"Lord Danzo's participation is voluntary."
Akihara Kagura glanced at Shimura Danzo on the stretcher, eyeing the wound on Danzo's chest, and nodded in satisfaction: "Fortunately, Lord Danzo's wound has not healed yet, allowing for the direct transplantation of Hashirama cells, which will enhance his vitality…"
"…"
Orochimaru did not believe that Shimura Danzo would volunteer for the sacrifice.
After all, as soon as Shimura Danzo saw Akihara Kagura, he immediately started cursing loudly, looking as if he wanted to tear Kagura to pieces!
"Damn it!"
"You scoundrel!"
"I will definitely kill you!"
"Akihara Kagura, you evil menace to the Konoha Village!"
As Shimura Danzo continued cursing, he saw Orochimaru standing beside Akihara Kagura, and his expression immediately turned sour: "Orochimaru, are you involved in this too?"
"…"
Orochimaru shook his head with mixed feelings.
Because Orochimaru had not expected that Akihara Kagura, in preparation for the Edo Tensei of Sarutobi Hiruzen, would choose Shimura Danzo as the sacrificial offering!
This guy…
What did he really think of their alliance?
But then again…
Thinking about it…
This situation seemed to have a peculiar sense of fate!
Shimura Danzo and Sarutobi Hiruzen were old friends and rivals for nearly seventy years, and even at the end of their lives, their bond could not be severed…
Is this what bonds are?
"Too noisy."
Akihara Kagura cleaned his ears and commanded: "Place Lord Danzo in front of the Third Hokage, let these old friends meet once more! Whether in life or death, this might be their last meeting…"
"!!!"
Shimura Danzo suddenly saw Sarutobi Hiruzen's body laid out on the ground and was at a loss for words, his eyes revealing a touch of sorrow.
"Monkey, this is my fault!"
Shimura Danzo looked down at Sarutobi Hiruzen's body, his eyes still mixed with hatred: "If it weren't for my greed in bringing this evil imp Akihara Kagura into the Konoha Village, none of this would have happened…"
"Lord Danzo, please be at peace."
Akihara Kagura stood beside Shimura Danzo, kindly persuading him: "Let's not speak of things that sadden others. The Third Hokage surely does not wish to hear such things, let his arrival be a happy one."
"…"
Orochimaru touched his nose.
"…"
Shimura Danzo glared hatefully at Akihara Kagura.
Is this human speech?
Who would be happy being revived as a puppet controlled by Edo Tensei!
And moreover…
This scoundrel even told him to be at peace!
"Please, Lord Danzo, grieve for yourself."
Akihara Kagura even kindly patted Shimura Danzo's shoulder, continuing: "Because, Lord Danzo, you will soon become the sacrificial offering, taking the place of the Third Hokage in death…"
"Ha? You're telling me to grieve?"
Shimura Danzo burst into an angry laugh.
His executioner was telling him to grieve!
This vile imp, treating him as a sacrifice, still speaks of letting him grieve!
"Shouldn't Lord Danzo grieve for himself then?"
Akihara Kagura glanced at Orochimaru, then surveyed the Root ninja around: "Apart from Lord Danzo himself, it seems no one in Konoha, or the ninja world, would mourn Lord Danzo's death, right?"
"…"
The attendees were all silently mute.
Even Orochimaru's expression turned peculiar.
Kagura was right; aside from Shimura Danzo himself, neither Konoha nor the entire ninja world would mourn his death.
Shimura Danzo's anger and hatred were abruptly stifled.
These harsh truths...
Speaking them out loud was somewhat too hurtful.
The Root ninja acted swiftly, arranging Shimura Danzo and Sarutobi Hiruzen's positions so that Danzo could see Hiruzen's corpse before dying.
This scene...
Felt eerily harmonious in a strange way.
Orochimaru, frowning, looked at the alive Shimura Danzo and the dead Sarutobi Hiruzen, then thought of the soon-to-die Shimura Danzo and the soon-to-be-revived Sarutobi Hiruzen, finding nothing wrong, as if such events were somewhat to be expected.
"Let's get started!"
Kagura took over the Hashirama cells, glanced at Shimura Danzo's yet-to-heal chest, and directly injected the Hashirama cells into his wound.
"Using Hashirama cells to enhance the vitality of the sacrifice?"
Orochimaru closely watched Kagura's actions, a flicker of peculiarity in his eyes: "Even the method to enhance the power of those revived through the Edo Tensei technique has been researched? But the stronger the power of those revived, the harder they are to control..."
