Fourth Shinobi War

The news of Jiraiya's death spread quickly; in less than three days, the entire Ninja World knew about it.

The death of any Kage Level is a major event; no ninja village is so powerful that even Kage Level is dispensable.

Along with the news of Jiraiya's death, many other pieces of information spread throughout the Ninja World.

For example, the combined efforts of the Iwa ninja and Cloud ninja, and Ōnoki's Dust Release, but what shocked everyone in the Ninja World the most was: Yichen. This guy, who was previously just a bystander and was rumored to be the Fox of Stone, had actually reached Kage Level strength.

People don't understand, how can someone who resorts to scheming and trickery become Kage Level?

Thinking about it carefully, it does seem quite possible; just look at Danzo of Konoha.

Thanks to Danzo, everyone accepted the fact that Yichen had become Kage Level, and no one had any intention of giving Yichen a different title, which shattered any sliver of hope Yichen might have had.

Speaking of Danzo, the current Danzo can be described as both excited and furious.

The reason for his excitement was that two of the Legendary Sannin had been lost, leaving only Tsunade, who suffered from hemophobia. It could be said that his old rival and best friend Hiruzen Sarutobi, had lost most of his power. This was the perfect opportunity for him to make a run for the Hokage position.

However, Danzo was also furious because the Ninja World now knew that Konoha had fallen into a period of weakness again. The last time Konoha was in a period of weakness was when the Second Hokage died in battle, but at that time, all the countries were also weak, so Hiruzen Sarutobi managed to maintain the situation by chance.

Later, White Fang rose to prominence, and the Legendary Sannin emerged, bringing Konoha to its peak in an instant. The process was so rapid that even the leaders of various countries couldn't react in time.

However, everyone in the Ninja World knows that Konoha is unlikely to have such an opportunity again. First of all, as opponents, the number of Kage Level from the Four Great Nations is no longer as small as it was when the Second Hokage died. Well, except for Mist ninja.

Now, even children in the Ninja World know that the Fourth Great Ninja War is about to break out.

Danzo desperately wanted to seize power at this time, but he also knew that if he tried to instigate internal strife, he would be targeted by everyone in the village. Perhaps only the Uchiha wouldn't target him for this.

Although Danzo's political skills were not as good as Hiruzen Sarutobi's, he was not stupid. Making a move at this time would only make him a target of public criticism. Therefore, after weighing the Danzo for a long time, Danzo chose to lie low again.

Hiruzen Sarutobi wasn't afraid of Danzo trouble. He knew his good friend's capabilities. If Hiruzen was weak, Danzo would be strong; if Hiruzen was strong, Danzo would be weak. If Danzo dared to cause trouble, Hiruzen would use his Hokage authority to suppress him forcefully, and he doubted Danzo could make any big fuss.

However, compared to Danzo, other matters gave Hiruzen Sarutobi headache.

First, there's the village's elite fighting force. When news of Jiraiya's death reached them, Hiruzen Sarutobi, even disregarding his grief, immediately sent someone to find Minato Namikaze. He summoned Minato Namikaze not because he hoped Minato Namikaze could single-handedly stop the impending Fourth Shinobi War.

Hiruzen Sarutobi wanted to inquire about Kushina Uzumaki's situation. At this moment, the only thing that could give Hiruzen Sarutobi a bit of confidence was the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, who had just grown to adulthood.

At this moment, he had already made his decision: both the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and he himself would participate in this First Shinobi War. Otherwise, Konoha's top fighting force might not be able to maintain its strength during the Third Shinobi War.

Besides high-end combat power, there was something else that gave Hiruzen Sarutobi an even bigger headache: the Uchiha. Leaving aside their historical entanglements, let's just talk about the time Yichen wreaked havoc in Konoha and kidnapped an Uchiha child.

At that time, Fugaku discovered the ANBU that the village had arranged to monitor the Uchiha Anbu. This was already a difficult matter to explain, but what's worse, Fugaku let go of the person who had kidnapped their Uchiha bloodline. Afterwards, the Intelligence Department speculated that the person was Yichen.

Hiruzen Sarutobi had reason to suspect that Fugaku deliberately left the Uchiha a way out. This way out most likely was Iwa ninja.

More importantly, Yichen was among those who ambushed Jiraiya, which made Hiruzen Sarutobi suspicious. Could Yichen have reached some kind of agreement with the Uchiha Clan? Was the Uchiha Clan involved in Jiraiya's incident?

