Chapter 165: Sakumo's Left Arm, and Kakashi's Future
"I object!"
Danzō's reaction was intense; he shot to his feet. What kind of joke was this? With such an advantage, they were going to talk peace? Right now, Konoha was allied with the Sand and the Rain. Even with the Cloud and Mist as enemies, they absolutely had the upper hand. With powerhouses like Kinoshita Genichi and Minato Namikaze, on what grounds were they negotiating for peace?
And even if they were to negotiate, Iwagakure should be the one to propose it, so that Konoha could gain benefits. If Konoha proposed it now, Iwagakure would only see it as weakness, and obtaining any benefits would be exponentially more difficult.
"Hiruzen, you are too weak! This will only make Iwagakure push their luck," Danzō said sharply. "The village has suffered such great losses. If we hold peace talks, what about our interests? We got nothing from the peace talks and alliance with the Sand before, but at least we gained an ally to attack Iwa together. But what about with Iwa? Are we going to join forces with them to attack the Cloud? No matter what, I do not agree to peace talks."
Homura Mitokado was also puzzled. "Hiruzen, there must be a compelling reason to hold peace talks with Iwa. We have sacrificed so much. We must have sufficient benefits to be able to answer to the village and the Daimyō."
"At the very least, we should seize some territory and force Iwa to propose peace talks to us," Koharu Utatane also disagreed. "We should take the Land of Grass, and let the Sand and the Rain divide the interests of the Land of Birds. Only then can we answer to the village, the Daimyō, and our allies."
Hiruzen sighed. This was within his expectations. Such a decision went against the interests of the entire village, as well as the interests of Danzō, Homura, and Koharu. It could be said that this decision went against the will of the entire village. But he didn't want to fight anymore. He wanted to preserve the village's strength. The appearance of Madara Uchiha and his move on Obito had made him feel very uneasy.
"Of course, I know all of this," Hiruzen explained. "But if we continue like this, the village's losses will be enormous, and the benefits from the Land of Grass are not enough to cover such losses. Moreover, we need the Land of Grass as a buffer zone."
Danzō sat back down. "Then we will obtain benefits from Iwagakure. Even if it's just reparations, or a division of missions. But we absolutely cannot let them off so easily."
Koharu and Homura both nodded.
Hiruzen looked at Danzō. "Danzō, there is a man in the Akatsuki named Nagato, who possesses the Rinnegan, correct?"
Danzō's eyelid twitched violently. "That's right. I joined forces with Hanzō to wipe them out, but two of them escaped."
"Now," Hiruzen sighed, "Nagato of the Rinnegan has joined forces with Madara Uchiha."
The three of them froze.
"Madara… Madara Uchiha?" Homura's voice trembled slightly. "Hiruzen, you're not mistaken, are you? That man was killed by the First Hokage long ago."
"Last time Genichi was on a mission," Hiruzen said grimly, "after you wiped out the Akatsuki, Danzō, he encountered a man who called himself Madara Uchiha."
"Impossible!" Danzō immediately shouted. "It must be an Uchiha imposter! That clan has always had terrible ambitions."
"Danzō, you know very well that the Uchiha's Sharingan has a level above the three-tomoe, the Mangekyō, right?" Hiruzen said. "And one of the abilities of the Mangekyō is the Susanoo. That man who called himself Madara used the Susanoo. Genichi has already fought him."
"What? The Susanoo?" Danzō exclaimed.
"As far as we know, no one in the Uchiha clan has awakened the Mangekyō right now," Koharu said, shocked. "Even back then, the only ones who had awakened it were Madara and his younger brother."
"There is one more thing," Hiruzen nodded. "When Kakashi's squad was on the Kannabi Bridge mission, it is suspected that Madara Uchiha intervened. The child, Obito Uchiha, was targeted. And he might not be the only one."
"Hand Obito over to Root for protection!" Danzō reacted almost instinctively. To be noticed by Madara, regardless of whether he was the real one, meant Obito was not ordinary.
