I am the new Hokage of Konoha.

At this moment, facing the persistent questions from his two old friends, he finally spoke: "Things have come to this point, and war is inevitable. Even if we wanted to persuade Yun Ting, it would be too late. What you and I can do is not to hold Konoha back in this war, and do our best to cooperate with all of Yun Ting's requests so that he can go all out to fight against the Cloud Ninja. Konoha can no longer tolerate internal strife."

Hiruzen Sarutobi may have a thousand words to say, but it is no longer the time for him to hold power, and he can no longer stop the decision made by the Fourth Hokage, Yoruichi Senju.

All he could do, as he had just said, was to do his best to cooperate with everything that followed for the sake of the bigger picture, so that Konoha's losses could be minimized.

Even so, Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't help but feel a little dissatisfied.

This dissatisfaction is like watching a house he has built over decades being arbitrarily altered by a new owner, which makes him very uncomfortable.

Hearing Hiruzen Sarutobi say this, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane could only sigh helplessly.

That is indeed the case.

So what if they have strong opinions about Yun Ting now?

The arrows are now already released from the bowstring.

As fellow members of Konoha, all they could do was grit their teeth and follow along.

However, this will happen after the war ends.

They will never let Yun Ting off so easily.

Especially now that Hiruzen's attitude has finally softened and he is very likely to side with them.

Thinking of this, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu exchanged a glance and then nodded emphatically.

......

After the speech, back in the Hokage's office, Yun Ting asked his female secretary, "Third Hokage, what were the attitudes of the two advisor elders just now?"

Upon hearing this, Ritsuko Yamanaka took out the intelligence she had just gathered and immediately began to report it.

If Hiruzen Sarutobi and his two companions were here right now, they would be quite surprised that their conversation had been repeated verbatim.

The reason for this was, of course, because Yun Ting had planted spies among the three of them.

Four years as Hokage was enough time for Yun Ting to spread his influence throughout Konoha.

He paid particular attention to the advisors, elders, and even respected elders like Hiruzen Sarutobi who were deeply entrenched in the village.

The former probably couldn't even imagine that their every move over the years had been recorded, and there were no secrets for Yun Ting at all.

An unprecedented reform is facing not only external pressure, but also internal pressure from conservatives.

Knowing this, Yun Ting naturally took precautions.

"To blame me after the fact?" Yun Ting chuckled meaningfully when he heard that Mitokado and the other man would blame him after the war was over. "Perhaps by then, they won't be blaming me for this matter."

Without dwelling on the topic any further, and having confirmed that the insiders wouldn't hold them back, Yun Ting focused his attention on the upcoming battle.

The selection of ninja personnel, the composition of the team, logistical preparations, the choice of marching routes, and even communication with the officials of the Land of Fire all required him to make the final decisions.

Therefore, Yun Ting cannot simply make a snap decision and lead his men to the battlefield for a major battle.

As the commander of an army, he still had much to prepare before the major battle.

This is why he postponed his trip to the battlefield.

Soon, the Hokage's office became incredibly lively, with Konoha ninjas hurrying in and out of the office.

After a series of orders were issued in the name of the Fourth Hokage, Senju Kumo-tei, the massive war machine of Konoha began to turn once again.

This rotation is no longer a small-scale operation like before, but a real large-scale military deployment.

At the same time, the entire ninja world was thrown into a state of panic because of Konoha's actions.

The Cloud Ninja were undoubtedly the first to receive the news.

The Fourth Raikage was wondering why the enemy had suddenly intensified their offensive on the front lines against Konoha, and why Minato Namikaze had even appeared, causing them to suffer heavy losses.

Just as his female secretary was speculating that Konoha's actions were an attempt to pressure for peace talks, Amu and his group finally returned, dusty and exhausted, after a long and arduous journey.

Soon, after hearing their account, the Cloud Ninja's high-ranking members all changed their expressions, and the Fourth Raikage, enraged, smashed the desk with his fist, his voice filled with iron-blooded fury:

"Good! Good! Good! Since Konoha wants war, then we, the Cloud Ninja, will give them war! What we can't get at the negotiating table, we'll take it ourselves!"

To this, Mabui, Tsuchishiro, and the others could only sigh deeply.

The outcome they least wanted to see still happened. They never expected the Fourth Hokage to be so resolute; it was truly beyond their expectations.

The only option now is to fight.

The other three great nations also learned of this news in the following days, and they all gloated, hoping that the battle between Konoha and Kumogakure would be as intense as possible.

As for profiting from it, they can only dream about it.

After all, the Iwa and Sunagakure ninja suffered heavy losses in the Third Shinobi World War and have yet to recover.

While the Kirigakure, which joined the war last, suffered relatively small losses, they had just experienced a bloodbath against a clan with a bloodline limit, leaving them at their weakest and unable to do anything further.

All three sides were powerless to do anything but stand aside with regret, sitting on stools, eating melon seeds, and quietly watching the sudden battle between Konoha and Kumogakure.

Chapter 107 Even Cults Afraid of Being Conscripted!

The land of rain.

