Chapter 124: The Sigh of the Third Hokage

After dealing with the giant snake, Byakuya returned to Jiraiya's side, waving his hand in front of the latter's eyes. "Jiraiya-sensei, are there any other fierce beasts in the training grounds? This giant snake wasn't enough for me to warm up."

Hearing this, Jiraiya's mouth twitched slightly.

Considering the giant snake's size, it had to be at least an elite Chunin in strength. It was easy for him to handle, but Byakuya was so young and managed to deal with it so effortlessly.

Recalling his own strength at around fourteen or fifteen, Jiraiya found himself momentarily dazed.

As he snapped out of his reverie, Jiraiya looked at Byakuya with increased seriousness. He couldn't just see Byakuya as a mere junior anymore; Byakuya deserved his full attention.

The scene of Byakuya slashing the giant snake also caught the attention of the Konoha ninjas participating in the exercise.

They weren't sure if the giant snake was part of the exercise, but Byakuya's combat abilities were astonishing to them. Even more shocking was the forehead protector Byakuya wore.

When did Amegakure produce such a talented young ninja? Was this the reason for the village's cooperation with Amegakure?

Facing the envious gazes directed at him, Byakuya accepted them calmly. His current strength was entirely due to his own efforts… well also from the trivial assistance from the system.

After coming out of his daze, Jiraiya instructed the red and blue teams to continue the exercise.

He then took Byakuya back to the central area of the Forest of Death and, while walking, curiously asked, "Byakuya, who is your teacher, and why have you been hiding your true strength?"

Byakuya looked at Jiraiya with confusion. "My teacher is Lord Hanzo. And when have I ever hidden my strength? I've always said I'm very strong, second only to the Five Kage."

Upon hearing this, Jiraiya carefully reviewed his memories.

He realized Byakuya wasn't lying. Byakuya had always emphasized his identity as Hanzo's disciple and as a savior of Amegakure and the Akatsuki.

Jiraiya had misjudged, thinking Byakuya was exaggerating the truth. In reality, Byakuya's appearance was just misleading, compounded by his status as Hanzo's disciple, which led Jiraiya to mistake him.

Soon after, Byakuya and Jiraiya returned to the delegation.

Minato and Yahiko had already seen Byakuya's battle through the monitors, and their expressions were complex.

Minato was worried about Byakuya's strength. Although the relationship between the village and Amegakure was currently good, Byakuya wasn't Jiraiya's student and could potentially become an enemy in the future.

Additionally, there was Byakuya's heritage as a descendant of the Uzumaki clan. The Uzumaki clan held some resentment towards Konoha.

On the other hand, Yahiko, apart from admiring Byakuya's enhanced strength, was concerned about his own abilities. When he first met Byakuya, Byakuya was merely a Genin, while Yahiko was a Jounin.

Now that Byakuya's combat skills were comparable to the Five Kage while he was still a Jounin, Yahiko couldn't help but feel anxious about his own progress. Over the years, apart from making strides in management, Yahiko felt he had accomplished little in other areas. He worried that he might fall behind the Akatsuki's pace and become a burden.

After this brief interlude, the delegation continued to observe the practical exercises. However, the recent upheaval left everyone somewhat distracted and less focused.

…

In the Hokage Tower, the Third Hokage had just ended his use of the telescope technique and turned to face Danzo.

Initially, the Third Hokage had little interest in Danzo's concerns about Byakuya. He had thought that Danzo merely wanted to obstruct the Konoha-Amegakure exchange, combined with Danzo's deep-seated fear of Hanzo of the Salamander. Danzo's aversion to anyone associated with Hanzo had made Byakuya seem more significant in his eyes.

But now, Byakuya's strength alone was enough for Danzo to take notice. He was clearly not just a talented young ninja.

Danzo had definitely not told them the whole truth; the espionage activities in the Land of Rain six months ago were more complicated than they appeared.

With his fingers drumming on the desk, the Third Hokage asked sternly, "Danzo, just how much have you been hiding about the Akatsuki and Amegakure?"

Danzo remained impassive, looking at the Third Hokage with a cold expression. "Hiruzen, you are no longer the Hokage."

At these words, the Third Hokage's face darkened immediately. The two advisors also shifted their attention to Danzo, clearly eager to understand his actions.

Under the collective gaze of the advisors, Danzo felt the pressure and began to reveal parts of his activities.

When the Third Hokage and the two advisors learned that Danzo had sent agents disguised as Iwagakure ninjas to cause disruption within the Land of Rain and had contacted Hanzo to eradicate the Akatsuki, their expressions changed dramatically.

This was far from what they had anticipated.

They had initially imagined that Hanzo valued Yahiko, Byakuya, and others and had thus cultivated them as successors.

However, Danzo's account painted a different picture: the Akatsuki and Amegakure were already at odds, with significant internal conflicts.

Danzo had exploited these conflicts, aiming to use Hanzo to eliminate the Akatsuki while weakening Amegakure's overall strength.

Danzo's plan was not without merit; weakening Amegakure aligned with Konoha's interests.

However, the seemingly promising plan had failed. Not only had the Akatsuki been thrived, but they had also defeated Hanzo before becoming the new rulers of the Land of Rain.

In other words, despite being an organization founded by Jiraiya's disciples, the Akatsuki now harbored significant resentment towards Konoha, having nearly been wiped out by Danzo's schemes.

Danzo thought for a moment and chose to omit his collaboration with Byakuya. He solemnly emphasized, "The Akatsuki's ability to replace Hanzo of the Salamander is largely due to Byakuya. We cannot afford to be careless. I recommend that during the delegation's stay in Konoha, my ninjas should monitor them."

The Third Hokage glanced at his old friend and shook his head lightly. "Danzo, you cannot reappear. Doing so would affect the cooperation between our village and Amegakure. The reason Yahiko and the others have not mentioned this is out of old sentiments. If you were to go now, it would only worsen our relationship with Amegakure.

Minato will not agree to this, and even if I intervene, it won't be possible. Also, what's the deal with the giant snake that appeared in the Forest of Death? What kind of experiments are you and Orochimaru conducting? I had instructed you to halt the Wood Release experiments."

Danzo's face darkened. "I don't know exactly what Orochimaru is doing, but the failure of his bid for Hokage was a significant blow to him. He might be conducting experiments to pass the time. However, the experiments he's conducting definitely do not include human experiments."

Upon hearing this, the Third Hokage nodded. During his time in office, he had overseen a large-scale human experiment involving Wood Release.

To gain the First Hokage's power, many volunteers had eagerly signed up. Unfortunately, the chances of ordinary ninjas surviving the First Hokage's cells were less than one in a hundred. Even the few lucky ones died within a month.

Since then, the Wood Release experiments have become a taboo within the village.

Recalling this, the Third Hokage turned to the advisors and said, "Today's events must remain confidential. If Minato doesn't bring it up, we should keep it to ourselves."

The two elder advisors neither agreed nor disagreed with the Third Hokage's suggestion. What is most needed for an advisor is to stay neutral and keep quiet.

After a few quiet sighs, the Third Hokage looked out of the window at the view of Konoha. Unlike the Hokage's office, the advisor's office only offered a view of the thick tree trunks, with no sight of the newly blossomed Konoha.

He began to miss the days when he was Hokage, when he didn't have to second-guess others' intentions.