In the Sand Village, the clones are everywhere, and the Arkham game begins

Chapter 378 Shocking Konoha
Jiraiya wanted to organize Konoha's defeated soldiers and use the power of him and Orochimaru to cover the safe retreat of more Konoha ninjas.

"We are already doing the most important thing, Jiraiya."

Orochimaru said with a cold expression.

"Being able to hold back the three guys from the Sand Village is already the limit of what we can do. If we go back and get trapped again, we will lure the three of them back. With their lethality, more people will die, and even you and I will be killed.

Let's not talk about anything else, just talk about your Sage Mode, even with the two of them, how long can you use it?"

Orochimaru looked at the two toads on Jiraiya's shoulders that helped to gather natural energy and said.

Although he has not learned the Sage Mode of Ryuchido and has not yet developed the curse seal, Orochimaru now has a certain understanding of the Sage Mode.

After all, it is impossible for the contractor of Ryuchi Cave to not know about the Sage Mode. As the direct descendant of the Third Hokage, it is also impossible for him not to know that this is a powerful force once mastered by the First Hokage.

Jiraiya clenched his fists unwillingly, then let out a sigh of relief.

"Then let's go..."

"Staying alive, then escaping, gathering the remaining troops, retreating, using the home advantage to engage in guerrilla warfare with them, and delaying the Sand Village as long as possible."

Orochimaru suppressed his emotions very well and chose the path that best suited the current situation in the shortest time.

"After we shake off the pursuit, we will immediately ask for help from the teacher. With our current strength, we will never be able to stop the Sand Village, let alone win.

We must at least have enough power to stop that Kazekage candidate before we can talk about anything else."

……

Shimizu, along with Rasa and Yekura, chased for a long time, and even caught up with Jiraiya and Orochimaru at one point, injuring them.

But unfortunately, these two guys finally escaped without leaving their lives.

In terms of strength, Shimizu is indeed a bit stronger than the current top Kage-level figures in the ninja world. Most of the time, he can even suppress two Kage-level masters by himself.

But after all, he still did not create an essential gap with these Kage-level powerhouses like Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha. He could only be considered to have taken one step forward.

The strength of Rasa and Yekura is relatively weak among the Kage-level masters, while Jiraiya can temporarily exert a strength close to the peak of Kage level in Sage Mode. Orochimaru also has many strange methods and is good at escaping.

These two people are determined to leave. It's not that they can't be stopped, but if they really want to fight to the death, Qingshui will definitely be fine, but Luosha and Yecang might really be dragged down with them.

Let’s see if there’s a chance to set up an ambush and trick these two people next time.

Moreover, even if there is no result in chasing these two people, the long-term pursuit can at least prevent them from having the time to gather the defeated soldiers and organize the retreat of Konoha ninjas, allowing the Sand Village ninjas to eliminate more of Konoha's manpower.

……

……

In Konoha Village, in the Hokage's office, smoke was rising and clouds were swirling.

The Third Hokage was smoking a pipe with a piece of information in front of him.

This is the battle report from the Kirigakure front.

In front of him, Danzo was leaning on a cane, looking at Sarutobi Hiruzen with Koharu Utane, who had a worried look on his face.

"The Fourth Mizukage... has he become a Jinchūriki who can perfectly master the power of the tailed beasts... No wonder Yan was defeated so quickly, he really couldn't stop that young man Yagura."

Utane Koharu recalled the information she had just read and couldn't help but sigh.

Danzo couldn't help but sneer at Sarutobi Hiruzen.

"The defense line of Wave Country can no longer be held. Hiruzen, I have already told you to leave the front line in the direction of Water Country to me. If that were the case, we wouldn't have been defeated like this. As it is now, Kirigakure might threaten the mainland soon."

Danzo is stronger than Mito Kado En. He feels that if it were him, even if he couldn't win, he wouldn't lose like this.

"Danzo, you don't understand what I mean."

The Third Hokage shook his head helplessly.

"Right now, the Third Kazekage and Hanzo who are allied with Sunagakure have not yet set out. The village must dispatch enough forces to prepare for it. You are stronger, so we keep you here to guard against them."

"So what should we do now? The attitude of the Land of Lightning is unclear. Even if the Iwagakure, as an ally, agrees to contain them, they will definitely put more of their strength into dealing with the Sand Village. We must leave enough forces to guard against them, but there are not many reserve troops left."

Utane Koharu sighed.

