Anti-Danzo Alliance

Yichen and Atsumi Akino returned to the Iwa ninja branch in the Land of Fire using the Flying Thunder God Technique.

The two then used Teleportation Array to reach Iwagakure).

Not long after returning to the village, Yichen received a war threat from Konoha.

Yichen didn't care much about Danzo's incompetent rage; Yichen simply firmly believed that Konoha's problems could not be solved through war.

Konoha's problems are for Konoha to solve themselves; Yichen has no intention of forcing Konoha to unite against him, an external enemy.

Faced with Danzo's threat, Yichen thought for a moment. Considering that Danzo had done a good job after Danzo and had incurred the hatred of the major clans in Konoha, Yichen felt that he could give him some benefits.

Yichen rummaged through the archives and finally settled on a scroll Wood Style Experience.

This scroll contains the rent money that Obito Uchiha gave to Yichen when he was still alive.

"Danzo should need this, right?" Yichen thought to himself, holding the scroll.

Yichen had a copy of the scroll made, and then sent an envoy to Konoha to negotiate with Danzo.

A few days later, Yichen reached an agreement with Danzo, exchanging a Wood Style Experience scroll for Shisui Uchiha.

Danzo was indeed unable to resist the allure of the Wood Style Experience. Hashirama Senju, however, did not leave behind any insights before his death.

With an IQ Hashirama Senju, he probably couldn't have written any insightful comments.

Hashirama Senju relied entirely on his talent to conquer the world. Although he used Wood Release in a variety of ways, Yichen always believed that he relied solely on the wonder of Chakra, not on his understanding of Wood Release or the Chakra essence.

Although Danzo transplanted parts of the White Zetsu clone's body, the White Zetsu clone's Wood Release was not yet strong enough to balance the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Yichen's Wood Style Experience could, to some extent, enhance Danzo's Wood Release.

With this Wood Style Experience, Danzo was able to fully utilize the abilities of his transplanted White Zetsu clone and also enable Wood Release to suppress the Mangekyō Sharingan.

When Danzo heard a few words about the Wood Style Experience from the representative of Iwa ninja, Danzo was immediately intrigued.

So Danzo ultimately chose to swallow his anger.

Danzo stated that he agreed to overlook the matter of Yichen killing Shisui Uchiha, but disagreed with handing over Fugaku Uchiha's Mangekyō Sharingan to the Iwa ninja.

However, the representative sent by Yichen said that one of Fugaku Uchiha's Mangekyō Sharingan was used by Shisui Uchiha to perform Izanagi.

Shisui Uchiha was able to hold off Yichen only because he used Izanagi.

The other Mangekyō Sharingan was destroyed during the battle.

This eye, along with Shisui Uchiha's head, was pulverized into a bloody pulp by Yichen's Porcelain Kunai.

Yichen's reasoning was quite sound; he said it was a desperate measure to prevent Shisui Uchiha from using Izanagi again.

Danzo couldn't refute this explanation, since he had no evidence to prove that Yichen had obtained Fugaku Uchiha's Mangekyō Sharingan.

Although Danzo always felt that Yichen's words were not trustworthy, after thinking it over, Danzo still guessed that Yichen probably only obtained one of Fugaku Uchiha's eyes at most.

Regardless of Danzo's speculations or his resentment, the commotion Yichen's capture of Shisui Uchiha has finally subsided.

Yichen's surprise attack on Shisui Uchiha did not attract much attention from the Ninja World.

The main reason is that there weren't many participants in this incident. Apart from a few people on Yichen's side, the survivors from Konoha were all elite members of the Anbu, and no one would leak information.

The other ninja villages were more concerned about the explosion caused by the Sage Art - Great Five Elemental Bullet Technique that occurred in the passageway.

Although the explosion wasn't as ridiculously powerful on the Ninja World side as it was on the Land of Land of Wind, thanks to Kakashi's Kamui, it was still a significant event.

However, the explosion, with power comparable to a regular S-rank Ninjutsu, was enough to attract attention from all sides.

