Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, a week had passed.
As scheduled, Konoha's leadership welcomed two new senior advisors: Kagami from the Uchiha Clan and the head of the Hyūga Clan.
The new Hokage consultant was Shika Nara of the Nara Clan.
After a brief meeting, the senior officials filed out of the office.
Danzō Shimura, lips tightly pressed together, walked the path back to the Root base, his face long and bitter as he muttered under his breath.
Damn Sarutobi—always causing trouble. Two advisors were already more than enough, and now he brought Kagami Uchiha into the mix?
To Danzō, Kagami's presence was a major threat.
Originally, Danzō had assumed that the Uchiha, the Hokage lineage, and the Hyūga would naturally oppose each other.
Even if the Uchiha made it into the upper ranks, their poor reputation would ensure they held little sway in decisions put to a vote.
But Hiruzen had chosen Kagami.
That guy always had a cheerful face, never offended anyone, and lately, Danzō had noticed he was getting quite chummy with the Hyūga clan's advisor—there was a growing sense of Uchiha-Hyūga unity.
The thought made a cold light flash in Danzō's eyes.
Kagami had become a threat too large to ignore.
Earlier, Danzō had the Root spread rumors in the village to sabotage Kagami's so-called grassroots plan.
And now? That guy had climbed all the way into the upper echelons. Of course it pissed Danzō off.
...
Back at the underground Root base, a masked Root ninja hurried over and dropped to one knee.
"Danzō-sama, the analysis of the remains from the assassin has been completed."
He produced a palm-sized scroll from his robe and offered it up with both hands.
At the mention of the assassin, Danzō immediately recalled the masked attacker. He took the scroll silently and unrolled it.
Inside was a detailed report on a strange tissue known as "flesh tendrils."
The analysis showed these weren't ordinary flesh and blood, but black threads composed of an unknown material—extremely conductive to chakra, highly elastic, and incredibly durable.
Most importantly, this thread seemed capable of being generated through chakra and manipulated via ninjutsu.
Danzō's brow furrowed as he read.
"Have you identified the assassin's origin?"
At his question, the Root ninja bowed his head deeper and reported:
"According to intel gathered by our ANBU operatives stationed in the bounty office, we've identified the target.
Name: Kakuzu. Missing-nin from Takigakure. Jōnin-level strength. Currently working as a mercenary ninja.
We reviewed his mission history—temporary teammates rarely make it out alive.
All reports confirm he's extremely money-driven."
Danzō narrowed his eyes and issued a cold order.
"Try linking the tissue of different individuals with that thread. See if chakra can be transmitted between them."
Then, as if struck by an idea, his eyes lit up and he added,
"Keep tracking his movements!"
"Yes!" the masked ninja replied sharply before turning and vanishing.
Watching his subordinate disappear, Danzō's thoughts moved faster.
Capture Kakuzu. Use the Yamanaka Clan's secret techniques to trace Takigakure and strike before trouble arises.
But this wasn't a job he could handle personally—he needed to loop in Hanzō of the Salamander in Amegakure.
Hanzō had a longstanding grudge against Takigakure—perfect for the job.
And through Kakuzu, he'd also obtain the secret of those bizarre tentacles.
At that, Danzō's lips curled into a chilling smile.
...
Elsewhere in the village, Reiji sat in his courtyard, carefully studying intelligence from the front lines.
In just half a month, the war in the Land of Rain had descended into utter chaos.
Countless small nations, armed merchant groups, Missing-nin, and mercenary ninjas had all converged on the rain-drenched battlefield.
Under the banner of "crushing Hanzō of the Salamander," they attacked anyone they saw.
Just think about it—aside from Amegakure putting up a desperate fight, the rest of the battlefield is crawling with chaos-makers, the kind itching to ignite the Second Great Ninja War.
They're not only attacking Amegakure's shinobi—whenever an allied force gets isolated, these bastards try to swoop in and cash out.
Worse, a bunch of Missing-nin have already begun stirring up conflict between Iwagakure and Sunagakure.
And then there are the more shameless ones, boldly crossing into the Land of Fire to raid and ambush villages.
Konoha's response? Firm and uncompromising.
But interestingly, one country has completely stayed out of the mess—the Land of Lightning.
The Third Raikage issued a blunt statement:
Anyone who attacks Kumogakure shinobi will face retaliation from the Land of Lightning. Their forces will wipe out every last ninja from the smaller nations.
The message was crystal clear: mess with us, and we'll tear through every last one of you punks.
Faced with such blunt force and zero tolerance from the Third Raikage, even the most unruly provocateurs backed down.
Konoha wasn't soft either.
They deployed a large number of shinobi to strike hard at those crossing into the Land of Fire without permission.
Reiji stroked his chin with interest as he studied the scroll in his hands.
Chaotic as things were, he had to admit—this might just be the best kind of chaos.
Both Konoha and Kumogakure had preserved their strength during the "Raw Iron Crisis" and were staying calm, refusing to rush onto the battlefield.
Sunagakure was fully focused on water diversion efforts.
Among the Five Great Hidden Villages, only Iwagakure was still flailing. Severely weakened, they were scrambling to recoup losses by turning to smaller countries.
And as for Kirigakure in the Land of Water... does that place even still exist?
...
Just as Reiji was deep in thought, a masked ANBU appeared in the courtyard.
Landing with a silent Body Flicker, the ANBU glanced at the scroll in Reiji's hand and spoke in a low voice.
"Reiji Sakuhō, Lord Hokage has summoned you."
"Got it."
He quickly tucked the scroll into his robes and stood up without hesitation.
...
A short while later, Reiji casually strolled into the Hokage Building, climbed up to the third floor, and stepped into the Hokage's office.
Inside, Hiruzen Sarutobi was hunched over, studying a map spread across his desk.
Without bothering with formalities, Reiji walked straight to the guest sofa and sat down.
After a long pause, Hiruzen finally looked up from the map, rubbed his temples, and leaned back into his chair.
"So tired... I think I'm losing more hair than usual lately."
He pulled out his pipe, carefully packed in some tobacco, lit it, and took a slow, contented puff before speaking.
"Reiji, you're already a Jōnin now. Ever thought about doing what a Jōnin's supposed to do?"
Reiji blinked, then scratched his head in confusion.
What's a Jōnin supposed to do?
Find a best buddy and start smashing things with pots and pans?
Or help a fellow Jōnin on maternity leave?