Whose Order?

"It wasn't impossible for us to withdraw. But that kid called Aoba Kamikawa had to be handed over to us as compensation for offending us."

When Aoba heard those words, how should he put it? His feelings were complicated. Although he was in Konoha now, he had seen similar incidents in the history of his original world.

It was the kind of case that seemed absurd, yet was actually even more absurd—and somehow, it had really happened in every world.

And now that he had become the center of such an incident, Aoba did not even know how to describe how he felt.

In this life, he had transmigrated into a Konoha native. Konoha could be considered his hometown. Yet something like this had happened in his own hometown. It really made him, Wu, unable to feel any sense of belonging toward this village.

The truly disgusting part was not whether Konoha would accept the terms. It was that they were both among the Five Great Villages, and Konoha was nominally still the leader. Why the hell did others dare make demands of Konoha like this?

This was only possible in a world with underdeveloped media. If this had happened in the internet age of his previous life, however many servers the public opinion platforms had, that was how many would have crashed.

Although he knew Jiraiya was unlikely to agree, Aoba immediately drew his sword and moved away from the other Konoha ninja.

That movement stunned the others. Among most ordinary ninja, how could anyone possibly agree to something like this? They did not understand Aoba's actions.

But in the end, some people still remembered Hizashi Hyuga. Some had already begun to wonder whether the scene from back then would repeat itself.

At that moment, someone who had been absent for a long time suddenly stepped forward: Shimura Danzō.

When Aoba had been risking his life against the Raikage, this man had been nowhere to be found. Yet now, he suddenly appeared again.

"Don't worry, Aoba Kamikawa. My Root will protect you. Today, no one will ever be allowed to hand you over."

The moment he heard that, Aoba understood. Danzo had shown little interest in him before, mainly because he had no inheritance and no bloodline. Danzo had not thought much of him.

But after Aoba had displayed such formidable combat strength, the man's thoughts had changed. He wanted Root to absorb him.

The key was that Aoba knew perfectly well that even if he defected, he would never join Root.

In Aoba's eyes, Root had nothing to do with Konoha at all. Hadn't Root hidden underground and failed to so much as move when Pain was carrying rice later on?

The entire organization existed to serve Danzo's ambitions.

Aoba did not respond to Danzo. Instead, he raised his head to look at Jiraiya above. He had secretly taken Soldier Pills earlier, and some of his chakra had recovered by now.

But that chakra was not for fighting. He had gathered all of it beneath his feet, ready to run at any moment.

Fortunately, Jiraiya was at least not as cowardly as Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Gamabunta took a step forward beneath him, displaying a stance of absolute refusal to yield.

The Raikage frowned, still somewhat unwilling. But then, the sound of countless footsteps came from the distance. More Konoha ninja had arrived.

The Raikage sighed faintly. This time, they had lost completely.

The original plan had been to cripple Konoha's elite in this battle, then declare war on Konoha directly. Now, it seemed that war could not be fought.

"We're leaving."

The Konoha ninja all looked at Jiraiya. They shared the same thought as Aoba. Now that they had superior numbers, why not go up and kill the Raikage and the elite around him?

In truth, whether in terms of interests or morality, Konoha would not have been in the wrong at all.

You crossed the border illegally and attacked this country's forces. What was wrong with killing you on the spot after catching you?

If it had been Iwagakure, Ōnoki would probably have summoned tens of thousands of men by now and pinned the Raikage to death here.

But Aoba guessed that Konoha probably would not do that.

Sure enough, Jiraiya hesitated slightly before ultimately taking a step back in a gesture of concession.

"Hmph." After killing more than twenty Konoha ninja on Konoha's territory, the Raikage and his group prepared to leave with their heads held high.

At that moment, Aoba suddenly stepped forward and spoke.

"May I ask, Lord Jiraiya, is releasing enemies who illegally invaded Konoha your order, or the Third Hokage's order?"

Aoba's words immediately sparked an argument among the crowd. Even the Raikage's group, who had been preparing to leave, slowed their steps to see how this farce would end.

Jiraiya abruptly turned around. The target of Aoba's question was far too obvious.

Jiraiya instinctively wanted to say that it was his own decision, but then he realized that Aoba had somehow moved to stand beside Danzo.

Jiraiya hesitated immediately, because this involved an extremely awkward issue.

Although Jiraiya held high status, he did not hold an actual position in Konoha. Everyone knew he was the Third's disciple and generally represented the Third's will, so in most situations, they would obey his orders.

But unfortunately, Shimura Danzō was also present today.

No matter how terrible or sinister Shimura Danzō was, he was still a Konoha higher-up of the same generation as Hiruzen Sarutobi. He served as a senior Konoha adviser and was also the leader of Root.

In other words, in terms of official rank, Danzo was actually above Jiraiya. Moreover, Shimura Danzō himself was the commander of today's reinforcements.

If Jiraiya said it was the Third's order, Danzo naturally would not say anything. After all, the Third Hokage was still Konoha's leader. But then every ninja present would directly feel the Third's cowardice.

Although Jiraiya could offer countless explanations for this decision, Wu could not explain the reasons to everyone at this moment.

So saying that would, Wu-doubtedly, tarnish the Third's reputation. It would deal a massive blow to his prestige.

But if Jiraiya said it was his own decision, Shimura Danzō could refute him directly. As the commander, he could forcibly issue an order to surround and kill the Raikage.

Based on Jiraiya's understanding of Danzo, that man was absolutely capable of doing such a thing. After all, the immense prestige of killing the leader of another village was something Danzo's personality made it almost impossible for him to give up.

But that would inevitably lead to all-out war. That was also something Jiraiya and Wu could not accept.

In the end, Jiraiya still spoke.

"This is the Third Hokage's order."

The surrounding Konoha ninja stopped speaking. But Jiraiya could clearly see the disappointment in many of their eyes.

Mocking expressions appeared on the faces of the Raikage and his group. Then, led by the Raikage, they openly departed.

Watching the Raikage's group leave, Aoba casually called out to Anko.

"Let's go, Anko. The mission is complete. Why are we still standing here? To see Lord Raikage off?"