"Then, let's discuss the candidate for commander."
As Hiruzen Sarutobi uttered these words, the entire conference room fell into silence.
Some people looked at Yuuki, others at Hiashi, and a few also directed their gaze towards Shibi and others.
Everyone remained silent, simply looking at the few candidates they considered possible.
Observing the gazes of everyone in the room, Hiruzen Sarutobi, although he had already privately confirmed the matter with Yuuki,
felt a pang of disappointment seeing that a Jonin from the Sarutobi Clan present received no attention whatsoever.
Ever since the Three Sannin left and Minato died in battle, no one from Hiruzen Sarutobi's own people had been able to shoulder such a heavy responsibility.
Although the Sarutobi Clan, after years of his development, had numerous Ninjas, few were truly powerful; the only one with some ability, Asuma, had also left him.
At such a critical moment, he still had to rely on Ninjas from these Ninja Clans.
A helpless Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at Yuuki, signaling with his eyes that it was his turn to speak.
Yuuki did not hesitate, standing directly from his seat and simultaneously activating his Mangekyo Sharingan, fully revealing his aura.
Because there was no specific targeting, everyone only felt a powerful and irresistible might, without any uncomfortable sensation.
"Hokage-sama, I, Uchiha Tomoki, volunteer to be the supreme commander for the war against Hidden Mist!"
Everyone simply looked at Yuuki, who had become the center of attention, and began to ponder the pros and cons of him serving as commander.
The advantages were very obvious: first, his power. As a commander, if one's own strength is not great enough to command the respect of powerful subordinates, it can easily lead to orders not being carried out beyond the command center.
Second, his rich experience. Everyone present knew that Yuuki's title was earned in battles against Hidden Mist, making him absolutely familiar with Hidden Mist.
Third, he possessed a good overall perspective. After all, his recent analysis of the situation was incisive; not to say it was incredibly brilliant, but at the very least, he should not make major mistakes.
However, the disadvantages were equally obvious and fatal.
That was his youth. Although everyone present who had interacted with this new Uchiha Clan Head could see that he was extraordinary,
even they themselves, when first meeting Yuuki, only did so due to his identity as the Uchiha Clan Head.
To say they held him in great regard at that time would be nonsense; it was through subsequent multiple interactions that they gradually came to acknowledge him.
This would create a somewhat awkward situation where some grassroots Ninjas in the Konoha forces might lose confidence in the war.
After all, with a 15-year-old commander, even the most rational person would not immediately think about how powerful or capable he must be to become a commander.
The immediate thought would always be, "15 years old? Did you mispeak, or did I mishear?"
Ninjas never deny the existence of geniuses; while few 15-year-olds can defeat Jonin, one or two always appear in each generation.
However, a commander and a Ninja are two different concepts; it's not just about being able to fight. Other qualities might be more important than fighting ability.
Besides Yuuki, who knew that Gaara became Kazekage in his teens in the original story, the original story also showed that many Sunagakure ninjas did not fully recognize Gaara.
Gaara only truly gained recognition after he desperately protected the Hidden Sand Village. In the mainstream view of the Ninja World, age was still considered a very important factor.
What everyone could think of, the two Advisors naturally could as well.
Utatane Koharu spoke, "The Uchiha Clan Head is a suitable candidate, but his age, for the majority of uninformed Ninjas, might lead to the belief that the war is doomed to fail."
Homura Mitokado, seeing his companion speak, who could no longer hold back, immediately followed up.
"A 15-year-old commander is a joke! Never mind what our Ninjas think, if outsiders find out, they will only assume Konoha has no one left and needs a 15-year-old Ninja to take charge of the big picture!"
After hearing Homura Mitokado's words, Yuuki couldn't help but think, *Isn't Konoha indeed short-staffed? If there truly were capable people, would it be my turn to step forward?*
Hiruzen Sarutobi, however, looked into Yuuki's eyes, his gaze shifting slightly, then he remained silent, looking at his nose and mouth.
Yuuki understood the meaning: *You want to be commander? I have no objections and I agree. You resolve others' doubts yourself; I'm not getting involved in this.*
Yuuki had long anticipated this inevitable situation, and he eventually came up with a less-than-ideal solution.
"Everyone here should know me. I won't claim how suitable I am; I'll just ask you all, setting aside the age factor, am I qualified to be commander? You can ponder this in your hearts, no need to answer."
Everyone pondered, and indeed, setting aside the age factor, Yuuki was qualified in every aspect, even exceeding expectations.
"I presume you all have an answer in your hearts. Well, this problem is not insurmountable. Most grassroots Ninjas actually won't have direct contact with me."
"My age can be blurred in various documents, emphasizing my identity as the Uchiha Clan Head and Head of the Konoha Military Police Force."
"Furthermore, I must explain that this war will actually be conducted in two parts. In the first part of the plan, I will personally lead elite Jonin to intercept Hidden Mist forces."
"Our main forces will advance from the rear. As long as we achieve good results in the interception, with the return of good news, I believe most doubts will disappear."
"After all, results are more convincing than anything else, and I believe no one here is more suitable for this position than I am."
As soon as Yuuki finished speaking, some people nodded in agreement, feeling that this indeed could solve the problem.
Hiashi, who had been silent, spoke directly, "I approve of Chief Yuuki becoming commander."
"I also approve" × 2
Subsequently, spokespersons from Kurama, Yamashiro, and others also spoke up.
Some Ninjas had originally favored Hiashi, but seeing Hiashi also support Yuuki, they began to express their approval.
Soon, more and more voices expressed approval, while those who still had doubts did not voice opposition, merely remaining silent to indicate their stance.
After a round of declarations, Hiruzen Sarutobi asked, "Is there anyone else who has an opinion they haven't expressed?"
He waited a few breaths, seeing no one speak again.
Hiruzen Sarutobi finally decided, "Then it is settled. Uchiha Tomoki will serve as the supreme commander for this war against Hidden Mist."
"Now, onto the next agenda item: each clan will state the number of Ninjas they can dispatch."
"Hokage-sama, the Uchiha Clan is willing to dispatch 100 Ninjas, with no less than 20 Jonin."
This statement immediately drew gasps from the entire room. As expected of Konoha's largest clan, they could dispatch a full 20 Jonin.
Many families present, let alone 20 Jonin, would struggle to even gather 20 Ninjas.
"The Hyuga Clan is willing to dispatch 60 Ninjas, with the number of Jonin also no less than 20."
The Hyuga Clan's magnanimity also astonished those present.
"Are these Konoha's noble clans? It's simply unimaginable."
Uchiha and Hyuga alone had already dispatched over 40 Jonin. If we consider a slightly lower configuration, adding over 1000 Chunin and Genin, plus the 700 troops stationed at the border,
they would already have a Ninja force of 2000.
"Aburame Clan: 100 Ninjas, 8 Jonin."
"Nara Clan: 80 Ninjas, 10 Jonin."
"..."
Everyone successively stated the forces their respective clans could send to battle.
In a short while, there were already nearly 1500 Ninjas, among whom more than 100 were Jonin.
Hidden Mist was dispatching approximately 3000 Ninjas this time. Even with Konoha's border troops, they were still outnumbered by Hidden Mist, but Konoha's high-level power seemed to be overflowing.
Judging purely from the paper statistics, Konoha already had the advantage.
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