"There's no suspense left now. Even the Fifth Mizukage has appeared."
"Yagura was strong, but Rasa is stronger."
"He was still too young. He only brought that small number of people into the Land of Wind to attack Sunagakure. He didn't consider the possibility of falling into a disadvantage at all. If he had brought a shinobi army, then even if he lost, he might at least have escaped."
"Now he has simply handed Sunagakure and Rasa a battle record."
"Rasa's performance over these last few years really has been shocking. Before, he kept such a low profile that people even thought his strength was far below the Third Kazekage's and that he might not even be able to inherit the Kazekage position."
"Who could have expected this? In terms of individual strength, Rasa is probably the strongest person in the shinobi world right now."
Some people began listing Rasa's battle records.
Against Sunagakure's prestigious Red Mountain Clan, he wiped them out in one night.
Against Kirigakure's elite shinobi, four of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, he killed them directly.
Against Konoha's future, Minato Namikaze, he held the upper hand.
Against the Six-Tails jinchuriki, Yagura Karatachi, he suppressed and killed him.
These were all solid battle records.
There was no exaggeration involved.
Konoha shinobi refused to accept it.
"Minato-sama simply hasn't fought Rasa in a life-and-death battle. The previous exchanges only went as far as needed. If they really fought, the result is still unknown."
"Minato-sama's Flying Thunder God Technique is absolutely faster than Rasa's speed."
"Both are called flashes, but there are levels even among flashes."
A Sunagakure shinobi snorted coldly.
"Please stop calling our Kazekage-sama the Red Flash. We have never acknowledged that title. It was only your Konoha's one-sided wishful thinking."
"Our Kazekage-sama is the Desert Emperor!"
"Using sand soldiers for instant movement is only one small part of our Kazekage-sama's many abilities."
"Unlike your Minato Namikaze, who relies completely on the Flying Thunder God Technique."
"Without the Flying Thunder God Technique, Minato Namikaze's strength drops sharply."
"But even without that ninjutsu, our Kazekage-sama's strength would not decline by much at all."
"That is the difference."
"If you want to compare them, let your Minato Namikaze become Hokage first!"
That sentence directly blocked the Konoha shinobi's retort.
The people of Konoha had originally thought that once the war ended, a new Hokage would appear.
A new Hokage represented a new atmosphere.
Whether it was Minato Namikaze or Orochimaru, it should be a good thing for Konoha.
After Hiruzen Sarutobi stepped down, it would be equivalent to Konoha having two Hokage at the same time.
Just hearing it sounded impressive.
"During the war, we heard news that the Third was going to step down. Now that the war is over, there's no news at all."
"The Third doesn't seem to be in a hurry to retire anymore."
"Maybe he feels Minato Namikaze or Orochimaru still lack ability?"
"I don't know. It can't be that the Third is clinging to the power of the Hokage, right?"
"Impossible. The Third is not that kind of person."
A figure sat in the corner.
Hearing that discussion, he snorted coldly.
"Not that kind of person? How is he not? Hiruzen is exactly that kind of person. Teacher Tobirama should never have passed the Hokage position to Hiruzen. I was the most suitable candidate for Hokage."
"If I were Hokage, Konoha's situation would be far better than this."
Danzo looked toward the Hokage Building, unwillingness flashing in his eyes.
At that moment, inside the Hokage Building, Hiruzen Sarutobi was looking at the intelligence report in his hand with tightly furrowed brows.
"I knew Rasa was strong, but I did not expect him to be this strong. Even the Six-Tails jinchuriki combined with the Water Mirror Technique was defeated. He truly cannot be underestimated."
"And considering his age…"
"Sunagakure will be extremely troublesome for the next several decades."
A powerful Kage could bring enormous positive influence to a shinobi village.
"If Sunagakure grows stronger, it will inevitably compete with Konoha."
"Can Minato withstand that pressure?"
"Or should it be Orochimaru?"
Previously, Hiruzen Sarutobi had not favored Orochimaru.
He felt that Orochimaru had changed.
That he was no longer pure.
If Orochimaru inherited the Hokage position, he might lead Konoha down a crooked path.
But under immense external pressure, Hiruzen suddenly felt that Orochimaru inheriting the Hokage position might be more suitable than Minato Namikaze.
"No, no. Still no."
"With Orochimaru's ability, he might indeed handle confrontation with Sunagakure better. But sooner or later, he would still lead Konoha onto the wrong road."
"Konoha's future would be ruined."
"The current arrangement is the most suitable."
"This old man remains Hokage, while Minato and Orochimaru assist me. I will control the direction, so Konoha will not go wrong. At the same time, I can bring both Minato and Orochimaru's abilities into full play."
Hiruzen Sarutobi then looked at another document.
"As for Kirigakure, I'm afraid it will be unable to recover from this for a long time. Who knows how many years it will take."
"Yagura had ability, but he was too impulsive."
"Once a jinchuriki dies, the tailed beast disappears as well. It will take three years before it can revive, but whether it can still fall into Kirigakure's hands at that time is hard to say."
"The Three-Tails is the same."
"If the Great Sailing Era had not begun, Kirigakure's days might have been a little easier."
Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head.
He did not sympathize with Kirigakure's situation.
He merely felt somewhat emotional.
A great shinobi village had clearly seen hope of rising again, only for that hope to be suddenly severed.
And they could not even blame anyone else.
After all, Yagura had insisted on going to Sunagakure himself.
Kumogakure.
The Fourth Raikage looked toward Killer B.
"A perfect jinchuriki?"
"Kumogakure has one too."
"But the reason Yagura was so powerful was only half because of the tailed beast's power. The more important part was the combination between tailed beast chakra and the Water Mirror Technique."
"It forcibly dragged the opponent into a contest of chakra quantity."
"And then defeated them with the tailed beast's enormous chakra reserves."
"Kirigakure is chaotic right now. This is the perfect chance to obtain the Water Mirror Technique."
The Fourth Raikage gave an order.
Very soon, a shinobi responsible for espionage arrived.
"Raikage-sama."
"Send people to Kirigakure. Make the Water Mirror Technique the primary target."
"Yes, Raikage-sama."
After that, the Fourth Raikage looked toward the southwest.
His gaze seemed to cross the Land of Fire and reach the Land of Wind directly.
"The strongest in the shinobi world?"
"Not necessarily."
Most Kumogakure shinobi, when arguing over who was strongest in the shinobi world, naturally supported the Fourth Raikage.
After all, he was their village's Kage.
But in terms of battle records, the Fourth Raikage had one obstacle he could not get past.
That was the fact that he and Killer B had joined forces, yet still failed to defeat Minato Namikaze.
Meanwhile, in Rasa's battle against Minato Namikaze, Rasa had held the upper hand.
He had even been able to spare attention to deal with other enemies while fighting Minato Namikaze.
The only truly controversial contest for number one was between Rasa and Onoki.
One was the possessor of the Kekkei Tota, Dust Release, a veteran shinobi.
The other was a young Magnet Release shinobi with shocking battle records.
Iwagakure.
Onoki pounded his waist.
"Sunagakure must be restrained."