Naruto: I Roamed the Ninja World as a Woman

Chapter 123 Undercurrents

"grandmother----"

"Are we just going to let Shimura Danzo go like this?"

Watching these well-dressed officials leave the Hokage's office one by one, Kushina Uzumaki felt somewhat resentful.

Ever since she heard Danzo's profound discourse on "the essence and nourishment of Konoha" underground, she seems to have developed a different kind of high-level PTSD.

Every single one of these people in power.

In Kushina's eyes, it all seemed extremely evil and suspicious!

Seeing the weariness on Mito's face, Tsunade quickly cut her off, explaining, "You're still young, you don't understand the bigger picture, right now Konoha—"

"What do you mean by 'considering the big picture'?"

Unexpectedly, Mito Uzumaki was the first to object.

"Tsunade, I don't need you to use such high-sounding words to glorify Grandma's actions."

After listening to her words, the old man remained silent and said, "Your second grandfather once said that the so-called consideration for the overall situation was, frankly speaking, just a compromise and reconciliation made out of helplessness in changing the status quo..."

'

"When Hashirama and Madara were alive, Konoha never needed to consider the bigger picture of the ninja world, because we were the bigger picture!"

Despite her powerful tone, the golden chakra in her eyes receded like a tide.

That magnificent momentum vanished in an instant.

Mito slumped into the chair, her body thin and small.

"There's only one reason why Grandma made this decision: I'm no longer capable."

Mito took Kushina's hand and smiled, "If I were ten years younger, Grandma would have slapped each of these guys across the face and made them all kneel down before the Heroes' Monument to reflect on their actions!"

Tsunade suddenly realized that something was wrong.

She placed her hand on the old man's forehead, then exclaimed in shock, "How come there's so little chakra left in the Yin Seal?!"

The Yin Seal is one of the highest secret techniques of the Uzumaki clan.

Chakra can be extracted and compressed daily, and finally stored in the diamond-shaped mark on the forehead as a backup hidden energy source.

Those who are skilled in its use can even achieve the effect of preserving youth by relying on the chakra within the Yin Seal, while also improving bodily functions and keeping them at their peak.

However, in other words, if the chakra within the Yin Seal is completely exhausted, then its master will undoubtedly die!

Mito Uzumaki smiled.

The reason why the chakra in the Yin Seal was consumed so much was naturally because she had used the "Translation Seal" on Kushina a few days ago, inscribing the Adamantine Sealing Technique into the girl's meridians.

But Mito didn't want to tell anyone about it, lest her two granddaughters worry and feel guilty.

"As people get older, their chakra consumption naturally increases."

"Besides, I don't want to go to the Pure Land to see my people with a face full of wrinkles—"

"Tsunade, you understand me, right?"

Tsunade was both angry and amused, rubbing her eyes: "Grandma!"

Mito Uzumaki made up an excuse to brush the matter off, then touched the cheek of her other granddaughter: "Little Kushina."

"Yes, Grandma."

The old man said softly, "Tell me again about your friend from the Rain Village—"

For the first time in his life, Hiruzen Sarutobi was carried out of the Hokage's office.

This is the first time in the past year that he has returned home in the early hours of the morning!

When I entered the house, I found that my wife, Biwako, and my youngest son, Asuma, had already gone to bed early.

Hiruzen Sarutobi quietly went to the quiet room next door, brewed himself a pot of tea, and waited silently for a while.

Sure enough, a short while later, there was a soft knock on the door.

There were three people who came.

Besides the expected Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu, there's also an old friend, Akimichi Torifu.

Hiruzen Sarutobi paused for a moment, then awkwardly greeted him, "Torifu, you're here too? I thought you weren't coming."

The fat man named Akimichi Torifu yawned, looking sleepy: "Sigh! I was already asleep when these two dragged me here. I've already told them I haven't been involved in clan affairs for a long time, there's no use in coming to me—"

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed inwardly upon hearing this, but still smiled and said, "Even if we no longer concern ourselves with clan affairs, it won't stop us old friends from getting together."

The four people sat down in four different directions.

Mitokado Homura had no appetite for tea. The moment his backside touched the tatami, he hurriedly said, "Hiruzen, what about Danzo? I think Lord Mitokado intends to punish him severely!"

Xiaochun, who was turning over to her room, was also oblivious to the taste of her tea, staring at him without blinking.

Only when the autumn wind blows, as he slowly and deliberately sips his tea, does he seem to be contemplating life through the art of tea.

"Danzo won't die."

Hiruzen Sarutobi set the tone for the matter from the moment he opened his mouth, immediately reassuring his two friends.

But then he shook his head: "However, he also has to give the village and the Uchiha clan an explanation."

"How will you give it to me?"

Mitokado Homura frowned: "The Uchiha clan doesn't seem to be taking this lightly."

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed and said bluntly, "I intend to abolish all of Danzo's power from now on, completely disband the Root organization, and transfer its personnel to the Anbu for management."

"As for Danzo—"

"If he still wants to contribute to the village, he can stay by my side as a private advisor, without getting involved in practical matters. If he's disheartened, he can go home and retire!"

