Hokage: You Call This Guy the Savior?!

As long as he was willing to stop immediately, everything could be negotiated; he would even forgive the other party's crimes and allow him to enjoy his twilight years in peace.

I only want one answer from you: why on earth are you doing this?

But just as Hiruzen thought he had made sufficient preparations, a thunderous roar suddenly erupted, so close it felt as if it were right beside his ears.

Immediately following, the earth shook and the mountains swayed; the floor shattered into pieces, flames burst upward, and the ceiling plummeted directly toward him. Everything happened in the blink of an eye.

Damn it!

Hiruzen's eyes widened in disbelief as this scene unfolded, right up until he was swallowed by the ruins.

Then, those outside witnessed the Hokage Building—a sixty-year-old structure long considered the iconic landmark of the Leaf Village—collapse with a deafening crash!

Raging flames ignited everything in sight, turning the building into a massive, towering torch!

It all happened far too quickly; no one could react in time.

Not far from the Hokage Building, a special squad that had just finished their mission and was preparing to withdraw—a squad composed entirely of members from the Aburame Clan—watched the scene.

Following the orders of Aburame Tatsuma, they had been entering and exiting the Hokage Building naturally over the past month, quietly leaving behind Honey Pot Bugs, which possessed the unique ability to store liquids, inside the structure.

No one would suspect them; after all, wasn't it perfectly normal for them to carry ninja insects?

However, the liquid stored within these Honey Pot Bugs was no simple substance; it was a dangerous compound that would explode at the slightest spark.

Obeying their commands, these Honey Pot Bugs had silently infiltrated the interior of the wooden structures and hidden themselves, until the entire building was infested with them.

The next step was simple: one only needed to dispatch a large number of Scale Fire Bugs to detonate the Honey Pot Bugs, creating an effect akin to a massive explosion without anyone ever suspecting a thing.

Aburame Tatsuma had not expected Hiruzen to be in his office; he had hit the jackpot.

He did this simply because he believed the Hokage Building was the hub for intelligence exchange; destroying it would paralyze the Leaf Village's intelligence network, which would be more favorable for his operations.

If anyone understood the weaknesses of the Leaf Village, it had to be one of their own.

That was why, in the original timeline, when Sunagakure launched a sneak attack on the Leaf Village, no one had ever thought to blow up the Hokage Building, allowing the old structure to survive.

However, Tatsuma had ultimately underestimated Hiruzen. He saw him flash out from the burning ruins; his Hokage robes had been burned away, revealing the gleaming armor he wore underneath.

In other words, this Third Hokage had always been sleeping in armor and ready for battle, having long prepared for the possibility of fighting in person.

"Everyone still alive, gather to me! I shall sit right here and see what other tricks these traitors have up their sleeves!" Hiruzen shouted with a powerful, resonant voice, sitting firmly on the ruins like a mountain to rally his subordinates.

At this moment, many Anbu ninjas were escaping from the building one after another. Hearing these words, they all felt the formidable aura of the man who had held his position for fifty years. One by one, they gathered around him with emotional expressions, protecting him in the center and staying vigilant against any danger that might emerge from the surroundings.

They could not let the Hokage fall into such a perilous situation again!

Hiruzen took a short, heavy breath; he was old, after all. Otherwise, he should have been able to escape the Hokage Building in time the moment the explosion occurred.

But he had been half a beat too slow and suffered minor injuries. It didn't matter, though; as long as he was still standing here, the Leaf Village would be fine!

Glancing at the ruins still burning with raging flames behind him, Hiruzen couldn't help but sigh. He knew full well that danger existed here, but he could not escape it, for this was the responsibility of being the Hokage—a duty he could not shirk.

Without him, Hiruzen, the Hokage Building could not truly function as an intelligence hub, and the losses to the Leaf Village would only be greater.

My old friend, do you see all of this?

The Leaf Village is burning!

Are you still going to hide now that it has come to this?

Even if you want my position, you should come and take it yourself, rather than plotting all of this from the shadows.

And you certainly shouldn't have...

Joined forces with an enemy like Sunagakure!

And Orochimaru, where are you now?

I guessed that one day you would come for revenge, but you should have come for me alone. Could you not have spared the Leaf Village?

This is the place where you grew up, too!

New intelligence was constantly being transmitted. Looking at the casualty numbers, Hiruzen's brows furrowed, and he sighed helplessly.

However, he quickly pulled himself together and promptly implemented countermeasures, determined to keep casualties to a minimum while extinguishing the rebellious forces.

Based on the information gathered so far, only Root had joined forces with Sunagakure. The two sides combined totaled only about two or three hundred people. Although they were elites, they were ultimately no match for a behemoth like the Leaf Village.

