Chapter 384: Crossing the Three Kingdoms! Involving the Hidden Cloud Village!
To save time, Fujiwara Tetsuya ultimately abandoned the long-distance, rapid travel method.
After drawing his katana and swiftly cutting down an ancient tree, he directly used Earth Release: Super Lightened Boulder Technique to bring Uchiha Mikoto, Torune Ryoui, and the members of the ANBU Squad with him, flying through the thick clouds and mist towards Konoha.
The next morning, as the dawn broke through the darkness and appeared on the horizon, Tetsuya, without regard for Chakra consumption, returned to Konoha ahead of schedule.
"Is this truly within the realm of what a 'human' can achieve?"
Outside the Hokage Building, four Anbu members, watching Fujiwara Tetsuya walk away, couldn't help but murmur.
Their eyes were filled with awe and disbelief... "Perhaps, one day, Lord Tetsuya will truly reach that stage, becoming the strongest in the Ninja World, an existence surpassing Lord Hashirama..."
... "It seems the situation isn't as urgent as I imagined!"
The moment Fujiwara Tetsuya pushed open the door to the Hokage Office, Hiruzen Sarutobi hadn't arrived yet... there was only the lingering smoke.
"Hm~ Lord Tetsuya, you returned from the front lines so quickly..."
Fujiwara Tetsuya's voice caught the attention of the on-duty administrative staff.
Looking at Fujiwara Tetsuya's increasingly handsome face, the administrative staff who had rushed over were surprised, counting on their fingers, seemingly calculating the time it would take to travel back and forth from Konoha to the Land of Wind... "My apologies, I was a bit loud just now and woke you up!"
"Thank you for your hard work on night duty, you should go rest first. We'll wait here for a bit..."
Fujiwara Tetsuya had visited the Hokage Building countless times, perhaps even more often than he had attended the Ninja Academy.
Fujiwara Tetsuya had met most of the administrative staff working in the Hokage Building... however, he could only remember a select few names.
"Yes... then please wait here for a moment. Hokage-sama will be here in an hour at most."
Under Fujiwara Tetsuya's gaze, the young woman from the administrative department, her face flushed, quickly left, muttering words about gentleness until she completely disappeared at the end of the corridor, and only then did silence finally return.
"Hiss~~~ Ryoui, don't, don't pinch me..."
"Hm~ Lord Tetsuya, he truly is a gentle person..."
"Tetsuya-kun, being gentle is good, but... in front of other girls in the future, it's best to try to restrain yourself."
"Otherwise, Mikoto and I will get jealous~"
...Fujiwara Tetsuya hadn't expected that besides the three of them, the first to arrive at the Hokage Office wouldn't be Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Looking at the two F4 members with dark expressions, Fujiwara Tetsuya let out two dry laughs. After lifting his head from Uchiha Mikoto's shoulder, he pulled his leg back from Torune Ryoui's leg.
He sat up straight and proper!
"Uh~ Advisor Torifu, Advisor Mito, long time no see!"
"Both Advisors don't look too well, it must be due to too much stress."
"Don't worry, no matter how big the problem, us young people will handle it. You don't need to think too much..."
Fujiwara Tetsuya's greeting was destined to go unanswered.
The scene Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado had just witnessed, and their strong restraint from tearing into him, was already commendable.
Since the founding of Konoha, let alone a brat like Fujiwara Tetsuya, even Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Second Hokage, and the First Hokage had never done anything so... undignified in a sacred place like the Hokage Office.
This oppressive atmosphere lasted for nearly twenty minutes before Hiruzen Sarutobi, wearing his sun-shading Hokage hat, slowly stepped into the Hokage Office.
"Hm~ Koharu, you all... Hm? Tetsuya, when did you brats get back? How could it be so fast?"
Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi's surprised expression, Fujiwara Tetsuya probably understood.
He hadn't asked those simple-minded Anbu members to specially inform Hiruzen Sarutobi of their return.
And those guys really hadn't gone... "Upon receiving the intelligence from Anbu yesterday, I naturally dared not delay, Hokage-sama... To return early and quickly support the front lines in the Land of Rain, I paid a considerable price."
The 'price' Fujiwara Tetsuya mentioned was, at most, less than seventy percent of his Chakra.
However, these words, when heard by Hiruzen Sarutobi, Homura Mitokado, and Utatane Koharu... took on a different meaning.
No matter what, crossing the Land of Wind, the Land of Rivers, and the Land of Fire in just one day was, in some respects, simply unheard of... it was reasonable to assume some price was paid.
"Hoo~ Tetsuya, you've truly worked hard..."
For a moment, even Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado fell silent... such resolve was something even they needed to learn from, let alone criticize.
No wonder that brat had acted so improperly just now... "Everything is for the Village. As long as it helps the Village win this war, even if it means losing my life... it's worth it."
"I said before that I am willing to bear all the darkness and infamy... even if no one understands..."
"Haha~~~ I got carried away and said too much. Let's talk about Iwagakure instead."
Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi fall silent, Fujiwara Tetsuya immediately understood that the intensity of this PUA was sufficient.
With continuous effort, one day he would subtly shift Hiruzen Sarutobi's mindset... to protect Danzo as he does, and to consider issues from his current perspective.
"Hokage-sama, before returning to the Village, I also considered the situation in Iwagakure... The war has reached such a point that both Konoha and Amegakure are almost at their wit's end."
"However, Iwagakure, in addition to having Ōnoki, the Four-Tails Jinchuriki, and the Five-Tails Jinchuriki as peak combat powers, more importantly, its main forces are intact, and its foundation remains. No one can be sure how much more combat power Iwagakure could mobilize if it initiated a full war mobilization."
"To preserve the necessary vitality for the Village... I suggest finding new forces to participate in this war and reduce the threat posed by Iwagakure..."
Hearing Fujiwara Tetsuya's explanation, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Homura Mitokado, and Utatane Koharu's expressions gradually became serious.
They had considered these matters before... but for this situation, no effective strategy had been discussed yet.
Winning this war was paramount; as for other matters, they could only be considered after the war ended.
"Tetsuya, tell me your thoughts..."
Unconsciously, Hiruzen Sarutobi picked up his pipe again, falling into deep thought.
"I suggest ceding necessary interests to bring Hidden Cloud Village into the fray."
"Doesn't Hidden Cloud Village want the Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Technique? Then give them a portion..."
"Currently, Iwagakure's high-level combat forces are all deployed. As long as there is a legitimate reason, the Third Raikage will certainly not miss the opportunity to plunder the coastal cities of the Land of Earth and weaken Iwagakure..."