Konoha: Tsunade, I am the Hokage

Chapter 141 Danzo: Another burden I have to bear?

"Third Hokage, Kirigakure's losses this time weren't too great. They only lost two key figures, and their swords were summoned back..."

"Yes! There's nothing we can do about it."

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed.

After a series of probing attacks, Kirigakure launched a large-scale offensive, but upon discovering that it was he and Danzo who were guarding the area, they immediately abandoned the idea of ​​attacking.

That's too cunning!

Kirigakure had no intention of engaging in a direct confrontation; they were merely putting on a show, hoping that Konoha would fight against Sunagakure and Iwagakure.

The female ninja hesitated for a moment.

"What are you trying to say?"

"I want to leave Root. I don't want to live like this anymore."

She said in a low voice.

Hiruzen Sarutobi stopped and looked back at her, finally sighing, "You have great talent; you're very suitable for this line of work."

"I'm sorry, Lord Third Generation."

The female ninja lowered her head and remained silent.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was silent for a moment, then said, "What do you want to do after you leave?"

"I……"

The female ninja looked up, as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was stunned for a few seconds, then a look of sigh and lament appeared on his face.

Has your credibility really fallen to this level?

He glanced at it, not intending to ask any more questions: "Let's go, let's go back first and then talk about your matter. Besides, the current leader of the Dark Guard is not me, that kid is not easy to deal with."

Hiruzen Sarutobi rubbed his temples.

He had already learned some news about Konoha through other channels.

Jingyan has taken control of the Dark Division.

This went against his expectations, but there was nothing he could do about it now.

He strode forward.

The next instant, the female ninja's expression suddenly turned serious, and she stood protectively in front of him.

The Root ninjas immediately formed a circle around and protected Hiruzen Sarutobi.

In the forest, figures appeared one after another.

Hidden Mist Ninja?

Hiruzen Sarutobi raised an eyebrow, his expression calm: "Do you want to start a war?"

"Hiruzen Sarutobi, you led the division of the Land of Fire and disrespected the Daimyo. You deserve to die!"

"By order of the daimyo, kill!"

A series of voices rang out.

Hiruzen Sarutobi returned, but once he reached Konoha territory, he sent his entourage back to the eastern border to hold their positions.

After all, the war has only temporarily stopped; Konoha and Kirigakure have not signed a ceasefire agreement, and war could break out again at any time.

however.

He never expected that after entering Konoha territory, someone would ambush and attack him.

Danzo's people?

No, Danzo wasn't that stupid.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's face was grim.

They're most likely from Kirigakure!

The next instant, those people all charged at them.

Dozens of ninjas simultaneously threw out explosive tags, kunai, and countless ninjutsu at them, including water-style, fire-style, and lightning-style techniques, the origins of which were indistinguishable.

"Step back!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi formed hand seals and pressed them to the ground.

In an instant, the earth rumbled and their entire region rose, transforming from a thoroughfare into a high platform.

Earth Escape·Earth Current City Wall!

With the immense chakra, the earth rose, separating the two places.

Water, fire, and lightning all crashed into the earthen walls underground, causing a series of violent explosions that made the entire raised earthen platform teeter on the verge of collapse.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression changed slightly.

These people are very strong!

They will never give up so easily.

As he was thinking, screams of agony came from below.

"Huh? What happened?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi was extremely surprised and looked down.

The next instant, he saw a swirling mass of black threads below, like hands rushing into the forest.

If he hadn't realized it was hair, he would have almost thought it was the lost secret technique of Takigakure, Earth Grudge Fear. But after understanding—

Hiruzen Sarutobi knew who had arrived.

Kyohiko!

However, this kind of hair...

He didn't quite understand what Kyohiko wanted to do.

but.

It would be best to capture them alive!

Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered for a moment, then said, "I'll go down and provide support. You all stay here and protect yourselves."

"My lord! Your safety is more important!"

The female ninja called out to him.

"Don't worry, Kyohiko has brought reinforcements."

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled.

He then immediately jumped down from above.

As he descended, he saw Jingyan's hair piercing into the bodies of the enemies, some of it binding them together. Then—

The surrounding ANBU ninjas rushed forward and tied up the person whose hair was tied up.

???

Hiruzen Sarutobi was dumbfounded.

Am I hallucinating?

Why aren't these people fighting back?

Do not!

It's not that we don't want to fight back, but that we have no way to fight back.

Acupuncture?

As the "Ninjutsu Professor," Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately realized what was happening, and he was quite surprised.

This is a power of the Hyuga clan, and Kyohiko achieved it all through his own research?

Unbelievable!

but.

Only a few were captured; the rest, seeing this, immediately realized the situation was hopeless and fled.

however.

At that moment, a figure emerged from the forest, his blade flashing like lightning.

Boom!