Besides the Uchiha Clan, the situation in the Hyuga Clan is not good either. The Hyuga Clan harbors resentment over the sacrifice of their former clan leader. In particular, Hyuga Hiashi, after becoming the Hyuga Clan leader, has had much less contact with the Konoha High-ranking officials than when his father was alive.

The Hyuga Branch Family members joining Konoha's regular ninja teams on missions has also decreased significantly.

What upset Hiruzen Sarutobi the most was that the ninja clans that had originally supported him were no longer as steadfast in their attitude towards him in the past year or two.

Hiruzen Sarutobi understood the reason: when Danzo's Root Danzo recruited people, he extended his reach into these families, and Danzo selected the elite members of these families, the kind of geniuses who had the potential to become family heads.

After thinking for a long time, Hiruzen Sarutobi said to his Shadow Guard captain, "Go to the Land of Hot Water, find Tsunade's whereabouts, and bring Tsunade back."

Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't know Tsunade's whereabouts, but he knew that Jiraiya had died in battle, Tsunade would definitely go to the Land of Hot Water to check on him.

The captain of the Shadow Guard acknowledged and was about to leave when Hiruzen Sarutobi said, "Also, try to contact Orochimaru and see what he thinks."

Orochimaru defected, thanks to Danzo. Orochimaru's crimes were serious and solidified, making it impossible for him to return to the village. However, Jiraiya had died in front of Orochimaru, and Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't believe that Orochimaru hadn't experienced any emotional fluctuations.

He hoped to persuade Orochimaru that he could hold off one or two Kage Level from Kumogakure Orochimaru Iwagakure during the upcoming Fourth Shinobi War.

The Shadow Guard captain responded again and immediately left.

Not long after, Minato Namikaze arrived.

Minato Namikaze's eyes were red, clearly indicating he was also upset, but as the Little Sun, he first addressed Hiruzen Sarutobi, saying, "Lord Hokage, please accept my condolences."

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Minato Namikaze and finally a smile appeared on his face. At least the Will of Fire had not been broken, and Will of Fire inheritance would continue in the child in front of him.

"How is Kushina? How much of the Nine-Tails' power can she control?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked.

Minato Namikaze was taken aback, not expecting Hiruzen Sarutobi's first words to be this, but he reacted quickly and immediately understood Hiruzen Sarutobi's meaning, saying, "Hokage, please rest assured, Kushina has grown very well. If she unleashes the full power of the Nine-Tails, even without using the Flying Thunder God Technique, I will be unable to defeat her."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded, then suddenly looked at Minato Namikaze and asked, "Minato Namikaze, what are your thoughts on the Uchiha Clan?"

Minato Namikaze was taken aback again. Every question Hiruzen Sarutobi today had surprised him; the pace of the questions had changed too quickly. But after a moment's hesitation, Minato Namikaze still spoke his mind, "There are Radical Faction within the Uchiha Clan, but there are also Moderate Faction. The Uchiha Clan has some grievances against the village, but the village has also been unfair to the Uchiha Clan."

After saying this, Minato Namikaze lowered his head.

A hint of disapproval flashed in Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes, but there was nothing he could do. The situation was vastly different now, and he and Danzo could no longer suppress the opposition within the Uchiha. And on the eve of this war, the village couldn't afford to make the mistake of attacking the Uchiha Clan.

After a long silence, Hiruzen Sarutobi said, "Minato Namikaze, perhaps you are right. From tomorrow onwards, you will be the Fourth Hokage of the village."

Minato Namikaze was truly stunned this time; he couldn't understand why Hiruzen Sarutobi's thoughts were jumping around so much.

Raising his head, about to refuse, Hiruzen Sarutobi waved his hand and said, "I am an incompetent Hokage. I have failed to handle problems properly, both externally and internally. I bear responsibility for the rise of the Iwa ninja, and I also bear responsibility for the Uchiha's growing disloyalty."

"Once the war begins, I will be on the front lines immediately, and I will fight to the death to win. I'm leaving Danzo village to you. Be careful to mediate between the High-ranking officials and the Uchiha. I will also take Danzo with me; he won't cause you any trouble."

Hiruzen Sarutobi had no choice; he neither wanted to nor could he compromise with the Uchiha Clan, so he could only place his hopes for easing tensions with the Uchiha Clan on Minato Namikaze.

Minato Namikaze took a deep breath, and after a moment, knelt on one knee and said, "Yes, Lord Hokage."

Hiruzen Sarutobi with satisfaction. Minato Namikaze's courage to step forward in times of crisis further proved that he would be a good Hokage, and that his choice this time was correct.