Upon hearing this, the two listeners exchanged bewildered glances.

Akimichi Torifu, who had been silent all along, was the first to agree: "I agree!"

He used to suffer terribly. Danzo, taking advantage of his status as a fellow student, frequently tried to take advantage of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio!

But Koharu hesitated, "What about the Uchiha clan—"

Why did Danzo build his base next to the Naka River?

Others may not know, but among these few, everyone knows each other!

"This is utter nonsense. There's no evidence to support it, so how can you claim that Danzo targeted the Uchiha clan?"

"As for shutting up that idiot Uchiha Setsuna, all we need to do is offer him a small amount of benefits."

Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered for a moment: "Since the Uchiha have always wanted to go further than the existing guard unit, then let's give it to them."

"They should choose either the Anbu or the Daimyo's guardian ninja."

Upon hearing this, Mitokado Homura hesitated, saying, "Isn't this a bit too much?"

"Passed? No, it doesn't count!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi, too lazy to explain the specifics, simply instructed, "You can first leak this intention to the Uchiha clan members, letting them compete for the spots internally."

Akimichi Torifu took a deep look at the Third Hokage and understood his deeper meaning.

These two options, though seemingly concessions, do not actually affect the essence at all.

The head of the Anbu is Sarutobi Shinnosuke. So what if the Uchiha send one or two clansmen to join the Anbu?

Who knows, you might end up losing more than you gain!

As for the Daimyo's Guardian Ninja—

Do you really think that the Fire Daimyo, a powerful figure above all others, would tolerate the Uchiha's bad temper?

In the end, both sides will only grow to loathe each other.

Mitokado Yan nodded helplessly: "Understood."

Koharu Utatane then carefully asked, "By the way, regarding Danzo and Wood Release, why did Lady Mito know about it so quickly?"

For many years, Mito Uzumaki has stayed away from worldly affairs, living a secluded life in the shrine, and even refusing to appear on important occasions such as the New Year's Festival.

Over time, even the new generation of Senju members rarely knew who she was.

What Xiaochun fears is that there are still loyal supporters among the higher-ups.

"That's because I blocked some information about this incident."

Hiruzen Sarutobi took a sip of tea and said frankly, "Actually, besides Sakumo and Fugaku, there was also Kushina and a ninja from another village present at the time."

"A ninja from another village?!" the three of them exclaimed in unison.

"Is he a spy? How could such a secret be known by ninjas from other villages?"

Mitomon Homura's voice turned cold: "How could Sakumo be so reckless? He didn't even manage to capture the other party on the spot?"

"He's not a spy, he's a candidate for the Chunin Exams, the disciple of Hanzo the Salamander."

Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head: "As for Sakumo—perhaps it was because of his identity that he didn't choose to take action."

"Foolish! How could Sakumo let her go?"

Koharu Utatane slapped her thigh: "Wood Release is the village's top secret. If the enemy were to steal any information about it, the consequences would be unimaginable!"

"I suggest we take immediate forceful action, using the pretext of espionage, to force Hanzo to hand her over—"

"Who will go and ask for it back? You? Or me?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed and impatiently interrupted, "Don't waste time making requests that the other party is unlikely to agree to!"

He was in the same cohort as these two.

They are all talented, and they have all done their jobs very well.

But there's only one problem: a lack of vision!

In this respect, Danzo, that old friend, is still the one who can keep up with my thinking.

But then again, Danzo's problem was that his vision was too limited!

Even his own position is coveted —

"The peace talks are still unresolved, and it would be best to avoid further complications."

Despite their confusion, Hiruzen Sarutobi expressed his concerns and worries: "Furthermore, you are aware that the Daimyo has long harbored the idea of ​​training the Twelve Guardian Ninjas."

Akimichi Torifu remarked, "This is indeed a turbulent time."

"good!"

"So right now, we must take care of what's in front of us!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi agreed, saying, "Among the three countries in this peace talks, Sunagakure's attitude was the most assertive, Amegakure's attitude was relatively weak, and Kumogakure's attitude was the most ambiguous."

"Therefore, the best approach is to divide and conquer: befriend Amegakure and Kumogakure, and forcefully suppress Sunagakure!"

Koharu Utatane was unwilling to give up: "Are we just going to let them leave like this? What if the information about Wood Release really gets leaked and is used by Amegakure to train them—"

"Danzo spent so much time trying to recover his Wood Release technique, yet Amegakure managed to do it?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi calmly replied, "Besides, I've already asked Shinnosuke to come up with a solution."

"Even if we have to kill, there's no need to rush."

"After all, dying in Konoha at this time would be far too troublesome for us."

"The ninja world is so vast, isn't it normal for accidents to happen occasionally?"

Mitokado Homura suddenly spoke up: "Couldn't we have fought during the Chunin Exams? Swords have no eyes; if someone dies—"

Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered for a long time, recalling the opponent's performance in the Forest of Death, then shook his head and sighed, "Difficult, but we can give it a try."

Watergate—

Can you do it?