Hokage: You Call This Guy the Savior?!

Looking at the battlefield, a flash of pain and regret crossed Hiruzen's eyes. The Anbu ninjas who had been protecting him were all dead, and many Root ninjas had also fallen. To think that these were all Leaf Village ninjas, dying in vain during an internal conflict.

The remaining Root ninjas held their weapons but dared not advance. This Hokage, who appeared so elderly, had erupted with combat power that exceeded all expectations, which was how the momentarily careless Aburame Tatsuma had been caught.

Now that their leader was in the enemy's hands, they did not know what to do.

"Tatsuma, I ask you, who exactly sent you?" Hiruzen demanded coldly.

"Do you really think I would tell you the truth?" Tatsuma grinned, still acting defiant even at this stage.

Hiruzen's face darkened. His fingers, like an eagle's talons, gripped Tatsuma's chin and gave a light twist, dislocating the jawbone.

"As expected, it is the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal..."

The evidence was conclusive; if it wasn't Danzo, then who could it be?

Just then, Hiruzen suddenly sensed something amiss. He noticed that Tatsuma's gaze kept drifting toward the direction behind him, appearing somewhat nervous.

At that very moment, a familiar voice drifted in from behind.

"Old friend, I have come to see you."

Hiruzen turned around. Who else could the person behind him be but Danzo?

"You have finally decided to see me." Hiruzen remained calm. Even though he was surrounded by a group of men, he did not show the slightest hint of fear.

"All of this was merely Tatsuma's personal behavior; it did not come from my orders," Danzo explained with a calm expression.

"How do you expect me to believe you?"

"That is simple." Danzo waved his hand, and more than a dozen masked ninjas leaped out from behind him, charging straight at the group of traitors.

"Lord Danzo, I did not betray you!"

"Lord Tatsuma, what is going on?!"

Facing their own colleagues, the Root ninjas did not hesitate in the slightest, and there was no flicker of emotion in their eyes.

In just a short while, all of Tatsuma's subordinates had been wiped out. Many of the elites Danzo had brought also died, and some of the survivors were severely wounded.

These ninjas did not utter a single sound throughout the ordeal, their silence terrifying.

"This is the explanation I give you. Are you satisfied?" Danzo replied indifferently.

Watching this scene, Tatsuma's face twisted into a hideous expression, and blood-red tears even streamed from his eyes. Yet, no matter how he struggled, he could not shake off the old man before him.

"You are not the master I swore loyalty to! You are a fake! You will die a miserable death!" Tatsuma pointed at Danzo and cursed furiously.

Hearing this, Danzo's anger surged. How dare a subordinate he had spent so much effort cultivating speak to him like this?

Looking at the mess before him, it was all caused by this ungrateful wolf!

The next moment, Tatsuma felt he could no longer breathe. It was not because Hiruzen had suddenly applied force, but because his tongue had retracted completely into his throat, blocking his airway.

How could this be?

Why, if he were a fake, could he still trigger the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal?

Tatsuma felt immense terror, suddenly realizing that something was not right.

Past events flashed through his mind like a revolving lantern, and clues began to link together.

But before he could figure it out, his eyes rolled back, and he died completely.

"Danzo, what are you doing? Are you trying to destroy the evidence?" Hiruzen could only watch helplessly as Tatsuma died in his hands; he could not stop it.

As he loosened his grip, the corpse fell to the ground, becoming worthless.

"This is the price of disobedience. If others follow his example, how am I to manage my subordinates?"

Danzo felt a pang of regret after triggering the Cursed Seal. He should have first found out who was directing Tatsuma from the shadows, but now, due to his momentary impulse, the trail had gone cold.

"Shouldn't you explain to me why you refused to see me a month ago?" Hiruzen's face was as still as water.

"Did you look for me? I was not aware." Danzo's expression was very natural, as if he truly did not know.

"You have planted so many eyes and ears in the Anbu; how could you not know?" Hiruzen snorted, clearly very dissatisfied.

"Even if I knew, so what? Shouldn't you explain why you suddenly mobilized the Shadow Squad? Was that not meant to be used against me?"

