[This Chapter Is Sponsored by Sukhman Singh! Everyone, please thank him in the comment!]
"The Sarutobi Clan!"
The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, became solemn when he talked about his family, asserting with dignity, "When I first became the Third Hokage, I had to choose between my duties and my family. At that time, my entire family chose to support me, which led to the prosperity of the Sarutobi clan we see today."
"This is fate. Having enjoyed the blessings of the Will of Fire for so many years, we must also bear the corresponding responsibilities."
For Hiruzen, the Will of Fire was of utmost importance, even more than his family ties. Although this mindset might seem somewhat distorted, it is very characteristic of their culture.
Holding a chess piece, Hiruzen, with a frown and in a deep voice, said, "The current situation is as you said. If conflict erupts, a civil war could destroy Konoha in an instant."
"I will never allow the Konoha to fall into the hands of the ambitious and evil Uchiha. The day of the Fifth Hokage's inauguration might very well be the beginning of an internal war in the Konoha."
"The losing side in the Fifth Hokage's inauguration ceremony will definitely seize the opportunity to cause chaos. At that time, the top fighters from the Uchiha faction, including Uchiha Yoru, will be present. I must do one last thing for the Konoha."
With determination in his eyes, Hiruzen continued in a hoarse voice, "The rest is not your concern. With Tsunade and Jiraiya present, the Uchiha clan won't be able to stir up much trouble. You just need to assist Tsunade in managing the village's affairs."
Observing Hiruzen's resolute demeanor, Nara Shikaku frowned, realizing the gravity of the situation but wisely chose not to ask further questions.
If this Third Hokage was so confident, it meant he had a trump card, though it seemed like a desperate one.
However, to resolve the crisis in Konoha, a decisive action, like a beheading strike, seemed like the best option.
In the quiet room, with Shikaku having left, only Hiruzen remained, steadfast in his final will, uttering hoarsely, "Danzo, it seems I must come to you."
Facing sacrifice, Hiruzen was not fearful but filled with zeal, thinking, 'With the Reaper Death Seal, I will eliminate all unstable elements threatening the Konoha!'
Confident in his heart, Hiruzen believed he could successfully launch a surprise attack at close range.
In the original story, during the Chunin Exams, facing the First and Second Hokage and Orochimaru, even though the former Hokages weren't at their peak, it was only after a fierce battle and exhaustion that Hiruzen used the Reaper Death Seal.
Even then, the Third Hokage succeeded in sealing two Kage-level powers and Orochimaru's arms.
Now, deciding to use this sealing jutsu in full strength, Hiruzen was confident in sealing the powers of Uchiha Yoru, Uchiha Shisui, and Uchiha Itachi, considering his advantage of a surprise attack.
The Reaper Death Seal, indeed a formidable jutsu when the enemy is unprepared, was seen as somewhat overpowered.
…
Every move of the Konoha almost affects the mindset of the entire ninja world. After waiting for three months, although the situation in Konoha remains tense, they just don't start a fight.
For a while, all the major ninja villages were almost frantic.
Cloud Ninja Village.
In the office of the Fourth Raikage, A, he was gritting his teeth in anger, looking at the Konoha ninja who came to ask for help again. He really wanted to twist the other's neck and smash his head.
"Respected Fourth Raikage, as everyone in the ninja world can see, the current situation in Konoha is dire. Our Fifth Hokage, Uchiha Yoru, is facing this predicament…"
He went on and on about the difficulties Uchiha Yoru is facing, the immense pressure, and finally, he reached out his hand wanting explosive tags and weapons. In short, he came again to ask for weapons.
"Damn bastard!"
The Fourth Raikage roared in anger, smashing the table in front of him, and then, under the astonished gaze of the Konoha ninja, he took a deep breath and forced a terrifying smile while holding back his anger.
"These ninjas are too hateful, even resisting the righteous Fifth Hokage, Uchiha Yoru. But! In three months, Cloud Ninja Village has already continuously assisted your Kage with five times strategic materials!"
"Even when the rebel army from the Mist Village in the territory of the Whirlpool Country joined Konoha, our ninjas from Cloud Village turned a blind eye and even facilitated it, intercepting some harassing ninjas."
The more he spoke, the angrier the Fourth Raikage became. He said with suppressed indignation: "According to my information, the righteous ninja villages of the ninja world have provided enough war materials to your Kage to fight a two or three years' great ninja war!"
