"Huh?"
"Why do I get the feeling I've forgotten something important?"
After finishing Nawaki's lesson for the day, Li Anshi returned to his shop and felt as though he had forgotten something.
It wasn't until he woke up the next day that he suddenly remembered what it was.
"Damn it, I forgot to pass on Tsunade's message!"
Slapping his forehead, he was filled with regret. He quickly got up, not bothering to say anything to Nawaki, threw on his clothes, and hurried towards the Hokage's building.
He had promised Tsunade long ago that he would report the situation at the border stronghold to Hiruzen Sarutobi and see how the village elders would deal with Danzo Shimura.
Then, he was to bring the village's decision back to her.
The village's course of action would determine whether Tsunade would lead her troops to stop the Rain's invasion or retreat back to Konoha with them.
But, because he had been helping Nawaki and the others adapt to the ninja mindset, he had pushed them through a hard three-day journey.
After that, he had spent the better part of a day teaching Nawaki how to sense space...
In other words, four days had passed since he had made his promise to Tsunade. If he delayed any longer, she might start getting ideas.
"Lord Anshi."
Although it was still early in the morning, the Hokage's building was Konoha's administrative center and was manned twenty-four hours a day. Upon seeing Li Anshi, the guards on duty all greeted him.
"Is the Third upstairs?"
Li Anshi nodded and asked the nearest ninja.
Although he could use his dagger sense to perceive if Hiruzen was on the second floor of the building, his dagger sense carried with it the piercing will of his blades.
Ninjas who were highly sensitive to life-and-death crises would feel as if a dagger was about to pierce their throat the moment they were locked onto by his sense.
It was a killing intent that carried his will!
Unless absolutely necessary, he did not want to use such an ability on the people of his own village.
Even if the dagger was never actually thrown, not everyone could withstand the killing intent he exuded when he held one.
In fact, for some ninjas with weaker wills, they might even feel as if their soul had already died from a dagger piercing their neck.
"Lord Anshi, Lord Third has not arrived yet today."
"Shall I go and deliver a message to him for you?"
After saying this, the ninja froze for a moment, then realized his mistake. Under the gazes of his colleagues, a chill ran down his back, and he broke out in a cold sweat.
Damn it, I misspoke.
Although in their minds, Lord Anshi's strength was greater than the Third Hokage's, they themselves were the Hokage's personal "ANBU"!
Even if they had such thoughts, they couldn't show it.
Now, because Li Anshi had arrived and the Third Hokage was absent, he had offered to deliver a message...
Was he Lord Anshi's subordinate, or the Hokage's?
After all, in terms of status, the "Hokage" was the highest authority in Konoha.
Everyone else, including Lord Anshi, was a subordinate under the Hokage's command.
However, Lord Anshi was the renowned "Little Li's Flying Dagger." Although legends of him were not as widespread in the ninja world now, they were ninjas who had lived through that era and knew just how terrifying he was.
In fact, back then, the other villages had even spread the saying, "It is Konoha that needs Little Li's Flying Dagger, not the other way around," in an attempt to drive a wedge between him and Konoha's leadership.
At that time, not just the higher-ups, but even the mid- and low-ranking ninjas could see the malicious intent of the other villages in this rumor.
If a rift had formed between him and Konoha because of it, the Konoha ninjas living near him would have been terrified, fearing that the day he had a falling out with the village, they would be the first to die in the ensuing battle.
To this day, no one had ever been able to dodge his dagger.
Fortunately, Konoha's Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, had publicly acknowledged the saying, which had thwarted the other villages' plot.
However, as a result, in the hearts of Konoha's ninjas, Li Anshi's importance to the village seemed to surpass even that of the Hokage.
Under these circumstances, if he had any intention of seizing control, Konoha might well have been torn apart by internal strife between him and Hiruzen.
Luckily, he was not someone who coveted power. Moreover, at the peak of his fame, he had chosen to step back, preventing a split in Konoha's leadership.
Even when Elder Danzo Shimura stole his secret technique under the pretext of protecting village secrets, he had not acted against him, only issuing a warning that if the elder came within a hundred meters of him, he would be killed.
If he had forcefully killed Elder Danzo back then, many of Konoha's higher-ups, even if they said nothing, would have held considerable opinions against him.
Although he wouldn't have cared about such things, it was indeed because of his actions back then that Konoha had remained peaceful during the war.
They were not born into a peaceful world, but lived in a peaceful village!
The ninjas who knew that he was the greatest deterrent keeping Konoha at peace, even the Hokage's direct ANBU subordinates, couldn't help but elevate his status above the Hokage's in their hearts.
However, such things were best kept to oneself.
To say them out loud would make everyone uncomfortable.
"Hahaha, thanks."
"But, I think I'll just wait upstairs."
Shaking his head, Li Anshi did not actually have the ANBU ninja go deliver the message.
He had no desire to see the ninja make a mistake.
Besides, with this, he would have an easier time explaining things to Tsunade later.
After all, it wasn't that he didn't inform the Third Hokage sooner; it was that he had come looking for him, but the man hadn't been there, right?
After he went upstairs, the ANBU ninjas melted back into the shadows, leaving only two as visible sentries in front of the gate.
Although it was still morning, some ninjas were already at work in the Hokage's building.
It was, after all, the administrative center of a ninja village. Information from the outside had to be collected and analyzed at all times, so that when the Hokage arrived, the results could be presented to him for his next orders.
