Despite only following orders to chase down targets, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen didn't continue to provoke Yagura.
As much as they didn't want to admit it, Yagura was genuinely stronger than them.
If they pushed Yagura too far and he decided to deal with them first, it wouldn't be fun anymore.
As much as they loved to provoke, their lives were still important.
Even so, Jūzō Biwa remained stubborn.
"You won't live to see that day. Once I encounter Usagi Xin, I'll personally chop off his head with my Executioner's Blade, and show you, Yagura, that so-called geniuses are nothing but a joke."
"I hope you can deliver on that."
Yagura looked at Jūzō Biwa like he was an idiot.
Even in Konoha, there was plenty of internal conflict.
In Mist Village, where killing your own comrades was easier than slaughtering pigs, internal strife was even more intense. It was perfectly normal for people to be dissatisfied with Yagura.
If everyone obeyed Yagura without question, that would be the real surprise.
Yagura was fully aware that many didn't respect him, but he didn't care.
Because he held the power.
As long as these people didn't cross a line, he would simply ignore them.
The door to the Hokage's office swung open as Tsunade walked in, yawning.
"Old man, what's so urgent? The logistics department is going crazy. If it's not important, don't bother me."
Usually idle, but during wartime, constantly busy-that was the nature of the logistics department.
During war, every piece of supplies needed Tsunade's personal oversight.
Not to mention, Xin had instructed her to keep a close watch on things, leaving no room for Danzo to seize any advantage. This only made Tsunade's workload heavier.
"You're doing a great job. However, Orochimaru sent a message requesting that Xin's squad accompany the third batch of reinforcements to the front lines. He needs Xin's squad as the spearhead to break through Mist Village's chain of defense and force them into a direct confrontation."
The Third Hokage handed Tsunade the scroll from Orochimaru.
Tsunade opened it, skimming the contents while making a sarcastic remark:
"Is Orochimaru not worried about someone stealing his glory this time?"
Cough cough!!
The Third Hokage cleared his throat, pretending not to hear that.
After his compromise with Tsunade, the Third Hokage stopped interfering with anything related to Xin. He also stopped any attempts to target Xin.
In fact, whenever Xin was involved in something, he directly approached Tsunade rather than contacting Xin himself.
As for Orochimaru's ambitions, the Third Hokage knew but chose not to address them.
It wasn't strange that Orochimaru wanted to compete for the Hokage position.
After all, Orochimaru was his disciple. Was there anything wrong with him wanting to compete for Hokage?
This was expected.
The Third Hokage also favored Orochimaru's potential.
At least, until Tsunade made a move, Orochimaru had a strong chance.
Though, truth be told, the Third Hokage had no intention of retiring anytime soon.