Soon, the capital of the Land of Fire received news that all of the Guardian Ninja forces had been defeated and captured.
"What?! The Guardian Ninja forces are gone?!"
The Daimyo of the Land of Fire could no longer maintain his usual composure.
He had originally dispatched four elite Guardian Ninjas, each at the Twelve Guardian Ninja level. Victory should have been guaranteed.
He never expected this outcome...
Even the high-ranking ministers below didn't dare to speak.
If the Daimyo insisted on continuing the assault against the revolutionary forces, they would have to mobilize the remaining Guardian Ninja troops.
But those troops were the very ones tasked with protecting the lives of nobles like them.
If they were redeployed, their own safety would become uncertain.
The Daimyo slumped into his chair, irritably waving the paper fan in his hand.
"What do we do now?"
His gaze swept across the entire hall.
None of the ministers dared to speak.
Seeing this, the Daimyo could only sigh in disappointment.
"Forget it. Dismissed. Think of a solution and report back to me with a proper plan tomorrow."
All the ministers breathed a collective sigh of relief.
"Yes, my lord."
Once they had all left, the Daimyo's expression calmed.
"Red Armor."
"I am here."
A shadow emerged from the darkness.
He had short black hair and red eyes.
At this moment, the Daimyo no longer showed a hint of the panic he displayed earlier.
His demeanor had become calm and icy.
"What do you think we should do?"
This ninja, named Chijia (Red Armor), was the leader of the Guardian Ninja Twelve — the head of the Guardian Ninja Unit.
He was also one of the Daimyo's most trusted men.
Chijia looked up and replied indifferently:
"My lord, if you want to balance Konoha and eliminate the revolutionary army, there's only one way left."
Seeing the Daimyo's attentive gaze, he continued firmly:
"Join forces with the other great nations."
The Daimyo's expression shifted slightly, but he quickly returned to a calm state.
After a long silence, he finally said:
"Indeed… I don't want to take this route either. But for the stability of the Land of Fire, these militants must be eradicated."
He spoke with conviction.
"In that case, restore aid to Konoha."
Chijia narrowed his eyes, quickly understanding the Daimyo's intent.
If they completely cut off aid to Konoha, the Daimyo's Palace would lose all insight into Konoha's internal movements.
By resuming support, even nominally, they could justify escorting supply troops — giving them a reason to monitor Konoha's forces and gain intel.
Furthermore, it would help restore relations with Konoha, which they could then exploit to fight the revolutionary army.
"At the same time, strongly support Danzo. Doesn't he want to become Hokage? Then let him be."
This was a scheme to divide Konoha from within — leveraging Danzo's endless ambition for the Hokage seat to push him into action.
"Also, open the borders and invite shinobi from the Land of Wind's Hefeng province to help suppress the rebels in Liangshan!"
The Daimyo dropped his final bombshell.
Even if it meant compromising the nation's interests, he was determined to wipe out the revolutionary army!
"Absurd! This is pure madness!"
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, slammed the documents from the Daimyo's Palace onto the table, his face grim.
Open the borders?
That was outright treason!
In this era of ninja warfare, the Land of Fire and the Hefeng region of the Land of Wind were enemies.
Now he wanted to open the gates and invite them in?
What if they marched their armies straight into Konoha?
Hiruzen panted heavily, forcing himself to calm down.
"Looks like the Daimyo has truly been scared senseless by these so-called revolutionary forces."
Danzo's hoarse voice cut through the silence.
Because of the gravity of the situation, even Konoha's two senior advisors — who normally had no real authority — were present.
"Although the Daimyo has resumed aid to Konoha, this is clearly a ploy — a scheme to drive out one danger with another. It's a trap we cannot easily avoid," Utatane Koharu said calmly.
Mitokado Homura looked at Hiruzen and added:
"Now we have to consider a serious question — do we comply or not?"
By law, the Daimyo of the Land of Fire was the true ruler of the country.
Konoha was merely a military institution under the Daimyo's authority.
Even the appointment of each Hokage required a formal audience with the Daimyo.
This dynamic had long dictated the balance between them.
However, control of the border troops still lay with Konoha.
If they didn't cooperate, the Daimyo's orders were effectively meaningless.
So Konoha now faced a dilemma:
If they obeyed, the forces from Hefeng might directly breach Konoha's defenses.
If things went wrong, Hiruzen would shoulder the blame.
If they disobeyed, the Daimyo would no doubt cancel all aid again.
Without funds, Konoha's ninjas would soon turn their resentment toward Hiruzen.
It was a no-win scenario.
"With the current situation, we are left with only one difficult path," Danzo said coldly, scanning the room.
