Regarding the issue of the Land of Whirlpools, the Konoha high-level officials understood that it wasn't that the Konoha Hidden Village's military power couldn't protect it, but rather that its remote location made it impossible to reach. If the Land of Whirlpools had been willing to allow Konoha Hidden Village to station troops there, the problem would have been easily solved. However, the Land of Whirlpools could not accept such terms, at most only allowing small teams to enter.
Facing a formidable enemy, how could ordinary small teams possibly hold them off? Not only would the Land of Whirlpools not be protected, but Konoha might also lose a team in vain. This was unacceptable even to Konoha Hidden Village itself, and so, this issue remained a persistent problem for both sides.
Currently, the Land of Wind and the Land of Water have already begun to stir. Although the other two countries haven't shown any obvious signs, as the situation changes, they will likely take corresponding actions.
Fumori Masaki was certain that the Land of Water would definitely attack the Land of Whirlpools. That was a grudge left over from the last Shinobi World War, destined to be settled in this Shinobi World War. The most worrying thing was whether the Land of Lightning would get involved. Although due to the Second Raikage's peace policy, the current Cloud Hidden Village seemed to be following a path similar to Konoha Hidden Village, it wasn't that simple.
As a warlike nation and people, how could the innate belligerence in their blood be so easily eradicated? Relying solely on the Second Raikage, it was clearly impossible to influence the entire country. The only fortunate thing was that the rebellion of Kinkaku and Ginkaku last time left a very deep impression on everyone, which is why the Second Raikage was able to suppress the others and insist on a path of peace.
However, the Second Raikage had passed away the year before last. The one who inherited the position of Third Raikage was now known as A. Although he was the Second Raikage's student, Fumori Masaki couldn't be sure what the Third Raikage's attitude was towards his predecessor's policy.
During the last Shinobi World War, the Second Kage who successively ascended to leadership positions, with the exception of Tobirama, who consistently maintained a stance of peace, all of them unanimously abandoned their predecessors' policies and embarked on a path of military expansion.
As the saying goes, 'a new emperor brings new courtiers.' Not every successor will adhere to the policies of the previous generation. The warlike nature of the Land of Lightning might suddenly erupt during the war. Fumori Masaki must be cautious about this. In his opinion, the war might be initiated by the Land of Wind and the Land of Water, while the other two countries would wait and see. Once Konoha Hidden Village shows signs of weakness, they might join in to curb Konoha Hidden Village's momentum.
Therefore, even when facing two countries, Konoha Hidden Village must not show any signs of difficulty. Quickly resolving these two countries is Konoha Hidden Village's future strategic policy.
And as for the current strength of Konoha Hidden Village, Fumori Masaki was still confident. The Konoha Hidden Village in the original history was able to withstand the attacks of multiple countries. He refused to believe that under his careful governance, Konoha Hidden Village would still be unable to win this war!
It was just a pity that Sensei Tobirama couldn't see all this. Not long after the Second Raikage's death, Tobirama also passed away from illness. Perhaps this was the fate of them, the Second Kage. For a ninja who had lived with death for many years, being able to die peacefully was a hard-won blessing. Fumori Masaki felt that when Tobirama passed away, he saw a flourishing Konoha Hidden Village, and he must have had no regrets.
Although Tobirama couldn't see the future, Fumori Masaki felt that his teacher was watching him at all times, to see if Konoha Hidden Village would continue to thrive under his hands. This lingering sense of responsibility made Fumori Masaki's resolve increasingly firm.
Fumori Masaki arrived at the Senju clan's compound—although it was called the Senju clan's compound, the only Senju living here were Mito and Kana—the rest were children of the Uzumaki clan. Perhaps this place would soon be called the Uzumaki clan's compound. As he passed by, the young Uzumaki clan members training there quickly greeted him, showing their respect.
Fumori Masaki responded to each of them and then entered Mito's residence. The place was becoming increasingly desolate, and the traces that once belonged to the Senju seemed to have completely disappeared.
It was only then that Fumori Masaki truly felt that "the Senju had finally left."
He composed himself and came to Mito's room door, knocking gently. When the door opened, he saw a little red-haired girl. The little girl bowed politely: "Hello, Uncle Kazemori."
