This puppeteer is a bit... well...

Chapter 164 The Decisions of Konoha's High-Ranking Officials (Please Subscribe and Vote)

"I didn't expect Sunagakure to have such a backup plan. No wonder Ryuji Ayaki dared to be so tough."

In the increasingly tense Hokage's office, the Konoha high-ranking officials, after listening to Orochimaru's report, all gasped in shock.

They had all experienced the power of Hanzo's summoned beast, the Black Salamander.

Without the corresponding antibodies, no one can defeat him.

Furthermore, this poison has a long duration, a wide range, and spreads rapidly, making it impossible for ordinary ninjas to escape. It is an absolute biological weapon of mass destruction on the battlefield.

The two from Sunagakure seem to be even stronger than Hanzo's, instantly killing even Orochimaru's poison-resistant summoning beast, leaving everyone wondering how to deal with them.

"How many gas masks are left in the equipment and logistics depot?" The Third Hokage asked, looking at Homura.

He was in charge of coordinating the management of Konoha's supplies.

"Not many, only two or three hundred," Men Yan said in a deep voice.

Many ninjas use poison, but only Hanzo the Salamander uses biological weapons.

Gas masks and the like are basically unnecessary.

Therefore, no ninja village would keep such a thing on hand.

There are still two or three hundred in Konoha's logistics warehouse, all left over from the war with Amegakure at the beginning of the Third Shinobi World War.

"Two or three hundred...?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi stroked his beard and looked at a crystal ball in the center. Two giant salamanders were wreaking havoc on the bustling streets of Konoha. The poisonous gas they automatically emitted made the Konoha ninjas who came to stop them only able to watch from afar.

After a moment's thought, he ordered, "...Distribute gas masks to elites of all races, prioritizing the prevention of destruction by the large salamanders."

Although the fighting on the front lines has temporarily subsided, it is not truly over.

Most of Konoha's ninjas are still on the front lines, and with those who have gone out on missions, there are now fewer than 2000 combat-type ninjas of Chunin rank or above remaining in Konoha.

Of the 300 guards that Fugaku brought, all were wiped out, and of the 200 elites that Orochi brought, only he survived.

There are currently around 1500 people left in Konoha.

If they continue to be wiped out by Zero of Sunagakure, then this operation will truly be turned around and they will be outmaneuvered.

Therefore, Hiruzen Sarutobi directly sent the elites of each clan to the mission and instructed them: "Remember to make the ninjas on the mission be on high alert and careful of the hidden methods of Sunagakure. Do not repeat the mistakes of the past."

"Yes."

Even after the messenger ninja left, Hiruzen Sarutobi was still uneasy.

Most of the experts from various tribes have gone to the front lines of the war, leaving very few elites in the village. Even they alone might not be able to deal with those two salamanders.

Furthermore, there's still trouble with Ryuji Ayaki that needs to be resolved.

He paced anxiously back and forth in front of his desk, oblivious to the fact that his pipe had long since gone out.

"Sarutobi-sensei..."

Orochimaru suddenly spoke, drawing everyone's attention to him.

Orochimaru remained calm and continued, "Given the current situation, it's best to prioritize dealing with Karura and Yashamaru."

Upon hearing this, everyone in the room turned their attention back to the other two crystal balls.

A crystal ball is playing footage of what's happening in the hospital.

The puppeteers of Sunagakure held their ground in the hospital's inpatient building, using the building's doors and windows as cover to set up a lot of war machines, turning the entire building into a temporary war fortress.

If we send troops to launch a direct assault, we won't be able to take it without suffering hundreds or even thousands of casualties.

If the building is destroyed, all the patients inside will be affected.

You must understand, this is during wartime.

Eighty percent of the patients in the inpatient building are ninjas who were wounded on the front lines and brought back for treatment. After a period of rest, they can stand up and fight again with renewed vigor.

It would be a terrible loss to sacrifice hundreds of sick ninjas to eliminate these 50 puppeteers.

Moreover, Konoha wanted to use them as hostages to exchange for benefits from Sunagakure; killing them would be even more of a loss.

Meanwhile, another crystal ball was showing the scene on the commercial street.

The once bustling streets have become ruins, with only broken walls and tiles remaining under a sky filled with yellow sand.

Garura, who looks like a delicate young girl, stands on the roof of a dilapidated building, manipulating sand to attack the Konoha ninjas around her like an elegant music conductor.

There were about two hundred Konoha ninjas, including ANBU members wearing white animal masks and ordinary ninjas wearing standard green vests.

In the waves of this sea of ​​sand, most of them could only stand far away and watch, with only a dozen or so daring to approach.

They only dared to approach, but couldn't actually get close enough.

The sandstorm, like a tsunami, spread out like the girl's outstretched arms, nimbly crushing any ninja who tried to approach her.

Even if someone uses ninjutsu to attack from a distance, the sand will defend against it.

She is stronger than all two hundred ninjas combined.

Seeing this, Sarutobi and the others couldn't help but turn to Orochimaru, "Are you sure it's better to deal with them first?"