"Before the army from the Land of Earth's Hefeng arrives, execute all these rebels!"
"In that way, the Land of Tian and the Land of Hefeng will have no excuse to cross the border."
The two advisors immediately voiced their support.
After all, these revolutionary troops had nothing to do with them and had even affected their families' incomes.
It was best to take this opportunity to eliminate them completely.
Hiruzen Sarutobi lit his pipe, his expression shifting slightly.
After a moment of silence, he finally relented.
"...It's indeed the most practical solution."
He turned to Danzo.
"Let the Root Division take full charge of this operation."
Danzo looked slightly surprised.
Sarutobi Hiruzen had practically monopolized all power recently—internally suppressing the two advisors, and externally gaining a string of military victories.
He'd been particularly aggressive in cutting back Root's influence.
And now he was entrusting Root with this?
Wasn't he afraid that Root would grow stronger from this?
Although Danzo had his doubts, he wasn't about to pass up such an opportunity.
"In that case, I'll need some recruitment permits."
He would, of course, use the chance to absorb more ninja into Root, increasing its manpower.
Third Hokage nodded.
"Go draft a list. I'll conduct the loyalty test personally when the time comes."
After the advisors left, Hiruzen stood by the window, looking out at the village.
"Now that the goal has been reached, the Revolutionary Army is no longer needed."
"For the sake of the Land of Fire... Simu, I hope you won't hold it against me."
He exhaled a puff of smoke. His aged face disappeared into the swirling mist.
"Someone, come."
"Lord Hokage."
An Anbu appeared silently behind him.
"Tell Simu to lead a team to the Land of Rain to intercept the armies from the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth."
Now that the Revolutionary Army was being targeted, the strongest combat power—Simu—had to be sent away.
Otherwise, no matter how many Root members were deployed, it would be meaningless.
"As for Liangshan, send Jiraiya personally. Have him coordinate with Root to wipe out the rebels."
"Yes."
The Anbu disappeared as soon as he finished speaking.
"What? Uncle Third wants me to go to the Land of Rain to stop the Hefeng Army from the Land of Earth?"
Simu looked at the transfer order, stunned.
Nara Shikaku sighed.
"I didn't expect the daimyo of the Fire Nation to agree to such an outrageous demand."
Opening the borders?
That was an outright disgrace to the nation!
But to completely eliminate the Revolutionary Army, the Fire Nation's ruling house had no choice but to resort to such a measure.
Compared to the Revolutionary Army, foreign ninja troops were seen as a lesser threat.
Under the "One Country, One Village" system...
Ninjas would generally only attack the major hidden villages.
Even if Konoha were to fall, the Daimyo's mansion would remain untouched.
But the Revolutionary Army was different.
They would put nobles on public trial in the name of justice...
And which noble in the Daimyo's mansion could claim they'd never done anything to provoke public anger?
To them, civilians were just tools—commodities.
Excessive behavior was a norm.
That's why the Revolutionary Army was considered the greatest threat to the daimyo's rule.
And if the Land of Earth and Hefeng's troops could weaken Konoha in the process, all the better.
Simu sneered, eyes full of disdain.
"Our 'noble' daimyo is probably scared out of his wits by the Revolutionary Army."
"And now, at this convenient timing, I'm being deployed. Looks like our Lord Hokage has his own plans."
Shikaku's brows furrowed.
"What do you mean?"
"I think the Hokage wants to get rid of me now that I've served my purpose."
Simu looked toward the Hokage building, his expression unreadable.
"Now that the Daimyo has resumed support for Konoha, the Revolutionary Army's mission is over."
"So... why would they let it continue to exist?"
Shikaku, a sharp thinker himself, immediately grasped the implication.
His face turned uneasy.
"Recently, a lot of people in the village have been criticizing the Third Hokage's policies, and..."
He looked at Simu with a conflicted expression.
"Many ninja are saying they hope you will be the next Hokage."
Given Simu's overwhelming achievements on the battlefield over the past few years, he had already eclipsed even the Sannin.
He had become the strongest candidate for the next Hokage.
No one knew how many ninja he'd saved during the war...
How many lives had been restored through Katsuyu's healing...
His political support base was enormous.
Add to that his terrifying power—
He had killed the Third Kazekage, fought the AB combo alone, and taken down two tailed beasts from Iwagakure...
Each feat was legendary.
Simu looked down at the village under the cover of night, sensing the invisible strings pulling behind the scenes.
He was no stranger to this kind of game.
"So the 'Ninja King' is finally making his move against me..."
A cold smile crept across his face.
The current him wasn't someone a mere political faction could easily handle.
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