This little girl was Kushina. Compared to Fumori Masaki's impression, this Kushina was very well-behaved, with no trace of the "Red-Hot Habanero." Perhaps it was because she came to Konoha Hidden Village at a young age and didn't have the sense of caution towards outsiders that she had in the original story—Fumori Masaki felt that Kushina's fiery temper was largely a form of self-protection, to prevent harm—or perhaps this Kushina was simply a completely different person.
Because of her destiny to become the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Mito loved Kushina very much, treating her like her own daughter. Therefore, Kushina called Fumori Masaki "uncle."
Fumori Masaki patted Kushina's head and entered the room. Besides Kushina, Kana was also there, kneeling quietly by the side, feeding medicine to her mother. The white-haired Mito no longer showed any vitality of the Uzumaki clan. She used to be able to walk with assistance, but now she didn't even have the strength to walk. It was clear that her end was near.
"Masahiko, coming at this time, it shouldn't be just to see an old woman like me, right?" Mito took a sip of medicine, let out a soft sigh, and smiled.
"Hmm." Fumori Masaki nodded slightly and said, "Lady Mito, war is very likely to come soon. I want you to be mentally prepared."
Fumori Masaki didn't reveal too much information, but Mito immediately understood that he meant for her to be mentally prepared for the situation in the Land of Whirlpools. Even with the current Konoha Hidden Village, it was hard to say whether they could definitely protect the Land of Whirlpools.
Mito was actually prepared for this situation. She knew that Konoha Hidden Village had done its best, and the best plan had been rejected by the Land of Whirlpools itself. In that case, Konoha Hidden Village could not promise to absolutely protect the Land of Whirlpools. She felt that it would be best if the Land of Whirlpools remained safe, but if not, at least most of the clan members should be able to relocate to Konoha.
The reason the Land of Whirlpools was targeted was primarily because of the Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques and powerful kekkei genkai. In other words, as long as the Uzumaki clan left, the Land of Whirlpools would be no different from other small countries, and it wouldn't require so much effort to destroy it. Of course, whether the Land of Whirlpools could still be called the Land of Whirlpools at that time would be an unknown.
"Go ahead and do it boldly." Mito smiled, looking at Fumori Masaki gently, "Even if the outcome is not ideal, I won't blame you."
As a kunoichi who fought during the Warring States period, Mito had witnessed countless tragedies. Even if her maternal clan might face such a fate, while heartbreaking, it wouldn't be entirely unacceptable.
"The way you say that makes me even more determined to do my best," Fumori Masaki said.
"Do your best, and accept fate." Mito murmured, "You just need to remember that."
"Mother, shouldn't we have Sister and Brother-in-law come back?" Kana suggested from the side, "If war really breaks out, the two of them might be in danger."
"You're right." Mito nodded slightly. As a mother, she was still very concerned about her daughter. "Then I'll trouble Masahiko to write a letter and send it over there. Hopefully, it can arrive before the war breaks out."
"Even if war does break out, I will do my best to send people to bring them back safely," Fumori Masaki said. "Then I'll go make arrangements. Please rest well, Lady Mito."
"Alright." Mito nodded.
After leaving the clan compound, Fumori Masaki immediately convened his advisors. He explained the current grim situation to the six of them in detail. The lack of cooperation from the Land of Whirlpools made things very difficult for Konoha Hidden Village, but it wasn't entirely without a solution. The method decided upon by everyone was to station troops along the coastal border, with a small number of elites entering the Land of Whirlpools to delay the enemy's attack, while the border troops could sally forth in time to provide assistance.
Since only a small number of elites would be entering the country, they naturally needed extremely powerful individuals. Otherwise, it would be impossible to withstand a sudden attack from the Land of Water. If it were Konoha Hidden Village, the forces they would deploy to annihilate the Land of Whirlpools before they could react would be unimaginable.
"Hiruzen, I'm entrusting this mission to you. Can you do it?" Fumori Masaki looked at Sarutobi Hiruzen and asked seriously.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's strength has always been underestimated by readers in his previous life, who believed he couldn't be called the strongest Hokage, let alone a Hokage; he wasn't even considered powerful among the Third Kage of the same era. However, Fumori Masaki understood how absurd this speculation was. Sarutobi Hiruzen's strength was truly astonishing. While not as powerful as Hashirama, he would not lose to any of the Second Kage, including Tobirama, let alone the Third Kage.
