"Hokage, is this your intention?" Danzo cast his gaze at Tsunade.
Tsunade stood up, pressing her hands on the conference table.
She said in an unquestionable tone, "That's right. I returned to serve as the Hokage, not to become a second Third Hokage."
"I am the Fifth Hokage. I will not tolerate anyone holding onto armed forces for their own weight or diluting the Hokage's power during my tenure."
"Danzo, you are old. Your Root suffered a devastating blow during the Chunin Exams, that is an indisputable fact."
"Since Root is already in name only, we might as well let it return to where it belongs, which is under the direct jurisdiction of the Hokage. This is an order."
Whispers began to spread. There were not a few families that had been secretly suppressed by Danzo using his power and Root over the years. The resentment of those who dared to be angry but dared not speak had been building up for over a decade.
Now, this new Hokage not only dared to confront Danzo head-on but was also directly calling for the dissolution of Root. This was not just strength, it was a kind of absolute courage they had not seen for a very long time.
"The first thing the Hokage does upon taking office is to point a blade at me, an Elder. You are indeed the granddaughter of the First Hokage." Danzo slammed his cane onto the ground, his voice hoarse.
"But without Root, there would be no Konoha today. Everyone here knows in their hearts what Root has done in the shadows for Konoha: assassinating key figures of hostile forces, infiltrating the intelligence networks of enemy nations, eliminating traitors, and removing any hidden threats to the village's safety while they were still in their infancy."
"Who has been doing these things? It is Root."
"Can the Anbu do these things? Can the Hokage do it? Which one of you can replace Root?"
"Very well. Since Elder Danzo says that Root's contribution to Konoha is so great that no one can replace it, then everyone, please take a look at this first."
Tsunade picked up a document that had been prepared in advance and signaled Shizune to pass it to every Jonin and Clan Head present.
Kakashi was the first to take the document and open it, then his eye widened sharply.
Guy leaned over to Kakashi's side and read a few lines, his expression changing instantly.
After flipping through two pages, Asuma's fingers tightened involuntarily. After finishing it, Kurenai placed the document on the table and covered her mouth with one hand.
After the document was passed to Danzo, he read the first page. His expression changed drastically, and his fingers froze on the paper. He looked sharply at Hiashi.
Hiashi stood up from his seat, bowed slightly to Tsunade, and then looked at everyone present and said, "The contents of the document are confirmed to be true. Tsunade-sama entrusted me with using the Hyuga Clan's Byakugan to conduct a comprehensive scan of the interior of Konoha."
"During this process, we discovered a large number of pre-planted explosive tags within the village. The quantity is extremely vast, and the locations cover multiple key nodes in the core area of Konoha."
"These explosive tags were buried deep within the foundations and building structures using extremely covert methods. If it weren't for the Byakugan conducting a targeted scan, it would be difficult to discover them during routine inspections."
The room fell into a dead silence. Everyone felt a chill run down their backs.
If someone were to detonate these explosive tags, Konoha would experience chain explosions from the center of the village outwards simultaneously. Building collapses and fires would engulf the entire core area within seconds, and the peripheral defense forces would be unable to organize an effective counterattack in such a short time.
At that point, any ninja village that sent a medium-sized surprise attack force could easily tear through Konoha's decimated defenses.
After everyone had finished reading the document, Tsunade spoke, "After taking over as the Hokage, I retrieved all of Anbu's inspection records regarding internal safety hazards in the village from the past ten years. In these records, there is not a single inspection that was executed or supervised by Root."
"Elder Danzo, you just spoke a lot about the things Root has done for Konoha and about Root's loyalty to Konoha. Then I ask you now."
"When were these explosive tags buried? Who buried them? Why has no one discovered them for so many years?"
"Root, which you claim is more elite than Anbu, let people bury explosives under your nose in Konoha for decades, and you didn't discover a single one."
"Is this the contribution to Konoha you were just talking about?"
