Fleeing from Konoha

The Daimyo of the Land of Wind was once threatened by the debt collectors of the Land of Demons, so the guards around the Daimyos of the Five Great Nations have now increased their power several times over.

Even if the Gold Debt Collector from the guild is sent over this time, it is estimated that they will face defeat there.

As for the arrangements on the side of the Land of Fire, Ichihime can roughly guess.

Once these merchants actually take control of the Land of Waves, the Land of Fire will then attack the Land of Waves in the name of ’justice.’ At that time, not only will it acquire all the territory and population of the Land of Waves, but it will also seize the merchants’ huge assets.

If it were her, she would also choose to do this.

Now, those who are jumping around on the table are just pawns used to confuse others; the true mastermind behind the scenes is likely the Daimyo of the Land of Fire.

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Land of Fire, Daimyo’s Mansion.

In a picturesque manor, Danzo and the Daimyo of the Land of Fire sat face to face, with a chessboard placed between them.

"Checkmate, Elder Danzo."

With the final move, the Daimyo of the Land of Fire half-covered his face with a folding fan, his eyes slightly narrowed, appearing very pleased.

"Sigh..."

Danzo looked at the already lost chess game, sighed, and then smiled: "Lord Daimyo’s chess skills are becoming more refined. So, the moves before were all traps, huh?"

The Daimyo of the Land of Fire removed the folding fan and laughed: "Ah, that was just good luck. Elder Danzo is too modest."

"Perhaps."

Danzo wasn’t bothered by this, merely responded indifferently.

The Daimyo of the Land of Fire didn’t say much either; compared to their upcoming plans, the victory or defeat on the chessboard was merely a way to pass the time.

"Speaking of which, it’s been a long time since I’ve played chess with you, Danzo. When I first took over, it was you, me, and Hiruzen... Time truly spares no one."

The Daimyo of the Land of Fire used an informal address for an old friend instead of a formal one, nostalgically recalling the past.

"Hiruzen has grown old."

Danzo didn’t even lift an eyelid.

"But because of him, the situation of each family in Konoha has been stabilized. In the past, with Lord Hashirama and Lord Fujima around... but Madara’s rebellion triggered the First Shinobi World War suddenly, and after that, the situation began to change."

The Daimyo of the Land of Fire smiled bitterly.

Honestly, he has held a big grudge against the Land of Lightning.

A well-functioning Konoha fell into turmoil because Second Hokage Senju Tobirama was unfortunately killed, causing problems in the balance system of Konoha Village’s families.

The Uchiha Clan was the most prominent among them.

Although not the actual ruler of Konoha, Hiruzen had frequently requested his financial support, and without questioning, he granted Konoha a large sum for its development.

That was actually to stabilize the balance among Konoha’s families.

Fortunately, the Yamanaka, Nara, and Akimichi Ninja Clans firmly supported the Hokage Faction, and the Nara Clan ninja’s management skills were generally excellent, assisting the still inexperienced Hiruzen, coupled with his financial support, narrowly stabilized Konoha’s situation.

Danzo then became part of the Root, used to restrain the Uchiha Clan.

However, none of this should have happened.

It all traces back to the First Shinobi World War.

The Hidden Cloud, planning to sign a ceasefire agreement with Konoha, had Hidden Cloud Jonin Kinkaku and Ginkaku dissatisfied with the end of the war, attacked the venue, killing the Second Raikage of Hidden Cloud on the spot, and then pursued the Second Hokage Senju Tobirama, resulting in the Second Hokage’s sacrifice.

This also caused many decisions from the previous Hokage to be beyond Hiruzen’s ability to execute, forcing him to abandon some in favor of a balanced policy.

Thus, he has always held a grudge against the Land of Lightning to this day.

If Hidden Cloud hadn’t gone back on their word, the Second Hokage would not have died in such a humiliating manner.

Although the Land of Lightning made compensations later, giving much face to the Land of Fire, it left the Daimyo of the Land of Fire with a great knot in his heart, which he could never untangle.

In his view, no amount of compensation is enough to exchange for the Second Hokage Senju Tobirama.

It’s said that a thousand soldiers are easier to obtain than one general; in his view, Senju Tobirama would have made the Land of Fire significantly surpass the other four nations and dominate the Ninja Realm.

Senju Hashirama excelled in strength, Senju Tobirama in political skill, and innovations that dared to challenge conventional thinking. Indeed, every decision made by Tobirama benefited the Land of Fire and Konoha.

This has always been the regret of the Daimyo of the Land of Fire.

"Hiruzen hoped I would establish the Root, imitating Teacher Tobirama’s light and dark, while simultaneously regulating Konoha. Unfortunately, it was his own lack of capability and courage to harness my kind of darkness that allowed the Root to grow to this extent."

Danzo spoke candidly.

In front of this similarly aged elder, he need not pretend.

Indeed, even if the Third Hokage Hiruzen himself were present, Danzo would still speak frankly.

"True, your darkness at Konoha is likely beyond anyone’s control. Well, perhaps, there’s still Lord Hashirama’s granddaughter."

The Daimyo of the Land of Fire hinted.

In Danzo’s view, this isn’t sowing discord, but rather a warning.

Currently, both the Land of Fire and Konoha are in difficult positions; don’t do something that will hurt your friends and please your enemies.

Although assassinating Tsunade would indeed greatly aid Danzo,

it would also leave a massive internal threat within Konoha.