The Peerless Warrior of the Western Provinces, Tachibana Muneshige (Part 2)

The next morning!

Danzo, baring his teeth and with his arm in a sling, brought Bing San, who was pale and had panda eyes, to the Jonin conference room, yawning.

Bing San pushed open the conference room door and instantly became much more alert. Over seventy pairs of eyes instantly focused on him.

Jiraiya, also with his arm in a sling and bloodshot eyes, stared at Bing San and Danzo.

The Third Hokage sat in his seat, smoking, while Asuma stood at the front, head bowed. His body trembled slightly, and his eyes stared blankly at the ground.

The Third Hokage coughed lightly twice and said, "Cough, cough, Danzo, you're late." It seemed the Third Hokage was also injured.

Danzo merely grunted softly and said nothing. The Third Hokage continued, "Everyone should have heard about the battle that took place in the civilian district on the outskirts of the village yesterday afternoon.

Cough, cough, today we will discuss this matter. Let's start with the cause."

After speaking, the Third Hokage looked at the two children in the center of the room.

Danzo looked at the two children in the center of the room, sat down in his seat with a swagger, and said somewhat smugly, "Bing San, you tell them."

Bing San took a deep breath, organizing his thoughts, and said, "Third Hokage-sama and esteemed elders, seniors, good day.

I am Shimura Bing San, a student in the graduating class of the Ninja Academy. The situation is as follows: yesterday, Asuma... that's all." Bing San recounted the events truthfully.

Everyone looked at Asuma. Asuma merely trembled slightly and said nothing.

Shin'nosuke Sarutobi looked at his younger brother's dazed expression and sighed softly.

Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura exchanged a glance and shook their heads slightly.

The Jonin squad leaders below looked at Bing San with curiosity, occasionally whispering, "Are they really this young! Such a large-scale jutsu~"

The Third Hokage frowned slightly as he looked at his younger son, then tapped the table and said, "Well then, Zixiao, you speak."

"Yes, Hokage-sama. Around 13:45 yesterday, Shimura Bing San's shadow clones separately requested assistance from the Anbu, Root, and the Guard Unit.

Around 13:50, Elder Danzo Shimura, the leader of Root, arrived at the scene. According to Elder Danzo and Jiraiya's account, Elder Danzo took over the battle upon arrival.

Hokage-sama and the Anbu arrived around 13:53. Hokage-sama personally joined the battle, and the Guard Unit arrived at 14:00.

During this period, six enemy ninja were killed, four village spies were killed, and one was captured.

We lost three Root ninja and one Anbu ninja. Thirteen people sustained minor injuries, and two were seriously injured. Several residences were damaged, and casualties in the civilian district are still being tallied. That is all."

Zixiao finished speaking, saluted, and sat down.

The Jonin listened and began to whisper amongst themselves. After about three to four minutes, the Third Hokage coughed twice and said, "Alright, quiet down for a moment. Captain Uchiha, please share the intelligence you have."

With that, the Third Hokage looked at Fugaku Uchiha.

Fugaku Uchiha stood up with a serious expression and said, "The enemy leader is Tachibana Muneshige, former Great General of the Land of Wind.

Tachibana Muneshige, male, sixty-eight years old, is the current Kazekage's uncle. He was once the Great General of the Land of Wind, commanding all samurai. Later, due to his nephew's succession, he was ostracized by the Kazekage and forced to resign.

He is powerful and deeply loved by the people. He once single-handedly killed seven enemy Jonin and over ten Chunin in one engagement, retreating unharmed.

He is skilled in Nintaijutsu, swordsmanship, dual-wielding, and spear techniques, among others.

Tachibana Muneshige and the Second Kazekage were once known as the Twin Pillars of the Land of Wind. His title is 'Unrivaled in the West'."

After Fugaku Uchiha's introduction, a commotion erupted below. The fall of a legendary former Great General was met with sighs.

After a pause, he looked at the document in his hand and continued, "The other five individuals are all retainers of Tachibana Muneshige, including his adopted son, Koma Sadanori. Koma Sadanori, male, twenty-nine years old. His strength is unknown.

He was adopted by Tachibana Muneshige from a young age. There are no combat records for him. The other four are his retainers, with no available data."

"According to the information obtained and clues from the Yamanaka clan ninja's interrogation, they appear to be searching for someone. It is suspected that a high-ranking official from Sunagakure has gone missing. That is all." Fugaku Uchiha saluted and sat down.

"Yukiya, what are your thoughts? Hmm?" The Third Hokage looked towards the front row.

A ninja from the Akimichi clan stood up and replied loudly:

"My deepest apologies, Hokage-sama, but Jonin Yukiya Nara is ill and unable to attend the meeting."

"I see. Then, everyone, please share your thoughts. Tachibana Muneshige held a very high position in the Land of Wind. Although the Kazekage feared him, he was deeply loved by the people.

Now that he has died in Konoha, even if the Kazekage dislikes us, he will have to declare war, if only for appearances." The Third Hokage coughed lightly again.

"Hokage-sama, they from the Land of Wind invaded us first, and we killed them afterward. In any case, it should be our righteous cause. The Land of Wind should provide us with an explanation," one of the Jonin said emotionally.

"Jonin Kurama, this is a discussion about going to war with the Land of Wind. As for who is right or wrong, it no longer matters, because that 'Unrivaled in the West' was the Kazekage's own uncle," another Jonin said.

Another Jonin immediately interjected, "Indeed, Jonin Gekko makes a very valid point. If the Kazekage doesn't seek revenge for his own uncle's death, what face does he have to sit on that throne?

Hokage-sama, I believe we should immediately send reinforcements to the Land of Wind's border defenses. And we should request Lord Orochimaru to return to the western front to command us."

The Third Hokage coughed a few times and said, "Cough, cough, cough, Elder Utatane Koharu, Elder Mitokado Homura, what about logistics?"

Utatane Koharu said with a stern face, "After years of peaceful development, our Konoha's logistical supplies are currently abundant and can support large-scale combat for six to eight months."

Mitokado Homura adjusted his glasses and said, "In the past two years, due to frequent skirmishes on the front lines, the number of ninjas on missions has been significantly reduced.

Currently, there are about 1,800 ninjas in Konoha, and the rest can be recalled within ten days. The maximum force that can be mobilized is 1,300."

The Third Hokage then looked at Danzo. Danzo snorted coldly, saying somewhat smugly, "The joint investigation for spies by the Anbu and Root is now largely complete. Most of the spies within the village have been eliminated.

However, it's impossible to eliminate them all."

The Third Hokage coughed again, took a sip of water to soothe his throat, and said, "This is the current situation."

Then, everyone began to discuss the situation on the Wind Country front, each speaking their mind.

Bing San and Asuma stood in the middle, feeling as if they had been forgotten by everyone.

In reality, if it weren't for Bing San and Asuma's special identities, the Third Hokage would have been very reluctant to kill Tachibana Muneshige.

The reason was simple: killing a powerful warrior who posed little threat to their side but could restrain the enemy was disadvantageous to their own forces.

However, Bing San had implicated too many people at the time; even if the other party had no intention of dying, they couldn't let him escape.

If word got out, it would be a huge blow to Konoha and the Third Hokage's personal prestige. Everyone was preparing for the Third Shinobi World War, and if morale took a hit, the impact would be enormous.