Finally, Hiruzen Sarutobi asked one more question, "Minato Namikaze, how much do you know about Senjutsu?"

Senjutsu is mysterious to the Ninja World, even to the Four Great Ninja Villages besides Konoha, but it cannot be mysterious to the Hokage. Hiruzen Sarutobi read a detailed description of it in the documents left by Senju Tobirama.

Hiruzen Sarutobi asked this question because he wanted to know how Yichen learned Senjutsu. Did Yichen learn Senjutsu from the Three Great Sage Locations? Or were there other places besides the Three Great Sage Locations where Senjutsu techniques were passed down?

In truth, Hiruzen Sarutobi's most desired explanation is that Yichen's mastery of Senjutsu was an accident, a result of exceptional talent. If the Iwa ninja had mastered the complete Senjutsu lineage, it would be a disaster for Konoha.

Minato Namikaze said, "I've already confirmed with Mount Myōboku. Aside from the Three Great Sage Locations, there are no known lineages of Senjutsu in the Ninja World. Even Sage Fukasaku and the others don't know how Yichen learned Senjutsu Techniques."

Hiruzen Sarutobi was somewhat disappointed at not getting an answer, but he didn't delve into it further and simply nodded slightly.

On that day, Konoha held an emergency High-Level Meeting, which passed the decision to Hiruzen Sarutobi, Minato Namikaze, with three people supporting and one opposing.

The one who objected was naturally Danzo, but this time Hiruzen Sarutobi unusually firm and decisive, and Danzo finally gave in.

The next day, the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, officially took office on the rooftop of the Hokage Building. Minato Namikaze's ascension was very hasty; he didn't even have time to inform the Daimyo of the Land of Fire.

The necessary procedures were completed the day after Minato Namikaze, when Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shimura Danzō to the Capital City of the Land of Fire to formally inform the daimyo.

Hiruzen Sarutobi always took Danzo with him wherever he went, naturally because he was afraid that his good friend would cause trouble for Minato Namikaze.

Minato Namikaze for Konoha. The corruption of the Third Hokage had long dissatisfied the major clans and some elite commoners. Minato Namikaze satisfied all parties in the village with his strength, battle achievements, and affability.

Most importantly, everyone knows that Minato Namikaze and the Uchiha Clan are on good terms. In this turbulent time, Minato Namikaze is undoubtedly better able to unite the various factions within the clan than Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Indeed, all factions actively cooperated with the policies of this young man who, unsurprisingly, would assume power in Konoha for the next few decades, including various war preparations.

The other four major powers, as well as the River Ninja Village of the Land of Rivers, are also making preparations.

The location of River Ninja Village is not good. It is situated between the Land of Fire Land of Wind, and is also an open ally of the Land of Wind, making it easy for Konoha to target it. In fact, the Sunagakure is more wary of the River ninja than close to them.

If the Fourth Kazekage hadn't known that the River ninja had two Kage Level and hadn't strictly restrained his subordinates from clashing with them, the River ninja would have already clashed with the Sunagakure River ninja.

After all, the two countries have had a lot of contact since forming an alliance. The Sunagakure looks down on the River ninja, while the River ninja, relying on the strength of its leader, has always treated the Sunagakure as an ally and does not want to be inferior to the Sunagakure. Therefore, the relationship between the lower levels of the two sides is very tense.

However, the biggest problem within River Ninja Village right now is not the preparation for war, nor the relationship with the Sunagakure as an ally, but the quarrel among the three high-ranking members.

The topic of Yahiko and the others' argument was naturally Jiraiya's death. Jiraiya their mentor, who accompanied them through their weakest period, so after Jiraiya's death, the three of them argued endlessly about whether or not to avenge him.

Nagato and Konan wanted revenge, but Yahiko felt that if he were blinded by hatred like everyone else, how could the war be ended?

Disagreements between the two sides naturally lead to arguments.

However, what caused the most conflict among them was Yichen. Yichen played a significant role in the incident where Jiraishi died in battle.

With the news of Jiraiya's death spreading, the most talked-about topic is Yichen, the newly promoted Kage Level, giving the impression that Yichen was the main force behind Jiraiya's death.

Then the three of them had different opinions again.

This time, Nagato believes that Yichen is the murderer of Jiraiya, while Konan and Yahiko feel that Yichen also has his reasons. Because the intelligence shows that Yichen was traveling with the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki. Traveling with his superior, Yichen may simply be carrying out a mission.