Everyone was speculating that someone had caused trouble in the Land of Fire yet.

However, this matter revealed too little useful information, and the discussion ended after only some speculation from all sides.

On the contrary, within Konoha, the Anbu was not kept from those powerful ninja clans who were being suppressed by Danzo, as many of the ANBU members were from powerful clans.

Hyuga Hiashi, Shikaku Nara, Choza Akimichi, Inoichi Yamanaka, Shibi Aburame, Tsume Inuzuka, Kurenai Yūhi, and others held a unique meeting using their family's secret techniques.

Taking advantage of the release of the Ninja Academy exam results, the heads of these various clans brought their children to a street in Konoha for a family dinner.

They each chose a restaurant; some booked private rooms, while others dined in the main hall.

The patriarchs, their wives, and children had a perfectly normal meal together.

Meanwhile, in secret, the chieftain of the Aburame Clan, Shibi Aburame, first used Kikaichū to spell out characters in corners that each of the clan chiefs could see out of the corner of their eyes.

Of course, Hyuga Hiashi didn't need that. He was currently using his Byakugan, along with his Hinata daughter Hinata, to teach his younger daughter Hanabi how to use Byakugan.

"The Tsuchikage launched a surprise attack, Kakashi was seriously injured, Shisui Uchiha; his fate is unknown." The Kikaichū slowly presented each word to the clan leaders.

Shibi Aburame was the most important person in this meeting for relaying messages.

Not long after these words were written, a faint barking sound suddenly reached everyone's ears; it was the Inuzuka clan's Ninja Dog arguing.

Distracted by the conversation, and considering the pre-arranged code, the clan leaders had an idea. Tsume Inuzuka asked, "Could we use the disappearance of Shisui Uchiha as an excuse to damage Danzo's reputation?"

Just as Tsume Inuzuka finished asking his question, suddenly, the clan leaders felt a strange Chakra attack on them. Being prepared, they did not resist.

The next moment, each of them entered a very simple illusion.

In the illusion, Kurenai Yūhi said the same thing to each of them, "While the village's upper echelons know about Shisui Uchiha, the villagers are unaware."

"It's unrealistic to use this incident to damage Danzo's reputation. Danzo can simply deny it; he's capable of doing something like that."

After saying this, the illusion shattered.

After a while, a voice suddenly rang in everyone's minds. "Shikaku, say something. Is it possible that we can use this matter?"

This was the voice of Inoichi Yamanaka; he used a secret technique of the Yamanaka Clan to transmit his voice directly to everyone.

Not long after Inoichi Yamanaka finished speaking, the clan leaders saw that some grains of rice, salt, thin rope, or dust that had been accidentally scattered in a corner of their vision had formed characters under the influence of a tiny shadow.

"This matter will not only fail to help us, but it will likely make our situation even more difficult in the future."

"After returning to the village severely injured, Kakashi was immediately taken to the Hokage's Office by the Root members."

"Kakashi stayed in the Hokage's Office for more than an hour, and then Kakashi never appeared in public again."

"I suspect he may have been placed under the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal and joined the Root."

While listening to his wife's nagging, Shikaku Nara used his Shadow Imitation Jutsu to convey his guesses to everyone.

Everyone was taken aback when they saw it.

Kakashi was the candidate for the Seventh Hokage, and he was their biggest bargaining chip in their rebellion against Danzo. After all, after overthrowing Danzo, they would still need to elect a new Hokage.

If they can't even find a qualified Hokage, why should the lower and middle classes of the village support them?

It's because the heads of these powerful clans are incompetent; none of them are suitable to become Hokage.

Everyone fell silent. After a while, a waiter brought each of their tables a list. "Hello everyone, these are our newly launched dishes. Since you are all regular customers, we offer discounts if you wish to participate."

The clan leaders took the list, glanced at it, and saw that besides the regular list, there was a line written in special ingredients, "Could we ask the Third Hokage to come out of seclusion and become Hokage again?"

