Chapter 58: The Daimyo is Assassinated

"Lord Hokage, we have just received a decision letter from the Daimyo of the Land of Fire."

"Read it."

"The Daimyo has suddenly decided to postpone the funding for the village."

"How could this happen?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes widened abruptly, and he asked in confusion, "Wasn't it agreed that five billion yen would be allocated? Why would it be postponed suddenly?"

The game auction is about to begin,

and this funding is absolutely vital; it determines whether they can purchase the precious Resource Map and Family Token.

The reason he had not pressured the various Clan Heads too much before was precisely because he had the strong backing of the Land of Fire.

With the five billion yen allocation,

plus the substantial wealth accumulated by the Sarutobi clan over these years, they would at least be able to win one of the items—the Resource Map or the Family Token—at auction.

He knew very well

that the various ninja clan heads were secretly communicating in private, wanting to pool their funds to jointly auction off a Family Token and bypass the village to possess their own private game assets.

When that time comes, even as the exalted Hokage, some of his own decisions would be influenced by them.

Sarutobi Hiruzen did not expose them,

for in the face of the immense temptation of the Samsara Game, it was understandable that even those deeply baptized by the Will of Fire would be swayed by some temptation.

As long as they turned back in time after taking a wrong turn, he would not blame them.

He could just play along with their scheme;

once the Sarutobi clan, supported by the Land of Fire, auctioned off the Family Token, they would be able to occupy an absolute position of power.

By then, even if the ninja clan heads who hadn't contributed had any more ulterior motives, they would be unable to cause harm to the village; instead, they would be even more tightly entwined with the giant tree that is Konoha.

This was the scene Sarutobi Hiruzen wanted to see.

Therefore, the five billion yen allocation from the Daimyo was crucial and could not suffer the slightest mishap.

The Anbu reporting the news said cautiously, "According to our investigation, it may be related to Lord Danzou."

"Danzou!"

Sarutobi Hiruzen's brows furrowed tightly; it seemed he had not expected this matter to involve his old friend.

Could it be that he still hasn't given up on the position of Hokage?

"Is the Daimyo at the assembly hall? I will go see him myself."

Sarutobi Hiruzen changed his clothes, donning a pure white God Robe and the Hokage Hat, heading to see the Daimyo in a very formal manner.

Nominally, the Daimyo's status was higher than his own as Hokage, and besides, one could not be careless when asking for favors.

Soon,

he arrived at the assembly hall where the nobles resided, outside a magnificent manor.

Before he could even walk in, the sound of wind suddenly whistled in his ears.

Clang, clang, clang.

Shuriken landed where Sarutobi Hiruzen had originally been standing, piercing into the ground.

"Who is it? Who dares to take action in Konoha?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen's gaze was calm; he did not fear the attacker in the slightest.

This was Konoha, home to countless Konoha ninja; no matter who the attacker was, it was impossible for them to cause him harm.

A figure dressed like a wandering ninja did not make a sound, simply continuing to launch an attack.

"Not talking?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen keenly sensed that there seemed to be something fishy, but before he could think it through, his rhythm was disrupted by the successive attacks.

The wandering ninja brandished a Kunai, displaying great speed and strength.

A powerful Jiangji broke through the air and struck.

Oh no!

Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyelids twitched; he retreated backward repeatedly and threw a Shuriken.

He formed seals with both hands.

Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!

A single Shuriken rapidly spawned countless shadows, turning into a Shuriken formation like a net from heaven and earth, shooting out.

The wandering ninja's Jiangji landed, creating a wall of burning flames.

"A player?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen's brows furrowed; the fire wall released by the opponent had not a trace of chakra fluctuation—it was definitely a player.

Taking advantage of the obstruction of the fire wall, he saw that player suddenly disappear with a 'poof'.

Shadow Clone.

Meanwhile, those Shuriken pierced through the fire wall, coated in flames, and slammed straight into the manor's building, emitting a deafening sound.

Before Sarutobi Hiruzen could react, a group of people had already appeared.

"Hiruzen, are you trying to attack the assembly hall?"

A middle-aged man dressed in noble attire, with fan-like decorations stuck in the back of his head, walked out of the building and looked at Sarutobi Hiruzen with a stern expression.

"Lord Daimyo, you misunderstand..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen had not yet had time to retract his aura, and he was still holding the hand seals.

But he saw the Guardian Shinobi Twelve beside the Daimyo step forward one after another, blocking the space between him and the Daimyo to prevent him from harming the Daimyo.

The Daimyo's expression was cold as he said, "You wouldn't happen to be trying to say that a wandering ninja snuck into Konoha, which is filled with barriers everywhere, and then intended to attack you, Lord Hokage?"

"It is because..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi, with the words on the tip of his tongue, suddenly stopped and glanced at the Guardian Ninja blocking his path.

The physique of one of the ninja was very similar to the person who had just attacked him.

He looked again at the Daimyo who had appeared so suddenly, and just like a rehearsed script, he immediately understood most of it.

This was a fine play directed by the Daimyo himself to refuse his request for funding.

The Daimyo said with an angry expression, "Hiruzen, you have disappointed me too much. Does Konoha intend to secede from the Land of Fire?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi hurriedly explained, "I have absolutely no such intention!"

The Daimyo's expression softened slightly, and he snorted coldly, "It had better not. You came to see me about the funding, didn't you? I will tell you once I have considered it. You may go back now."

"Yes, Lord Daimyo."

Hiruzen Sarutobi was unwilling, but he had no choice but to leave.

After he left,

Shimura Danzo quietly walked out from the meeting hall and stood respectfully by the Daimyo's side.

The Daimyo glanced at him and said, "Just as you said, he still wanted me to allocate five billion yen to seek a Family Token."

If it hadn't been for Shimura Danzo's warning, he really would have agreed to the funding; after all, five billion yen would hardly be enough to auction for a Family Token and a Resource Map.

But he hadn't expected there to be a full three thousand Sarutobi clan ninja!

It was even enough to establish a new Ninja Village.

The Daimyo was full of anger and asked, "What exactly does Hiruzen Sarutobi want to do? Found a country!"

Shimura Danzo knelt on one knee and said, "This subordinate does not know, but we certainly cannot continue to let this go. I suggest suspending Hiruzen Sarutobi from his position as Hokage."

Hearing this, the Daimyo shook his head slightly and said, "The Chunin Exams are imminent; do not create any more trouble."

Shimura Danzo was slightly disappointed.

He had originally thought that by taking advantage of this momentum, he could directly topple Hiruzen Sarutobi and legitimately sit in the Hokage's seat, but he hadn't expected the Daimyo to still have reservations.

But that was fine too.

The Daimyo had already noticed Hiruzen Sarutobi's private army and would likely never trust him as he once did; he finally had a chance.

"Just you wait, Hiruzen. I will definitely become Hokage!"

Shimura Danzo revealed a cold, sinister smile. Thanks to Orochimaru's information, otherwise he would still have been kept in the dark about Sarutobi secretly raising ninja in the Land of Fire.

Those were not the village's ninja at all, but all members of the Sarutobi clan in the Land of Fire, who were previously only regarded as commoners.

The Ino-Shika-Cho clans must have known, but they had always been loyal to the Sarutobi clan and had actually concealed it without reporting it.

Once he became Hokage, he would severely discipline these disobedient Ninja Clans and forge Konoha into an iron fortress.

The cowardly Hiruzen Sarutobi was only fit for retirement.

(End of this chapter)