"In the past few years, Ninja School..."

"No, Danzo."

The Third Hokage interrupted:
"How long has the war started? If the senior ninjas of the ninja school graduate early, other villages will definitely think that Konoha is just a paper tiger, which only looks intimidating but actually becomes a spent force after a short period of fighting."

"The only ones who can be mobilized are the ninja clans, especially the big ninja clans."

Utane Koharu reminded.

"The Sarutobi clan can provide two hundred elite soldiers and ten jonin."

Sarutobi Hiruzen pondered for a moment, then spoke:
"We have to set an example so that those ninja clans will be willing to use their resources. The combined strength of the Shimura clan, the Utane clan, and the Mitomon clan cannot be less than that of the Sarutobi clan."

That's more than twenty jonin and four hundred elite soldiers.

The elite are not cannon fodder.

To be called elite, one cannot be the grassroots Genin who has just graduated and only knows the Three Body Techniques. One must at least know a few mainstream ninjutsu and have a certain amount of experience in carrying out missions. Generally, those who have this ability are either Chunin or the elite among Genin.

"I will personally go and persuade the Yamanaka, Nara, and Akimichi clans. As for the remaining Hyuga, Aburame, and Inuzuka clans, I'll trouble you, Danzo, to visit them."

The Ino-Shika-Cho and the Sarutobi clan are allies that have witnessed generations. Their relationship has been strong for at least two or three hundred years, a friendship accumulated over more than a dozen generations. Sarutobi Hiruzen is the direct descendant of the Hokage.

If he went to persuade them, even if the three tribes still had some reservations, they would definitely give the third generation some face and take real action.

The remaining ninja clans could only close their doors and release Danzo.

If you don't have the close friendship like Sarutobi and Ino-Shikacho to do this kind of thing, you will offend people.

Sarutobi Hiruzen is the third Hokage and will have to rule Konoha in the future, so he cannot make enemies with these ninja clans.

Then it would be appropriate to leave this matter to Danzo, as he really has the ability to squeeze out enough power from these ninja clans.

As the Hokage who has been in power for many years, Sarutobi Hiruzen is very clear about how much power Konoha can still tap.

This wave of mobilization should be able to tap into a considerable portion of the reserve strength of the major ninja clans. It is estimated that there will be sixty to seventy senior ninjas and several thousand elite soldiers.

"I see."

Danzo nodded slightly.

"By the way, Uchiha, you don't have to go. It's not the time to release them yet."

"You don't need to teach me this. Since the death of Tobirama Sensei, no one knows the harm of Uchiha better than me. But I think Uchiha still needs to go."

"Ok?"

"They can choose not to send people, but they must provide money, ninja tools, and food. In short, the Uchiha cannot be completely ineffective. They are also part of the village."

At this time, the Uchiha were considered part of Konoha.

"Well, you're right."

The Sandai nodded slowly, acknowledging Danzo's words, then put down his pipe and began to fill it with new tobacco. At this moment, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in, didn't I say we were in a high-level meeting and couldn't be disturbed?"

"I'm sorry, Sandaime-sama, but the liaison squad has urgent information."

An Anbu opened the door and said to the Third Hokage.

Even through the mask, Saruhiki Hiruzen could still sense a sense of panic from him.

"speak."

The Third Hokage picked up his pipe again.

"On the western front, the Sand Village used a variety of new ninja tools and caught Konoha by surprise, defeating them. Both Jiraiya-sama and Orochimaru-sama were injured. Most of the 6,500 Konoha ninjas were killed or wounded, leaving only more than 2,000 remnants who retreated behind the border to continue delaying the Sand Village attack."

The ANBU ninja lowered his head, his voice trembling slightly.

"Tah."

The pipe that had just been filled with high-quality tobacco fell from the Third Hokage's hand.

"What did you say!"

Danzo took a quick step, grabbed the Anbu by the collar and lifted him up.

"Please repeat it again!"

"Danzo-sama...what I just said is true. The western front suffered a great defeat and the troops were severely damaged. Even Orochimaru-sama and Jiraiya-sama were wounded and fled."

The Anbu ninja said helplessly.

"Alright, Danzo, put Otoko down."

The Third Hokage stopped Danzo's actions.

"Monkey, look at the people you chose! Orochimaru and Jiraiya, what on earth did they both do! Six thousand five hundred people! Not six thousand five hundred pigs! The difference between them and the pigs is that they only defended for one more day, and then more than two thousand escaped!"