In the original story, was the Second Shinobi World War truly sustained only by the young Konoha's White Fang and the Konoha Sannin? Although it wasn't detailed, logically speaking, facing multiple countries at the time, Konoha Hidden Village was able to emerge victorious. Sarutobi Hiruzen, Shimura Danzo, Utatane Koharu, and Mitokado Homura, who were often underestimated by others, were actually the mainstays of Konoha Hidden Village, the leaders who brought victory to the village.
Fumori Masaki, familiar with the strength of these individuals, was convinced of this. And now, a great advantage for Konoha Hidden Village was that even though he, as the Third Hokage, could not easily act, another "Third Hokage" was free to move. He could almost imagine what kind of changes that would bring to the battlefield.
"Of course!" Sarutobi Hiruzen understood how dangerous this journey would be. He would lead a small number of elites to infiltrate the Land of Whirlpools and intercept any potential surprise attacks from ninjas before the main force arrived to provide assistance. But he was not afraid; in the original history, he was willing to face Kinkaku, Ginkaku, and their followers alone, so how could he be afraid now?
"The enemy might also anticipate that we will send troops to assist, and they might make moves at sea," Shimura Danzo said calmly. "That sea area belongs to the Mist Hidden Village, so we cannot be careless."
"Yes. So, besides Hiruzen personally leading people to infiltrate the Land of Whirlpools, the main force outside also needs someone else to command." Fumori Masaki pondered for a moment, then looked up and said, "Danzo, I think you are the right person. Are you willing to go?"
"Why do you think I brought this up?" Shimura Danzo snorted softly. "Who else but me can handle this kind of thing?"
"Danzo, I'm entrusting my life to you." Sarutobi Hiruzen clapped him heavily on the shoulder and laughed. If the main force's rescue wasn't timely, unless Sarutobi Hiruzen abandoned the Uzumaki clan and escaped alone, he would have no choice but to fight to the death. And facing the power capable of annihilating a country, even he might fall in battle.
Shimura Danzo somewhat disdainfully brushed off Sarutobi Hiruzen's hand and said, "Of course I'll bring people over in time, but don't be too useless and die too soon."
"No, no," Sarutobi Hiruzen burst out laughing.
Seeing the two of them, everyone else smiled knowingly. Although Shimura Danzo seemed to dislike him so much, he was definitely worried about Sarutobi Hiruzen. While Shimura Danzo was suitable for this mission, his usually reserved nature in actively offering to go made his intentions very clear. After all, the two of them had grown up playing together since childhood.
"The Land of Whirlpools will be entrusted to Hiruzen and Danzo. As for the Land of Wind..." Fumori Masaki began to arrange the border defenses for the Land of Wind once more.
After the initial confirmation, everyone held another detailed discussion at the Jonin meeting, finalizing the members of the unit. The force led by Sarutobi Hiruzen consisted of approximately five hundred people, of whom three hundred and fifty were combat ninjas, divided by taijutsu, mid-to-close range ninjutsu, and long-range ninjutsu. One hundred were intelligence and support ninjas, and the remaining fifty were medical ninjas.
It didn't seem like a large number of people, but Fumori Masaki believed that ninjas were a type of military force where quality was more important than quantity. Piling them up like an army corps wouldn't fully unleash the power of ninjas. They still needed to cooperate well with the samurai corps. The reason for adopting this approach was, on one hand, to ensure the effective use of ninja power, and on the other hand, to build good relations with the samurai corps.
Now, Konoha Hidden Village was growing stronger and stronger. Its independent financial income could already support the village's livelihood, and the Daimyo no longer possessed the original restraining power. The only thing they relied on was the ninjas' own credibility regarding their employment contracts.
The current status of Konoha Hidden Village was no different from that of local lords within the country, still a local government that could leave at any time. The Daimyo, worried about this, tried their best to win over the local lords within the country, uniting them to restrain Konoha Hidden Village. Once the large samurai corps gathered, it would indeed cause trouble for Konoha Hidden Village.
Konoha Hidden Village naturally had to try to dismantle this situation. The emergence of ninjas had caused the decline of the samurai's status, but there were still ways to ease the relationship between the two. In Fumori Masaki's mind, ninjas must not be completely opposed to samurai, as this would be detrimental to the future and would also give the Daimyo a way to balance the strength of the two.