The continuous heavy rain is washing over this country that weeps all year round.

As a result, the pointed steel towers and the densely packed, exposed drainage pipes form the unique architectural style of this country.

Inside the top of the tallest spire in Amegakure.

At that moment, Obito Uchiha, who had just received information from Zetsu, still wearing his spiral mask, said to Pain, "Konoha and Kumogakure have started a war."

Pain, who possessed the unique Rinnegan in the ninja world, nodded expressionlessly.

The Akatsuki organization is currently too weak to participate in major events in the ninja world.

On the contrary, organizations like the five great ninja villages that possess tailed beasts will all be their enemies in the future, and he would be happy to watch them fight to the death.

"What a pity! If it weren't for that guy in the Mist Ninja with the Byakugan seeing through the genjutsu I used on the Fourth Mizukage, perhaps the Mist Ninja could have taken advantage of the situation and weakened Konoha properly," Obito Uchiha lamented.

If given the opportunity, he wouldn't mind weakening Konoha's power.

Of course, this is under the condition that I don't have to show my face.

His initial encounter with the Fourth Hokage exposed his true nature, leaving him injured. He later witnessed the Fourth Hokage crush the Nine-Tails with his bare hands, making him extremely wary of this man.

He was unwilling to face it personally unless he was absolutely certain of success.

Unfortunately, the Mist Ninja is no longer under his control, so his plan to deal with Konoha has to come to an end.

Pain also gained some understanding of the Fourth Hokage, who mastered Wood Release, through Obito Uchiha's explanation.

Although he understood the former's apprehension towards him, and was even more suspicious of the true identity of the "Uchiha Madara" before him, he still didn't take it too seriously and said, "Don't worry, even the famous Wood Release can only bow down in front of the Rinnegan."

No one knew better than Pain the immense power of the Rinnegan, also known as the Eye of the Sage of Six Paths.

Beneath those eyes, he who calls himself "God" cares nothing for any so-called strongman.

At this time, Pain was more concerned with how to strengthen the Akatsuki organization.

In the future, when it comes to capturing the tailed beasts, relying solely on him, Konan, and the guy in front of her who claims to be Uchiha Madara, their strength is ultimately too insufficient.

We need to recruit more strong individuals.

"I already have a good idea of ​​who the new person for the organization will be, and I will recruit him in the coming days," Payne said calmly.

"Oh? For Pain to intervene, the opponent must be quite strong," Obito Uchiha said curiously.

“Kakuzu, an old man who survived from the previous era, is quite strong, but I value his financial management skills more. If the Akatsuki wants to continue to grow, it desperately needs talent like him,” Pain said. “In addition, there is another person, Sasori of the Red Sand, an S-rank rogue ninja from the Sand Village. I’ll leave that to Konan to recruit.”

"Ok."

From the depths of darkness, Xiao Nan, who had been standing quietly all along, emerged with a cold expression and nodded.

Finally, Payne asked, "So, Mr. Madara, your identity still needs to be kept secret?"

“Yes, now is not the time for me to step in.” Obito Uchiha shook his head and said, “Perhaps, after some time, I will join Akatsuki under a new identity.”

"When that time comes, you can call me... Ah Fei."

......

Konoha Village.

After wave of Konoha ninjas rushed to the battlefield against the Cloud Ninja, it was time for the Fourth Hokage, Kumo-tei, to set off as well.

It was quite common for the village's leader to personally go to the battlefield, as their Raikage often did so.

Even though the Third Raikage was ambushed by the Iwa ninja because he led from the front, he was beaten to death.

The current Fourth Raikage still maintains the same style, and after hearing that Konoha had declared war, he personally led his troops to the front lines.

However, for Konoha, the Hokage's deployment has been extremely rare in the last twenty years.

This doesn't mean that Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was the Third Hokage at the time, was afraid of anything.

Although the Land of Fire is located in the most fertile region of the continent, it is militarily disadvantageous as a place of constant warfare.

In addition, the Land of Fire would be ganged up on during every Shinobi World War.

Therefore, unless an unavoidable crisis occurs, Hiruzen Sarutobi, as the Hokage, needs to act as a pillar of strength to stabilize Konoha.

However, things are different now than before.

The entire ninja world has just experienced the end of the Third Shinobi World War. The Sand Ninja, Rock Ninja, and Mist Ninja have already been crippled, and Konoha has no need to worry about them attacking again.

This gave Yun Ting, the Fourth Hokage, the opportunity to personally lead the expedition.

Moreover, this battle was originally intended to be a quick victory.

As one of Konoha's top combatants, he would naturally not be absent.

At this moment, outside the gates of Konoha Village, Yun Ting, dressed as always in the Hokage's robes, reached out and patted Nara Shikaku, who was on guard duty, saying:

"I'm entrusting the village to you. Also..."

At this point, Yun Ting deliberately lowered his voice so that only the two of them could hear him clearly.

"Keep a close eye on the elderly people in the village. If there are any unusual movements, remember to report them immediately."

"Understood, Hokage-sama!"

Thanks to Yunting's special care in recent years, the Nara clan has achieved great development.