Arriving at the Hokage's office, Li Anshi pushed the door open and went straight in.
Because Hiruzen had not yet arrived, the office was empty.
After a quick scan of the room, he pulled the chair from behind the desk over to the window, sat down, and closed his eyes to rest.
About half an hour later, in a drowsy state, he heard the sound of the door opening. He opened his eyes to see Hiruzen Sarutobi and Sakumo Hatake entering, one after the other.
"Haaah..."
Li Anshi yawned.
"Third, Sakumo, you're finally here. You kept me waiting so long I fell asleep."
He stood up, gave the chair he had been sitting on a push, and it slid towards Hiruzen.
There was only one desk in the Hokage's office.
No matter how little he thought of the Hokage, he wouldn't show disrespect to Hiruzen here.
What's more, for now, Hiruzen's changes were enough for him to distinguish him from the "Shinobi Professor" of his memories.
At the very least, what Hiruzen had done since taking office had been very much to his liking.
If he himself were in charge, unless he used force to suppress opposition, it would be nearly impossible to reform Konoha with the slow, simmering approach that Hiruzen was using.
In the end, after the Senju clan had integrated into Konoha, it was still very difficult for the "Hokage" to get anything done without the support of a family clan behind him.
"Haha, Anshi, if word of that got out, I'd probably be condemned by countless ninjas," Hiruzen said with a laugh.
This was no joke.
Although Li Anshi's name had not been prominent in the ninja world for these past few years, the ninjas who had experienced the First Great Ninja War were not dead yet.
Especially now, with the situation in the world showing signs of turmoil again, the importance of a nearly invincible ninja like him to Konoha was self-evident.
If Konoha did something to displease him, causing him to leave the village, it would be their greatest loss.
At that time, the other villages would absolutely not miss such an opportunity to kick them while they were down.
While laughing and joking with him, Hiruzen pulled the chair to sit behind his desk.
"You don't usually come looking for me."
"So, what is it this time?"
"In a way, this is no small matter."
Li Anshi leaned against the window, looking down from the Hokage's building at the bustling street below, a scene of peace.
"I'm here to deliver a message from Tsunade."
"Tsunade?"
Hiruzen paused, his expression turning serious.
He understood Li Anshi.
If it were his own business, it was usually a personal request with almost no impact on the village.
But when it involved Tsunade, he had no choice but to take it seriously.
On one hand, as someone who had been through it, Hiruzen had some understanding of the matter between Tsunade and Li Anshi.
And this was something he couldn't have hoped for more.
After all, Li Anshi was alone, with no real ties to Konoha. Hiruzen worried that one day he might get tired of the village and want to go out and see the world.
At that time, there would be nothing to keep him in Konoha.
If a deeper bond could be established between him and Tsunade, it would be nothing but beneficial for the village. Hiruzen would support it with both hands.
Now, in a way, Li Anshi stood right behind Tsunade!
On the other hand, there was Tsunade's current position.
Commander of the ninja forces stationed at the border of the Land of Fire.
This position meant that the offense and defense on the border with the Land of Rain were all under her command.
As Konoha's supreme leader, Hiruzen was naturally aware that the current situation in the ninja world was like a powder keg about to explode. All it needed was a fuse to be lit, which would trigger the Second Great Ninja War.
And right now, the eyes of the entire ninja world were focused on the border between the Land of Rain and Konoha.
Everyone knew that the Cloud and Stone villages had given the Rain some resources, and as a price for receiving them, the Rain would be the first to attack Konoha.
Of course, this wasn't a matter of the Cloud and Stone forcing the Rain. On the contrary, they had just given them a push from behind, making them stronger.
The main reason was that the Rain's Hanzo of the Salamander had been blinded by the title of "Demigod" and believed he could lead his village to the status of a "great ninja village."
However, a great ninja village was not something you could become just by calling yourself one.
From the beginning of the village era until now, there had been and still were only five.
On one hand, the five great villages had the five great nations behind them, providing resources, which allowed them to cultivate the next generation of ninjas.
On the other hand, the village era was also when various powerful clans had gathered together to form powerful ninja villages, occupying the most fertile lands in the world.
Even the Sand Village, which was looked down upon by its own ninjas, was considered to have far superior terrain in the eyes of the smaller villages.
It was just that compared to the other four, it was lacking by more than a little.
But on this point, the ninjas of the Sand could do nothing.
Even in the village era, if you wanted something, you had to fight for it, seize it, and take it.
The strongest Kazekage of the Sand was, in the other great villages, only at the level of a second or third-in-command, completely unable to compete.
The Rain Village was the same.
Because of its geographical location, it was shrouded in dark clouds year-round, with rain falling for at least three-quarters of the year.
Such an environment simply couldn't support a "great ninja village."
Therefore, the Rain had to seize a piece of territory from one of the other great villages to serve as the foundation for their promotion.
At that time, the other great villages would have no choice but to acknowledge their status.
After all, regardless of the Rain's past, to be able to bite off a piece of fat from one of the great villages was a testament to their and Hanzo's ability.
And that piece of fat was, naturally, Konoha.
The Rain Village and Konoha were destined to have a battle in the near future.
If Konoha could quickly repel the Rain and decisively destroy them, then the situation in the ninja world would remain peaceful.
But if Konoha showed even a hint of weakness in the war, it didn't even need to be a defeat; just being tied down by them would be enough for the other great villages to sharpen their knives and launch an attack, starting the Second Great Ninja War.