Tomoki was having a headache over the choice of the Allied Shinobi Forces' supreme commander.
For this operation against the Land of Earth, the four Kage, including Tomoki, would not personally participate.
During the days of mobilization, Tomoki also held several remote meetings.
Konoha, as the initiator and driving force, undoubtedly secured the qualification to be the supreme commander of this operation.
Unlike the original story, the current Allied Shinobi Forces would certainly not be organized into five divisions: mid-range, close-combat, support, intelligence, and secret techniques.
It wasn't that everyone didn't understand that such an organization would best allow the Allied Shinobi Forces to exert their maximum strength and be more easily commanded.
There was only one reason: they truly weren't familiar with each other, and many small Ninja villages had been fighting fiercely until this matter.
If it weren't for the enormous benefits of the Land of Earth, which made them temporarily put aside their disputes and secure the advantages first, they would probably start fighting as soon as they met.
Therefore, everyone could guess what the situation would be like after the Allied Shinobi Forces entered the Land of Earth: each fighting their own battle.
Nearly half of the Land of Earth's resources had already been divided among the Ninja villages, and the remaining half would go to whoever occupied it first.
This was a necessary compromise to stimulate everyone's enthusiasm; otherwise, if everything were already allocated, everyone would just follow along and coast.
In other words, in the early stages of the operation, although the Ninja villages would fight independently, there would still be unified command, which required a proper supreme commander.
Konoha indeed had many talented people now, but they all had various shortcomings.
Kakashi, Shisui, Fugaku, and even Shikaku would all be fine as the supreme commander, but they were ultimately just a bit short of perfect.
As Tomoki wavered between the four, he received a notification.
Jiraiya had returned to the village and requested to see him; he was currently waiting outside the Hokage Building.
This instantly made Tomoki's eyes light up, as he was still hesitating between the four.
Jiraiya?
He was simply the perfect candidate for the Allied Shinobi Forces' commander; his performance in the Third Great Ninja War was almost universally known throughout the Ninja World.
His strength and reputation were even more self-evident; aside from Tsunade, who was still out wandering, almost no one in Konoha could rival him.
However, Tomoki recalled his last encounter with Jiraiya, where he had acted erratically and offended him deeply.
It was hard to say whether Jiraiya would still be willing to take on this position now.
Tomoki immediately ordered.
"Go, invite Jiraiya Jonin in!"
Before his subordinate could respond, Tomoki immediately changed his mind.
"Never mind, I'll go myself!"
With that, Tomoki strode out of his office and headed towards the main entrance.
Jiraiya stood honestly outside the Hokage Building.
If the Great Toad Sage's prophecy hadn't been so alarmist, Jiraiya wouldn't have wanted to meet Tomoki at all.
This return to Konoha brought new changes.
If the changes in the Land of Rain were something Jiraiya could see significant alterations in every few years he visited, then Konoha could be said to be changing with each passing day.
Many Ninja who went out on missions would return a week later to find many new things popping up in Konoha.
Moreover, unlike the Land of Rain, everyone in Konoha was full of energy, filled with hope for the future, and exuded a vibrant spirit.
Jiraiya had to admit that as Hokage, Tomoki was impeccable, but towards outsiders, he was indeed too ruthless.
While waiting, Jiraiya gazed at the familiar Hokage Building, his thoughts wandering.
When the old man was Hokage, Jiraiya never used the normal entrance to the Hokage Building; he almost always climbed through a window.
Now, entering the Hokage Building required notification, and even then, entry wasn't guaranteed.
Jiraiya could clearly feel that just as he disliked Tomoki, Hokage Tomoki also disliked him.
Jiraiya recalled the past; he had never had much interaction with Tomoki before.
The only connection was that, starting a few years ago, he had continuously received bankbooks from the Uchiha Clan, under the guise of royalty fees.
His first meeting with Tomoki was during the Hokage election, where Jiraiya was Tomoki's competitor.
He thought of Tomoki's attitude towards him during their second meeting.
Jiraiya could only guess, was the Hokage position so tempting?
Whether the Hokage position tempted Tomoki or not was beside the point, but Tomoki now looked utterly delighted.
Tomoki, with a joyful smile on his face, almost ran, appearing in Jiraiya's sight for only two seconds before arriving in front of him.
His two hands tightly clasped one of Jiraiya's, as if he had met a long-lost good friend.
"Jiraiya-senpai, you're finally back, that's wonderful!"
Jiraiya, whose right hand was firmly gripped by Tomoki, was completely bewildered at this moment.
Was this a conspiracy?
But looking at Tomoki's seemingly genuine expression, Jiraiya was temporarily unable to process it.
You, Hokage-sama, haven't been swapped out by someone, have you?
Jiraiya didn't suspect that the Tomoki he encountered last time was fake, as the non-secret ocular jutsu indicated that the Tomoki he met last time was the real one.
This also made Jiraiya wonder if the Tomoki in front of him was an imposter.
Although Tomoki's behavior was strange, Jiraiya was also an experienced veteran; feeling that something was off, he wasn't fooled by Tomoki's superficial actions.
"Hokage-sama, I have something concerning the Ninja World that I need to report to you."
After Jiraiya finished speaking, he did not reveal the prophecy.
Tomoki instantly understood that Jiraiya had probably discovered something that wasn't suitable for public discussion.
He immediately said with a smile.
"I see, this is indeed not a good place to discuss business, Senpai, please come inside!"
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