Konoha Village.
Next door to the Hokage's office, in the high-rise conference room, four senior leaders of Konoha and a group of jounin gathered here.
"Iwagakure Village can cease the war! But it must agree to our conditions!"
"That's right! We paid such a huge price, can we let them go so easily?!"
"If we continue to fight, the village will no longer be able to support us!"
"Don't beat Iwagakure hard now! Sooner or later there will be four more battles!"
"I support fighting again!"
"We must defeat Iwagakure!"
"If Iwagakure doesn't pay compensation, then we'll fight!"
Everyone was talking a lot, and the main war faction was fierce.
The Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen's face was as dark as water and he fell into silence.
Danzo on the side laughed secretly in his heart, but on the surface he remained calm.
Since Jiraiya and Namikaze Minato repelled the Iwagakure army on the frontal battlefield of the northwest front, and then the Namikaze Minato squad successfully blew up the Kannabi Bridge, the Iwagakure army suffered heavy losses, and finally withdrew from the Land of Grass and returned to Earth. within the country.
Later, in the face of the truce agreement that Konoha took the initiative to hand over, Onoki, the third generation Tsuchikage of Iwagakure, agreed to the truce, but Iwagakure would not pay compensation to Konoha as the defeated party.
In this regard, some ninjas who suffered heavy losses in the war expressed strong dissatisfaction, and many jounin did not agree with Iwagakure's conditions.
If it is in the early and middle stages of the war, as long as Iwagakure is willing to cease the war, then most people will definitely be willing to cease the war, even if they give up some benefits.
After all, in the early and middle stages of the Third War, Konoha was surrounded by enemies. Facing the siege of the four major ninja villages, its combat power was stretched thin. If Kushina and Shiroha hadn't repelled the Third Raikage, who knows what this war would have been like. when.
But since Kumogakure withdrew his troops, Orochimaru defeated Sunagakure and recovered Platycodon Castle, the situation reversed instantly.
Konoha is now fully capable of freeing up its hands to deal with Iwagakure with all its strength.
It is true that some conservatives are right. Konoha suffered heavy losses in this war, and continuing the war also delayed the recovery time.
But for the main war faction, they have lost so many companions and clansmen. If they can't get some compensation, wouldn't their clansmen's death be in vain?
Cultivating ninjas requires resources and money!
Is it generating electricity for love?
Konoha suffered heavy losses, and the losses of other villages were also considerable. Now if Konoha is determined to continue fighting with Iwagakure, Iwagakure will definitely not be his opponent. If faced with a village alone, no Ninja village will be Konoha's opponent.
After all, the Hyuga clan and the Uchiha clan on the eastern front have joined forces to repel Kirigakure Village, and it is only a matter of time before Kirigakure is completely defeated.
"I can understand everyone's thoughts, but the village really can't continue fighting, so we can only accept Iwagakure's conditions." Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at everyone in the field with an apologetic expression. The risk of fighting again is too great, so He chose the safest path.
"If we don't continue to consume Iwagakure's troops now, they will come back sooner or later. In all the wars in the ninja world, Sunagakure and Iwagakure took the lead. Some time ago, Sunagakure Village proposed to form an alliance with the village. Sandai, you agreed not to pay compensation. That's Because Sunagakure Village is too poor and can’t afford the money, forget it, but Iwagakure will definitely be able to pay for the compensation we demand. I will never agree to a truce like this!”
The elder of the original Senju clan said in a deep voice that he was very indignant at Hiruzen Sarutobi's behavior. In this war, nearly half of the ninjas of the original Senju clan were killed or injured. In addition to the ninjas who volunteered to participate in the wood escape experiment, the original Senju clan The elite of the clan was almost completely lost.
If the rope tree hadn't awakened the power of wood escape after rebirth after severed limbs, the Thousand Hands clan would have existed in name only.
"If we have to fight again, I am willing to be the first to go on the battlefield!" Shengshu said. Since he awakened the power of Mu Dun, his strength has improved by leaps and bounds, and he is close to the shadow level.
Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed helplessly, not knowing what to do.
At this time, Namikaze Minato on the side said: "Everyone, the Third Generation also has his own difficulties. If he continues to fight Iwagakure, he will lead his army into the soil country.
The terrain there is rugged, easy to defend and difficult to attack. We are fighting in a remote place, and the opponent has geographical advantages, so our ninjas cannot take advantage.
Once engaged in a protracted war, logistical support is a huge problem.
If we suffer a setback in the Kingdom of Earth, it is very likely that we will not be able to maintain our current victory.
The war has had a great impact on the village's economy. Ending the war as soon as possible will also restore peace as soon as possible, allowing the village to recover as soon as possible.
In this war, we have lost too many companions and sacrificed too many ninjas.
