Konoha: The thirty-year-old Uchiha is not motivated.

"That's such a pity. Don't regret it later, monkey."

Danzo shook his head regretfully and patted his hand lightly twice.
"Slap slap~"

"Light the lamp."

However, a few seconds later, the light bulb above Danzo's head continued to flicker wildly, illuminating his ashen face with an even more gloomy expression.
"Clap!"

He glanced at Hiruzen Sarutobi below, who was trying not to laugh, and his face twitched violently. He slapped his hand twice more heavily.
"Zaemon!"

"what?"

A furious shout startled Nohara Shinnosuke, who was fast asleep in the corner. Wearing a pig-head mask, he scratched his head sleepily, his round, still-childish face full of confusion.
Well.
Who is Saemon?

"Slacking off again! Go turn on the light!"

Danzo's sharp gaze was practically piercing his good-for-nothing son into a sieve.

"Oh~ So I am Zaemon!"

Under his father's watchful gaze, Nohara Shinnosuke, gradually regaining his senses, slammed his fist into his palm, the confusion on his face instantly vanishing.
Yes, Zaemon is his code name in Root.

"Crack!"

As Shinnosuke fumbled for the light switch hidden in the corner in the dark, the disco-like office instantly transformed into a business-like, old-fashioned space.
"What? Don't you have a light here?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen breathed a sigh of relief, finally managing to avoid spilling tea into his crotch. If he had gotten any wet, he wouldn't have been able to explain it to Biwako when he got home.

“The root group has always been frugal, except for you. I usually light candles for everyone else.”

"Huh? Isn't that how it usually is?"

"Step back, Zaemon!"

Shinnosuke, yawning, couldn't help but want to expose his father's boasting, but Danzo wasn't about to fall for his son's act. He glared disapprovingly at his son, who spent his days slacking off and his nights watching erotic photos.

Seeing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi assumed that the father and son had a strained relationship. Ignoring the wet stains on his trousers, he immediately stood up to try and persuade them.
"Danzo, he's still just a child."

"Oh! Does that mean I can go home now?"

Unexpectedly, Shinnosuke didn't care about his father's terrible attitude at all; all he cared about now was whether he could go out and see the girls.

"roll!"

Goodbye~

Watching Shinnosuke leave happily, Hiruzen Sarutobi, who had just stood up, awkwardly rubbed his hands together before sitting back down.
"That brat is getting more and more disobedient. It's a good thing I keep him by my side. If I let him out, he'll only cause me trouble."

In terms of family education, Danzo doted on Shinnosuke because of a debt he owed him from many years ago. Otherwise, he wouldn't have specially recruited Shinnosuke into Root as his personal bodyguard as soon as Shinnosuke was promoted to Chunin.

"I think this child has a good personality, unlike my Che, who is always pretending to be serious."

Speaking of his children, a warm smile appeared on Hiruzen Sarutobi's face. No one knows a son better than his father.

Although Sarutobi Tetsu appears to be very traditional on the surface, he secretly watches a female streamer named Cute P. He not only spends all his pocket money saved up over the years in the live stream, but also buys the streamer's merchandise at high prices, making him a true idol fanatic.

"Alright, let's leave the children's topic here. Monkey, according to the information Jiraiya sent back, Iwagakure has pushed its main force to the border of the Land of Rain, and Onoki is suspected to be in the camp."

Seeing that Hiruzen Sarutobi, the doting father, was about to start his incessant chatter about his arrogant brat with the upturned bangs, Danzo quickly raised his hand to stop him. As he spoke, he took out a still-warm intelligence report and tossed it over with a serious expression.

"How is Jiraiya now?"

Thinking of his disciple who was so busy he couldn't even come home for the New Year, Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes showed a faint trace of worry.

Of his three disciples, Orochimaru was undoubtedly the most outstanding.

But if I had to pick his favorite, Hiruzen Sarutobi would choose Raiya even with his eyes closed. Raiya was a respectful and good student who would send him brand new erotic masterpieces every now and then, making him get aroused every night.

"Don't worry, I have already sent the best members of the Root to assist him in continuing his infiltration. There won't be any problems."

"You have a heart."

Hiruzen Sarutobi finally felt relieved, knowing he would be able to read the next chapter of "Old Silver, the Gatekeeper of Konoha" next week.

"Shu~"

As he casually unfurled the scroll containing the latest intelligence, the silver smile on Hiruzen Sarutobi's lips gradually faded as the contents were revealed, replaced by a deep solemnity.

"Is Onoki about to make a move?"

“Last time, the two tailed beast riders from Iwagakure suffered a great defeat at Amegakure, and most of their elite Jonin were also lost. Even if Onoki is a coward, he still can’t swallow this insult.”

