Konoha: Tsunade, I am the Hokage

Chapter 73 Danzo: Nobody knows more about intelligence than me!

Shizune carefully opened the door and saw Tsunade sitting by the window, looking down at the cheering crowd. Her face was calm, but her eyes held a hint of anger.

"Lady Tsunade, are you... really alright?"

"Um."

Tsunade waved.

Shizune walked over, and Tsunade touched her hair and then chuckled softly.

"I'm really fine now, you don't need to worry."

She looked down.

Immediately, Tsunade muttered to herself, "Now is not the time to rest."

"What did you say?"

"It's nothing. I've recovered after saving him this time, so I'm afraid I won't be able to have any peace and quiet from now on."

Tsunade smiled.

Shizune muttered, "You still owe Jiraiya-sama a lot of money, so you should work hard to pay it off."

"Mute".

"Oh, there are still some debts outside that haven't been settled!"

"Mute!"

Tsunade's tone hardened, and then, suppressing her emotions, she said with a dark face, "Today is a happy day, can we not talk about these unpleasant things?"

"Seeing you like this, I know you're really alright. Okay, I'll go back and continue my cultivation."

Mute was really worried before.

She knew about Tsunade's condition and had a vague feeling that the visitors were up to no good, but she was surprised, delighted and relieved that Tsunade could recover so quickly.

Thankfully, it's fixed now!

Seeing her leave, Tsunade sighed.

They had to go all the way with the act, which is why they had to keep it a secret from Jingyin.

As it turned out, her idea was correct. Her silence greatly increased her previously weak persuasiveness, making this move all the more significant.

but.

She felt a sense of guilt for deceiving everyone, and at the same time—

Tsunade was even angrier.

Could the accident involving Mokume Kōdō and the others also be related to Danzo?

Is it acceptable to harm villagers in order to obtain the Hokage position?

She clenched her fists.

Originally, Tsunade didn't quite agree with Kyohiko's plan, but now she felt that Kyohiko's plan wasn't so bad.

When an enemy extends a knife, you shouldn't just block it; you should also strike back to show them what you're capable of!

Tsunade's gaze was cold.

A moment later, a toad jumped in through the window.

Immediately, the toad opened its mouth.

Jiraiya crawled out from inside.

"How is it?"

"Kyohiko was right. That bastard not only wants to harm me, but he might also be targeting Mokumo Kōdō's teammates. That bastard! He wants to harm Kyohiko, and he wants to harm me too!"

Tsunade's gaze was cold.

Regardless of whether Danzo did it or not, she was convinced that Danzo was responsible!

"As planned?"

"it is good."

……

In the days that followed, the situation surrounding Tsunade continued to escalate.

And so, everyone realized—

It turns out there was a story behind Tsunade's departure from the village.

All his loved ones died, and they all died right in front of him, yet he was powerless and unable to save them.

Who could withstand such a blow?

Previously, many people harbored resentment after Tsunade left, believing that she shouldn't have left the village so carelessly and that it was irresponsible of her.

Many people have been secretly discussing and criticizing Tsunade recently.

After learning the truth, they all regretted it and wished they could visit and apologize at Konoha Hospital, but Tsunade sent people to refuse them.

She doesn't need that kind of visit.

As for the latter...

The mastermind behind all this is Danzo, and perhaps the Third Hokage as well. Tsunade has no reason to get angry with them.

Her goal was simple.

He became Hokage, making Konoha stronger and ending its wars.

As these situations emerged, complaints about border chaos and untimely intelligence began to circulate among the ninja. Previous attacks on Konoha teams by Iwa ninja, coupled with the recent ambush on Konoha's team...

All these circumstances lead to one issue.

Why is Konoha so lacking in intelligence, allowing ninjas from other villages to infiltrate right under their noses on the border?

"We live in a time of peace. What would we do if war suddenly broke out?"

"Well, who knows?"

"What about the secret service? Intelligence agencies are usually controlled by the secret service, right?"

"Shh! Are you out of your mind?"

The village was abuzz with discussion, and many people were afraid and wary. But the more they were afraid, the more they talked about it in private.

In just a few days, many people in the village have become quite skeptical of the Dark Guard's abilities, and discussions about the Dark Guard's capabilities have been frequent.

……

At the Anbu base, Danzo's face was grim.

"What?"

