Jiraiya frantically looked at Inoichi Yamanaka, then asked him, "Repeat what you just said."
Inoichi Yamanaka was a bit doubtful, but he only thought Jiraiya hadn't heard clearly because he was too tired, so he repeated, "The situation is like this: in the direction of the Grass Village, the village's troops suffered heavy casualties. Now, less than half of the remaining personnel are left, and nearly a hundred ninjas are trapped in the frontline stronghold. Shibi Aburame has asked the village for reinforcements."
In just one day, the casualties have already exceeded half!?
No, no, Jiraiya's brows furrowed. Now was not the time to think about this!
He immediately asked, "How many Grass ninjas are encircling them?"
"About five hundred, according to reconnaissance."
Jiraiya asked again, "How many people can be dispatched from the nearest place to rescue them?"
"Only about four hundred, but they still need to keep some people behind, so the number might be even lower."
Hearing this, Jiraiya felt a dizzying sensation for no reason. He continued to ask, "The rear of the Grass ninjas... is it, very empty?"
Inoichi Yamanaka immediately frowned upon hearing this and said, "Indeed, Lord Jiraiya, your judgment is spot-on. Shibi Aburame and the others did discover that the remaining guard forces near the Grass ninjas' camp became very weak, and there were signs that the remaining Grass ninjas had already left. However, they couldn't confirm the opponent's exact movements, so they were worried this was a trap."
Jiraiya's judgment was, of course, correct, because Mujin had mentioned that very choice to him at the academy not long ago!
A hundred comrades were besieged by five hundred enemy reinforcements in the front stronghold, while the enemy's rear was empty and lightly guarded.
Should he choose to sacrifice these hundred people to hold back the enemy, and launch a surprise attack on their main rear to completely end this battle, or choose to go and support his comrades, letting this war continue indefinitely...?
Mujin once said that he was not suitable to be Hokage because he couldn't make the choice to gain the greatest benefit at the smallest cost!
Jiraiya clutched his head, his face turning pained.
What should he do?
According to his original intention, he would definitely go to rescue those hundred comrades. But this choice had already given the answer!
If he rescued those hundred comrades, the result would only be a continuous war, and the final casualties would definitely be more than those hundred people!
So, was the decision he made truly to rescue his comrades?
Or was it merely fear of taking responsibility, and thus self-satisfaction?
But if he were to attack the rear of the Grass ninjas...
No!
Absolutely not!
Completely ending the war was merely a fantasy. If he failed, it would mean the sacrifice of those hundred comrades for nothing!
The cruel choice was already laid before Jiraiya. And he even suspected that no matter what he chose, the final result would inevitably be wrong!
Because since Mujin had set up this situation, they would definitely bring this matter to the cruelest possible end!
Inoichi Yamanaka didn't know what sudden pain had befallen Jiraiya. He guessed it might be that the injuries from the battle in the short street hadn't healed yet, and immediately asked, "Lord Hokage, what's wrong? Do I need to inform the medical squad?"
Indeed, he wasn't well, but Jiraiya's injuries weren't physical; they were psychological!
Jiraiya recovered his wits, then shook his head, and said somewhat heavily, "No, I'm fine."
After he spoke, the room fell silent again.
Jiraiya was tormented by this choice, but at that very moment, the main door to the Hokage's office was suddenly kicked open. Naruto burst in, ran to Jiraiya's front, and loudly said, "Pervy Sage! I heard the war has already started!? Let me do something for the village too!"
Jiraiya looked at Naruto, then waved his hand at the staff behind him, indicating that they didn't need to worry. Then he said to Naruto, "That's true, but you're not involved in this matter yet. All you need to do is continue training and become stronger. That's how you'll be able to do more meaningful things in the future."
Naruto, upon hearing this, loudly retorted, "Does doing things only after becoming stronger have any meaning? Truly meaningful things should be done no matter what! Pervy Sage! Those two bad guys must be on the battlefield too! Let's beat them all up! It's too painful to just stay here, unable to do anything!"
Beat those two bad guys up???
Jiraiya looked at Naruto, dumbfounded, then his eyes suddenly lit up. He immediately grabbed Naruto's hand and said excitedly, "That's right! Why didn't I think of that! I've decided! I'll only send five hundred people! On the battlefield, strength always decides everything! Five hundred Grass ninjas? Will rescuing comrades lead to even greater casualties? Hahaha! What a joke! Can't we just beat them all up? So-called schemes and plots can only be carried out in the background, after all!"
