Konoha's Supreme Commander - Shimura Danzō

"Now, let us discuss how to repel the invasion from Sunagakure." Sarutobi Hiruzen coughed twice before turning his gaze toward his old friend, Danzō.

After receiving the signal from his close comrade, Shimura Danzō slowly stepped to the front of the group. "Hiruzen, I am willing to lead the troops and punish the invading enemy from Sunagakure."

Who among those present would not respectfully address Sarutobi Hiruzen as "Lord Hokage?" Only Danzō, the teammate of this Lord Hokage and his most intimate partner, would dare to do otherwise.

At this time, Shimura Danzō was in his prime, his appearance at its peak. His face was resolute, with bangs evenly distributed on either side of his forehead protector. His handsome face was nearly perfect, and although there was a scar on his chin, it did not detract from his looks; instead, it added a touch of cold, ruthless charisma.

Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled. Among his current Hokage advisors, the one he valued most was his good brother, Shimura Danzō—loyal to Konoha and capable in battle.

The only drawback was that he had inherited their teacher's prejudice against the Uchiha, often muttering in private about "those naturally evil Uchiha brats."

Now that the Uchiha had chosen their side, they were his own people. He had to find a way to change his old friend's mindset, but for now, the priority was resolving the command of the troops. After all, Sunagakure had already mobilized; war was imminent.

However, he could not directly propose appointing Danzō himself. Thus, Sarutobi Hiruzen appeared to be deep in thought while actually signaling Uchiha Hirotomo and Uchiha Kō.

I gave you face just now; now you must give it to me.

Uchiha Kō smiled slightly. "Lord Hokage, the supreme commander of this war must be Lord Danzō. You need to remain at the rear to oversee the overall situation."

"Lord Danzō was your teammate and is a direct disciple of the Second Hokage; no one is more suitable than him to lead the resistance against Sunagakure!" Although Uchiha Kō felt some resistance toward Danzō, he could not ignore the instructions given by the Hokage.

Uchiha Hirotomo nodded as well. "Indeed, I agree with Kō's opinion."

Following them were the Ino-Shika-Cho clans, and then the ninja clans that had been close to the Uchiha and Ino-Shika-Cho since the Warring States Period.

There were the Kurama Clan, Aburame Clan, Inuzuka Clan, Yūhi Clan, Gekkō Clan...

As for the remaining Hyūga Clan and their allied clans, seeing that more than half of the clans present had agreed, they naturally would not remain silent.

Just like that, the notable ninja clans present essentially supported Danzō taking command of the troops.

Shimura Danzō took a deep look at Uchiha Kō, but then turned his head to stare at Sarutobi Hiruzen before him.

Sarutobi Hiruzen pondered for a moment and smiled. "Danzō, since everyone recommends you as supreme commander, I shall choose you. However, are you confident?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen was merely going through the motions; if he had granted it immediately, it would have seemed too eager. He needed Danzō to state his resolve to everyone.

"I will surely lead the Konoha army to crush the arrogance of Sunagakure!" Shimura Danzō's lips curled upward, carrying the momentum of a youth in his prime.

Seeing that the time was ripe, a smile appeared on Sarutobi Hiruzen's face, though it turned serious in an instant.

He slammed his hand on the table and stood up. "I announce that the supreme commander of the Konoha forces fighting against Sunagakure is Danzō. I ask everyone to cooperate with his orders and fight this battle well; I will celebrate your victory then!"

"If anyone disobeys orders or acts recklessly, they will be dealt with by military law—no mercy will be shown!" Sarutobi Hiruzen's voice was loud and resolute, causing the ninjas present to tremble.

Watching Sarutobi Hiruzen like this, Uchiha Kō couldn't help but sigh. In the anime, the elderly Sarutobi Hiruzen made one bad move after another, acting timid externally while being heavy-handed internally.

But the Sarutobi Hiruzen of this moment was a true hero of the ninja world—if he said they would fight, they fought. If you dared to come, they would strike back! If they didn't beat you until it hurt, you wouldn't know when to stop.

What exactly caused such a drastic change in Sarutobi Hiruzen? Uchiha Kō pondered, and finally, a flash of insight struck: it was power, and it was age.

Once a person enjoys the sweetness of power, they do not want to step down, becoming corrupted by it. Coupled with his advanced age, the older he got, the more he feared death, losing the drive he had in his youth.

How was this any different from Dong Zhuo of Xiliang? In his youth, he traversed Xiliang and befriended heroes, eventually entering the capital to quell chaos and enjoying the benefits of power. But as he aged, didn't he also make one bad move after another, losing his drive?

Uchiha Kō shook his head, stopping these thoughts. The most important thing right now was the great war with Sunagakure.

If he remembered correctly, many things were about to happen in this war: Nawaki stumbling into explosive tags, Kato being assassinated in the camp, the White Fang flashing his blade while Chiyo wept, Chiyo's night raid on the medical camp...

He was momentarily dazed. Just as Sarutobi Hiruzen finished his platitudes and announced the end of the meeting, Uchiha Kō stood up to leave, but Tsunade grabbed his arm.

"Kō-kun, why are you leaving already? Teacher just said that he wanted you, me, Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Lord Danzō to stay for a detailed discussion." Tsunade was a bit confused, but seeing Uchiha Kō's expression, she realized he had been lost in thought.

Uchiha Kō came back to his senses. "Oh... oh." He had indeed been thinking about many things, to the point that he had been distracted the entire time.

Tsunade sighed at the sight. Uchiha Hirotomo walked over with a chuckle and bowed to Tsunade. "Lady Tsunade, I leave Kō in your hands. I shall return now."

"It is only right, Uncle Hirotomo, don't worry!" Tsunade hadn't cared much for the Uchiha Clan before, but now that Uchiha Kō was an elder of the clan, she figured she might as well call Uchiha Hirotomo "Uncle"—it wouldn't cost her anything.

Uchiha Hirotomo chuckled and gave Uchiha Kō a look, which roughly meant, "I'll be waiting for you in the clan. Good luck!"

Uchiha Kō gave a helpless, wry smile. Orochimaru and Jiraiya, who were about the same age as him, were also walking toward Tsunade and Uchiha Kō; after all, they were in the same grade and had plenty to talk about.

Jiraiya scratched his head in embarrassment, while Orochimaru remained calm. Not until the people in the conference room had mostly cleared out did the Anbu close the doors once more.

Sarutobi Hiruzen put his arm around Danzō's shoulder and looked at the four of them with a smile. "Old brother, these four are the deputies I've left for you."

Shimura Danzō frowned. "What is this, Hiruzen? Do you not trust me? You need these greenhorns to supervise me?"

The three youngsters—Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya—all looked somewhat displeased, while only Uchiha Kō remained expressionless, maintaining a faint smile.

"How could that be! Old brother, you know how I feel about you!" Sarutobi Hiruzen patted Shimura Danzō's shoulder with a laugh.

Shimura Danzō snorted coldly. He was a proud man, and he knew exactly how Hiruzen felt about him, but he was just annoyed that he had been assigned a few wet-behind-the-ears brats.