"Snap."
The brush in his hand couldn't take the pressure and snapped in half.
Minato looked at the broken brush and let out a long sigh. He slumped back into his chair as if his spine had turned to jelly, staring blankly at the ceiling.
"Master Jiraiya..."
Minato's voice was as weak as a man on his deathbed. "I suddenly feel like I should have let Danzo finish processing these documents before I killed him last night."
Sitting on the sofa with his legs crossed, Jiraiya didn't even look up as he greedily devoured his copy of Icha Icha Paradise.
"Stop dreaming, Minato."
Jiraiya turned a page, letting out a lecherous chuckle. "This is the destiny of the Hokage. The old man went through the same thing back in the day. Heavy is the head that wears the crown."
"You'll have to work hard on your own, hahahaha!"
"You're so heartless, Master," Minato said, dropping his complaining act when he saw Jiraiya wasn't buying it.
However, the gloom on Minato's face didn't dissipate. He rubbed his temples in frustration. "The mess Root left behind is even bigger than I imagined. The intelligence network is broken, the list of undercover agents needs verifying, the funding chains need auditing... I have to personally oversee every single item."
"Ribbit."
A purple toad hopped onto the mountain of documents, looking down at the young Hokage from its high vantage point.
Gamakon reached out a claw and poked a report titled "Destruction of Human Experimentation Data," a hint of playfulness flashing in his horizontal pupils.
"What? You can't take it already?"
Gamakon curled his large mouth. "This is just the beginning. At this rate, by the time your kid is your age, your hairline will probably have receded all the way to the back of your head."
Minato gave a wry smile and reached out to pat Gamakon's head, but the toad dodged him with a look of disdain.
"Mr. Gamakon, please stop making jokes."
Minato picked up a new brush. "If you have any good ideas, please save me. If this continues, I might actually become the first Hokage in Konoha's history to die from overwork."
"There is a way, of course."
Squatting on the mountain of files, Gamakon spoke unhurriedly. "A person's energy is limited. Even if you are the Yellow Flash, you can't grade a thousand documents at once. You need help."
"Shikaku is already helping me." Minato pointed to the small temporary table nearby, which was also piled high with documents, though Shikaku was currently away.
"Shikaku is a strategist; he's for brainstorming, not for the dirty, grunt work."
Gamakon shook his head and raised a finger. "You need someone capable, ambitious, and 'cold' enough to take over the shady mess left by Root. Or rather, you need a new 'Root'—one that obeys you completely."
Minato paused his writing, his gaze instantly turning sharp.
"Mr. Gamakon, you mean..."
"Isn't Orochimaru in the village?"
Gamakon's words were shocking.
"Pffft—!"
Jiraiya, who was drinking tea while reading, spat it out instantly. Without bothering to wipe his mouth, he bolted upright and stared at Gamakon with wide eyes.
"Hey! My Sage Sovereign! Are you crazy?!"
Jiraiya rushed to the desk in a few strides. "That guy Orochimaru... do you know what he's been up to? He's become so gloomy lately, and his head is filled with nothing but those experiments! Letting him do this? Isn't that like inviting a wolf into the fold?"
Minato also frowned deeply and put down his brush.
He pulled a black scroll from a stack of documents nearby—one recovered from Danzo's secret room the previous night.
"Mr. Gamakon."
Minato's voice grew low. "This is Danzo's record on Orochimaru. Although Danzo lied about many things, this record should be real. Orochimaru... has been conducting human experiments. And the methods are extremely cruel."
Minato unfurled the scroll. The shocking images and data inside made the air in the office feel cold.
"I know."
Gamakon didn't even glance at the scroll, his tone remaining flat. "To pursue so-called 'truth' and 'immortality,' he doesn't hesitate to trample over the sanctity of life. To you, this is evil, a descent into darkness."
"Is it not?" Jiraiya asked, somewhat agitated. "Those are real human lives!"
"Yes and no."
Gamakon turned around and looked out at the bustling streets of Konoha. "In this shinobi world, killing is the norm. Shinobi themselves are tools for slaughter. Danzo killed ten times more people than Orochimaru ever did, yet he was the 'Darkness of Shinobi,' a hero who protected Konoha. Why? Because his reason for killing was 'for the village'."