Three months! The Fifth Hokage of Konoha, Uchiha Yoru, has been almost crazily exploiting others. The envoys came wave after wave, and apart from the Mist Village, the other three major villages have been exploited several times, even the poorest Sand Village has assisted three times.
Not to mention all the smaller ninja villages, who are also reluctantly assisting while holding back their tears. If they don't assist, the neighboring major countries won't allow it.
The small ninja villages around the countries of Earth, Lightning, and Wind almost tearfully gave away nearly half of their hard-earned wealth for assistance.
There's no choice. If they don't assist, they would not only offend Konoha but also the major countries supporting them. It's too difficult.
The major ninja villages chose to be silent about Uchiha Yoru's exploitative methods, after all, it indirectly weakened these small ninja villages. By the time, Konoha would fight even more fiercely.
But as time passed, they could tolerate that Konoha hadn't started a civil war. After all, starting a civil war isn't that simple, and right now Konoha is in the process of sculpting the Fifth Hokage and preparing for the official succession ceremony.
At that time, Konoha surely couldn't bring out two Fifth Hokages during the succession ceremony, right? If Konoha dared to do that, they would be happy instead, as it would mean Konoha splitting into two.
But during this agonizing waiting period, the actions of the Fifth Hokage, Uchiha Yoru, became somewhat shameful, constantly asking for war materials.
Currently, the territories controlled by the Fifth Hokage Uchiha Yoru in the Land of Fire have established no less than ten military bases.
Too much! You don't go to war but hoard supplies, and they are theirs. You should at least start fighting; we will naturally send what you lack if we see it.
"Fourth Raikage!"
The ninja from Konoha wanted to say something, but the Fourth Raikage, A, interrupted him and said sternly: "For the peace of the ninja world, Cloud Ninja Village has already unconditionally supported your Kage with so many materials, which has severely affected our normal military defense."
"So! Please tell your Kage that Cloud Village is really willing but unable to help anymore. However, rest assured, I have decided to order our rear to accelerate the production of various ninja tools, explosive tags, and other materials. There will be new supplies in a month."
Don't judge the Fourth Raikage by his rough exterior. Can a mere brute become a Kage? His brashness is just a facade; deep down, he possesses the intellect of a Kage.
Watching the Raikage's refusal, the Konoha ninja couldn't help but sigh. Although he felt a bit embarrassed, he was used to it after so many visits. Since the Raikage wasn't willing to give in, he decided to let it be.
"In that case, I will return to my village and report truthfully to our Fifth Hokage, Lord Yoru."
Finally, in the Raikage's office, the Fourth Raikage, with a rough face, forced a smile as he watched the other leave. Unable to hold back, he burst into a rage.
"Damn it! The Fifth Hokage of the Konoha is so disrespectful! Shameless!"
Seeing this, the ninjas of the Cloud Village sighed. Not just their Raikage, they all wanted to vent.
Since monitoring the development of the ninja villages for so many years, they had never seen anyone so boldly demanding weapons from the great villages. If you were the dominant power in the ninja world, it would be one thing, but clearly, you're not! They have the power to refuse, yet frustratingly, they can't outright deny the request.
This situation wasn't unique to the Cloud Village. The Kazekage and Tsuchikage also found various reasons to temporarily refuse.
However, even before the internal conflict in the Konoha began, the Fifth Hokage, Uchiha Yoru, had already made a name for himself in the ninja world.
This Hokage, Uchiha Yoru, used his own experiences to show everyone how to demand money with righteous indignation. It's not that they don't want to give, but they can't outright refuse and have to find excuses to put it off while pretending to be apologetic.
…
Konoha.
In the Hokage's office, Uchiha Yoru was reviewing mission scrolls with a relaxed expression, while Tsunade beside him clearly looked bored and tedious.
Especially when Tsunade turned her head to see the half-meter-high pile of documents in front of Uchiha Yoru, which he managed to get through in just over an hour, she looked back at her own side.
Tsunade couldn't help but show a hint of embarrassment on her face, as the documents she needed to review were at most a little more than half of what the youngster had, yet she had been busy all morning and had completed less than one third of them.
'This kid! He's really cut out for this.'
Tsunade thought she was quite good, but there's always someone better. At this moment, she genuinely admired him. This really also depends on talent.
"Hey, kid, you're pretty fast at reviewing these documents, aren't you just messing around?"
Tsunade couldn't help but tease him, while Uchiha Yoru, who was looking at the documents, was multitasking and didn't stop working. He laughed and said, "Is this considered fast? It's because you are reluctant to delegate authority."
