The commander of a battlefield front was arguably the most powerful figure below the Hokage.
On the battlefield, the commander's orders were absolute.
Even the Hokage, if not present on the battlefield, could not countermand the commander's orders.
Of course, if the Hokage was present, then the battlefield commander could only be the Hokage.
If Li Anshi took command of this front, it would undoubtedly add to his qualifications.
Should Li Anshi ever wish to compete for the position of Hokage in the future, this would be a significant point in his favor.
However, Li Anshi also knew his own limitations.
Although he had been a ninja and experienced the wars of the ninja world for a year, on the Land of Wind battlefield, he had mostly engaged in small squad ambushes and counter-ambushes.
Here on the Land of Lightning front, Li Anshi had only experienced one major battle.
Moreover, he had charged into battle alongside the main ninja forces as a Chunin.
Logistics, intelligence analysis, battlefield selection, and other factors that could influence the outcome of a battle were all unfamiliar territory for Li Anshi.
Under such circumstances, Li Anshi didn't believe he could lead Konoha's ninjas more effectively against the Cloud attacks if he became the commander.
Therefore, although Hiruzen Sarutobi had suggested Li Anshi take command of this front, Li Anshi shook his head in refusal.
"Compared to me, Jonin Nara has extensive experience in battlefield command. He is more suitable than I am to be the commander."
"Furthermore, with my flying dagger secret technique, I can inflict heavy casualties on the enemy in a short time. Rather than commanding from the camp, acting as a spearhead to tear through the Cloud ninjas or carrying out high-level assassinations suits me better."
The Jonin in the tent nodded silently upon hearing Li Anshi's words.
Indeed, while they wouldn't object to the Third Hokage appointing Li Anshi as commander due to his formidable strength, they agreed with Li Anshi's assessment. Compared to him, the Jonin from the Nara clan was a better fit.
The Nara clan, the "Deer" in Konoha's "Ino-Shika-Cho" formation, might not match the Akimichi clan in combat power or the Yamanaka clan in perception.
However, the Nara clan was the core of the trio.
The reason was the Nara clan's unparalleled "wisdom" in the ninja world.
Even within Konoha, the Nara clan served as the absolute "think tank."
Having the Nara Jonin as the battlefield commander, with Li Anshi acting as the ever-successful spearhead, was indeed the best arrangement.
As the first civilian Jonin, the treatment Li Anshi received was closely watched by all ninjas in Konoha.
Civilian ninjas would see him as a role model, while clan ninjas would use him to gauge how much impact civilian ninjas might have on the established clans.
Based on Li Anshi's battle record, promoting him to Jonin wasn't out of line, and the clans wouldn't object.
But elevating him directly to commander? While the ninjas present might not object, those on the other two battlefronts, as well as the clan ninjas remaining in the village, would undoubtedly be dissatisfied with Li Anshi.
However...
Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at Li Anshi.
Perhaps it was time to let Li Anshi understand the situation within the village, to give him a deeper understanding.
From Li Anshi's words, Hiruzen could sense that Li Anshi's understanding of Konoha was still superficial.
Indeed, as Li Anshi had said, the First Hokage's initial intention in establishing Konoha was to keep children off the battlefield.
The Second Hokage had also chosen to stay behind to protect Konoha's "future," sacrificing himself to kill the Second Raikage, the Gold and Silver Brothers, and numerous other Cloud ninja "rogues."
As the Third Hokage, Hiruzen also wished to protect Konoha's next generation like the previous two Hokage.
But unfortunately, he lacked the strength of the First and Second Hokage to repel the enemies invading the Land of Fire.
Lady Mito Uzumaki possessed such strength, but sadly, because the First Hokage disliked killing, Lady Mito only inherited his will to protect, safeguarding Konoha's stability but not leaving the village to attack ninjas from other villages.
All Hiruzen could do was have the Sarutobi clan face the strongest enemy, the Cloud ninjas, setting an example to unite the village's clan ninjas in resisting the invaders.
Li Anshi was strong.
Hiruzen Sarutobi did not deny this.
However, he didn't believe Li Anshi could grow to the level of the First Hokage.
Therefore, letting Li Anshi understand the relationship between Konoha and the ninja clans sooner rather than later was beneficial for both Li Anshi and Konoha.
"Anshi, you have a point."
"However, with your strength, merely making you a vanguard truly undervalues you."
"How about this: when I go to support the Land of Earth front, I will leave Jonin Nara Shikafuku here."
"If you encounter any problems, you can directly consult Jonin Nara Shikafuku."
"If you wish to lead ninjas as a spearhead against the Cloud ninjas, you can also have Jonin Nara Shikafuku temporarily take command. How does that sound?"
Without waiting for Li Anshi to refuse, Hiruzen turned directly to the ninja with the pineapple-shaped hairstyle.
"Shikafuku, any problem?"
"Understood, Lord Third. I will properly assist Commander Li in repelling the Cloud ninjas beyond our borders!"
"Very well, then I'll leave this front in your hands."
"Yes, Lord Third."
The pineapple-haired Nara Shikafuku responded gravely.
As Jonin of the Nara clan, they had a deep understanding of Konoha.
Similarly, due to their exceptional intelligence, they knew that Ino-Shika-Cho could only ever be "firewood" gathered under the Hokage's banner within Konoha.
It couldn't be helped; the upper limits of the three Ino-Shika-Cho clans were too low.
If the Akimichi clan successfully learned the "Butterfly Mode" secret technique, their strength could reach the "Kage" level, but the nature of their secret technique meant they had significant weaknesses. Without the control of the Nara clan and the guidance of the Yamanaka clan, they would merely become targets for concentrated attacks.
Precisely because of this inherent flaw, it was almost impossible for members of the Ino-Shika-Cho clans to become "Hokage."
The Kage of a village could not be weak in strength.
If they went out and were easily killed, they would only become a laughingstock.
Now, the Third Hokage seemed intent on cultivating Jonin Li Anshi. They could also observe whether Jonin Li Anshi was worth investing in.
"Then, it's decided!"
"Father, Kagami..."
"And everyone else, let's depart!"
...
After watching Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others leave, Li Anshi and the remaining group returned to the command tent.
However, compared to the nearly twenty people before, only six ninjas remained in the tent now.
Besides Li Anshi, Tsunade, and the three Jonin of Ino-Shika-Cho, the last one remaining was the Uchiha Jonin who had come with Li Anshi from the Land of Wind front as reinforcements.