Chapter 68: The Unopposed Danzo, a Smooth and Mundane Restoration

Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura exchanged a glance, a flicker of tacit understanding flashing in their eyes, before standing up to loudly express their agreement.

Utatane Koharu: "Lord Third is deeply righteous; to be willing to come out of retirement once more for the sake of Konoha's stability is truly a blessing for Konoha!"

Mitokado Homura: "I agree with the proposal of Lord Third Hokage. Having Lord Third Hokage reassume the position of Hokage can best bridge the village's divisions and stabilize the overall situation of the war."

Utatane Koharu echoed again: "Lord Third Hokage has governed for twenty years; he is experienced and holds immense prestige. Returning to the position of Hokage will surely soothe the hearts of the people and stabilize order in Konoha."

Shimura Danzo was furious, slamming his hand on the table with a bang: "I..."

Suddenly, he saw the eyes of Sarutobi Hiruzen, and a fear born from his very soul erupted; the opposition and questioning that had reached his lips turned into: "I, I have no objection."

The Sarutobi Hiruzen of early Konoha 49 still possessed four or five parts of the shadow of the "Ninja Hero," enough to intimidate Danzo into acting against his own will.

It is precisely because of this cat-and-mouse relationship that the Third could entrust Danzo with unlimited power!

The Konoha Jonin had overwhelmingly supported Orochimaru, yet under the firm opposition of the Elder Council, a balance of opinion was formed at the assembly.

When Sarutobi Hiruzen stood out, brandishing the prestige he had accumulated over twenty years, he proposed a seemingly compromise-based suggestion.

Everyone was misled by the advantages of the veteran Hokage—his years of governance and his gentle attitude—and passively accepted the proposal for Sarutobi Hiruzen to return to the position of Hokage.

Especially when Sarutobi Hiruzen magnanimously stated that he had already held a ceremony for becoming Hokage and would not hold another one this time, so the saved funds could be used for war expenses.

The Konoha Jonin were completely bewildered, forgetting the step of the Jonin vote entirely, and muddledly accepted the heaven-defying operation of Sarutobi Hiruzen's restoration.

Orochimaru's position as Fifth Hokage was lost.

Half an hour after the meeting ended, Orochimaru, who was over a thousand kilometers away in Sakurahara and in a standoff with the Cloud Hidden Army, received the accurate intelligence.

Although he had anticipated this scene long ago under the reminder of Yamanaka Chujiu, his heart was still filled with unwillingness and anger.

It was not because he had been played again, but because he confirmed that he had lost his teacher.

From today on, there would be no more Teacher Sarutobi, only Lord Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen!

Yamanaka Chujiu saw his teacher's mood and comforted him: "Don't be sad, Teacher Orochimaru. Although you no longer have Teacher Sarutobi, you still have me and Anko as your students."

Orochimaru laughed with an "Oh haha": "You don't need to comfort me. I know that when a relative gets old and changes, they become trash that should be discarded."

"I am not sad!"

Yamanaka Chujiu: "Teacher, if you wipe away your tears, saying that would be more convincing..."

Orochimaru: "Rebellious disciple, shut up!"

Of course, Orochimaru was very sad; he had lost his parents at a young age, and Sarutobi Hiruzen was not just a teacher but also filled the role of a father.

But Orochimaru was not angry at all.

Both he and Yamanaka Chujiu knew that while the Third Hokage's restoration was smooth to the point of being mundane, the backlash that would follow would not disappear.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's restoration did not just harm the interests of Orochimaru and Yamanaka Chujiu.

The four clans led by the Ino-Shika-Cho-Aburame had bet on Minato Namikaze, but as a result, the Fourth Hokage was sidelined by the Third Hokage, and they had accompanied him on the bench for a year.

After the Fourth Hokage sacrificed himself, the four clans used their connection with Yamanaka Chujiu to bet on Orochimaru, and the Third Hokage pulled the rug out from under them, putting Orochimaru on the fire.

