Naruto: Starting with Tsunade

Chapter 42 Jealousy

The Land of Fire, Daimyo Prefecture.

As soon as Hiruzen Sarutobi ascended to the Hokage throne, the Daimyo of the Land of Fire immediately extended an invitation to the new leader of Konoha.

In order to maintain the relationship between the village and the daimyo, Hiruzen Sarutobi led his guards to participate in the event.

At the banquet, elaborate platters and exquisite dishes were naturally indispensable.

More importantly, there had to be beautiful women to entertain them. The daimyo of the Land of Fire had long heard of the new Hokage's fondness for women, so he simply catered to his tastes. He clapped his hands, tapped the clappers lightly, and played the soft music. Several dancers dressed in flamboyant attire swayed out gracefully. After kneeling and bowing to the seated guests, they swept their long sleeves and gracefully formed a line to begin their dance.

After several rounds of drinks, everyone was in high spirits and drunk. Fueled by the alcohol, a group of obese, pot-bellied, and bloated high-ranking officials fawned over Hiruzen Sarutobi.

An official with a large belly raised his glass in flattery: "Third Hokage, from now on, the defense of our Land of Fire will depend entirely on you. Don't worry about the budget or anything, we will support you wholeheartedly even if we have to sell our pots and pans."

"Of course, of course. This is all for the sake of protecting our homeland. Konoha will do everything in its power."

At first, Hiruzen Sarutobi was somewhat flattered by the enthusiasm of the officials from the Land of Fire, and as the newly appointed Third Hokage, he was a little reserved. However, he quickly succumbed to this reserve under the repeated respectful address of the Third Hokage and became quite carried away.

He couldn't help but sigh inwardly, thinking how wonderful power was. No wonder the adults in his family had instilled in him from a young age that he must become Hokage when he grew up; it turned out there was this underlying meaning.

Looking at Hiruzaru Sarutobi with a face full of ecstasy, Danzo sitting cross-legged in a corner with a Sima face, his hands on his knees clutching his pants tightly, he felt very unwilling.

Danzo and Hiruzen Sarutobi were childhood friends who grew up competing with each other, but for some reason, Danzo always lost to Hiruzen, which made him very unhappy.

Recently, Danzo lost to Hiruzen Sarutobi once again, and this time he lost the most important dream of his life—the Hokage.

The specific situation was that before making the decision to stay behind, the Second Hokage posed a difficult question to his disciples, asking them who among them was willing to stay behind to cover the rear.

As a ninja, Danzo was highly prepared and offered to cover the rear, but ultimately chickened out of fear...

At this moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi stepped forward, resolutely declaring that he would cover the rear and sacrifice himself.

In an instant, Hiruzen Sarutobi's image became noble and righteous.

Everyone was incredibly surprised and impressed by his personal charisma. (Except for Danzo)

The Second Hokage was very satisfied with this and immediately appointed Hiruzen Sarutobi as the next Hokage. He himself said that he would stay behind to cover the retreat, sacrificing himself to help others.

In any case, losing this matter would have been fine, but Danzo chickened out in the end. He wasn't someone who couldn't accept defeat.

But after going back and thinking about it carefully, I realized that something was a little off.

After a sleepless night, he realized something.

His childhood friend, Hiruzen Sarutobi, won unfairly by using underhanded tactics.

It turns out that all of this was arranged in advance.

The fact that the Second Hokage specifically assigned the First Hokage's granddaughter to Hiruzen Sarutobi as a disciple offers a glimpse into the whole story.

In fact, the Second Hokage had planned to select Sarutobi Hiruzen as his successor early in the morning, but he was always short of a suitable opportunity.

So, taking advantage of this opportunity, I deliberately said those words.

Konoha was founded by the Senju and Uchiha clans working together.

If the Hokage is chosen from within their own clan, then the choice of a ninja clan within the village would generally be meaningless.

However, the reality is that the Senju clan lacks a leader and is ill-suited for the task.

The Uchiha clan does have leaders who are strong enough, but Uchiha with Sharingan are very likely to awaken Mangekyou Sharingan and go to extremes, becoming a ticking time bomb.