Giving up the compensation is really a helpless move! "
What Namikaze Minato said was very reasonable and pertinent, and many jounin with low-level backgrounds agreed.
After all, even if war compensation is obtained, the family will get the lion's share, and they will make less profit.
Even excluding the benefits, this battle had left them exhausted. Even jonins had to be lucky to survive. They really didn't want to fight with the enemy anymore.
No amount of money can compensate for the loss of family members, friends, and companions, and if the war continues, there will be more victims.
It's time to end the war!
"It's easy to say, without war reparations, wouldn't our people's death be in vain?!"
As soon as Namikaze Minato finished speaking, someone retorted.
The seats where their butts were sitting were different, so no matter how reasonable Namikaze Minato's words were, they couldn't agree.
When Namikaze Minato was about to argue again, Sarutobi Hiruzen, who was at the top of the list, looked pleased and waved his hand towards him, signaling him to stop talking.
"Even if there is no need for war reparations, Iwagakure will not be grateful to Konoha. That old fox Onoki will still attack Konoha as long as he has the opportunity." Danzo, who had been silent, said lightly.
At this time, Sarutobi Hiruzen stood up and said with a guilty look on his face: "Everyone, as the Third Hokage, I will take responsibility for this incident and my wrong decisions in the war."
"How are you responsible?" Danzo asked.
Sarutobi Hiruzen looked directly at Danzo and said, "I will resign as the Third Hokage!"
"What?!"
"Sandaime-sama, you can't do this!"
"Three generations, things haven't reached this point yet, everyone will make mistakes."
Many Jonin panicked when they heard that Sarutobi Hiruzen was resigning as Hokage. After all, during his more than 20 years in office, not to mention his great achievements, he was at least conscientious and implemented many policies. Civilians have a path to promotion, and many small and medium-sized families, as well as ninjas from civilian backgrounds, support him.
Unfortunately, because of the Sakumo incident, many jounin were disheartened. In addition, the village did not retain strong men like Kushina and Shiroha, causing Sarutobi Hiruzen's reputation to be greatly damaged.
Some of the command errors in this war were actually not a big problem. The most important thing was winning the war.
On the Western Front, Orochimaru used dozens of Jonin as bait in order to regain Platycodon City with fewer victories and more, resulting in heavy casualties. However, most ninjas can understand Orochimaru, because even if he goes to die, Orochimaru is on another front. , also facing many powerful enemies, rushing to the front of the battlefield.
A series of key problems for Sarutobi Hiruzen have erupted in recent years, causing his support among jounin to drop a lot.
Of course, his support among the villagers is still very high, because many policies have brought tangible benefits to the people at the bottom.
"No need to persuade anyone. I will go to see the Daimyo-sama in the near future and mention this matter to him. In addition, you can nominate candidates for the Fourth Hokage. The person who is recognized by everyone will succeed the Fourth Hokage." Sarutobi Hiruzen continued. road.
Danzo narrowed his eyes. He didn't expect Hiruzen to resign from the third generation position so decisively. Originally, he thought that Hiruzen would definitely occupy this position for a few more years.
If Hiruzen abdicates, Orochimaru will definitely be the most promising candidate to become Hokage.
Today's inciting the ninja clan to attack Hiruzen is the result of Danzo's recent efforts. After all, in this war, many ninja clan expect to receive war compensation after victory.
Danzo was afraid that Hiruzen Sarutobi would delay the election of the fourth generation for various reasons after the war, so he wanted to take this opportunity to remove him from the position of Hokage as soon as possible.
Facts have proved that Danzo's calculation was correct.
...
The imminent abdication of Sarutobi Hiruzen caused a sensation in Konoha.
Even the Daimyo repeatedly advised him to continue serving as Hokage. After all, for the Daimyo, it was enough as long as Konoha was stable and could continue to win in the war.
Not to mention how powerful and accomplished Sarutobi Hiruzen was, at least three of the ninja wars were won on his watch.
What the daimyo wants is results.
At the beginning, his favorite heir to the Fourth Hokage, Hatake Sakumo, had committed suicide. There was not much difference among the others who became Hokage.
The most popular person to succeed the Fourth Hokage in Konoha is Orochimaru. Because Jiraiya has publicly stated many times that he will not compete for the position of the Fourth Hokage, a considerable number of Jonin who support him have chosen to support his disciple Namikaze Minato.
With his amazing performance in the Third Ninja World War, Namikaze Minato's reputation has been catching up with the three. Just the fact that the top management of Iwagakure Village issued an order that "you can abandon the mission without being punished when encountering a golden flash" is enough to show the influence on his strength. recognized.
However, to everyone's surprise, it was not Tsunade who had a support rate similar to that of Namikaze Minato, but Shimura Danzo, the leader of the Roots.
