Uchiha's personal opinion

"...Although it wasn't the decisive role in the battle of the Land of Rain, we did defeat Iwagakure!"

Speaking of this, Sakumo Hatake straightened his back.

In the battle between the northern border of the Land of Grass and the Hidden Stone Village, the pressure from the Hokage's edict led to a decisive victory over the Hidden Stone Village's border forces, laying the foundation for the stability of the Land of Grass.

Moreover, Iwagakure is one of the five great ninja villages, and its strength and influence far surpass those of the Land of Rain.

"After the battle in the Land of Rain, the only place where war might break out again in the near future is Sunagakure; other areas are gradually becoming calmer," Uchiha Tokumitsu analyzed. "However, there is still no agreement on how our war merits should be rewarded!"

Uchiha Tokumitsu then shifted the topic to his military achievements.

"But... what does military merit have to do with killing Nara Yasushi?"

Sakumo Hatake immediately realized that the topic had been steered off course.

"I'll most likely have my merits and demerits cancel each other out, and the police department will also cooperate in creating some necessary evidence. Afterwards, the Ino-Shika-Cho clans will also choose to settle things peacefully. But there can only be one Jonin squad leader. If we don't stir up trouble, how will everyone choose sides?"

Although Hatake Sakumo felt that these words were indeed a bit far-fetched, they were mostly plausible.

Did Uchiha Tokumitsu consider these things when he killed Nara Yasushi?

Of course not.

It was simply because Nara Yasuji's tone made him very unhappy, and he also mentioned Danzo's name. In addition, he had accumulated some resentment during his battle with Hanzo, so he took the opportunity to vent his anger and act ruthlessly.

However, when talking to Sakumo Hatake, he naturally couldn't tell the whole truth.

……

On the third day after the war, Mitokado Homura, as an envoy of Konoha, led his troops to the headquarters of Amegakure and signed a comprehensive ceasefire and friendly alliance agreement with Hanzo of the Salamander.

In the agreement, Rain Village acknowledged that Konoha had the right to garrison the southern and eastern regions of the Land of Rain without seeking annexation, and also pledged that as allies, both sides had an obligation to jointly deal with external challenges.

In short, Konoha gained territory, while Amegakure became a nominal ally but a de facto vassal.

Although Hanzo the Salamander was very dissatisfied with the conditions offered by Konoha, he had no choice but to accept them.

Mitokado Homura showed great respect for Hanzo the Salamander in his attitude, but he was unyielding on substantive terms. At most, he would modify the wording to make Amegakure appear more respectable, but he would not budge an inch when it came to actual interests.

After the agreement was signed, Sunagakure expressed its indignation, believing that this was yet another piece of evidence that Konoha was using its power as a major power to bully smaller countries. As one of the five great ninja villages, Sunagakure had the ability and the obligation to protect the interests and existence of smaller countries.

Meanwhile, after cracking the poison of Hanzo the Salamander, under the overall command of Elder Chiyo of Sunagakure, the Sunagakure ninja army began to mobilize its forces to simultaneously advance into the Konoha-controlled areas in the southern part of the Land of Rain and the western part of the Land of Rivers, with their spearhead aimed directly at the mobile forces led by Uchiha Tokumitsu and Hatake Sakumo.

However, for Konoha, the most urgent task is not to deal with the challenge from Sunagakure, but to handle the aftermath of the war with the Land of Rain.

Danzo, who was originally the commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force, was severely injured by Hanzo of the Salamander and was no longer able to manage affairs. Moreover, as a defeated man in the battle, it would be particularly inappropriate to let him continue to deal with Amegakure and Hanzo of the Salamander, otherwise, trouble would inevitably arise later.

Therefore, the selection of the next commander-in-chief of the dispatched army is another lucrative position.

Although Homura Mitokado, as the Hokage's special envoy, temporarily served as the commander of the dispatched army, it was only a temporary measure—because he did not have sufficient direct military force to support him.

Danzo was able to become the commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force not only because of his status as an advisor and elder, but more importantly because he had Root ninjas as his core members.

Mitokado Homura primarily assisted the Hokage in handling political affairs and occasionally served as a special envoy on visits to foreign countries. However, the Mitokado family he came from was a small and insignificant clan, barely qualifying as a minor ninja clan, and could not provide him with much support.

In conclusion, the Rain Country Expeditionary Force, which possesses one-third of Konoha's ninja strength, must elect a new leader who can command respect.

Even though the dispatched army will inevitably be downsized after this battle, and the troops borrowed from other ninja armies will gradually return to their original posts, the position of "Commander-in-Chief" is unique in Konoha and is higher than that of the commanders of the border defense forces. Therefore, all qualified Jonin are very concerned about it.