The messenger was Choza Akimichi. This street has many delicious restaurants, and coincidentally, the clan leaders all chose restaurants from his family.

After reading the intelligence report, the clan leaders silently used their Chakra to erase the text.

Tsume Inuzuka said his Ninja Dog wanted to try it and ordered several dishes.

Shikaku Nara handed the list to his wife, indicating that he couldn't make the decision.

Hyuga Hiashi waved his hand and said, "One of everything, please. Money's no object."

The Shibi Aburame dismissively, saying, "My insects are allergic to these new dishes."

Kurenai Yūhi said, "We who study Genjutsu have small appetites, so we don't need any."

Just as Inoichi Yamanaka was about to express his opinion, the list was snatched away by his daughter, Ino Yamanaka.

After a while, Shikaku Nara said, "We can find Hiruzen Sarutobi, but we can't take the initiative this time. The relationship between Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo is unclear and complicated."

"For us to cooperate, we need to wait for Hiruzen Sarutobi to contact us first. We can't let him know that we have a tacit understanding."

"In addition, everyone should try their best to gather information about the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal."

"Kakashi's personality is similar to Tsunade's; they both care a lot about what the villagers think. This kind of Hokage is advantageous to us."

"Our first choice is to break the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal and help Kakashi eliminate his worries."

"Hiruzen Sarutobi is essentially no different from Danzo; he's just a bit more subtle. If you can choose Kakashi, don't choose Hiruzen Sarutobi."

Then everyone had a good discussion about various ways to deal with Danzo.

The family gathering lasted a long time before it ended, and on the way home, Hyuga Hiashi felt quite embarrassed.

As the head of Konoha's largest clan, he couldn't find a way to speak on such an important occasion and ultimately had to rely on Inoichi Yamanaka.

He's not even as good as Choza Akimichi! Choza Akimichi even managed to say a few words while delivering bills and coupons.

At this moment, even with the Byakugan bloodline of the Hyuga Clan, he could only watch helplessly.

In the end, they were reduced to the same level as minor clans like the Gekkō Clan, the Mitarai Clan, the Yamashiro Clan, and the Shiranui Clan.

Danzo was unaware of this meeting, and neither was Hiruzen Sarutobi. Apart from the clan leaders themselves, only Shikamaru Nara felt that his father was behaving strangely today.

My dad, who usually shows no interest in menus or bills, actually looked at them today.

This was quite rare for him, and my mom even praised him a few times, saying that he had finally learned to care about the little things in the family.

On this day, the major clans of Konoha formed a formal Anti-Danzō Alliance.

However, after the first meeting of this Anti-Danzō Alliance, everyone was in a bad mood.

They thought they could do something immediately, but were told that Kakashi, their chosen spokesperson, was also in trouble.

Yichen was unaware of the upgraded Chunin Ninja Exams that had just taken place in Konoha. He was looking at the two little girls in front of him with a puzzled expression.

Sakura and Karin.

Yichen hadn't paid attention to these kids for a long time, but if he remembered correctly, weren't Sakura and Karin from opposing camps?

One of them stood on Kurotsuchi's side, while the other supported Yuki Kinuyo.

Do Kurotsuchi and Yuki Kinuyo know that these two are suddenly so close?

Seeing Yichen's surprised look, Sakura, who was relatively familiar with Yichen, said gently, "Lord Tsuchikage, Karin also wants to learn Medical Ninjutsu, is that alright?"

Inner Sakura cursed inwardly, "I wasn't wrong. The Lord Tsuchikage is indeed as rumored—a gossipy, scheming, and irresponsible person."

"His eyes just now held a hint of gossip."

Yichen knew that Karin's physique was also very suitable for learning Medical Ninjutsu.

However, her situation is special. If Yichen or the village were to bring it up, it would give Karin and her mother the feeling that the village covets their special abilities.

This matter could be a big deal or a small deal, but Yichen was unwilling to take the risk and didn't want to leave such a thought in Karin's mind.

