Konoha. Inside the Hokage Office.
"Ehehe, this one's good, this one's not bad either, so white~"
This person was none other than the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, who had just returned from the Land of Rain battlefield.
After killing Hanzō and eliminating the main force of the Ame shinobi, Sarutobi Hiruzen led the wounded back to Konohagakure first.
As for the task of cleaning up the Land of Rain battlefield, he handed it over to Danzō. After all, he was the one who called Danzō out. Since he had already slain Hanzō and gained immense fame and prestige, Danzō, as a good brother who came along with him, should at least get a share of the spoils.
Thus, the task of cleaning up the battlefield was naturally assigned to Danzō.
As for himself.
The Hokage's work is very demanding, and Konoha cannot function without the Hokage presiding over it.
Of course.
The moment he returned to Konoha, Sarutobi Hiruzen immediately arranged for his subordinates to gather the latest news from the Ninja World.
Sure enough, just as he expected, after slaying Hanzō and making his statement, the tide of opinion in the Ninja World immediately changed. The former skepticism turned into praise that Hokage-sama truly had good intentions for the next generation. They even said... they even said that I am... the Strongest Hokage of All Time!
This... this truly puts me in a difficult position!
Ehehe... However, it wasn't all one-sided praise for himself.
There were also people who said Sarutobi Hiruzen's victory was dishonorable, achieved through sneak attacks and deceit, only succeeding by ambushing Hanzō after he had already gone through a major battle.
Sarutobi Hiruzen merely laughed off such remarks.
A sneak attack!
Can a battle between shinobi be called a sneak attack?!
This is clearly strategy!
Clearly, the person saying this is not a qualified shinobi!
Pfft!
Therefore, Sarutobi Hiruzen's mood had been extremely beautiful these past few days.
Since everyone calls me the Strongest Hokage, then I must seriously do what a Hokage should do!
[Eheh! The quality at this newly opened shop is pretty good too~ hehehe~]
"Ribbit~ Ribbit~"
The familiar croaking sound roused Sarutobi Hiruzen from his immersion. Following the sound, he saw a toad standing on the floor by his desk.
"Ahem!" He silently put the crystal ball into the drawer, then looked sternly at the toad on the ground.
Because the one that arrived was the communication toad specifically left behind by Jiraiya, used only for transmitting messages during emergencies.
"Has Jiraiya sent some important information?"
"Croak!"
The toad on the ground first nodded, then hopped onto the desk. Its two front paws skillfully untied the knot on its back. Once the scroll fell onto the desk, it vanished in a 'pong' sound of smoke.
Sarutobi Hiruzen picked up the scroll on the desk, his face full of confusion.
After the battle ended, he had sent his three disciples to lead teams to eliminate the remaining Ame shinobi. He couldn't imagine what major trouble Jiraiya could have encountered in the current state of the Land of Rain to necessitate using the toad left here to transmit a message.
Could Hanzō have risen from the dead?!
But the moment he opened the scroll and saw the first line of text, he froze completely, and his pipe dropped straight from his mouth onto the floor.
But at this moment, he had no mind to care about his precious pipe; he only had one thought in his head.
That was—
How exactly did Danzō clean up the battlefield?!
Because the first line written on the scroll read:
[Konoha shinobi are massively looting the Land of Rain.]
...
Land of Rain.
Inside a certain village, a Konoha shinobi squad was carrying out a mission to clear out the remnants of the Ame shinobi.
"Haha, Captain, this house actually has a chicken! We'll have a feast soon."
A Konoha shinobi ran out of a house, carrying a chicken in his left hand.
"Wuwu, you can't take the chicken! My mother is sick and needs nourishment. Nana needs to use the eggs it lays to cook for Mother!"
A five or six-year-old girl ran out crying, hugging the leg of the shinobi holding the chicken.
"Get lost! Move aside!" With that, the shinobi kicked the little girl into the wall, knocking her unconscious.
"Nana, my Nana~"
At that moment, a woman crawled out and happened to see her daughter kicked into the wall, immediately crawling towards her daughter in tears.
"Hahaha, Captain, look! Doesn't the way she crawls look like a dog?"
