Yōkō returned to Yuka's side and said, "Yuka, the Anbu Vice Commander, the Lynx from the Shimura clan, is dead."
"Next, you hide in the Uzumaki clan's hiding place and don't come out for now. There will be a big battle in the Land of Rain. I still have a mission, I need to go meet Uchiha Madara."
Yuka, thinking Fox was going to try and retrieve Uzumaki Nagato, quickly said, "Fox, don't take the risk. Didn't you say Uchiha Madara is training Nagato? You shouldn't take chances either."
"It's fine, just going to say hello to Uchiha Madara. I know my limits."
Yōkō and Yuka were simultaneously reverse-summoned. Yuka returned to the depths of the rainforest in the southwest of the Land of Rain, while Yōkō returned to the northeast of the Land of Rain, continuing his pretense of searching for Uchiha Madara.
Land of Grass.
Sarutobi Hinotama found Lynx's forehead protector. It was melted, with some black spots on it, likely residue from blood burnt by the explosion.
The Hyūga ninja from the reconnaissance team said, "Hinotama-sensei, Vice Commander Lynx, in the last moment of the explosion, leaped as far as he could with all his strength."
"However, the explosion's range was too vast, its power too great. Vice Commander Lynx fell victim. He only left behind this melted forehead protector."
The Konoha symbol on the protector was twisted and chaotic, mirroring Sarutobi Hinotama's current state of mind.
Sarutobi Hinotama said, "Lynx had just become the Anbu Vice Commander, had just started being addressed as 'sir', yet he sacrificed himself on his first mission."
"Sigh, send this news back to the village quickly via messenger hawk."
"Anbu Vice Commander Lynx, the Wildcat Squadron Leader, two Anbu squads, and Sarutobi Shizutaka... all sacrificed."
Tragic news. A high-ranking official like the Anbu Vice Commander was also killed by a rogue ninja.
Sarutobi Hinotama looked at his younger brother, Sarutobi Hinoyuu, only to see Hinoyuu still lost in thought.
Sarutobi Hinoyuu had been philandering for so many years, relying on his status as Sarutobi Sasuke's most doted-upon youngest son, delaying how many kunoichi of the village? Having such an illegitimate son could be considered karma.
The Hyūga ninja asked, "Hinotama-sensei, should we continue investigating Sarutobi Kanenosuke?"
Sarutobi Hinotama said, "Investigate, continue the investigation. Unless the village orders us back, we must pursue this."
If Danzō found out Lynx died here and they abandoned the mission to return to the village, it would surely cause a storm.
Lynx was too important to Danzō. The number of elites in the Shimura clan was dwindling, which was also a heavy blow to Danzō.
Cannon fodder is easy to find, Jōnin is hard to come by.
Sarutobi Hinotama thought to himself, Sarutobi Kanenosuke, where exactly did the clan and the village wrong you? Just say it.
Give us a chance.
If you don't speak, how can we make amends?
Sarutobi Hinotama judged that they would be recalled once the team investigating Uchiha Madara in the Land of Rain either made a breakthrough or suffered heavy losses.
Three days later, the messenger hawk delivered the news to Konoha.
In the Hokage's office, the senior leaders had gathered.
Sarutobi Hiruzen smoked, his mood extremely foul.
If Lynx had died in the Land of Grass as an Anbu squad leader, it wouldn't be so infuriating.
But Lynx's position was Anbu Vice Commander, not some unknown Anbu ninja.
Hinotama and Lynx were together, with an elite intelligence squad, yet they were no match for Sarutobi Kanenosuke?
And Sarutobi Hinoyuu... Just thinking about him made Sarutobi Hiruzen furious.
Not being able to keep his pants on was one thing, but to sire an illegitimate son and then neglect him, causing such a huge disaster...
Nara Rokaku, seeing no one else was speaking, said:
"Honorable sirs, I believe the person calling himself Sarutobi Kanenosuke already possesses the strength of a Kage-level ninja. Should we dispatch a Kage-level ninja to hunt down Sarutobi Kanenosuke?"
A single Five Elements Unrivalled Attack, with power comparable to a small Tailed Beast Ball, capable of destroying an area hundreds of meters in diameter with one technique.
Such strength is undoubtedly Kage-level.
One benchmark for a Kage-level ninja is the ability to resist a Tailed Beast briefly. Sarutobi Kanenosuke's Five Elements Unrivalled Attack certainly has sufficient power.