Danzo nodded. Logically speaking, there was no need for the Kage of a village like Amegakure to participate in an invasion of a relatively small country. Onoki's personal command could only indirectly indicate one thing.
The Hidden Stone Village cannot afford to lose this battle, nor can it afford to drag it out.

As he continued reading, Hiruzen Sarutobi's brows furrowed even more deeply.

"Hanzo hasn't shown up for a month? Hasn't he become a knight? Shouldn't he be out giving a pre-battle pep talk at a time like this?"

According to Jiraiya's intelligence, Hanzo began to live a secluded life after the secret invasion of Iwagakure ended, and then, within a few days, he completely disappeared from public view.
"Keep reading, Jiraiya has discovered something else."

Faced with questions from the public, the official explanation from Amegakure was that Lord Hanzo was diligently studying his newly acquired power. However, Jiraiya learned through other channels that Hanzo was suspected of being seriously injured.
"Seriously injured?"

With a look of suspicion in his eyes, Hiruzen Sarutobi took out his pipe, ignored Danzo's angry glare, lit it, and took a deep drag.
"How credible is this news?"

"At least 80% is likely. I have already replied to Jiraiya and the others to continue to confirm, and I believe we will receive a reply soon."

Danzo, expressionless, pushed open the window beside him and placed a pre-prepared "No Smoking" sign in front of Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Misae hates the smell of smoke.

"I'm sorry, I'll be more careful next time."

Hiruzen Sarutobi chuckled and scratched his face, then took a final, deep drag before reluctantly stubbed out his pipe.

"Have you already gone to the hospital for a checkup?"

"Ah."

"My team is amazing! They can still cause someone's death at their age!"

"Hmph~ I'm only in my early forties, in the prime of my life. Do you think everyone is like you, fierce as a tiger during the day and playing dead at night?"

Seeing his childhood friend's face gradually light up with a happy smile, Hiruzen Sarutobi was genuinely happy for him. At the same time, he secretly made up his mind that he could not fall behind when it came to having a second child.

The two, whose conversation had once again veered off-topic because of their child, exchanged a knowing glance, then simultaneously revealed helpless smiles.
"Seriously, where were we?" "Hanzo is suspected of being seriously injured."

After checking the intelligence report, Hiruzen Sarutobi's smile faded, replaced by a thoughtful look in his eyes.

"If this information is true, then Amegakure will probably not last three days before being completely crushed by Iwagakure."

I don't think so.

Danzo, however, had a different opinion. He got up, walked to the ninja world map hanging to the side, and pointed to another major country bordering Amegakure.
The Land of Winds

"They will never agree."

"Sunagakure? The Third Kazekage did indeed help Amegakure last time, but in a full-scale war..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded thoughtfully. Everyone had witnessed the open and covert struggles between the Kingdom of Fuuto and Kazeto over the years.
If Iwagakure were to become embroiled in the battle of the Land of Rain, Sunagakure would undoubtedly intervene to end this long-standing, fateful conflict between the two nations.
But now there is another fatal problem.
Do they have the capability?

As we all know, can a village with only one tailed beast rider, and which is recognized as having the weakest tailed beast, really stand up to the Hidden Stone Village, which has two tailed beast riders and is proficient in the bloodline limit, the Third Tsuchikage?
"Monkey, don't underestimate anyone. This is no longer the era of those who just throw around kunai."

Sensing the skepticism in his childhood friend's tone, Danzo, sitting back in his boss's chair, shook his head with a complicated expression.
"Even a third-rate village like Amegakure can create a knight system, do you think the well-funded Sunagakure will stand still?"

"how do I say this?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's interest was piqued by Danzo's cryptic words. He'd been preoccupied with managing his own village for years, leaving him little time to concern himself with other countries' affairs. As long as the annual gifts from Sunagakure continued, he was content.

"While you're wasting your time in massage parlors."

"I told you that was a secret service outpost!"

Ignoring the embarrassed and angry Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo opened a drawer and took out the latest secret report sent back by Sakumo Hatake.
"Sunagakure has developed the latest generation of AI puppets."

The accompanying photo shows a woman with bright eyes and white teeth, as delicate as a porcelain doll, leaning on Sakumo Hatake's shoulder with a smile on her face, her slightly protruding belly quite noticeable.

The Land of Wind
Due to the tense war situation, the checkpoints to enter Sunagakure during the New Year period were exceptionally strict. Tsunade and Orochimaru, who were ordered to infiltrate, went through considerable effort before finally managing to sneak into Sunagakure, a village known as the "flower of the desert."

Using Root's special communication methods, the two immediately sent a coded signal to Hatake Sakumo, Kato Dan, and Might Guy, who had been lying in wait there for many years.
In a relatively remote residential area of ​​Sunagakure,

Tsunade and her companion's temporary lodging welcomed its first guest: Kato Dan, sporting a cool tattooed outfit, was a far cry from his former gentle and refined self; instead, he resembled a hoodlum.

