Chapter 385: Joining forces with Orochimaru again

Time flies, and half a month has passed in the blink of an eye.

During this half month, the Root Ninja sent by Danzo arrived at the capital where the Daimyo Prefecture was located, and after using the strategy of luring the tiger away from the mountain, they diverted the attention of the guardian ninja.

The Root ninja in Uchiha disguise met the Fire Country Daimyo.

The Daimyo of the Land of Fire is a thin middle-aged man who looks frail and does not have the ability to refine chakra, but in fact the Daimyo of the Land of Fire is also a ninja.

Although the ninja's strength is not as good as the Jonin of Konoha Village, it is at the level of Chunin.

However, this strength was not enough in front of the Root Ninja, and he soon encountered special treatment from the Root Ninja, and he had bad dreams for several nights in a row.

The Fire Country Daimyo also sought help from the Twelve Ninjas, but the Guardian Ninjas couldn't do much.

Although they have the combat power of a jonin level, they are obviously not as good as the Uchiha in terms of attainment in illusion, not to mention that there are many three-magatama jonin among them.

After receiving these reports, Danzo, who was hiding in the shadows, revealed a creepy smile.

In addition, another important piece of news appeared on Danzo's desk, that is, Tsunade returned to the village as a Sannin and agreed to become the elder of the village.

Danzo was not overly surprised to hear the news.

He sent gamblers to tangle with Tsunade only as a delaying tactic to delay Tsunade's return to the village. After half a month of preparation, he was confident that he could become a candidate for the Fifth Hokage.

After reading through all the information, Danzo came to the Hokage Building, ready to attack Jiraiya and Tsunade.

……

In the Hokage's office, Jiraiya, as the interim Hokage, solemnly received Tsunade and proposed the idea of ​​making Tsunade the next Hokage.

Tsunade didn't agree immediately, but she didn't refuse immediately either.

She knew that as long as she asked, she could become the next Hokage of Konoha, but the responsibility of being a Hokage was too heavy, and she did not have the confidence to be a good Hokage.

After careful consideration, Tsunade shook her head to refuse.

"Jiraiya, I am not ready to become a Hokage, nor have I become a qualified ninja. I will leave the position of the Fifth Hokage to you. The most I can do is take over the Konoha Hospital."

After hearing that Tsunade refused to become Hokage, the duo of advisors in the dark were helpless.

With Tsunade's identity and strength, she should have been able to become Hokage long ago, instead of condescending to be the director of Konoha Hospital, which is obviously a waste.

Thinking of this, the two advisors looked at Jiraiya standing aside.

Jiraiya and Tsunade have the same problem. They have already become the acting Hokage. Wouldn't it be better for them to become the fifth Hokage? But they chose to give this position to others.

At this time, Danzo, who had been hiding at the door and eavesdropping for a long time, pushed open the office door.

Danzo glanced at Jiraiya and said bluntly:

"Since Tsunade doesn't want to become Hokage, there's no need for us to make things difficult for her. Besides, even if she becomes Hokage now, she doesn't have the fighting power that a Hokage should have."

Seeing Tsunade frowned, Danzo added:

"Let me ask you in a simpler way. After you have acquired hemophobia, can Tsunade-sama still defeat the elite jonin of the ninja world?"

After hearing this, the faces of the surrounding Konoha high-level officials changed. Tsunade suffered from hemophobia and gave up serving Konoha as a ninja, so she left Konoha Village.

This is the reason why Tsunade left Konohagakure but was not considered a traitor.

Of course, the deeper reason is that Tsunade’s great-grandfather and second-grandfather were the first and second-generation Hokage. As long as Tsunade does not openly oppose Konoha, leaving will always be just leaving, not betrayal.

After being questioned by Danzo for a few questions, Tsunade fell into deep thought.

Although Danzo's words were harsh, they were also true. After suffering from hemophobia, her combat effectiveness declined a lot, and she could only exert about 50% of her strength.

When she meets an ordinary jonin, she can still crush him with her physical fitness and chakra amount, but once she meets an opponent of similar strength, she has no chance of winning at all.

After seeing that his words were effective, Danzo continued:

"Moreover, Tsunade has been away from the village for so long. If she returns rashly now, can she really take over the mess left by Hiruzen?"

After hearing this, Jiraiya was silent for a few seconds.

Danzo was right. It was still unknown how much Tsunade, who had been away from home for many years, knew about the situation in the village. If she couldn't even grasp the situation of the village, there was no way she could change the current bad status quo.

