Starting as a pirate, he rose to become the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society.

Chapter 344 Bane: I'm just a spirit beast, what kind of grand principles are you trying to teach me?

While at Ryuchi Cave, Ban had heard Orochimaru mention the Senju clan.

After all, if you want to understand information about the ninja world, you can't avoid the Senju clan.

According to Orochimaru, after the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, died in battle, the entire Senju clan adjusted its clan strategy, no longer continuing to penetrate Konoha Village, but instead turning its attention to the noble system of the Land of Fire.

Currently, the Senju clan is no longer just a simple ninja family, but a noble family.

Tsunade, the legitimate daughter of the Senju clan, was bestowed the title of Princess of the Land of Fire by the Daimyo of the Land of Fire when she was young; in fact, there were already signs of this at that time.

This is one of the reasons why she was later referred to as "Tsunade Princess" or "Princess Tsunade" by many ninjas.

Since the death of the Second Hokage, Tsunade is the only member of the Senju clan who is still openly active in Konoha.

At first, Ban had wondered if the Senju clan had disappeared from Konoha, just like the Uchiha clan, and had suffered some kind of blow or persecution.

It wasn't until he talked to Orochimaru about these things that he learned that this was completely untrue. The Senju clan was doing very well; there were hardly any left in Konoha's territory, as most of them had moved to the capital of the Land of Fire to become nobles.

Thinking about it, this actually makes sense. If the Senju clan had really been persecuted, would Tsunade have been able to rise to power so easily? Wouldn't she have retaliated after taking power?

In short, it must be said that the Senju clan's strategy was quite brilliant. In comparison, the Uchiha clan, which is also one of the top clans in the ninja world, did not have such a good "strategic vision".

Thinking about it carefully, if the Uchiha clan had also chosen to retire gracefully at the height of their power, following the example of the Senju clan, perhaps the outcome would have been completely different. Poor Sasuke Uchiha might now be a noble young master in the Daimyo's city, indulging in food, drink, and entertainment, without so many national and personal grudges.

But thinking about it from another perspective, it seems impossible. The Senju clan retired because they had truly reached the pinnacle of Konoha and could not advance any further. Continuing might have caused conflicts far more difficult to resolve than those of the Uchiha clan.

Even though they have largely withdrawn from Konoha's ninja system, no longer involved in ninja affairs, and entered the national aristocratic system, their influence on Konoha remains profound to this day.

This can be seen from the way the Hokage lineage is passed down.

If you didn't have some connection to the Senju clan, you would never have become Hokage.

You're not qualified to know, are you?

There's no need to elaborate on the fact that the First and Second Hokage were direct descendants of the Senju clan. The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was also a direct disciple of the Second Hokage. Without that status, he probably wouldn't have been able to become the Third Hokage.

Looking back, the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, was a true commoner, but he was undeniably handsome and talented.

Handsome and gentle, he married the fiery Kushina Uzumaki. Who is Kushina? She is a direct descendant of the Uzumaki clan and a relative of the Senju family. After arriving in Konoha, she was especially favored by Konoha's "Empress," Mito Uzumaki, who took her under her wing and personally taught her for a long time.

If it were just based on that, Minato Namikaze wouldn't be quite there yet if he wanted to become Hokage. But the key point is that he was a disciple of Jiraiya, one of the legendary Sannin.

Jiraiya was a direct disciple of Hiruzen Sarutobi, whose ancestor was the Second Hokage.

He was of impeccable lineage and exceptional talent, becoming one of the top ninjas in the ninja world at a young age. He also made great contributions in the war, earning widespread fame.

From a conspiracy theory perspective, he came from a commoner background, and although his wife's family was once prominent, it had declined. Overall, he did not have a powerful force supporting him. Under these circumstances, given that Jiraiya was unwilling to become Hokage, he was clearly the successor that the cunning Hiruzen Sarutobi would prefer.

Putting aside these conspiracy theories, the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade, goes without saying, once again demonstrating the Senju clan's influence over Konoha.

The position that Danzo had been longing for was now being offered by Tsunade. The villagers were overjoyed and incredibly excited, and they practically forced him to return as Hokage.

The subsequent Kakashi and Naruto Uzumaki, one by one, all had impeccable lineage; they were either disciples of the former Hokage or sons of the former Hokage.

Ultimately, they are all related to the Senju clan.

Even the two acting Hokage here, Danzo Shimura and Shikamaru Nara, both had extremely close ties with the Hokage lineage.

Danzo Shimura was exactly the same as Hiruzen Sarutobi; both were direct disciples of the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju.

Nara Shikamaru, the last Hokage, was able to somewhat break free from his ties with the Senju clan after several decades.

On the surface, he is not a direct descendant of the Hokage lineage. He is the head of the Nara clan, his teacher was never the Hokage, and he has never married into the Senju clan or any of the previous Hokage families.

But what's the reality? Actually, his teacher was the Third Hokage's biological son!

That's a pretty strong connection!

Looking further down, those who shouted that they wanted to become Hokage but ultimately didn't have to; they all had to have a certain foundation to shout like that.

Kato Dan, in theory, is not qualified to be Hokage, but he is Tsunade's lover. If the two of them get together and Kato Dan is still alive, he could very well have a chance if he really shouted that he wanted to be Hokage.

Senju Nawaki, being a direct descendant of the Senju clan, needs no further explanation.

Even Obito Uchiha was qualified, since if he had developed normally, he would have inevitably become a direct disciple of the Fourth Hokage and thus qualified to participate in the election.

From this perspective, Obito Uchiha was actually the most likely person in the Uchiha clan to become Hokage at the time, but unfortunately, his plans were thwarted.

In short, the position of Hokage in Konoha appears to be democratic and open, elected by the people of the village.

But in reality, it can't be said that it has nothing to do with the opinions of the villagers, but it is true that if you don't have the right connections, you won't even be eligible to run for election.

They say that you can only become Hokage if you become Hokage, but if you have no connection with the Hokage and don't have the Hokage's help in promoting you, why should people recognize you?

In comparison, although the Uchiha clan is also one of the top clans, their influence in the village is pitifully insignificant compared to the Senju clan, which explains why they are so obsessed with the position of Hokage.

Come to think of it, as beings of the same caliber, if their clan doesn't produce a Hokage, how can they be so comfortable as to gracefully retire behind the scenes like the Senju clan?

They probably won't be willing to accept that.

Perhaps it was this subtle influence and atmosphere that ultimately forced the entire Uchiha clan to have no way out.

Getting back to the main point, after a brief moment of surprise, Jiraiya quickly calmed down and said, "I will convey your intentions to the Third Hokage. The Third Hokage will likely discuss this with the Kato clan, but I cannot guarantee the final outcome."

"It's fine, you can think of it as a transaction, and I'm willing to put up some bargaining chips." Bane nodded without minding.

In his view, if Konoha could happily hand over the Spirit Transformation Technique to him, that would be a win-win situation. But if Konoha was unwilling to give it up, he wouldn't give up either; it would just be a matter of changing his methods.

Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!

This is the composure of a strong person: I can reason with you and discuss cooperation, but it doesn't affect the final result I get.

In comparison, Konoha didn't really have any other options.

Jiraiya was well aware of this. Given the Spirit Lord's strength, if he were to take it by force, no one in Konoha could stop him.

The fact that they're even willing to talk to you about these things is already a huge favor, isn't it?

After saying this, the atmosphere seemed a bit awkward. Jiraiya wanted to start something, but he didn't know where to begin. Fortunately, Bane seemed to be in a pretty good mood today. Although he was turned away by that bastard Grim Reaper, he still wanted to go soak in the hot springs and enjoy himself.

So, in this awkward moment, Bane spoke up, "How about we go to the hot springs and relax?"

"Haha, if that's what you're saying, I'm not sleepy anymore." Jiraiya was delighted to hear this and said happily.

Half an hour later, Jiraiya sat in the hot spring pool, looking somewhat resentful, and said, "What a waste of precious time, Spirit Lord! How can you soak in a private bath? I could have just soaked in my own bath at home, couldn't I? Since we're here at a hot spring, we should definitely go to a public bath! That's how you experience the charm of a hot spring!"

"Huh?" Bane looked at Jiraiya with some surprise, and asked with a hint of anticipation, "Could it be...could it be that this hot spring inn offers mixed bathing services?"

"I used to have coughs, but they stopped later," Jiraiya said, his expression slightly unnatural as he brought it up.

"Why is it gone? How could such a good tradition be abandoned?" Bane said somewhat unwillingly.

Seeing the Spirit Lord's appearance, Jiraiya inexplicably relaxed a lot, and even felt that the distance between him and the Spirit Lord had been shortened.

"I don't know, maybe it's because the service at the place wasn't very good?" Jiraiya said with a hint of reminiscence in his eyes, "Back then, my teacher, the Third Hokage, often took me to mixed-gender baths, but for some reason, everyone started to dislike me. Every time we went, we wouldn't even soak for long before the owner kicked us out. It was really awful."

Hearing this, Bane looked at Jiraiya's 'wronged' appearance and was speechless. It was clear that neither this guy nor that Hiruzen Sarutobi had any sense of self-awareness.

Perhaps feeling that his relationship with the Spirit Lord had grown slightly closer, Jiraiya suddenly asked, "Spirit Lord, if you come from Ryuchi Cave, do you know Orochimaru?"

"Orochimaru?" Bane calmly soaked in the bathtub and said softly, "Of course I know him. We're on pretty good terms. He's told me a lot about ninjas."

"Are they on good terms?" Jiraiya murmured.

After a moment, he asked again, "Then, Spirit Lord, will you respond to the spirit communication technique of Dragon Land Cave?"

"I haven't encountered this situation before, but perhaps I will," Bane said casually.

Hearing this, Jiraiya's heart tightened. He hesitated for a moment, but couldn't help saying, "Although it's not good to talk about these things behind people's backs, Orochimaru is a very dangerous person, and there are things he's planning to do."

Before Jiraiya could finish speaking, Bane raised his hand to stop him, saying, "Jiraiya, whether it's justice or evil, whether Orochimaru is safe or in danger, it doesn't matter to me. What do the conflicts, interests, and relationships between you ninjas have to do with a 'summoning beast' like me? I have absolutely no interest in what you're saying."

Bane's claim of being a "summoning beast" left Jiraiya speechless. He opened his mouth, but couldn't find any words to refute it.

Take Manda for example. He also followed Orochimaru and committed many evil deeds, but everyone always blames Orochimaru. Nobody seems to have a grudge against Manda.

I'm just a spirit beast, why are you lecturing me with all this high-sounding principles? According to the contract, whoever summons me, I will do their bidding. There's a cause for every grievance, and a debt for every debt. You should talk to the summoners about these principles.

Even if Orochimaru brings enough offerings to summon my spirit and destroy Konoha, that's Orochimaru's responsibility, what does it have to do with me?

Pain summoned so many creatures that ran rampant in Konoha, but in the end, the blame was all placed on Nagato.

(End of this chapter)