"Against you? I clearly intended to use them against Orochimaru. How could you think that?" Hiruzen's eyes widened, and he nearly coughed up blood from frustration.

"Orochimaru? Didn't he hide in the Land of Fields? Has he returned?" Danzo frowned, feeling that the situation was not simple.

The key was that Root's intelligence network was so advanced; how could he not know?

Fine, it must have been that bastard Tatsuma...

"Wasn't the first person to see Orochimaru you?"

"Nonsense. I haven't left the Root base during this time; how could I have seen Orochimaru?"

"Then who was it that broke into the Forest of Death during the Chunin Exams?"

"How would I know!"

As the two compared notes, they realized that their stories were completely mismatched and did not align at all.

They were both old veterans who had experienced countless major events; after a moment of reflection, they realized there must be a problem hidden within this.

"I fear Orochimaru is behind this! He was acquainted with Aburame Tatsuma in the past; it is highly likely that Tatsuma was a pawn he secretly planted within my Root!" Danzo said in a deep voice.

Regardless of whether this was the truth, he had to find a reason that could convince Hiruzen first.

"If that is the case, then it makes sense. I never truly believed you would do something so unwise." Sure enough, Hiruzen's expression softened slightly.

Danzo stepped forward and extended his hand with an open, generous gesture: "Old friend, Konoha is currently in danger, and we share a common enemy. Why don't we resolve the current crisis first, and then investigate my wrongdoings later?"

Hiruzen hesitated for a moment, then grasped Danzo's hand. Looking him straight in the eyes, he said solemnly: "If it is eventually discovered that someone framed you, I will certainly clear your name."

"Very good. That puts my mind at ease."

As he spoke, the bandages wrapping Danzo's right eye unraveled on their own, exposing the Sharingan hidden beneath.

Forgive me, old friend. Only by doing this can I truly feel at ease.

"Kotoamatsukami!"

Hiruzen was completely unprepared for this; he had been guarding against a potential physical surprise attack from Danzo, not this silent, imperceptible genjutsu!

"From this moment on, you must trust me, Danzo, without reservation, and always stand on my side." Danzo silently carved his own will into Hiruzen's subconscious.

"Very well, I understand." Only after Hiruzen finished speaking did his eyes regain their clarity.

Truly worthy of being the strongest genjutsu; even someone like Hiruzen could be influenced without ever realizing it!

Only then did Danzo let out a sigh of relief; the most difficult hurdle had finally been cleared.

However, a new problem had emerged: what exactly was Orochimaru planning?

He did not believe for a second that the man simply wanted to throw Konoha into chaos; he must have had a deeper objective.

Indeed, Orochimaru, who was hiding in the shadows and witnessing all of this, certainly had his own agenda. Thus, this Shadow Clone immediately dissolved itself to transmit the information back to his main body.

At the same time, in a certain forest, a hand suddenly burst through the soil, and another of Orochimaru's Shadow Clones crawled out from underground.

He let out a sinister chuckle and leaped through the trees. In the direction he was heading, there was a very conspicuous complex of buildings; judging by the clan crests visible everywhere, this was the compound of the Uchiha clan.

Chapter 82: Orochimaru Reinforces Konoha

In a cave somewhere outside Konoha, Orochimaru's main body finally opened his eyes. Before him, four subordinates knelt, waiting for instructions.

"Kidomaru, Tayuya, Sakon and Ukon, Jirobo—the opportunity has arrived. We can begin our operation." Orochimaru revealed a smile of absolute certainty.

He had just received the memories returned by his Shadow Clone and had fully grasped the current situation; everything was proceeding as expected.

"Yes, Lord Orochimaru!" the four replied in unison.

"Then what are you waiting for? Move out!"

His voice was exceptionally feminine and soft, a result of having recently switched to a new vessel for his Living Corpse Reincarnation.

However, he was not satisfied with this vessel; not only was the physical constitution poor, but it also happened to be a woman.

Living Corpse Reincarnation carried a three-year restriction before it could be used again, meaning he would be unable to switch to another body for some time.

