Hiruko opened his mouth and wanted to say something, but found that something was blocked in his throat and he couldn't say a word.
He remembered his days at Konoha.
At that time, he was also a researcher, with his own laboratory and his own projects.
But what Konoha gave him was just a dilapidated basement, a few pieces of equipment that had been discarded by others, and a few occasional pointers from Orochimaru.
Danzo actually approached him and wanted him to join Root, but the condition was that he would hand in all his research results, and he could only get a meager salary and be commanded like a dog.
He refused.
Then he was forgotten.
No one cares about his research, no one cares about his progress, and no one cares about his life or death.
He just stayed in the corner of Konoha in obscurity, like a forgotten chess piece.
He is not as good as Sannin and cannot get the respect of others.
Until Shaoyu found him.
"Come to Kumogakure."
Shaoyu said.
"I will build a laboratory for you, I will allocate funds to you, and I will give you everything you want. You only need to do one thing - research. Research what you want to research, and realize the dream you want to realize."
That's a promise.
A promise that was fulfilled.
"Elder Kakuzu." Hiruko's voice was a little hoarse, "Lord Raikage... why is he so nice to me?"
Kakuzu glanced at him, and an indescribable light flashed in his cloudy old eyes.
he said.
"I value your talent. Lord Raikage said that Kumogakure has no shortage of people who fight wars and people who work on machinery. What it lacks is people who do biological research. You are an expert in this field, and your research is very important to Kumogakure."
He paused and added, "Do it well and don't let him down."
After saying that, he turned and left.
Hiruko stood in the laboratory, watching the back of Kakuzu disappear at the door, and was silent for a long time.
Then he turned around, looked at the brand-new equipment, stretched out his hand, and gently touched the lens barrel of the high-magnification microscope.
Assistant Raikage's office is on the third floor, one floor lower than Fourth Raikage's office, and the area is also much smaller.
But Third Raikage - should now be called Assistant Raikage - doesn't care about this.
When he stepped down from his position as Raikage, he handed over all his power without leaving any power behind.
Shaoyu told him to take care of intelligence, so he took care of intelligence. Shaoyu told him to take a rest, so he took a rest.
After decades of ups and downs, he knows one truth better than anyone else - let go when it's time to let go.
But what he can't let go of is Kumogakure.
That evening, he took a piece of information and went up to the fourth floor.
The door is open. Shaoyu is sitting behind the desk, holding a document in his hand and reading. There is a lamp on the table, and the light illuminates his face in half-darkness.
Hearing the sound of footsteps, he raised his head and saw Third Raikage standing at the door. He put down the documents and stood up.
"Third?" Shaoyu used the old name. Although the old man had abdicated, he could not change his name after so many years. "It's so late, what's the matter?"
Third Raikage walked in and put the information in his hand on the table.
"Shinobi World is going to cause trouble again."
Shaoyu picked up the information and unfolded it to read. Third Raikage stood aside, waiting for him to read it.
The information is not long, but each one is like a pebble thrown into the calm water, causing ripples in circles.
"Sunagakure and Iwagakure have formed an alliance?" Shaoyu put down the information and frowned slightly.
"It's an alliance." Third Raikage's voice was hoarse and calm.
"Ōnoki and Chiyo talked for a month, and finally reached an agreement. Iwagakure sent out eight thousand people, and Sunagakure sent out five thousand people, adding up to thirteen thousand people. The target is not us, but Konoha."
Shaoyu leaned on the back of the chair and tapped his fingers on the table.
Thirteen thousand people. The coalition of Iwagakure and Sunagakure.
These two villages were severely beaten by Kumogakure in the last round of war. Iwagakure lost 10,000 troops, Five-Tails Jinchuriki Han died in battle, and Ōnoki fled in embarrassment.
Sunagakure lost Kazekage, and civil strife continued, and Chiyo struggled to support it.
None of them are Kumogakure's opponents.
But they were unwilling.
Shaoyu closed his eyes and went through the entire Shinobi World situation in his mind.
It's a fact that Sunagakure and Iwagakure were maimed by Kumogakure. It's also a fact that a skinny camel is bigger than a horse. They couldn't beat Kumogakure, but they still had confidence in beating Konoha.
Where is Konoha?
Konoha also lost its vitality in the last round of war. Danzo was severely damaged, Root was disbanded, and 70% of the Uchiha clan members moved away, Nine-Tails was replaced, and Kumogakure had to pay compensation of 800 million taels every year. Jiraiya and Orochimaru are still recovering from their injuries.
Konoha is like a wounded beast. Although its minions are still there, it is no longer as powerful as the forward attack.
And now, two hungry wolves are eyeing it.
"What do you think?" Shaoyu opened his eyes and looked at Third Raikage.
Third Raikage walked to the window and looked out at the night. Kumogakure There were still lights on the streets, and those newly installed street lights illuminated the road brightly.
Several Genin ran past the street, their laughter spread and drifted in the night wind.
"Let them fight," he said.
Shaoyu said nothing, waiting for him to continue.
"It is a good thing for us that Sunagakure and Iwagakure form an alliance to fight Konoha."
Third Raikage turned around and looked at Shaoyu.
"When they fight Konoha, they will consume Konoha's strength. The more Konoha consumes, the less capable they will be against us. When they are almost done fighting, we can still reap the benefits."
Shaoyu was silent for a while.
"What you said makes sense." He said, "But I have a worry."
"What?"
"Sunagakure and Iwagakure join forces, Konoha may not be able to stop it. If Konoha is beaten too badly, or even defeated, it may not be a good thing for us."
Third Raikage was silent.
He has been fighting for most of his life and knows the logic of war better than anyone else.
Shaoyu is right - Sunagakure and Iwagakure are not fools, they will not try their best to fight Konoha. They can calculate, measure, and stop when the losses are too great.
Their real purpose is not to defeat Konoha, but to bite off a piece of flesh from Konoha to make up for their own losses.
And if Konoha is bitten too hard, next time, they will bite Kumogakure.
Although they Kumogakure are not afraid, why should they be beaten and killed if they live a good life?
u003dᗜωᗜu003d
Third Raikage looked at Shaoyu and was silent for a long time.
He is already a politician.
A true, mature politician.
He knows when to fight and when to make peace. He knows when to take action and when to wait. He knows that war is not an end, but a means.
He knows that real victory is not how many enemies are killed on the battlefield, but how many things are obtained at the negotiation table.