"Look at the documents I need to approve. Minor security incidents within the village don't need to be sent here. They can be approved by the experienced captains of the police department. In my spare time, as the Hokage, I can go down to spot-check the archives and inspect the actual situation."
"At the same time, I have established a supervision team in the Anbu, all of whom have concealed identities, specifically to spot-check and inspect whether subordinates are hiding or falsifying reports."
"And the intelligence department... and so on. Missions within the village, those below B-rank, are approved by the elite personnel of the Hokage's assistant. The Hokage only needs to review them, and if something is wrong, correct it."
At this point, Uchiha Yoru, with a smile on his face, lifted the document in his hand and said, "How many B-rank and above missions does Konoha have in a year? After calculating, the documents that really need to be carefully verified and cautiously processed each day are only about a dozen or so."
"The rest are just to check for omissions, and naturally, the work efficiency will improve."
While Uchiha Yoru was speaking with a relaxed smile, the capable Uchiha Itachi came in with a stack of documents and reported.
"Lord Hokage, these are documents from the intelligence, medical, and barrier department. Among them, there are three B-rank or above documents from the intelligence department that require the personal approval of the Hokage."
"These two are from the reorganization of the Root and Anbu, also requiring the personal approval of the Hokage."
Looking at Uchiha Itachi's report, Uchiha Yoru seemed to remember something and said to Tsunade with a laugh, ''Oh right, the Root and Anbu, which are directly under the Hokage's responsibility, apart from some internal daily training and other tasks that can be completed by the department heads, any missions involving leaving the village or targeting ninjas need to be reviewed by the Hokage."
Goodness, after listening to Uchiha Yoru's explanation, although it sounded a bit complicated at first, upon closer consideration, Tsunade frowned.
Looking at the young kid in front of her, her expression became complicated. This kid was really willing to delegate authority, almost decentralizing most of the Hokage's powers.
But upon further thought, it was actually just delegating the Hokage's authority to handle trivial matters, not only making his own life easier but also winning the hearts of his subordinates.
"Hey, how old is Itachi? Although he's strong, you actually dare to let him assist you in handling government affairs?"
Although Tsunade was convinced in her heart, her face still showed a hint of reluctance as she glared at Uchiha Yoru, as if to say, "Aren't you going a bit too far?"
However, Uchiha Yoru just smiled and shook his head, saying, "Itachi is a genius. He might be a bit paranoid, but in terms of handling the affairs of the Anbu, Itachi has had the mind of a Hokage since he was five."
Facing his teacher's praise, the now twelve-year-old Uchiha Itachi felt a bit embarrassed. After all, at his age and such a high position, if it weren't for the strength of his Mangekyō Sharingan, there would indeed be people gossiping. But deep inside, he was truly grateful.
"Hehe, but Itachi is indeed a bit young. At this age, he should focus more on improving his strength, as ninja power is the foundation of everything."
Uchiha Yoru said with a smile, and Itachi, hearing this, quickly bowed respectfully and loudly said, "Yes! Itachi will definitely not disappoint Lord Hokage."
Tsunade, standing by, was a bit dumbfounded. This kid's charm in deceiving people's hearts was no less than that of the old man and Orochimaru, almost always winning over people's hearts.
Sometimes, a leader doesn't need to show much concern; just a calm smile can move the subordinates to see them as a mentor worth giving their life for.
This is almost the art of commanding subordinates.
"Kid, your Hokage assistant is a bit too much."
Tsunade couldn't help but feel a bit sour as she spoke, while Uchiha Yoru raised his head with a feigned innocent smile.
"Really? Uzuki Yugao, Mitarashi Anko, and Kurenai Yuhi are still young and have much room to grow in strength. I always encourage them to focus more on their power."
"Look at my assistants: Hinata Hizashi and Aburame Shibi are in charge of the intelligence department, the Anbu are managed by Kakashi and Itachi, and there are the newly joined ninjas from the Land of Water, experts in interrogation and assassination."
"Ah, we're still short-staffed. Yakushi Nono, who comes from the Root, now has to take care of the medical department and also assist me, the Hokage, in some administrative matters."
As Uchiha Yoru spoke, he shook his head with a look of melancholy, but this scene made Tsunade feel even more frustrated. Just then, the well-behaved Shizune came in holding a stack of documents.
"Lady Tsunade, these are the documents you need to approve."
Goodness gracious! At this moment, Tsunade looked at Uchiha Yoru's numerous assistants and then at her own situation, feeling even more dumbfounded. She only had Shizune as her assistant, and she had to handle all the affairs, big and small.