Outside Sunagakure, at the heart of the desert battle, a Sunagakure ninja wearing a headband solemnly blew his whistle.
Beep—
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The whistle quickly attracted a number of figures. Some were Sunagakure ninja led by Maki, others were Konoha Anbu led by Touka, and there were also Jōnin and Special Jōnin members who had come to accompany the Chunin Exam participants, including Might Guy and Asuma Sarutobi.
Seeing Maki appear, the Sunagakure ninja immediately stepped forward to report.
"Lord Maki, a giant toad corpse has been found over there. It must be a summoning beast that died in battle."
"A giant toad corpse!"
Hearing the report, the Anbu and accompanying Jōnin immediately ran in the indicated direction.
"We'll follow," Maki said, his expression gloomy, and called for his men to follow.
Soon, everyone saw three enormous toad carcasses, half-buried by the sandstorm. Their bodies were crawling with small sand-dwelling animals.
"These toads..."
Looking at the decomposing carcasses, Might Guy turned to Asuma and Kurenai Yuhi behind him. As a commoner ninja, he was completely unfamiliar with Jiraiya and couldn't identify them.
Asuma's expression darkened. He silently stubbed out his cigarette and sighed.
"Toads of this size are indeed Jiraiya's summoning beasts. I've seen that red one before. I think it's called Gamabunta. It's incredibly strong..."
Kurenai's voice carried a hint of sorrow. "I saw this toad during the last great battle. It was an important partner and asset to the Hokage. But now there are three here... Alas, the Hokage is probably in grave danger..." She shook her head.
Ōkami and Zō clenched their fists, their voices filled with suppressed anger as they roared at the Anbu behind them.
"Everyone, go down and search! I want him alive or dead! Don't miss any valuable clues or information!"
Jiraiya had disappeared right under their noses. A whole day had passed, and they still hadn't found the missing Hokage. Whether as guards or Anbu, this was a grave dereliction of duty! Adding to that the Orochimaru invasion two years ago, they had already committed two major screw-ups. Even if the next Hokage didn't blame them, this would be a stain on their record for life!
"You all go down and help search for the Hokage's whereabouts," Maki instructed the Sunagakure members behind him.
Then he went to Zō and Ōkami to comfort them. "We are very sorry about what happened to the Hokage. We, Sunagakure, will cooperate fully with you in the search for the culprit. However, there are some things that are not easy to say now, but the Kazekage hopes that Konoha will understand. This time, the Kazekage strongly refused to let the Hokage attend the ceremony to prevent a repeat of the assassination attempt that happened with the Fourth Kazekage. Therefore, we ask Konoha not to hold a grudge against us..."
Chiyo, the acting Kazekage, hadn't expected this. Jiraiya had just finished discussing things with her, and then disappeared. He disappeared right within Sunagakure! If he had disappeared outside, they might have secretly rejoiced and even cursed the Hokage. But now he disappeared right inside Sunagakure, within its protective barrier, right under their noses! That meant it was connected to Sunagakure! Especially after Jiraiya's disappearance, a Jōnin named Yura, one of their high-ranking members, also went missing. And before he disappeared, he went to the entrance of Sunagakure to pick up some distant relative. In short, they couldn't investigate further; they had to suppress it. Chiyo now only wanted to absolve Sunagakure of any responsibility and avoid being blamed by Konoha.
"The Hokage disappeared inside your Sunagakure! You're saying it has nothing to do with you?" Zō stared intently at Maki, clearly disagreeing with this statement.
But Ōkami waved her hand to stop Zō's questioning and replied coldly. "Our priority now is finding the missing Hokage. Other matters will be discussed with your village later."
Not receiving the answer he wanted, Maki could only stand aside with a somber face.
As time passed, all the ninjas who had gone to search returned. They brought good news: Jiraiya's body had not been found. The absence of a body meant there was still hope for survival. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Tohru looked at Maki, his voice softening considerably. "Next, we'll have to trouble Sunagakure to fully cooperate with our search and rescue efforts."
Maki nodded slightly. "No trouble at all, it's our duty."
Konoha. The Hokage's Office.
The office was now filled with ninjas from various Konoha clans. Among them were our old acquaintances, the Wheelchair F4!
After surveying the clan leaders, Hiruzen Sarutobi, in the center, spoke. "Tsunade, what happened that made you summon the four of us old folks? Although we four are now crippled and can't help physically, offering advice and strategies is no problem."
Hiruzen was polite, but he had already made up his mind. If Tsunade still used the excuse of requisitioning ninjas from his Sarutobi clan, he would take Danzo Shimura, Koharu Utatane, and Enma and die here today!
Hiruzen had a good plan, but Danzo, standing beside him, had no intention of standing with him. He bluntly replied, "There are currently over forty ninjas officially stationed within the Sarutobi clan's territory. I don't know about the hidden ones, but there should be over a hundred who can be directly mobilized."
His clan was gone, his roots were gone, and Danzo was now fearless. Anyway, Hiruzen wouldn't dare kill or torture him, lest he completely ruin the Sarutobi clan's reputation.
"Danzo, stop spouting nonsense!" Hiruzen glared fiercely at Danzo. Then he looked at Tsunade in front of him. "Those garrison ninjas on the surface are the last ninjas my Sarutobi clan has squeezed out to maintain order. If the village needs them, my Sarutobi clan will forgo clan stability and give our full support!"
"Enough. I called you here today because it's important." Tsunade, having no time for banter with Hiruzen, spoke directly, her face grim. "Jiraiya disappeared in Sunagakure yesterday. We just received news that his toad summoning beast, from which he died in battle, has been found, but Jiraiya himself has not. Furthermore, yesterday, Kakashi Hatake's team was attacked by an organization called Akatsuki, and its members were kidnapped. Two civilians and one Chunin from the village also mysteriously disappeared the day before yesterday, and their whereabouts remain unknown. Given these internal and external troubles, I've called you all here to announce something. I've decided to temporarily assume the position of Hokage until Jiraiya returns."
Having said that, Tsunade glanced around and asked, "Does anyone object?"
For the sake of the village's stability, she, upon learning of Jiraiya's disappearance, didn't even have time to grieve. She immediately summoned the Jōnin and the heads of the various ninja clans to confirm the acting Hokage.
But before she could receive a reply, a violent roar came from outside.
BOOM!!!
"What's going on?"
Amidst the panic and commotion, Tsunade strode to the window. Explosions and smoke were erupting from all corners of the village! Screams echoed from all directions!
"Could it be..."
The Akatsuki organization instantly flashed through Tsunade's mind. Without hesitation, she shouted to the ninja behind her.
"In my capacity as Acting Hokage, I hereby issue an emergency alert and a maximum security warning! Everyone, proceed to defend the village and drive away the invaders!"
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