The sound of blades clashing echoed continuously through the woods.

Kakashi's figure darted back and forth, accompanied by senbon needles and another figure, hunting down numerous enemies in the forest.

His swordsmanship has changed.

It became very simple and direct, without the slightest unnecessary movement; the blade was swung only for…

kill!

"Kill him."

A short sound was heard, and then the three turned around. Two of them released water-style ninjutsu, while the other controlled lightning-style ninjutsu. The lightning and water combined and surged forth.

however.

In an instant, the enemy was upon them.

How is that possible?!

They found it hard to believe, and what surprised them even more was that in the blink of an eye, another figure appeared out of thin air.

The two men stood on the left and right, their blades flashing.

Three streaks of blood sprayed out, and the corpse slowly fell to the ground.

A second or two later, Kyohiko disappeared from his spot and reappeared on the other side of the battlefield.

In just a few seconds, Jingyan and his wooden clones darted back and forth across the battlefield, like death gods reaping lives.

Hiruzen Sarutobi originally intended to help.

but.

After observing for a while, he realized that he didn't need to take any action at all.

His previous techniques, such as pressure point striking and the Lion's Mane Technique, and his current techniques, such as Flying Thunder God Technique and Wood Clone Technique, are comparable to Minato's top-tier Body Flicker Technique.

He felt like he was dreaming.

Not only Kyohiko, but also Kakashi and Genma Shiranui's progress greatly surprised him—

Kakashi's swordsmanship once reminded him of Sakumo Hatake.

Same style and tactics.

So familiar!

Hiruzen Sarutobi was momentarily dazed when a figure with a sword rushed out from the ground.

Earth Release: The Art of Decapitation in the Heart.

however.

laugh!

A black blade slashed through, severing his hand.

"Lord Third Generation, are you alright?"

"fine."

Hiruzen Sarutobi was as if waking from a dream.

This is still a battlefield, how can you be distracted?

but.

What just happened is not exactly the same?

He's joined the Dark Division too?

That kid Jingyan is really reckless!

Hiruzen Sarutobi surveyed the entire scene and said, "Go and hunt down the rest. I can protect myself."

"this……"

"Go."

As Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke, he bit his finger and summoned the Monkey King.

Namishita nodded in unison, then vanished in an instant.

Hiruzen Sarutobi summoned the Monkey King, so he didn't need his protection; the Monkey King was probably much stronger than Hiruzen Sarutobi.

In just a few dozen breaths, the enemy was wiped out from the forest.

Not one escaped.

shhhhhh!

One figure after another landed in front of Jingyan.

"Not bad. Although it's only been a little over a month of training, your combat abilities and skill level have improved significantly compared to a month ago, but..."

"Not enough!"

Jingyan surveyed the entire room. "Your teamwork is still a complete mess. If I hadn't intervened, we definitely wouldn't have been able to keep everyone here. Double the training tomorrow!"

"yes!"

The twelve people shouted.

They are the remaining members of this training program.

The Dark Division only recruits elites.

This was also the core of Danzo's previous training—

They kill each other, extinguish emotions, and train the strongest ninja tools.

Jingyan disagreed.

His choice was...

Under the current excellent education system, select the most elite members and have them join the shadowy training and carry out missions as a transition.

In the future, these people will become the village's Jonin and elites.

The twelve people remained silent, offering no rebuttal.

"Take the person back and interrogate them thoroughly to find out who exactly tried to murder Lord Sandai."

"yes!"

call out!

Several sounds rang out, and some of the people returned alive.

At this moment, Jingyan's clone had already collected the corpses and then turned into a piece of withered wood that fell to the ground.

His mission was over.

"Kyohiko, well done."

"Sandaime-sama!"

Even though he didn't welcome Hiruzen Sarutobi in his heart and had some reservations about his actions, Kyohiko still maintained a respectful demeanor.

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded with a smile and said, "Kyohiko, thank you for your hard work."

"I was just doing my job."

Kyohiko was wearing a mask.

His gaze swept behind the third generation.

Those people, some members of the Root organization?

Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced back, then smiled and said, "Let's talk about this when we get back to the village. Let's go."

"yes!"

……

Back to the Dark Side base.

Hiruzen Sarutobi recounted his journey, his encounter with the enemy, and the entire process of being attacked.

Jingyan's expression was serious.

"This matter..."

"It couldn't have been Danzo who did it."

"Sarutobi Hiruzen said."

Kyohiko couldn't help but laugh. He poured Hiruzen a glass of water and waited for him to drink a few sips before saying, "Third Hokage, you shouldn't speak so soon. Maybe he guessed you would think this way and is deliberately doing the opposite?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled slightly.

"What you said is not impossible, but based on my observation and analysis, the possibility is relatively low."

He took another sip.

"Let's wait for news. Luckily you captured some prisoners, so we should be able to extract some information from them."

"Um."

Jingyan's intention in keeping him alive was to extract more information from him.

and.

He had to get rid of Danzo, and that's why.

If Danzo is not killed, there will always be hidden dangers within the Land of Fire, and he may be used by Madara Uchiha or others in the future.

He paused slightly: "Third Hokage, were Danzo's former subordinates recruited by you?"

"Yes, the person you and Tsunade wanted earlier was the one following behind me. Her original number was 'Otsu,' but now her name is Yakushi Nonou."

Hiruzen Sarutobi did not hide anything.

He smiled, then sighed, "I'm afraid it's not feasible to get her to work for you. She's already told me she wants to resign. She's too fond of fighting and yearns for peace; she's a kind-hearted girl."

"I want to meet with her and talk to her in person."

Jingyan nodded.

He knew far more about Yakushi Nonou than Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded and said, "Alright, this is the Anbu, you're in charge."

Anyway...

Even if Kyohiko hadn't said anything, he didn't intend to try to keep Yakushi Nonou any longer.

Upon hearing this, Kyohiko went outside.

Yakushi Nonou sat outside, quiet as if she were asleep.

but.

Her eyes were bright and captivating.

"Nonou-senpai?"

"Hmm? Ah, sir!"

Yakushi Nonou immediately stood up.

She didn't recognize the person in front of her, but she recognized the mask.

The opponent is extremely powerful; one person could wipe out her and all her subordinates!

Such a person...

Thank goodness they weren't enemies!

Kyohiko smiled and said, "Nonou-senpai, don't be nervous. I mean no harm. I just want to have a casual chat with you."

"This is!"

Yakushi Nonou sat down, and judging from her emotions and actions, she was very uneasy.

Jingyan thought for a moment and said, "I heard from Lord Sandai that you want to resign from your position?"

"Yes, I don't like being a spy."

Yakushi Nonou lowered her head.

As a ninja trained to become a spy, it would be willful and disobeying orders not to be a spy, but she really didn't want to suffer any longer.

"What do you plan to do after you leave?"

Kyohiko asked gently, while out of Nono's sight, he made a hand seal and quietly used illusion magic to influence her emotions, making her calm, composed, and less afraid and nervous.

Yakushi Nonou was somewhat affected.

"The orphanage I sponsor has taken in a large number of orphans. The director is getting old, and I want to go back to take care of everyone in her place and keep the orphanage going."

"I was an orphan myself, so I understand how you feel. You are truly admirable!"

Jingyan paused slightly, then said, "I support your decision."

what?

Yakushi Nono was extremely surprised.

She thought...

As the current leader of the secret service, the other side wouldn't let go of a top spy like her, but it doesn't seem like that's the case.

"Sir, are you... are you telling the truth?"

"Yes, if the Third Hokage refuses to release you, I can ask him or the Hokage to transfer you here by force, and then you can do whatever you want."

Jingyan nodded.

Yakushi Nono was as if in a dream.

She blinked, utterly incredulous, and after several seconds asked, "What do I need to give in return?"

"Let me ask you something first: how many children are in your orphanage? What's your income like?"

"There are... dozens of children, all orphans from the battlefield, but this time there's a group of orphans from the Battle of Kikyōyama..."

Pharmacist Nonou cautiously looked up, and seeing that Kyohiko remained noncommittal, she continued, "As for income, we currently rely on the village's subsidies. Before, the headmistress collected and sold herbs and helped treat others, but she can't do that anymore."

"In other words, they're currently able to stay alive, but they're not living a very good life."

Jingyan's summary.

Yakushi Nono remained silent.

As Kyohiko said, the orphanage was merely a means to keep those children alive.

"Have you considered staying and working in the shadows? You won't need to go out on missions; you just need to be a teacher. This kind of work is much better than treating people or selling medicine."

"Does the 'Anti-Corruption' unit have such work?"

Yakushi Nonou looked bewildered.

How come she didn't know?

"We didn't have them before, but we do now. I'm lacking intelligence experts. Although I've obtained some information and summarized my own experience, none of them have actually done it. I need your experience."

Kyohiko said earnestly, "Danzo and the Third Hokage both value your abilities highly, which shows you are very strong in espionage. Sending you to infiltrate would be a real waste!"

"I...I understand what you mean."

Yakushi Nonou didn't look so confused. She hesitated for a moment and said, "But I don't know how to teach you."

"It's very simple. The first thing you need to do is write down all the missions you've been on over the years and give them to me. Also, write down anything you think is helpful for infiltration or espionage."

"Kyohiko said."

After listening, Yakushi Nonou pondered for a moment and said, "It's not difficult, but I can't remember some of the mission details."

"It's okay, just do your best."

"yes!"

(End of this chapter)