Danzo Shimura fell silent. Conquering Sunagakure indeed offered no benefits.
"Not only would it not benefit Konoha, but it would also cost many Ninja lives in the process of attacking Sunagakure. And once Konoha successfully conquers Sunagakure, it would create an opportunity for Kumogakure, Hidden Mist, and Iwagakure to unite."
Hiruzen Sarutobi lit the tobacco in his pipe, took a deep puff, and exhaled smoke. "In summary, attacking Sunagakure would not only fail to benefit Konoha but would also bring crisis to Konoha."
Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado nodded thoughtfully, agreeing with Hiruzen Sarutobi's idea.
Danzo Shimura sat down, having to admit that Hiruzen Sarutobi made sense, but he was still a bit unwilling to simply form an alliance with Sunagakure.
Hotel.
Chiyo sat on the tatami, sensing the ANBU Ninja watching the hotel nearby. To gather intelligence without being discovered, she would need to use puppets.
Chiyo disguised a puppet as herself to stay in the hotel, deceiving the ANBU Ninja. She quietly left the hotel, disguised as an ordinary middle-aged woman who had just arrived in Konoha, and gathered information by chatting with others.
She hadn't forgotten the mission the Third Kazekage had given her: to figure out the relationship between Konoha and Kumogakure.
Konoha and Kumogakure aren't allies? And they're not cooperating either?
How is that possible?
In the evening, Chiyo returned to the hotel and put away the puppet disguised as herself.
Based on the collected intelligence, it was confirmed that Konoha and Kumogakure were not allies. As for whether they were secretly cooperating with Kumogakure, that remained a question mark.
Besides that, she also gathered some rumors about the Assistant Hokage, Danzo Shimura.
Why do so many people call Danzo Shimura the "Midnight Guardian God"?
Chiyo thought of the effects of shimura herbal tea and couldn't help but blush, thinking that Danzo Shimura, who appeared so serious on the surface, was actually an old pervert.
"Achoo! Achoo! Achoo—!"
At the same time, Danzo Shimura, who was processing documents and reports in the Root base, sneezed several times in a row, reached out, and slapped the night light, which was a bowing Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Looking at the documents and reports on his desk, one slap wasn't enough to vent his frustration, so he slapped it several more times, causing the night light to flicker on and off.
The Root Ninja standing behind Danzo Shimura maintained a normal expression, staring straight ahead as if nothing had happened.
Spiral Tower, top floor.
"Lord Mito, if Sunagakure cannot provide money and supplies to exchange for the One-Tail Jinchuriki, should we return the One-Tail Jinchuriki to Sunagakure?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi was truly indecisive, which is why he sought out Uzumaki Mito to ask about this matter. The One-Tail Jinchuriki was, after all, a hidden danger in Konoha.
And once Chiyo returned to Sunagakure, it meant that the time for Konoha and Sunagakure to discuss forming an alliance was not far off.
"You are the Hokage. Asking me such a question, it's difficult for me to give an answer."
Uzumaki Mito had gone to chat with Bunbuku yesterday. During their casual conversation, the shouting match between the Nine-Tailed and Ichibi, which she had slightly loosened her suppression on, truly opened her eyes. It was the first time in her life she had witnessed Tailed Beasts arguing.
She also learned that the Nine-Tailed originally believed the Tailed Beast with the most tails was the strongest, and Ichibi, with only one tail, naturally had a certain attitude towards the Nine-Tailed. If they couldn't come out of their bodies, a battle between the Nine-Tailed and Ichibi might have ensued.
"Do as you think best."
Uzumaki Mito couldn't answer Hiruzen Sarutobi's question, nor did she want to. She turned and walked down the stairs.
"Grandma, did Uncle Hiruzen come to see you about something important?"
"No, he just came to chat with Grandma."
Chatting, huh... Hiruzen Sarutobi was precisely indecisive, which is why he wanted Lord Mito to help him make a decision.
At night, the area around Orochimaru's house was quiet, and the lake in the training ground reflected the bright moonlight.
After dinner, Orochimaru wanted to try creating a Truth-Seeking Orb for the first time in a while. Since the idea of creating a Truth-Seeking Orb first arose, she had never given up and had made many attempts over the years.
Unfortunately, each attempt ended in failure.
The moon, it looks like an eye... Orochimaru stood on the surface of the lake, looking up at the moon in the night sky.
Suddenly, she thought of the main family of the Ōtsutsuki Hamura descendants living in the underground space of the moon. The Hyuga Clan on Earth is a branch of the Ōtsutsuki Hamura descendants with a bloodline connection.
When thinking of the Ōtsutsuki Hamura descendants, Orochimaru's first thought was the giant Tenseigan formed by merging thousands of Byakugan. The core of that giant Tenseigan seemed to be Ōtsutsuki Hamura's eyes.
The Gedo Statue on the moon was stolen; the Ōtsutsuki Hamura descendants should have discovered it. Would they try to find it?
Let's try... The Yin Seal in Orochimaru's abdomen released Sage Chakra, and she entered Sage Mode. Two pairs of porcelain-white horns grew on either side of her head, and her white snake tail arched up, seemingly not wanting to touch the lake water.
If the Ōtsutsuki Hamura descendants on the moon wanted to search for the Gedo Statue without coming to Earth, they would need to use some kind of large-scale Jutsu.
She wondered if her perception abilities in Sage Mode would be able to detect it.
Orochimaru tried to sense something and, in the moonlight, detected an extremely faint Chakra.
So that's it, this is how they scout the ground?
Indeed, the Ōtsutsuki Hamura descendants on the moon have already discovered the stolen Gedo Statue and have begun searching for it... I remember these guys supposedly had their eyes removed at birth and merged into that giant Tenseigan.
Does that mean they are using the giant Tenseigan to search for the Gedo Statue?
No, there shouldn't be a giant Tenseigan yet... The giant Tenseigan only appeared after the Branch Family eliminated the Main Family.
The Ōtsutsuki Hamura descendants' main family on the moon, just like the Hyuga Clan on Earth, was also divided into Main Family and Branch Family. The difference was that they had different interpretations of Ōtsutsuki Hamura's last words.
The Main Family believed their ancestor's last words instructed them to protect the world created by the Six Paths Sage.
The Branch Family, however, believed their ancestor's last words instructed them to guard the world created by the Six Paths Sage. They were the guardians of this world, replacing Hamura, the Six Paths Sage's younger brother.
If the world created by the Six Paths Sage was a failure, they should destroy the failed world and create a new one.
The result was that Ōtsutsuki Toneri, the last descendant of Ōtsutsuki Hamura on the moon, was thoroughly misled. After his father, who he depended on, passed away when he was young, he grew up alone, and his personality also developed issues.
And the reason for the chaos among the Ōtsutsuki Hamura descendants on the moon is very likely because Uchiha Madara, that old geezer, awakened his Rinnegan and summoned the Gedo Statue to Earth?
It's normal for the Gedo Statue, which had been guarded for a thousand years, to suddenly disappear and cause a commotion. The Main Family and Branch Family would then start arguing about the meaning of their ancestor's last words again. Unable to convince each other, they would fight... Does that mean that Uchiha Madara indirectly caused the Ōtsutsuki Hamura descendants on the moon to be reduced to just one person?
If this were a game, Uchiha Madara, seeing hundreds of assists, would surely be full of question marks and then fall into deep thought?
This also means that, at the current time, both the Main Family and Branch Family of the Ōtsutsuki Hamura descendants on the moon are still alive.
Orochimaru suddenly thought of a very important question.
If Ōtsutsuki Kaguya is separated from the Gedo Statue by me, will they come to Earth to kill us?
By then, even the Main Family, who advocate for peace, would likely rush to Earth, right?
Wait, if they've been observing Earth regularly, and haven't even noticed Black Zetsu, that troublemaker, it's a bit… They've been watching the entire time from the Warring States Period to the First, Second, and Third Shinobi World Wars… Aren't they just spectators on the moon?
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them dark voyeurs on the moon.
The Gedo Statue was lost, and no one was sent to search for it. Was scanning it a few times enough?
It seems they know nothing about the Ninja World's affairs.
Orochimaru had just been worried that if she rashly separated Ōtsutsuki Kaguya from the Gedo Statue, the main family, descendants of Otsutsuki Hamura on the moon, might come knocking.
But then she thought of them as a bunch of dark voyeurs who do nothing, and she stopped worrying entirely.
Forget it, I won't think about these things anymore.
Orochimaru calmed herself, extended both hands, and attempted to create a Truth-Seeking Orb.
Using Yin Release for shaping, Yang Release for stability, and the five Chakra nature transformations condensed within the Yin Release Chakra and Yang Release Chakra, pushing the nature and shape transformation of Chakra to their limits!
A sphere, only the size of a pinky fingernail, floated in Orochimaru's palm. The colors of the seven Chakra nature transformations—Yin, Yang, and the five elements—appeared one by one, finally merging into a deep black.
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