049 Water vs. Fire? Hiruzen Sarutobi's Warning (Happy New Year to all readers, Xiaofan requests monthly votes)

Hyuga Tenzo was somewhat dazed.

As the helm of a Millennial Noble Clan, how could he possibly believe in the Will of Fire?

A clan's continuation did not depend on such empty words!

It depended on duplicity, betrayal, ruthlessness, and turning one's back without hesitation...

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But human nature was complicated.

Even if one did not believe in it, when something beautiful appeared before one's eyes, one would still instinctively pause.

Emotion, respect, and self-fulfillment were the tangible goals humans pursued once they had enough to eat and wear.

"Lord Hokage, you are absolutely right!"

Hyuga Tenzo steadied his emotions. "Tenzo and the Hyuga Clan will certainly keep this in mind from now on!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled faintly.

He did not think that just a few simple words could make Hyuga Tenzo "tremble and bow his head in submission."

That was unrealistic.

An old fox like this required gradual communication and exchange before a foundation of mutual trust could be built.

Not only did he have to offer some sweetness, but deterrence and warnings could not be neglected either.

"It is understandable that Ninja Clans which survived the Warring States Period would have some lingering issues."

Hiruzen Sarutobi said with a genial smile, "Back then, it was winner takes all among shinobi. The losing side basically had only one path—clan extermination. Trust was very difficult to foster."

"But now it is the Warring States and Village Era. Konoha belongs to everyone. Some old ways of thinking should not be brought into this new era, lest they create unpleasant misunderstandings and make things difficult for the village."

"Don't you agree, Tenzo?"

"Thank you for your understanding!" Hyuga Tenzo nodded repeatedly. "Look at me—after going through war, my thinking fell into a misunderstanding again. Some of the things my elders instilled in me since childhood ran too deep."

"I will certainly lead the Hyuga Clan in deep reflection!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi had given Hyuga Tenzo a way out.

Hyuga Tenzo naturally took the opportunity to step down, shifting the blame onto the previous generation's old Clan Head—his father.

The man was dead anyway. Carrying the blame would not matter...

Hizashi Hyuga rolled his white eyes irritably. This old bastard really could twist black into white!

Shimura Danzō's eyes flickered slightly.

Why was it that even words meant as a warning sounded more agreeable coming from Hiruzen than from himself?

"No, I need to learn this..."

"How did he put it just now?" Shimura Danzō recalled Hiruzen Sarutobi's words and silently recited them, when a good idea suddenly came to him.

A good memory was not as good as a bad pen.

If he copied down these sentences from Monkey and recited them day and night, would he not master this skill too?

Shimura Danzō's lips curled slightly, proud of his own wisdom.

"Foolish Hiruzen, go ahead and recklessly expose your strengths!"

Shimura Danzō muttered inwardly, "I will absorb all your merits and become the strongest Hokage..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi gave Danzō a strange look.

What was he muttering about? It sounded like he was chanting a spell...

Had he quit being a shinobi to become a monk?

"Let's talk about Kirigakure first."

"It is certain that Kirigakure is about to launch a massive purge. The Third Mizukage has endured for a long time."

Hiruzen Sarutobi took a puff from his Tobacco Pipe. "Let me tell you about the First, Second, and Third Mizukage. There are some points here that can be exploited."

Hizashi Hyuga looked curious and full of anticipation.

Young people were always curious about the hidden stories of the older generation...

Shimura Danzō chuckled. He did know a little, but he did not think there was much room for maneuvering in it.

Hyuga Tenzo was interested as well.

Though he was also an old hand, there were still differences among old hands...

"The Third Mizukage has very deep roots."

"He was once the First Mizukage Byakuren's guard. At the First Five Kage Summit, apart from him, every Kage guard who participated in the meeting became the Second of their respective villages."

"Isn't that interesting?"

Hyuga Tenzo nodded unconsciously.

They had practically been designated as the Second, so how had he ended up becoming the Third?

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled inwardly.

Why did he know these things?

Because his predecessor's succession had also been rather bizarre. Though he knew there had been no conspiracy behind it, to outsiders...

The Kage Guard had survived, but the Kage had died.

Not to mention that era not long removed from the Warring States Period—even in today's shinobi world, Senju Tobirama's mindset was difficult for most shinobi to understand...

Thus, back then, his ascension had possessed Schrödinger's "legitimacy."

He had only barely gotten through it by relying on his usual reputation.