"Hahaha, Genkō, you're right! They are all dogs! How dare a mere Land of Rain challenge our Konoha? This is their fate!"
It seemed words alone weren't enough to vent his anger. The Captain walked straight up to the crawling woman, placed his foot in her path, and looked down at her.
Then, under the woman's pleading gaze, he picked up her daughter, bent down, and looked at the woman.
"Beg me. If you just beg me! I'll let your daughter go, how about that?"
"I... I beg you, please let my daughter go!"
It seemed as if he had heard the most wonderful sound.
The man stood up and burst into laughter.
He then raised his foot and stepped on the woman's head, saying furiously:
"Begging? You think begging will make me spare you? You lowly villagers of the Land of Rain, wouldn't it be better if you just stayed soaking in the rain, waiting to rot and decay? How dare you jump out and resist! Why do you resist! Why dare you resist! By what right do you resist!"
After speaking, he crouched down, grabbed the woman's hair, looked at her mud-stained face, and then said to her with a smile.
"Do you feel it? Do you feel that despair? But don't worry, I won't let you die painlessly. But if you beg me, maybe I can give you a quick end!"
Having said this, he leaned his ear close to the woman's mouth, waiting with anticipation for her to speak the words he desired.
"Cough, cough... Hanzō-sama... Hanzō-sama won't let you get away with this!"
"Hanzō?!"
"Hahaha!"
Seeming amused by what the woman said, he laughed and spoke to her.
"Your Hanzō-sama probably already has maggots crawling on him right now!"
"In the state you're in now! What can your Hanzō-sama do for you!"
"Your daughter was kicked unconscious by us! What can your Hanzō-sama do for you then!"
"Your Guardian God has been killed by us! No one can save you now! So! Beg me! Beg me and I'll give you a quick death!"
"Hahahaha... Ha—ugh..."
A golden chain suddenly shot forth from a distance, piercing the Captain's chest, and threads of fresh blood flowed from his still laughing mouth.
"Who... who is it?"
The Captain wanted to see who had ambushed him, but he was given no chance, as thick darkness completely engulfed him.
Immediately afterward, the chain was pulled out, and then it bound the woman and the little girl on the ground and carried them away.
Only then did the other two Konoha shinobi react.
They never imagined that with Hanzō already dead, someone would still dare to ambush them.
"Who! Quick, fire the signal flare!"
The man named Genkō was the first to react, speaking to the man beside him, and then immediately taking the lead in the pursuit.
"Good, they're still alive!"
The one who rescued the mother and daughter was Uzumaki Rumei.
He was here with two of his clansmen, searching for the people of the Land of Rain.
Everywhere was devastation and looting.
This put Rumei and his two companions in a terrible mood, reminding them of the Land of Whirlpools, that extinguished nation, which had suffered the same tragic sight.
It was at this moment that they happened to see a Konoha shinobi stepping on a villager.
This incident ran straight into Rumei and his companions' sights.
Rumei stated that his mood was already quite poor, and now seeing this, it seemed that if he didn't eliminate this person today, his heart would not find peace.
Immediately, he used Kongō Fūsa (Adamantine Sealing Chains), piercing straight through, then wrapping up the mother and daughter and fleeing.
"Seifū, Meigetsu, you take the people and go first! I will hold them off!" Seeing the Konoha shinobi fire the signal flare, Uzumaki Rumei knew he was about to clash with the Konoha shinobi, so he spoke to the two clansmen beside him.
"Understood, Third Elder, please be careful!"
"Hahaha, don't worry. I don't even consider these mere cats and dogs worth my attention!"
Hearing their Elder's words, Seifū and Meigetsu naturally believed him. They said no more, each wrapping up Land of Rain civilians and leaving the area.
Ten minutes later.
Uzumaki Rumei still stood quietly in place.
But before him lay eleven unconscious shinobi on the ground.
"Heh, you few want to surround this old man? Back in the Land of Whirlpools battlefield, this old man managed to lead a hundred clan members, cutting through a thousand-man army seven times. Now you few think you can kill me? Hmph!"