"Orochimaru's problem is that his goals are too pure, and too selfish. He only does it for himself."
Gamakon jumped down from the stack of files, landing on the desk in front of Minato, and looked directly into those azure eyes.
"But, Minato, you must understand one thing."
"You are the Hokage, a politician, not a moral role model. When using people, judge them by their deeds, not their hearts."
"In Konoha right now, Danzo is dead. Although Tsunade is back, she only cares about saving lives. This idiot Jiraiya only knows how to fight and write smutty books—he's useless for anything else besides having a high moral standard."
"Hey! Watch your mouth!" Jiraiya's face had initially split into a grin at being praised, but then he realized the insult and protested.
Gamakon ignored him and continued, "You need a real scientist, a genius who can improve Konoha's strength from a technical level. Root's legacy—the research data on Hashirama Cells and the Sharingan—no one can understand it or dares to take it over except for Orochimaru."
"If you seal this data away, it's just a pile of scrap paper. But if you give it to Orochimaru, it becomes the power that can make Konoha great again."
Minato fell silent.
He looked at the scroll, an intense mental struggle playing out in his mind.
As Minato Namikaze, he detested Orochimaru's actions.
But as the Fourth Hokage, he had to admit that Gamakon had a point.
Root's scientific research strength was a vital asset to Konoha. It would be a massive waste if it went to ruin because of Danzo's death.
Moreover, Orochimaru's talent was truly unique in the shinobi world.
"But..."
Minato hesitated for a moment. "Orochimaru is proud. He didn't even win the position of Hokage; would he really be willing to come back and be my assistant? And how can I guarantee he won't lose control?"
"That's the art of the deal."
Gamakon grinned, his smile revealing a hint of cunning. "What is Orochimaru's core desire?"
"Money?"
"Power?"
"The position of Hokage?"
"It's immortality, learning every jutsu in the world, and probing the ultimate truth of chakra."
"As long as you provide enough chips, he'll be your most loyal tool."
Gamakon tapped his claw on the table in a rhythmic beat.
"Tell him Konoha will build the most advanced laboratory for him."
"Tell him that all the forbidden jutsu scrolls collected by Root over the years—even the unfinished techniques left by the Second Hokage—will be open to him."
"Even..."
Gamakon lowered his voice like a demon tempting someone to fall. "You can tell him that you know the secret of the 'Reaper,' and that you know where the gate to the Pure Land lies behind the technique known as the Reaper Death Seal."
Minato's pupils constricted sharply.
The Reaper Death Seal.
That was the ultimate sealing technique of the Uzumaki Clan and the trump card he had prepared to protect the village.
"How do you know..." Minato looked at Gamakon in shock.
"I'm a prophet, remember?"
Gamakon laughed it off without much explanation. "Anyway, for a research fanatic like Orochimaru, as long as you can provide knowledge he can't refuse, he will obediently work for you. As for control..."
Gamakon glanced at the nearby Jiraiya.
"Don't you still have this idiot here? As long as Jiraiya and Tsunade are in Konoha, even if Orochimaru has second thoughts, he'll have to weigh the consequences of the Sannin's 'bonds' breaking."
"In the Third's words, this is what 'bonds' are all about."
"Besides, you can set the rules."
"Experimental subjects can only be death row inmates or enemy shinobi. If he crosses that red line, you, the Yellow Flash, will personally send him to meet the Reaper."
"I believe that with Orochimaru's intelligence, he'll know how to choose."
A long silence fell over the office.
There was only the sound of the wind outside and the light tapping of Minato's fingers on the desk.
Jiraiya opened his mouth to argue, but the words died in his throat.
Though he was emotional, he also understood the current situation. Konoha had just experienced an upheaval and desperately needed strength.
And if he could bring Orochimaru back and keep an eye on him, perhaps... it could be a way to save him?
After a long time.
Minato let out a long breath, rolled the black scroll back up, and set it aside.
"I'll have to... give this more thought."
Minato rubbed his brow, a trace of exhaustion in his eyes. "Orochimaru's danger is unpredictable. I need time to evaluate it and consult with Lord Third."
"However..."
