Naruto: I became a super shadow in the Anbu.

Chapter 501 I’d better go

"What? The daimyo has been killed?"

On the border of the Land of Hot Springs, Hiruzen Sarutobi was shocked to hear this terrible news and was choked by the thick smoke.

Uchiha Zhong, who was standing to the side, suddenly had a bad feeling that the favorable situation might go wrong.

Vice Commander Minato Namikaze and Jon Uchiha exchanged a glance, both seeing the worry in each other's eyes.

The situation in the Land of Hot Springs is very good, and Konoha is in a great position of advantage. We must not let any unexpected events cause us to squander this hard-won advantage.

The Cloud Ninja force has 8000 men, while the Konoha force only has 3000.

Whether it was the Uchiha clan or other Konoha ninjas, they fought very resolutely and paid a heavy price to hold back the Cloud Ninja on the border of the Land of Hot Springs.

After the Third Generation arrived at the front lines, they shifted from defense to offense and have already penetrated the Land of the Moon.

Uchiha Zhong probed the Hokage's attitude, saying, "Hokage-sama, if we press on with our momentum, we may be able to wipe out the Cloud Ninja army in one fell swoop and completely end the War of the Land of Hot Springs."

After a slight hesitation, Hiruzen Sarutobi said very firmly:
"The foundation of Konoha is the country and the village. The killing of the Daimyo of the Land of Fire is a despicable tactic used by the enemy to delay our Konoha."

In any case, Konoha must ensure the safety of the Daimyo of the Land of Fire.

Chief Zhong, you and Shuimen will still be in charge of the front lines.

The murder of the daimyo is too heinous; I must return personally.

Uchiha Zhong frowned and said, "Lord Hokage, if you return to the Land of Fire, wouldn't that be playing right into the enemy's hands?"

What they wanted was to create chaos in the rear and force Konoha to disperse its forces.

The Third Raikage is nowhere to be found, and Onoki is dead; he was unharmed during the raid on Konoha.

Perhaps when you return to the Land of Fire, the Third Raikage will appear on the battlefield.

Lord Hokage, you have also met the Raikage's son. The Raikage's son is very outstanding and already has some of the Raikage's strength.

The Raikage's son and the new Eight-Tails Jinchuriki work together seamlessly, making them difficult to deal with. If the Third Raikage himself joins the fray, I'm afraid...

Uchiha Zhong didn't continue speaking; he was genuinely afraid of a terrible defeat on the battlefield in the Land of Hot Springs.

"Enough, Clan Chief Zhong." Hiruzen Sarutobi's attitude became even more resolute: "I'm leaving this place to you. I have faith in your abilities."

Minato Namikaze was young and didn't want to disobey the Hokage and other high-ranking officials, but the matter was too important for him to refuse.

"Lord Hokage, Lord Fox seems to have different views on daimyo and nobles."

In Lord Fox's plan, after the war, Konoha ninjas will not need to rely on the power of daimyo and nobles; Konoha ninjas can appear in any town.

Why don't we ask Lord Fox for his opinion?

"Ask the fox?" Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head and said:

"I can guess what choice the fox will make."

He would definitely say that since the enemy is creating chaos by assassinating the daimyo of the Land of Fire, then Konoha should also send its elite forces to assassinate the daimyo of the Land of Lightning and the Land of Earth.

There's no need to ask the fox; he's prejudiced against daimyo and nobles. I'll persuade him to let go of his prejudices after the war.

I'll be leaving tonight. Chief Zhong, Shuimen, you two continue commanding.

Hiruzen Sarutobi hurriedly left the front-line command post.

Minato Namikaze comforted the worried Uchiha Zhong, saying, "Commander-in-Chief, there is a teleportation shrine built by the Uzumaki ninja in Kyoto, the Land of Hot Water. The Hokage will be back soon."

Uchiha Zhong sighed, and after thinking for a moment, he thought of Fugaku.

The number of Cloud Ninjas was much larger than that of Konoha Ninjas. The battle between the Cloud Ninjas and Fugaku was fierce. Fugaku's teacher, Uchiha Tobi, was killed, but Fugaku failed to awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan.

Fugaku's talent was weaker than he had imagined.

Uchiha Zhong made up his mind and said, "If the Third Raikage comes in person, I will hold him off. Minato, you use your superhuman speed to kill as many Cloud Ninja as possible until they collapse."