So Yichen asked with a curious look, "Karin, right? Why do you want to learn Medical Ninjutsu?"

Karin was conflicted; she had only sought out Sakura because of her mother's advice.

Karin's mother told her in detail about their special physical conditions and emphasized that this matter could only be known to Yichen.

Karin glanced at Sakura, who had introduced her to Yichen, and said softly, "Lord Tsuchikage, I'd like to speak with you privately."

Sakura suddenly turned to look at Karin beside her. At this moment, not only did Inner Sakura burst into curses, but Outer Sakura was almost losing her composure.

Karin lowered her head, not daring to look at Sakura; she felt she had let Sakura down.

Yichen was secretly delighted to see their friendship so easily broken, so he added fuel to the fire, saying, "Karin, since you have a little secret you can't tell your best friend, then..."

"Sakura, wait here for a bit. Karin and I are going to chat over there."

Karin looked at Sakura, who had been trying to act nonchalant but was now on the verge of breaking down, with tears welling up in her eyes.

Unable to explain herself, she could only follow Yichen to the corner, turning back to look at him every step of the way.

The two left Sakura behind and walked to the side. Karin immediately said, "Lord Tsuchikage, my mother said that my body has a very strong self-healing ability. If someone is injured, they can recover by biting me and sucking my blood."

"That's why my mother told me to learn Medical Ninjutsu from you, Lord Tsuchikage."

Yichen feigned surprise as he looked at her, then pretended to weigh things over for a long time before saying with a serious expression, "Karin, first of all, I can accept you as my disciple, just like I accepted Sakura."

"I will give you all the materials you need to learn Medical Ninjutsu, and I will also provide opportunities for practice. Don't tell anyone else that I've taken you as my apprentice."

"But there's one thing you must remember: you can't let anyone else know this secret, not even your best friends."

"Finally, go back and tell your mother to rest assured that the village will treat every villager fairly, so she can live in the village with peace of mind and not worry about anything happening to you."

Karin nodded as if she understood, but she was still too young to appreciate the handsome young man and didn't yet grasp the deeper meaning behind Yichen's words.

After the two finished talking, they returned to Sakura's side. Before Karin could speak, Yichen said first, "Sakura, from now on, Karin will be my disciple just like you."

"Karin's Medical Ninjutsu talent is no less than yours, so you need to work hard and not let her surpass you later."

Karin opened her mouth, but was Yichen by Yichen's direct attack and didn't know what to say for a moment.

Sakura nodded stiffly, Inner Sakura had already cursed Karin had stolen her teacher, to the point of being worthless.

"Green tea, green tea, absolutely green tea! I must have been blind to be her best friend."

After setting a fire, Yichen Earth Flow.

Even after walking quite a distance, the faint sound of their conversation could still be heard.

"Sakura, let me explain, it's not what you think." It was Karin's humble voice.

"Hmph, Karin, congratulations! From now on, we're fellow disciples. Please take good care of me." This was Sakura's sarcastic remark.

With his back to the two, Yichen smiled, "Very good, competition is what drives motivation."

In the original work, Sakura's desire to become stronger is the strongest in the entire Ninja World; it is an ambition to stand shoulder to shoulder with the two saviors.

It is precisely because of this ambition that Sakura is able to become Kage Level.

However, the Sakura in the original story is still not enough; Sakura's greatest talent is still wasted.

That evening, Yichen first sent someone to the Medical Department to get Nakata Hajime Karin to retrieve a set of study materials for Karin, and then went to Sakura's house alone.

When Sakura saw Yichen coming to find her, she immediately felt wronged, and tears almost fell down her cheeks.

She acted very assertive in front of Karin during the day, but she was still a little intimidated inside, as she lacked confidence in her talent.

Born into a commoner family, she has gradually come to realize the gap between herself and those renowned clans in the Ninja World.

Yichen patted Sakura's head and said, "Sakura, Karin's talent is stronger than yours."

Upon hearing Yichen's words, Yichen Sakura felt a surge of panic, fearing that his next words would be that he no longer wanted her as his disciple.