As the Hashirama cells entered Shimura Danzo's body, his body suddenly swelled up, with masses of white material continuously spreading on his body!
"Monkey..."
Shimura Danzo felt the pain of his body being gradually eroded, his facial muscles also continuously trembling. Unable to move, he could only watch helplessly as the corpse of Sarutobi Hiruzen lay before him.
"Monkey..."
Shimura Danzo knew that his body was being eroded faster by the Hashirama cells, even white lumps were growing on his face, and his body had completely lost control, likely to die at any moment!
"Ninjutsu..."
"Edo Tensei!"
Kagura stretched out his palm and slapped it on the ground, quickly generating a large black curse mark, which instantly appeared under the bodies of Shimura Danzo and Sarutobi Hiruzen!
Sarutobi Hiruzen's body quietly turned into ash-like scraps of paper, tightly clinging to Shimura Danzo's body, enveloping his old friend's body!
"Monkey..."
"This time, it's my turn..."
"My death, in exchange for your rebirth?"
"But after all, I never became the Hokage, and the crisis in Konoha is still unresolved, I can only watch everything from the underworld's pure land..."
Shimura Danzo felt a suffocating sensation clearly, knowing his life was nearing its end, knowing his death would bring about Sarutobi Hiruzen's revival...
As all the ashes wrapped around Shimura Danzo, his breath finally ceased completely, his body slowly transforming into another person's form.
Shimura Danzo died.
And another person was thus revived!
Konoha's Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen!
Only...
Sarutobi Hiruzen's face showed clear cracks, even his eyes appeared somewhat lifeless, indicating he was a reviver through the Edo Tensei technique.
This aspect was somewhat different from the Edo Tensei technique used by Orochimaru, perhaps because the power of this revival was a bit too strong for Sarutobi Hiruzen this time.
"This is…"
Sarutobi Hiruzen furrowed his brows, instantly realizing he had been resurrected by the Edo Tensei technique. His gaze sharply turned towards those present.
Orochimaru.
Akihara Kagura.
And a group of Root ninjas.
"Kagura."
Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes fixed on Akihara Kagura, recalling the words Orochimaru had spoken to him just before his death: "So, you are the mastermind behind the Konoha Village's collapse plan, aren't you?"
It was utterly unexpected!
This young fellow, Akihara Kagura, turned out to be the mastermind behind the Konoha Village's collapse plan!
Sarutobi Hiruzen had never imagined Akihara Kagura could have such schemes, as Kagura was known for being forthright, never giving anyone reason to suspect him of underhanded actions—usually, he would openly declare any ill intentions he had.
"Don't worry."
Akihara Kagura nodded slightly, speaking softly, "Third Hokage, I will not harm the interests of the Konoha Village. In fact, my presence will only make it stronger."
"Why do this?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at Akihara Kagura, questioning his motives: "Is it because I did not appoint you as the next Hokage?"
"I didn't want to do this."
Akihara Kagura shook his head, continuing, "But Lord Danzo insisted on it, trying to clear his name from the accusations of being framed by a dual Kekkei Genkai ninjas that you used..."
"Being framed and accused, that wasn't Danzo..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen furrowed his brow, and after just a second of thought, seeing the Root ninjas present, he quickly uncovered the truth: "Wait... it was you!"
"It was me."
Akihara Kagura looked very pleased with Sarutobi Hiruzen's realization, continuing, "I did it all. I framed Lord Danzo, driving him out of the Konoha, and I also framed you, making you misunderstood by Danzo..."
"Where's Danzo?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen turned his head, searching for Danzo's figure.
Akihara Kagura looked at Sarutobi Hiruzen and sighed, "You've seen the records in the Sealing Book, Third Hokage. You should know that resurrecting someone requires a sacrifice, right?"
"..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen's forehead twitched, recalling a possibility: "You used Danzo as a sacrifice to resurrect me?"
"That's right."
Akihara Kagura nodded, continuing, "Tomorrow is the Third Hokage's funeral. I was worried you wouldn't make it in time to attend, so I purposely resurrected you..."
"Miss my own funeral..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen felt an oddly bizarre sensation, having never heard of such a thing in his nearly seventy years of life before death—being resurrected to attend his own funeral!
"Let's go and see."
Akihara Kagura softly persuaded Sarutobi Hiruzen, hoping the old man would understand the situation, "By the way, the Chunin Exams went very successfully. Are you satisfied with them, Lord Hokage?"
"Is that considered a success?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen's lips curled into a bitter smile.
"Weren't the Chunin Exams held without delay?"
