While Meikyō and his two companions were still in Amegakure, in Konoha, in the Hokage's Office.
"Minato, you've arrived."
Hiruzen Sarutobi on his pipe, smiling as he looked at the blond young man in front of him.
Minato Namikaze Hiruzen Sarutobi's favorite young man among the younger generation in the village.
With a gentle personality and handsome appearance, he has already reached the level of a Kage after learning the Flying Thunder God. Most importantly, he is still very young and has a lot of room for improvement.
In Hiruzen Sarutobi's view, with Minato Namikaze around and Kushina, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, the village's prosperity could be guaranteed for at least the next fifty years.
"Third Hokage-sama, is there another mission that requires my assistance?"
With a confident smile on his face, Minato Namikaze Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"There is something I need you to do. Some time ago, the Second Hokage's relic Thunder God Blade, was stolen by the Rogue Ninja Aoi Rokushō, who then fled to Amegakure and sought refuge with Hanzo."
"Do you want me to retrieve Thunder God Blade?"
Minato Namikaze's expression immediately turned serious.
When it comes to a figure like Hanzo, no amount of attention is too much.
"No, I have already sent Uchiha Meikyō to lead a team to negotiate with Hanzo. There should be no problem. It's just that the intelligence was leaked for some reason. It is suspected that the intelligence was intercepted by ninjas from an enemy village. According to the intelligence sent by the Anbu's spies outside, they may target a young genius like Meikyō with extraordinary potential. I will nip the danger in the bud."
I hope you can go to the Land of Rain and contact Jiraiya, and together with him bring the Meikyō Squad back safely.
Otherwise, if the Uchiha Clan's number one genius were to get into trouble while on a mission, the Uchiha Clan would definitely cause a scene. I don't want such a young genius who inherited the Will of Fire to die so young, especially since he was Tsunade's disciple and my grand-disciple.
"Minato, now that you've mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, you're the fastest person in the village. This task still falls to you."
Hiruzen Sarutobi put down his pipe and looked at Minato Namikaze with a serious expression.
"Don't worry, Third Hokage-sama, Meikyō is my friend, and I will absolutely not let anything happen to him!"
Minato Namikaze replied with a solemn expression.
"In that case, this task is entrusted to you."
The Third Hokage nodded in satisfaction and said with a kind expression.
He had seen through Danzo's plan long ago, and this was just the right opportunity for him to subdue Uchiha Meikyō.
"No! Hanzo, you promised to protect me! I am a ninja of Amegakure now!"
A young ninja with medium-length green hair screamed in terror, even trying to grab Hanzo's leg to beg for mercy, but was grabbed by two Amegakure behind him, who even gagged him with a cloth, preventing him from speaking.
"If you want to blame someone, blame Konoha for providing greater value to Amegakure. Two thousand tons of grain and three hundred sets of standard Konoha -made ninja tools will be delivered soon. All we need to give up is you, the sword you brought, and the latest intelligence on the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth. Your life is well worth the price."
Hanzo turned his back, his somber words escaping through his breathing mask.
"This guy, he became Chunin at such a young age, and he still wants to defect?"
Inuzuka Ryo curiously sized up the green-haired ninja who looked to be about the same age as them.
Although his strength has reached the level of Special Jonin, he is still Chunin because the Ninja World has been relatively peaceful for the past two years and he hasn't had many opportunities to make contributions.
If someone can become Chunin at this age, even if they don't Jonin in the future, as long as they spend time developing certain strengths in a few areas, there is a good chance they can become Special Jonin.
"I can understand his feelings."
Hanzo suddenly turned his head and looked at Inuzuka Ryo.
"You are all among the most outstanding young ninjas of this generation in Konoha. Look at your backgrounds: Uchiha, Aburame Clan, Inuzuka Clan —aren't you all renowned and powerful clans in the Ninja World? If you wish, your clans can provide you with abundant resources and knowledge to lay the foundation for you to become strong."
"But unlike you, other ninjas have to work much harder to become strong. I was able to gain my current strength in a place like the Land of Rain because when I was young, I was just like him, doing whatever it took to gain power. I went through countless life-and-death crises before I barely managed to gain the power to protect the Land of Rain."
When Hanzo said this, all the Rain Ninja around him looked at him with admiration.
Without Hanzo, the Land of Rain might have truly been wiped out during the Second Shinobi World War.
At the very least, the water-scarce Land of Wind and Land of Earth will certainly try every means to divide up the Land of Rain, which has abundant water resources.
"This kid is alright. He was born in Konoha and was born to be a great ninja of a major country. His situation is simply that he has some talent, which makes him think he is extraordinary, but there is still an insurmountable gap between him and those true geniuses."
When the words "true genius" were mentioned, Hanzo involuntarily turned his gaze to Meikyō.
Meikyō graduated from the Ninja Academy in her fourth year, along with Aburame Nami and Inuzuka Ryo, who were fifth-year students.
Despite being the youngest, he already possesses the power to challenge the pinnacle of the Ninja World.
This kind of talent is something that no one can surpass.
"Therefore, he believed that the gap was caused by other reasons, such as the resources and heritage of clan ninjas, or abundant financial resources and excellent ninja tools. However, what was foolish was that instead of stealing some high-level Ninjutsu from Konoha, he stole a ninja tool."
"In the end, these are just external things. No matter how powerful the ninja tools are, they can only unleash their true power in the hands of a strong person."
Hanzo looked at Aoi Rokushō with a hint of disdain.
He admired this mindset of pursuing strength, but equally disdained the other party's shortsightedness and ignorance.
"Hanzo, the Thunder God Blade has been found at Aoi Rokushō's residence."
An Amegakure respectfully presented the Thunder God Blade to Hanzo.
"Take it, kid. Tell Hiruzen Sarutobi to bring it over quickly."
Hanzo casually picked up Thunder God Blade and tossed it to Meikyō.
"Don't worry, Hanzo- senpai, the supplies will be delivered to the outpost on the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain within a month. The Hokage's direct Anbu will be responsible for the handover at that time."
Meikyō casually handed the Thunder God Blade Inuzuka Ryo beside him.
The Thunder God Blade is made of Chakra Metal, similar to the White Fang Short Sword. It can greatly enhance Chakra, with an extreme pursuit of increasing its power.