But Yichen said, "However, I have higher hopes for you."

Sakura suddenly looked up and met Yichen's sincere eyes.

"You are a genius I specifically snatched back from Konoha. Although Karin has extraordinary talent in Medical Ninjutsu, you have advantages that she doesn't."

"Your Yin Release talent is also very strong," Yichen said, taking out a scroll that Katsuya had concocted for practicing Yin Release.

Yichen handed the scroll to Sakura and said very solemnly, "Sakura, this is Yin Release cultivation manual that your teacher is giving you."

"This is different from the previous learning materials. This is a secret manual that can only be taught by the village after becoming a ninja and demonstrating Yin Release talent."

"You're the only one the teacher in the entire Ninja Academy has assigned to study here, so you must study hard. Also, you must keep this a secret and never let anyone else know."

"The teacher doesn't want people to say I'm showing favoritism towards you. This belongs to the village, and what you're doing is already a violation of the village rules."

Sakura was deeply moved after hearing this, and hugged the scroll tightly to her chest, clearly regarding it as a secret weapon to completely overwhelm Karin.

Seeing this, Yichen immediately shouted, "However, Sakura Haruno, even though you have talent in Yin Release, I hope you won't lose to Karin in Medical Ninjutsu."

"As my most Yichen disciple and most promising junior, you must be perfect. I look forward to seeing the day when you reach the pinnacle of the Ninja World in both Medical Ninjutsu and Yin Release."

"Karin is nothing but a stumbling block on your path to growth. If you can't even compare to Karin, then I'll be very disappointed."

Both Outer Sakura and Inner Sakura stared blankly at Yichen. At that moment, Sakura felt that Yichen was a very tall and imposing figure, and at that moment, she seemed to have found the direction to move forward.

Yichen smiled inwardly and said, "Sakura, if you lack talent, you should make up for it with hard work. You can use the time you would spend infatuated with Karin looking at handsome guys to study and cultivate. Don't disappoint your teacher."

Both Outer Sakura and Inner Sakura nodded emphatically, and then she took the scroll and went back to her room to practice.

Yichen was very satisfied with what he saw. Sakura's previous study and training state was too relaxed and lacked pressure.

Karin's addition is just right; the two can complement each other perfectly.

When Yichen returned home, his assistant had already brought the documents he had obtained from Nakata Hajime.

Yichen took the documents and went straight to Karin's house. Karin's mother was also home.

However, Yichen simply nodded to her and then called Karin aside.

"Lord Tsuchikage." Karin a little dejected.

Yichen then said, "Karin, when no one's around, you can call me Teacher Yichen."

Karin called out weakly, "Teacher Yichen."

Yichen nodded and said, "Karin, Sakura is crying."

Karin was stunned and looked at Yichen in disbelief, because Sakura had acted very strongly during the day, and Karin hadn't expected that the decisive Sakura would cry.

Yichen handed the Medical Ninjutsu materials to Karin and continued, "Karin, these are learning materials for Medical Ninjutsu. Sakura learned her knowledge from here."

"Sakura is a very competitive girl. If you want to regain her friendship, you have to show that you are just as talented as her."

"Sakura's talent isn't much less than yours, but she started earlier. Although you're a year older than her, while you were looking at handsome guys, Sakura was always working hard to study."

"So, you're still a long way from reaching Sakura's level."

"If you want to salvage this friendship, train hard, catch up with her, surpass her, and maybe even teach her Medical Ninjutsu in the future."

"If you do that, why would Sakura ignore you?"

Karin's eyes lit up; she felt that Yichen's words made a lot of sense.

Seeing Karin's expression, Yichen smiled inwardly and said, "Study hard, you are my most promising disciple."

"You are the most medically talented child in the village. I hope you will not let your mother and me down."

Karin nodded emphatically, glanced back at her busy mother at home, and then thought about Sakura, whom she had hurt earlier that day. Karin felt that she really should study harder.