Ninja Ice House

After a hard night's work, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, sat in the office of the Hokage's house that was a little gray due to the heavy smoke, smoking his pipe and listening to the reports of his subordinates.

"The explosions that spread across most of the village have been confirmed to have been planted in major buildings a long time ago. The main messenger was one of the large and small forces that were destroyed by our Konoha Village, but it was not used later.

The executor is an old man named Xuan Neng who is proficient in construction and has been captured."

Nara Shikaku closed the folder in his hand, stood aside respectfully, and recounted the information that had just been delivered.

"Is it that... Xuan Neng that caused us heavy losses?"

"That's not the case, Sandaime. Because the organization behind him was wiped out early, he did not get the plan to activate the trap. He himself actually gave up on unnecessary killings. Judging from the unexploded remnants and the mind-reading results of the Yamanaka clan

Look, prove that he didn't lie..."

"That means the clue is broken."

The frowning Sarutobi Hiruzen couldn't help but sigh.

Obviously, someone was aware of the danger hidden in Konoha Village, and played a big trick last night, blowing up most of the entire village while the Uchiha family and ANBU were fighting.

Fortunately, due to the timely evacuation, there were very few direct casualties and some of the injured were properly rescued.

"Our incompetence has caused the village to suffer heavy losses, and there is really no excuse for it."

The proud Nara Shikaku lowered his head, with a sad look in his tone,

"This time, the loss is not small."

Sarutobi Hiruzen waved his hand and advised comfortingly:

"It was the ANBU's negligence. They failed to find any clues for decades. It is suspected of dereliction of duty..."

The direct leader of the ANBU is the Hokage. In other words, the Sandaime has taken the responsibility on himself.

The boss took the initiative to take the blame, and naturally the subordinates could not take it seriously. After Nara Shikaku cleared his throat, he continued:

"As for the suspects, it is unlikely that the Kumo Ninja and Suna Ninja will do anything. Judging from the information sent back by our spies, they are also confused and don't know what happened. The Kiri Ninja has no motive and no strength in Konoha.

The village is causing trouble; Yanyin Village has not had much dealings with us in recent years, and it is far away in the northwest plateau. Without the messenger coming in person, it is impossible to seize the opportunity to play micro-manipulation..."

In short, even if he has the strength, there is no chance. Although the suspicion cannot be completely ruled out, the possibility is already very small.

As for the rain ninja, grass ninja, and soup ninja, let's not mention them. If they had the ability to discover the trap before the ANBU of Konoha Village and bombed Konoha Village, they would not be in this situation now.

With so many possibilities eliminated, there are not many goals left.

The daimyo of the Land of Fire, the Furusugi family, the trapped Uchiha family, etc. It is not even ruled out that a certain ninja clan who is dissatisfied with the village is fishing in troubled waters. For example, the Hyuga family, which has been drifting away from the core of Konoha Village, under Shimura Danzo and

The Aburame clan, who jumped left and right between Sarutobi and Hiruzen, even wanted to embrace Inogacho.

Finally, it cannot be ruled out that in order to solve the troublesome problem once and for all, Danzo Shimura took advantage of the opportunity of annihilating the Uchiha family to conduct a major internal reshuffle, expand the scope of attack, and take advantage of the situation to reduce the majesty of the third generation and lay the foundation for future power seizures.

"Which side is the most suspicious?"

"Uchiha, Elder Danzo, Kosugi Bosui. Uchiha has motives and abilities. When they changed the clan territory, they started a lot of construction. It is possible that they discovered the anomaly and did not do anything until last night. Elder Danzo monitored various areas.

, Even though the old man Xuan Neng is concealed, it is difficult to escape the all-pervasive inspection of the 'root' organization; Gushan Bushui was in Konoha Village last night and has been staying for a long time since the chunin exam. Although there is no suspicious action,

Also among the suspects..."

"Just because he has the ability? I really can't figure out his motive. Just because I don't approve him to graduate and become a ninja?"

Because he couldn't get his diploma, he bombed the school. Although it was an exaggeration, it's hard to believe that someone with a vengeance would be able to do it and raze the entire town to the ground. What's the point?

"Are there only so many suspects?"

"This is just the most suspected target, and there are many other first-class targets..."

If that's the case, it really can't be found out.

The Uchiha family is gone. Elder Shimura Danzo is unconscious and has no evidence. It is difficult to capture the young governor of the Fusagi family and torture him for mind reading.