Danzo opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by Naruto, "Elder Danzo, you aren't going to say that this is the Hokage's Anbu's business and has nothing to do with Root, are you?"
"If Konoha is at the brink of life and death and it has nothing to do with Root, then please tell me, Elder Danzo, when exactly does something become Root's business?"
"Regardless of who buried these explosive tags, when it concerns the safety of Konoha, it is the business of every Konoha ninja."
"And because of your infighting and division of power, you allowed such a huge hidden danger to lie in the foundations of Konoha for so many years without being discovered. This is the most direct result of infighting and internal attrition."
"It's a good thing that Granny Tsunade entrusted the Hyuga Clan to conduct a comprehensive scan of Konoha immediately after taking over as the Hokage, otherwise, who knows when this hidden danger would have been detonated."
"At that time, who could bear the responsibility?"
Everyone looked at Tsunade in unison, their eyes filled with admiration and lingering fear.
This new Hokage had discovered a huge hidden danger existing in Konoha less than a day after taking office. This not only required keen judgment but also required someone who truly cared about the safety of the village to check these most easily overlooked corners on their first day in office.
Shibi said with a sincere tone, "Tsunade-sama is truly worthy of being the granddaughter of the First Hokage."
The other Jonin nodded one after another, exchanging low voices of approval and affirmation for Tsunade.
Tsunade glanced at Naruto, a slight curve appearing at the corner of her lips.
This news was actually told to her by Naruto before the meeting. Originally, the credit for discovering the existence of these explosive tags should have been credited to Naruto. But Naruto attributed all this credit to her, allowing her to establish prestige at her first meeting.
Tsunade's heart stirred, and then she looked at all the Jonin and Clan Heads present and announced the order, "Based on the above facts, I now officially announce as the Fifth Hokage that, effective today, all organizations of Root are disbanded."
"Existing Root personnel will be reorganized and evaluated by Anbu. Those who meet Anbu standards will be incorporated into Anbu for unified command, and those who do not meet the standards will have their ninja status revoked on the spot."
"All of Root's training facilities, equipment, archives, and financial accounts will be sealed and received directly by the Hokage, and may not be privately transferred or destroyed in any form."
"Elder Danzo will temporarily retain his title as Elder, but will no longer possess command over any armed forces."
"Anbu will execute this order immediately starting now."
After Tsunade finished speaking, several Anbu behind her stepped out of the shadows in the corner of the meeting room.
"If there is nothing else, today's meeting ends here. Thank you for your hard work."
Tsunade braced her hands on the conference table and stood up.
Koharu and Homura also stood up, their expressions calm but their eyes complex.
The results of this meeting had far exceeded their expectations before they arrived. They had thought they were just coming to attend a routine inauguration meeting, not expecting that Tsunade would not only forcefully uproot Danzo's most powerful military force but also conveniently ferret out the village's biggest safety hazard.
From today on, the Hokage's power will no longer be divided.
The Jonin and Clan Heads in the conference room stood up one after another and left.
Kakashi packed up his documents, walked over to Naruto, and after a moment of silence, said, "Naruto, were those words you spoke at the meeting today your own ideas?"
Naruto nodded.
Kakashi tucked his hands into his pockets and smiled slightly. "If sensei were still here, he would surely be proud of you."
Guy walked over, grinning. "Naruto, you performed very well today. Your speech allowed Konoha to regain a complete power structure for the Hokage. This is what youth should look like."
After speaking, he and Kakashi walked out of the conference room.
Danzo stood up from his seat using his cane, pausing when he passed Naruto.
"Naruto, do not think that just because you have the Hokage backing you, you can do whatever you want."
Having said that, he didn't wait for Naruto to answer and walked out of the conference room.
Watching Danzo's retreating figure, Naruto curled the corner of his lips.
He wasn't afraid of Danzo coming to cause trouble. In fact, he was worried about not having a suitable opportunity to get his hands on that Kotoamatsukami.
However, there was no rush, Danzo couldn't escape. For now, he would go back to receive his father's inheritance.