And for the election of the Fifth Hokage, since Orochimaru has defected, it now only comes down to two people.
The other two of the Sannin, Jiraiya and Tsunade.
The issue is, Jiraiya is currently in the hands of the Land of Demons, strictly guarded by elite Jonin from the Uzumaki Clan and Hyuga Clan sent by him.
Furthermore, a Multiple Sealing Jutsu was used to weaken his power to that of an ordinary person.
Let alone rescue, any would-be rescuer would end up getting trapped along with him.
Ayane suddenly realized.
"I see, that's why you didn't kill Jiraiya? To use him as a bargaining chip with Konoha?"
"For Konoha, Jiraiya is more valuable alive. Even if the Third Hokage is hostile to us, he cannot ignore Jiraiya's safety. A lack of successors is a village leader's greatest sorrow and could lead to the collapse of the village."
Hakushi replied.
"I thought Kakashi might become the Fifth Hokage."
Ayane muttered softly.
"No, although Kakashi has the ability and the time... But the incident with Sakumo has always been a thorn in the hearts of the higher-ups. Even if Kakashi doesn't care, the Konoha leadership must consider these factors carefully."
Hakushi also considered this matter, but upon reflection, it seemed unrealistic. Kakashi had the strength, but not the prestige. Although he had established himself in the Anbu, he was not yet a core figure, far less intimate than someone like Jiraiya who was personally cultivated from a young age.
"And it's not just that, after Ruri goes to Konoha to claim the Uchiha Clan's legacy, Konoha certainly won't agree, and it's difficult for us to use force to coerce Konoha. As a condition for returning Jiraiya and other Konoha Jonin captives, Konoha must pay us two compensations. One, remove the bounty on us, otherwise, we'll be at a disadvantage in the Five Kage Summit. The other is to reclaim the Uchiha Clan's legacy without Konoha's interference."
Hakushi stated the two compensations Konoha must provide.
"I feel like they won't agree easily."
In any case, both compensations are quite excessive.
"The martial faction led by Root won't agree easily, but... the Third Hokage will definitely agree because he needs a successor urgently. If he doesn't get Jiraiya back, he'll lose not only a successor but also Tsunade's trust. As a result, Danzo's power in Konoha will grow, eventually overshadowing the Hokage's authority."
The Third Hokage has no choice.
Even though we killed his son and daughter-in-law, he has to do this for Konoha.
As for the dispute with Root, that's an internal matter for Konoha and unrelated to the Land of Demons.
"Speaking of which, there are still a group of young children from the Uchiha Clan who survived. When I returned to the base to guard, I discovered a group of Uchiha children who escaped the massacre, secretly arranged there. Was it you or Ruri who did it secretly?"
Ayane asked.
Hakushi heard about this and sighed helplessly, saying, "Unfortunately, it was neither of us."
"Huh? I thought it was you and Ruri who arranged it secretly."
"Ruri severed connections with the Uchiha Clan of Konoha early on. When the massacre happened, everything was too sudden to take any action. Kakashi couldn't obtain much information either, as the task of monitoring the Uchiha Clan was handed over to Danzo's Root. Kakashi's identity was unsuitable for involvement in such a sensitive matter. As for Uchiha Itachi's massacre... the reasons behind it are worth pondering."
Hakushi pondered for a moment.
There are too many unreasonable parts to this.
How could a thirteen-year-old child accomplish such feats overnight?
Moreover, according to Kakashi's subsequent reports, the Uchiha massacre wasn't discovered until dawn the next day... this is too strange.
If the Konoha Anbu were so negligent, they would have been infiltrated by enemies long ago.
There are many horrifying things about this upon closer inspection.
Danzo's Root, even the Akatsuki, are manipulating something from behind the scenes... Uchiha Itachi might just be a pawn executing this mission.
An extermination operation as meticulous as the Uchiha Clan massacre was definitely planned long in advance, not a spur-of-the-moment decision.
"So, who brought those children back then..."
Ayane squinted her eyes.
Undoubtedly, giving such orders through the Land of Demons' military authority to spies left in Konoha, even having knowledge of the Uchiha Clan's internal issues ahead of time to rescue these children on the night of the massacre — the range of possible people behind this has become quite narrow.
You could tell with your eyes closed who was behind this.
"Let Ruri investigate this matter herself, she is currently arranging for those Konoha Uchiha children and surely has some idea. We don't need to worry."
No matter where this investigation leads, it eventually points in only one direction. Hakushi believes it's safer to leave it to Ruri to handle.
Ayane nodded, not continuing to question.
"Then I'll go prepare for the pre-work for the Five Kage Summit."
The arrangements for guards, including itinerary issues, need to be prepared in advance.
And it's essential not to place all hope on Konoha; they need to prepare for the worst-case scenario.
"I'm counting on you. By the way, don't give the Land of Wind any breathing room either in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Be as tough as possible; show them a resolute stance that we won't stop until we achieve our goals."