If we expand the scope of the investigation, it will really be endless.

"Let's put the pursuit of the murderer aside first, and resettle the villagers first."

Konoha Village seems to have suffered a lot of losses, but in fact it is a bit heartbreaking that the Uchiha family was uprooted. As long as the main personnel are still there, they can make a comeback. If the buildings are burned down, they can start over. If people die, it is all over.

"Understood, I'll go down first."

As the head of the jounin class, Nara Shikaku is not a bastard who can do nothing but drink. Among the senior advisers and elders below, he is the most capable at doing things. If it were not for his lack of prestige, he would have a chance to compete for the position of Hokage.

of.

Later, Sarutobi Asuma, who passed Nara Shikaku, put out his cigarette and walked in.

"Sandaime..."

"Um!"

Not long after they came back, the father and son had not had time to reminisce about old times. Troublesome things happened one after another. Only during official business did they have the opportunity to exchange a few words.

"What happened last night was well done. Fighting and killing are not all ninjas do. We are also human beings of flesh and blood, and it is also important to protect our compatriots."

"Well……"

The originally white-faced young man has gradually shown signs of becoming a bearded man in the future. The somewhat shy son can't always say it bluntly. He is having trouble chasing girls. He drinks away his sorrows in an izakaya, gets drunk, and accidentally saves his life.

A lot of people.

Seeing Sarutobi Asuma smirking, the old man was also a little annoyed.

"Since you are ready to come back and develop, you must prepare well. With your strength, you will be promoted to Jonin. From now on, you must pay more attention to your words and deeds. Every Jonin is the pillar of the village and must become an inspiration to future generations.

Set an example. There must be a lot of troubles in the village recently. You have a heavy burden on your shoulders. Once you survive the disaster, you will be given a promotion assessment task..."

"So fast?"

It is of course a good thing to improve your strength, improve your status, and be respected by others. However, my relationship has not been going well recently. I always feel that I need to be more attentive to Yuhi Hong in order to avoid being really disliked. If I am tied up by tasks, many plans cannot be implemented.

Already.

"Are you unwilling to take due responsibility?"

"It's never meant to be, but it's just an order."

The old man glared, and Asuma Sarutobi couldn't help but feel guilty. It wasn't because he was afraid, but because he didn't want any more bad rumors to spread and make Yuhi Kurenai become more distant from him.

From a moral perspective, now is indeed not the time for children to be in love.

"That's good."

The third-generation old man who was about to have an attack nodded incomprehensibly,

"There is something you need to do now. Your classmate Fusugi Bosui is stranded in the village. It just so happens that we also need the help of Daimyo and Fusugi to rebuild Konoha Village. Go and talk to him...

…”

"He? If I don't go, why don't you take action yourself?"

"Idiot! With roles like ours, it is impossible to discuss such things directly face to face. Once the words are not good, it is easy to take unnecessary communication risks. Only when we have clear intentions in private and further negotiate the main framework, the leaders will meet directly

, finalize cooperation.”

Everyone is a respectable person. We meet casually or discuss world affairs. No matter what big disturbance occurs, we can't retreat even if we want to.

"All right."

Sarutobi Asuma nodded helplessly,

"My personal relationship with him is actually very average, so don't expect too much."

The so-called "very average" is actually a modest way of saying it. Furugi Fusui and Sarutobi Asuma don't actually have much of a friendship, and they even have some contradictions.

Let's not mention what has passed. Now Yuhi Kurenai still has lingering feelings for that embroidered pillow. Sarutobi Asuma is not convinced no matter what. He says some mean words in private and complains in front of Yuhi Kurenai not once or twice.

As a result, it is not clear whether instigating the relationship between the two people has any effect. Yuhi Kurenai is somewhat prejudiced against Sarutobi Asuma who speaks ill of people behind their backs.

Being sent to build relationships at this time, Sarutobi Asuma was a little reluctant.

However, this time it is business and it is not easy to refuse.

Most of the students of Fusugi Fusui and Sarutobi Asuma's generation have just started to emerge, and they are still a little far away from being able to stand alone. Except for Hatake Kakashi, there is really no one who can have a face-to-face interview with the Fusugi family's young governor.

Serious talents.

Fortunately, Sarutobi Asuma had the reputation of being the son of the current Hokage, so his words had some weight.

…

After going out for a walk, helping the surrounding residents, and doing some small things within his power, Gu Shanbu Shui returned home and guided Xiang Lin in his practice. He was practicing chakra control in the small yard when a guest came to the door.

