I am the most popular character in Naruto!

Jiraiya lowered his head, rubbed his eyes, and said nonchalantly, "It's nothing. Didn't you see Chiaki didn't react?"

"This is just a normal exchange, a show of force between the two sides. They'll continue talking later."

"Is that so, Qian?"

Tsunade turned her head in confusion to look at Chiaki, only to see Chiaki with her eyes squinted, her chin resting on her hand, her cute little head nodding slightly, clearly fast asleep.

Tsunade looked at Jiraiya expressionlessly. Jiraiya scratched his head and said stiffly, "...Uh...Anyway, that's definitely how it is!"

Just as Jiraiya had said, after Danzo and Hanzo of the Salamander faced off for a moment, they both burst into laughter.

"Sit down, sit down, why are you so nervous?"

"That's right, that's right, bring tea, bring tea."

The ninjas on both sides dispersed at the same time, and several female ninjas rushed over and quickly tidied up the table that Hanzo of the Salamander had destroyed, and set up a tea table to serve tea.

"So, what does Lord Danzo want to say?"

Hanzo of the Salamander gestured for Danzo to drink tea. Danzo smiled, took the teacup, blew on it, and said casually, "Let's join forces with Konoha to resist the Land of Earth and the Land of Lightning."

His stance has never changed, and will never change.

It's very simple. If the Land of Lightning and the Land of Earth both march south, the Land of Rain will inevitably be the first to suffer. Hanzo the Salamander can't afford to gamble on that.

His current tough stance is merely a means to seek more benefits.

What can you give us?

Hanzo the Salamander asked simply and directly, "You've seen our situation: a large population but little land. What can Konoha give us?"

"Economic support and subsequent trade support."

Danzo responded calmly, and Hanzo of the Salamander laughed, "Then why don't I ally with the Land of Earth and the Land of Lightning? I can crush your Konoha and still have an economy, and even get some land."

"You wouldn't do that."

Danzo said confidently, "Do you think that, given Onoki and Ai's personalities, they would leave you any land?"

"Besides, do you really think that Konoha is unable to contend with those two countries?"

Hanzo the Salamander narrowed his eyes. He understood, and it was precisely because he understood that he wanted to take a larger share of the profits from Konoha.

"Lord Danzo, you understand my needs. We're all reasonable people, so why beat around the bush?"

Seemingly too lazy to communicate, Hanzo the Salamander sighed and stood up from his chair.

The atmosphere fell silent. Tsunade quickly nudged Chiaki, sensing that the most crucial moment was about to begin.

"Ok."

Danzo shook his head and threw two scrolls at Hanzo the Salamander.

"If Lord Hanzo insists on doing so, then our negotiations may encounter some problems."

"The only thing we in Konoha can do to help the Land of Rain reduce its population to address the problem of insufficient land."

The two scrolls were opened at the same time. One of the scrolls contained an agreement, which already bore Hiruzen Sarutobi's seal and was just waiting for Hanzo of the Salamander to stamp it.

When the other scroll was opened, it revealed a mirrored scene: more than 700 people were trembling and surrounded by a large swarm of parasitic insects, while several Root ninjas stood by a water source, holding up a potion that looked ominously green.

"Lord Danzo, is this a threat?"

Hanzo stared coldly at Danzo, "You're in my ninja village, threatening a demigod like me?!"

Danzo remained unmoved and gestured towards the scroll, saying, "Lord Hanzo, please make your choice."

"If I unfortunately die here, the entire Rain Village will be buried with me. The Root ninjas are all poisons that even you cannot cure."

However, at that moment, Chiaki and the other two appeared angrily beside Danzo.

They saw Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato in the mirrored image, among the seven hundred people surrounded by the parasitic insects!

Chapter Ninety-Seven: I love watching internal strife.

What are you doing out here?

"Back off!"

Danzo looked at the three who had suddenly appeared, his face darkening as he shouted.

However, Danzo was secretly delighted when he saw Chiaki and the other two rush out.

Very well, I guessed right. Those three poor people were your real target!

Hiruzen Sarutobi, I have seen through everything!

At this moment, Qianqiu and the other two stood angrily in front of the scroll, staring intently at the scene inside.

The more than seven hundred poor people were trembling in fear, while a large number of parasites were swaggering around them.

A few bolder individuals, who usually ruled the slums, jumped up in rebellion, only to be surrounded by parasites and ultimately left with nothing but bones.

Upon witnessing this scene, the poor who had previously dared to resist now huddled together in a ball.

The difference in strength between ninjas and ordinary people is so great that it is unacceptable.

Is it really possible for a human to control insects to silently devour a living human?

Yahiko swallowed hard in fear, then pulled Nagato and Konan, trying to squeeze into the crowd.

They are all children, and their little bit of crawling around won't attract much attention.

However, from God's perspective presented in the scroll, their actions seemed somewhat abrupt.

"Danzo, what exactly do you mean by this?!"

Tsunade's face was gloomy, her fists clenched. She despised people who used the poor to threaten others, but who would have thought that Danzo was one of them.