Hiruzen, a member of the Yuan Fei clan, becoming Hokage would certainly draw criticism and undermine internal unity. Furthermore, it could give external enemies an opportunity to cause irreparable damage to Konoha.

Therefore, in order to ensure that his disciple could secure his position, the Second Hokage orchestrated this whole affair.

Hiruzen Sarutobi probably guessed the Second Hokage's thoughts, which is why he was able to act so righteously and fearlessly. After this incident, everyone was moved by Hiruzen Sarutobi's spirit of sacrifice, and there would be no more objections to his appointment as Hokage.

Ha ha……

Tobirama-sensei, how cruel you are!

They actually went to such lengths for Hiruzen.

I, Danzo Shimura, am also your disciple.

Tobirama-sensei, you're being unfair!

Thinking of these things, Danzo felt as if he were being scorched by a flame called jealousy, making him extremely uncomfortable.

But what could he do if he was unwilling to accept it? The die was cast. For the sake of the village's stability, Danzo had to consider the bigger picture, suppress his jealousy and resentment, and even use the power of his clan to wholeheartedly promote Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Danzo took a deep breath, gave Hiruzen Sarutobi a meaningful look, and a thought began to form in his mind: he could replace him...

After the banquet ended and all the formalities had been completed, Danzo urged Hiruzen Sarutobi to leave the Daimyo's residence and return to Konoha to take charge of the overall situation.

"Hey, they're leaving so soon?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the scantily clad dancer with a hint of reluctance and fascination.

His weakness was his lust.

Since marrying Biwako, he has toned down his behavior in this regard, at least he doesn't dare to act recklessly in the village anymore. In addition, as the Hokage, he has to pay more attention to his image.

Every word and action represents the image of the village.

"Nonsense, what time do you think it is now? There are still many important matters in the village waiting for your approval, especially regarding Yu..."

Danzo paused at this point and didn't continue.

This topic concerning the Uchiha is not suitable to be discussed here. We must return to the village and discuss it carefully with the other two advisors, Akimichi Torifu and Utatane Koharu.

After Hiruzen Sarutobi was promoted to Hokage, these two were directly promoted to the position of advisor.

"I see……"

Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at the dancer one last time, then turned to leave.

"Lord Hokage, please wait..."

As the voice rang out, Hiruzen Sarutobi turned his head and saw a middle-aged man with thick eyebrows and big eyes, who gave an honest and kind first impression.

"Your Highness Prince Huang Ren."

Hiruzen Sarutobi recalled the other party's identity, carefully considered his lines, and then addressed him.

Huang Ren is the elder brother of the current daimyo of the Land of Fire. He is honest, kind, and sincere, and has good relationships with the court officials. He is deeply trusted by the daimyo and is entrusted with handling all matters, big and small, in the country.

Prince Huang Ren wore a kind smile and spoke slowly and deliberately, giving people a feeling of being bathed in a spring breeze: "I am very sorry, there was something I forgot to mention during our conversation just now."

Hiruzen Sarutobi displayed magnanimity: "Your Highness Prince Huangren is too kind. Speak, what is it?"

Prince Huang Ren smiled and said, "This is not a suitable place for conversation. Please follow me."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded: "Then let's go."

Upon hearing this, Danzo and his guards prepared to follow.

"that……"

Huang Ren glanced at Danzo and the others who were about to set off together, and hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped himself.

Hiruzen Sarutobi understood immediately: "Danzo, you wait for me here."

According to the rules, wherever the Hokage goes, these guards must follow; it is their duty. However, Danzo accepted Hiruzen Sarutobi's request without any explanation.

Firstly, Daming Prefecture is very safe, and there is no possibility of assassins.

Secondly, even if there were assassins, Hiruzen Sarutobi's strength was more than enough to deal with them; otherwise, he wouldn't be the Hokage.

Moreover, deep down, Danzo secretly hoped that Hiruzen Sarutobi would be assassinated, so that the Hokage position might fall into his hands.

Hiruzen Sarutobi watched Danzo and the others being led away by their servants, puzzled as to what could possibly require them to be sent away. He didn't ask further and silently followed Prince Huangren. Before long, they arrived at a room.

(End of this chapter)