Sarutobi Hiruzen was startled by the sudden intrusion of the jonin, especially by the report he delivered. His hand trembled, causing the smoking pipe to fall onto the desk, and he even forgot to turn off the Telescope Technique in front of him!!
So...
"Ahem!!" The Anbu jonin immediately averted his gaze, pretending not to have seen anything, and repeated, "The news from Iwagakure—the Tsuchikage is leading a large force to pressure Kirigakure's border."
Damn, he just saw his superior's secret. Would he suddenly "die in the line of duty" for the village??
Though the Anbu jonin's face remained expressionless, he was panicking inside!!
According to his seniors, many Anbu predecessors had mysteriously disappeared, and they all had one thing in common...
They had barged into the Hokage Building!!
Could it be that they had all seen the Hokage's secrets??
No, no, the Hokage would never do such a thing. He was just inspecting Konoha's security. The Hokage was righteous, the Hokage was honorable!!
"Hmm!!" Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded expressionlessly, casually turning off the crystal ball. Then, he picked up the smoking pipe that had fallen onto the desk and said sternly, "Do we know the reason yet?"
Seeing that the Hokage did not reprimand him, the Anbu jonin inwardly sighed in relief and replied seriously, "Not yet. The Anbu are investigating the cause with full effort."
In that case...
Hearing the Anbu's words, Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned, took a puff from his pipe, and said, "Investigate the cause with full effort. At this critical moment, no unexpected incidents can be allowed. Also, tell Danzo to come running to the Hokage Building for a meeting."
He waved his hand, dismissing the Anbu.
"Yes!!"
The Anbu jonin acknowledged and respectfully retreated.
Once the office door closed, Sarutobi Hiruzen also sighed in relief. Fortunately, it was an Anbu member who saw it. The Anbu were the Hokage's direct subordinates—tight-lipped.
If it had been some gossipy ninja, how could he continue as Hokage??
By the next day, the whole village would know about the Hokage's peeping habits!!
And to be caught spying on the women's bathhouse!! Danzo would probably be laughing in the shadows while the Hokage Building got smashed!!
Even the Hokage had a reputation to uphold!!
"What is that Tsuchikage trying to do??" Sarutobi Hiruzen muttered with a frown. "The war is about to end. What is Ōnoki trying to stir up now?"
With his body wrapped in bandages, practically a level-ten disabled person, why is he still causing trouble everywhere??
Is it because he hasn't had any limbs amputated yet??
"Or..." Suddenly, Sarutobi Hiruzen seemed to realize something. "Has something unexpected happened in Kirigakure??"
A defeat in the Land of Whirlpools battlefield??
So the Tsuchikage is trying to take advantage of the situation? Otherwise, why would these four villages, who had already agreed on how to divide the spoils, start infighting before the cake was even baked?
Sarutobi Hiruzen had long known about the four villages' plans. Wasn't it because they lacked Uzumaki clansmen and sealing techniques, leaving them without jinchūriki? That was also why he hadn't stopped them.
Peace, peace!!
How could there be peace without equal strength? This was also the philosophy left behind by Lord Hashirama!!
But sealing techniques...
They could take those. The Uzumaki Clan, however, was off-limits. No matter what, the Uzumaki Clan was Konoha's ally. They would not stand by and watch the Uzumaki Clan be exterminated—even if only one person remained.
And the Land of Whirlpools' wealth...
Belonged to the Uzumaki Clan. No one else had the right or the ability to take it!!
Including Konoha!!
"Anbu!!" Sarutobi Hiruzen took a puff of his pipe and called out loudly.
"Hokage-sama!" A masked man immediately entered.
"Ask the commander on the Land of Whirlpools battlefield about the current situation there."
"Yes!!"
...
Because the war had reached a stalemate, the ninjas in the Land of Whirlpools had done nothing beyond continuing to monitor Kirigakure's movements.
And Uzumaki Jun was even more bored!!
As the heir of the Land of Whirlpools and its current commander, such trivial matters didn't require his attention. Besides...
In a few days, once news of Iwagakure's advance into the Land of Water spread, Hōzuki Gengetsu would be hopping mad. After all, the Land of Whirlpools wasn't the main issue—he could always join forces with the other villages to deal with it later.
But the Land of Earth was a different story!!
If Ōnoki, that bandaged freak, broke through Kirigakure's defensive lines in the Land of Earth, it wouldn't just be a matter of him resigning as Mizukage. The Land of Water's daimyo would force him to commit seppuku on the spot!!
So Hōzuki Gengetsu would definitely agree to the Land of Whirlpools' terms immediately and rush to the Land of Earth's battlefield.
As for how he would get there without ships...
That wasn't Uzumaki Jun's problem. Besides, since they were near the Land of Fire, Hōzuki Gengetsu would probably have to ask the Hokage for passage. But given how Konoha had backstabbed Kirigakure...
Well, that wasn't something a child like him could solve!
He was just a kid!! He knew nothing, and his heart was full of gratitude for Konoha's support!!
"War is truly cruel!" Uzumaki Jun sighed.
"Jun!" The clan head walked over and asked, "What should we do about the citizens in the underground tunnels now?"
"Hmm..." Uzumaki Jun pondered for a moment before replying, "It's still not time. There's nowhere to house them if they come out now, and if something unexpected happens, retreating might be too late."
"So wait a few more days—just a few more days. Kirigakure will come to us on their own."
"I see." The clan head nodded with a smile. "Your uncle is just worried about Kushina. It's been so long since he last saw her. That girl must be getting impatient by now."
"Haha!" At the mention of Kushina, Uzumaki Jun also smiled. He had changed the fate of the Land of Whirlpools, changed Kushina's fate!!
As for what would happen to Minato or Naruto...
That wasn't his concern.
Naruto's philosophy of "If everyone just shows a little love, the world will become a better place" had long been proven unworkable. Better not waste time on it.
And who would deal with Kaguya??
Uzumaki Jun wasn't worried. Between the hidden powerhouses and him, the transmigrator, it wouldn't take more than a few years to subdue Kaguya in eighteen different ways and become the "Father of the Six Paths."
Besides...
Sealing the alien again??
That wasn't a viable solution!! Only by standing on equal footing in strength and status could negotiations happen. Otherwise, who knew how big the Ōtsutsuki Clan was? There was a traitor in the Ōtsutsuki Clan, yet instead of building a good relationship and gathering intel, they just wanted to seal her away. What a waste.
Of course, all of this was predicated on having comparable strength.
No point thinking about it now. After all, there was still a lunatic impure-blooded Ōtsutsuki on the moon!!
Who knows, the butterfly effect of a transmigrator might make them want to destroy Earth even sooner.
So...
The Ōtsutsuki main family was full of lunatics!!
How terrifying!!