Naruto Online: Hyuga Branch Family? Let's go all out!

Chapter 179 Hiruzen Sarutobi's restlessness subsided

Ning Yuan stayed in the Land of Rain for a month and a half.

Although there was support from the Land of Fire during the past month and a half, the establishment of various departments, the selection of talents, and the use of the Cursed Seal: Personality Reshaping Technique still consumed a lot of time.

The main problem is a lack of talent. If it were modern China, let alone conquering Amegakure, even if we conquered another China, we wouldn't have to worry about a lack of management. College students could be put to work with just a little training.

But what about the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain?

Not a single college student!

Of course, there are definitely people with the knowledge of university students, such as scientists and engineers who invented and improved computers, whose research level may not be lower than Orochimaru's.

However, while they may possess the academic level of college students, graduate students, doctoral students, and even professors and academicians, they may not have the values ​​that Ningyuan needs. If they are allowed to take office as officials, it would be good enough if they do not enrich themselves and exploit the people.

The coup in the Land of Rain has been going on for almost two months, but the neighboring Land of Earth and Land of Lightning haven't noticed anything at all.

The reasons are simple: first, Amegakure did a good job of blocking information; second, the Land of Earth and the Land of Lightning were not paying attention to the Land of Rain.

There is also a third reason: the great powers do not want to provoke the Rain Country.

Hanzo thought he had failed in World War II. In reality, although he failed, he did demonstrate the power and deterrent effect of the Land of Rain.

As a result, unless absolutely necessary, ninjas from various ninja villages would not voluntarily enter the Land of Rain, and naturally, they would not be able to find out much information.

In the original story, Pain had killed Hanzo more than a decade ago, and Konoha was completely unaware of it; this is a manifestation of that situation.

The Land of Earth and the Land of Lightning received no news, but Hiruzen Sarutobi did.

He sensed something was wrong on the fourth day.

Because he suddenly lost contact with Sarutobi Shinnosuke.

That's right, the father and son communicate with each other every night through spirit beasts.

It wasn't about exchanging information about father-son feelings, but rather reporting on the situation of Shimura Danzo.

Sarutobi Shinnosuke accompanied Danzo on the mission, partly to steal credit and partly to keep an eye on Danzo and prevent him from gaining merit.

However, no message was received when it was time to report.

Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately realized that something might have gone wrong.

After get off work, instead of working overtime, he hurriedly returned to his clan and summoned the elders of the Sarutobi clan.

"Have any of the clansmen who went to war with Shinnosuke sent back messages?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked.

"No!" The elder also looked anxious.

Those are 80 clansmen, and they're all Jonin!

What does it mean that everyone went missing within a day?

"Neither Hanzo nor Danzo has the power to eliminate them. Even if they manage to kill some, some will always escape and spread the news!" Hiruzen Sarutobi frowned and said coldly, "This situation must mean that Danzo and Hanzo have joined forces and launched a surprise attack on my clan!"

Aside from a sneak attack, he couldn't think of any other way to annihilate 81 Jonin.

That's a Jonin!

It's not easy to wipe out a four-person ninja squad (one on top and three on the bottom) on a normal day!

Little did he know that Ning Yuan possessed the Rinnegan, which caused all the Konoha ninjas to lose their minds!

"Those are the pillars of my Sarutobi clan! How am I supposed to explain this to their families!" The clan elder looked worried and was on the verge of tears.

To become a Jonin, one must either be a genius or possess extraordinary talent.

These people not only had to be fed and cared for by their families on a daily basis, but they also had to be married off to the best women available to them so that their genes could be preserved.

Therefore, of these 81 people, 77 are married, 42 have children, and 22 have more than one child.

These women and children, who sent their husbands/fathers to the battlefield with the hope that they would achieve great things, were all lost in just a few days.

"Don't rush!" Hiruzen Sarutobi said coldly, "Disappearance doesn't necessarily mean death; it could also mean some other accident occurred!"

For example, were they all captured alive?

He tried to calm down, but after wandering around the house for a long time, he found that he couldn't calm down at all!

In his heart, family comes first, village second. He wouldn't be this heartbroken even if the village lost a battle!

Not to mention that among these 81 Jonin was his beloved eldest son!

After wandering around for a while, I finally returned to the Hokage's office building.

"Which Jonin in the village is available right now?" Hiruzen Sarutobi pulled out the mission list and looked at each one.

It is currently a time of war. Some of the Jonin have gone to the front lines, while others were on missions and haven't had time to return since the war broke out.

Some of them had just returned to the village and were currently unemployed.

"Akimichi Rei, Yamanaka Ichi, Nara Mi!" Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes lit up as he spotted a Jonin team!

It's from the Ino-Shika-Cho clan!

"Go and invite them over!" Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered.

Before long, Akimichi Rei, Yamanaka Ichiichi, and Nara Mi appeared in the Hokage's office.

"Urgent mission!" Hiruzen Sarutobi handed over a mission sheet: "Investigate what's happening in the Land of Rain!"

"yes!"

Being a ninja is a profession that doesn't require thinking. Without any questions, the three of them accepted the mission order and left the Hokage's office building.

And then, he never came back.

Hiruzen Sarutobi regretted it a little, because he had been in such a hurry when issuing the mission that he hadn't agreed on a time.