Jiraiya looked at Naruto, delighted, and then grabbed his shoulder again, saying, "Naruto, you truly are a genius!"
Naruto also grinned, "Ah, hahaha, I don't know what happened, but am I really a genius!?"
Jiraiya laughed for a while, then his spirit immediately surged. He turned to Inoichi Yamanaka beside him and said, "Immediately inform them. I will personally go to the front line to support them!"
"Mujin! If I meet him again this time, I won't hold back anymore!"
Inoichi Yamanaka was startled when he heard this, then immediately tried to stop him, "Lord Hokage, the war has just begun. You shouldn't appear on the battlefield so early!"
Jiraiya shook his head, then said firmly, "What shouldn't I do? Clearly, I possess great power. How can the Hokage merely stay in the village and watch everyone sacrifice themselves? I can't do such a thing! Moreover, I have intelligence that the earth and wood of the Grass Village are about to enter the Land of Fire, and their positions... are they not in the direction of the Grass Village? It's perfect for me to go to the front line and prevent any schemes!"
Inoichi Yamanaka still felt it was somewhat improper, so he said, "If that's the case, wouldn't the Fifth Mizukage of the Sand Village also appear on the battlefield? You can't stop him alone."
Jiraiya's brows furrowed. The movements of the Sand Village were truly surprising. Earlier intelligence showed that they had sent a large army to launch a surprise attack on Konoha's strongholds. The village was already gathering its troops after receiving the news.
However, until now, they hadn't received the latest intelligence from that side for almost a day.
What about the Sand Village's attack force?
Thinking of this, Jiraiya immediately said, "Have Kakashi lead the assembled troops directly to support the defense line in the direction of the Sand Village. The command there will be handed over to him. He is a very excellent ninja, and I believe he can handle this mission."
Inoichi Yamanaka pondered for a moment. He felt that Kakashi was indeed more suitable at this time, but he still said, "Lord Hokage, I remember Kakashi hasn't fully recovered yet. He might not be able to exert his full strength now."
Jiraiya thought for a moment, and a figure appeared in his mind. He added, "Then let Yamato be his deputy. Yamato has always worked in the Anbu. His strength is formidable, but he doesn't have much reputation in the village, and most people don't know him. It's not suitable for him to lead a squad alone. This time, let him be Kakashi's deputy and help him gain some reputation. Perhaps after this, he can also become a ninja who can lead on his own."
Jiraiya's decision quickly reached the ears of Shizune and Tenten. They also rushed over quickly to stop Jiraiya. The impact of a Kage personally appearing on the front line was simply too great.
This meant that in the days to come, all schemes and plots would unfold around him, and the attention of the entire ninja world would be drawn to him. Jiraiya would always be in danger!
However, Jiraiya became even more pleased after hearing this. Wouldn't this reduce the pressure on the village from other directions?
So, under Jiraiya's strong insistence, the two elders could only agree to his request.
However, at this moment, the village also had to face the threat from the Sand Village. Therefore, they could only give Jiraiya about two thousand five hundred people. The rest had to be given to Kakashi, after all, the threat from the Sand Village seemed greater now.
After making the decision, the entire village quickly went into action. Naruto even rushed after Jiraiya and shouted, "Pervy Sage! I want to go too! I want to go too!"
Jiraiya looked at Naruto, worried that the battlefield was too dangerous, and wanted him to grow for a while longer under the village's protection. But how could Naruto possibly sit still?
"How can there be anyone in this world who can become stronger just by training! If you don't even dare to go to the battlefield, how can you become stronger!"
Naruto's serious expression convinced Jiraiya. He hesitated for a moment, but finally agreed to Naruto's request. He admonished him, "You can go to the battlefield, but you must obey my orders. Otherwise, no matter what you say, I won't take you!"
Naruto couldn't care less about that much. He immediately nodded like a pecking chicken. No matter what requests Jiraiya made, he agreed without hesitation.
The war had begun. Most of Konoha's ninjas had already been assigned to squads.
However, genin like Sasuke's generation, since they had just graduated from the Ninja Academy, were temporarily not required to serve in the military. However, they were gathered at this time and began to assist the ninjas who remained in the village, doing what they could.
So, for now, these children did not need to be sent to the battlefield to sacrifice themselves for the protection of the village...
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