allendalepharm Chapter 321 Peace Agreement
Chapter 321 Peace Agreement
Chapter 321 Peace Agreement
The rules of the Dark Division are numerous, but they can also be summarized in a few words.
Talk less and do more, obey absolutely, and prioritize the task.
It was simple and straightforward, but even so, it took Taiyi an entire afternoon to finish everything.
It's not for any other reason than that the Dark Division has too much to learn.
New sign language, new secret patterns, deciphering various codes, and various secrets unique to the Dark Division.
This knowledge cannot be taken away yet; it can only be learned in this secret base. Even with Taiyi's current memory, he cannot learn it all in one day.
That afternoon, he only learned the basics; he estimated it would take at least three or four days to learn everything.
This is still Taiyi; if it were someone else, the time would be extended by four or five times or more.
He also understood why, even after Orochimaru and Itachi Uchiha defected, the secret patterns and hidden doors of Konoha's Anbu remained largely unchanged—the workload was simply too large, and they were too lazy to make any changes.
When Taiichi, now known as the macaque, reappeared before Hiruzen Sarutobi with the eagle, the sun had already set.
"Lord Hokage, this monkey reports for duty."
Wearing a monkey-face mask and an ANBU cloak, he was completely covered up, but Taiichi's voice remained unchanged.
"A macaque?" Hiruzen Sarutobi chewed on the name, a smile spreading across his face. "Macaque, you'll take up your post tomorrow and serve as my bodyguard for a while!"
"Ah—but Hokage-sama, I haven't finished learning the rules of the Anbu yet, and I have to get to work right away!"
Taiyi pulled down the hood on his head and adjusted the mask on his face; this thing was not comfortable to wear at all.
"You brat." Hiruzen Sarutobi pointed at Taichi and said with a smile, "Don't think I don't know how you usually train. Why do you have so many shadow clones, but you can't bear to send one of them to learn those things?"
The eagle standing to the side tilted its head slightly toward Taiyi, but in the end, it restrained itself from acting impulsively, keeping its eyes fixed ahead, as if it were invisible.
Taiyi, however, showed no hesitation and turned to look at the guy.
This guy is such an ice block. After spending the whole afternoon together, he didn't say a single word to Taiyi except for the things he had to say.
If it weren't for his subtle turn of his head, Taiyi would have doubted whether this guy even had any curiosity.
Turning his head to meet the Hokage's gaze again, Taichi knew he couldn't shirk this responsibility. Now that he was in the Anbu, the Hokage had the final say on the mission.
"Alright, alright, let the shadow clone learn, I'll be the guard."
Hiruzen Sarutobi tapped his pipe on the table and said with satisfaction, "Alright, you can go back and rest now. We'll meet at 7 a.m. tomorrow."
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"Yes, Lord Hokage."
Taiichi put his feet together, gave an exaggerated bow, and strolled out of the Hokage's office amidst Hiruzen Sarutobi's laughter and curses.
"How's it going, Eagle?"
The Hokage's question seemed cryptic, but the Azure Eagle clearly understood what the Hokage wanted to know.
"He showed no dissatisfaction and was quite proactive in learning the rules and regulations of the Dark Division and various kinds of knowledge."
Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded silently. That's good. If he can follow my arrangements, then he's still a good kid.
Taichi was completely unaware of the final conversation in the Hokage's office, but even if he had known, it wouldn't have mattered to him.
From the moment he was transferred back to the village from the front lines, he knew that the village's higher-ups intended to sideline him for a period of time, and he was happy to cooperate.
Having fought on the front lines for nearly two years, he has gained many new insights and ideas, all of which require a significant amount of time to put into practice.
In places like the front lines where you have to give it your all at all times, he simply can't spare enough manpower and time to do these things.
Now is perfect. No matter how busy the Dark Division is, as long as his main body or a shadow clone is present, he can arrange everything else as he sees fit.
After finishing his evening prayers, Taiyi went to bed early. He needed to get a good rest today, because tomorrow would be a different day.
The next day, in the Hokage's office.
When Taichi arrived, Hiruzen Sarutobi was already seated and working.
You have to admit that, at least in terms of diligence, Hiruzen Sarutobi did a very good job.
"Tai—no, macaques, they've arrived just in time."
Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at the clock on the wall; it was exactly 7 o'clock, 5 seconds to go.
"Strict adherence to the time is the duty of every ANBU ninja."
