Danzō's Reverse Four Symbols Sealing Technique actually made things convenient for the four of them, saving them the trouble of destroying the body and erasing the tracks.
According to the plan, the four of them tore off two or three pieces of their clothing and threw them nearby. Kisame used a water-style ninjutsu to wash them far away.
Kageyama Kogetsu appeared and sent the four of them away in two trips. Then, he returned to Konoha, pretending that nothing had happened.
A day later, Danzō's party did not return to Konoha as planned, which immediately attracted Konoha's attention.
The Konoha leadership held a brief meeting and dispatched all the available Anbu ninja in the village to search the route between Konoha and the Land of Fire.
The traces left by the Reverse Four Symbols Sealing Technique were too obvious. The Konoha Anbu ninja quickly found them, and also found the pieces of the black robe with red clouds that had been washed away by the water.
Realizing that something major had happened, the Anbu squad leader in charge immediately returned to Konoha to report.
Upon receiving the news, the Konoha leadership immediately held a meeting in the small conference room of the Hokage Tower.
The new Konoha F4, Nara Shikaku, and Sarutobi Shinnosuke, a total of six people, were present.
The six of them looked at the wet pieces of clothing on the table. The atmosphere was tense, solemn, and serious.
After a moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen said with a pained expression, "Danzō, the Fifth Hokage, and the guard team are probably all dead."
"The traces left at the scene were caused by the Reverse Four Symbols Sealing Technique. The Fifth Hokage must have been pushed to a desperate situation by the enemy."
"Judging from the pieces of clothing, it should be the Akatsuki, where the masked man belongs. This is the uniform of the official members of the Akatsuki. Itachi once reported it to me."
Mitokado Homura cursed in a deep voice, "Damn that masked man! Damn the Akatsuki! We must react!"
"The masked man is hard to find, but the Akatsuki is relatively easy to find. We must strike them hard!"
Utatane Koharu said with a blank expression, "I agree with Homura's opinion, but we must act after a new Hokage is chosen."
Kageyama Kogetsu said with a cold and stern expression, "After we find the whereabouts of the Akatsuki members, I will personally take action."
Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded slightly. "Take me or Kushina with you. Itachi said that the Akatsuki members usually act in pairs. It's safer to go together."
Sarutobi Shinnosuke and Nara Shikaku expressed their agreement, and a consensus was quickly reached.
"What about Root?" Nara Shikaku asked in a deep voice.
According to convention, it should be disbanded. In the original story, after Danzō died, Root was disbanded. After the Uchiha clan was gone, the Police Force was disbanded.
Kageyama Kogetsu was the first to speak, "We can't disband them. If no one controls them, they might cause trouble for Konoha."
"I suggest that Root be truly integrated into the Anbu, under the control of the Hokage. From then on, Root will disappear and will no longer recruit people."
After a moment of discussion, everyone expressed their agreement.
"As for the death of the Fifth Hokage and the others, I don't think we should announce the real reason. The impact on Konoha's prestige and the morale of the ninja would be too great."
"The other ninja villages will also look down on Konoha and become restless. Some radical elements might even take direct action."
"I suggest we say that the Fifth Hokage died of overwork from handling official duties for Konoha, suffering a sudden cerebral hemorrhage while sleeping at home late at night, and that he could not be saved."
"As for the traces of the battle, let the Anbu ninja do their best to eliminate them."
Sarutobi Hiruzen did not want his old comrade's reputation to be damaged, and even more so, he did not want Konoha to suffer a huge negative impact from this. He was the first to state his position.
"I agree with Kogetsu's opinion."
"Agreed."
"Agreed."
"..."
The rest of the people expressed their agreement one after another.
"As for the new Hokage, Lord Third, why don't you..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen interrupted midway, "Forget about me. I'm finding it quite comfortable to be a consultant elder now."
"Besides, you're twenty-six this year. You're more than capable of shouldering the burden of Konoha."
"The Sixth Hokage is you. What are your opinions?"
"Agreed," Mitokado Homura was the first to state his position.
"Agreed."
"..."
Everyone agreed. It could be said that he was the people's choice.
Kageyama Kogetsu stood up and bowed slightly, "Thank you for your trust. I will do my best to develop and protect Konoha."
