Naruto: My setting is above yours.

Hatake Sakumo nodded, then said, "After resting for half an hour, we'll head back to the village and hand the prisoners over to the intelligence department for further interrogation."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Half an hour later, the squad led the prisoners out of the cave and headed towards the Land of Fire.

In Amegakure, after treating his injuries, Hanzo carefully considered his options and finally made up his mind.

Form an alliance with Konoha!

As long as Konoha supports him, he can conquer the Land of River!

Although this could very well drag Amegakure and the Land of Rain into the abyss of war, the depravity of the Land of Rain would likely continue indefinitely if no changes were made.

"I am Hanzo!"

Thinking of the criticism that brat Genma had given him earlier, Hanzo issued an order to send an envoy to Konoha.

Two days later.

The Hokage's office.

After listening to the reports from Hatake Sakumo and Genma, Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze towards Genma shifted from shock to complexity.

If it weren't for Sakumo Hatake, he might have thought the child was lying.

Hanzo!

Even when the three ninjas joined forces, they were in a very sorry state.

Hanzo is much older now, and his condition may have declined, but Genma's performance is truly too incredible.

Fortunately, Hiruzen Sarutobi had a strong ability to process information and quickly digested it before asking, "Genma, what do you think Hanzo will choose?"

"Should we abandon your advice, or turn against Konoha and cooperate with other ninja villages?"

The reason I asked Genma Mikazuki, instead of Sakumo Hatake, is that Hiruzen Sarutobi saw a different perspective on the big picture in Genma from this incident.

When asked, Genma considered for a moment and said, "Third Hokage, I don't think Hanzo will choose either of them."

Hiruzen Sarutobi raised an eyebrow: "Oh, why?"

Sakumo Hatake also looked at his disciple with curiosity.

Genma explained, "Although Hanzo wanted to kill me, and I killed many of his subordinates, it doesn't mean that Hanzo is an enemy of Konoha."

"At that time, I was not Konoha's envoy. I was only representing myself and could not fully represent the attitude of the entire Konoha. That's one point."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded slightly.

Genma continued, "Secondly, I stirred up Hanzo's hidden ambitions, and once that fire is ignited, it's not something that can be easily suppressed."

"You can tell from the fact that Hanzo didn't hesitate to lead his men to kill me. I was just threatening him that there would be bad consequences if he didn't ally with Konoha."

Sakumo Hatake was both amused and exasperated.

Hiruzen Sarutobi also smiled.

Genma shrugged and smiled, then said, "If Hanzo can't let go of his ambitions, then if he makes a move now, the village won't stand idly by, even with the threat from Iwagakure."

Sakumo Hatake asked, "What if Hanzo seeks an alliance with Iwagakure?"

Chapter 64 Call Me Lord Xuanma (Third Update)

Faced with his teacher Sakumo Hatake's question, Genma nodded slightly: "Teacher, that is indeed a very high possibility."

"After all, the Iwagakure ninja are already preparing to attack us. It seems more appropriate for Hanzo to go to Iwagakure, so that we can use Iwagakure to restrain us."

"But that's the ideal situation."

"Since Hanzo has come to us, will Iwagakure turn around and use Amegakure against us?"

"This is highly likely."

"Moreover, Hanzo's first target will definitely be the Land of Rivers. If Hanzo chooses to cooperate with Iwagakure and takes over the Land of Rivers, once the chaotic situation ends, he will have to face both Konoha and Sunagakure at the same time, and even Kirigakure as well."

"Will Iwagakure help, or will they stand by and watch Hanzo be defeated? I think it's more likely to be the latter."

Hiruzen Sarutobi exhaled a puff of smoke: "Your analysis is indeed reasonable."

Sakumo Hatake then asked, "What about cooperating with us?"

Genma smiled and said confidently, "If Hanzo cooperates with us, the benefits will be enormous."

"The Sand Village certainly doesn't have the energy to interfere with his entry into the Land of River. The Iwa Village might attack the Amegakure, but we'll keep the Iwa Village occupied."

"This is the current situation."

"If the chaotic situation ends, Hanzo also has us to restrain Kirigakure and Sunagakure. After all, we are definitely less willing than Iwagakure to want Sunagakure and Kirigakure to obtain the Land of River."

"Although there is a possibility that we might fall out with Amegakure, I think Konoha is more trustworthy than Iwagakure."

"If Hanzo does nothing, or continues to wait for an opportunity, he will lose his chance forever. Once the chaotic situation ends, no ninja village will allow him to make a move."

Sarutobi no Hibiki chopped off his head.

Under normal circumstances, the three major ninja villages surrounding Amegakure would not allow a sixth major ninja village to appear nearby.

Such an awesome ninja village can never exist here again!