"Tsunade, Orochimaru, you've finally arrived!"

Upon seeing his two stunningly beautiful companions inside, Kato Dan's excited expression faltered slightly.
Orochimaru looks even more... than Tsunade.
No, no!
I cannot betray Tsunade!
But
Gudong~
Forcibly pulling his gaze away from Orochimaru's glossy black stockings, Kato Dan swallowed hard, feeling his mouth dry, and a bitter smile appeared on his face.
"Three years. Do you know how I spent those three years?"

"Thank you for your hard work, now it's over."

Tsunade had also done infiltration work for many years, so how could she not know the difficulty of this kind of mission? Especially since Sunagakure was much more dangerous than Amegakure, the hardships involved were unimaginable.

"If we don't close the net soon, I'll be a Jonin leader in no time!"

"what?"

As Kato made his startling statement, Tsunade and the other woman exclaimed in disbelief.
"Didn't you infiltrate as a ninja from the Land of Birds?"

"That's old news from back then. The Land of Birds abolished the ninja village system last year, and I became an unregistered resident. But luckily, I've made quite a few friends in Sunagakure over the years, and because they vouched for me, I..."

Kato Dan, with a sigh, pulled out a chair and placed a gleaming headband in front of the two of them.
"Now that I've been officially registered as a Jonin in Sunagakure, I'll be going to mentor some kids who just graduated from the Ninja Academy in a few days."

"."

Tsunade and Orochimaru stared at the Sand Village headband on the table, momentarily speechless.
"Haha, isn't this considered an early internship?"

The eerie silence didn't last long. Tsunade, unsure how to comfort her, chuckled awkwardly and joked, but the atmosphere became even more deathly still. Embarrassed, she scratched her cheek and then brought up another companion.
"That...where's the belt?"

"That guy Dai isn't alone anymore."

"what?"

The two newcomers were shocked to hear this. Could it be that Matt Dai, that guy with thick eyebrows and big eyes, would also betray the village?
"So, in the end, they're going to turn on their own comrades?"

Orochimaru had anticipated the day when he would face his comrades with swords drawn, but he hadn't expected that day to come so soon. His golden snake eyes were filled with complex emotions.
"Alas, you can know a person's face but not their heart!"

Seeing that the two had clearly developed an unnecessary misunderstanding, Kato Dan quickly spoke up to explain.
"What are you saying? That's not what I meant."

Clang!

"My friends from my hometown, I've been waiting for you all to come!"

The next moment, an excited figure burst through the door; Matt Day's distinctive, passionate voice was highly recognizable.

"Sushi bar, traitor!"

However, what greeted him was not the warm concern from his companions that he had imagined, but rather a cold and indifferent greeting from Bitterness.
"what?"

Might Guy, dressed in his dojo uniform, was taken aback at first, but quickly reacted, throwing out a powerful punch with his calloused fist.
"what!"

The fist, imbued with green energy, not only shattered the incoming kunai but also forced Orochimaru, who had ambushed him, back several steps.

"What powerful and fierce boxing techniques, Dai! You've improved again."

Orochimaru, having regained his footing, raised an eyebrow in surprise. Might Guy's punch was astonishing; he hadn't expected this former loser to have grown to the point where he could pose a threat.
"You are Orochimaru?"

Fortunately, Might Guy didn't suffer from prosopagnosia like his son. He squinted, still in an attack stance, and quickly recognized the stunningly beautiful woman with long, straight black hair as his former companion.
"In that case, I can't keep you here even more."

"and many more!"

Realizing that his words had caused the misunderstanding, Kato Dan swiftly stepped in front of the two of them.
"Broken? Didn't you say Dai had stopped being human?"

"That's exactly what I said!"

Feeling the questioning gaze from Might Guy, Kato, both amused and exasperated, signaled for both sides to stop fighting.

“Dai’s child was just born last month, so of course he can’t be considered a person.”

"what???"

Tsunade and Orochimaru were completely stunned. Orochimaru was so surprised that his tongue lolled out. The shock value of this news far surpassed that of Might Guy's betrayal of the village.
Matt Day, the person involved, scratched his head with an innocent expression, the radiance of his fatherly love blinding everyone else.
"Hehe~ I was planning to give everyone a surprise when I got back to the village, but compared to Sakumo, I'm nothing!"

As Might Dai dropped another bombshell, Tsunade and her companion, both utterly stunned, exchanged a glance, almost wanting to check if they were under some kind of genjutsu.

"Could it be that that repressed pervert has also gotten married and had children? Whose daughter is she?"

"He's not human, no, how should I put it, Sakumo DIY'd a wife for himself." (End of Chapter)