Among the village's Kage-level ninjas, the Third cannot go, Advisors Danzō and Mitokado Homura won't take the risk, leaving only Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Hatake Sakumo.
Orochimaru arrived late, initially thinking it was Fox causing a sensation with Wood Release. But after seeing the intelligence scroll being passed around, which detailed the big commotion caused by Sarutobi Kanenosuke, he lost interest.
Nara Rokaku, observing Orochimaru's demeanor, guessed he wasn't interested in Sarutobi Kanenosuke.
Tsunade... Tsunade was even more impossible.
Should they send Hatake Sakumo then?
Nara Rokaku thought, at least Hatake Sakumo wouldn't refuse.
After Danzō's eye bags twitched several times, he nearly gritted his teeth and said:
"Sarutobi Hiruzen, did you read the scroll? Sarutobi Kanenosuke said every member of the Sarutobi clan gets a free pass from him once."
"Sarutobi Hiruzen, how can you still sit still? Why don't you go to the Land of Grass and eliminate this rogue ninja from your Sarutobi clan?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen smoked in silence.
He couldn't easily go to the Land of Grass.
If he went, Ōnoki would certainly make a move.
During the First Shinobi World War, he had defeated Ōnoki, who had been holding a grudge ever since.
As the Hokage, the Kage of the largest shinobi village in the world, he was the one wearing shoes, not barefoot. It wasn't convenient for him to leave the village to confront the Kage of an enemy nation.
Staying put was fine. But if he failed even once, his aura of invincibility would be shattered.
Sarutobi Hiruzen said, "Sarutobi Kanenosuke has already become a serious threat and must be eliminated."
"Ninjutsu specialists fear speed-type ninjas the most. Against speed-types, their ninjutsu hit rate is low, and they risk being closed in on."
"How about sending the Hatake Sakumo squad to the Land of Grass?"
Mitokado Homura silently repeated. Sending Hatake Sakumo, who was currently leading a genin team, to take his three genin to the Land of Grass was a good choice.
Mitokado Homura said, "We must end the chaos in the Land of Grass as soon as possible."
"The Daimyō of the Land of Grass has significant grievances against us. If we can't end the chaos, our mission share from the Land of Grass cannot be guaranteed."
"The Land of Grass's Guardian Ninja Jōnin have been killed off two or three times already. This is not only a heavy blow to the Shimura clan but also a blow to Konoha's reputation."
But Sarutobi Hiruzen said, "Sarutobi Kanenosuke is a subordinate of Uchiha Madara. The key now is the mission investigating Uchiha Madara in the Land of Rain."
"If we dispatch Hatake Sakumo to the Land of Grass, perhaps Sarutobi Kanenosuke will have already returned to Uchiha Madara's side."
"Let's wait until the mission in the Land of Rain is concluded. Uchiha Madara is the primary culprit."
Orochimaru nodded repeatedly. His teacher's judgment was accurate; perhaps Sarutobi Kanenosuke had already rushed back to the Land of Rain.
Land of Rain... Fox, you must perform well and vindicate my experiments.
Danzō turned to Yellow Dog and demanded, "Yellow Dog, the Root's intelligence network was handed over to your Anbu."
"Can you determine Sarutobi Kanenosuke's current whereabouts now? Where is your intelligence? Are we just relying on guesswork here?"
Yellow Dog felt a bitter taste in his mouth. He also wanted accurate intelligence on Sarutobi Kanenosuke, but he truly had no means.
Long-Armed Ape still hadn't fully straightened out the spy network, and the spy system formerly under Lynx's control was something Yellow Dog couldn't interfere with at all.
Mitokado Homura then said, "Yellow Dog, the spy network was operating very smoothly before. You must pay extra attention to ensure it doesn't develop problems, otherwise Konoha will be blind."
"I understand, I will place greater emphasis on the spy network."
Sarutobi Hiruzen brought up another matter:
"The position of Anbu Vice Commander cannot remain vacant."
"The Anbu Commander remains in the village, while the Vice Commander needs to leave the village to carry out dangerous and difficult missions for the Anbu."
"The new Vice Commander cannot be easily killed like Lynx was."
"The situation is becoming increasingly difficult. The death of the Anbu Vice Commander is not only the loss of an elite but also a major blow to Konoha's prestige."
"Who do you think is suitable for the Anbu Vice Commander position?"
***
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(End of Chapter)