From Pirates to the Strongest Death God in Soul Society

Chapter 353 Nara Shikaku: I chose Lord Kuraya as the new Hokage. He said he can take us to the moon!

Seeing that Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, was unusually tough, Hinata Hiashi, who was standing in the crowd, had a slightly complicated expression.

A few years ago, the messenger from the Hidden Cloud Village came to Konoha to cause trouble. It was clearly them who sneaked into the Hyuga family to kidnap Hinata and wanted to get the Byakugan, but they were eventually stopped and the messenger was beaten to death.

In the end, Konoha had to swallow his anger, and his brother Hyuga Hizashi was forced to commit suicide, and even his body was handed over.

Why didn't Sarutobi Hiruzen become tough at that time?
But he also knew that the Hidden Cloud Village was different from the Hidden Sand Village. The Hidden Cloud Village was still very powerful. In several Ninja World Wars, they could be said to be a strong rival of Konoha. Even the Second Hokage was defeated by them.

Moreover, the situation today is completely different. Back then, the Hidden Cloud Village was merely threatening war through the envoy.

Now it’s more than just a threat, Luo Sha has already led his men directly into the village.

This was in fact an undeclared war, and no matter how much Sarutobi Hiruzen could endure, he could not swallow this humiliation.

Thinking of this, Hinata Hiashi felt a little bitter, but he still suppressed these emotions.

Soon, Sarutobi Hiruzen gave instructions on some things and left behind some senior leaders. The rest of the people went to arrange their own affairs and prepare for the next war against the Sand Village.

After most people left, Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression darkened and he said, "The Book of Seals has been stolen!"

"Did Orochimaru and the others do it?" asked Mito Kado En, an advisor to the Konoha high-level officials.

"I don't know, but it did happen during this chaos. Even if he didn't do it, he is definitely involved." Sarutobi Hiruzen said in a gloomy tone.

The Sealed Book is very dangerous. It contains many forbidden techniques. These techniques are either extremely powerful or do not conform to the moral viewpoints of peacetime. In short, they are very troublesome.

Orochimaru is a dangerous guy to begin with, and now that he has obtained the Book of Seals, I'm afraid things will become even more complicated.

Thinking of this, Sarutobi Hiruzen felt somewhat fortunate. Fortunately, he had already severed the souls in his hands and sealed them. Although he was not sure whether Orochimaru could eventually solve this problem, at least in the short term, things should be much quieter, right?
"I'm afraid it wasn't Orochimaru who did it." The squad leader of the Jonin squad, Nara Shikaku, said with a very unpleasant expression.

"What do you mean?" Upon hearing this, the consultant Utane Koharu turned her head and looked at Nara Shikaku and asked.

"There is a group of people involved in this riot. They are very mysterious. Our Nara family was invaded by them, and the shadow secret technique was also taken away." Nara Shikaku said, suppressing his irritability.

Although the mysterious man did not harm him after taking away the Shadow Art that he was carrying, and disappeared in the form of a shadow in a very strange way, it is an indisputable fact that the Shadow Art was stolen.

"The secret family technique of your Nara clan was stolen?" Jiraiya asked in surprise.

These words were like rubbing salt into a wound, but it was Jiraiya who was speaking, so Nara Shikaku had no choice but to say with some embarrassment, "Yes, I ran into him head-on. I was the one who attacked first and took the initiative, but I was no match for him at all. Shadow magic seemed to have no effect on him at all. He was an expert in manipulating shadows. I didn't see his face clearly, and his body might not be real, but judging from his clothes, he should be from a certain organization."

"What does it look like?" Jiraiya asked again.

"A black windbreaker with fiery red clouds printed on it, and a hat and a veil." Nara Shikaku said.

"Akatsuki!" Jiraiya actually called out the organization immediately, and said in a deep voice: "This matter is still related to Orochimaru. During the years when I was tracking Orochimaru, I also obtained a lot of intelligence. Regarding Akatsuki, I have reported it to the Third Hokage several times."

"That's true." Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded seriously.

Seeing this, Jiraiya continued, "That is an organization formed by S-rank rebel ninjas from various countries. Orochimaru once joined it. The clothes of this organization are the same as what you just described."

"An S-rank rebel ninja organization?" Nara Shikaku touched the stubble on his chin and frowned.

In fact, apart from Jiraiya's report, this was not the first time that Sarutobi Hiruzen had heard of the Akatsuki organization. After Uchiha Itachi left the village, he was responsible for collecting information from the outside world that was unfavorable to the village.

Not long after Uchiha Itachi left Konoha, he joined the Akatsuki organization. During this period, he gave Konoha a reminder once.

It seems that this Akatsuki organization is a rebellious ninja organization that wants to collect the tailed beasts to do something horrible.

But Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't know what the specific situation was.

"That is to say, there are at least three forces involved in the attack on Konoha this time, namely the Otogakure Village led by Orochimaru, the Sand Village led by Rasa, and the S-ranked rebel ninja organization Akatsuki." Sarutobi Hiruzen pondered for a moment and said, "Let's not talk about Orochimaru and the Sand Village for now, but we have almost no information about the Akatsuki organization."

After a brief pause, Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at a figure wearing a monkey mask and ANBU armor and said, "Monkey, you ANBU need to obtain information about the Akatsuki organization as quickly as possible."

"Understood, Sandaime-sama," the monkey replied softly.