Minato looked at Gamakon, a forced smile playing on his lips. "I will seriously consider your suggestion, Mr. Gamakon. After all, I don't really want to work myself to death in this chair."
"That's more like it."
Gamakon nodded in satisfaction. "No rush. Let the bullet fly for a bit. For now, the priority is to give Danzo a grand funeral to show those lurking in the shadows that Konoha remains a united front."
...
Meanwhile.
In the Land of Lightning, the Cloud Village.
This was a village built atop soaring mountain peaks, surrounded by clouds and the constant roar of thunder.
The constant shroud of mist and the unending crackle of lightning defined its rugged landscape.
The rugged stone architectural style matched the village's shinobi: power-worshipping and direct.
In the office on the top floor of the Raikage Building.
"Bang!"
With a loud crash, the heavy solid-wood desk was pulverized under a massive fist, sending wood splinters flying.
"Dead?!"
A burly man with dark skin, built like an iron tower, stood shirtless, his muscles bulging like granite. He roared in fury, the sound waves making the windowpanes rattle.
The Fourth Raikage, Ay.
He glared with eyes as large as copper bells at the intelligence ninja kneeling before him, his violent lightning-natured chakra crackling around him like blue electric snakes.
"That old fossil Danzo... that 'Darkness of Shinobi' with the resilience of a cockroach, is actually dead? And by suicide?!"
Ay's voice was filled with disbelief and rage. "Are you kidding me! A devious guy like that would commit seppuku out of guilt? Does Konoha think everyone in the shinobi world is a fool?!"
"Lord Raikage, please calm down."
Standing to the side, his secretary Mabui calmly pushed up her glasses while holding her documents, seemingly long accustomed to the sight of desks being destroyed.
"Guilt, my foot!"
Ay waved his hand, creating a gust of wind. "It's definitely internal strife! Absolutely internal strife! That blond kid Minato Namikaze looks all smiles, but he's actually that ruthless? He took out his own village elder the moment he took office?"
"This shows that the Fourth Hokage's methods are tougher than we anticipated."
An old man sitting in the corner spoke up slowly.
It was the Cloud Village's strategist, Dodai.
Dodai's fingers tapped lightly on the armrest. "With Danzo dead, a power vacuum and instability will inevitably appear within Konoha. Root's influence is deeply entrenched, and Minato Namikaze won't be able to fully digest it overnight."
"This is our chance!"
Ay turned around abruptly, a warlike glint in his eyes.
"The small team we sent to test them last time has vanished without a trace. Konoha's reply was that they 'encountered rogue ninjas and their whereabouts are unknown.' Hmph, do they think we're three-year-olds?"
"That was Minato Namikaze's warning to us."
Dodai said gravely, "The terror of the Yellow Flash on the battlefield... you should know it best, Lord Raikage. Without absolute certainty, launching a reckless war would not be in the Cloud's favor."
"So we just let it go?"
Ay clenched his fists, his knuckles cracking.
"Moreover..."
Ay's gaze turned greedy and fierce. "I heard that Konoha's Hyuga Clan has been a bit lax with their security lately. Those Byakugan... are a strategic resource our Cloud Village has long dreamed of."
"Lord Raikage, you mean..." Mabui looked at him with concern.
"Send another team!"
Ay waved his hand, making his decision.
"Bring more sensory ninjas this time. Ostensibly, they're going to Konoha to offer condolences for Danzo and discuss compensation for the missing team."
"In reality..."
Ay's mouth curled into a grin, revealing a row of ivory-white teeth like a predator about to strike.
"Test them hard! I want to know exactly where Minato Namikaze's bottom line is! If he shows even a hint of weakness, or if Konoha really is in a mess..."
"Then we'll tear up the peace treaty and invade with our full force!"
Dodai frowned, clearly thinking it was risky, but seeing the Raikage's uncompromising attitude, he finally sighed.
"Understood. However, to be safe, should we have Lord Killer Bee on standby at the border?"
"No need!"
Ay laughed confidently. "If that idiot Bee goes, he'll definitely cause a huge scene. Just send an elite team! Tell them, if there's a chance, bring me back one of the Hyuga Clan's Byakugan! Even a corpse will do!"
"Since Konoha dared to kill our people, they'd better be prepared to pay the price!"