"That's right!" Orochimaru nodded. "Although Karura is powerful, I don't think she's stronger than Kurenai, who killed Hanzo. If we send out a skilled fighter, with the help of our companions, capturing her will be far less difficult than dealing with Ryuji first."

"...That's true." Hiruzen Sarutobi analyzed the situation briefly and nodded in agreement.

In fact, this obvious situation can be analyzed with just a little thought.

However, Ryuji's unexpected actions shocked the Konoha leadership, causing them to lose their composure and fail to anticipate what was happening.

"The hospital situation is even easier to handle." Orochimaru licked his lips with his long tongue, a cruel smile spreading across his face. "Those war machines are indeed troublesome, but only for humans. If you use giant creatures as a shield, they'll be hard-pressed to be effective!"

"You want to handle the situation there yourself?"

Everyone in the room instantly understood Orochimaru's meaning.

Only the three legendary Sannin in Konoha possess large summoning beasts.

Jiraiya left the village to find Nagato, and Tsunade couldn't find anyone at the time, so only Orochimaru was capable of this task.

"That's right."

Upon hearing Orochimaru's admission, Hiruzen Sarutobi thought for a moment and then agreed.

"Well then, I'll head over to the hospital now."

"Um!"

Seeing the Third Hokage nod, Orochimaru smiled and turned to leave.

Sarutobi turned his gaze back to the other three, "So, what about Karura...?"

"I'll go."

Danzo said calmly, then stood up.

Konoha's high-end combat forces are either already assigned missions or are not present.

Only the four people inside the house could get up.

However, as the leader of the village, the Third Hokage needed to take charge of the overall situation, while Homura Koharu was an advisory elder responsible for providing advice.

Only he, as the leader of the Dark Root, bears the responsibility of assassinating enemies and protecting the village.

At this time, he is the most suitable person to take action.

"No, I'll go myself," Hiruzen Sarutobi retorted. "The situation is dire; I can no longer afford to sit in my office leisurely waiting for news."

"No!"

Danzo and the two advisor elders both voiced their opposition.

The three exchanged glances, then tacitly agreed to let Danzo speak.

"You are the Hokage. Once you go to the battlefield, it means Konoha will spare no effort," Danzo said coldly. "If the Hokage has to personally deal with a hundred-person delegation from Sunagakure, what will become of the dignity of the rest of Konoha's ninja?"

"Losing face is better than losing your life!"

"Are you saying I can't handle this?" Danzo retorted sharply to Sarutobi, showing no respect whatsoever for a subordinate or superior.

But Sarutobi showed no intention of blaming Danzo.

Because he knew that Danzo's actions were all for the sake of Konoha.

Seeing Sarutobi's hesitation, Danzo continued, "Besides, this was something Ayaki Ryuji planned all along, and nobody knows what other tricks he has up his sleeve. Without you as Hokage to oversee things, the village won't be able to react immediately should anything change in the battle."

"...Then I'll leave it to you, Danzo!" Hiruzen Sarutobi hesitated for a moment, but was finally persuaded by Danzo's words.

In fact, the two grew up together and went through countless life-and-death experiences together, and they were very familiar with each other's abilities.

Although Karura possesses powerful chakra and the Magnet Release technique, observation through the crystal ball reveals a severe lack of combat experience.

She can overwhelm ninjas with insufficient raw strength by relying on chakra and ninjutsu, but against equally strong opponents, she has no chance of winning.

Sarutobi didn't disbelieve Danzo's abilities, but with Konoha in chaos, he was anxious and wanted to resolve the problem as soon as possible.

"You should stay here and take charge."

……

The commercial street is right on the street in front of the Hokage Building, very close by.

After receiving the order, Danzo quickly arrived at the scene with his entourage and confidants.

This place has become a world of sand.

The earth is turning to sand, buildings are weathering and collapsing, and sand is billowing in the sky, like a mini sandstorm.

Gallo is located at the center of a world where sand drifts across the ocean, and everyone who enters the sand realm cannot escape the perception of physics.

Danzo and others were no exception.

Sensing the unusual chakra, she immediately mobilized the sand, gathering it into a thick, large hand to grab at the opponent.

[Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!]

Faced with the approaching sand hand, Danzo calmly formed hand seals, then inhaled sharply and exhaled sharply.

A sharp aura emanated from its mouth, slicing the sand-covered hand in two.

Karura, hundreds of meters away, sensed that his ninjutsu had been disrupted. He paused for a moment, then used an even greater amount of chakra to manipulate the sand.

The sand that had been drifting in the sky, falling on the ground, and even chasing after other Konoha ninjas all converged in front of the girl, forming a sand tide a hundred meters high that crashed towards Danzo.

The other Konoha ninjas were stunned by the horrifying scene.

"It's incredibly powerful!"

Danzo was also somewhat surprised, but his hands did not stop moving. He formed hand seals and chanted, "Summoning Jutsu."

boom!

Amidst thick white smoke, a creature the size of a house, terrified, with its head wrapped in bandages, resembling an elephant, was summoned.

I woke up in the middle of the night and wrote a chapter, but now I'm so sleepy. I'll fix the typos and grammatical errors when I wake up.

(End of this chapter)