The losses of the four clans were so heavy they were simply incalculable; did they have no resentment toward Sarutobi Hiruzen?

The civilian Jonin genuinely accepted the Third Hokage's restoration, but they still had to continue fighting against the Cloud Hidden and Mist Hidden under Orochimaru's command.

Wouldn't the Konoha Jonin feel awkward in their hearts?

When the war ends and Yamanaka Chujiu exposes the scandal of the civilian ninja pension funds, will they not feel that they have been deceived?

The Third Hokage Group had already been pried open by Yamanaka Chujiu, burying more than one crack, and the restoration would detonate all the problems.

Shimura Danzo was crazy to be Hokage, and Sarutobi Hiruzen had unreasonably suppressed him to restore himself as Hokage; did he have no resentment in his heart?

Sarutobi Hiruzen's ruling foundation had long since become weak, and the restoration was the flame that lit the fuse.

The collapse of power had already begun from this moment.

After the Third Hokage's restoration, he immediately accepted the peace request from Kumogakure and began negotiations for peace terms at once.

After the meeting ended, under the operations of the Anbu and Root, the two pieces of news—that peace was in sight and the Third Hokage had been restored—spread throughout Konohagakure overnight.

And Sarutobi Hiruzen personally went to the residential area of the Ino-Shika-Cho families, visiting the Nara Clan first.

The Nara Clan head, Nara Shikaku, appeared lazy but was actually steady and wise; he had a clear understanding of the situation in Konoha and held immense influence over the Ino-Shika-Cho three clans.

Persuading him meant persuading the Ino-Shika-Cho three clans.

What Sarutobi Hiruzen did not expect was that as soon as he approached the Nara Clan compound, he found Nara Shikaku waiting on the street.

He asked in surprise: "Shikaku, did you know I was coming?"

Nara Shikaku smiled: "Congratulations to Lord Third for once again taking charge of Konohagakure; I did indeed have some guesses."

Sarutobi Hiruzen's smile became even kinder, and he said in a gentle tone: "I have not come to see you in the capacity of Hokage, but as an old friend to chat with you about Konoha."

Nara Shikaku lowered his head: "Lord Hokage, I am truly flattered..."

The two walked side by side, hand in hand, into the main residence of the Nara family.

No one knew exactly what they talked about, but when Sarutobi Hiruzen left, he wore a satisfied and confident smile on his face.

After winning over the Ino-Shika-Cho families, Sarutobi Hiruzen quickly pacified other major ninja clans, such as the Aburame and Hyuga.

Then he personally summoned the Konoha Jonin and had heart-to-heart talks with them one by one.

Sarutobi Hiruzen deliberately did not wear the Hokage haori, listening to the demands of the Jonin with an equal posture, promising to value the feelings of the Jonin and provide more opportunities for advancement.

Under his tireless efforts to win them over, the Jonin also expressed their loyalty one after another, and the situation in Konoha quickly stabilized.

The era of the Third Hokage had begun once again, and Sarutobi Hiruzen's prestige reached a new peak.

But he did not know that while Nara Shikaku promised to persuade Yamanaka Inoichi and Akimichi Choza, he had actually brought in Aburame Shibi to hold a meeting.

And at the meeting, the first sentence Shikaku said was: "Yamanaka Chujiu's prophecy has become reality; from here on, we can continue to trust him and act according to what he said."

Aburame Shibi said: "If we do this, will the pressure on Chujiu be too great?"

"We only care about supporting the Third Hokage, but who supports him and Lord Orochimaru?"

Yamanaka Inoichi said: "Clan Head Shibi, please rest assured; the Konoha ninja who publicly support Lord Orochimaru are the frontline ninja in this war."

"Even Shimura Danzo cannot smear this group of ninja who won the war."

"As for kidnapping or assassinating Lord Orochimaru..."

Everyone shook their heads: "That is impossible."