Chapter 393: Intelligence Stirring the Ninja World
"Amamiya-sensei!"
Naruto rushed out of the room excitedly and threw himself into Amamiya Kenichi's arms. Then he blinked and looked curiously at the little girl standing beside him.
"Eh? Who's this girl?"
"This is Uzumaki Kobai. You could say she's a distant relative of yours," Amamiya Kenichi said with a chuckle, ruffling Naruto's hair.
He had returned to the Land of Snow this time specifically to bring Kobai and Yakushi Nonou back with him.
After all, the Ninja World might soon descend into chaos again. The shadow of war had once more begun to cover the world, and it was hard to say when the Five Great Nations would start fighting. In the current Ninja World, there was no place safer than the Land of Snow.
This small country was isolated overseas, and war would not easily reach it.
"Uzumaki..." Naruto blinked.
He felt that the name was the same as his own, but he did not dwell on it for long. Soon, he clutched Amamiya Kenichi's clothes and looked up at him with teary eyes.
Now that Amamiya-sensei was back, his freedom had finally returned.
He could finally escape from his mother's clutches!
"Naruto, how can you run so fast... Ah, it's Kenichi. How did you... eh?"
A red-haired woman stormed out of the room.
When she saw Amamiya Kenichi, she paused, and her smile quickly brightened. But then she noticed the red-haired little girl standing beside him.
"Sister Kushina, this is Uzumaki Kobai. I met her at the Konoha Orphanage. She's a very smart child," Amamiya Kenichi introduced her with a smile.
He did not have time to take care of children.
Taking care of Naruto was still manageable, but Kobai was another matter entirely. It was better to hand her over to Kushina. Amamiya Kenichi felt that Kushina would not mind helping a child from her own clan.
As he expected, Kushina quickly warmed up to Kobai.
The same red hair and the same surname gave the two Uzumaki of different ages a natural sense of closeness.
Amamiya Kenichi, meanwhile, took Naruto out to eat. He planned to grab a meal and, at the same time, see what Naruto had learned from Kushina during this period.
"So, your mother taught you the Adamantine Sealing Chains? And she told you to beat the Nine-Tails whenever you had nothing to do?"
Amamiya Kenichi looked at Naruto with a strange expression.
As expected of Kushina. Her method of dealing with Kurama was simple, direct, and painfully Uzumaki.
"Yeah, but I saw that big fox, and it's really fierce!" Naruto nodded honestly.
Amamiya Kenichi's mouth twitched.
Kurama must be very fierce right now.
Its shadow, Kushina, had returned. How could it not be fierce?
Back then, Kushina had often beaten Kurama down. Facing Kushina, its Jinchuriki, Kurama had been completely suppressed by sealing jutsu.
It was truly a bitter history written in fox tears.
"So, Naruto, what do you think?" Amamiya Kenichi asked with a smile.
He knew that even though Kurama was only half of its former self, it could still sense certain things. With a little guidance, the relationship between Naruto and Kurama might improve.
Perhaps Naruto could even unlock the Tailed Beast Cloak mode earlier than expected.
"I don't know, but I don't think that big fox is a bad guy. Even though it's fierce, it must be in a bad mood because it's been locked up all the time," Naruto said, scratching his head with a silly grin.
Amamiya Kenichi nodded.
As expected of Naruto.
His way of thinking was truly extraordinary, especially considering how much unfair treatment he had suffered. If Naruto had instead grown up in a happy childhood from the very beginning, who knew what kind of person he would have become?
"Naruto, what your mother taught you is very useful, but how you choose to act is up to you. Since you don't think the Nine-Tails is a bad guy, then follow your own thoughts. Just don't casually undo the seal," Amamiya Kenichi said with a smile.
With Naruto saying something like that, perhaps Kurama's anger toward him would lessen a little.
That said, caution was still necessary.
After all, the current Kurama was not the same as the future Kurama. It was better to be careful.
Naruto nodded obediently.
