Naruto: In Konoha Village, I awakened Wood Release at the start.

The Sarutobi clan's residence.

half a month later.

Hiruzen Sarutobi sat under the eaves.

He was holding the pipe that had been with him for many years.

A wisp of bluish-white smoke rose, blurring his age-spotted face.

It was very noisy in the courtyard.

"Oh shit!"

"Did Genma Shiranui take the wrong medicine?"

"A dignified Special Jonin, spending all his time in the mission lobby watching B-rank missions!"

"If I hadn't been quick, all three escort missions would have been a complete waste!"

"..."

Sarutobi Asuma walked into the courtyard, covered in sweat.

He was clutching three cigarette rolls in his hand, a half-smoked cigarette dangling from his mouth, and cursing under his breath.

"Brother Asuma, you really managed to get it?"

Several young Sarutobi clan members immediately surrounded them.

"nonsense!"

Asma raised her chin.

"Three B-grade items! That's a whopping 300 merit points!"

"Once I pull off this job, I can finally exchange it for that A-rank Wind Release technique!"

The tribesman next to him swallowed hard.

"But elder brother..."

"We are the mighty Sarutobi clan."

"Do we now have to squeeze into the main hall like those common ninjas?"

These words were rather harsh.

Asma abruptly stopped in his tracks.

He turned his head and stared intently at the clansman.

"Isn't it crowded?"

"Are you going to starve?"

"Eighty percent of the clan's property has been handed over, and the storeroom is so clean that mice can run through it."

Asma grabbed the other person by the collar.

"The rules were set by the fifth generation."

"Whether you're a commoner or from a powerful family, want resources? Exchange them with merit points!"

"The Uchiha people are all out searching for cats to earn merit points."

"What are you pretending to be so high and mighty for!"

Asma released his grip.

He strode towards the backyard to prepare ninja tools.

The clansmen looked at each other in bewilderment.

Finally, gritting his teeth, he turned and ran towards the mission hall.

If we don't go now, we won't even have any D-level missions or garbage collection to do today!

Every word of this argument drifted into the eaves.

Hiruzen Sarutobi did not speak up to stop him.

He puffed on his cigarette in silence, but his mood was surprisingly calm.

Asuma, that kid, used to rely on his status as the Hokage's son to act like a lazy bum all day long.

Now they've actually been forced to show their fighting spirit.

"Senju Chiba..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi murmured the name to himself.

What a terrifying young man.

They did not raise the butcher's knife.

There was no bloody purge.

It only uses a "merit point" system.

This completely shattered the sense of superiority among the clan's ninjas.

Everyone became a donkey working like crazy.

Although the Sarutobi clan lost the Hokage position, they surrendered a huge amount of wealth.

But as long as the clan's ninjas are still taking on missions and earning merit points.

This family will never fall apart.

even.

This atmosphere of earning a living through one's own abilities is more reassuring than the old days of resting on one's laurels and leeching off others.

Hiruzen Sarutobi tapped his pipe on the ashtray.

Sudden.

His hand stopped moving.

His intuition, honed from years of walking the line between life and death, kicked in at this moment.

Above his head, there was a very slight fluctuation of chakra.

If it were in the past...

Hiruzen Sarutobi had already recruited the Anbu.

But now, he is just an ordinary old man.

He slowly refilled the tobacco and lit a match.

"Isn't it cold in the wind on the roof?"

"Since you're here, come down and chat with the old man."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice was hoarse and sounded somewhat tired.

The courtyard was completely silent.

After a while.

A tall figure flipped and leaped down from the roof.

The wooden clogs made a dull sound as they stepped on the wooden floor.

She had messy white hair, wore a red coat, and had a headband with the character "oil" on it.

Jiraiya.

The master and apprentice looked at each other from three steps apart.

No one rushed to speak.

The air seemed to freeze.

The only sound was the rustling of leaves in the wind.

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the disciple in front of him.

It has weathered many changes.

The wrinkles around my eyes have become deeper.

That free-spirited and unrestrained energy seemed to have been suppressed by something.

Jiraiya was also sizing up Hiruzen Sarutobi.

It's only been a little over a year since we last met.

How did the old man get so old?

His back was severely hunched, and his eyes were cloudy.

The aura of ruthless power that once commanded everything has vanished.

Now you're sitting here.

He was just a frail, old man in his twilight years.

"Click."

Jiraiya pulled out a bamboo chair next to him and sat down casually.

He spread his legs wide in an unseemly manner, then sighed.

"Old man."

Hiruzen Sarutobi exhaled a thick cloud of smoke.