But it did not matter; he had enough patience to wait for the boy named Sasuke to slowly grow up.

"Understood, we are heading out now to assist Sunagakure in their attack on Konoha," Tayuya said, looking up.

"Hm? Did you misunderstand something?"

"Does Lord mean..."

"We are, of course, going to... reinforce Konoha!"

Orochimaru's words left the four of them stunned; this was completely different from what they had expected.

You caused so much trouble in Konoha—wasn't it all to destroy it? Why would you go and help them instead?

"However, there is one more thing to do before that. Sigh... the ninjas of Konoha are truly too careless. As their predecessor, it is only right that I help them make up for it, isn't it? Hehehe..."

As he spoke, Orochimaru began to laugh wantonly. After a while, he restrained himself and led his subordinates as they sped off in a certain direction.

In the direction they were traveling, footprints were scattered in a chaotic manner, but it was clear that many people had passed through here. From time to time, one could even see torn clothing and heavy bundles left behind.

Without a doubt, this was the evacuation route for the high-ranking officials and nobles.

BOOM!

The air pressure unleashed by the giant creature's landing distorted the faces of everyone nearby. Sakura, having run a bit slower, was directly blown over by the shockwave and ended up hanging from a tree.

The others fared no better, looking quite disheveled.

After the wind pressure subsided, everyone was finally able to open their eyes, only to see an unprecedented, super-giant toad appearing before them, actually holding a massive smoking pipe in its mouth!

This was summoned by Naruto?! Sasuke felt it was inconceivable.

A single toe of this toad was larger than his entire body!

"Boss Gamabunta!" Naruto appeared on the toad's head. Seeing that he had actually succeeded on his first attempt, he was overjoyed.

"Brat! You've got some nerve, daring to summon me as you please! Aren't you afraid I'll swallow you in one bite?" As soon as he saw Naruto, Gamabunta's temper flared.

"Boss Gamabunta, I've already acknowledged you as my boss, shouldn't you help your little brother out? Aren't you the most loyal guy around?"

"That was... just drunken nonsense I spouted that day, it doesn't count!" Gamabunta glanced around; since Jiraiya wasn't there, wasn't it easy to fool a brat?

As for the other three brats, he simply treated them like air.

"Just help me out, this is a matter of life and death!" Naruto grew anxious immediately.

"Hm? This is Konoha? Something seems to have happened over there, is that why you summoned me?" Gamabunta raised a claw to look, seeing thick smoke billowing from several places in Konoha, clearly indicating something was wrong.

"No, that's not it! Look..." Naruto pointed his finger toward Gaara, but before he could finish, Gamabunta flew into a rage.

"You summoned me just to deal with a brat from Sunagakure?! Do you have any idea how precious my time is? I'm worth hundreds of millions a minute, do you have any idea!" Gamabunta wore an expression of disbelief, exasperated and furious.

"Listen to me, this guy isn't simple, he is..."

However, before Naruto could finish his sentence again, Gamabunta stomped his foot down toward Gaara, crushing several large trees in the vicinity beneath his sole.

"Alright, done." Gamabunta clapped his hands, acting as if it were nothing more than a trivial effort.

Yet the next moment, he suddenly let out an "eh," his eyes narrowing slightly as he looked down at the spot he had just crushed from a close distance.

"Who is it..."

A muffled voice emanated from beneath his sole.

"Who is stepping on me..."

"Nani? Why does this voice sound a bit familiar?!" Gamabunta displayed a look of astonishment.

The next moment, he lost control, because the sand and dust on the ground began to converge toward the sole of his foot, and something was swelling up beneath him; no matter how hard he pressed down, he couldn't contain the situation.

"Damn it, what kind of trouble did you get me into?!"

"Boss, I didn't even finish what I was saying!" Naruto looked aggrieved; it was you who kept interrupting me, wasn't it?

Keiichi watched the scene before him and said without hesitation, "Everyone, this is no longer a place we can participate in. This area will soon turn into a battlefield, let's retreat immediately."