Just for Fun

"Kumogakure wants to recreate the First Shinobi World War."

"They intend to act as the vanguard, inciting the various shinobi villages to surround and besiege Konoha."

With these few short sentences, the conference room fell silent, save for that calm, steady voice continuing.

"As Konoha stands today, we can defeat Kumogakure, but we cannot withstand them if they join forces with other shinobi villages."

Orochimaru swept his gaze around the room and gave a sinister chuckle. "Are you going to sit by and watch Konoha reach such a state?"

Most of the heads of the small and medium-sized clans avoided eye contact with Orochimaru, remaining silent.

What Orochimaru said hit the nail on the head regarding the current situation and was indeed very logical, but from another perspective, it could also be alarmist—raising the banner of 'village survival' to force them into complete compliance with the village's arrangements.

The four great shinobi villages besieging Konoha... that hadn't actually happened yet, after all.

Since the Third and the other high-ranking officials of the village were aware of this, they certainly wouldn't sit idly by and watch such a situation form.

Thinking this, the heads of the small and medium-sized clans exchanged subtle glances.

What they needed to consider was whether the methods thought up by the Third and the others would treat them as sacrificial lambs.

Hiruzen Sarutobi took a puff from his pipe and spoke up, "What Orochimaru says makes a lot of sense; this battle must be ended as soon as possible. We must completely crush Kumogakure's offensive in a short time. At the very least, we must make them lose the ability to continue waging war.

Everyone, what are your thoughts?"

The long table was silent; even Shikaku Nara, who was said to have an IQ of over 200, said nothing.

After all, he was only a representative of the jonin; how could he come up with a method that involved using human lives as fodder for a suicide raid?

If it succeeded, that would be one thing, but if it failed, not only would he lose his footing, but he would also bring resentment upon his clan.

The consequences of failure could only be borne by the Hokage or the Hokage Advisors; as a mere tactical commander, he was already exhausted just patching up the strategies put forward by the higher-ups, so how could he dare to participate in such a major decision?

With the village facing a crisis, everyone had their own hidden agendas, and Danzo, watching coldly from the sidelines, couldn't help but sneer inwardly.

If this were Root, at his command, every Root shinobi would willingly die for the village; that was how the village's shinobi should be.

This guy Hiruzen, preaching about the 'Will of Fire'—it was truly ridiculous. When push came to shove, weren't there still people shrinking back?

Only those commoners with no foundation who clung to the Hokage faction would believe in that nonsense.

A trace of mockery couldn't help but linger on the corner of Danzo's mouth as he waited to see how the Third would clean up this mess.

However, a low voice suddenly rang out from behind the long table, causing Danzo's expression to change.

Fugaku Uchiha kept a straight face and spoke slowly, "The Uchiha Police Force is willing to participate in the frontal assault against Kumogakure."

Hearing this, the clan heads present couldn't help but widen their eyes in astonishment, wondering what the Uchiha were up to.

Facing everyone's gaze, Fugaku remained unmoved, his stern face devoid of any extra expression, as if he hadn't just pushed his entire clan onto the battlefield.

"It is good that the Uchiha have such a sense of responsibility."

Hiruzen Sarutobi exhaled a puff of smoke and made the final decision. "Then, for this battle against Kumogakure, the Uchiha Police Force will serve as the main force, with the other clans acting as support..."

Since someone had taken on the most difficult and exhausting burden, the clan heads naturally had no objections; in fact, it was good news for them. However, someone stood up abruptly to voice their opposition.

Danzo's face was cold, his single eye fixed on the Third. "Hiruzen, do you know what kind of decision you've made? The job of the Uchiha Police Force is to maintain order in the village; that has never changed since the time of the Second."

The two Hokage Advisors also turned their gazes toward the Third, feeling very dissatisfied.

The Third had not only failed to consult Danzo on this decision, but he hadn't even given them a heads-up.

"Just because it has always been this way, does that mean it is necessarily right?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression was indifferent. "The village is currently facing war, and the Uchiha have volunteered; what is the problem?"

As he spoke, the Third lowered his eyelids and shot a glance at Danzo. "Or are you saying that Root also wants to go to war and compete with the Uchiha for the position of the main force on the battlefield?"

"You!"

Provoked by the Third's words, Danzo's face changed color.

Of course, he couldn't send Root to the main battlefield. All along, the reason Root had taken on so many dark and bloody tasks was partly to avoid frontal warfare and preserve their strength.

But Danzo also couldn't voice the long-standing suppression of the Uchiha by the higher-ups.

This was an unspoken agreement; it could be done, but it could not be said.

Especially not in front of so many clan heads.

Under the gaze of everyone present, Danzo darkened his face and stopped voicing his opposition.

The Third's move was upright and honorable, and it had indeed disrupted some of his arrangements. However, at the same time, it had broken the tacit understanding that the village's higher-ups had maintained for so long. Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura, the two Hokage Advisors, were clearly also unhappy with this decision.

As fellow Uchiha-haters, Danzo understood their thoughts: once the war ended and the Uchiha clan's strength was weakened, they could perhaps achieve their goals through other means.

Thinking this, the stifled feeling in Danzo's heart dissipated. It remained to be seen who would have the last laugh.

"Since none of you have any objections, it is settled that the Uchiha Police Force will be the main force." The Third spoke slowly. "Then, who shall lead this shinobi army..."

"Lord Hokage, let it be me."

Orochimaru rarely used an honorific. He scanned the long table and gave a cold smile. "I think no one should have any objections."

Everyone refused to meet Orochimaru's gaze, but rather than feeling threatened, they actually felt a sense of relief in their hearts.

War is terrifying at any time, and with Orochimaru's strength, it was undoubtedly more reassuring.

"You want to take command?" The Third Hokage furrowed his brows, his expression filled with doubt. "This ninja war is of great consequence, Orochimaru. Can you bear the responsibility?"

"I will not fail."

Orochimaru curled his lips into a grin, his smile radiating such confidence that it seemed as if everything were already within his grasp.

The two locked eyes for a moment before the Third Hokage nodded. "Then, you shall lead this war."

As he spoke, he began to refine the personnel arrangements, using the Uchiha Police Force as the main strength and detailing the assignments down to every individual jonin and chunin.

Orochimaru interjected from time to time, pointing out his specific requirements for the personnel.

As long as their fundamental interests were not at stake, none of the major ninja clans wished to oppose the village leadership, so the personnel arrangements proceeded very smoothly.

After the heads of the various ninja clans confirmed their duties, they began to file out one by one.

As he left the conference room, Orochimaru had a belated realization. He glanced at the Third Hokage, his face full of mockery. "Heh, things went smoothly enough, but the old man really did go through all that trouble for nothing."

That earlier retort had been somewhat unexpected, but thinking back on it now, if the war were to fail, the old man could use that as a reason to shift all the blame onto him.

The Hokage could never make a major mistake!

To maintain his purity, he needed a scapegoat.

However, Orochimaru didn't care about that in the slightest.

Without Konoha, the Hokage would no longer be the Hokage, but Orochimaru would still be Orochimaru.

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