The completely intact Hiramekarei, like the Blastsword: Shibuki, were for the time being placed under the custody of Anjō Oniyuzu. Once they returned to Kirigakure, Yagura Karatachi would preside over a new Ninja Sword Selection, choosing fresh wielders for both Hiramekarei and Shibuki so that the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist could be restored to full strength.
Of course, that was a matter for after their return to Kirigakure.
For now, after securing Hiramekarei, Anjō Oniyuzu stood in place and pondered for a moment before turning to Kyoichi and saying,
"Konoha bears heavy responsibility for Mangetsu's death this time. If not for Konoha's failure to provide adequate protection, Mangetsu would not have been killed. Kyoichi, come with me. We are going to see the Hokage."
Kyoichi's eyebrows lifted slightly.
He immediately understood what Anjō intended to do.
Use Hōzuki Mangetsu's death as leverage in negotiations with Konoha?
It had to be said, it was a very sound approach.
"Alright,"
Kyoichi nodded.
Anjō Oniyuzu then looked toward Biwa Jūzō and Momochi Zabuza and instructed them, "Jūzō, Zabuza, the two of you keep digging. See if you can find any remains of Mangetsu's body, or any other relics he left behind."
After issuing his orders, he set off together with Kyoichi toward the location of the Third Hokage.
Just as the Kiri ninja were excavating Mangetsu's remains and relics, the Konoha ninja were also combing the battlefield with great effort, searching for any trace the unknown attacker might have left behind.
At first, only Orochimaru, Inoichi Yamanaka, and others led the search teams. Later, once Minato and Kyoichi returned and finished their discussion, all of Konoha's ninja were mobilized into the investigation.
Even though the Third Hokage and Minato were not specialists in tracking or reconnaissance, they were more than capable of overseeing the operation.
In short, the Third Hokage was personally supervising Konoha's ninja as they worked the battlefield.
"Elder Anjō, Kyoichi, you both seem to be in quite a hurry. Is there something the matter?"
Seeing Anjō and Kyoichi arrive together, the Third Hokage immediately focused his attention on them.
"Hokage-sama, I am here to ask for assistance,"
Anjō said bluntly, getting straight to the point.
"Oh?"
The Third Hokage blinked, his tone gentle as he asked, "May I ask what kind of help you require from us?"
"Ameyuri," Anjō replied, "the companion of ours whom the Yellow Flash sent to Konoha Hospital, has unfortunately contracted an extremely troublesome illness. Only with Hokage-sama's help can she be brought back from the hands of death."
"..."
The Third Hokage frowned in confusion.
"Even Kōyaku cannot treat that girl named Ameyuri?"
He had assumed the Kiri were preparing to exploit Mangetsu's death and demand a steep price from Konoha. He had never expected that they would come for the sake of that girl, Ringo Ameyuri, and even more surprising was the fact that Kōyaku, the second-most skilled medical ninja in Konoha after Tsunade, was unable to resolve her condition.
If even Kōyaku could not handle it, were they hoping Tsunade herself would intervene?
At the thought, his brow furrowed even more deeply.
After developing hemophobia, Tsunade had already left Konoha long ago, taking Dan Katō's young niece with her and wandering the shinobi world without direction. Because she frequently accrued massive gambling debts, she often concealed her whereabouts to avoid creditors, so much so that even he, as Hokage, regularly lost track of her.
Moreover, a Tsunade afflicted with hemophobia was not only severely weakened in combat, but also greatly impaired in the field of medical ninjutsu. Even if she were found and brought back, she might not be any more effective than Kōyaku.
"Ameyuri has contracted a hereditary illness of the Uzumaki clan," Anjō Oniyuzu continued. "Kyoichi relayed that Dr. Kōyaku said the only way to save her is to obtain records from the Uzumaki clan regarding this family disease. So, Hokage-sama, for the sake of that child's previous efforts in battle, where she fought desperately to protect your village's Ino–Shika–Chō, please lend us your aid."
Anjō's demeanor was not aggressive in the slightest.
He did not use Mangetsu's sacrifice as leverage, in fact, he did not even mention Mangetsu's name at all. Instead, he humbly sought assistance from the Third Hokage.
"..."
The Third Hokage's facial muscles twitched.
He looked at Anjō, nearly wanting to ask how he had the audacity to say something so shameless with a straight face.
A hereditary illness of the Uzumaki clan?
Which meant that the girl named Ringo Ameyuri carried Uzumaki blood. This inevitably raised the question of how Uzumaki lineage had come to exist within Kirigakure.
The destruction of Uzushiogakure had always weighed heavily on his mind.
There were conspiracy theories claiming that Uzushiogakure's fall had been the result of Konoha's tacit approval, but heaven knew the truth. He had never, not once, wished for Uzushiogakure to be destroyed.
What benefit would Konoha gain from its destruction? A new Nine-Tails jinchūriki? Even if Uzushiogakure had remained intact, given the close alliance between the two villages, it would have been effortless to send a clan member to serve as the next jinchūriki.
On the contrary,
after Uzushiogakure's fall, the Uzumaki bloodline withered. Konoha effectively lost its reserve of suitable Nine-Tails hosts. There was still Uzumaki Kushina, but once she aged…
It would become nearly impossible to find a pure-blooded Uzumaki capable of inheriting the Nine-Tails.
By any measure, Uzushiogakure's destruction had been far more harmful than beneficial to Konoha. They lost a steadfast ally and lost their jinchūriki talent pool. Unless he had completely lost his mind, he would never have condoned Uzushiogakure's annihilation.
"...I will think of a way to handle this."
In the end, the Third Hokage did not question Anjō Oniyuzu about why Uzumaki blood existed within Kirigakure.
He knew very well that pressing the issue would only make relations awkward, and accomplish nothing else. If not for the interference of that attacker who wielded Wood Release and the Mangekyō Sharingan, he would never have let the Kiri ninja off so easily.
But there were no hypotheticals.
Reality was that this elusive and overwhelmingly powerful enemy was targeting Konoha. That attacker was the true threat lurking at their heart.
At a time like this,
they could not afford to fall out with the Kiri. Instead, they needed to find ways to draw them closer.
Thus, after careful consideration, the Third Hokage agreed to help.
After all, it was merely the provision of records concerning an Uzumaki clan hereditary illness, and those records would not even be handed to the Mist directly, but to Kōyaku, one of their own. In the Third Hokage's view, this was hardly an unbearable price to pay.