Danzo has assisted the Third Generation since the First Ninja War, and was active in the Second World War and the Third War.
If it weren't for his ruthless behavior, perhaps his approval rating would not be lower than Orochimaru's.
At this time, in Root's headquarters, Orochimaru and Danzo were talking in the bottom room.
"Danzo, why are the experimental subjects you promised to give me missing?"
Orochimaru asked with a slightly gloomy expression.
His experiment reached a critical moment, but the number of experimental subjects was not enough, which made him very irritated.
Not only is the Curse Seal experiment stagnant, the Wood Escape experiment is progressing very slowly, and now even his most important reincarnation forbidden technique is stuck in a bottleneck.
"Don't you care at all about the position of the Fourth Hokage?" Danzo's face darkened, a little dissatisfied with Orochimaru's attitude.
Orochimaru said: "Don't you understand yet? No matter how many candidates there are for the Fourth Hokage, the old man's support is the key."
This is Orochimaru's self-confidence. He believes that with so many years of master-disciple relationship and mutual understanding, the third generation will definitely choose him. Although Orochimaru is not very interested in the fourth generation Hokage now, if the third generation chooses him to become the fourth Hokage, Generations later, he would still be a good Hokage, train a suitable successor as soon as possible, inherit his position, and then continue to experiment.
At present, Orochimaru's favorite person is Naoki. After he awakened Wood Release, he has become one of the few strong men in Konoha.
"That Namikaze Minato is a big threat. Based on his performance in the third battle, he will be your strong enemy. Aren't you afraid that the third generation will support him?"
Danzo continued.
Orochimaru smiled faintly, perhaps after Namikaze Minato learned the Flying Thunder God Technique, his strength had already surpassed him, but when it came to the fight for the position of Hokage, he did not take a junior like Namikaze Minato to heart at all.
Seeing Orochimaru's confident expression, Danzo didn't feel much joy in his heart.
It is true that after Orochimaru takes over, based on their previous interests, Danzo will have greater power and a higher status.
But at this moment, Danzo felt that he was the closest to becoming the Hokage in his life.
As long as Orochimaru doesn't stand in the way, he has a greater chance of becoming the Fourth Hokage. After all, why should a Namikaze Minato with a weak foundation compete with him.
He and the third generation have supported each other for decades. Will the third generation really support a Namikaze Minato and give up on him?
Thinking of this, Danzo felt a little unable to hold himself back.
"I will prepare for the experimental subjects as soon as possible. After all, you know that the war is coming to an end and it will be much harder to catch spies than before."
"Yes." Orochimaru nodded, turned around, and prepared to leave.
"How far have you progressed in the research on Wood Release Cells?" Danzo asked. He never expected that the rope tree would also awaken the Wood Release, and it seemed to be more powerful than the 'Armor' he had carefully cultivated. , although there is the reason for the age gap, and the reason why Naoki is the first-generation grandson, there must also be the reason why the completion of Orochimaru's wood escape experiment is not as good as that of Iori Shiroha.
"I don't have the energy to continue these experiments during this period." Orochimaru frowned slightly. Nao Shu was his disciple. He also extracted cells from Nao Shu's legs and did research. Facts have proved that Bai Yu's technology in regenerating severed limbs has been Far surpassing him as a teacher, so Orochimaru has now focused his energy on other aspects.
Danzo looked at Orochimaru's leaving figure, his face gradually darkened: "As a teacher, he is not even as good as a disciple!"
Since the wood escape experiment, Orochimaru has given him fewer and fewer results. At the high-level meeting, he boasted that he would complete the forbidden art of reincarnation in Haikou, but Orochimaru did not put his mind into this aspect, resulting in the experiment Progress is slow.
"Somebody come!"
Danzo said solemnly to the empty room.
brush!
Three root ninjas appeared in the room using the teleportation technique and knelt down on one knee.
"Catch some ninjas from the village who are civilians and send them to Orochimaru. Also, find some orphans around the village."
Danzo said with an indifferent expression.
"What? Capture the ninjas in the village?" Even the ninjas who had undergone basic brainwashing training were surprised.
"What? Do you dare to disobey my order?!" Danzo narrowed his eyes.
"yes!"
The three ANBU took the order and left the root headquarters.
"It seems that we have to find a way to improve the confidentiality level within the root." Danzo thought to himself. The members of the root have been brutally trained, but there are always exceptions. The first one is the pharmacist Nonou. Brainwashing training is not enough, we have to find a way to develop a technique so that it can be more confidential.
"Orochimaru, this time, please make way for me."
Danzo thought to himself.
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PS: The upstairs will be renovated until Saturday. The attitude of the people is very good. I will finish the decoration early. I will not update it these days and will make up for it later. If it feels short, leave it for a few days. It will look different when you put it together. above.
