Lost in Every Transmigration

"Have the Hokage Assistant come here. I have something to ask him," Hiruzen Sarutobi said to the door after a long while. The Anbu at the entrance acknowledged the order and left.

Before long, Shimura Danzō arrived. It had to be said that although the two were the same age and had been close friends for years, there was simply no comparison when they stood together. In terms of looks, Hiruzen Sarutobi had well-defined features and an imposing presence even without anger. As for Shimura Danzō? The right half of his face was wrapped layer after layer in bandages, likely horribly disfigured, while the scar on his chin... was kind of cute. Then there was their bearing. Hiruzen Sarutobi had served as Hokage for nearly twenty years and led Konoha back to first place in the Shinobi World during the Second Great Ninja War. At the height of his power, every gesture he made overflowed with Haki, displaying the bearing of a Ninja Hero. Danzo, meanwhile, hid in the shadows all day, plotting against this person and scheming against that one. Over time, even his pores seemed to exude the air of a conspirator. One look told you he was no good man.

As Hiruzen Sarutobi's friend and the Hokage Assistant, Shimura Danzō unceremoniously sat down across from him. Hiruzen Sarutobi was used to it. He stared intently into Danzo's single eye, his gaze blazing. The two simply looked at each other in silence without speaking.

"Sarutobi, why did you call me here?"

In a staring contest like this, having one eye put you at a disadvantage, since the other side had twice as many. Danzo soon could not bear the pressure radiating from Hiruzen Sarutobi and spoke, breaking the stifling silence.

Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shimura Danzō were both friends and rivals. Back then, they had competed for the position of Third Hokage, but Danzo lost because of a moment of cowardice. Times had changed. Though both were now influential figures in Konoha, their statuses were worlds apart. One was the highly respected Third Hokage, beloved by villagers and shinobi alike. The other was the Shadow of the Shinobi, hidden in darkness, ruthless and feared by all. Danzo had regretted his choice countless times. He believed that if he had become Hokage, he would have done far better than Hiruzen Sarutobi. On the other hand, Hiruzen Sarutobi deeply respected Danzo for devoting himself to Konoha from the shadows for so many years. Yet he was also alarmed by Danzo's willingness to use any means necessary to achieve his goals, so he had always restrained him from gaining greater power. Their relationship was no longer as pure as it once had been. Every meeting between them was a game of maneuvering and compromise.

"Root has been very active in the Land of Water. What are you trying to do? Why do I, the Hokage, know nothing about it?"

"Oh? You already know? It's just a minor matter, nothing worth mentioning. If Lord Hokage needs to know, I will naturally handle it according to procedure." Danzo was startled. As expected of the rival written into my destiny. His control over Konoha is airtight. We only just began acting, and he already found out.

"This is no minor matter. The war is already nearing its end. I do not want Konoha to leave the negotiating table and return to the battlefield because of some unnecessary reason."

"Konoha needs more outstanding nourishment."

"Nourishment drawn from other nations?"

"Yes, nourishment that Konoha lacks. During this Ninja World War, I discovered many deficiencies within Konoha, and all of them can be remedied."

"What nourishment?"

"Kekkei Genkai!" Danzo stared at Hiruzen Sarutobi with his single eye and spat out those four words like thunder.

"Have you lost your mind? Do you know what consequences there would be if another nation's Kekkei Genkai appeared in Konoha? Don't tell me you don't understand! Are you trying to drag Konoha's hard-won peace back into the quagmire of war?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes widened in fury. He had never expected Danzo to be this insane. Setting aside whether Danzo's plan could succeed, even if it did, the consequences would be unthinkable. Shinobi with Kekkei Genkai might not compare to the nuclear warheads known as Tailed Beasts, but they were still each village's exclusive high-end fighting force. If the bloodlines of the Uchiha and Hyūga ever spread to other shinobi villages, Konoha would surely carry out endless assassinations and might even start a war. Likewise, the other shinobi villages would never tolerate Konoha stealing their bloodlines. The other four nations had coveted the Land of Fire's resources and wealth for a long time. Once war broke out, Konoha would be surrounded by enemies on all sides.

"Sarutobi, you're exaggerating. You and I both know war will not break out so easily. The Second Great Ninja War is about to end, and it cannot start again right away. What follows will be a time for every nation to recover and rebuild. This is the best opportunity. If my plan succeeds, when the next war begins, Konoha will leave all the other shinobi villages far behind. By then, sweeping through the four great shinobi villages and restoring the glory of the First Hokage's era will not be impossible." Danzo showed no awareness that he had made a grave mistake as he painted a perfect vision of the future for Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"Stop your operation. I order you to do so as Hokage." Seeing that Danzo refused to repent, Hiruzen Sarutobi was beside himself with rage and nearly flipped the table.

"This concerns Konoha's rise. I will not stop." Danzo's temper flared as well. Rising to his feet, he said, "There will be no opportunity after this period passes. Besides, only war can make Konoha stronger."

"That is nothing but your wishful thinking. I will not agree, and neither will the elders!" Hiruzen Sarutobi laughed in anger, pointing at Danzo as he shouted, "I will not let Konoha be destroyed in your hands. If you insist on going your own way, do not blame me for disregarding our years of friendship."

Danzo was so furious he felt smoke rising from his head. His fists clenched tightly as he realized his plan had been aborted. Hiruzen Sarutobi was right. Those shortsighted, timid elders would never agree to such a plan. That bunch was probably still clinging to Hiruzen Sarutobi's leg and singing praises of conquest!