Everyone expressed their belief and support.
"As for the Land of Fire conference, I'll take you there with the Flying Thunder God Technique."
"This is the safest way, to prevent the masked man from pulling the same trick again."
Everyone nodded, all approving of Kageyama Kogetsu's mature and thoughtful words.
"You don't need to attend the Land of Fire conference, Kogetsu."
"I'm worried it's a chain trap, that the Akatsuki will attack Konoha after luring the tiger away from the mountain. You take us there and then return to the village to hold the fort."
Kageyama Kogetsu nodded slightly, "Lord Third is very thoughtful. We'll do as you say."
"As for the Fifth Hokage's matter, we'll keep it a secret for now. I'll use a shadow clone and the Transformation Jutsu to disguise myself, and then have Karin diagnose him, and we'll act it out according to the procedure."
"We'll do as you say," Sarutobi Hiruzen said with a look of relief.
Calm, cool-headed, and clear-thinking. This is how a Hokage should be.
The others naturally had no objections to the matters that had been discussed.
After the meeting was adjourned, everyone went their separate ways to act.
That afternoon, "Danzō" returned to the Hokage Tower and handled official duties until five in the morning, only then returning home to rest.
In the middle of the night, he suffered a sudden cerebral hemorrhage. Uzumaki Karin, who had received the news, immediately rushed to treat him, but in the end, she was powerless to save him.
The Fifth Hokage had dedicated himself to Konoha and finally died in office. It could truly be said that a silkworm's thread is not spun until death, and a candle's tears do not dry until it is burned to ashes!
As soon as the news was announced, it immediately caused a huge uproar in Konoha.
Many people were filled with respect. Even those who had extremely disliked Danzō had a much better impression of him, and his image and reputation improved a lot.
Although Danzō's funeral was not as grand as the Fourth Hokage's or Sarutobi Hiruzen's in the original story, it was still quite impressive.
Looking at Danzō's face on the Hokage Rock and thinking of the grandeur of his funeral, for some reason, Kageyama Kogetsu had a feeling that Danzō had profited greatly!
On the day of the funeral, Kageyama Kogetsu sent Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others to the capital of the Land of Fire to attend a conference.
The Daimyo of the Land of Fire and the others were quite saddened to learn that Danzō, a usually fierce and aggressive person, had died of overwork in office.
As for Kageyama Kogetsu's nomination, it passed easily.
There was only one nomination, and the Konoha leadership fully supported it...
Not to mention that they already had a good impression of him. Even if they disliked him, the officials of the Land of Fire had no choice but to agree. They had no other option.
After estimating that the conference was over, Kageyama Kogetsu went over again and brought Sarutobi Hiruzen back to Konoha. Then, in the afternoon, the Jonin confidence vote meeting was held.
With the cry of the ninja hawks, figures from all directions gathered at the Hokage Tower and orderly came to the main conference room to vote.
There was no suspense in the voting. Kageyama Kogetsu passed the Jonin confidence vote with nearly a full vote. Procedurally, he was already the Sixth Hokage.
It was very difficult to achieve a full vote. No matter how good a person was, it was very difficult to make everyone like them.
After the Jonin confidence vote meeting was the Hokage succession ceremony. This ceremony had to be held as long as the conditions were right, and the grander the better.
While preparing for the Hokage succession ceremony, the news of Danzō's death from overwork and Kageyama Kogetsu's appointment as the Sixth Hokage had also spread throughout the ninja world.
Many forces gloated over Danzō's death, and even more so over Konoha's frequent change of Hokage.
For the Hokage to change so frequently, it was clear that Konoha was already on a downward spiral.
If everyone put in a little more effort in the Fourth Great Ninja War, they might be able to defeat Konoha and divide up the fertile pure land of the Land of Fire.
As for Kageyama Kogetsu, the new Sixth Hokage, everyone recognized his strength, but his other aspects would have to be observed.
Two days later, the Hokage succession ceremony officially began.
The preparations for the ceremony did not take long. The main thing was to wait for all the guests to arrive.
Hostile or unfriendly countries and ninja villages would not send guests to the ceremony. Friendly and neutral countries and ninja villages would usually send guests to the ceremony...
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