Naruto, what kind of Hokage would you be if you didn't roll around!

Do you really understand our position?!

"Now, the alliance with Konoha and the Dawn Alliance with the five great nations of the ninja world are the foundation for Sunagakure to stabilize and rise again!"

"The support of Konoha Village is our greatest backing!"

He originally didn't want to be too explicit, but now he had no other choice.

These elders are not fools.

The Sand Village can only rely on the Leaf Village now, which is essentially its vassal. Therefore, maintaining a good relationship with the Leaf Village is the top priority.

And now, Naruto and his friends are unwavering in their support for Gaara.

Although he looks like just a child, everyone knows that he is already the successor chosen by the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade!

The Five Shadows Conference is proof of this.

Not to mention his terrifying strength and illustrious military achievements!

Even at his age, in the entire Hidden Leaf Village, there are probably only a handful of people, such as Hokage Tsunade, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and Jiraiya, whose prestige surpasses his.

Among the younger generation, his fame is at its peak, even surpassing that of Kakashi Hatake and others!

His will, in a sense, represents the Hokage and the entire Hidden Leaf Village!

Hinata, Sasuke, Asuma Sarutobi, and Yotsuya all clearly understood this point.

That's why Maki said that...

Hinata thought to herself, "Naruto-kun, you probably don't even realize it yourself, but your words have already had the power to influence the entire ninja world..."

After Machi finished speaking, the diehards fell silent.

So, Ebizo said, "Then let's vote by raising hands. Those who agree that Gaara should become the Fifth Kazekage, please raise your hands..."

Apart from a handful of elders who remained stubborn, the rest of the people finally raised their hands slowly, one by one.

A smile finally appeared on Maki's lips.

He breathed a sigh of relief and said in a deep voice, "Alright, in that case, from today onwards, Gaara is qualified to inherit the position of Kazekage!"

"However, elders need not worry. I will not let Gaara succeed me rashly before I am sure he is fully qualified. I will do my best to ensure a smooth handover and will never let Sunagakure fall into turmoil again!"

Ebizo nodded: "Okay, then I'll leave it to you, Maki."

At this point, it was only a matter of time before Gaara became the Kazekage.

Naruto couldn't help but be happy for him, but he also felt a sense of urgency.

Gaara is going to become the Kazekage...

How far am I from becoming Hokage?

……

The incident in Sunagakure has now come to an end.

Although caught off guard, Gaara was successfully rescued after the Akatsuki extracted one of its tailed beasts. Furthermore, in Naruto's rage, he killed another Akatsuki member, Deidara, and another member, Sasori of the Red Sand, was also killed by Granny Chiyo and Hinata.

Thus, the Akatsuki members who died at Naruto's hands...

This includes Orochimaru, Hidan, Kakuzu, and Deidara.

Including the deceased Sasori of the Red Sand, the Akatsuki organization has also suffered heavy casualties, with only...

Pain, Konan, Kisame Hoshigaki, Itachi Uchiha, Tobi, Zetsu.

Six members.

However, at the same time, the Akatsuki organization had also obtained the chakra of the six tailed beasts: the One-Tailed, Two-Tailed, Four-Tailed, Five-Tailed, Six-Tailed, and Eight-Tailed.

Although Gaara and Killer Bee did not actually die, the Akatsuki organization did obtain the tailed beast chakra within them.

Now, the five great nations only have the wild Three-Tails, the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki Fu who is guarding Konoha Village, and Naruto himself, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.

Naruto and his group also prepared to say goodbye to Sunagakure.

Gaara looked at Naruto, a complex mix of emotions welling up inside him.

"Naruto, because of you, my destiny has been changed."

"I am no longer a Jinchūriki, and I might even become the Kazekage..."

"Perhaps, I really am needed by others..."

"But you are different. You have already proven all of this through your own efforts."

Naruto smiled and said, "Gaara, I'm so happy to see you become the Kazekage. Just like you said, it proves that our destiny can be changed."

As for me...

"Whether I'm a Jinchūriki or not, it doesn't matter anymore. I've reached an agreement with Kurama inside me. He's no longer the Nine-Tailed Fox that disturbs me, but a Kurama who's willing to coexist peacefully with me. For me now, that's enough..."

Gaara also smiled slightly.

"Being able to achieve a tacit understanding with the tailed beast within you is itself a way of changing your destiny..."

"Only the Fourth Mizukage and Killer Bee, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, were able to do it before."

"To be honest, this is much harder than becoming the Kazekage..."

Naruto laughed and said, "Last time you said that you hoped we would meet again as Kage, but you still beat me to it."

"However, I will continue to work hard. Becoming Hokage is my dream, and I believe it's not far off!"

Gaara nodded: "Okay, then let's make a date for next time..."

"it is good!"

The group left Sunagakure and headed back towards Konoha.

Back in the village, Naruto, Asuma Sarutobi, Might Guy, and the others handed over their mission to Hokage Tsunade.

Tsunade also sighed.

"Grandma Chiyo is indeed an old rival, but she has long since retired from public life. I didn't expect her to come out of seclusion for her grandson, but..."

"In any case, she died a worthy death, placing all her hopes on the younger generation..."

Nara Shikaku said, "Hokage-sama, although Gaara has been rescued, the One-Tailed Beast has still been captured by the Akatsuki. This means they are getting closer and closer to their goal of capturing all nine tailed beasts..."

"We must also take measures."