After inviting Sarutobi Asuma to the reception room and instructing the servants to serve tea, Kosugi Fusui asked with a smile:

"At this time, shouldn't you be very busy? Why do you have time to visit me?"

In fact, Fusugi Fusui never thought that there would be an opportunity to discuss with Sarutobi Asuma alone. Not to mention that the relationship was not good and he was always being ignored. Even if Fusugi Fusui was not very interested in Yuhi Kurenai, he still

Too lazy to put a warm face against a cold butt.

The son of the Hokage is amazing?

The heir to the Gushan family is not bad either!

Sarutobi Asuma may not be able to become Hokage in the future, but Kosugi Fusui will definitely become the head of the family, and there is even a slight possibility of becoming a daimyo of the Land of Fire.

Thinking about it this way, without the relationship of being a classmate between the two of them, Kosugi Bushui could completely ignore most Konoha ninjas in private.

"The old man ordered me to come."

Sarutobi Asuma didn't talk in circles, and there really wasn't much gossip between the two of them.

"The village has suffered too much loss this time, and it will definitely not be able to recover for a while, so..."

"Want to borrow money?"

"Well...that should be it."

After all, he was still young, and Asuma Sarutobi was still a little uncomfortable asking for help, especially borrowing money from people he didn't usually interact with.

"It's not a big problem. I have money, and your Konoha ninja's ability to repay debts is trustworthy, but..."

Gushan Bu Shui said leisurely,

"You also know that our Fusagi family and others may not be able to guarantee that the richest man in the ninja world will be right. No matter how much money we have, to us, it is just a number and not worth mentioning. This person

Now, what I want most is what I don’t have. As long as I can buy it with money, I don’t care about it. Therefore, what I am interested in are treasures that cannot be bought with money..."

"Are you... trying to take advantage of the situation?"

"Don't say it so harshly. You and I are both people with status, so don't act like you have never seen the world. You have also been a guardian nin for a period of time, so you won't make a fuss, right?"

Kosugi Fusui said nonchalantly to Asuma Sarutobi, who had an unwavering expression on his face,

"The best treasures in the world are always easy to grab; only the garbage that no one cares about will be actively distributed to those who don't work hard. Under normal circumstances, I would like to make terms with your Konoha Village.

That's too difficult. I have been a grandson in Konoha Village for nearly ten years and can't even get a ninja license. Although I don't have any bad thoughts towards you now, but I have been asking for everything since I was a child, and all my wishes have come true.

I have suffered a big loss here, and I always feel a little unwilling to accept it.”

"Little belly chicken intestines."

"Come on, in life, one must always pay attention to one's wishes and grudges. In the second half of my life, I really don't have much to work towards. The ideal that you can't achieve in your whole life has been realized since I was born. How great is this?

A boring life? It’s hard to find some fun, why don’t you cooperate?”

Major Governor Gushan, who shrugged and responded nonchalantly, haughtily took a sip of hot tea and said slowly and with pressure:

"Even if I don't do anything, my wealth has increased at a rate far beyond your imagination. For more than a year, I have been worried about the gold, silver and jewelry piled up in the treasury. Losing money is really a troublesome thing. If I don't find it again,

As for how to spend money, I am planning to distribute one thousand taels of silver to everyone in the Fire Kingdom, as a blessing for the child who is about to be born."

Regardless of whether these words are true or not, there is only one meaning behind them. The eldest son of the Gushan family has too much money and is in a panic. Borrowing money is not a problem. The interest cannot be just a small profit.

Order some groceries.

"Since you are worried about money, and we are very short of money, why don't you just give it to us?"

"Why? I can throw it into the sea and still make a sound, but you don't pay anything and just want to spend my money in vain?"

"If you say that, I can't make the decision."

"Then let the person who can make the decision come."

Originally, Fusugi Fusui didn't think he could achieve any results from the negotiation with Sarutobi Asuma. After initial contact, it would be good to have an intention to cooperate. The next step was to show each other's chips and negotiate terms.

…

On the top floor of the Special Care Ward of Konoha Hospital, a group of medical ninjas used various methods, but were unable to revive Danzo Shimura from his coma. At their wits' end, they had no choice but to ask for help from the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"It's so troublesome, do you need to ask Tsunade to come back to have any hope?"

Originally, Sarutobi Hiruzen thought he was just seriously injured and in a coma, and would wake up as his injuries improved. However, the result was far worse than imagined.