Amamiya Kenichi happily picked up a piece of roasted pork belly for Naruto, then began eating with him while wondering how things were progressing on Yakushi Kabuto's side.
He had brought back Yakushi Nonou, fulfilling his promise to Kabuto.
He hoped Kabuto would not disappoint him.
—-
"Hokage-sama, according to the investigation report, three nights ago, the orphanage director, Yakushi Nonou, and an orphan named Yakushi Kobai disappeared. After that, the orphanage received a generous donation, and there were no signs of a struggle."
Inside the newly built Konoha Hokage Tower, an Anbu respectfully delivered his report.
"However, the origin of that money is unclear. According to the intelligence, it may be related to the person who came out of the orphanage," the Anbu added.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sat at his desk.
The Hokage Tower had been rebuilt, but not on its original site. Instead, it had been constructed beside the old location.
The old site had been left untouched. It was still a ruin, desolate and broken.
But that was Hiruzen Sarutobi's intention.
After the attack, Hiruzen had given a passionate speech about the Will of Fire. He declared that the old site would remain Konoha's eternal scar until the day that shame was erased.
That action had united Konoha's people.
The morale of the ninja had soared, and countless ninja now dreamed of washing away Konoha's humiliation, causing the entire Village to regain its vigor.
"I understand." Hiruzen took the intelligence report, glanced at it, and casually set it aside.
Then he picked up another report he had placed down earlier. The more he read, the tighter his brows furrowed.
"Have the Elder Council and the Nara clan head come here," Hiruzen said weakly, taking a deep breath and pinching the bridge of his nose.
The Anbu nodded and vanished from the office.
Tsunade, who was standing nearby, also looked troubled by the report in her hand.
"Old man, is another war going to break out?" Tsunade asked, her heart conflicted as she looked at the intelligence.
"I don't know. But this intelligence must be verified. We cannot treat it as a mere rumor," Hiruzen said, licking his lips.
He picked up his pipe, took a puff, then leaned back in his chair and fell into deep thought.
He was not very concerned about the orphanage incident.
He had seen Yakushi Nonou's file. Although she was a spy who had carried out missions before, she was only an unofficial member of Root and had not been exposed to too many secrets.
The investigation was only meant to determine whether anyone else had interfered with the matter. If not, then she would simply be listed as a rogue ninja.
Every Village had rogue ninja.
S-rank rogue ninja were the ones worth noting and guarding against the most.
But a rogue ninja at Yakushi Nonou's level was not worth worrying about.
Although the intelligence suggested a possible connection to Amamiya Kenichi, there was no evidence.
And even if Amamiya Kenichi had truly come to Konoha this time, all he had done was take away Yakushi Nonou and a young orphan. Hiruzen did not think this would have much impact.
In the past, he would naturally have investigated further to see what Amamiya Kenichi intended to do.
But not now.
He was more concerned about the intelligence he had received today.
Compared to that report, Amamiya Kenichi sneaking into Konoha and taking away an orphanage director was a trivial matter.
Completely insignificant.
"Hokage-sama."
Nara Shikaku arrived quickly and bowed respectfully to Hiruzen.
Hiruzen handed him the intelligence report.
After one glance, Shikaku's expression became much more serious. There was even a trace of disbelief in his eyes.
Homura Mitokado and Utatane Koharu also entered soon after.
The intelligence report quickly passed from Shikaku's hands to theirs, and then the entire office fell into silence.
"What do you think of this intelligence?" Hiruzen asked solemnly after taking a puff from his pipe.
Although he already had some thoughts of his own, this matter was too important. It still needed to be discussed with everyone.
If he made the decision alone, all the blame would fall on him.
If the decision was made by a group, the burden would not be as heavy.
"Whether it is true or false, we must verify it. We must also arrange for elite ninja to lead the team. It may even be necessary..." Shikaku glanced at Tsunade, who was sitting beside Hiruzen.
He did not finish his sentence, but everyone understood what he meant.
"I agree with Shikaku. Regardless of whether this intelligence is true or false, Hero's Water, which can increase a ninja's Chakra by nearly tenfold, is far too important," Koharu said with a nod.