"Lord Danzo, something's not right. It feels like someone is pulling the strings behind the scenes."

Ryoma Aburame knelt on one knee.

Danzo suppressed his anger.

"What's wrong with you guys? You can't even manage things in the village? Is this how you do intelligence work?"

"this……"

Aburame Ryoma could not explain himself and lowered his head in silence.

He never expected that someone would spread and retaliate against these messages, and that it would happen so quickly. By the time they wanted to target him, public opinion was already in an uproar.

By then, it was too late to put out the fire.

Danzo stood up, tapped his cane on the floor, and then left the Anbu with heavy steps, heading towards the Hokage Building.

Go to the Hokage Building.

Boom boom boom!

"Enter."

Inside the room, Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice could be heard.

Squeak.

The door opened, and Danzo went inside.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, Homura Mitokado, and Koharu Utatane are all present.

The three looked at Danzo.

"They're all here, Hiruzen. Your student this time..."

Danzo was about to speak.

Mitokado Yan and Utatane Koharu both sighed.

"Danzo, you've gone too far this time!"

"You shouldn't have attacked the people of your own village. What if Tsunade couldn't overcome her psychological issues? Wouldn't that have rendered a Jonin useless?"

Koharu, who was turning over to her room, also wore an unyielding expression.

That surgery...

She later learned that even she wasn't entirely confident in completing the surgery, and even if she could, it wouldn't be as perfect as Tsunade's, ensuring that Maryu's recovery wouldn't affect his ability to fight.

Mitokado Homura said, "It's not easy for the village to train a Jonin. These are all the fruits of our village's labor. And what about Minato Namikaze before? No matter what, you shouldn't have taken that girl!"

"Were you involved in the affairs of the Nippon Chariot Team?"

Xiaochun asked again as she changed dorm rooms.

Danzo's face darkened.

He came to discuss something, but unexpectedly, he was met with a barrage of scolding, and...

Damn it.

He glanced around and said, "Some of these weren't done by me!"

Finally, Danzo looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"Hiruzen, do you believe me or not?"

Danzo.

Hiruzen Sarutobi finally spoke, exhaling smoke with a melancholy tone.

"Whether you did it or not, the problem of intelligence gaps does exist, and the intelligence agencies haven't been doing a very good job in recent years."

He looked at Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu.

"Let's find someone else, what do you guys think?"

"Agreed."

The two did not hesitate.

Danzo tapped his cane on the floor, his tone icy: "So you mean I should just admit defeat this time?"

"The public opinion in the village isn't good for you. Removing the old intelligence team leader is also to protect him and give him some experience so he can come back later."

"Sarutobi Hiruzen said."

Danzo gritted his teeth, took a deep breath, and said, "Hiruzen, no one understands intelligence and espionage better than my men. You'll definitely regret letting anyone else do it!"

"Danzo, we all know your contributions. It's not that we're stopping you from doing this, but the public opinion is too complicated right now, so we're sending your people down from above first."

"Turn to bed," Xiaochun said softly.

"Furthermore, regarding Tsunade's matter, since you've taken action, you should be prepared for the backlash that comes with it."

Mitokado was slightly dissatisfied.

Danzo remained silent, then loosened his cane and sat down in a seat to the side.

Even Koharu from the dorm and Homura from the Mitokado dorm wouldn't help him...

There's nothing we can do about it.

He sat down and said nothing more.

After a long while, Danzo turned and left, his face very grim.

After seeing off Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, Hiruzen Sarutobi picked up an intelligence scroll that was lying at the bottom of the box, opened it, read it, and couldn't help but let out a long sigh.

The scroll reads:

Danzo secretly formed the Root Team and, after halting the research on "interstitial cells," secretly continued to support and guide related research.

The evidence is that there is a child named "A" in the current Root team, who is now four years old.

He possesses the ability of Wood Release.

The attack on Minato Namikaze was carried out by the Root Squad.

The evidence is that they all have the mark of "the root of tongue disaster" on their tongues, which corroborates the characteristics submitted by Jiraiya.

Signed: Orochimaru.

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed deeply, his eyes filled with a sense of melancholy and loneliness.

"Danzo, you have disappointed me greatly!"

……

The land bordering the Land of Fire and the Land of Rivers.

"This is an antidote pill, developed by Lady Tsunade. It can neutralize many toxins, and even if it cannot completely neutralize them, it can provide some relief."