As long as his side didn't falter, it was only a matter of time before the rebellion was crushed.

In addition, some rumors began to spread rapidly through the streets and alleys of the Leaf Village.

Most of these messages were absurd rumors, the most widespread being that Hiruzen had already been assassinated—clearly, the mastermind behind this wanted to use it to shake the morale of the troops.

However, Hiruzen's countermeasures were effective; as long as his orders could be successfully relayed, no one would believe such rumors.

What made him frown was a new rumor: it was said that Danzo had personally stepped out to wipe out the rebels and was currently reorganizing the Anbu to counter the invaders from Sunagakure.

If any Anbu ninjas who didn't know the truth believed this rumor, they would become pawns in Danzo's hands.

This move was nothing short of lethal. If he, Hiruzen, were truly dead, Danzo could very well gather the Anbu forces scattered throughout the Leaf Village, become the new leader of the Anbu, and ascend to the position of Hokage with the glorious image of a hero who saved the village.

One had to know that spreading rumors was Danzo's specialty; he had used this tactic to topple countless political enemies.

Even the White Fang of the Leaf back in the day...

And now he is using this trick again, and using it on me, no less?

Hiruzen caught the scent of a familiar recipe in this; it was indeed Danzo's style of operation—striking at the vitals with ruthless precision, gambling everything on a single opportunity.

Only now did Hiruzen have to admit that his old friend had truly changed, changed into someone he no longer recognized. Could it be that as people age, they truly become muddled and corrupt, forgetting their original intentions?

Look, the fact that he still dared not appear in person to meet him spoke volumes.

"Go, find the source of this rumor. If new rumors appear, report them immediately. Since Danzo wants to seize the power of the Anbu, he must be made to know where to find him." Hiruzen issued the order with a blank expression.

Since you will not come to see me, then I shall go find you!

I want to see what face you have left to meet me!

"Enemy attack!" At that moment, a ninja guarding Hiruzen shouted, but a Kunai immediately sank into the center of his brow, cutting his voice short as he collapsed limply to the ground.

Hiruzen narrowed his eyes and saw a man approaching with dozens of fully armed ninjas. These ninjas wore masks, but they were not the animal motifs of the Anbu; instead, they were painted with colorful patterns.

Without a doubt, these were members of Root!

The leader even removed his mask, declaring to Hiruzen with absolute confidence:

"Lord Hokage, you have lost!"

"Aburame Tatsuma!" Hiruzen recognized the man instantly, a flash of surprise crossing his face.

This man was considered a captain-level figure within the Anbu, yet looking at him now, it was clear he was loyal to Danzo, not to him.

If even he was a mole for Root, how many people in the Anbu could still be trusted?

"When the Hokage Building was blown up, I truly didn't expect you to be inside. Had I known, I would have prepared more thoroughly to give you a dignified end," Tatsuma said with no small amount of regret.

"It was you! Are you going to betray Konoha?" Hiruzen's face darkened as he demanded loudly.

"Betrayal? Isn't it you who betrayed Konoha? If you hadn't played favorites and forcibly pushed the Fourth to become Hokage, Konoha would have marched toward glory under Lord Danzo's leadership. But look at Konoha now—does it look like the number one hidden village? Swallowing insults and being bullied by other villages at will. This village, just like you, has grown old!"

"Make Danzo come and speak to me!"

"Don't be impatient. Once I finish off these blindly loyal fools around you, I will naturally 'invite' you to go and see our leader."

With that, Tatsuma waved his hand, and the Root ninjas behind him swarmed forward to kill.

Hiruzen did not know that, not far away, a figure was hidden in the shadows, silently watching this scene. As the director of all this, how could he not come to watch such a good show?

"Teacher, did you think I would seek revenge on you? What a pity, such boring emotions do not exist within me."

"But you are old after all. Having sat in a safe position for too long, you have long since lost the decisive ruthlessness of your youth. Seeing you like this truly makes my heart ache."

"It is time for you to exit the stage. The windmill that is Konoha needs a fresh breeze to make it spin again. As for the rot of the past, I, Orochimaru, shall sweep it all away."

Orochimaru was not saying these words for anyone else to hear; he was merely hesitating over a decision, and now the critical moment had arrived.

His gaze shifted to the bloodthirsty Aburame Tatsuma, and a trace of mockery appeared in his eyes.

He did not know what kind of genjutsu the man was under, but the fact that it showed no signs of wearing off even now truly piqued his curiosity.

The key was that during this time, he had tested the results: the person who gave orders to Tatsuma from behind the scenes had made him completely obedient to his own commands. No matter how unreasonable the request, he would carry it out meticulously, even if it was detrimental to the person he was truly loyal to—Danzo.