Uchiha Tokumitsu and Hatake Sakumo didn't care much about this, so they didn't take it to heart that Mitokado Homura hadn't informed them of the military affairs meeting held by the dispatched army.

But the two of them weren't idle either. Besides reporting information about the Sunagakure ninja army to the village, they frequently visited Mimura Yoru and Kime Kōtō, sharing their innermost feelings with each other.

To become a Jonin, one needs not only battle achievements, but also enough Jonin votes of trust, and finally, the appointment of the Hokage.

Sakumo Hatake is not lacking in military achievements.

Based on both the combat record of the mobile unit and his past experience, he is more than qualified to serve as the leader of the Jonin squad.

However, his biggest disadvantage is that he does not have a strong enough backing or a united and stable team.

This time, however, Uchiha Tokumitsu clearly stated that he would coordinate the Uchiha clan to support him, which gave Hatake Sakumo hope.

He is indeed a follower of the Will of Fire, but that doesn't stop him from also dreaming of becoming Hokage.

Having the support of the Uchiha clan was not enough, because the Uchiha clan was actually an excluded force in the village. Although they had strength, they did not have much say, so they also needed the support of the centrists.

The centrists are naturally the commoner Jonin or the Jonin of a small clan from the same period. Apart from the Uchiha clan, which of the major ninja clans doesn't have a pillar figure they can be proud of? Naturally, they are unwilling to choose sides in this matter and offend the Konoha F4 and the Ino-Shika-Cho clans at the same time.

"I didn't have a choice before, but now I want to do more for Konoha..."

After concluding his visit and recruitment trip to the western border defense forces, Hatake Sakumo said to Uchiha Tokumitsu.

"Of course! Who wouldn't want to contribute more to the village!"

Uchiha Tokumitsu expressed his full support for Hatake Sakumo's idea.

"If I become the leader of the Jonin team, I will change the situation of ordinary ninjas and small ninja clans, and give them the treatment and development they deserve!"

At this moment, Hatake Sakumo was full of ambition and high spirits.

"Of course! It must be for the good of Konoha!" Uchiha Tokumitsu chimed in, playing the straight man.

"In the future, I will defeat all enemies who dare to offend Konoha!"

"Hmm! I even want to conquer the moon!"

Sakumo Hatake was speechless.

Soon, the village's latest appointments were announced.

Akimichi Torifu, who had previously 'retired,' returned to serve as the commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force stationed in the Land of Rain.

Meanwhile, the ninja forces under the jurisdiction of the dispatched army began to be reduced and reorganized, and their numbers dropped to about three thousand.

As for Uchiha Tokumitsu's actions, the Hokage faction's attitude was unusually ambiguous.

There was neither investigation nor determination; all sorts of rumors were simply allowed to fly around the village.

Even the most ignorant villagers in Konoha now know that the Uchiha clan, which has always been arrogant and domineering, has produced another particularly arrogant and domineering Uchiha Tokumitsu.

Pointing a knife at one's comrades, regardless of the reason, will inevitably draw criticism.

But Uchiha Tokumitsu didn't care.

As the saying goes, "the more lice, the less itchy they are," the reputation of the Uchiha clan was never good to begin with, so more negative influences wouldn't make their situation worse. On the contrary, it would make their allies feel that the Uchiha clan couldn't take much benefit from them, making them feel safer.

"When do you plan to launch the motion to form a Jonin team?" This was the question that Uchiha Tokumitsu was most concerned about.

In the past few days, he has communicated with his clan and the various vassal ninja clans, and has gained their unanimous support. The number of confirmed Jonin votes is now close to one-third. In addition, with the supporters that Hatake Sakumo originally had and the centrists he has recently won over, it is certain that he will win the Jonin vote.

With everything prepared, it's time to start harvesting.

"...Let's defeat Sunagakure first." Sakumo Hatake thought for a moment and decided that dealing with the external enemy was the top priority.

"...Alright then, this way we can add another generous contribution." Although Uchiha Tokumitsu wasn't very happy, he still accepted Hatake Sakumo's suggestion.

"Tokumitsu-kun seems quite confident about the Sunagakure War."

“There’s no reason for us to lose.” Uchiha Tokumitsu analyzed, “Currently, the ninja forces we control include mobile units and western border defense forces. What we are really facing is just the Sand Village in the Land of Rivers.”

"What about the southern region of the Land of Rain?"

“Just leave it to the dispatched army to handle,” Uchiha Tokumitsu replied. “Sakumo-kun, we can’t take on the entire war. Not only is our strength insufficient, but we also need to give the ninja forces in other directions some opportunities to make contributions.”

"That's true..."

"Moreover, after sitting on the sidelines for many years, Akimichi Torifu-senpai has just had the opportunity to return to the position of commander-in-chief of the dispatched army, and he also needs some merits to build up his reputation."

