"Of course, we in Konoha are also sincere about these talks..."
Utatane Koharu jumped in, wanting to speak first.
Sarutobi Ryo knew she would stir up trouble the moment she opened her mouth.
And just as he predicted, Utatane Koharu continued, "We'll also send some Diplomatic Staff to your Sunagakure..."
As she said this, she glanced towards Hatake Sakumo.
"How about letting Sakumo take a trip to Sunagakure?"
This was bad.
Chiyo was a top official in Sunagakure and a close advisor to the Kazekage. But Hatake Sakumo was the one who had killed Chiyo's son and daughter-in-law.
And the number of Sunagakure ninja he had killed was countless.
This was clearly a trap, sending Hatake Sakumo there to attract all the hatred.
There was no way they could reach an agreement this way.
It was obvious the Konoha elders weren't serious about talking with Sunagakure. They also wanted to use this chance to keep making Hatake Sakumo suffer.
But they were forgetting one thing...
The Hatake Sakumo of today wasn't the same as before.
After thinking long and hard, Hatake Sakumo had decided the only way forward was to become the "Fourth Hokage."
It wasn't just to protect himself and his son, Kakashi.
To truly change Konoha... becoming Hokage was absolutely necessary.
Even a cornered rabbit will bite.
And Hatake Sakumo was far more dangerous than a rabbit.
Utatane Koharu and the others didn't realize they were closing off their own escape, pushing Hatake Sakumo closer and closer to the other side.
---
After the diplomatic meeting, Pakura was given temporary rooms to stay in.
Sarutobi Ryo, Hatake Sakumo, Namikaze Minato, and others were sent to arrange things for the trip to Sunagakure.
If Hatake Sakumo's mission was a deliberate trap by the elders, then Namikaze Minato's trip had a different meaning.
They were trying to push Namikaze Minato to become the next Hokage, and that meant he needed more experience.
This trip to Sunagakure might have been designed for Hatake Sakumo to play the "bad guy," while Namikaze Minato would play the "good guy."
But whatever their plans, the Konoha elders couldn't have imagined just how dangerous this mission to Sunagakure would be.
The Third Kazekage... was very likely to be secretly poisoned to death by Sasori at any moment.
When that happened, it would be hard to say who was to blame.
Sarutobi Ryo thought about the mission calmly.
Namikaze Minato, who was next to him, was also deep in thought: "According to what I saw in the 'original Future,' the Third Kazekage will die at Sasori's hands..."
Having been to Mount Myōboku, and having been trained by the Great Toad Sage, Namikaze Minato was almost reliving his life, knowing what was coming.
He had seen the original future and now had a clear view of everything.
"After the Third Kazekage dies, the Sunagakure ninja will search everywhere for him. No one will believe he was killed... Even when Sasori of the Red Sand left the village, no one suspected him..."
After all, the Third Kazekage was known as the Strongest Kazekage.
And Chiyo's grandson, Sasori, was just a Chunin at the time.
No one would connect the Third Kazekage's "disappearance" with Sasori's leaving.
It wasn't until more than ten years later, in the Land of Rivers, that Haruno Sakura and Chiyo saw the Third Kazekage turned into a human puppet... and the truth came out...
So, should he just stand by and watch the Third Kazekage die?
"..."
Namikaze Minato turned to look at the two people next to him.
Hatake Sakumo and Sarutobi Ryo.
The Konoha White Fang, who should have killed himself at home, was now alive and well and working directly under the Hokage in the Anbu.
He had quickly risen to become a Division Leader.
It wouldn't be long before he was the Captain of the Hokage's personal Anbu Squad... No, with the Konoha White Fang's strength, this seemed inevitable.
If the Third Kazekage died, Konoha would face much less pressure in the Third Shinobi World War later.
And with the Konoha White Fang's talent, he could easily become the Fourth Hokage...
A feeling of anxiety began to grow in Namikaze Minato's heart.
But then, he was horrified.
Why was he having these... bad thoughts?
Namikaze Minato immediately shook his head, trying to clear the darkness from his mind.
But...
A worry lingered in his heart.
If Sakumo Sensei became the Fourth Hokage...
Kushina would still be the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, that was true.
But it would be much harder to marry Kushina then.
Because... Jinchuriki are closely tied to the Kage.
If the Kage and the Jinchuriki aren't close, the Kage might even choose to imprison the Jinchuriki.
Like... Sunagakure's One-Tail Jinchuriki.
It was said he was kept underground for life because he wasn't close to the Third Kazekage.
They only used him during wartime, keeping him restrained.
Namikaze Minato's eyes flickered.
He wasn't worried that Kushina would be imprisoned.
With Sakumo Sensei's personality, he probably wouldn't do that.
But who Kushina would marry then was another question.
Namikaze Minato couldn't help but look at Sarutobi Ryo.
In terms of closeness to the Kage...
Young Master Sarutobi Ryo was Sakumo Sensei's student.
Which meant... the elders might try to bring Young Master Ryo and Kushina together.
Kushina... Naruto...
Namikaze Minato silently clenched his fists, his heart caught in a struggle.
Things shouldn't be like this.
He... must become the Fourth Hokage.
But to do that, he would have to use some underhanded methods.
In the past, The Dark Side of Konoha... Lord Danzo, had done those things.
Was he now going to embrace the darkness?
After thinking, Namikaze Minato made a decision.
---
After the meeting ended, Namikaze Minato left.
"Lord Danzo, please wait a moment..." Namikaze Minato called out to Danzo.
"?"
Danzo stopped and turned around.
Namikaze Minato was speaking to him? This was rare.
"Namikaze Minato, what is it?" Danzo's tone was neutral, keeping people at a distance.
Koharu and Homura wanted to support Namikaze Minato, but he wasn't interested.
"I have something... I want to talk to you about alone..."
Namikaze Minato and Danzo looked at each other as he made his request.
"..."
Danzo was silent, then nodded.
They went to the Anbu office together.
In the dark room, their conversation began.
No one knew what Namikaze Minato and Danzo discussed.
But Konoha, which was trying to fix the Will of Fire, needed someone to walk in the shadows.
This was a natural part of the system of correcting the path...
*
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[T/N:
Latest Chapter translated on Patreon - Chapter Access up to Ch 200 (Vol 2 Ch 142)
Final Total Power Stone Collection : 72 PS
Goal : Reach +50 Total PS = +2 Bonus Chapters next day! 🚀
Here are the novels I'm currently translating:
-> Naruto Paradise: An Evil Uchiha's Rise
-> One Piece: I'm Destined to Be the Son-in-Law King!
-> Young Master, Please Become Hokage!
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]