Chapter 99

Hashirama Sarutobi spoke with a cold tone.

There’s no choice!

The current situation leaves him no room for hesitation, and he has no time to deliberate slowly with Jiraiya.

Because he knows Jiraiya’s nature—if he tried to discuss it slowly, even if the Uchiha clan was wiped out, Jiraiya would likely still refuse.

So, no more words.

One word: force.

As Jiraiya’s master, he understood Jiraiya’s character perfectly.

Even though Jiraiya now refuses with firm resolve, if he himself truly pressured him, Jiraiya would most likely turn into a coward.

In fact, that’s exactly how it was.

With his firm stance, Jiraiya froze in place, utterly stunned.

He stared at Hashirama Sarutobi in disbelief, then blurted out in shock: “Master, are Itachi mad?”

“Jiraiya, don’t blame me,” Hashirama Sarutobi said coldly. “The situation demands decisive action.”

“If we keep hesitating, the Uchiha will eventually destroy the village.”

“So for the greater good, it’s your turn to sacrifice, Jiraiya!”

“If Itachi refuse to sacrifice for the village, then as your master, I must force Itachi to do so.”

“Everything—for Konoha!”

Hiss!

With Hashirama Sarutobi’s words, Jiraiya felt as if his soul had been ripped away.

He was dumbfounded.

In the past, he was the one telling others “for Konoha,” even urging the Uchiha to sacrifice for the village.

But now?

When Hashirama Sarutobi draped the “for Konoha” excuse over him, demanding he make a small sacrifice, Jiraiya nearly snapped.

How could he sacrifice himself?

He still had a vital mission—he needed to find the savior who would rescue the ninja world!

Yet, equally true.

He knew arguing this with Hashirama Sarutobi was useless, because Hashirama Sarutobi didn’t believe in any savior—he’d only tolerated him before because the village’s situation wasn’t dire.

Now, it’s different!

The village’s situation is too tense; Hashirama Sarutobi won’t let go of this fresh force.

Unless he’s willing to become a traitor, he has no choice.

What should he do?

A row of cold sweat instantly formed on Jiraiya’s forehead.

Finally.

After swallowing hard, he solemnly told Hashirama Sarutobi: “I’ll go persuade Tsunade. She’s the one truly suited to be Hokage.”

“Of course, I have no objection!” Hashirama Sarutobi nodded. “But Jiraiya!”

“If Itachi can bring Tsunade back, all’s well. If not, Itachi must accept the position of Fifth Hokage.”

“Otherwise, don’t blame your master!”

Jiraiya remained silent, unsure how to respond.

Should he resent his master?

Yet he knew deep down—his master truly had no other option, or he wouldn’t have said such things.

So, sigh.

With a helpless sigh, he left the Hokage’s office, drained and hollow.

He moved like a walking corpse, making his way to the Uchiha clan grounds, where he stated his intent to speak with Tsunade.

And as for this?

The Uchiha faction had no fondness for Jiraiya.

But.

After reporting, Uchiha Jin still nodded in agreement.

Yes—he agreed!

Because in Uchiha Jin’s eyes, Jiraiya was no different from a clown; he didn’t believe this man could persuade Tsunade.

Of course.

If Tsunade truly wished to leave, Uchiha Jin wouldn’t stop her.

After all, without absolute loyalty, he had no interest in forcing her to stay—otherwise, internal instability would surely follow.

So.

Not just Tsunade—even others: anyone who wished to leave, Uchiha Jin had no interest in blocking.

Fifteen minutes later.

Jiraiya arrived at Tsunade’s temporary residence: a single room with a sitting area, thirty square meters.

To be honest,

this was already preferential treatment—normally, even a regular Jonin in the current Uchiha clan grounds only qualified for an eight-person temporary dormitory.

Even the Uchiha were no exception!

Even married families now had only about ten square meters per household.

No choice.

Countless ninja clans had relocated here, and construction outside the village had just begun, so living space per person in the Uchiha clan grounds was extremely tight.

Why not let each ninja clan return to their own homes, sending signal flares only in emergencies, so Uchiha could dispatch rescue teams?

Ha, dream on!

This world has sealing jutsu—in the original timeline, during the Uchiha massacre night, the entire clan died, yet Konoha remained eerily silent, unnoticed by anyone.

And that was the Uchiha!

If another ninja clan were targeted, and Konoha’s high command chose to strike, they could simply set up a large sealing array around the perimeter—ensuring no one escaped.

Ninja clans are smart—they won’t gamble on probabilities!

They’d rather squeeze into the Uchiha grounds than test whether Konoha’s leadership would dare go that far.

Of course.

Because countless ninja clans flooded into the Uchiha grounds, Uchiha, while pleased, could only contribute most of their housing to temporarily house these newcomers.

So under these circumstances, Tsunade getting a one-room apartment was, frankly, quite generous.

Even Uchiha Jin’s own compound now housed many Uchiha clan members—he’d only kept one personal room, a large meeting hall, and a reception room for daily use.

Tsunade understood this perfectly, so she was quite satisfied with the arrangement.

At this moment, she was completely sober.

Facing Jiraiya’s sudden arrival, Tsunade showed no surprise, speaking calmly: “Shizune, brew tea.”

“Yes, Tsunade-sama.” Shizune nodded slowly.

Tsunade knelt on the tatami; Jiraiya sat opposite her.

They stared at each other in silence, the air still.

Ten minutes later.

After Shizune placed a teapot and two cups on the table between them, Tsunade spoke calmly: “Shizune, go back to your room.”

“Alright.” Shizune nodded.

She knew they had private matters to discuss, so she obediently retreated.

With Shizune gone, Jiraiya finally spoke.

“Tsunade.”

“Can Itachi go back?”

He had many questions—he wanted to ask why she did this.

But.

Now, he couldn’t say a word—finally, he could only utter this one sentence.