Minato quickly said, "Commander-in-Chief, I'm fast, I'm confident I can delay the Raikage!"

“No,” Uchiha Zhong said firmly, “You are more suited to expanding the gains.”

Not only is the Raikage fast, but he also has strong defense. His Lightning Armor in Lightning Release Chakra Mode is impossible to break through with ordinary means.

"If I put you against the Raikage, you could only use your speed to disrupt and delay him, which would be extremely difficult. I'll go instead."

Uchiha Zhong stood up and said calmly:

"As the commander-in-chief of the battlefield in the Land of Hot Springs, the head of the Uchiha clan, and the head of the Konoha Police Department, I also have a few trump cards up my sleeve. There's no need to say anything more. Minato, go and deal with the other Iwa ninja."

Minato Namikaze stepped out of the command tent and saw Konoha ninjas coming and going outside.

Kakashi, Rin, and Uchiha Momo happened to pass by. Momo, who had been quite lively before, was now even more beaming.

With the Hokage personally arriving at the front lines, everyone thought the war would end quickly.

However, in the foreseeable future, once the Third Raikage arrives at the front lines, the war will take a sharp turn for the worse.

Behind Hiruzen Sarutobi were a team of ninja advisors led by Kori Yamanaka, and an ANBU squad led by Kuro Ant.

They quickly returned to Kyoto, the Land of Hot Springs, and used the teleportation shrine in Kyoto to return to Konoha Village.

This saves at least 9 days of travel time.

Yamanaka Kori said, "The teleportation shrine developed by Minister Fox is indeed convenient and fast."

Minister Fox also possesses Dust Release, making him a true ninjutsu genius.

After observing Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression, Kori Yamanaka quickly added:

"Unfortunately, Minister Fox was too eager to change the Land of Fire according to his ideas. After all, he was only 25 years old and his thinking was not comprehensive enough."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded and said, "The fox's strength is beyond doubt, but he is too impatient and impulsive."

Kakuri, gather at least 20 reconnaissance ninjas, including elite reconnaissance personnel from the Hyuga, Inuzuka, and Aburame clans, and send them to Kyoto, the Land of Fire.

We'll set off in an hour.

Yamanaka Kaguchi hurriedly left the temple and went to the village to gather people.

The group left Konoha Village in a grand procession, and after two more days on the road, they arrived in Kyoto, the Land of Fire.

Captain Sarutobi Shizutomo, the guardian ninja captain, was waiting outside Kyoto early in the morning to welcome the Hokage and his party into Kyoto.

At the gate of the castle, the Crown Prince, eagerly awaiting his ascension to the throne, personally went out of the city to wait.

Since there were no results from the investigation into the Daimyo's affairs, he couldn't immediately assume the throne.

"Lord Hokage!" His Highness said, "Please do not let the war cause the defense of Tenshu Castle to be neglected!"

"Someone has assassinated my father, and also the visiting daimyo of the Land of Whirlpools! This is utterly appalling!"

"Your Highness, I feel your grief deeply," said Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"This is the second heinous murder of a daimyo since the first daimyo established the one country, one village policy."

"Your Highness, please rest assured, I will definitely find out who the murderer is."

The prince's face was grim. After Hiruzen Sarutobi became the Third Hokage, Konoha was in chaos, and someone took the opportunity to assassinate his grandfather, the previous daimyo.

Now his father has also been assassinated. Despite his noble name, he was assassinated just like that.

Hiruzen Sarutobi said, "I also have some guesses about the identity of the murderer."

Among the Akatsuki organization left behind by Madara Uchiha, there was a rogue Uchiha ninja who mastered the Space-Time Eye Technique, allowing him to silently infiltrate any location, making him extremely difficult to deal with.

"Rest assured, we will do everything in our power to wipe out the Akatsuki organization and eliminate any future threats."

His Highness's expression improved somewhat.

Upon entering the castle tower, Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately went to the daimyo's bedchamber.

Inside the palace were two coffins, containing the bodies of the Fire Country Daimyo and the Whirlpool Country Daimyo, which had been frozen.

Apart from being frozen, the body remained completely intact, with the kunai still attached to its chest, all for the purpose of Konoha's investigation.

Black Ant stepped forward, turned over the corpse of the Fire Country Daimyo, revealing the kunai handle stuck in the back of the corpse.

At that moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression changed.

There is a curse mark on the back of the daimyo's neck!
That is...
(End of this chapter)