"That's how it is."
After listening to his subordinate's report, Danzo remained silent.
He knew that the Mizukage returning with the Konoha squad was definitely not because he was moved by Satoshi and wanted to negotiate with Konoha.
He must have been captured!
Even if this speculation was hard to believe, it was the most likely scenario.
Before he could regret Satoshi and the others returning alive, Danzo had a new idea.
Kirigakure had always been closed off, and the outside world knew little about it. Once war broke out, it was very likely to cause Konoha a lot of trouble.
Danzo believed that since he had come all this way, Konoha's Intelligence Department should interrogate him thoroughly. After squeezing out every last bit of value from his brain, they would extract the Tailed Beast. Then, they would casually find a ninja to become the brand new Three-Tails Jinchuriki.
Of course, this ninja would ideally be his subordinate. This way, they could better protect Konoha.
"Let's go to pick them up."
Danzo quickly arrived at the dock to meet them. But he was still a step late, he saw Hiruzen there.
An ominous feeling immediately welled up in his heart.
Damn it, Hiruzen beat him to it.
Hiruzen also saw Danzo at this moment and immediately deduced Danzo's purpose.
"Danzo, you've come at just the right time. I have a very important mission for you."
Danzo asked, "What mission is it this time?"
"The arrival of the Mizukage will surely attract attention from all sides. I need you to personally lead people to the Land of Fire border to prevent spies from other countries from infiltrating."
Danzo shook his head. "I'd rather stay in the village to protect…"
Hiruzen cut him off. "Danzo, Konoha needs you, the Land of Fire needs you. Go."
Danzo still wanted to struggle a bit, but seeing Hiruzen's expression change, he immediately gave up the idea. He knew Hiruzen was about to say, "I am the Hokage" any moment now.
Danzo gritted his teeth and said, "Understood, Hokage-sama."
Watching Danzo's retreating figure, Hiruzen's face broke into a smile.
During previous meetings, Danzo had repeatedly proposed the strategy of controlling other countries' Tailed Beasts to weaken their strength. Now that the Three-Tails Jinchuriki had just docked, he showed up. Even a fool would know what he was thinking.
However, Hiruzen didn't see it that way. He felt that now that the war had finally ended, it was best for everyone to live in peace. Since he had come all this way, they might as well sign a cooperation agreement or something before he left.
—
In the Hokage office, Hiruzen and Yagura exchanged some meaningless pleasantries for a while.
Then Hiruzen got to the point, "Mizukage, I hope to establish an alliance with Kirigakure. What do you think?"
"Peace is hard-won. For the future of both sides, I ask Mizukage to consider it carefully."
This somewhat surprised Yagura. Logically speaking, shouldn't the Hokage take advantage of the situation and demand conditions such as Kirigakure offering up their secret techniques and resources?
He didn't expect the Hokage's attitude to be quite good. Is this what they call 'broad-mindedness'?
Thinking of this, Yagura's mood improved slightly. From his perspective, cooperating with Konoha was a good idea.
Kirigakure was now half-crippled. If they established a cooperative relationship with Konoha, they would have to help them somehow, right?
So, Yagura said seriously, "Kirigakure also greatly anticipates establishing an even closer strategic cooperative relationship with Konoha."
[Tobirama entered the game himself, rendering meritorious service to Konoha.]
[Hidden Mission Reward: Your ocular power has been strengthened again.]
Hiruzen smiled and nodded.
Kirigakure's strength was not very great. They were the best candidates for cooperation. Even if they were to backstab in the future, they wouldn't cause much of a stir.
"In that case, Mizukage, please stay in the village for a while longer. We still have many details to discuss."
"Alright."
Yagura understood that since he had come, it wouldn't be so easy to leave.
Now that his Chakra was sealed, Hiruzen wasn't worried about him causing any trouble.
After they finished discussing that, they moved on to other topics.
Hiruzen asked, "The masked man also invaded Kirigakure?"
Yagura's face flushed as he said, "He caused great destruction to Kirigakure, and now his whereabouts are unknown."
"Is that so…"
Hiruzen got what he wanted and didn't say much more to Yagura.
He excused Yagura, citing that he must be exhausted from the journey and should rest quickly. Of course, accompanying him were the elite ninjas of Anbu.
After Yagura left, Hiruzen called in the Konoha Squad from this mission.
Kakashi placed two scrolls on the table and reported the details of the mission from beginning to end.
"I'm truly sorry, Hokage-sama. We searched for a long time in the Land of Water, but still found no trace of the masked man or Orochimaru."
Hiruzen took a puff from his pipe. "I know Orochimaru very well, he is highly vigilant. I'm afraid he quietly slipped away while you were negotiating at the entrance."
"But what I didn't expect was that the masked man was also in Kirigakure. It seems there must be a close connection between the masked man and Orochimaru."
"I'll make a bold guess: the invasion of Kirigakure was also instigated by Orochimaru."
The more Hiruzen thought about it, the more he felt it was possible. At the same time, he grew even angrier.
The student he was most proud of had now become the most hateful rogue ninja in the Ninja World.
"You all go back and rest first. We'll do a debriefing later, and you can submit any overlooked details."
"Yes, Hokage-sama."
—
By the time the three walked out of the office, it was already evening.
Satoshi was in a good mood after getting some money back, so he treated his two senpais to ramen.
"Time to go home."
Satoshi swayed back to the Uchiha clan compound.
The clan members, seeing him return, came forward to greet him.
Since Konoha Military Police Force expanded its recruitment, it had attracted many temporary workers to take the blame.
No.
Companions willing to shed their blood for Konoha.
They appeared in the streets and alleys of Konoha, solving many problems.
Therefore, Inaho and the others were slightly more relaxed. But this was by no means complacency. A brief rest was for the purpose of serving Konoha better.
Inaho, who was training hard at the training ground, even grabbed Satoshi, asking about the mission's situation.
Satoshi felt that since the mission was over, he should be able to talk about it now.
"Senpais, I didn't expect this mission to be so dangerous. I almost didn't make it back."
"Soon after we boarded the ship, many masked ninjas rushed in."
"My two teammates and I went on a rampage, charging in and out seven times."
"Just when we finally dealt with them, we encountered their strongest ninja."
"I fought him for three hundred rounds, battling until the sky and earth turned dark, and I was once at a disadvantage."
"At the crucial moment, I remembered that I am a member of the Uchiha clan, how could I lose to such a monster?"
"So I shouted about friendship and bonds and charged forward…"
Satoshi spoke and gestured, completely baffling Sasuke, who was secretly listening nearby.
"So amazing… No, nii-san is the strongest."
Everyone turned their heads to see Sasuke vigorously waving his fists.
"You only defeated one ninja, nii-san can take down an entire ninja clan by himself."
After a brief silence, Satoshi said seriously, "Itachi really can."