"Seconded," Homura said without objection.
A tenfold increase in Chakra. What kind of concept was that?
Ninja understood it clearly.
Although they were members of Konoha's Elder Council, they also understood what such a thing represented.
Hiruzen tapped his pipe, knocking the ash into the ashtray.
His brows were deeply furrowed, making the wrinkles on his face appear even more pronounced.
With his years of political experience, Hiruzen keenly sensed something abnormal about this intelligence.
However, as Shikaku said, this report was far too important.
If the information was true, then this was a strategic item no less significant than a Tailed Beast.
If it had only been some Hero's Water of unknown origin, then perhaps it would have been one thing. But the problem was that the report claimed this thing had a stable source.
That made it impossible for him to sit still.
A stable source of something that could increase a ninja's Chakra by nearly tenfold.
What did that mean?
Hiruzen knew better than anyone.
It meant a comeback.
It meant a sliver of hope in desperate situations.
No Ninja Village would ignore such a thing.
Even if it sounded like a false rumor, the Five Great Ninja Villages could not stand by and do nothing. They would inevitably send ninja to investigate.
But since all five Great Ninja Villages would send people, the question of who to send became crucial.
Elite Jonin?
Not enough.
Far from enough.
An item of this level meant that the assigned ninja squad might determine who ultimately gained control of it.
And that was before verification.
If the intelligence was verified, if the Hero's Water was proven real, and if its source was found, then a single squad would not be enough to fight for ownership.
Hiruzen looked at Tsunade beside him.
Tsunade was the future Fifth Hokage.
Recently, he had already begun considering retirement, and Konoha's authority had gradually begun transitioning to Tsunade.
"I'll lead the team," Tsunade said, standing up.
Although she was gradually taking over authority now, she was not yet Konoha's Hokage.
Jiraiya's injuries from his battle with his disciple in the Land of Rain had not healed yet, so he was also unsuitable for intelligence gathering.
In all of Konoha, only she, a Kage-level expert, could steadily surpass elite Jonin and qualify to lead the team.
Moreover, Tsunade herself was curious.
What kind of thing could increase a ninja's Chakra tenfold?
Tenfold was no small number.
If it was useful even to her, then it would be a strategic resource that absolutely had to be fought for, even at the cost of blood.
"This time, three ninja squads will be deployed together. Tsunade, choose the team members yourself," Hiruzen made the final decision.
Tsunade had no objections.
"When you return, you will be the Fifth Hokage," Hiruzen said with a smile as he looked at his disciple.
Once, he had been troubled by this disciple's violence. He had never expected that among his three disciples, Tsunade would be the one most suited to succeed him.
As for Jiraiya, he had no desire to become Hokage. He spent his days on literary creation, writing things that were far too explicit and violent.
Hiruzen Sarutobi strongly criticized such material.
Therefore, Hiruzen was also a loyal reader of The Story of Me and Orochi Hime, and had bought every collector's edition.
However, whenever he read it, Hiruzen's heart always felt somewhat conflicted.
After all, he knew Orochimaru very well.
Precisely because he knew him, reading that book always gave him a subtle feeling. But Hiruzen quickly set that aside.
It was entertainment, after all.
As for Orochimaru, there was no need to say much. The fact that he had become a rogue ninja alone eliminated any possibility of him becoming Hokage, not to mention the things Orochimaru had done before. Otherwise, Hiruzen would not have needed to choose Minato Namikaze.
Tsunade nodded and said nothing.
She had to carefully select the members of this squad.
The same kind of discussion was taking place in the other countries that had successively received the intelligence, with the exception of Hidden Mist Village.
Although airships existed, flying still took time.
Even so, this was already much better than before. Hidden Mist Village's intelligence was often delayed, and with airships, they could at least receive it while it was still fresh.
Suddenly, the atmosphere of the entire Ninja World became strange.
All at once, the Land of Rain, that remote small country, once again became the focus of the Five Great Nations.
.....
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