Taiichi's words sounded somewhat somber through the mask, but anyone could hear the laughter in them.
Hiruzen Sarutobi chuckled, unconcerned, and pointed behind him to the shadows ahead.
"Alright, alright, I don't need to explain your duties as a guard, do I? Today, you're responsible for protecting my safety indoors."
Taiichi looked in the direction of Hiruzen Sarutobi's gesture. It was the corner between the wall and the bookshelf, which was just covered by the shadow of the bookshelf.
Without hesitation, he nodded and instantly appeared in the corner, his aura quickly concealed, and even his figure slowly merged with the shadow.
This is a simple application of Yin Release. Although it is not as good as Nara's Shadow Technique, it is a piece of cake to hide a person.
Hiruzen Sarutobi clearly saw Taiichi's movements, which is why he was surprised.
Because once Taiyi hid himself, even if he tried to sense him carefully, he could no longer detect Taiyi's presence.
In terms of this ability to conceal one's abilities, few people in the entire Hidden Leaf Village can reach this level.
As time went by, the Hokage's workday officially began.
Reviewing documents, listening to reports on important missions, receiving visiting ninjas, and holding meetings with village leaders —
In short, Taiichi didn't see Hiruzen Sarutobi idle at all throughout the morning.
I don't know if this is just how it is today, or if this is the daily life of a Naruto character.
Taiyi, hidden in the shadows, felt a chill run down his spine. He simply couldn't understand how anyone could like such a life.
If he had to sit there all day doing these tedious things, even just for a day, he would break down.
However, Taiichi also noticed that while Hiruzen Sarutobi was indeed diligent, his work efficiency was not high.
Right now, he and Mitokado Homura have been discussing expanding the workforce at the root for two hours.
It was such a simple matter, yet the two of them spent half a day discussing the one-person quota, from funding and logistics to the rules, which gave Taiyi a headache.
Taiyi sometimes wondered if the two of them were doing this on purpose, just to delay the time so that he wouldn't have to face that huge pile of documents.
After Mitokado Homura finally left with a beaming smile, the office fell silent once again.
"Macaque, come out, it's rest time now, chat with me!"
The shadow in the corner twisted, and Taiichi's figure slowly emerged from it.
Taichi walked around the Hokage's office desk and stood in front of Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"How are things going? Are you settling in well with the guard duties?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi held his pipe and leisurely smoked it. He was quite used to this level of work, and Taiichi couldn't see any abnormality on his face.
"That's great. No fighting or killing involved. As long as I'm protecting your safety, I'm quite satisfied with my current job."
Taiichi spoke calmly, mimicking the standard way an ANBU member would speak, but inwardly he was already complaining: This is so incredibly boring.
"I'm satisfied. You fought in all four battlefields of Konoha, and in the most dangerous moments of each battle."
I noticed your condition, which is why I brought you back from the front lines so you could relax.
While war can accelerate progress, keeping your mind too tense is also detrimental; you must understand that.
Hiruzen Sarutobi patiently explained to Taiichi the reasons for his transfer from the front lines, fearing that Taiichi might harbor some resentment.
Taiyi cooperated quite well, putting on a tearful performance of gratitude.
The two exchanged words for a while until the afternoon work hours arrived. Taiichi disappeared back into the darkness, and Hiruzen Sarutobi buried himself in his desk once again.
This afternoon, a message arrived from the southern front.
From Taiichi's perspective, Hiruzen Sarutobi has remained silent ever since he saw the report scroll.
He remained completely still, showing no reaction even when the pipe in his hand went out.
Taiichi, standing behind, was filled with curiosity, but also worried about the Hokage's current state.
Unfortunately, he couldn't see the contents of the scroll. If he hadn't been unable to sense any chakra fluctuations, he would have been tempted to appear and take a look.
After a long while, the pipe trembled slightly, and Hiruzen Sarutobi's lifeless eyes regained their luster.
"Go and fetch Mitokado Yan."
Taiichi knew that this person wasn't talking to him.
Sure enough, on the other side of the bookshelf, in that equally shadowy place, a figure emerged, received his orders, and left.
Taiichi had already noticed that there was another person there, and that he was a ninja from the Nara clan. He recognized the familiar shadow technique at a glance.
Not long after, Mitokado Homura, who had left that morning, rushed back to the Hokage's office.
His face was gloomy, and he thought that there had been another setback regarding the personnel expansion that morning. He was about to question Hiruzen Sarutobi about the reason.
Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi's calm and indifferent face, he swallowed back his original words, and what came out of his mouth was something else entirely.
"Hiruzen, what's going on? Has something serious happened again?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't say anything, but handed over the scroll sent from the front lines.
Mitomon Yan took the scroll and scanned its contents at a glance, then stood there stunned for a moment.
He quickly recovered, rewound the scroll, put it back on his desk, and looked up into the Hokage's eyes.
"Wasn't this something we expected? If we want to end the war sooner, necessary sacrifices are unavoidable."
"How could I not know? But now that things have developed to this point, the ninjas on the front lines and everyone in the village may not think the same way after hearing this news."
Hiruzen Sarutobi's words drifted over, filled with melancholy.
Taiyi, listening from behind, was completely bewildered but incredibly curious.
What are those two old men talking about? They won't explain themselves clearly, which is making him feel uneasy, like he's being scratched by a cat.
"Regardless, the war with Sunagakure is over. We should quickly transfer the ninjas under Jiraiya's command to the northern and western fronts, which are the areas we need to focus on next."
Mitokado was also quite pragmatic. Now that things had come to this point, there was nothing left to dwell on; completing the next phase of strategic planning was the most important thing.
"That's all we can do, but we still need to guide public opinion. I'll leave that to the root of the village. I don't want any trouble to break out in the village."
Hiruzen Sarutobi regained his composure and quickly made arrangements for the next steps.
After Mitokado Homura left, he sat there alone, lost in thought.
However, Taiichi keenly sensed that the aura of decline emanating from Hiruzen Sarutobi seemed to have intensified.
Sure enough, rumors began to spread in the village the next day.
Konoha is now surrounded by enemies on all sides, and the village is facing a severe crisis.
Konoha is short-handed, and students from the Ninja Academy have to graduate early to rush to the battlefield.
The Daimyo has stopped allocating war funds to Konoha, and Konoha's finances are now stretched thin.
All sorts of rumors and gossip made it seem as if Konoha was about to be breached.
This continued for three days in a row. During these three days, the Security Department disappeared without a trace, and the Dark Division and the Root Division were nowhere to be found.
Influenced by the rumors, the villagers who were unaware of the truth were even more terrified, and the once prosperous streets showed signs of desolation.
On the fourth day, a definitive announcement was finally released.
Konoha and Sunagakure reached a peace treaty, exchanging prisoners and resolving past grievances. Starting today, both sides will gradually withdraw their ninja forces stationed at the border.
This news acted like a shot in the arm, quickly reviving the somewhat dejected Konoha.
People flocked out of their homes to joyfully celebrate this hard-won peace treaty.
On this day, all the merchants in Konoha offered a 20% discount, and ordinary people decorated their homes with lanterns and took to the streets, making the whole of Konoha feel like it was celebrating the New Year.
The rumors from the first three days were so depressing that everyone was living in fear.
This sudden peace treaty immediately alleviated everyone's fears.
This is a release after repression, a celebration after fear.
Taiyi walked down the street at midnight. The street was still brightly lit and the crowds showed no signs of decreasing. It seemed like they were going to party all night.
Taiichi had to admire Mitokado Homura's methods.
That humiliating peace treaty.
Konoha invested so much manpower and resources beforehand, and lost so many ninja lives.
Most importantly, Konoha did not lose on the battlefield; on the contrary, they kept the Sand Village on the defensive.
In this situation, a peace treaty that offers no apology, no compensation, and instead requires each side to release the other's prisoners is utterly humiliating.
However, Mitokado used a strategy of first suppressing and then elevating the villagers' perceptions, taking advantage of their fear of war to directly reverse this perception.
At least the ordinary villagers accepted this humiliating peace treaty with great joy.
As for the ninja clans, both large and small, they certainly couldn't be kept in the dark like ordinary villagers.
On the very day the rumor broke, both the large and small ninja clans obtained accurate information through their respective channels.
On that very day, ninjas from the Anbu (Anbu) came to these families one by one.
Taiyi witnessed the Hokage's silver tongue firsthand that day.
Over the course of a day, the Hokage met with the heads of all the clans in turn, appealing to their emotions and reasoning with them.
All the families obediently kept their mouths shut and remained silent.
Looking at the people still celebrating in the street, Taiyi felt confused for the first time.
Was I too easygoing? If I had been more proactive and assertive in fighting for my rights, would this peace agreement have been avoided?
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