Naruto: Starting as the Third Hokage with Tears in His Eyes

Chapter 21 The Shadow of War

Time flies, the years are like a shuttle.

In the blink of an eye, several years have passed quietly.

In the early years of Konoha 37.

The atmosphere in the Hokage's office was heavy.

Hiruzen Sarutobi sat in the main seat, his face no longer showing the immaturity of his youth, and a neat short beard had grown on his chin, making him look more dignified and profound.

His Hokage robes had also been redesigned, but his eyes were even more profound than they had been years ago, as if they could see through everything in the world.

On the office wall hangs a huge map of the ninja world.

The map is densely marked with various red arrows and symbols, representing the recent frequent military movements of the major ninja villages.

An unseen dark cloud is looming over the entire ninja world.

Peace was like a brief respite between two world wars, and now it seems that respite has come to an end.

"Lord Hokage! S-rank urgent intelligence from Amegakure!"

An ANBU ninja appeared instantly in the center of the office, knelt on one knee, and held a scroll sealed with a special waterproof material high above his head.

Hiruzen Sarutobi reached out and took it, then unrolled the scroll.

The handwriting on the scroll was very messy, clearly written by intelligence personnel under extremely urgent circumstances.

But the content is crystal clear.

The leader of Amegakure, the demigod Hanzo of the Salamander, declared war on three countries simultaneously this morning, under the pretext of "balancing the power of the ninja world and re-establishing world order"!

The Second Shinobi World War officially broke out.

"Finally... it's here."

Hiruzen Sarutobi put down the scroll, his eyes calm, showing no surprise whatsoever.

Over the years, he has seen countless future wars through simulators.

He had been preparing for this day.

Expand military capabilities, train personnel, establish a medical department, and appease the Uchiha clan...

Everything he did was so that today, Konoha could face the storm sweeping across the entire ninja world in its strongest form.

"Pass on my order! Convene a top-level emergency military meeting!"

"yes!"

……

Hokage Building, Supreme Conference Room.

All the high-ranking officials of Konoha gathered together.

Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado, Danzo Shimura, Kagami Uchiha, Torifu Akimichi, as well as the heads of various clans and the captains of the Anbu.

Every face was etched with solemnity.

That's the situation.

Hiruzen Sarutobi relayed the information to everyone: "Hanzo of the Salamander, the man known as a demigod, has declared war on us."

"Outrageous! A mere small country dares to declare war on all three of us great powers at the same time? Who does he think he is? The Sage of Six Paths?"

With a fiery temper, Shimura Danzo slammed his fist on the table, his face trembling with rage.

"We must not let our guard down, Danzo."

Mitokado Homura adjusted his glasses, his expression serious. "Hanzo of the Salamander's strength is beyond doubt. More importantly, there's the geographical location of Amegakure, sandwiched between us, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure. Once war breaks out, it will inevitably become the most brutal meat grinder."

"Men Yan is right."

Koharu Utatane's expression was also grim. "Hanzo's move has dragged all three of us into this mess. If we, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure fight to the death in the Land of Rain, who will benefit?"

Everyone's eyes, without prior agreement, turned to the northeast corner of the map.

The Land of Lightning, Hidden Cloud Village.

"We might get bogged down in a desperate quagmire of fighting on three fronts!" Xiaochun's voice carried a hint of panic.

The meeting room was filled with heated debate.

Some advocate a full-scale attack, aiming to wipe out Amegakure with overwhelming force, thus deterring Sunagakure and Iwagakure.

Some advocate a defensive posture, consolidating the borders to avoid being dragged into the vortex of war.

Danzo Shimura remained silent, listening coldly while his fingers tapped rhythmically under the table.

Uchiha Kagami looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi in the main seat, awaiting his final decision.

Over the past few years, Hiruzen has established absolute authority in their minds through countless god-like predictions.

They believed that the Hokage must have a solution.

Finally, Hiruzen Sarutobi raised his hand and pressed it down.

The noisy conference room fell silent instantly.

All eyes were on him.

"Everyone, don't panic."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice was calm and steady, carrying a power that could soothe people's hearts.

"The war has indeed begun."

"But we have more than one enemy."

He stood up, walked to the map, picked up a long red stick, and pointed neither at Amegakure nor at Sunagakure or Iwagakure.

Instead, it struck heavily on the location of Hidden Cloud Village.