Three days later
Konoha - Hokage's Office
Neji sat in a chair with a serious expression, his arms crossed over his chest, looking at Tsunade and Hongshi in front of him.
" Little Tsuna, you've grown up."
Tobirama truly lives up to his reputation as a master of forbidden techniques. Even in his soul form, he altered the sealing mode of the Hongshi, allowing him to directly exchange control with Neji.
At this Neji was being controlled by Tobirama's soul. Tsunade was shocked when she found out and found it difficult to adapt.
"Ah... Grandfather... Grandfather..."
Hongshi: " Neji, you're so annoying, you deserve a beating."
Neji's spirit. " Hongshi, I'm going to kill you!"
Tobirama slowly stood up from the Hokage's chair, put his hands behind his back, and looked out the window at Konoha.
" Little Tsuna, do you know why I want you to be the Fifth Hokage?"
From a young age, Tsunade Tobirama her stern grandfather, Tobirama, in awe and dared not utter a single word in his presence.
"Grandfather... I don't know."
Hongshi stepped forward. "I know! Tsunade is powerful and has a pure bloodline!"
"You're wrong. The reason Tsunade was made Hokage was for long-term considerations."
Tsunade and Hongshi exchanged a glance, listening to Tobirama continue.
"During this time, I examined Konoha and discovered a chilling phenomenon."
"Grandfather, what is it?"
" Konoha now, though still the tallest tree, has withered leaves, rotten roots, and weak new shoots; it has begun its path to destruction. Many things have happened in the years since my death, things I don't fully understand, but the annihilation of the Uchiha Clan and the split of the Hyuga Clan are harbingers."
Hongshi: "You'll have to ask Danzo about this; he knows more about it."
Tobirama turned to Tsunade: " Little Tsuna, you are decisive, unlike Danzo, Homura, and Koharu who hesitate and make wrong choices. And that Monkey... Hiruzen Sarutobi, he only wanted to protect the seedlings and forgot to let them absorb the warmth of the sun. But you are different, Little Tsuna. You are the most decisive among the few people in Konoha who have the potential to inherit the name of Hokage. To become Hokage, you need not only talent, but also the right to do so."
Tsunade: "Grandfather, since I promised you I would become the Fifth Hokage, I will definitely make Konoha a better place!"
" Little Tsuna, you must remember that anyone who possesses the Will of Fire is a precious asset to Konoha. Regardless of their bloodline or strength, they must be given complete trust."
After saying that, Neji glanced at the Hongshi.
Tsunade seemed to know what Tobirama was going to say and nodded in agreement.
Tobirama stepped forward and slapped Hongshi, but it didn't wake him up.
"This guy... Little Tsuna, I saw the information about Kusagakure that Hinata, the little girl from the Hyuga Clan clan, brought back. This is a bit troublesome."
Tsunade: "Grandfather, you mean..."
"I've experienced countless wars, and I have a knack for them. The fact that Kusagakure was destroyed overnight suggests that there's a significant secret behind it."
Tsunade: "Should we take the initiative?"
"No, as a major power, we cannot take any action before war breaks out, lest other countries use it as a pretext. After all, Konoha is no longer as strong as it once was, capable of fighting four opponents at once. We need to cultivate a new generation of strong individuals, and this path is still very long."
"A new generation of strongmen?"
"Men, drag this bald man out!!"
A minute later, Hongshi was dragged out by several of his trusted Anbu and thrown out at the door like trash.
"The flower of the strong only blooms in the flames of war; Konoha has been at peace for too long."
"Grandfather, we cannot initiate a war!"
"Yes, but aren't we in the midst of a war right now? And their leader tried to kill the Fifth Hokage just a few days ago."
"You mean... Orochimaru and his Otogakure?"
"That's right, Konoha was actually invaded by the mere Otogakure and Sand Ninja Village. It's a disgrace to Hashirama."
Hashirama, who was instructing Sakura Hashirama Wood Release training in the Forest of Death, suddenly felt a cool breeze brush against his ear. "Strange, even a soul can feel cold?"
Tsunade had a bad feeling. "Grandfather, what do you mean?"
"That's right. Since the Sand Ninja has surrendered and apologized, we don't need to investigate too deeply. However, the Otogakure must not be let go. I've decided to announce to the world that the Otogakure will be completely destroyed, and at the same time, assess the attitudes of the surrounding countries towards Konoha."
Tsunade sighed, "I knew it. But that makes sense. A powerful ninja village needs to have the magnanimity to back it up, but it also needs to have its bottom line."
"Based on information obtained from the interrogation of Tayuya, Tayuya the Sound Ninja, and the intelligence gathered by Team Asuma during their infiltration, it is known that the Otogakure is holding tens of thousands of civilians and ninjas for experimental purposes. Our goal is to rescue these prisoners and eliminate the evil ninjas in the Otogakure."
Tsunade's eyes filled with disgust at the thought of Orochimaru's face, "It's a pity I couldn't kill Orochimaru this time. I never expected he would steal your Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu."
" Orochimaru is undeniably a genius. He actually managed to learn and improve upon the forbidden technique I invented. This man will surely become a great enemy of Konoha in the future."
"Even though he was seriously injured, he was still able to use this technique to be evenly matched with Jiraiya."
