Jiraiya's Shock

"As for Naruto's giant summoned beast, I can't do anything about it. If you really can't wait, then you can only go to Orochimaru. The guy who left the Cursed Seal mark on you," Uchiha Shunichi said.

He had no intention of stopping Sasuke from defecting. Whether he chose to follow Orochimaru was entirely up to him, and Uchiha Shunichi would not interfere.

Of course, after making that choice, whatever price he would have to pay was his alone to bear.

"Orochimaru?" Uchiha Sasuke involuntarily reached for his neck, the image of that man who seemed almost fused with snakes surfacing in his mind.

"Yes. He wants your body. That's why he placed the Cursed Seal on you. But before taking your body, he will naturally make you stronger. It will probably take a little over two years," Uchiha Shunichi explained.

The current Uchiha Sasuke had not yet realized that Orochimaru could make him stronger. Moreover, because of Shukaku, he was now somewhat dismissive of Orochimaru's power.

"Between you and Orochimaru, who is stronger?" Uchiha Sasuke asked, still unsatisfied.

"He is stronger. If I fight to the death, I can seriously injure him, but I can't kill him alone," Uchiha Shunichi answered directly, unconcerned with Uchiha Sasuke's greed.

What he did not say was that he could fight to the death more than once without suffering much harm.

As for killing Orochimaru, that was indeed a troublesome matter. Uchiha Shunichi only knew of three, which meant he could kill Orochimaru three times.

As for whether Orochimaru had hidden other clones within other Cursed Seals after those three times, Uchiha Shunichi was not entirely sure.

But there should be. At the very least, there had to be one in the laboratory where Orochimaru had successfully transplanted Bloodline Limits.

After hearing Uchiha Shunichi's words, Uchiha Sasuke did not answer. He still could not make his decision.

The next day, everyone in the village wore black and gathered before the Third Hokage's grave to mourn. Uchiha Shunichi and Uchiha Sasuke were no exception.

As for Danzo's funeral, it was handled perfunctorily. He became nothing more than an inconspicuous name on a memorial stone.

Konoha's higher-ups probably wanted to conceal the news of Danzo's death. After all, Sarutobi Hiruzen had already died; it was better to handle the matter quietly at a time like this.

At the funeral, Uchiha Shunichi saw tears begin to form in many people's eyes. Clearly, Sarutobi Hiruzen still held great prestige in the village.

Uchiha Shunichi felt somewhat emotional. With Sarutobi Hiruzen dead, a great mountain had been lifted from his shoulders. He could not call himself happy, but neither could he be sad.

After all, even if Sarutobi Hiruzen had not been the mastermind behind the Uchiha Clan Massacre, he was at least guilty of negligence.

Beneath the heavy atmosphere and gloomy sky, the funeral came to an end. Although Konoha had not suffered too many casualties in this incident, people had still died.

"Shunichi, Sasuke, come with me for a moment." Just as Uchiha Shunichi thought everything was over, Jiraiya suddenly approached and spoke.

Konoha could now practically be considered leaderless. Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu alone had no way to take charge of the overall situation.

Therefore, although Jiraiya was unwilling to accept the position of Hokage, he temporarily took on the responsibility.

Jiraiya led Uchiha Shunichi and Uchiha Sasuke to Root. The moment Uchiha Shunichi realized their destination was Root, he understood what had happened.

What surprised him was that Jiraiya had not chosen to hide it, but had brought the two of them here directly. That way of handling things did make Uchiha Shunichi feel more at ease.

"Jiraiya, you'll become the next Hokage, won't you?" Uchiha Shunichi suddenly said as he walked behind Jiraiya.

Uchiha Sasuke was stunned by those words. He had never imagined that this somewhat sleazy-looking middle-aged man possessed the qualifications to become Hokage.

"Hm? Where did you learn something like that?" Jiraiya asked cautiously. He knew very well that his personality was not suited to being Hokage.

However, if he could not persuade Tsunade, Jiraiya could not simply leave the village unattended.

After all, besides the two of them, there were very few people in Konoha qualified to become Hokage.

Even if there were one or two qualified candidates, it would be hard to make the other ninja villages accept them. They might even start a war to test Konoha.

"I didn't see anything. I was only guessing. At present, the only people in Konoha with enough prestige to become Hokage are you and Lady Tsunade." A thought flashed through Uchiha Shunichi's mind, but he ultimately chose to abandon it.

For one who foresaw the future, the greatest taboo was speaking carelessly. Though Uchiha Shunichi's ability was fake, the truths mixed into it were even more convincing than the real thing.

"My personality isn't suited to being Hokage. In the end, Tsunade will probably return. Her prestige is enough to make everyone..." Jiraiya hesitated before finally speaking.

"I think Lord Jiraiya is very suited to becoming Hokage," Uchiha Shunichi said meaningfully.

Jiraiya's expression changed slightly upon hearing that. "Have you seen what happened here?"

Uchiha Shunichi did not hide it.

"Yes. I saw the scene of Uchiha Shisui's death. You brought us here because of Uchiha Shisui's Mangekyō Sharingan, right?" Uchiha Shunichi's tone was calm, as if that was truly all he knew.

Jiraiya's steps paused slightly. Soon, however, he returned to normal and spoke in a heavy tone:

"Danzo... is already dead. As for the Sharingan on his body, they have also disappeared. I'm sorry... I don't know whether he destroyed those Sharingan himself or whether someone took them," Jiraiya said apologetically.

"It's nothing. I know a little about this... Though I didn't see it myself, I suspect it was the mysterious man from the Nine-Tails' Attack," Uchiha Shunichi said.

The most convincing lie was nine parts truth and one part falsehood. Especially with intelligence that no one knew, speaking it aloud made it even easier for others to believe.

"Wait, Shunichi... You know that mysterious man?" Jiraiya immediately asked anxiously.

After all, that man was one of the culprits who had killed his disciple!

"I suspect he was Uchiha Madara, because I saw that the mysterious man possessed a Mangekyō Sharingan, and he also had a summoning contract with the Nine-Tails."