Akihara Kagura nodded, continuing, "It provided you a grand exit, and a grand entrance for Lord Danzo and Lord Orochimaru. It also gave the Konoha Village a pretext to start a war with the Sand and Mist Villages, forcing them into signing even more stringent treaties..."
"..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen found himself at a loss for words.
According to Akihara Kagura, this situation was actually advantageous for the Konoha Village because the Mist and Sand Villages were responsible for the death of the Third Hokage of the Konoha, providing a pretext for war, something the Konoha Village could not just let go.
Akihara Kagura had eliminated his own superior as well.
From then on, no one in Konoha could suppress Akihara Kagura anymore. Although Jiraiya was Kagura's mentor, he might not think like a politician who could control his disciple and might even delegate all tasks to Kagura.
Moreover...
If Kagura really was suppressed, he might not hesitate to eliminate Jiraiya.
Kagura...
Might have gained control of Konoha.
Sarutobi Hiruzen was immediately filled with worry.
Kagura, seeing his superior resurrected, felt somewhat relieved.
[System Prompt]: [Ensure the smooth completion of the Joint Chunin Exam. Mission completed, reward: Fire Release: Ash Pile Burning.]
[Fire Release: Ash Pile Burning (Exhales high-temperature smoke to burn enemies, the smoke can cause high-temperature explosions, and with the Grandmaster of Forbidden Jutsu's enhancement, the range of the smoke released by Fire Release: Ash Pile Burning is even more extensive.)]
This is Sarutobi Hiruzen's family ninjutsu.
These rewards, however, were somewhat trivial for Kagura; their only use was to be combined to create more terrifying composite ninjutsu, such as combining Ash Pile Burning with Dust Release to strike enemies silently and unnoticed.
However...
This was an extremely awkward time.
If any significant movements were made in the ninja world, relying on power to push through the ninja world, it would easily alert and draw the attention of Black Zetzu.
If Kagura still wanted Black Zetzu to be his superior, he would have to be careful not to reveal too much, as Black Zetzu's support was crucially needed.
In this situation, if Kagura wanted to become stronger, he could only help other superiors with minor tasks, which might still enhance his strength, and there might even be a chance for a major breakthrough.
"Alright."
Kagura glanced at Orochimaru and continued, "Let the Third Hokage calm down a bit first, then we'll proceed to the next step..."
"Hm? What next step?"
Orochimaru and Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at each other, their expressions changing.
Sarutobi Hiruzen was shocked to see Orochimaru and Kagura, wondering if they had any other unknown plans, suspecting they might have other ideas.
Orochimaru looked at Kagura in shock, as he also didn't know their plans, thinking there was only one plan to destroy Konoha.
"Do you remember your promise?"
Kagura said to Orochimaru, softly, "Lord Orochimaru, you did say you would lend me the Manda for a bit..."
"What do you need the Manda for?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen furrowed his brows.
He knew the Manda, the evil summoning beast of Orochimaru, who, along with Jiraiya and Tsunade, were known as the Three Sannin of Konoha, and their summoning beasts had played a significant role.
If the Manda caused chaos in Konoha...
The resulting chaos would be comparable to the Tailed Beast Disturbance!
"Do you need the Manda now?"
Orochimaru's lips curled into a smile, reminding, "If you want the Manda' help, you usually need to prepare a sacrifice for it in advance..."
Orochimaru continued, sharing a thought with his mentor, "Kagura-kun, you wouldn't be planning to create chaos in Konoha with the Manda and then stop it yourself, by any chance? That would increase your chances of becoming the Hokage, wouldn't it?"
"The body of the Manda should be very large, let's find a spacious place."
Kagura glanced at the root base, not picking up Orochimaru's words, casually dismissing White Zetzu Awei: "Awei, go tell Nagato that I have already made Danzo feel the pain, ask him if he is satisfied with my work..."
"Okay."
White Zetzu Awei immediately sank down as he popped up.
"Do you have contact with Nagato?"
Orochimaru looked at Kagura, his eyes clearly more suspicious, "Kagura-kun, you wouldn't have any relationship with the Akatsuki organization, would you? You did mention before that someone from the Akatsuki had contacted you, asking me to join the organization..."
"Just a little insignificant contact."
Kagura did not want to discuss topics that might upset Orochimaru at this time, "You should know, I and brother Nagato are both disciples of Teacher Jiraiya, sometimes we have to help each other out, and I occasionally assist with things he can't handle..."
"Let's go to a spacious place first, let me and Manda have a good talk, we can talk about other things later, the night is still very long…"
~~~
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