Precisely because of this, he had studied quite a few similar cases, treating them as references to put his mind at ease.

"Kirigakure's succession system is quite interesting."

"They believe that the village's 'strongest' shinobi should be the Mizukage, and they established corresponding rules."

"When a Mizukage takes office, everyone else has the right to challenge him. If he loses, he must relinquish the Mizukage position."

"This was originally meant to emphasize the martial spirit. Under normal circumstances, no one would do such a thing."

"But Hozuki Gengetsu was not a normal person."

Shimura Danzō and Hyuga Tenzo nodded in deep agreement.

Hozuki Gengetsu was one of the shinobi world's famously battle-crazed maniacs.

During the First Shinobi World War, over some insignificant spoils of war, he crossed seas and mountains to find the Second Tsuchikage, fighting him to the death and perishing alongside him.

Once the blood rushed to his head, he disregarded everything else.

"If there is a vast gap in strength, then having the strongest person serve as 'Kage' is beyond reproach."

"But if the difference is only marginal, then among the candidates for 'Kage,' abilities across multiple areas, such as management and organization, must be taken into account," Hiruzen Sarutobi said.

The Hyuga father and son nodded, not taking it to heart. The two of them could be said to have little to do with the Hokage position.

But Shimura Danzō took it to heart.

Who is he hinting at?

In terms of strength, he and Orochimaru... seemed to be about evenly matched?

Even though he had recently been working hard on training Wind Release, to be honest, fists feared youthful vigor.

It was unrealistic to pull ahead of Orochimaru by an entire tier...

Is he subtly telling me the standards for selecting the next Hokage? Shimura Danzō thought, intending to copy that sentence into his little notebook as well.

"Hozuki Gengetsu has been dead, and the Third Mizukage has held office for over twenty years. Yet he still wants to launch the Bloody Mist Village policy. That can only mean one thing."

"More and more forces in Kirigakure oppose him."

"So many that he can no longer keep them in check. He can only use the Mizukage position as bait to lure out those Ninja Clans with ambitions, then clean them up one by one."

Shimura Danzō pondered aloud, "Then wouldn't Kirigakure immediately descend into civil war? What he has to face are forces powerful enough to overthrow him."

"Not necessarily. It depends on his skill."

Hiruzen Sarutobi said with a chuckle, "If he understands the trick of winning over one group while attacking another, he should be able to pull it off."

"First, incite the Kaguya Clan to hate the Hozuki Clan, which has ambitions toward the Mizukage."

"Once the two sides have battered each other badly, find another ambitious Ninja Clan and have them continue fighting. Repeat the cycle."

"This is Kirigakure's logic: fists do the talking. In the short term, no one will say anything."

"Once those Kekkei Genkai clans are exhausted, if they still refuse to submit, the resentment brought about by the struggle will need a release valve. The shinobi without Kekkei Genkai can take out their anger on them."

"After doing all that, Kirigakure's population may decrease considerably, but by and large, they should become obedient."

As Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke, his gaze happened to meet Hyuga Tenzo's.

The hairs on the back of the Hyuga Clan Head's neck abruptly stood on end.

He had the distinct feeling that the Hokage was not talking about Kirigakure...

An illusion, an illusion!

Hyuga Tenzo reassured himself inwardly. This is Konoha. Konoha follows the Will of Fire!

"Of course, I'm merely speaking casually."

"If one truly intended to do this, the details would need constant refinement. Besides, I have always detested using such methods to solve problems." Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled and waved his hand. "Not only are they backward, they fundamentally do not conform to the Will of Fire... don't you agree, Committee Member Tenzo?"

"What you say is absolutely right!" Hyuga Tenzo's heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly replied respectfully.

Seeing this, Shimura Danzō sighed inwardly.

The Monkey's got some of Lord Tobirama's bearing now...

Only someone like me, who inherited the teacher's true teachings, won't be spun around by his words. Ordinary people really wouldn't be able to handle him!

The first minute of 2026!

Xiaofan wished all you esteemed readers a Happy New Year—may everything go your way and all your wishes come true!

Also, sorry to shamelessly ask for monthly tickets. The tickets had just refreshed at the start of the month, and they were still double value—too tempting.

Xiaofan would add an extra update. I know it wasn't much, but I really gave it my all. Just wanted to show my sincerity!

Attached was the image Xiaofan had just traveled to the Hokage world to have Tsunade customize. Any esteemed readers who wanted to transmigrate could type 1...