"Root cannot protect him," Hiruzen said, looking at him. "Even Genichi is no match for Madara."
Danzō's eye twitched. He had nothing to say.
"A curse mark has been placed on that child's heart," Hiruzen continued. "Its specific function is still unclear, but it is definitely not a good thing. And as for Madara's identity, based on the intel from Genichi and Obito, plus the Uchiha's forbidden jutsu, Izanagi… Danzō, you should be very familiar with Izanagi."
Danzō's face was grim. "At the cost of a three-tomoe Sharingan going permanently blind, one can turn all unfavorable factors, including death, into an illusion. Did the Madara from back then use this jutsu to deceive the First and Second Hokage?"
"But…" Koharu said, "our teacher brought his body back to Konoha."
"The Transcription Seal," Hiruzen said. "A unique sealing jutsu of the Uchiha. It can seal a dōjutsu in the eye ahead of time and set it to activate at a specific time."
"Then there's no mistake," Homura said, his voice hoarse. "I'm afraid it really is Madara Uchiha." Tobirama had a fear of Madara, and as his students, they did too.
"What is his goal?" Danzō asked. "The Uchiha clan's Sharingan? Or… the Nine-Tails? Hiruzen, the Nine-Tails' jinchuriki must be given special protection."
"It's possible," Hiruzen said. "As for the jinchuriki, we can leave it to Minato. Only he and Genichi can protect her properly."
Danzō once again had nothing to say.
"Danzō," Hiruzen added, "you should be aware of the relationship between the Akatsuki and Jiraiya. The wielder of the Rinnegan is Jiraiya's student. That is a powerful dōjutsu on par with the Sharingan and the Byakugan. You should have seen its true power."
Danzō's face turned ugly.
"Danzō, why did you have to wipe out the Akatsuki?" Koharu also turned and asked.
"The Akatsuki advocated for a peaceful resolution to the problems between the great nations. This does not align with our interests," Danzō said coldly. "And Hanzō was going to take them in, which would have strengthened the Rain Village's power, also to our disadvantage."
"That may be true," Homura said, "but now the Rinnegan wielder has joined forces with Madara Uchiha, which will bring us immense trouble."
Damn it… Danzō gritted his teeth.
"There's no need to pursue these matters further," Hiruzen said. "But continuing the war is very disadvantageous for us. We need to have enough strength to deal with the crisis brought by Madara. However, direct peace talks with Iwa are indeed unfavorable. Then let's make it a quick battle. After we take the Land of Grass and the Land of Birds, we will propose peace terms to Iwa. As for the consequences, I, as the Hokage, will naturally be responsible. At that time, I will step down from the position of Hokage!"
Danzō was shocked, then secretly overjoyed. He said nothing more. Koharu and Homura were also surprised and were speechless for a moment. They could not accept Hiruzen's radical plan, but now he was not just opening a window, but also abdicating. What else could they say?
Orochimaru's Secret Lab.
"Do you not have any intention of competing for the position of Fourth Hokage?" Danzō asked the busy Orochimaru. "Next, as long as you lead a team to take care of the Hidden Grass Village, I will be able to push you to become the Fourth."
"My chances are not great, are they?" Orochimaru chuckled. "The person in Sarutobi-sensei's heart is not me."
"Tsunade is not suitable to be the Hokage," Danzō snorted. "She cannot bring stability and benefits to the village."
"That is not for you or me to decide," Orochimaru said.
Danzō was very displeased and left the lab in a huff. Hiruzen had chosen to step down, and although he hadn't said who should become the Fourth, his intentions were very clear. Danzō had originally wanted to push Orochimaru to the position and control things from behind the scenes. But now, Orochimaru had no such intention. He was so unambitious.
In that case, I'll have to do it myself.