But the moment he finished speaking, the chains behind Uzumaki Rumei pulled hard, yanking him away from his spot and dropping him to the side.
Just because.
"Doton: Domu!" (Earth Release: Earth Spear)
Earth Spears sprouted one after another from the place Uzumaki Rumei had just been standing.
"I didn't expect to meet someone from the Uzumaki Clan here. May I ask which member of the Uzumaki Clan you are, and why you killed my Konoha shinobi?"
"Oh~, The Monkey's disciple, huh! You have some skill!"
The person who arrived was Orochimaru. Just a short while ago, he received a message from Jiraiya and rushed back with his subordinates, which is when he saw the distress signal rising into the sky.
"He was just a scumbag who bullied the weak. What if I killed him?"
"If that's the case, then I'll have to invite you back to Konoha as a guest."
"Sen'ei Jashu!" (Hidden Shadow Snake Hands)
A dense swarm of venomous snakes poured out of Orochimaru's mouth and rushed toward Uzumaki Rumei.
Watching the dense swarm of snakes rush toward him, Uzumaki Rumei merely gave the chains behind him a slight tug and dodged the attack.
"Stop, junior. This old man has no intention of being Konoha's enemy, or else it wouldn't have been as simple as just one death."
"But one person is already dead, isn't that right? Therefore, I must ask Senior to take a trip to Konoha. Don't worry, with Tsunade and Mito-sama there, nothing will happen to you!"
"Hmph, then let this old man see the quality of the disciple taught by The Monkey."
Three minutes later.
Orochimaru watched Manda, whom he had just summoned, instantly get bound by the Kongō Fūsa, then disappear into a puff of smoke, and he decisively stopped fighting.
I can't beat him, I really can't beat him!
Damn it, floating in the air like a spider, untouchable and unhittable. When I finally managed to unleash a Fūton (Wind Release), he countered with an even larger one, blowing my own Fūton back at me. Manda, whom I summoned, was instantly defeated, and his chakra showed no sign of weakening. Why bother fighting? I surrender decisively.
I really don't know how such a powerful Uzumaki Clan ended up being destroyed.
"Junior, can this old man leave now?"
"Hehe, Your Excellency..."
Hearing Uzumaki Rumei's words, Orochimaru was about to say 'go ahead,' but then he sensed a familiar presence. A curious smile appeared on the corner of his mouth as he spoke to Uzumaki Rumei.
"Hehe, please wait a moment, Your Excellency. I believe you have an acquaintance who is very eager to see you."
As his voice fell, a golden figure rushed over from the distance and stopped beside Orochimaru.
"Orochimaru, the enemy is right... You are... Grandpa Rumei?"
"Ah! It's Tsuna-chan! You've grown so big!"
Seeing that the person who arrived was Tsunade, a look of nostalgia flashed in Uzumaki Rumei's eyes.
"Grandpa Rumei, I can't believe you're still alive! Does that mean many other Uzumaki Clan members are also alive? Grandma misses you all very much, and Kushina misses you too."
"Is that so? I miss them very much too. Remember to send my regards to Mito-sama!"
"Hey~, Grandpa Rumei, aren't you coming back to Konoha with us? Konoha will definitely protect..."
"That's enough, Tsuna-chan!"
Uzumaki Rumei interrupted Tsunade before she could finish her sentence.
"Konoha is no longer the Konoha it once was, and the Uzumaki Clan is no longer the Uzumaki Clan it once was!"
"Grandpa Rumei, I don't understand what you're saying? Konoha is clearly still the same Konoha! It's still the Konoha that Great-Grandpa created, and the Uzumaki Clan will always be Konoha's ally!"
Tsunade, still excited that members of the Uzumaki Clan were alive, completely failed to grasp the meaning of Uzumaki Rumei's words.
"Hehe, Tsuna-chan, go and take a good look around. See what Konoha has done. If Hashirama-sama were still alive... he would surely be immensely disappointed in the current Konoha!"
"Also, send my regards to Mito-sama. The Uzumaki Clan has found a new home. Once the war is over, this old man will formally submit a request to Konoha for a visit."