"I know about your battle, so we must destroy the Otogakure. First, we must declare our stance: we will not initiate war, but we will absolutely not fear it. Anyone who infringes upon Konoha's interests will pay a heavy price."
"Secondly, I plan to send the village's twelve best Genin as commanders. After being tempered by war, they will advance further and become a new force in Konoha, letting the outside world know that even the Genin Konoha possess immense strength."
"Third, I plan to equip each squad with two members of the Hyuga Clan, under the command of Genin, to curb their arrogance and use war to mend the rift between the two families."
"Fourth, you've just taken office Fifth Hokage and need to establish your authority; this is a great opportunity."
Lord God: "So, no matter what, it's all for the good of Konoha."
Just as Tsunade was about to speak, the office door opened, and there stood Jiraiya.
" The Second looks quite handsome, but why is Hongshi-kun lying outside the door?"
"His snoring is too loud."
" Jiraiya, Sarutobi has truly trained an excellent ninja. I've read your report; you've completed 321 S-rank missions."
"Haha, you flatter me, you flatter me."
There are very few ninjas who can earn Tobirama's praise, Jiraiya was quite proud of it.
Tsunade glared at Jiraiya: "You're just like that, so annoying!"
What brings you here?
Jiraiya held the encrypted intelligence transmitted by the Ninja Hawk: " The Ninja Hawk has reported that last week, Kusagakure was attacked by an unknown force, and more than half of the entire Kusagakure was massacred. Now, a large number of Kusagakure and civilians have appeared on the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Grass, seeking Konoha's protection. What do you think we should do about this?"
"Oh? Hmm..."
Tobirama a moment, seemingly realizing something, then looked up at Tsunade, " Little Tsuna, what do you think?"
Tsunade thought for a moment, " Kusagakure is not a very weak ninja village, and according to the intelligence Hinata brought back, Kusagakure had been fully armed beforehand. The sudden annihilation of the village is probably not a coincidence. If we rashly let ninjas in now, there may be hidden dangers. But if we don't let them in, other countries may use this as an excuse."
Tobirama shook his head. " Little Tsuna, you're absolutely right, very rational, but it's precisely because of this rationality that it's easy to make choices that harm yourself. You've overlooked something very important."
"Grandfather, may I ask what it is?"
Tobirama extended a finger, pointing at Tsunade, then at Jiraiya.
"We are Konoha, inheriting the Will of Fire. Do the ninjas of the Land of Grass possess the Will of Fire?"
Of course not.
"That's good then. Anyone without the Will of Fire cannot be trusted, so we can't let them come over."
"This..."
"However, Konoha is also the most powerful ninja village, so naturally we must be magnanimous. We must respond to the requests for help from weaker villages. Therefore, not only will we not let them come, but we will also send people to help them eliminate the unknown forces and reclaim the ninja village."
Tsunade seemed to understand. "Grandfather, I understand. This way, even if there are spies from the Grass Ninja or other ninja villages among this group, Konoha won't suffer any losses, and we can also obtain relevant intelligence in advance."
Tobirama shook his head. "No, there must be spies, and they should be spies from Iwagakure. Kusagakure is located in the southeast of the Land of Grass, the closest to it is the Land of Rain, followed by the Land of Earth, and lastly our Konoha. Why didn't they choose the closest Land of Earth, but instead chose the furthest Land of Fire? They say the Land of Earth and the Land of Rain have bad climates, but who would choose a place for refuge based on climate?"
"Are you saying that the Land of Earth was involved in this matter?"
Tobirama: "Most likely, but the Rock Ninja ninja aren't the main culprit. You mentioned before that Kusagakure was already fully armed, so I've always felt that the destruction of Kusagakure was just a staged event."
Jiraiya began, " The Land of Rain doesn't often interact with the outside world, so it's unlikely to be a suspect. Iwagakure's strength is second only to Konoha and Cloud Ninja, so it has always been at odds with the neighboring Konoha. Although there haven't been any major conflicts in recent years, both sides are keeping an eye on each other. Orochimaru caused Konoha to lose many excellent ninjas this time, so it's understandable that they want to probe its strength."
Tobirama nodded. "Therefore, this battle to reclaim the Grass Ninja is a matter of Konoha's honor. We must take it with the fastest and strongest offensive. Moreover, we could be ambushed at any time. So, bring Konoha -tier combatants disguised as Chunin. As for the selection, Tsunade, you can decide."
"Superior combat strength? Never heard of it."
Tobirama pointed to a booklet on the table. "All the ninjas of Konoha, including those from the Anbu and Root, have been marked by me as either top-tier or lower-middle-tier fighters. You can choose yourselves. I'm taking Neji to train; he's the key to the Hyuga Clan's reunification."
After saying that, Tobirama handed control of his body back to Neji.
" Lady Tsunade, Lord Jiraiya, I'm going to train."
Neji, who was always arrogant, was training desperately in order to help the Hyuga Clan reunite as soon as possible. He strode out and, as he passed by Hongshi, stomped hard on his head.
Who the hell stepped on my head!
Jiraiya: "Ah! Hongshi-kun, you're awake? By the way, Tsunade, Naruto keeps telling you to go to the hospital to check on Sasuke, who was Tsukuyomi. Also, I think Grass Ninja and I can go to the Hongshi Village area."
" Hongshi? No, Hongshi is going to attack the Otogakure."
"What did you say?? Attack the Otogakure?"