The Shadow of Konoha

Hanyu and the others moved very quickly, but when they rushed back to the Hokage, they only saw a battlefield in ruins...

As well as the Hokage and his personal team standing in the center of the battlefield, the enemy Kakuzu had completely disappeared.

Fortunately, the Hokage seemed to be safe. Hanyu glanced at those people and saw that the Third Hokage was not only unharmed, but even the bamboo hat with the word "fire" written on it, representing his official identity, was still firmly on his head.

As for the three little ones behind him, they looked a little dusty and embarrassed.

"Hokage, I'm terribly sorry." The captain of the Anbu team half-knelt in front of the Third Hokage and expressed his apologies to the Hokage - it was completely his fault that the enemy escaped to this side. It was obvious that the Konoha ninja had an absolute advantage, but he let the enemy run away right under his nose .

Then, the ANBU captain continued, "What about the enemy? Were they dealt with by Hokage-sama?"

The answer is definitely no, because Kakuzu's body was not found around, but it was precisely because the Hokage only repelled the enemy and did not kill him that the Anbu had the opportunity to make up for their own gaffe.

"It's not your fault. The enemy was very powerful and extremely cunning... After my attack failed, he immediately fled thousands of miles away. I didn't get rid of the traitorous ninja from Takigakure. And since I, as the Hokage, can't do such a thing, I shouldn't blame you anyway." said the Third Hokage.

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

The Anbu captain nodded, secretly relieved by the Hokage's tolerance, "Then Sandaime, are we going to pursue the enemy next?"

The Hokage stood with his hands behind his back, glancing at Jiraiya and the other two behind him, then slowly shook his head, "No need for that. After the failure, the assassin won't make a second attempt. The next mission is more important. We have to get to Daimyo Castle on time."

Just now, it was because of the three disciples that the Third Hokage was unable to fight freely, and now it is also because of them that the Hokage decided not to chase the enemy.

"...I understand, Sandaime."

The ANBU ninja was probably unwilling to accept this at this time. They had an absolute advantage, but they let the enemy go. But since the Hokage had already made such a decision, the ANBU captain had no reason to refute it.

What's more, what the Third Hokage said made a lot of sense. For them at this moment, the political mission of going to Daimyo Castle was the top priority.

Did the other party run away? Hanyu didn't think this result was surprising. After all, in his impression, Kakuzu seemed to be an extremely survivable ninja, and... Hanyu turned his attention to the Third Hokage.

Looking at the Hokage at this moment, Hanyu fully believed that in less than a few decades, he would become a kind and amiable old man. And the young Third Hokage looked a bit like the old President Bradley in temperament - always smiling, squinting, very steady, and at the same time very ruthless.

When fighting with the ninjas on Hanyu's side, Kakuzu did not seem to exert his full strength. Although the battle on Hokage's side was shorter, judging from the remaining battlefield situation, it seemed to be more intense.

However, the tragedy of Kakuzu is that not only did the First Hokage not take him seriously, it seemed that the current Third Hokage did not take him too seriously either... Perhaps this is related to the fact that the Hokage attached great importance to the mission in Daimyo Castle?

Following the order from the Hokage, after a brief reorganization, the escort team rearranged their formation and continued to advance towards Daimyo Castle. However, after being attacked once, the ninjas became more serious and vigilant.

When passing by the previous battle site, the Konoha ninjas briefly investigated the conditions of the dead, but did not find any valuable information on the bodies, so they disposed of the attackers' bodies on the spot.

After wasting a little more time, the Hokage and his entourage became calm on the rest of the journey and did not encounter any special situations. They calmly approached a city that looked very magnificent.

At least it looks much more magnificent than the plain-looking Konohagakure Village.

Through the open main gate of the city, the Konoha ninjas could see that both sides of the main road were crowded with people, and among the crowd were waving colorful flags.

The Hokage's guards glanced at each other, and then surrounded the Hokage in a denser formation, leaving only the passage directly in front of the Hokage.

There is no place more suitable for an assassin to hide than a large crowd of people, so for a ninja like Hanyu who is on guard duty, the most annoying thing is this kind of outdoor activity with a show-off nature. However, the problem is that due to the political significance of the Hokage's move, they will have to pass through the city gate and face the layers of people in the city.

Even Hanyu and the others had to put on a false smile on their faces after entering the city, just like the Hokage... If he had known earlier, he should put on his Anbu mask.

The guards followed closely behind the Hokage, ready to strike at any moment. When the group passed through the city gate and the Hokage himself emerged from the shadows of the city gate, the crowd suddenly cheered, and the enthusiasm of the people seemed to overturn the entire city in an instant.

Hanyu was frightened by the cheers and almost fainted with a water escape. The Anbu ninja next to him was even more nervous than Hanyu. At this time, Hanyu saw that some people's seals were halfway completed... The crowd really shouldn't be startled in front of a group of nervous ninjas. Who will be responsible if someone really died?

However, this deliberate welcome arrangement is understandable. After all, Sarutobi Hiruzen is the new Hokage, and the Daimyo needs to express goodwill to him. Moreover, the people's welcome to the Hokage is by no means entirely false. The new Hokage has brought victory to the Land of Fire, so that this country has already half-extricated itself from the protracted Ninja World War.

The Hokage smiled and looked calm as he walked through the center of the road, waving to the people of Daimyo Castle on both sides.

The only ones who were calmer than the Hokage in this team were his three disciples. Tsunade pretended to be serious with a straight face, but her eyes looked over the crowd at the street signs further back. After occasionally seeing the word "gamble", the corners of her mouth curled up slightly, and then she tried her best to restrain her smile.

Her expression even seemed a little coquettish, and if you didn't know better you would think she had seen something she shouldn't have seen.

Jiraiya put his hands behind his head, licked his face and grinned, his eyes darting around, constantly searching for something among the crowd.

As for the remaining Orochimaru, at least he did not embarrass the Hokage. He was really calm... Perhaps he was thinking about a philosophical question at this moment, what is the difference between himself and these ordinary people?

The Hokage continued to move forward, and Hanyu and the others continued to be ready to use ninjutsu to smack others in the face at any time. After walking forward for a distance, the Hokage and his party's vision turned purple and red, and a young man wearing extremely gorgeous clothes and a black high crown appeared.

Behind him stood a maid dressed similarly, holding a large black umbrella with a cherry blossom print on it.

This person should be the daimyo of the Fire Nation.

When the Daimyo was more than ten steps away from the Hokage, he actually took the initiative to walk out from under the umbrella. He moved his feet and then stretched out his right hand towards the Hokage.

The Third Hokage also stretched out his hand, and the hands of the two leaders of the country were tightly clasped together.

The cheers became even louder.

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