Therefore, Hanzo was severely beaten by several major ninja villages during the Second Shinobi World War.

At that time, the Land of Rain was indeed the target of the invasion, and it was Konoha who took the initiative to launch a war against the Land of Rain and Amegakure.

The reason behind this was that Hanzo attacked the Iron Country, openly revealing his ambition!

Having felt his analysis was nearly complete, Genma concluded, "Of course, if the village cooperates with Hanzo, we must guard against him suddenly breaking the alliance and cooperating with other villages instead."

"Hanzo is a very ambitious and power-hungry man. Once he feels threatened, he will not hesitate to break the alliance."

The early Akatsuki organization was wiped out by Hanzo's paranoia.

He was preparing to take over the Akatsuki organization, but because of the information brought by Danzo, he turned against him without hesitation and tried to eliminate him.

Of course, based solely on the fact that Yahiko and the others were taught by Jiraiya, probably not many leaders would dare to trust them.

"Sakumo, you've taught a fine disciple!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi exclaimed in admiration.

The reason for not directly praising Yu Feng Xuan Ma was to prevent the child from becoming arrogant.

Sakumo Hatake humbly replied, "You flatter me, Hokage. This is something the child learned at school, and I can't teach him these things."

Xuanma secretly gave his teacher a thumbs up.

She has pretty high emotional intelligence!

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled and then said gently to Genma, "Let's leave this matter here for now. You should go back and get some rest. The village will be very busy lately, so be prepared."

The master and apprentice nodded in unison, then took their leave.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, puffing on his cigarette, pondered for a moment before asking, "Shin-no-suke, what do you think?"

Wearing a mask, Shinnosuke Sarutobi suddenly appeared in the office: "I think Genma's analysis is very comprehensive. His talent is astonishing. It's hard to imagine that he has such abilities at the age of 10, especially in terms of situational analysis."

"I think Genma would be a perfect fit to become Hokage."

The potential to become a Hokage!

Sarutobi Shinnosuke's words were full of praise and admiration for Genma.

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded: "He is indeed an outstanding child. Perhaps he is not as perfect as Minato, but he is more outstanding in some aspects and is also bolder."

If it were Minato Namikaze, he would never have gone directly to Hanzo like that.

Sarutobi Shinnosuke smiled and said, "Genma and Minato-senpai are two completely different kinds of people."

"But without a doubt, they are all powerful ninjas capable of standing alone."

Hiruzen Sarutobi exhaled a puff of smoke: "Hmm... So, what about cooperating with Hanzo?"

Sarutobi Shinnosuke became serious: "Perhaps we need to consider forming an alliance with Amegakure."

"In the long run, it is inevitable that the war will spread to the Land of Fire. Kirigakure has always been relatively closed off and did not participate in the last war, so we don't need to consider it for the time being."

"But most of the other ninja villages will launch a war against us."

Where is the biggest fattest target in the ninja world?

In the Land of Fire!

Therefore, no matter which Shinobi World War it is, Konoha will always be the one who gets beaten.

A look of worry appeared between Hiruzen Sarutobi's brows: "You're right, war is unavoidable."

"Although there are outstanding children like Xuanma, their generation is far from mature."

The horrors of the last Shinobi World War were still fresh in his mind.

For him, the best course of action is to wait until Kakashi's generation grows up before facing the war.

But it's clear the enemy won't wait for Konoha.

Knowing his father's worries, Sarutobi Shinnosuke continued, "Forming an alliance with Amegakure is indeed beneficial to us at the moment; at least we don't have to worry about enemies from the Land of Rain for the time being."

"Even if Hanzo takes over the Land of Rivers, he can still hold off Sunagakure for us."

Hiruzen Sarutobi paused in his smoking motion upon hearing this: "Oh?"

"Do you think Sunagakure still has the strength to attack us?"

Sarutobi Shinnosuke nodded: "The Third Kazekage is dead, and the Fourth Kazekage is about to take over. The war losses from the invasion need to be made up, and the Land of Fire is probably the best target."

"Although Sunagakure is currently besieged by Iwagakure and Kumogakure, Sunagakure has always been known for its elite troops, and since it is fighting on its home turf, it has the advantage of terrain. Victory is only a matter of time."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded.

Sarutobi Shinnosuke concluded, "As things stand right now, we haven't lost anything by cooperating with Amegakure, since we don't have many interests in the Land of Rivers."

"Even if Hanzo takes back the Land of Rivers, his strength will not expand to the point of threatening us. If he continues to expand, then the last war will be repeated."

"Of course, as Genma said, we must guard against Hanzo suddenly turning against us."

Hiruzen Sarutobi fell into deep thought.

After a long while, he looked up and said, "Shinnosuke, go and inform Danzo and the others to have a meeting!"