“However, I feel that Senior Torifu doesn’t seem to care much about the death of Nara Yasuji,” Hatake Sakumo said hesitantly, rubbing his chin.

“A collateral descendant whose name doesn’t even contain the character for ‘deer’—so what if he’s dead? What else can happen to him?” Uchiha Tokumitsu explained. “Besides, he was Danzo’s pawn in the shadows. The Nara clan might even be secretly pleased with his death!”

"Has the police department found any evidence?" Hatake Sakumo got excited when this was mentioned.

"No, just a bold guess," Uchiha Tokumitsu said. "Otherwise, what kind of good ninja would loudly call Danzo 'Lord'?"

"Now that you mention it, it does make some sense..."

That makes perfect sense!

Chapter 100 The Traces of Sunagakure

Although Sunagakure was verbally aggressive, seemingly ready to immediately behead Uchiha Tokumitsu and hang his head on a lamppost, their actual ninja organization and combat deployment remained steady and methodical.

After the second round of war mobilization, the second batch of Sand Ninja Army soldiers rushed to the front line, joining the western region of the Land of Rain and the eastern region of the Land of Wind, forming a stalemate with Konoha and Amegakure.

However, since Konoha officially and completely controlled the southern region of the Land of Rain, there has been no direct conflict between Konoha and Sunagakure, not even between patrol teams.

On the contrary, the territory actually controlled by the Rain Ninja was frequently subjected to strong close-range reconnaissance and annihilation by the elite Sand Village squads. After the battle with Konoha, the Rain Ninja, whose strength was greatly reduced, was simply unable to reach the Sand Village's step-by-step advance and had no choice but to implement a retreat strategy and move backward.

In this way, Elder Chiyo's earlier declaration of war against Konoha seemed more like a smokescreen.

However, Konoha had not been able to obtain the latest intelligence from Sunagakure, making it difficult to make a proper judgment on the enemy's strategic intentions and operational objectives. Therefore, Akimichi Torifu, who was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the dispatched army in a time of crisis, adopted the most cautious operational deployment.

The operation was commanded by the cunning Orochimaru, with the bold and meticulous Jiraiya in charge of intelligence work, while Tsunade, who possessed formidable individual combat strength and outstanding medical ninjutsu, was entrusted with an elite squad and responsible for frontline affairs.

This is a fairly standard personnel allocation, with nothing particularly wrong with it, but it doesn't have many highlights either. The only standout feature is that it clearly demonstrates Akimichi Torifu's humility and mentorship of juniors as a senior member of the ninja village, without any intention of appointing personal favorites.

Of course, the main reason behind this was not that Akimichi Torifu didn't want to use any of his own people, but rather that he didn't have many people in his pocket.

As a senior figure who had long since chosen to 'retire', Akimichi Torifu had only close relatives and a few loyal bodyguards by his side. Apart from his reputation and decent strength, he had nothing else.

Therefore, after arranging the defense work of the Land of Rain, Akimichi Torifu stopped staying in the tent of the Land of Rain and instead slipped away to the Land of Rivers under the pretext of inspecting the deployment.

Mimura Yomaki and Kime Kōdō, who were stationed in the land of rivers, warmly welcomed his arrival.

At the same time, an invitation was extended to Uchiha Tokumitsu and Hatake Sakumo, who were stationed in the northern region of the Land of Rivers, inviting them to get together.

Although Akimichi Torifu is considered a senior member of the Ino-Shika-Cho clan, and the two of them are currently vying for the position of Jonin leader among the Nara clan members, it would be somewhat awkward to meet him again.

However, since they were comrades-in-arms in the same war zone in the Land of Rivers, they would have to support each other in the face of the Sunagakure war. So, after discussing it, Uchiha Tokumitsu and Hatake Sakumo decided to get together and meet.

Of course, the official explanation was not a gathering that emphasized personal relationships. After arranging various affairs of the mobile unit, Uchiha Tokumitsu and Hatake Sakumo arrived at the garrison camp of the western border defense force under the guise of a military affairs meeting.

……

"Tokumitsu-kun, it's been a long time!" Akimichi Torifu expressed his enthusiasm upon meeting him. "And Sakumo-kun, I heard your swordsmanship has improved again!"

Akimichi Torifu made no inquiries about the execution of Nara Yasuji.

"Greetings, senior Tokifumi." Sakumo Hatake politely returned the greeting. "The battlefield is the best and cruelest training ground for ninjas, but I was just relatively lucky to survive."

"Sakumo-kun is as humble as ever," Akimichi Torifu laughed heartily.

Mimura Yoru and Kime Kōdō led everyone into the central military tent and seated them.