Sarutobi Hiruzen Was Practically Selling Out His Country!

The sea breeze, laden with a salty tang, swept across the deck. Uchiha Sanpo leaned against the stern railing, his fingers tapping restlessly against the wooden handrail.

The seventeen-year-old genius ninja had his brows tightly furrowed, utterly devoid of his usual composure on the battlefield.

"Hey, your tapping is getting on my nerves."

Terumi Mei appeared beside him at some point, her reddish-brown hair dancing in the wind. The young woman folded her arms, her emerald eyes full of impatience.

"Ah, sorry." Uchiha Sanpo stopped, forcing out a smile.

Terumi Mei hit the nail on the head. With a mocking curl to her lips, she eyed him suspiciously. "Is it because you're about to see your girlfriend?"

Uchiha Sanpo's shoulders slumped. "How did you know about Megumi?"

Terumi Mei rolled her eyes. "When those subordinates of yours were gossiping, they didn't even bother keeping their voices down."

She mimicked the tone of a Konoha ninja. "Lord Sanpo is going to have a headache when he gets back. His official girlfriend and little fiancée are meeting..."

Uchiha Sanpo pretended to be annoyed. "Damn it, why are they so nosy?"

Terumi Mei suddenly leaned closer and lowered her voice. "So, that Uzumaki Huiyi really is your 'first wife'?"

Uchiha Sanpo's expression did not change. "Don't use that kind of term!"

"Then you're admitting it?" Terumi Mei took a step back, her expression unreadable.

Seagulls circled overhead, letting out harsh cries.

Uchiha Sanpo took a deep breath and decided to be honest. "After the Land of Whirlpools was destroyed, the Uzumaki Clan had a hard time surviving. I rescued Uzumaki Huiyi from Kusagakure... and then we got together."

Terumi Mei sneered. "Heh, you already have a first wife at seventeen, and you'll want younger wives in the future. With your character, who knows how many women you'll end up with. You're really something."

Uchiha Sanpo answered calmly, "In this feudal era, isn't it common for the strong to have many women?"

Terumi Mei turned and left. "Shut up. I'm going to find something to eat. That's better than listening to you make excuses."

Uchiha Sanpo watched her departing back and sighed helplessly.

In the distance, the four islands of the Land of Whirlpools had already come vaguely into view, standing upon the sea like sentinels.

He touched the ninja tool pouch at his waist. Inside was the protective charm Huiyi had given him when they last parted.

An Uchiha Clan member approached and bowed respectfully. "Lord Sanpo. Lord Fugaku requests your presence at a meeting."

At a watchtower on the eastern side of Kirigakure, two Kirigakure ninja monitored the departing Konoha fleet through telescopes.

"Confirmed. The last group has left our territorial waters." The older ninja lowered his telescope and let out a long breath.

The younger ninja wiped the sweat from his forehead. "I never expected Uchiha Fugaku to lead so many Konoha ninja in here... This is Konoha's first invasion of another country... If Uchiha Fugaku becomes Hokage... then the future of the Ninja World will truly be unimaginable."

Another young ninja said, "I heard the Uchiha Clan contacted several major clans. It seems some ninja clans want to break away from Kirigakure. I don't know whether that's true."

The older ninja leading them sneered. "None of that concerns us... If you want to live long... you shouldn't discuss such matters."

Far out at sea, Konoha's fleet had become several tiny black dots, gradually vanishing beyond the horizon.

Inside the conference room of Konoha's flagship, Uchiha Fugaku stood before a tactical map. His black hair was meticulously tied behind his head, and his sharp gaze swept over every jonin present.

His voice was low and forceful, every word driving into their hearts like a nail. "Sunagakure has withdrawn its forces and voluntarily proposed an alliance. Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others have already accepted it. Once we return to Konoha, the war will truly be over."

In the corner, Uchiha Sanpo propped his cheek up with one hand while the other unconsciously rubbed the protective charm beneath the table.

"Sanpo... Sanpo!"

It was not until Uchiha Fugaku raised his voice and called his name for the second time that Uchiha Sanpo suddenly came back to his senses. He sprang to his feet on reflex. "Here!"

A few quiet chuckles rose in the conference room. Uchiha Fugaku's blade-like gaze swept over them, and the laughter immediately stopped.

Uchiha Fugaku ordered, "Sanpo, analyze the current situation."

Uchiha Sanpo took a deep breath and quickly gathered his thoughts.

He walked to the tactical map and pointed at Mount Kikyo.

"Sunagakure paid a heavy price to attack Konoha. They even pushed their front line near Mount Kikyo and plundered five cities in our Land of Fire. According to previous intelligence, the food, medicinal materials, and precious metals they seized were valued at more than eighty billion ryo in total."

Sounds of astonishment filled the conference room, taking some time to gradually subside.

Uchiha Sanpo continued, "They've eaten their fill from this war. Their withdrawal and proposal of an alliance boil down to only two reasons. First, they fear our retaliation. Second, they want to evade war reparations."

Hyuga Hiashi frowned and interjected, "Sarutobi Hiruzen has already accepted the alliance. What should we do next?"

Uchiha Sanpo cut him off, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes. "That is precisely the problem. Sixty percent of the Land of Wind's food relies on imports from our country, while most of the plundered supplies belonged to nobles. Once the war ends, the Land of Wind will inevitably face a furious counterattack from the noble factions of our Land of Fire. The Land of Wind's economy will certainly suffer greatly, so the Fourth Kazekage will not have an easy time after returning."

(In the original work: after the Third Shinobi World War, the Daimyo of the Land of Wind drastically cut Sunagakure's funding, and relations between the two sides even became extremely hostile.)

Uchiha Fugaku nodded almost imperceptibly, his tone resolute. "Sarutobi Hiruzen feared that we would earn further military merit, so he hastily agreed to Sunagakure's peace offer. But this move... stinks to high heaven."

The conference room instantly erupted, with discussion breaking out everywhere.

Uchiha Sanpo looked around at everyone and raised his voice slightly. "We recovered thirty billion ryo from Iwagakure and forty billion ryo from Kirigakure. Compensation for casualties on the Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Kirigakure battlefields will be paid in full, but the Sunagakure battlefield alone will receive nothing. Everyone, think about it... What will the families who lost loved ones think? What will our severely wounded and disabled comrades think?"

Hyuga Hiashi clenched his fist and slammed it viciously onto the table. "Sarutobi Hiruzen's actions are practically selling out his country... Bastard..."

He was so furious because most of the Hyuga Clan's ninja had been sent to support Orochimaru on the Sunagakure battlefield. Now that battlefield would likely receive no casualty compensation, making him feel as though he had been stabbed in the back.

Uchiha Sanpo sneered. "Better still, who was the commander-in-chief of the Sunagakure battlefield? The Third Hokage's disciple, Orochimaru. The commander-in-chief of the Kumogakure battlefield was his disciple's student, Namikaze Minato. Yet those two battlefields... achieved no notable results."

He deliberately left it unfinished, but everyone present understood his implication. The other battlefields had been led by the Uchiha Clan.

A flicker of approval passed through Uchiha Fugaku's eyes, but he quickly resumed his stern demeanor. "Enough, Sanpo. Your analysis... is insightful. All units will withdraw according to plan and must reach the Land of Whirlpools before dawn tomorrow... Meeting adjourned!"

The jonin left the conference room one after another, but Uchiha Sanpo was kept behind.

At this moment, Uchiha Fugaku's expression softened considerably. "You spoke very well just now... It seems the position of Fourth Hokage... can belong to none but me!"