

Mitomon En was yelled at by Danzo.

Their expressions froze as they were about to say something.

"Yan, this time Danzo and I have the same opinion. Uzumaki Menma can't be left alone any longer. He is now capable of defeating the Fourth Raikage. Who knows what his upper limit is? Although it is a bit exaggerated to say that he has reached the level of the First Hokage, the 13-year-old Uzumaki Menma is also the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. His threat factor is too high. The Takigakure Village and the Kusagakure Village are now his allies. We really need to prepare for the worst. Tsunade, I agree with Danzo. When necessary, we can give up as many benefits as possible. I will be responsible for communicating with the Daimyo, but we must win over the Mist and Sand Ninjas and gather the strength of the three villages to defeat Uzumaki Menma!"

Utane Koharu, who was sitting on the side, spoke first.

This time is different from the past.

The attitude expressed by Utatane Koharu was that she completely agreed with Danzo. After she finished the first half of the sentence while looking at Mito Kado En, she turned her head and looked at Tsunade who was sitting in the main seat.

Mizuto Menyan was also stunned at that moment.

Facing the almost identical serious and solemn expressions of my two best friends.

Mizuto Menyan couldn't help but doubt himself.

I want to say something.

But before he could speak.

"Peng Peng!"

"Hokage-sama, urgent news!"

Suddenly.

There was a rapid knock on the door.

The faces of several people in the office suddenly changed when they heard these words clearly.

"Come in!"

Tsunade also shouted immediately.

"Squeak!"

Until the moment the person pushed open the door and came in.

"Is there something wrong at the front line again!? What did Jiraiya say!?"

Without waiting for the visitor to say anything.

Tsunade asked in a very anxious tone.

Danzo and others were also staring at the Konoha ninja who came to report. They were really worried that there would be problems on the front line again.

If even the front-line troops led by Jiraiya were defeated, their Konohagakure Village would really have to consider the worst possible outcome.

"Huh? No, not the information from the front lines, Hokage-sama."

The people who came were all confused by Tsunade's question. After being stunned for a moment, they quickly shook their heads and said.

Hearing this reply.

Tsunade, Danzo and the others also felt a little relieved.

But in less than a second.

"Hokage-sama, something went wrong with Master Naruto. This morning we found that Master Naruto had disappeared. There was no trace of Master Naruto in the entire village!!"

By the time this Konoha ninja hurriedly told what needed to be reported.

"What!?"

"what!?"

"this!"

When Tsunade suddenly stood up and her face changed drastically.

Mito Kado En and Utane Koharu sitting on one side also frowned, but Danzo was the only one whose expression did not change much.

The Naruto in this life is not the Uzumaki Naruto who is the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki in the original work. At most, he is just the son of the Fourth Hokage. Naturally, Danzo would not care too much about it.

It’s lost, so what can I do?
Moreover, Danzo could also guess where Naruto went.

The same is true for Tsunade.

"Peng!!!"

"This brat! He was told not to mess around, but he still did it!? What are the Anbu people doing!? Can't both teams keep an eye on one person!?"

Tsunade looked furious, slammed the desk in front of her and shouted loudly.

"I'm very sorry, Hokage-sama, we have been following Master Naruto the entire time, but..."

The visitor suddenly lowered his head and replied with a hint of panic.

The main reason is that they themselves did not expect that Naruto would just disappear from the face of the earth like that. Their Anbu followed Tsunade's instructions and monitored him in two shifts 24 hours a day. Of course, this monitoring was only within a certain range, and it was impossible for them to really stand close to Naruto. It was okay outdoors, but when he returned home.

They, the Anbu, can’t possibly follow them in, right?

I can only stay outside.

But even so, there is almost no blind spot outside the house that is monitored. It was in such an environment that Naruto escaped their surveillance. What else could they do?
"Go after him immediately. I don't believe that there will be no trace left. Also, give orders to have all the garrisons outside the village spread out. We must capture that bastard before we reach the border!!!"

Tsunade said angrily.

"Wait, and remember to notify Jiraiya at the front line. That bastard must be heading towards the location of Takigakure Village. If the border is unable to catch up with him, have Jiraiya send someone to intercept him!"

"Yes, Hokage-sama!!"

After the visitor answered quickly and loudly.

"Whoosh!"

He immediately left the spot and went to carry out Tsunade's order.

"The opinions of Elders Tatsune and Shimura are very clear. Does Elder Mitomon have any other opinions? If not, I think it's settled. As Elder Shimura said, this incident is of vital importance to us in Konoha. We have to give up a little bit of profit, and this is the price we have to pay."

(End of this chapter)