Qianqiu also looked grim, but her strength was weak and her voice carried little weight, so she couldn't do much in this situation.

"Oh my, oh my, isn't this Jiraiya and Tsunade, two of the Legendary Sannin of Konoha? And you, little girl..."

Hanzo of the Salamander chuckled, glancing at Danzo and saying, "Lord Danzo, your security measures are quite thorough. I imagine even Hiruzen Sarutobi doesn't have as many guards as you do, right?"

"Hmph, are you trying to rebel? Get down here, all of you!"

Danzo heard the sarcasm in Hanzo's words and turned around to shout coldly at Chiaki and the other two.

"Lord Shimura, I think what you did today was not fair."

Jiraiya stepped forward, blocking Tsunade and Chiaki's path.

He is such a domineering and charismatic man that he will always stand at the forefront when difficulties arise, protecting his teammates from harm.

"Jiraiya... what are you trying to say?"

Danzo gripped his cane. Jiraiya was Hiruzen Sarutobi's top disciple, and it was clear from their usual relationship that Hiruzen Sarutobi valued Jiraiya highly.

Danzo would still choose to listen to Jiraiya's words.

"Lord Shimura, we have no right to inquire about the specifics of your communication and cooperation with the demigod Hanzo, but we have an obligation to uphold the image of Konoha in its external communication and cooperation."

Jiraiya pointed to the scene in the scroll and said seriously to Danzo, "This method of using unarmed poor people as hostages to threaten other countries to achieve cooperation is, frankly, unacceptable."

"If cooperation is really completed in this way, the image of both Konoha and Amegakure will be ruined in the eyes of the people."

Jiraiya's words were so compelling that even Hanzo the Salamander couldn't help but applaud.

"Well said, Jiraiya."

"Why didn't Hiruzen Sarutobi send you to discuss the cooperation with me? I think we would have had a very pleasant conversation."

Hanzo the Salamander chuckled, while Jiraiya frowned and fell silent.

"Hey, I'm praising you."

Tsunade whispered to Jiraiya, and Chiaki quickly pulled the politically oblivious Tsunade back to the back row.

Was Hanzo the Salamander really praising Jiraiya?

totally not.

On the surface, he seemed to be praising Danzo, but in reality, he was implying that he rejected Danzo's proposal and even mocked Danzo for being unsuitable to communicate with him.

Jiraiya sensed something was wrong. This old scoundrel was still determined to sow discord. Danzo's face was as black as the bottom of a pot. Who knew what irrational thing he might do?

"Are you done?"

Danzo looked at Jiraiya, his voice cold, "When we get back, I will personally explain everything that happened today to Sarutobi. You may leave!"

Jiraiya secretly realized that things were going badly. The three of them had overstepped their authority this time, even affecting Hanzo of the Salamander, causing him to question Hiruzen Sarutobi's judgment.

It is very likely that this questioning will lead Hanzo of the Salamander to believe that Hiruzen Sarutobi and Konoha are not strong enough, thus reigniting the war and causing him to join the Land of Earth and the Land of Lightning.

This is bad. I was too emotional just now, but now that I've calmed down, I realize that Danzo's actions were absolutely correct.

At this time, everyone was at war, so there was nothing wrong with using some special methods. Moreover, Danzo only used the poor as a threat and did not actually detain the people of Amegakure. From the perspective of those in power, this was perfectly reasonable.

The poor are a headache for every person in power. They can't just abandon them, but they can't directly solve their poverty problems either. They can only leave it there for the time being and deal with it slowly.

If Konoha were to actually target these poor people, it might actually solve a problem that Hanzo of the Salamander was unwilling to talk about.

At the same time, if Danzo displays ruthless methods and the ability to instantly kill 700 people in front of Hanzo of the Salamander, it will further demonstrate the strength of Konoha and make Hanzo hesitant to act against him.

However, by staying with Chiaki and Tsunade when her saintly heart flared up, she ended up ruining Danzo's plan.

This old man... he's bad, but he really did it for Konoha. What can you do? "Hey! Aren't you going to care about those civilians?"

Seeing Jiraiya silently retreat after being reprimanded by Danzo, Tsunade immediately became anxious and abruptly pulled away the swaying swaying pendulum.

"Jiraiya! What are you chickening for!"

Tsunade was furious; as a medical ninja, she couldn't stand seeing this kind of thing happen.

"Sister! Wait a minute!"

Although Chiaki didn't understand either, she trusted Jiraiya's judgment. At least compared to Tsunade, who was easily swayed by emotions, Jiraiya was much more rational.

"No! I can't wait!"

Tsunade slammed her hand on the ground and yelled at Danzo, "Right now! Release these poor people from Amegakure! Do you hear me?!"

"Tsunade……"

Jiraiya wore a bitter expression. He could think rationally and make correct judgments, but that didn't mean Tsunade could. He turned to Chiaki and said, "Chiaki, hold onto your sister. Let's go back to the back."