I founded the "Bragging Cult" in Naruto.

Chapter 508 Once you get what you've always dreamed of, the motivation often becomes difficult to maintain.

"Sigh~"

Inside the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi stood by the window, the tobacco in his pipe long since burned out. He gazed into the distance at the rolls piled on the cart, being slowly pushed along.

Each scroll contains the body of at least one Konoha ninja. Since Yui led eight thousand Cloud Ninja to invade the Land of Fire, Konoha has sent many ninjas to intercept them.

Thanks to their familiarity with the terrain, they achieved good results and prevented the Cloud Ninja from wreaking havoc within the Land of Fire. However, a considerable number of Konoha ninjas were sacrificed in the process.

Moreover, the impact went far beyond that. These ninjas who were blocking the Cloud Ninja were supposed to be supporting the teams led by the Uchiha and the Sannin, but due to the last-minute reassignment, both battlefields suffered repeated defeats.

The three legendary ninjas led their forces to withdraw from the Land of Grass, and even ceded part of the Land of Fire's territory, all for the sake of better defense.

The Uchiha clan is in a slightly better position, still locked in a tug-of-war with the Sand Village at the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rivers. After all, the Sand Village is currently leaderless, and neither Rasa, Karura, nor Pakura can fully command their followers, making their counterattack extremely disorganized.

"Lord Hokage, Lord Danzo has returned and is waiting in the conference room, requesting a brief meeting."

A member of the ANBU reported, and Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded. He already knew that Danzo had returned, but he didn't expect Danzo to directly request a meeting. Had he discovered something?

"Notify Lu Yuan and the others, they should go together."

Hiruzen Sarutobi waved his hand, and the ANBU member withdrew. Hiruzen Sarutobi then grabbed the pipe from the pocket beside him, put it on his head, and strode towards the conference room.

Upon entering the conference room and pushing open the door, Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't immediately step inside. He looked surprised, staring at his old friend whose forehead, right eye, and right hand were all wrapped in bandages. He asked in astonishment:

"How are you?"

"It's nothing, just some minor injuries."

Danzo didn't seem to care. Hiruzen Sarutobi twitched his beard and stepped in, sitting down opposite Danzo. It was a small conference room, with people sitting around a table.

Both of them had very somber expressions and did not exchange words while the others were still waiting. The others arrived quickly.

Mitokado Homura, Nara Shikamaru, and Yamanaka Ochū all work in the Hokage Building. Utatane Koharu has temporarily gone to Konoha Hospital. Akimichi Torifu and the Akimichi clan head are fighting against the Cloud Ninja with Hatake Sakumo and will not attend the meeting.

Danzo didn't wait any longer. After Yamanaka Oge entered, he gestured to Hiruzen Sarutobi, who then asked, "What have you discovered during this time?"

Danzo reached behind his waist with his left hand and took out several documents. He casually tossed them down in front of everyone. Hiruzen Sarutobi opened the documents but didn't look at them. Instead, he waited for Danzo to explain.

Danzo didn't actually wait for the others to finish reading. He spoke as soon as they opened their books: "In the past three months, I have mainly done two things. One is to investigate the sudden increase in the activities of the Gold Exchange ninja in the Land of Fire."

This matter has been investigated and it has been found that the Hidden Stone Village funded the hiring. I have also obtained some substantial evidence, which can be used to both eliminate the gold exchange station within the territory and condemn the Hidden Stone Village.

The second matter is something I haven't investigated thoroughly yet, but it might also be related to Iwagakure. There is one or more unknown forces operating in the Land of Grass and the Land of Rain.

So far, I have only discovered two things: first, they possess extremely strong perception abilities, and it may not be just a few members who have them, but many of them; even I have never truly caught them.

Secondly, there are extremely skilled ninjas among them, and their methods are extremely strange. I am still investigating them.

"This time I returned with the same request: to enter the Land of Rain in the name of the village, to negotiate with Hanzo and conduct an investigation. The Land of Grass is currently completely controlled by Iwagakure, making it very difficult for me to infiltrate."

Mitokado Homura flipped through the documents, asking curiously, "I can understand the gold exchange, but do the unknown forces from the Land of Grass and the Land of Rain have a significant impact on Konoha?"

"I have reason to believe that they were behind the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki's rampage back then, as well as an incident you weren't involved in not long ago. I would describe them as extremely dangerous."

After Danzo finished speaking, Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded. Seeing this, Homura Mitomon muttered to himself that he wasn't going to play along with him, and then stopped asking questions.

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Danzo and said, "Very well, I have decided to temporarily reinstate Danzo Shimura's authority as the leader of Root. If necessary, he can negotiate with other ninja organizations in the name of Konoha."

"I've finished discussing matters here. Now I want to ask the village, what have you been doing?! How long has Sakamoto Tatsuma been missing?! Why hasn't the village provided any support yet?!"