After speaking, the chains behind him pulled simultaneously, launching him toward the distance like a spring.
At this moment, Tsunade was still caught up in Uzumaki Rumei's words, unable to recover her senses.
"What practical Kekkai Genkai! I have new inspiration again!"
Watching Uzumaki Rumei use the chains with such mastery, Orochimaru's inspiration surged, and he viciously licked his own face with his tongue.
"Orochimaru, do you know what Grandpa Rumei meant by what he just said?"
Tsunade, her thoughts interrupted by Orochimaru, turned and asked him.
"Who knows? Perhaps the answer lies with the shinobi who died. Or maybe it has something to do with the message Jiraiya sent us."
"Fine! This old lady is going to find out exactly what happened that made the Uzumaki Clan view Konoha like this!"
...
Konohagakure.
Still the same office!
But compared to the previous cheerful atmosphere.
The office felt much more oppressive.
"Inhale~~"
"Exhale~~"
Sarutobi Hiruzen sat in his office chair, taking puff after puff of his pipe.
He was thinking! Pondering!
He didn't understand!
How could a perfectly normal clean-up mission end up like this!
"You've all read Jiraiya's report, right? Regarding this matter... what are your thoughts?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura, who were sitting opposite him in a state of confusion, and asked.
Facing the deathly inquiry from Sarutobi Hiruzen, the two first exchanged glances, and then Utatane Koharu spoke up.
"Hiruzen, could Jiraiya have gotten this wrong? We all know Danzō; although he is aggressive, he wouldn't be that aggressive, would he?"
"Wrong?"
Seeing that his two old friends still seemed unconvinced.
Sarutobi Hiruzen then took two documents from his drawer and handed them over.
"One of these is an inquiry letter sent by the Daimyō of the Land of Fire.
The other is a letter of condemnation from the Daimyō of the Land of Rain, which also bears the signature of the Daimyō of the Land of Lightning.
As you should all know, shinobi are not allowed to kill civilians freely.
Because civilians are the source of the Daimyō's tax revenue, killing a large number of them is equivalent to digging up the Daimyō's roots!
Daimyō often have family ties with one another; the Daimyō of smaller nations usually marry relatives of the Daimyō of the Five Great Nations. Since the Land of Rain is sandwiched between the Lands of Wind, Fire, and Earth, if the Ame Daimyō married someone from any of those three, it would provoke attacks from the other two.
Therefore, the Daimyō of the Land of Rain always marry people from the Land of Water or the Land of Lightning. The current Ame Daimyō married the younger sister of the Lightning Daimyō.
Now, with the Lightning Daimyō's signature appearing on the Ame Daimyō's letter, I shouldn't need to elaborate on what that means."
"Originally, Hanzō of the Salamander initiated the conflict, making Konoha the reactive party. Therefore, even if Konoha truly killed some civilians during the war in the Land of Rain, we could use excuses like 'clearing potential enemies' or 'civilians were shinobi in disguise' to gloss over it. The Land of Lightning would have no reason to get involved.
But now? Hanzō is dead, yet Konoha used this time to carry out greater destruction, killings, and looting within the Land of Rain!
That means Konoha is cutting off the roots of the Land of Rain, and that is something no Daimyō can tolerate!"
If you dare cut off the Land of Rain today! Are you going to cut off the Five Great Nations tomorrow?
"Well... Hiruzen, can't we reply to the Daimyō and say that the people of the Land of Rain were resisting stubbornly..."
Utatane Koharu, who had just started speaking, saw the look in Hiruzen's eyes—a look usually reserved for idiots—and realized she had said something foolish, quickly shutting her mouth.
"Hiruzen, the urgent matter now is to withdraw the troops from the Land of Rain first. As long as we are no longer in the Land of Rain, there won't be any more incidents of killing Ame civilians. Then we call Danzō back and thoroughly investigate this matter."
"Mm! Homura makes sense. Let's do that. The priority is to withdraw first."
After smoking for half the day, Sarutobi Hiruzen finally heard a sensible answer and decisively ordered the Anbu to recall the troops from the Land of Rain.
Laktozlu : I've never translated such a long chapter in my life:(