Minato Namikaze distributed the antidote pills one by one.

"The enemy this time is very strong and terrifying. Everyone be careful, especially you, Kai. You are very skilled in physical combat, but you mostly engage in close combat and have not carried out many high-difficulty missions. You are most susceptible to poisoning."

"yes!"

Matt Kai stood right down.

Then, Minato looked at Kyohiko and Kakashi, a slight smile appearing on his face.

"Kakashi has been through more missions, so I feel more at ease with him."

"Kyohiko..."

Minato's biggest worry was actually Kyohiko.

Very strong.

However, there are many powerful ninjas in the world. Even the most talented ninjas need to grow up before they can dominate the battlefield. After all, age doesn't matter on the battlefield.

"Senior, I understand."

Jingyan nodded.

Of the four, he was definitely the most afraid of death.

Before the system was in place, the main ninjutsu used were the Body Flicker Technique and the Substitution Technique, which are still the strongest life-saving techniques now. It's something like Naruto rushing in with his blood boiling...

He would never do that.

After giving their explanations, the four of them crossed the border and headed towards the land of the river.

The land of rivers is vast.

A river runs through the country from north to south, from the Land of Rain all the way to the sea in the south, hence the name of the Land of Rivers.

The riverbanks are covered with mountains and forests.

The four walked quietly along the previous route to the place where the battle was taking place.

"here?"

"The traces have been removed, and recently at that."

Traces of battle can be seen in the forest; many trees are broken or fallen, indicating how fierce the previous fighting was.

but.

The cleaning marks are very fresh.

They exchanged glances, their faces showing surprise.

"So what if we get cleaned up?"

Kai has the least experience and the shallowest thinking in this area, and he doesn't understand what they're surprised about.

"This means that another group of people is also tracking them."

Kyohiko replied, "Minato-senpai, you mentioned before that the Ino-Shika-Cho trio would also be involved. Could this be a trace of them?"

"It shouldn't be. They didn't leave any clues, which is more like the style of Sunagakure."

Minami Namikaze.

"So, should we track them down?"

Kakashi looked at Minato.

The Sand Village has intervened!

That's understandable, since this matter involves Sasori, the rogue ninja of Sunagakure, so their intervention is perfectly normal and reasonable.

Minato Namikaze thought for a moment and said, "For the past month, our team has been searching for the whereabouts of two missing ninjas. Even if Sunagakure gets involved, we should at least find the bodies of the ninjas in the village."

"Then let's find the people from Sunagakure? If that's the case, I might have a way."

Kakashido.

Minato Namikaze thought for a moment and nodded: "Let's give it a try. Who knows, maybe they'll find it first?"

"OK."

Kakashi bit his finger, then formed hand seals, smearing the blood on the ground.

The procedures were deployed.

Bang!

A majestic, giant white ninja dog appeared before everyone.

It scanned the surroundings before finally fixing its gaze on Kakashi.

"Sakumo's son?"

It paused for a moment, then said, "After all this time, have you decided to sign the contract?"

"Yes."

Kakashi bowed slightly. "I'm sorry to have worried you, Andre-senpai, during this time."

"It's nothing, I'm glad you've made it through."

The giant white dog scanned the surroundings.

Finally, it fixed its gaze on the marks around it.

"Do you need my help?"

"Yes, could you please help me track the scent of those who cleaned up the traces here before? The traces look fresh, so they shouldn't have disappeared too long ago."

"it is good."

It sniffed around, then quickly ran in one direction, "This way."

Everyone followed immediately.

The white figure galloped wildly, its figure dashing and heroic, its body bearing scars that made it look rather ferocious.

Jingyan could imagine the scene of it accompanying White Fang in battle.

Kakashi's previous statement about an existing contract actually refers to the renewal of Sakumo Hatake's "Andre" contract.

inherit!

Since he was willing to take this step, it means that he has completely resolved the emotional knot left by his father's suicide and has emerged from depression and obsession.

in particular.

After spending some time together, we became friends.

Watching him walk in another direction, Kyohiko was genuinely happy. He paused for a moment, then quickly followed, and then noticed…

Kai was secretly wiping away tears.

Why are you crying?

Kakashi turned around and glanced at Might Guy.

Kai said, "It's nothing, I'm just happy for you!"