What if this intelligence needs a year to be collected? Wouldn't he have to wait a year?

Hiruzen Sarutobi knew that these three must have a way to contact their clans, and that he would be able to do so by visiting the Ino-Shika-Cho trio.

But after lingering in Hiruzen Sarutobi's mind for a moment, he dismissed the thought.

The Nara clan is too clever; they could sense something was wrong as soon as he asked them a question.

Despite the Nara clan's apparent loyalty, their loyalty lies in the position of Hokage, not in any particular person holding that position.

He would not expose his weakness unless absolutely necessary.

As for whether these three people might have already discovered the information and reported it to their families?

That's unlikely; the ninja clan and the Hokage still have a tacit understanding.

Now that your people have been handed over and become registered ninjas, you must obediently listen to the Hokage.

It's normal for someone to be in the Hokage's body but have their heart in their clan, but if they have to tell their clan even the village's secrets, then they're courting death.

After waiting for a month without receiving any news from the three, Hiruzen Sarutobi finally couldn't sit still any longer.

He then selected a Jonin.

Aburame Zhuo.

The Aburame clan already has a weak presence, and they can use insects to scout. Sending such people to gather intelligence ensures both safety and secrecy.

To prevent a recurrence of situations where someone goes there and then loses contact, Hiruzen Sarutobi requires Taku Aburame to return to the Land of Fire every three days to report on what he has seen and heard.

If it is truly impossible to arrange the time, you can do so one day in advance or one day later.

Of course, the best way would be to discover and report it on the same day, but Aburame Taku and Sarutobi Hiruzen do not have a common summoning beast, so it is impossible for them to do so.

Aburame Taku accepted the mission and set off immediately. The next afternoon, she arrived at the border of the Land of Fire, and on the third day, she entered the territory of the Land of Rain.

As agreed, he was supposed to return to the Land of Fire on the sixth day to deliver the message to the Sarutobi clan ninjas on the border of the Land of Fire.

However, on the sixth day, the Sarutobi clan ninjas at the front line reported that no one was delivering intelligence.

If there are any unforeseen circumstances, it can be postponed for one day.

On the seventh day, Sarutobi at the front still indicated that no one had come to deliver intelligence.

Article 8, Day 9.

Hiruzen Sarutobi has finally confirmed that Taku Aburame has probably, possibly, perhaps also lost contact!

"So, what exactly happened in the Land of Rain that even Aburame Taku couldn't escape?" Hiruzen Sarutobi frowned. Although Aburame Taku was only a Jonin, his methods were strange. Even if Hiruzen Sarutobi unleashed his full power, he might not be able to stop him. Yet, he just disappeared silently from the Land of Rain.

Is Hanzo himself patrolling the border?

"In just one and a half months, we've lost four Jonin, and they were Jonin from the Shinobi Clan!" Hiruzen Sarutobi's face darkened as he looked at the four names.

Even after two months of fighting, four Jonin might not die!

Furthermore, the Jonin of the Ninja Clan are different from ordinary Jonin. Although there is no such thing as a Jonin who must escape in a one-on-one fight, the general perception is that Ninja Clan ninjas are a level above ordinary ninjas.

Because of the lack of cooperation from the ninja clans towards the Hokage, even he has very few Jonin under his command.

He simply cannot afford this rate of loss!

Konoha and Sunagakure have been at war for more than three months, but Konoha has not lost a single Jonin. Meanwhile, despite no war in their rear, he lost four Jonin in a month and a half. How can he explain this to the clan leaders?

Logically speaking, with such a large loss, it's about time to stop.

After all, Konoha and the Land of Rain are not at war. If you secretly send someone into their territory and they die, you can only blame yourself.

But Hiruzen Sarutobi was unwilling to accept this; how could he possibly swallow such an insult!

Those were 81 Jonin! They just disappeared without a trace?

Oh, it's not entirely unclear. At least he's confirmed that Hanzo and Danzo didn't cooperate, and Danzo himself is dead.

Because Danzo had placed the Tongue-Severing Seal on his subordinates, the Tongue-Severing Seal on the mouths of all Root ninjas disappeared on the very day Sarutobi Shinnosuke went missing.

But Danzo and those Root ninjas, how could they compare to a single hair of his own son?

"It must be Hanzo!" Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered for a long time. Since Danzo was also dead, it could only have been Hanzo who did it.

After all, the Land of Rain is Hanzo's territory. If he were to set up an ambush somewhere, such as with a large number of explosive tags, and then suddenly detonate them, there is a possibility that he could wipe out all the Jonin.

As for why the agreed-upon cooperation turned into a trap, isn't that normal? The ninja world is a world of deceit and treachery!

"Damn Danzo! He died of his own stupidity, and he even caused the death of my son!" Although Hiruzen Sarutobi was heartbroken by the death of his old classmate, compared to his son, Danzo was nothing!

"And Hanzo, even if you didn't know at the time, Shinnosuke would never have hidden his identity when he wanted to make a move. Knowing he's my son, you still dared to attack, clearly showing you don't take Konoha Village seriously. You've only been defeated for a few years, and you've already become arrogant again?"

After pondering for a long time, Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly shouted sternly, "Issue a village-wide summons! Gather all the Jonin, clan leaders, and the Hokage's office for a meeting!"

(End of this chapter)