Danzo spitted at the Third Hokage.

"But who else can we use besides Orochimaru and Jiraiya."

The Third Hokage quickly regained his composure at this moment, questioned Danzo, and then looked at the Anbu.

"Thank you, Sandaime-sama."

"Don't be so quick to thank me. Where's the battle report? Read it!"

"Yes!"

The Third Hokage sat back in his seat, looking quite steady and calm.

He is not as good as the previous two Hokage, but the fact that he can sit in this position for so many years shows that Sarutobi Hiruzen is really not a waste.

After all, he is known as a ninja hero and the Third Hokage who has dominated the ninja world for many years.

At this moment, as the Hokage, he must not panic. Even if Konoha is about to be destroyed, he cannot panic.

If he gets in chaos, Konoha will be doomed.

Soon, seeing the calm look of the Third Hokage, Danzo and Utane Koharu also calmed down, sat down, and began to listen to the battle report.

"Cannons that can bombard over a large area over a long period of time at a very long distance, unmanned flying puppets that can monitor and scout, large quantities of new puppets, special ninja tools that can release ice escape ninjutsu, and new poisonous gases that combine with illusions..."

The Third Hokage lit his cigarette again, his face thoughtful.

He suddenly realized that the Sand Village now seemed to be much more advanced than Konoha.

In the past, this advantage has always belonged to Konoha.

The Ninja School was the first one established by Konoha, and the Anbu was also the first one created by Konoha. Even later, the medical ninjas were also the first ones trained by Konoha.

Until now, other ninja villages have only been able to imitate and catch up.

But today, the situation is reversed.

"Hmph, Hiruzen, why has Sand Village changed so much? I think you also know that it was the right thing for me to send someone to assassinate that Kazekage candidate, but you actually punished me at that time. If it weren't for him, Sand Village would not have developed into what it is today..."

"You were only half right."

Sarutobi Hiruzen interrupted Danzo's chatter again.

"You were wrong half way. You were wrong for not being able to kill him."

Danzo's expression froze, and then he stopped talking.

“Besides, what happened before is of no use. Now the battle lines on both sides are in crisis, and the village must mobilize all its forces to respond. On the eastern front, I will let Shuimen go to assist Yan. With his help, Yan can at least hold on.

As for the east, I have decided to go there myself."

"Huruzen, you are the Hokage, you cannot move lightly."

Utane Koharu advised.

"If possible, I don't want to move, because once I, the Hokage, move, it means that it is a matter of life and death for the village."

The Third Hokage shook his head slowly.

As the Hokage, if he loses the battle, it will be a huge blow to Konoha's morale.

Of course, the Hokage's presence on the battlefield was also a huge boost to morale.

Among the first two Hokage, the first Hokage was invincible and no one could beat him. The second Hokage did lose a lot when he was young. He could not beat Uchiha Madara and had wins and losses with Uchiha Izuna. But after becoming Hokage, he never lost except for the battle when he took the initiative to cover his retreat before his death.

So Sarutobi Hiruzen cannot lose either.

But unfortunately, the situation has now reached the point where he has no choice but to act.

"You have all heard the battle reports. Although Ye Cang and Luo Sha are strong, they are not impossible to deal with. However, the disciple of old lady Chiyo is incredibly strong. Even Orochimaru and Jiraiya are no match for him. Among the remaining people in the village, the only one who is stronger than them is me."

At this moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes revealed the power of a Hokage, and his gaze was as sharp as a torch.

Just as he said, at this time in Konoha, there was really no stronger ninja than Sarutobi Hiruzen.

He is still a few years away from falling from his peak.

At this moment, his chakra volume, physical strength, explosive power, and reaction ability have not shown any significant decline compared to their peak period, and each one is excellent.

As for other aspects, there is no need to say more.

In the original time and space, when the Third Hokage died in battle at the age of 6, except for the three data of strength, speed and energy which dropped to 10 due to old age, the other data of Ninja, Tai, Genshin, Sage and Seal were all .

This 10 represents the limit that a regular ninja can reach without special circumstances such as forbidden techniques, bloodline, or sealing of tailed beasts.

And now, Sarutobi Hiruzen, who has not fallen from the peak yet, is a true octagonal warrior and a well-deserved Kage-level peak powerhouse.

Even if he was facing the Third Raikage, the Third Tsuchikage, or Hanzo in his prime, he was not inferior to them at all.

(End of this chapter)