"The efforts of the Dawn Alliance have indeed been effective, such as protecting the safety of the Three-Tails. However, due to being caught off guard, the One-Tails was also lost. Now, only the Three-Tails in Kirigakure and the Seven-Tails and Nine-Tails left in Konoha remain. We absolutely cannot afford any more mistakes."

Tsunade nodded: "Shikaku is right. I've received intelligence that the Mizukage, Mei Terumi, communicated with the Three-Tails for a long time, and ultimately the Three-Tails agreed to be resealed once again, and a new Jinchuriki..."

"It is the Water Shadow itself."

Naruto was shocked: "Aunt Terumi Mei chose to become a Jinchuriki on her own initiative?!"

He understood the suffering of Jinchūriki, and couldn't help but admire Mei's choice in comparison.

Tsunade sighed, “Firstly, Kirigakure lacks a more suitable candidate. Secondly, the Three-Tails agreed to be resealed because it was the best option, as it would be easier for the Akatsuki to target it in its wild state. Thirdly, if the Mizukage can maintain the perfect Jinchuriki status with the Three-Tails, it would be a great help to Kirigakure and the entire ninja world.”

Ultimately, this is the best possible outcome after weighing all the options.

Naruto could only nod.

"Even so, if the Akatsuki launches a full-scale invasion, Kirigakure, having just emerged from the Blood Mist Village and not yet fully recovered, will likely be unable to withstand it."

"Therefore, in the name of the leader of the Dawn Alliance, I plan to draw some elite ninjas from the other four major ninja villages to go to Kirigakure to jointly protect the Three-Tails."

"Among them, Kumogakure has decided that Darui and Hii will lead the team, Iwagakure will continue to be led by Kyoto, Sunagakure will send Sand Iron, Otokaze and others, as for our Konoha Village..."

"Kay, Yamato, I want the two of you to lead the team there."

"Yamato had previously been to Kirigakure to participate in the Three-Tails mission, so he is quite familiar with the situation in Kirigakure."

"Kai's combat strength is the last guarantee."

"Jiraiya and Kakashi haven't returned yet, and Guy, you're one of the strongest fighters in Konoha right now, so..."

"This task is now entrusted to the two of you!"

Might Guy laughed heartily: "Alright! Don't worry, Hokage!"

Yamato nodded and said, "Yes, Hokage-sama."

Tsunade said in a deep voice, "As for the interior of Konoha Village..."

"Even if the Akatsuki organization is arrogant, they shouldn't launch a large-scale invasion so easily."

"After all, even the current Konoha Village is not so easy to conquer!"

Everyone also nodded.

While Konoha Village may not be as prosperous as it once was, it still boasts Hokage Tsunade, Jiraiya (one of the Legendary Sannin), veterans like Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura, and established stars like Kakashi Hatake, Might Guy, Yamato, and Asuma Sarutobi. Among the younger generation, Naruto is already fully capable of standing on his own.

Such power is certainly not something the Akatsuki would dare to act recklessly.

Of course, Tsunade couldn't rule out this possibility either.

Nara Shikaku sighed, "Actually, our best course of action now is to use offense as defense, and before the Akatsuki gradually erodes our strength, we should use the full power of the ninja world to wipe them out in one fell swoop."

"However, we still know nothing about the Akatsuki's headquarters..."

Tsunade said, "Jiraiya has been investigating for a long time now. With his abilities, it's only a matter of time before he discovers Akatsuki's headquarters..."

"Hahahaha, as expected of Tsunade, you really are the one who understands me the best!"

Just then, a cheerful voice suddenly rang out.

Upon hearing that extremely familiar and warm voice, Naruto was overjoyed and turned around abruptly, exclaiming with delight.

"Lustful fairy!"

"You are finally back!"

"And Kakashi-sensei too!"

Tsunade couldn't help but smile.

"Jiraiya! Now that you're back, you must have already gained something, right?"

Jiraiya walked over casually and sat down on a chair.

"Ah, so be it."

Everyone was immediately thrilled!

Naruto hurriedly asked, "Where! Where exactly is the Akatsuki's headquarters?!"

Jiraiya shook his head: "Whether it's Akatsuki's stronghold is still uncertain."

"However, the location of the Akatsuki leader, the man who calls himself Pain, should be confirmed, and that is..."

"The Hidden Rain Village!"

Tsunade was taken aback: "Amegakure?"

"That's not Jiraiya..."

Jiraiya's face darkened, and he silently nodded.

"Yes, it's the place where I met Yahiko, Nagato, Konan, and the others..."

"In other words, they probably never left..."

Everyone knows that Pain, the leader of the Akatsuki, possesses the Rinnegan, the divine eye of the Sage of Six Paths, and his identity is also inextricably linked to Jiraiya's three disciples.

Therefore, Jiraiya's feelings are naturally very complicated.

Naruto hurriedly said, "Perverted Sage, now that we know the leader is in Amegakure, what are we waiting for?!"

"Why not just unite the forces of the five great nations, storm into Amegakure, kill that bastard, and wipe out the entire Akatsuki organization in one fell swoop!"

Kakashi shook his head: "Naruto, it's not that simple."

"Amegakure is a very closed-off village. Although they send genin to participate in the Chunin Exams, no one ever knows anything about their internal workings."

"It looks exactly the same as when Hanzo the Salamander was in charge, but in reality..."

"It has long since become Payne's territory."

"And such crucial information was completely leaked, not even a tiny bit. The outside world didn't even know Hanzo was dead. You can imagine how tight their secrecy was..."

"Acting rashly would not only be futile, but would also likely alert the enemy."