Danzō's gaze was sinister. Neither Hiruzen nor Tsunade had the ability to lead Konoha to continue to grow. They were all too weak, possessing great power but not using it.
The position of Hokage must be mine! Danzō's fists clenched. The memory of being beaten by Genichi surfaced in his mind, and a fierce flame burned in his heart. If Tsunade became the Fourth, he was afraid he would never be able to control Root again.
For the sake of the village, I can only bear all the darkness…
Looking toward the Hokage Rock, Danzō made a decision.
March 15, Konoha Year 48.
Konoha, Amegakure, and Sunagakure launched a massive offensive against Iwagakure in the Land of Rain and the Land of Grass, raising the intensity of the war to its highest point since it began.
Iwagakure, Tsuchikage's Office.
Onoki's expression was very grim. He had never expected that his own village would one day be besieged like Konoha. The Fifth Kazekage… Onoki instinctively felt that there was a conspiracy behind the death of the Fourth. For the Sand Village to cooperate so closely with the culprit, Konoha, was not normal.
The Yellow Flash, Kinoshita Genichi… Onoki was deeply wary, especially of the latter. The Third Mizukage and the Fourth Kazekage had both died at the hands of this kid. It was simply unbelievable. But the accuracy of the intel… was very high. Both the Sand and the Mist had acknowledged it.
It seems I must ally with Kirigakure… Onoki thought. As for joining forces with the Cloud… he wanted to, but that troublemaker of a Raikage probably wouldn't agree, due to the hatred for his father's death. And even if he didn't cooperate with them, the Cloud would still attack Konoha. The only good news now was that, although Konoha's offensive was fierce, neither the Yellow Flash nor Genichi had appeared on the battlefield.
Konoha Hospital, Sakumo Hatake's room.
Under Tsunade's command, Shizune and Rin were responsible for injecting White Zetsu cells into the comminuted fracture of Sakumo's left arm. Genichi, Ina, Kakashi, and Obito were also present. Ina even had her Adamantine Sealing Chains ready. If the Zetsu cells went out of control, she would immediately suppress them.
And although they had experimented with Sakumo's and Zetsu's cells before and found that they could coexist, they were still on their guard. After all, the cellular level and the individual level could not be equated.
As the Zetsu cells were injected, lumps immediately appeared on Sakumo's left arm.
"Shizune, Rin, guide the cells immediately," Tsunade ordered.
The two of them immediately used medical ninjutsu to guide the proliferating Zetsu cells to repair Sakumo's arm bone, filling the gaps between the shattered fragments and fusing the bone together. This was a completely different method from a bone marrow transplant. It was more similar to Obito's case. Of course, for Obito, it was almost as if his body had been filled with a White Zetsu's.
With their guidance, the Zetsu cells in Sakumo's arm finally stopped proliferating randomly and began to work in an orderly fashion. Sakumo gritted his teeth, cold sweat pouring down his forehead. It was an abnormal sensation brought on by the fusion of the Zetsu cells with his own, and the growth of the bone. Pain, itching… it was hard to describe.
"I don't think I felt anything at the time," Obito said, watching.
"That's because you were in a deep coma," Genichi said. "And you were probably under a genjutsu. Otherwise, how do you think Madara placed that curse mark on your heart?"
Obito couldn't help but scratch his head.
Cell fusion, cell growth, bone growth, and at such a violent rate, the experience was not pleasant. As the fusion stabilized, the color of Sakumo's left arm also began to change, his skin quickly turning pale white, just like a Zetsu's.
Suddenly, Shizune's face changed. "Lady Tsunade, I can't stop the spread of the Zetsu cells!"
Genichi saw that the color of Sakumo's left arm was rapidly spreading toward his shoulder. He immediately shouted, "Teacher, use your own chakra to suppress these cells! They are far less powerful than the First's cells. You should be able to forcibly suppress them."
Sakumo nodded, refined a large amount of chakra, and sent it into his left arm. With his powerful will, he finally managed to stabilize the spreading cells.
