Classic Broadcast

The treaty proposed by the Third Hokage was, in truth, not an unreasonable demand for Konoha Village, which had essentially carried the entire war on its back.

However, the reasons for the dissatisfaction felt by Madara Uchiha, Senju Tobirama, and Li Ke were quite simple.

It was that the Third Hokage had overlooked one crucial detail.

Li Ke and Minato Namikaze were genuinely capable of annihilating a Great Nation between the two of them.

The Third Hokage had completely failed to factor Li Ke's combat power into his calculations!

Minato Namikaze would be responsible for scouting and managing the Flying Thunder God Marks, while Li Ke would utilize the Three-Tails' chakra to teleport and manipulate the beast into launching Tailed Beast Bombs.

No Great Nation could withstand such an assault, and even if they deployed their own Tailed Beasts, Li Ke—wielding Adamantine Chains, Mangekyo Sharingan, and Wood Release—was the least intimidated by such threats.

On the contrary, he was the type to grow stronger the longer the fight lasted; the more Tailed Beasts there were, the greater the power of his Wood Release.

As for why he didn't reveal the truth about that great war to others...

It was primarily because that transcendent level of combat power had been the result of his resonance with the chakra of Hashirama and Tobirama, further stimulated by the chakra of the Six Paths Sage's two sons. Under normal circumstances, Hashirama Senju and Tobirama Senju would not provide him with even a sliver of chakra; they could only assist him with their experience.

It was a state extremely difficult to achieve and an unstable power. Li Ke saw no need to let others measure him against a false standard.

Moreover, Konoha Village currently lacked the capacity to demand anything more.

To put it bluntly, this was merely a show of force—a demonstration directed at Kirigakure Village and certain individuals within Konoha Village.

He certainly did not want to see Danzo Shimura make a move against him!

A toad may not kill you, but it sure is disgusting!

After some thought, Minato Namikaze sighed. He could have refused to help Li Ke, but regardless of his considerations, he felt he had to respect Li Ke's opinion, so he nodded.

"I understand... I can help you, but Qingtan, to what extent do you intend to take this?"

Li Ke smiled faintly.

"I would never question the Hokage's decision. I simply need the Mizukage, Kirigakure, and the other ninja to understand that Kirigakure is the defeated party, and to ensure the ninja of Konoha Village are even more aware that they are the victors."

Minato Namikaze was somewhat skeptical, but after reflecting, he felt that based on Li Ke's past behavior, there was no reason for him to lie.

He pondered for a moment before speaking.

"That is all?"

"That is all."

The scale and the commotion, however, would be quite significant.

After all, what is a treaty without the power to enforce it but a scrap of paper?

After weighing the options, Minato Namikaze nodded.

"I will help, but on one condition: Qingtan, you cannot let things get too out of hand. If it goes too far, it will be impossible to clean up, and I will be saddled with the reputation of leaking intelligence."

He was essentially gambling his own reputation on the hope that Li Ke would respect their agreement.

The reason he was willing to do this was simple: in the entire Ninja World, he was the only one who vaguely suspected something.

He suspected that one of the participants in the War of Gods and Immortals—an event that left countless people baffled—was none other than Li Ke!

It was only because the chakra he sensed that day differed significantly from Li Ke's current chakra, and the scale of the energy didn't match, that he couldn't be one hundred percent certain.

Because—

During that great war, he had sensed the Flying Thunder God Mark that Li Ke had once used.

It was only because the distance was too great that he had been unable to split off a Shadow Clone to investigate at the time.

"Then thank you, Minato."

Li Ke patted Minato on the shoulder and flashed a bright smile, though for some reason, he felt as if he had seen this scene of him pressuring Minato Namikaze somewhere before.

Coincidentally, in Konoha Village.

"Monkey! What exactly are you thinking?!"

Danzo Shimura glared at Hiruzen Sarutobi, roaring in fury.

"You are giving Kirigakure Village a chance to catch its breath! We should be demanding massive reparations right now, and seizing their mission quotas. What is the meaning of handing our mission quotas over to them? Don't forget, the Uchiha Clan also sent troops this time, and their funding will need to increase later. Are you trying to bankrupt Konoha's treasury?"

After a pause, Danzo continued.

"Furthermore, my Root has suffered heavy losses and requires more manpower. Hiruzen, I need to recruit more personnel and members from the Ninja Clans. Otherwise, I cannot guarantee the security of our intelligence."

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at his old friend, veins throbbing on his forehead.

He admitted that part of what Danzo said was correct, and he wanted to do those things too, but many of the village's smaller Ninja Clans were on the verge of extinction.

Take the Kurama Clan, for example; there were basically only one or two people left, and even then, they were still considered a decent-sized clan.

As for the Murata Clan, who had been the most prominent in this campaign, if not for the sudden rise of Murata Qingtan—the future of Konoha—they would have been effectively wiped off the map.

He could continue to fight, but what about those small clans? What about the Daimyo's attitude? What about the post-war situation?

If the war continued, too many small clans would lose their heritage. This did not align with Konoha's current strategy of winning over small and medium clans to balance the influence of the major ones, thereby allowing civilian ninja to rise through the ranks.

In reality, even the Ino-Shika-Cho clans had suffered over fifty percent casualties, and the Sarutobi Clan had lost many people as well.

Even the clan of one of his own secretaries—a small clan of a dozen people—had lost five family members. And that was considered a relatively light toll; there were clans of dozens that were now reduced to only five or six survivors.

Even the Murata Clan could be considered lucky; some ninja clans had truly been wiped from existence!

How could they even fight like this?

And in such a situation, his old friend was still asking him for members of the ninja clans, for members of the Root organization.

What was he supposed to give him?

"No, Danzo... you are going too far. You know the state of the village as well as I do. Our current strength is truly insufficient; it is impossible to be tough on Kirigakure Village any longer... I know what you are thinking, but although we once again possess the power of Wood Release, Murata Qingtan is not even twelve years old yet. Even our teacher and the First Hokage did not possess the power to single-handedly sway the outcome of a battle at that age. What we should be doing now is steadily navigating through this wartime period and allowing the future of Konoha to grow up securely."

Having said this, Hiruzen Sarutobi lit his pipe.

"As for providing you with reinforcements, Danzo, it is impossible right now. The most important thing at the moment is to maintain the front lines and quickly restore peace, not to provoke another war!"

If he gave his old friend enough ninja, he would fight all the way to Kumogakure without a single thought for the village or logistics!

Therefore, it was impossible to let him have his way and take more men!

"Then give me Murata Qingtan! Root can help him grow strong and thrive much faster!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi paused, looking at his old friend with a solemn expression.

"Not unless I am dead, Danzo! He, like Minato, is the future of Konoha; he needs to grow up bathed in the sunlight!"

Danzo immediately grasped the implication. He glared at his old friend in fury, knowing that the other man was dead set on paving the way for Minato Namikaze to take power. The anger of being betrayed made it impossible for him to hold back any longer, and he roared out.

"Hiruzen Sarutobi! You will regret this!"

"Danzo Shimura! I am the Hokage!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi did not hold back in the slightest, retorting almost instantly. This resolute, iron-clad answer shattered Danzo's composure. He took a few deep breaths, wanting to say something, but found himself unable to speak. He understood that a thick, impenetrable barrier called the Hokage now stood between him and Hiruzen.

The friends who once talked of their ideals under the moonlight could no longer realize those ideals together.

And so, he fell silent. No longer showing his anger, yet filled with immense rage, he walked out of the Hokage's office and slammed the door shut behind him—

Bang!