Three days had passed since Konohagakure and Kumogakure signed the peace treaty. Konoha demanded that Kumo issue a public apology within a week and send Turtle Island to the seas of the Land of Fire.
As for the 2.5 billion ryo compensation, considering the current state of the Land of Lightning, Konoha agreed to let them pay it off in installments over five years. However, Konoha also required some leniency in exporting grain to the Land of Lightning, and the return of the Raikage's body.
Regarding the grain, Konoha proposed a trade for Kumo's mineral resources. As for the Raikage's remains—Konoha had already extracted all the intel they could from the corpse. The Raikage no longer held any value to them.
Though this war hadn't lasted long—less than four months—it was well worth it in Sakura's eyes.
Her name had been firmly established through this conflict. If it weren't for the Akatsuki stirring up trouble, Sakura believed Kumo wouldn't dare attack again for the next twenty years.
By then, with Naruto and Sasuke having fully matured, Sakura was confident that, with their combined strength, they could expand Konoha's territory to cover the entire ninja world. It would be as easy as turning over a hand.
As for that essay on the Will of Fire she wrote before?
It was just for show. Anyone who truly believed in it—well, they'd be a fool.
If even a simple stone platform was so difficult to take, what about the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki?
Sakura believed that the moment Konoha showed any hint of expansionism, Ōnoki would immediately switch sides.
After all, when the nest is overturned, not a single egg remains intact. Even if the ninja world had never heard that phrase, any smart person should understand the principle.
Iwagakure alone could never stand against Konoha.
Konoha, Root Division
In the dim heart of Root, an old man with a single, dark eye sat quietly in his office.
Compared to the deep gloom of Root itself, Danzo Shimura's office was clean and well-lit.
Although he led Root, his thoughts constantly drifted toward that high and mighty position he had yet to obtain.
At this moment, Danzo held a slightly yellowed exam paper, studying each stroke and word with meticulous care.
It was Sakura Haruno's graduation exam from four or five years ago. Even now, he preserved it with great care, occasionally taking it out to examine.
That pink-haired girl suited his taste perfectly.
Even if there had been a few conflicts back then, Danzo saw it as a reflection of a strong, assertive nature—just like his own.
When her teacher's political enemy tried to recruit her, she immediately sought protection from her teacher. That was the response of someone normal—someone smart.
Danzo didn't hold a grudge over that minor disagreement.
Now, Sakura had shone brilliantly on the battlefield in the Land of Frost. That only made him appreciate her more.
What an exceptional child...
It was just a pity she followed that old fool Hiruzen Sarutobi.
If she had followed Danzo Shimura instead, in less than ten years, he could have used her strategic mind to push Konoha to the very peak of the shinobi world.
What a waste... what a waste...
As his hand stroked the characters on the exam paper, Danzo's expression grew heavy.
Right now, he was under house arrest by Hiruzen Sarutobi. Homura Mitokado had taken his place as the commander at the frontlines in the Land of Rivers.
Danzo didn't care about that. What pained him was the military merit he was missing out on...
Kakuzu...
BANG!
Danzo's fist slammed into the desk with a loud crash.
Despicable!
"Someone come!"
"Yes, Lord Danzo."
A Root operative wearing a striped mask appeared before him instantly.
"Place a bounty on Kakuzu in the underground black market."
"Seventy million ryo!"
"Also, assemble an intelligence squad to investigate the mysterious organization that includes Kakuzu, Kisame Hoshigaki, and Uchiha Itachi!"
With Danzo's authority, he could access the reports of those who appeared in Konoha after the joint attack by Sunagakure and Orochimaru.
Kakuzu, Kisame Hoshigaki, Uchiha Itachi—all wore those same black cloaks with red clouds. Anyone with half a brain could tell they were part of the same group.
Kakuzu, a ninja who once tried to assassinate the First Hokage.
Kisame Hoshigaki, a rogue ninja from Kirigakure who killed his own comrades and fled the village.
And then there was Uchiha Itachi.
These three were all S-rank rogue ninjas—blatantly telling the world that a mysterious force was lurking in the shadows of the ninja world.
And now, it seemed that force was about to reveal itself.
"Yes, sir!"
The Root operative vanished. Danzo narrowed his eyes at the exam paper in his hand.
Now that Hiruzen had placed restrictions on him, many of his operations were hamstrung. Normally, he could bear it.
But at such a critical time, being so tightly bound was unacceptable.
There needed to be a breakthrough...
"They're back!"
At the main gate of Konoha, nearly the entire village had gathered. Everywhere one looked, there were smiling faces.
Some enthusiastic villagers even threw flower petals along the road, while a specially assigned firework squad launched celebratory shells into the sky.
The personnel assigned to maintain order could only smile helplessly as they struggled to hold back the excited crowd from surging into the street.
Flowers paved the path, fireworks boomed, and the people rejoiced.
Sakura walked beside Jiraiya, step by step, onto the familiar streets of Konoha.
Watching the petals dancing in the wind across the ground, Sakura couldn't help but become a little lost in thought.
So many flowers... The Yamanaka clan's flower shop probably made a fortune off this, huh?
"What do you see?"
"Sakura."
Jiraiya led the group through the gates of Konoha. The crowd erupted into cheers, welcoming their heroes home.
"There's a lot of people," Sakura replied, acknowledging Jiraiya's question.
"I mean—what did you see?"
He was already used to Sakura's casual evasiveness.
To him, this girl—both in ability and temperament—was the most outstanding person he had ever met.
Back then, he had been astonished by Minato Namikaze's talent, but compared to the girl beside him, even Minato paled in comparison.
To Jiraiya, Sakura's only flaw was that her ideology was a little too radical.
But that didn't matter. He could teach her, mold her—turn her into the kind of shinobi he envisioned.
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