"Try to refine chakra from your left arm," Tsunade said, "especially from those Zetsu cells. A little at a time…"
Sakumo nodded and tried. He found it a little difficult. So he started from the fusion site, and indeed, it was much easier. However, the refined chakra was slightly different from his own. And the amount of chakra contained in a single cell was astonishing.
"Nourish these cells with your own chakra," she continued. "Chakra carries your will, and the cells have their own instincts. You need to use your chakra to assimilate those instincts, or rather, assimilate them with your spiritual will, so that they become a part of your body's subconscious. Only then can you freely control these cells."
This was a completely different matter from a bone marrow transplant, which was not so troublesome. But a bone marrow transplant was very dangerous. If the rejection was too great, the Zetsu cells would devour the person, even though they were not as domineering as Hashirama's cells.
Seeing that Sakumo's left arm had stabilized, Tsunade nodded, then looked at Genichi. "In a month or two, we should be able to try to cultivate an arm for Kakashi."
Sakumo let out a long breath and smiled. "Thank you for your trouble, Tsunade."
"Don't be so polite," she waved her hand. "This is also an experiment."
"From the looks of it, it's very successful," Genichi smiled. "Next, after your left arm has completely fused, Teacher, we can extract bone marrow cells and then cultivate them with the First's cells and the Zetsu cells. There are two options. One is to inject the cultivated bone marrow cells into Kakashi's body, which is what is commonly known as a cell transplant, or more accurately, a bone marrow transplant. Because you and Kakashi are a perfect match, Teacher, the possibility of rejection will be greatly reduced. The second option is to directly cultivate an arm using your cells, plus the Zetsu cells and the First's cells, and then transplant it to Kakashi."
"Directly cultivate an arm?" Obito couldn't help but exclaim.
Genichi nodded. Tsunade already had the technological reserves for this, and with the technology Orochimaru had used to cultivate the Eight-Tails' horn, it was enough. Of course, they could also just cut off the arm from the half of the White Zetsu body he had obtained and use it as a basis. But using Sakumo's cells as a basis was safer, and with the addition of the First's cells, it would also be stronger. The improvement for Kakashi would be very significant. Perhaps it could even create a second Wood Release user. As for someone like Sakumo, mastering Wood Release would be very, very difficult. After all, his method was too crude, too violent.
So Tsunade had said it was an experiment. It was actually a foundation for Kakashi's treatment. But at the same time, this was also the most suitable method for Sakumo.
Sakumo thought for a moment and did not express an opinion. Instead, he asked his son, "Kakashi, what do you think?"
"I'll listen to Lady Tsunade and Genichi," Kakashi said calmly. "Professional matters should be left to the professionals to decide."
Sakumo nodded with great satisfaction, then said, "Tsunade, Genichi, I'll leave this matter to you to decide."
"Then let's go with the second option," Tsunade nodded. "It's safer."
Genichi had no objections. In this area, Tsunade was more professional than him.
"That's great, Kakashi!" Obito smiled. "When your arm is healed, we have to have a good match. Hmph, I have the Sharingan now. I'll definitely beat you then!"
"As long as you don't cry," Kakashi said, still twisting the knife.
"I wasn't!" Obito's face flushed, and he lost his temper. "The wind just blew sand in my eyes! You're such a jerk! I'm definitely going to teach you a lesson!"
Rin, at the side, no longer tried to stop them. Instead, she covered her mouth and giggled. After a life-and-death experience, many things had changed.
Sakumo also watched with a smile. He was very happy that his son had such a friend. He could feel that his son was being changed by this Uchiha boy.
Genichi watched from the side, and a thought couldn't help but surface in his mind. What will the future of these two be like? Will Obito still awaken the Mangekyō? And after Kakashi gets Hashirama's cells, what kind of miracle will he create? Without the Sharingan, but with Wood Release?
(End of Chapter)
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