"When did you get back?"

Jiraiya scratched his hair.

"It's been a few days."

"I just stayed in the village, wandering around and enjoying the scenery."

Hiruzen Sarutobi sneered.

"To see the scenery?"

"Is he secretly observing whether I've been placed under house arrest by Senju Chiba?"

His thoughts were exposed.

Jiraiya wasn't embarrassed.

He dropped his nonchalant expression and leaned forward slightly.

"Old man."

"When I first heard the news, I really wanted to rush back to Konoha."

"I was in a tavern in the land of hot springs at the time."

"Upon hearing that you were forced to step down, Danzo was killed in the street."

"That brat named Chiba has become the Hokage."

"I was furious."

"Konoha is the culmination of most of your life's work!"

"How could it be usurped by some nobody?"

"I packed my things overnight, ready to go back to Konoha and drag that Chiba out and beat him up."

Even if he is Tsunade's apprentice.

Even if he is of the Senju clan bloodline.

"That won't work either!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's fingers, which were gripping the pipe, stiffened slightly.

He knows his apprentice all too well.

He may seem unreliable, but his feelings for Konoha run deeper than anyone else's.

"Then why didn't you come?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice was somewhat hoarse.

Jiraiya gave a wry smile.

He slumped back in his chair like a deflated balloon.

"Because reason tells me I can't act impulsively."

"I inquired about Danzo on the way."

"Uchiha Kagami's eyes..."

"Wood Release cells..."

As Jiraiya said this, a strong sense of disgust flashed in his eyes.

He looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"Old man, are you confused!"

"Let Danzo do these disgusting things in the dark."

"The village's foundations are rotten; how can you, as the Hokage, escape responsibility?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi closed his eyes.

He did not refute it.

The victor is king, the loser is villain; it's too late to say anything now.

Jiraiya continued.

"I suppressed my anger and lingered on the border of the Land of Fire."

"I want to see just how good Chiba really is."

"If he makes Konoha a mess, I'll risk my life to kill him."

"result……"

Jiraiya swallowed hard.

Even if the matter is in the past.

Even now, when he thinks back on it, he still finds it unbelievable.

"The Hidden Cloud Village has attacked."

"That battle maniac Raikage is leading five thousand elite troops to press on the border."

"I was still half a day's journey from the border at the time."

"I rushed on my way as fast as I could, fearing the collapse of the border defenses and the devastation of Konoha."

Speaking of it.

Jiraiya suddenly laughed, his laughter filled with absurdity.

"I only got halfway there."

"Several fleeing ninjas told me that the battle was over."

Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly opened his eyes.

Although he had already read the battle report, he was still shocked to hear Jiraiya recount it in person.

"Five thousand people!"

Jiraiya suddenly slapped his thigh.

The wooden clogs creaked and groaned as they were worn on the ground.

"Old man, five thousand elite Cloud Hidden Army soldiers!"

"The Raikage is personally leading the team, and there's also the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki!"

"That Chiba..."

"one person."

"They made dumplings for 5,000 people."

"A true thousand hands, with a Buddha appearing on the top."

"Old man, you didn't see that battlefield ruin with your own eyes."

Jiraiya's voice trembled.

"The terrain has completely changed within a radius of several dozen miles."

"A primeval forest was created out of thin air."

"The Raikage got beaten so badly he wouldn't even recognize his own mother."

"The eight tails were held in his hand like eels."

"This isn't a ninja fight!"

"This is like the First Hokage being resurrected!"

Jiraiya became more and more excited as he spoke.

His chest heaved violently.

As one of the Legendary Sannin.

He has witnessed countless grand occasions.

But that almost miraculous destructive power completely shattered his pride.

The courtyard fell into a deathly silence.

The only sound was the soft rustling of leaves in the wind.

A long time passed.

Jiraiya finally calmed down.

He looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi with a complicated expression.

"Old man, stop now."

"Stop going against Chiba."

These words were spoken with utmost sincerity, even carrying a hint of pleading.

Jiraiya was genuinely afraid that Hiruzen Sarutobi might do something rash behind his back.

Faced with that kind of absolute force.

Any conspiracy or trickery is a joke.

This really angered Chiba.

The entire Sarutobi clan will be eradicated.

"These past few days."

"I wandered around the streets and alleys of Konoha."

"I saw the ninjutsu exchange list."

"I saw how ordinary ninjas fought desperately for merit points."

"There is light in their eyes."

"Konoha is alive again, old man."

"That young man is more suitable to be Hokage than you... more than all of us."