Chapter 131: Hiruzen Sarutobi's Tour of Konoha (II)
Unlike in Hiruzen Sarutobi's era, the Land of Fire was now dotted with military bases established by Konoha.
From the very beginning, the purpose of those bases had never been simple.
On the surface, they existed to defend against invasions from foreign nations. In reality, they were built to strengthen Konoha's control over the land.
In the past, before troops were stationed and military bases were spread across the country, opposition groups hostile to Konoha often appeared in various places. From time to time, they would issue statements condemning Konoha and stirring unrest.
But once the military bases were established, those voices immediately disappeared.
After all, with a blade pressed against their foreheads, how many people would still dare to make trouble?
Anyone reckless enough to do so was finished.
Because of the widespread construction of military bases, the entire territory of the Land of Fire had now effectively fallen into Konoha's hands.
The Daimyo's orders could no longer travel beyond the capital, aside from his own direct holdings.
Even those direct holdings were steadily being encroached upon.
In today's Land of Fire, not only was more than half the territory already controlled by Konoha, but authority over currency, military affairs, and diplomacy had all been gathered into Konoha's hands as well.
The Daimyo had been completely sidelined, reduced to little more than a figurehead.
Rather than saying the Daimyo was the ruler of the Land of Fire, it would be more accurate to say the Hokage was.
To Hiruzen, whose thinking still leaned toward tradition, this situation was nothing short of subversive.
If he had not seen it with his own eyes, he never would have imagined things could be handled in such a way.
And judging from the current results, it had been astonishingly successful.
Under Kei's leadership, Konoha's total fiscal revenue had increased dramatically. The number of trained shinobi grew year after year, and their overall strength continued to rise, far surpassing previous eras.
People's incomes had generally improved as well.
It could be said that within the Land of Fire, aside from the aristocratic class led by the Daimyo, nearly everyone else had benefited.
After learning all of this, Hiruzen could not help but sigh inwardly.
He knew that, in the end, he had become outdated.
There were many of Kei's methods that he did not fully understand.
But the results before his eyes made one thing undeniable.
Kei had been right.
Since he could lead Konoha into becoming stronger and more prosperous, then his ascension to the position of Hokage had been an unquestionably correct choice.
Though Hiruzen was a traditional man, he still possessed that much breadth of mind.
He admitted that Kei had done far better than he could have.
And since that was the case, he had nothing more to say.
He had already decided to bury the events of that year and never bring them to light again, so that he would not become an obstacle to Kei.
After all, exposing the truth of that day would bring no benefit whatsoever to Konoha as it now stood.
Of course, from another perspective, even if he did reveal it now, there was a good chance no one would believe him.
Under Kei's leadership, everyone in Konoha, from the top to the bottom, had received tangible benefits. In such a situation, even if Hiruzen told the truth of that year, who would choose to stand with him?
"Forget it."
He had already made up his mind.
Starting tomorrow, he would simply remain a proper shinobi of Konoha and stop thinking about such things.
"After being away for so long, it is time to go home."
He looked toward the direction of the Sarutobi Clan's district. Thinking of his wife and children waiting at home, a gentle look appeared in his eyes.
At that moment, a shinobi suddenly appeared before him.
It was a Root shinobi.
"To dare disguise yourself as Hiruzen and infiltrate Konoha is absolutely unforgivable!"
A moment later, Danzo Shimura arrived as well.
During this period, because of the Uzumaki Clan's arrival, every major department in Konoha had been extremely busy. Danzo, who was leading Root in charge of Konoha's internal security and preventing spies from other nations from infiltrating the village, happened to be inside Konoha at the time.
After receiving a report from Root that someone had entered Konoha while disguised as Hiruzen Sarutobi, he immediately rushed over in fury, intending to personally deal with that so called spy.
Regardless of what ambitions Danzo Shimura might harbor deep inside, the fact that he regarded Hiruzen Sarutobi as a close friend had never changed.
That was precisely why, upon hearing someone was impersonating his dead friend, he came at once without hesitation.
Hiruzen looked at the now noticeably older Danzo standing before him, and a faint smile could not help appearing on his face.
"Long time no see, Danzo."
The moment those words left his mouth, Danzo froze.
The familiar tone struck him like lightning.
He stood there, staring at Hiruzen with utter disbelief on his face.
"Y you are..."
"Hiruzen?"
"Of course it's me."
"You're not dead?"
After confirming his identity, the astonishment on Danzo's face was instantly replaced by overwhelming delight.
"Some unexpected things happened, so I had to disappear for a while."
Hiruzen vaguely glossed over the matter of his disappearance, then looked at Danzo and said, "But judging by you, it seems you've been doing quite well these past few years."
Over the course of his tour through Konoha, Hiruzen had already learned about Danzo's current status.
Today's Danzo was not only the Vice Minister of Konoha's Ministry of Industry and Commerce, but also the public leader of Root.
Unlike the secretive identity he had once held, Kei had deliberately dragged that position into the light, placing it openly under public scrutiny to prevent hidden problems from festering.
That had been necessary.
For someone like Danzo, if he were allowed to remain hidden in the shadows, who knew how many surprises he might secretly produce?
But as long as he was exposed beneath the sunlight, with every move watched by others, the effect would naturally be far better.
After all, once he was under public scrutiny, there were rules and restraints to follow. Even with Danzo's temperament, he could not act too outrageously.
Otherwise, things could easily spiral out of control.
After confirming Hiruzen's identity, Danzo was overjoyed.
Without the slightest hesitation, he dragged Hiruzen into the finest tavern in Konoha, determined to catch up properly.
A moment later, inside a hotel, Hiruzen looked around with visible discomfort.
This was the best hotel in all of Konoha.
Every part of it radiated luxury and extravagance. Even the random bricks in the floor seemed exquisitely polished, while the decorations around him looked as though they had been cast from gold itself.
Soft light streamed down from the ceiling above. These were not ordinary electric lamps, but chakra powered chakra lamps.
Even the smallest details of the décor gave off a subtle sense of refinement and wealth, making the entire place look lavish beyond reason.
In front of him, a group of singers and dancers was performing.
Every one of them was beautiful, carefully selected from countless candidates, yet they performed with utter diligence for no greater reason than to draw a single glance from the guests present.
As a traditional shinobi, Hiruzen instinctively felt deeply uncomfortable the moment he entered such a place.
....
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