"You'll regret this, Sarutobi. You are Konoha's true sinner." Danzo turned and left with half his face darkened. When words failed to find common ground, not another sentence was worth saying. A bunch of idiots could never understand my greatness. As expected, I should have become Hokage. Only I can lead Konoha toward glory.

"Wait. That child from the Land of Water—what bloodline does he have?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked.

"Hōzuki!" Danzo did not even look back. He pushed open the door to the Hokage's Office and strode away. He had already made up his mind. No matter what, he would become Hokage. Then no one would be able to stop him from leading Konoha to glory.

"Hōzuki?" Hiruzen Sarutobi rubbed his forehead. "This really is troublesome. Who should I find to deal with such a headache?"

An hour later, a completely bewildered Mitarashi Shixiao left the Hokage's Office holding an S-rank Mission personally written by Hiruzen Sarutobi. Why am I always the one getting hurt? I already said I wouldn't wade into muddy waters, so why am I being sent to carry out this mission? I'm the head of the Anbu, for crying out loud. I've bled for Konoha and earned merits for it. You can't mess with me like this.

Mitarashi Shixiao figured he would never forget that ugly expression on his boss's face.

"Shixiao! No one in Konoha can match your talent. This mission has to be yours. I can rest easy when you handle things. Hehe!" Hiruzen Sarutobi patted Mitarashi Shixiao's shoulder with a kindly smile, looking extremely kind.

Hehe my ass! My shoulder's gone numb! If you want to pat me, just pat me. It's not like I said you couldn't. Why are you forming hand seals with your other hand? That's intimidation, right? It has to be intimidation!

With tears streaming down his face, Mitarashi Shixiao admitted that a skinny arm could not twist a thigh. When your boss dug a pit and told you to jump, you had to jump in with tears in your eyes—and while jumping, you even had to say, "I love this pit. I want to jump into it again next time."

When Duke woke up, all he felt was pain in his head, pain in his chest, and pain all over his body.

So getting struck by lightning hurt this much! No, wait. I was directly hit by an Aliens' Planet Destroyer Cannon in the bathroom. Why does it only hurt? I'm alive? Fuck, I remember I hadn't even pulled up my pants yet! You filthy little alien bitch! My faintly aching ass... don't tell me I lost my virginity? No! That's way too tragic!

"What terrible luck!"

Before Duke could open his eyes, agonizing pain shot through his brain. He only had time to howl before passing out again. Fragmented memories surged from the depths of his mind in fits and starts, a hopeless mess. The central processor declared that it lacked operating memory and automatically shut down.

"An unfamiliar ceiling!"

When Duke woke again, he clutched his head and lamented. After receiving that mass of memories—or rather, fully merging with this body—he already knew what world he was in.

Naruto!

At first, Duke refused to accept it. Anyone who had watched Naruto knew this was an extremely cruel world. Take the protagonists, for example! The male lead lost both his father and mother at birth, falling from Konoha's top-ranked second-generation heir to a stray dog by the roadside. When the second male lead was seven or eight, everyone in his family... his entire clan, except his brother, was wiped out. And his only surviving brother was actually the murderer. It was enough to make listeners weep. After enduring all the way to the finale, both protagonists even lost an arm. If even the protagonists lived like dogs, then supporting characters and passersby had it even worse. Rumor had it that even the super supporting character who was the protagonist's brother-in-law died in the final battle. Who knew what insane death flag he had raised before the war?

Now Duke still refused to accept it, because he was merely an ordinary kid from an ordinary farming family on the border of the Land of Water. A commoner among commoners, trash among trash. You could grab a whole bunch like him anywhere in the Five Great Nations. In this world where everything depended on your father, he was roadside grass, ready to be trampled at any time.

"By the way, where am I?" Duke was lost. In this life, he was also called Duke, just as ordinary as the Duke who had grown up under the red flag in his previous life. An ordinary background, an ordinary square-faced father, an ordinary oval-faced mother... Well, his mother was actually pretty. Unless something unexpected happened, their family should never have had anything to do with shinobi.

However, if the unexpected could be predicted, it would not be called unexpected. Masked shinobi had charged into the village and begun slaughtering people freely. It had been a one-sided massacre without any suspense. Duke's final memory was of his parents lying in pools of blood, followed by a masked shinobi walking toward him. Then there was nothing. The screen went black.

"Why aren't there any blade wounds?" Duke examined the few bandages on his body in confusion. The masked shinobi had used a katana about a meter long, yet Duke had no external injuries caused by a sharp weapon. Instead, his body felt sore and numb.

Could it be that the masked shinobi gave me an inhuman full-body massage? His technique wasn't bad. What number was he again... Pah, how could it have been a massage? I must have been saved. Anyone who could save someone from a shinobi had to be a shinobi too. Maybe a Hidden Mist Ninja from the Land of Water? After all, I'm a third-generation good citizen of the Land of Water!

This is too hard. My brain capacity is completely insufficient! Is this Naruto or Conan? Does it have to be this brain-burning right from the start? I'm only four years old now, three years younger than the Death God Elementary Schooler!

Enduring the pain, Duke got to his feet and examined the room's layout. It was simple and spacious, with strong lines and depth—a standard Japanese style. Fine, that was all bullshit. What did Duke know about Japanese style? He had just seen the bedding on the tatami.

"Doesn't every beginner village usually have an Old Master?" With his head full of questions, Duke desperately wanted to find someone and ask what had happened.

"Yo, kid. You're awake!"

A purple-haired middle-aged man in black mesh clothing pushed open the sliding door, his face full of displeasure.

"Ah! He's here—the Old Master of the beginner village!"

"What an unlikable little brat!" The man looked even more displeased.