Orochimaru did not care what this person's intentions were. There were so many ambitious people in this world; he didn't have the time to find them all. He only needed to make good use of this tool.

He was certain that the person controlling Tatsuma was not Danzo. After all, Danzo only needed the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal; there was no need to gild the lily.

Thus, he had formed a bold plan, a plan that would satisfy his heart's desire to the greatest extent.

Whether it was spreading rumors or arranging for Root spies to incite rebellion, everything Tatsuma had done had been at Orochimaru's command. Now that this guy's utility had been completely exhausted, he had sent him here to assassinate Hiruzen.

Of course, he didn't expect Hiruzen to be killed so easily. What he truly hoped to see was Tatsuma being killed by Hiruzen in return; that way, there would be no evidence left.

On this point, he still had great confidence in his teacher.

The matters here were already arranged, and the next step was naturally to wait for Danzo's appearance. He believed that with such a frame-up, the old man couldn't possibly remain sitting safely in his anthill.

Explosions erupted one after another, flashes of fire bursting forth from various places. Faintly, one could hear the sound of blades clashing, along with the piercing, shrill cries of an infant.

Konoha was in the midst of internal strife, yet Orochimaru wore an intoxicated expression, unable to stop his arms from dancing. He looked like a conductor passionately performing on stage, or perhaps a man dancing solo to the accompaniment of a melody.

Listen, what a melodious sound. The atmosphere had been stirred to its peak, and the grand stage had already been prepared for you. What are the protagonists waiting for? Hurry up and take the stage!

Burn your rotten, antiquated lives, complete this final dance for Konoha, and then welcome the birth of the new!

Tremble before me, Konoha!

Outside Konoha, a team of Sand Ninja was moving at high speed.

"How is Gaara doing?" Baki, the Jonin leading the team as they leaped through the forest, asked with some anxiety.

"Ever since he killed that Konoha ninja on the stage, his condition hasn't been good. His emotions are a bit too agitated; perhaps it was the blood that stimulated him," Kankuro replied hurriedly while carrying Gaara on his back.

At this moment, Gaara's state was quite poor. His pupils were constantly dilating and contracting, and he was emitting low, beast-like growls. Judging by the way his skin was swelling from time to time, he could lose control at any moment.

"Damn it, compared to completing the plan, preventing Gaara from losing control is more important!"

Bringing Gaara to Konoha was not meant to use him as a one-time weapon; even if he were to undergo a Tailed Beast transformation, it had to be within a controllable range.

"What should we do next?"

"We will complete the current mission first. We must capture the Feudal Lord of Fire alive. Only then will we have enough leverage in our hands to prevent a war between the two countries."

"Understood!" Kankuro and Temari replied in unison.

The plan of Sunagakure was not actually to destroy Konoha, as they lacked the manpower to deploy a large-scale invasion force into the Land of Fire.

To proceed with such an attempt despite the low chance of success naturally meant there were other objectives; in truth, they never expected to topple Konoha, but merely hoped to force the two nations to tear up their alliance treaty, thereby increasing Sunagakure's military budget.

Otherwise, in a few decades, Sunagakure would likely be kicked out of the ranks of the Five Great Shinobi Villages.

Therefore, provoking Konoha was not their desire; their only fear was suffering retaliation from Konoha, and given the village's current state, it was questionable whether they could even withstand it.

Yes, before launching the operation, they had signed an agreement with Aburame Tatsuma, who represented Danzo, guaranteeing what would happen once Danzo took power, but how could the Kazekage easily believe that?

If you dare to overthrow your own Hokage, what is tearing up a mere agreement to you?

This included Orochimaru, who acted as the intermediary to facilitate the cooperation between the two sides; they did not trust him in the slightest.

The solution to this problem was actually simple: they only needed to capture the Daimyo of the Land of Fire. This was a private scheme of Sunagakure, one they would never reveal to Danzo or Orochimaru.

When the time came, Danzo would be forced to hold back for fear of the consequences, and even if he truly tore up the agreement, he would not dare to easily start a war.

In this way, the initiative would be completely in the hands of Sunagakure, and they could even force Konoha to sign a treaty favorable to their side.

So far, the plan had progressed quite smoothly; just as they had anticipated, with so many people retreating in a hurry, there was no time to clean up their tracks, and the escape routes of those high-ranking officials had already been discovered.

Now, it was just a matter of whether they could catch up.

And at this very moment, Gaara suddenly regained consciousness.

"Over there..."

"What?" Hearing Gaara speak, Kankuro hurriedly leaned in to listen.

"There is someone over there I want to kill..."

"Who is it?"