"I see. So that's how it is."
Inside a small office on the second floor of the Hokage Building, Hiruzen Sarutobi sat quietly, reading the report in his hands. Yamanaka Inoichi was kneeling on one knee not far in front of him.
This report contained everything Inoichi had learned about Natsuhiko through the Psycho Mind Transmission. He had compiled it fully and submitted it to Hiruzen.
Through this report, Hiruzen learned quite a few interesting things.
For example, there were still many within the Senju clan whose hearts were filled with resentment and anger. They intended to restore the Senju clan to the glory of the Warring States era.
Hiruzen was neither surprised nor shocked by this. In fact, he considered it the most natural reaction.
If the Sarutobi clan had suffered such a near-catastrophic disaster, he himself would not have remained calm either.
No one treats you well for no reason, and no one hates you for no reason. To put it plainly—everything is driven by interests.
Hiruzen had personally pushed both the Senju clan and the Uzumaki clan into decline. He did not care how deeply they hated him.
What intrigued him, however, was that Natsuhiko, at such a young age, had already stepped beyond the shackles of his clan.
He was thinking from a higher vantage point.
Especially notable was that he viewed matters from the perspective of the village—and the solution he arrived at was to become Hokage.
That idea struck Hiruzen as naive, yet somewhat pleasing.
Naive, because while becoming Hokage could indeed solve many problems, was it really such a simple matter?
It was not enough to be strong.
To become Hokage, one needed recognition.
That statement from the original canon was no empty talk—it applied at any time.
Especially now. To become Hokage, one first needed approval—not from "everyone," but from Konoha's various interest groups.
Just look at the Uchiha clan. They had nearly gone mad dreaming of producing a Hokage, yet they had never succeeded.
Part of the reason lay in Uchiha Madara's actions, but more of it stemmed from the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama's policies.
He had worsened the relationship between the Uchiha and the rest of Konoha, creating a lasting divide.
Hiruzen himself had further deepened that divide, ultimately isolating the Uchiha completely. It could be said they no longer had any possibility of becoming Hokage.
Natsuhiko's thinking was interesting. However, his age and perspective limited his understanding.
Still, he was a child who had been shaped quite well.
Encouragingly, the Will of Fire seemed to have been passed on to him to a certain extent.
As for the rest of the report, Hiruzen merely skimmed through it.
Once he learned that the division commander had indeed died of poison, he paid no further attention to that matter.
He had never truly believed Natsuhiko would assassinate the commander. And he trusted the Yamanaka clan's secret techniques.
That technique had never failed. Every time, it yielded accurate information.
This time would be no exception.
However… who exactly was the one who attacked both Root and the ANBU?
Such a powerful puppeteer—possibly even the one who assassinated the Third Kazekage. There were very few individuals like that in the ninja world.
The first person who came to Hiruzen's mind was Chiyo. In his view, only she could accomplish such a feat.
But clearly, it was unlikely to be her.
If not her—then who?
He remembered that Chiyo had a grandson named Sasori, who had been missing for a very long time.
Could it have been that boy?
Shaking his head, Hiruzen decided not to dwell on it further. But neither did he intend to let the matter drop.
So many had died. Someone had to pay a price.
Since the enemy had used the corpse of their Third Kazekage as a puppet to attack Konoha's shinobi, then Sunagakure would handle this matter themselves.
"I understand." Hiruzen set the report down and then said slowly, "You may rise, Inoichi."
"Yes, Lord Third." Yamanaka Inoichi stood obediently, though he kept his head lowered, not looking directly at Hiruzen.
"I have something for you to do," Hiruzen continued, seemingly not noticing Inoichi's expression.
He stood up and walked behind his desk to a bookshelf, carefully searching for something among the volumes.
As he searched, he spoke calmly:
"Go find Shikaku later. Tell him to send a message to Sunagakure.
Use strong wording. Reveal a bit of information to them.
For example—the puppeteer.
For example—the Third Kazekage.
And as for Konoha's losses… exaggerate them somewhat.
Understood?"
"Yes, I understand." Yamanaka Inoichi nodded. He immediately grasped the Third Hokage's meaning.
Put plainly, this was about stirring up chaos within Sunagakure itself—while simultaneously demonstrating Konoha's concern over the matter and seeing whether any benefits could be extracted from it.
However, given how impoverished Sunagakure was, getting anything substantial from them would be difficult.
Therefore, the best approach was to apply pressure—push forward and suppress them—but without actually making a move.
Let them fall into internal disorder on their own. That would allow Konoha to profit from the situation.
"Enough. Don't wear such an expression."
Hiruzen Sarutobi seemed to have found what he was looking for. He picked up something resembling an envelope, turned around, and handed it directly to Inoichi.
"I know you have your concerns. And I know you're dissatisfied that I assigned you this task.
For that, I apologize. I didn't inform you beforehand—after all, you understand how dangerous this matter is, don't you?"
Inoichi did not respond. He silently accepted the envelope.
Lowering his head, he opened it and glanced inside. His heart stirred slightly.
Inside was a brand-new mission report form.
And on this blank form were already the signatures of Hiruzen Sarutobi, Shimura Danzō—and even Minato Namikaze.
This was a whitelist document. As long as he filled in whatever information he wished on it, the document would not need to undergo review. It would pass directly and be archived.
Inoichi did not know how Hiruzen had obtained Minato's signature.
But he knew how important this document was to him.
Hiruzen took in Inoichi's expression. Without showing it, he gave a slight nod and slowly walked back to his desk.
"How to fill it out—I trust you know," Hiruzen said unhurriedly.
At the same time, he placed the previous report onto the candle stand. The flame quickly caught it alight.
Thin wisps of smoke rose as the document in his hand gradually turned to ash. A faint smile appeared at the corner of Hiruzen's lips.
"This is a secret between the two of us. Wouldn't you agree, Inoichi?"
"I…"
Inoichi hesitated for a moment. Then he seemed to sigh softly and slowly raised his head. His expression grew serious.
"I understand, Third Hokage-sama."
...
Drop some POWERSTONES to push the story forward!
PS: Read Advance Chapters at https://www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin