A few days later, Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others returned to Konoha.
After learning that Uchiha Izuna had been missing for many days without any news, everyone already understood in their hearts that their teacher had likely gone and never returned this time.
The group immediately reported the intelligence they had gathered to the only two remaining elders of Konoha: Mito Uzumaki and Watanabe Hinata.
At first, Konoha's higher-ups planned to temporarily suppress the news of Izuna's death in order to stabilize morale.
But over in Kumogakure, the news that the Second Raikage and the Fourth Hokage had both been assassinated had already spread. Konoha could no longer keep it hidden on its own.
After a brief discussion, Mito Uzumaki and Watanabe Hinata quickly decided to publicly announce the bad news of the Fourth Hokage's assassination while also beginning talks about the next Hokage candidate.
Inside a secret room, the two sat facing each other as they discussed matters.
Watanabe Hinata spoke first, "Before his death, the Fourth believed Danzo could shoulder great responsibility. How about letting Danzo succeed him as Hokage?"
As the widow of Hashirama Senju and the holder of the Nine Tails, Konoha's strongest military power, Mito Uzumaki held an extremely important position within the village. The moment she heard that, she shook her head and rejected it.
"No. Danzo absolutely cannot bear such responsibility. I possess the ability to sense the good and evil in people's hearts. I can clearly tell that his nature is twisted. He is not worthy of sitting in the Hokage's seat."
Watanabe Hinata slowly nodded after hearing that.
He represented the stance of Konoha's major noble clans, while Danzo had always excluded the aristocratic class and looked down on the interests of the great clans.
If Danzo became Hokage, he would definitely make moves against those old noble families in the future. That was something they absolutely could not allow.
"Then what about Sarutobi Hiruzen?"
Watanabe Hinata changed the suggestion.
He himself had once considered competing for the Hokage position too, but he was even older than Izuna and had long since lost the desire to fight for it. He could only choose someone else.
Mito Uzumaki pondered for a moment before reluctantly nodding.
"Hiruzen... that child is still acceptable."
There really were no better options now.
Neither the Senju clan nor the Uchiha clan had produced a younger generation capable of carrying such responsibility.
Whether it was Uchiha Hikaku, Uchiha Setsuna, or Uchiha Jiri, none of them possessed the temperament, vision, or capacity needed to lead Konoha and succeed as Hokage.
The descendants on the Senju side were even worse, all mediocre people who amounted to neither this nor that.
"Notify the daimyo, the heads of every major clan, and Sarutobi Hiruzen to come here."
"Though Hiruzen is still young, with the two of us fully assisting him from the side, nothing too chaotic should happen."
Mito Uzumaki spoke in a deep voice, then slowly nodded.
After hearing this, Watanabe Hinata immediately nodded as well, completely agreeing with the decision.
Not long afterward, the news that Sarutobi Hiruzen would inherit the position of Fifth Hokage was intentionally or unintentionally leaked out and gradually spread among Konoha's upper ranks.
The instant Danzo Shimura heard the news, his heart shook violently, filled with disbelief.
He kept comforting himself over and over, insisting that it was nothing but baseless rumors.
But deep down, he understood clearly that the only people in Konoha qualified to compete for the Hokage position had always been himself and Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Moreover, a few days ago, Mito Uzumaki had personally visited the Sarutobi clan compound. That action alone had already made the final result obvious.
Thinking of this, Danzo suddenly clenched his fists tightly. His knuckles turned pale from excessive force as intense unwillingness and anger churned wildly in his chest.
"If Teacher Izuna were still alive and personally choosing the successor, the one he would pick would definitely be me, Danzo!"
"But now the person holding the authority to decide the Hokage is Mito Uzumaki!"
"What is she? She's the wife of that great traitor Hashirama Senju!"
"How could she possibly hand the Hokage position to me!"
The resentment in his heart refused to settle, but at that moment, Danzo's gaze suddenly landed on the two large characters hanging on the wall.
———
"Endurance"
Back then, when he had asked the First Hokage for the secret to success, these were the words personally gifted to him by the First Hokage.
"That's right. I still have a chance..."
Danzo took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the surging negative emotions in his heart.
Besides, Sarutobi Hiruzen was his closest friend since childhood. He would definitely never harm him and would instead entrust him with important responsibilities.
At that time, he could imitate what Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha had done in the past. Perhaps in just a few years, Sarutobi Hiruzen would voluntarily step down like the First Hokage and hand the Hokage position over to him.
———
[Northern Ninja World]
Inside a deep and secluded cave, Uchiha Izuna lay quietly on a flat stone bed, faint traces of Hashirama cells surrounding his body.
After an unknown amount of time, Izuna's fingertips twitched slightly, and he slowly opened his eyes.
The first thing he saw were two familiar figures. His expression instantly changed, and he abruptly pushed himself up, crying out in shock, "Big Brother!? Tobirama?!"
Madara Uchiha and Tobirama Senju were sitting on stone chairs nearby. Seeing this, both turned their heads toward the finally awakened Uchiha Izuna.
Madara Uchiha revealed a slight smile. As long as Izuna was fine, that was enough.
"How are you two here? Weren't you in Konoha? Why did you leave the village? And... where exactly is this place?"
Izuna's tone was full of urgency and confusion as he kept questioning them.
One of the people before him was his blood-related older brother, while the other was a friend he had known since childhood.
Tobirama Senju raised his eyes and slowly spoke in an indifferent tone.
"This is the gap between the underworld and reality..."
Before he could finish, Madara Uchiha's face darkened.
"That's enough, Tobirama. Izuna, this is a hidden cave in the far north of the ninja world. Tobirama and I call this place the Graveyard of the Mountains."
"Big Brother, why exactly did you leave Konoha?"
Izuna immediately pressed further. The moment the words left his mouth...
He suddenly frowned slightly and subconsciously closed his eyes to sense things for a moment. When he opened them again, his eyes were filled with surprise.
"Wait, the discomfort in my Mangekyo Sharingan... why is it gone?"
Izuna looked around the cave. He only felt that the chakra flowing through his body carried an inexplicably familiar feeling, while the soreness and exhaustion in his eyes caused by using the Mangekyo had completely disappeared.
"I injected the cells of my elder brother, Hashirama Senju, into your body. It's that power that eased the burden on your eyes, which is why your Mangekyo's condition improved."
"Fortunately, your physique is special enough that you forcibly endured the erosion of my brother's cells. That's the only reason you managed to survive."
Tobirama Senju calmly explained the reason.
Uchiha Izuna muttered softly, realization filling his tone.
"No wonder... no wonder the chakra felt so familiar..."
Before he could think further, Madara Uchiha's voice rang out again.
"Tobirama and I left Konoha because we're going to take another path and completely unify the entire ninja world in our own way."
The moment he heard this, Izuna's brows instantly tightened. Looking at his older brother, his tone carried helplessness and persuasion.
"Big Brother, why are you still so stubborn? Even Great-Grandfather was unwilling to touch this ambition back then. Why can't you let it go? Why risk being completely destroyed just to do something impossible?"