Utane Koharu and Mito Kado En looked at each other and understood what Danzo meant.

Just after the funeral of the Third Hokage, Danzo expressed his desire to become Hokage, but due to lack of nominations, Danzo was not even qualified to run for Hokage.

They thought Danzo had given up on running for Hokage and would just stay as the leader of the Root organization.

Unexpectedly, this time, Danzo actually took the initiative to attack Tsunade and Jiraiya to seize the position of Hokage.

No one has any objection to your running for the Hokage, but aren't you too old? You haven't competed with strong men of the same level for decades. Do you really have the ability to become Hokage?

Thinking of this, Mitomon En took the initiative to speak: "Danzo, you are not going to compete for the position of the Fifth Hokage, are you sure you want to become a rival to Tsunade and Jiraiya?"

Danzo nodded confidently:

"In this situation of internal and external troubles, we must have a steady and mature ninja to become the Hokage. Looking at the entire Konoha Village, besides the two of you, I am the only one."

Faced with Danzo's confident remarks, Mito Kado En and Utane Koharu frowned, and Jiraiya and Tsunade's expressions also changed.

Although they each have different ideologies, none of them want Danzo to become Hokage.

Mitokado En and Utatane Koharu know Danzo too well. After Danzo becomes the Hokage, the entire Hokage Building will become Danzo's one-man show, and the two advisors will lose most of their power.

Jiraiya and Tsunade thought that Danzo was too cold and somewhat inconsistent with the Will of Fire.

After careful consideration, Utatane Koharu said, "Danzo, we have no objection to your running for the position of Hokage, but if you want to become Hokage, you must be nominated."

If you want to become Hokage, you must be nominated by Konoha's high-ranking officials.

Logically speaking, Danzo could also nominate himself, but even if he was qualified to run for Hokage in this way, he would not be able to pass the general jonin conference, so Danzo would not do that.

Apart from Danzo, almost no ninja would nominate Danzo to become Hokage.

After hearing this, Danzo suddenly said: "Of course I was nominated, and it was the Daimyo of the Land of Fire who personally fought for me." Danzo's remarks stunned the ninjas present.

They almost forgot that the Daimyo of the Fire Country has this power. If the Daimyo really supports Danzo to be Hokage, the probability of Danzo becoming Hokage is quite high.

But why would the Daimyo support Danzo instead of Tsunade? Did Danzo attack the Daimyo?
Thinking of this, Mitomon En shook his head and said, "This is impossible. The Daimyo-sama will never propose that you become Hokage."

Danzo saw through the former's thoughts and said calmly: "Why can't the Daimyo nominate me? Yan, you still have some stereotypes. I have been protecting the village all these years and have never slacked off."

After a pause, Danzo said to Jiraiya and Tsunade: "Acting Hokage, hold the Hokage election as soon as possible. I want to take over Hiruzen's mess as soon as possible and correct the mistakes he has made."

"As for whether or not I can become Hokage, I'll leave it to the village's jonin to decide."

With that, Danzo confidently left the Hokage's office, leaving the rest of the group staring at each other.

Gazing at Danzo's departing back, the duo of advisors fell into deep thought. Danzo still loved becoming Hokage, but it was a pity that he could never become Hokage no matter what.

It wasn’t possible before, and it’s not possible now.

Thinking of this, the advisory duo said to Tsunade and Jiraiya: "Danzo is looking for trouble again. I will persuade him to give up competing with you, but you have to work harder too."

After a pause, the two consultants turned to Tsunade and said, "Tsunade, do you really suffer from hemophobia? If so..."

The two didn't dare to continue talking.

Whether it's her status, qualifications, or career as a medical ninja, Tsunade can easily gain the love of the Konoha ninjas.

But these are all plus points for becoming Hokage, not absolute factors.

There is only one absolute factor to become Hokage, and that is to become the strongest ninja in Konoha Village. Otherwise, once an assassination attempt is made, the village will suffer a very serious blow.

Tsunade was silent for a few seconds, then said: "I do suffer from hemophobia. After seeing blood, my strength will drop a lot. But after so many years, I have basically gotten used to this sign."

Tsunade's bluntness left the duo of advisors at a loss for words.

If Tsunade really suffers from hemophobia and is unable to display the strength of a Sannin, then she really cannot become the Fifth Hokage. At best, she can only be the director of Konoha Hospital.

