area51novel Chapter 248 The Third Hokage's End?
Chapter 248 The Third Hokage's End?
Chapter 248 The Third Hokage's End?
Logically speaking, Kabuto should have been very suitable for the Sage Mode of Ryuchi Cave. However, under the influence of Izumi Uchiha, Kabuto did not receive enough training from Orochimaru, and even his trip to Ryuchi Cave was not voluntary.
Furthermore, Kabuto was so focused on inheriting Orochimaru's legacy that it was difficult for him to sense natural energy, thus preventing him from successfully entering Sage Mode.
"No, you are the most suitable successor of Ryuchi Cave, even more suitable in some ways than Orochimaru!"
To Kabuto's dismay, the White Snake Sage directly rejected his request.
As immortals from the three holy lands, the White Snake Immortal also had the ability to foresee the future to a limited extent. In the future that the White Snake Immortal foresaw, he saw Kabuto successfully cultivate the Sage Mode of Ryuchi Cave, which is why he brought Kabuto back.
"Am I more suitable to be the successor of Ryuchi Cave than Lord Orochimaru?"
Kabuto didn't quite believe the white snake's nonsense, but he had no choice. He was at the snake's mouth and had to bow his head. Even though he was thinking about Orochimaru's legacy, he could only stay in Ryuchi Cave for now.
What Kabuto didn't know was that staying in Ryuchi Cave might not necessarily be a bad thing.
As for Uchiha Izumi at this time, having not seen any support from Konoha, he had begun selecting ninjas in Kirigakure and starting to build the prototype of a security force in the Land of Water.
"Is it really okay for me to be the captain of the Water Kingdom's security force?"
"I was once one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, and I even became a rogue ninja, joined the Akatsuki, and then left the Akatsuki—"
To everyone's surprise, Uchiha Ikezumi was planning to put him in charge of the Land of Water's security force.
This gift was so big that Pipa Juzo dared not accept it.
"Compared to other ninjas from the Land of Water, you are already the most suitable!"
"Izumi still has a lot to learn, and Izumi's strength is not enough to suppress the ninjas and nobles of the Land of Water. But you can. Your former status as one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist is barely enough to serve as the captain of the security force."
Uchiha Ikezumi looked at the loquat Juzo in front of him. If he had a choice, he would of course want to choose the better one, but in the current situation, he had no choice.
Moreover, isn't appointing Juzo Biwa as the captain of the Water Country's security force a case of using the original soup to cook the original food?
"Are you... leaving?"
Pipa Juzo frowned. He sensed that Uchiha Ikezumi seemed to want to leave the Land of Water.
"There are still many more places in the ninja world that need me!"
"Furthermore, the Hokage election in Konoha is about to begin. If Tsunade becomes the Fifth Hokage, the implementation of absolute justice in the Land of Fire might save me a lot of trouble."
Uchiha Ikezumi spoke up, saying that while it seemed impressive to have slaughtered his way through the Land of Water, carrying out justice for so long had taken a toll on his mental state.
Rather than staying in the Land of Water, Uchiha Ikezumi unusually wanted to return to Konoha to recuperate for a while.
"The Election of the Fifth Hokage of Konoha —"
Pipa Juzo's first instinct was to analyze the information, but he quickly dismissed the idea after just getting started.
The affairs of Konoha are too far removed from the Land of Water. Compared to the Fifth Hokage's concern for Konoha, he should be more concerned with how to establish a security force in the Land of Water and get it operational.
It was during the time when Uchiha Ikezumi wanted to return to Konoha that Hiruzen Sarutobi finally succumbed to the pressure and released the ninjas who upheld absolute justice, allowing them to leave Konoha.
This led to an extremely strange scene in Konoha: hundreds of ninjas left the village at almost the same time, and the direction they were heading was the Land of Water!
In other words, the Land of Water had already been completely overrun by Uchiha Ikezumi. Otherwise, such a large commotion in Konoha could almost be considered a declaration of war by the Land of Fire against the Land of Water.
"On the bright side, many of these ninjas who left Konoha were Jonin, and they had Jonin votes in their hands."
"And now that they're all heading towards the Land of Water, does that give you, Hiruzen, a greater chance of being re-elected Hokage?"
Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi's melancholy expression, Koharu Utatane couldn't help but offer a word of comfort.
"You still don't understand Chi Quan."
To Koharu's surprise, Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head after hearing her words.
"Ikezumi is an uncompromising person, and ninjas who believe in absolute justice are more or less all of them in this respect."
"I recently realized that if I continue to serve as Hokage this time, then it's entirely possible that Tsunade could lead a portion of Konoha's ninjas away and establish a new Konoha Village in the Land of Fire!"
"Compared to that kind of ending, I'd much rather the Hokage position be given to Tsunade!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head. Absolute justice, absolute justice will not compromise!
As time went on, Tsunade must have realized this as well, so she gradually stopped visiting the ninja clans of Konoha more often and instead began to focus on how to implement absolute justice in Konoha, or even integrate it into Konoha.
"Really, is there absolutely no hope?"
Koharu Utatane remained silent for a long time. She hadn't expected Hiruzen Sarutobi to say that if he continued to serve as re-elected, the Land of Fire would have a second Konoha Village.
She was genuinely reluctant to relinquish her power, especially as Koharu Utatane's control over Root deepened, she gradually began to understand why Danzo Shimura had dared to slam his fist on the table and glare at Hiruzen Sarutobi before.
To put it bluntly, the Hokage's control over the Anbu might not be as high as the Root leader's control over Root!
With the Hokage's support, the Root leader can accomplish almost as much as the Hokage in the village!
In this situation, Koharu Tsurugi was genuinely reluctant to give up the power she held.
"There's no hope, but I'll probably serve as an advisor to Tsunade."
"I originally thought that if the Fourth Shinobi World War broke out, my old bones could still fight, and I could go to the battlefield to see if I, the Third Hokage, could replicate the legend of the Third Raikage."
"But the three great powers are all very restrained, and the Fourth Shinobi World War is unlikely to break out anytime soon. So what I should do is to be a Hokage advisor and put the brakes on Konoha when Tsunade makes some extreme policies."
Hiruzen Sarutobi could somewhat guess what Koharu Utatane was thinking, but unfortunately, he himself would no longer occupy the position of Hokage, so Root could not continue to be managed by Koharu Utatane.
"Our era is coming to an end; in fact, it should be coming to an end!"
"Tsunade becoming the Fifth Hokage is already the best possible outcome!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed. Under the ideal of absolute justice, there was no longer a place for a conservative remnant like him in the new era. All he could do now was to preserve Konoha's strength as much as possible!