"Thank you, let's go."

Kakashi is not good with words.

but.

He knew very well that during that time, Kai had been constantly seeking a duel with him, entangled with him and accompanying him in another form.

Minato Namikaze remained silent.

Follow along.

Suddenly, Andrei stopped.

Immediately—

Whoosh!

One after another, kunai flew out from the shadows, and then two figures charged out.

Jingyan quickly stepped forward and formed a hand seal.

Just two seals...

A swirling vortex appeared, sweeping away all the kunai that were shot at it, including the individual senbon needles, which were also swept away by the water flow.

So fast!

Minato Namikaze turned his head, unable to hide his surprise.

The water array wall only used two hand seals?

Was it a technique used by the Second Hokage?

"Minato-senpai."

"clear."

In the blink of an eye, the water curtain fell.

Minato Namikaze moved with lightning speed, as if he had transformed into a yellow beam of light, and instantly appeared beside someone.

Immediately—

Rasengan!

boom!

The figure collapsed, turning into a pile of wreckage.

This is a puppet.

Minato Namikaze scanned his surroundings. At that moment, Andrei let out a roar and leaped into the air.

Beneath the ground, a patch of sharp spikes emerged.

The spikes glowed with a deep blue light, clearly indicating they were coated with a very potent poison.

The other side wants to kill Andrei!

and also……

"Kakashi, watch out!"

Kyohiko gathered his chakra and suddenly punched the ground.

The ground cracked.

The poison needles were deflected and flew wildly through the forest, but fortunately, all three were masters of martial arts and reacted very quickly, swiftly dodging the numerous poison needle attacks.

"there!"

Andrei roared and quickly leaped to another tree, crouching there in a crouching, cautious posture.

Jingyan and the other two quickly jumped to another location.

but.

At the moment of takeoff, Kyohiko split into three, each taking on a different appearance.

shhhhhh!

The poison needle was fired.

Inside the woods, the puppets moved about, and apart from that, no other sounds could be heard.

Hearing ability isn't everything.

"Over here!"

As the white giant dog Andrei spoke, he was about to move forward, but Kakashi's pupils instantly contracted.

Just as he was about to give a warning, a figure flashed past below.

The blades clashed.

The puppet collapsed to the ground, limp and powerless.

"Beware of ambushes!"

At that moment, a ripple sounded not far away.

Immediately afterwards, the two jumped up from the chaos, and Kyohiko looked over.

One of them was Minato Namikaze, who went around to the other side and launched a direct attack on the operator.

The other one was not Sasori of the Red Sand, but an old woman.

He looked quite old, but was in good spirits.

Chiyo?

Jingyan immediately understood why the other party's target was Kakashi and Andre.

From Chiyo's perspective, she truly hated everything related to Hatake Sakumo.

"Damn white teeth!"

Chiyo gritted her teeth, suddenly throwing several items from her hand, then forming hand seals...

"It's Wind Release!"

Kakashi shouted.

"Poison, disperse, gather!"

With Minato Namikaze not by his side, Kyohiko could only give commands using brief words.

Fortunately, everyone was in sync and fled and retreated in the same direction.

The next instant, a gale swept in.

Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!

The wind, combined with the poison, swept away and withered a large area of ​​forest, a truly terrifying sight.

Chiyo truly hated it.

but.

The next second, Minato Namikaze arrived at Chiyo's side, thrusting a kunai at her.

suddenly--

hum!

Minato Namikaze lost his grip on the kunai, which flew out of his hand and towards another direction, while Chiyo was also unable to stop herself.

The next moment, a sound came from that side.

"stop!"

A cold voice rang out.

Minato Namikaze instantly appeared in front of the three, his face wary, and whispered, "Magnet Release! Even the Kazekage is here! If things get bad, retreat immediately!"

"yes!"

The three of them dared not be negligent.

opponent……

It's very likely the Third Kazekage!

Jingyan knew that although the Third Kazekage died a tragic death and his body was not even laid to rest, his strength was undeniable and he should be at the level of a "Kage".

Of the four of them, only Minato Namikaze is likely to be able to hold his own against the opponent; the other three are simply no match for him.

A young man emerged from the woods.

The other person glanced at Chiyo, then sighed softly and said calmly, "Konoha ninja, you've also come for Sasori of the Red Sand?"

(End of this chapter)