[Konoha Village]
Just as the major clans were packing up their things and preparing to leave Konoha, Rengoku, however, left the village together with Orochimaru.
They went to the back mountain behind the village.
This place used to be the only path leading to the Hokage Rock, but after stairs were built below the Hokage Rock, this road was abandoned.
But Rengoku and Orochimaru's goal wasn't here.
They continued deeper into the forest.
The forest was dense with tall trees, and the ground was thickly covered with all kinds of plants.
Rengoku relied on his memory to find this place.
He still needed to search for the exact location.
After a long while, he finally found a ruined building deep within the dense woods.
The building looked like a small temple, but it had collapsed badly and was in terrible shape.
Above it was a large spiral symbol, the crest of the Uzumaki Clan.
This was none other than the Uzumaki Clan's Mask Shrine.
It was unknown how long this place had been abandoned. The pillars inside the shrine were cracked and hollow, and half of the side wall had collapsed.
The roof was full of holes, and on the front wall hung three rows of masks, seventeen in total.
Orochimaru looked at the masks on the wall with great interest.
"Your dojutsu really is useful. You can directly see the method to undo the Reaper Death Seal."
Rengoku not only took down the mask of the Shinigami, he also removed all the other masks.
He was well-versed in sealing arts.
Naturally, he could sense that these other masks also contained powerful sealing formulas.
Of course, Rengoku wasn't about to let them go.
At the same time, he replied casually, "This idea was yours in the first place."
"After all, that Shinigami sure lost out when doing business with you."
"You used the Impure World Reincarnation technique and only gave a snake skin to the Shinigami, in exchange for the souls of the First, Second, Third, and Fourth Hokage."
Orochimaru laughed proudly.
As a scientist, what he enjoyed most was finding loopholes in these kinds of systems.
He wasn't even sure what exactly that Shinigami was, but naturally, he would never allow himself to take a loss.
"I haven't recreated that vessel yet," Orochimaru said with a faint smile, "So I can't reincarnate anyone for now."
Rengoku rolled his eyes, "Yeah, right. If you came here with me, you obviously already have a plan."
Orochimaru chuckled silently.
It was rare for him to make a joke, and he didn't expect Rengoku to call him out on it.
"Let's go. Time to head back."
———
[Konoha Village]
[The Nara Residence]
Ever since the Hokage Building was burned down, almost all village affairs were being managed by Nara Shikaku and Akimichi Choza.
Unlike Rengoku, who acted like a hands-off boss, these two were so busy they barely stopped spinning.
But for the Nara Clan, this wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
When Hiruzen was Hokage, no matter how much the Nara Clan contributed, they'd at most get an honorary elder title.
Rengoku was different, he directly promised Shikaku that once this period passed, he'd make him Hokage's advisor.
Shikaku suddenly felt his back didn't ache, his legs didn't hurt,
and he could approve five mission reports in one breath.
Today, as usual, Rengoku wasn't around, but what he was doing would directly strengthen Konoha's hidden trump cards.
He hadn't told Shikaku the details, but had hinted enough.
"Elder Shikaku, the Hyuga Clan people have arrived."
"Let them in."
Since many ANBU had defected, the Ino–Shika–Cho clans were now all fully mobilized.
This was good news for them, having chosen to side with the Uchiha, they had to support them wholeheartedly.
Hearing that the Hyuga Clan had arrived, Shikaku relaxed slightly.
He knew their situation well.
The Hyuga had lost about a quarter of their combat personnel,
and many of their top fighters as well.
Still, the Hyuga's greatest asset was their Byakugan, a sensory function, not direct combat power.
After all, they couldn't fight tailed beasts anyway, and the main family members rarely even took the battlefield.
So, really, they had only lost about forty or fifty branch family members.
Led by Hyuga Aoto, a group of Hyuga elites entered the room.
"Elder Shikaku, I am Hyuga Aoto, temporarily acting as the Hyuga Clan Head."
Shikaku looked him over and nodded slightly.
Though Aoto was young, Shikaku didn't dare underestimate someone from the branch family. After all, the branch had risen to power by stepping over the corpses of the main family in a coup.
"Although our Hyuga Clan has suffered certain losses," Aoto said with a polite tone, "In this time of crisis for Konoha, we still wish to contribute our strength."
He gestured to the group behind him, "These are our Hyuga Clan's elite jonin—"
"They are Cho, Hideaki, Hitomi, Tsukihiko…"
After introducing them one by one, Aoto added, "Our other clansmen currently on missions will also return to the village soon."
Shikaku nodded in satisfaction, "Konoha is short on people right now, and what we lack most are reconnaissance personnel."
"If the Hyuga Clan can fully support Konoha, that would be ideal."
"At the moment, we must monitor the movements of Kumo, Iwa, and Suna very closely."
Without hesitation, Shikaku unrolled a map and pointed to various key routes across the Land of Fire.
"Here, here, and here—"
"These places all require the Hyuga's Byakugan."
"And of course, Hiruzen's faction also needs to be kept under surveillance."
The Hyuga who came with Aoto were the last remaining elite of their clan, they clearly understood how dangerous the current situation was.
"No problem," Aoto said firmly, "We'll establish surveillance in these areas. Any findings will be reported back to the village immediately."
Shikaku nodded slightly, "You just need to focus on intelligence work. Leave combat to others."
"Intelligence first, don't worry about the fighting."
The Hyuga exchanged glances and all nodded.
———
[Sarutobi Clan Compound]
Sarutobi Ryunosuke entered Hiruzen's room.
"Clan Head, the clansmen are all ready."
Hiruzen was still wearing the Hokage robe, and still holding his pipe.
"Are the other clans ready too? How many of our people are staying behind?"
He spoke calmly, his face showing no sign of panic.
Ryunosuke replied, "The other clans' fighters are also prepared."
"Most of our clansmen have chosen to follow you, only less than half have decided to remain in Konoha."
"However, Kakashi and Yamato have disappeared. They probably chose to side with the Uchiha."
Hiruzen took a drag from his pipe, "Good thing I didn't entrust them with anything important beforehand."
"Has Shigaraki Tanuki reported on the new progress?"
Ryunosuke answered, "Shigaraki reported that the current estimate is at least three thousand people."
Hiruzen listened, then stepped out into the courtyard, pipe in hand.
He turned his head to look toward the distance, toward the Hokage Rock.
Rengoku and the others hadn't had time to tear it down yet.
Hiruzen's reputation was already known across the ninja world, and now, even something like a village driving out its own Hokage had happened.
It was enough to make people laugh their heads off.
Though being expelled was somewhat unexpected, Hiruzen had already planned to leave the village for a while, it just happened to be a bit more disgraceful this time.
'This isn't the end. I'll be back.'
Suppressing the turmoil in his heart, Hiruzen said, "Let's move out. Everyone stay alert and ready for a surprise attack at any time."
"Yes!"
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