His voice was a little fuzzy, and it was hard to tell whether he was a man or a woman. The rest of the people in the Hokage's office seemed to have gotten used to it and didn't wonder about his condition. The head of the Anbu, codenamed 'Monkey'.

As early as when Sarutobi Hiruzen first took office as Hokage, his right-hand man immediately appeared and followed him.

No one knows what his true appearance is. At least in formal and public occasions, Monkey always appears with a mask, his voice is unclear, and it is difficult to tell whether he is male or female.

But very few senior officials and people who are more familiar with Sarutobi Hiruzen know that after the appearance of the monkey, Sarutobi Hiruzen's eldest son Sarutobi Shinnosuke, who was still very young at the time, almost never appeared in the public eye again. So many people speculated that this monkey was the eldest son of the Sandaime Hokage, especially this code name, which seemed to be very metaphorical.

However, the Minister of Anbu never reveals his true face, so even if everyone has some guesses, they cannot be really sure.

They are not even allowed to ask. After all, the Anbu is a special force directly under the Hokage, and no one else has the right to ask about Anbu matters. Unless the minister himself is willing to reveal his identity, no one else has the right to find out his identity.

"As for the Chunin Exam," Sarutobi Hiruzen said this and hesitated for a moment.

Seeing that he seemed a little undecided, Nara Shikaku pondered for a moment and said: "There is only one stage left in the Chunin Exam. Although it is impossible to unite with the Sand Village, we should implement it as soon as possible to show our Konoha style. At the same time, if we increase the number of Chunins, it can also effectively build up confidence and provide some guarantee for the subsequent wars."

"Then let's keep it simple and quick." Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded and said.

After saying this, Sarutobi Hiruzen winked at Nara Shikaku, who immediately understood and nodded secretly.

As soon as he saw Nara Shikaku nodded, Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly started coughing, as if he couldn't stop. Everyone present was concerned about the health of the Hokage, and then Sarutobi Hiruzen took out a tissue and covered his mouth. After a while, his coughing and wheezing subsided.

But when the tissue was removed, the bright red blood was seen by everyone.

"My body is really in bad shape. I even used the Demonic Fuinjin jutsu when fighting Orochimaru this time. Although I haven't died yet due to some accidents, considering that the Grim Reaper may show up at any time and take my soul away, I can't continue to serve as the Hokage. I must arrange the next Hokage as soon as possible." Sarutobi Hiruzen said pretending to be weak.

He had originally planned to just pretend to be sick once Jiraiya came back, and now because of what happened with Orochimaru, that excuse was even more perfect.

Everyone saw how fiercely Orochimaru and I fought. That bastard even messed with two previous Hokage. I paid enough price for it, and it's reasonable that my body is getting worse and worse, right?
Mitokado En and Utane Koharu looked at each other and thought it was a pity that Danzo didn't come to the meeting. If he heard the news, he would probably jump for joy, right?
"Sir Sandaime, you are indeed old and not as energetic as before. Now is a turbulent time, and we in Konoha really need a more energetic Hokage to lead us." Nara Shikaku immediately echoed.

If he had said this on any other day, he would have offended Sarutobi Hiruzen to death.

With Nara Shikaku's intelligence, he would never have said such offensive words if he had not really confirmed Sarutobi Hiruzen's intentions again and again.

Too rough!

But this kind of brutality brings about a very powerful directional indication.

Nara Shikaku is the squad leader of the Jonin class and also the Hokage's chief of staff. Everyone knows that he has a very close relationship with Sarutobi Hiruzen. Now that Nara Shikaku has said this, what does this mean?
This means that the Sandaime Hokage is not testing anything, but really intends to retire. This saves a lot of "suspicion" and lets the rest of the people know that there should be no more wrangling and a more suitable person should be chosen as the new Hokage as soon as possible.

"I think Lord Jiraiya is very suitable." Kakashi said softly.

Obviously, Kakashi also got instructions.

As soon as he opened his mouth, Might Guy beside him also said in a carefree manner: "Lord Jiraiya is indeed suitable. He is powerful, prestigious, and experienced. He also participated in the Third Ninja World War. Everyone in the village trusts him very much."

"I don't want to be a Hokage." Jiraiya refused without hesitation, and said at the same time: "Old man, please stop acting here. Now is not the time to talk about this. Even if you really don't plan to continue, you have to wait until the Sand Village is solved. I have some private matters to discuss with you. If you don't have anything else to say, please leave me some time."

Being exposed so bluntly by Jiraiya, Sarutobi Hiruzen was a little embarrassed. He cleared his throat lightly, then looked at the others and said, "Let's do this for now. Implement the previous arrangement as soon as possible and disband!"

"Yes!" Everyone responded quickly, and then disappeared in the office.

After everyone had left, Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at Jiraiya and said, "My body is really a little exhausted, and you, the traitor, don't you know how to help me share the burden."

"Let's not talk about that for now. I found the child of prophecy." Jiraiya was too lazy to listen to the old man's nonsense and interrupted him directly.

These words also made Sarutobi Hiruzen stunned for a moment. As Jiraiya's teacher, he certainly knew why Jiraiya had been wandering outside all these years. On the one hand, it was for Orochimaru, but more importantly, it was to find the legendary child of prophecy who could change the ninja world.

"Who is it?" asked Sarutobi Hiruzen.

"Uzumaki Naruto." Jiraiya said in a deep voice.

(End of this chapter)