As Danzo spoke, he suddenly flew into a rage, slamming his left hand on the table repeatedly. Hiruzen Sarutobi's face darkened, but not out of anger; rather, it was more like guilt.

Yamanaka Eishō took a deep breath and said, "Tatsuma and his team last sent a message 21 days ago, saying that they did not need to provide support, and have been out of contact ever since."

However, based on the ninja activities within the Land of Lightning, we can still conclude that Tatsuma and his team are not yet at their wits' end.

"Bullshit! Is that your excuse for not providing support?!"

Danzo was about to slam his fist on the table again, but Hiruzen Sarutobi was faster this time, slamming his hand heavily on the table and saying, "Danzo! Watch your attitude! Do you think the village doesn't want to help?!"

Do you think you're the only one in the village who cares about Tatsuma?! Don't forget, besides Tatsuma, my son, Lu Yuan, and Ying Zhong's children are all still in the Land of Thunder, their fates unknown!

No need for support, that was Tatsuma's decision! I believe in him, I believe he can come back alive, I believe he can bring good news to the village!

Furthermore, what will the village use to provide support now?! Tell me, will you ignore the thousands of Cloud Ninja operating within the Land of Fire, or will you abandon the war against Iwagakure and Sunagakure?!

Of course I want to save Sakamoto Tatsuma. If he were captured by the Cloud Ninja, I would agree to trade myself for Tatsuma without hesitation. But now, please trust Tatsuma and trust the young people of the village.

Just like how our teachers trusted us back then.

Danzo arrived with pent-up anger, and Hiruzen Sarutobi had also been accumulating negative emotions every day for the past three months. Not only him, but Shika Yuan and Ying Zhong also had faces as dark as iron.

Tatsuma and the others' actions were completely outside the village's control. In other words, it would be very difficult for Tatsuma to let the village know about their situation, since they were trapped in the Land of Lightning, and thousands of Cloud Ninja were besieging them.

The analysis team led by Yamanaka Eiji spends most of their time gathering intelligence, aside from necessary communication with other battlefields and squads. However, despite their efforts, they can only conclude that Konoha's forces have not been completely annihilated based on the actions of the Cloud Ninja within the Land of Lightning.

But what about Sakamoto Tatsuma? What about Shinnosuke and Nawaki? What about Shikaku, Inoichi, and Choza? They knew nothing about these things either.

Compared to Danzo, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Shikamaru, and Oozumi were more qualified and had a stronger position to be furious, but they knew it was useless, and the only thing they could do was to believe in these young people.

After being yelled at by Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo fell silent, sitting in his seat with his fists clenched. After a long while, Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed, his outburst subsiding somewhat, and said:

"Danzo, go to Konoha Hospital first. Your injuries don't look like they've been properly treated."

"Um."

Danzo nodded, and Hiruzen Sarutobi also looked at Shikagami, instructing him to handle the message Danzo brought back. Then he stood up and prepared to return to his office.

But as soon as he stood up, the exhaustion made him feel dizzy. He sat back down and waved to Mitokado Yan, who was nearby, signaling them to leave first.

Mitomon Homura sighed a few times, patted Sarutobi Hiruzen on the shoulder, and walked out of the meeting room. Shikaku and Yingzhong finished organizing their documents and also walked out of the meeting room.

Inside the meeting room, only Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo remained. Danzo, watching Hiruzen Sarutobi gradually show signs of fatigue after everyone else had left, said:

"I will rest in the village for seven days. If there is still no news from Tatsuma and the others after seven days, I will go to the Land of Lightning first."

"What's the point of going? Are you trying to fight tens of thousands of Cloud Ninja single-handedly?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked somewhat dejected, while Danzo's left eyelid twitched, and his breathing became heavy. Suppressing his anger, he said:

"Sarutobi! If our teacher saw you like this now, do you think he would regret his decision to die?! Have you forgotten how you managed to take the Hokage position from me back then?!"

Upon hearing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi remained silent. How did he gain his teacher's approval back then? Why did his teacher dare to stay behind and cover the retreat, and even dare to face death with such composure?

Because he, Hiruzen Sarutobi, showed enough courage and decisiveness, right?

If we only consider strength, talent, and achievements, Danzo back then was no less capable than him. So why did he become Hokage? Was it because of his courage?

For this, Danzo held a grudge for half his life, even blaming Danzo for speaking too quickly at the time; otherwise, he might have become Hokage.

But after so many years, he seems to have lost his initial courage, but Danzo seems to still have a burning passion in his heart, even though he has been deep in darkness for many years.

That burning will of fire may have changed its appearance, but it has never been extinguished.

But what about him?

"Danzo, in seven days, I will be on the battlefield. Konoha will not retreat another step. Those damned Cloud Ninja, if they want to advance any further, they will have to step over my dead body. Otherwise, they will not be able to advance an inch!"

No one had asked him to, but Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke as if making a vow. Danzo lowered his head and simply said, "Hmph!"

(End of this chapter)