Thinking of this, the two advisors looked at Jiraiya, wanting to get an answer from him.

After all, it was Jiraiya who came up with the idea of ​​inviting Tsunade to return and become Hokage, so naturally it was Jiraiya who should be the one to solve it.

Jiraiya glanced at Tsunade, and then said: "I will help Tsunade overcome her fear of blood. If you encounter an enemy that you cannot deal with, you can let me deal with it. I will solve these troubles for Tsunade."

Tsunade rolled her eyes, walked over to Jiraiya and said:
"Who told you to make the decision without permission? I haven't even told you that I want to run for Hokage. Letting Danzo become Hokage is not a bad thing."

After a pause, Tsunade continued: "However, I will still participate in the Hokage election, not to become Hokage, but to protect Konoha left by my great grandfather and second grandfather."

After hearing Tsunade's decision, the advisory duo and Jiraiya breathed a sigh of relief.

If Tsunade insisted on not running for the Fifth Hokage, they really couldn't find a more suitable candidate.

As for letting Danzo become Hokage, none of them wanted to take such a huge risk.

At this moment, Danzo, who was leaving the Hokage building, suddenly stopped, looked towards the Hokage's office, and showed a meaningful expression.

He knew that Jiraiya, Tsunade, and the advisory duo would be against him becoming Hokage.

In this case, we can't blame him for using some means. Everyone's original intention is to protect Konoha, so it is natural to clear the opponents in front of Konoha.

Several days later, Danzo secretly contacted Orochimaru.

Last time, he and Orochimaru teamed up to carry out the Konoha Collapse Plan, which eliminated the old and immortal Third Hokage, creating a vacuum in Konoha's highest power and giving him the opportunity to run for Hokage.

The next step is to take action against Tsunade and Jiraiya.

If a jonin conference was really held, it would be impossible for him to win the Hokage vote over Tsunade and Jiraiya. Unlike himself, Tsunade and Jiraiya had both dominated the battlefield before.

While becoming battlefield commanders, they also conquered many Konoha ninjas and possessed great fame and reputation. As early as more than a decade ago, they were popular ninjas running for the position of Hokage.

As for Shimura Danzo, except for the jonin and a few chunins, his presence is not even as strong as that of the jonin team.

So, on the one hand, he would spread the news that Tsunade suffered from hemophobia, and on the other hand, he would join forces with Orochimaru to prevent Tsunade and Jiraiya from participating in the Hokage election.

If only Tsunade and Jiraiya had not participated in the competition, he would have easily become Hokage.

……

In less than half a day, Danzo contacted Orochimaru, who was in the Forest of Death at the time. He was observing Kabuto Yakushi. This was their fifth meeting.

After finding Orochimaru, Danzo took his confidants to find Orochimaru.

After asking Shisui and others to wait on the side, Danzo came to Orochimaru and observed Kabuto Yakushi in the distance with Orochimaru.

Danzo was no stranger to the Root Ninja Kabuto Yakushi.

Yakushi Kabuto is a root elite he discovered personally, and he is also the adopted son of his former right-hand man Yakushi Nono. Back then, he designed to let the two kill each other, so that one of them would lose its ties and completely become a tool in his hands.

As a result, an accident occurred in Iwagakure Village during the implementation process.

Ōnoki of the Iwagakure Village fought a battle with a mysterious ninja, which accidentally affected Kabuto Yakushi and Nono.

Nono died in the aftermath of the battle, and Kabuto Yakushi returned to the Root organization with this news. Danzo was a little surprised at the time, but after confirming through other channels that Nono was dead, he sent Kabuto Yakushi to the Ninja School.

He had paid little attention to Kabuto Yakushi over the years, but he didn't expect that he was being targeted by Orochimaru.

Recovering his gradually scattered thoughts, Danzo said to Orochimaru: "Orochimaru, are you interested in Kabuto Yakushi? If you like, I can give him to you."

Orochimaru did not respond directly to Danzo, but asked: "Why don't you tell me why you are here? I remember that our cooperation just ended not long ago. What do you want to do this time?"

Danzo didn't waste any time and continued, "In a week, the village will hold a Hokage election. I need you to delay Tsunade and Jiraiya and assist me in becoming Hokage."

"Let you become Hokage?"

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes slightly, then felt something from Danzo, and said: "Jiraiya and Tsunade are my friends, I will not attack them easily."

(End of this chapter)