Konoha is like this: Ninja-samas only need to complete their missions, but we Ninja Academy students have a lot more to consider.
"Was that a bit too much, Mitsuki?" Rin's voice came from beside him.
"No, this pressure is just right."
The morning classes hadn't started yet, and Mitsuki was sitting in his seat, enjoying Rin's shoulder massage.
He had played Ninja games all day yesterday, and today he still had to go to this boring school.
Beside them, Yuhi and Anko walked into the classroom, laughing and chatting. Seeing Rin, Anko held a string of dango as if it were a kunai, her eyes sharp as she walked over to Rin and said,
"Don't spoil Mitsuki too much. If you two get married in the future, Rin, won't he dominate you for your whole life?"
"Married? (〃°ω°〃) Me and Mitsuki?"
"That's right, didn't you say it on the first day during your self-introduction? My name is Shimizu... Wuwu~"
Rin, blushing, quickly covered Anko's mouth, only to get her hands covered in dango sauce.
"You two, be a bit more ladylike," Yuhi leaned in to separate them.
"Honestly, Mitsuki, didn't you say that life doesn't have many spectators? And Anko, didn't you say you didn't hear my self-introduction clearly when I enrolled?"
"Huh? If I hadn't heard it clearly, how could I have told you that I didn't hear it clearly?"
"..."
Ignoring the usual bickering of the girls beside him, Mitsuki, estimating the time was right, activated his Six Eyes and focused his attention on the Hokage Building.
Ever since he gained the Six Eyes, Konoha, in Mitsuki's view, had no privacy whatsoever.
Mitsuki even knew exactly how many times Danzo went to the toilet in Root every day.
Unfortunately, most of Root's intelligence was transmitted in encrypted form, and without seeing Root's codebook, he didn't know what Root had been busy with lately.
Luckily, yesterday he had asked Sakumo Hatake when he would submit his resignation to the Third Hokage.
He naturally couldn't miss something like Sakumo Hatake resigning from being a Ninja.
Hurry up and submit it!
...On the other side.
Sakumo Hatake was a man of action, and the next day he went to the Hokage Building with his Ninja resignation letter.
In Konoha, Ninjas usually choose to retire due to injuries sustained during a mission or various unavoidable reasons that prevent them from continuing their Ninja profession.
Those who voluntarily retire are rare; generally, only lower-level Ninjas who fear war would do so.
Inside the Hokage Office.
An Anbu appeared instantly, "Hokage-sama, Sakumo Hatake requests an audience."
During wartime, seeing the Hokage required notification from Anbu.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was reviewing mission scrolls, heard the Anbu's words and said, "Let him in."
"Yes."
Given permission, Sakumo Hatake arrived at the Hokage Office door and knocked.
"Come in."
"Ah, Sakumo. Recently, there have been some unfavorable remarks about you in the Village. I hope you don't take them too much to heart."
Actually, Hiruzen Sarutobi hadn't really thought about doing anything about Sakumo's failed mission.
The war was already occupying enough of his thoughts; engaging in internal strife now would be utterly foolish.
But there really was someone foolish: his dear old teammate Danzo had actually leaked the news of Sakumo Hatake aborting his mission behind his back.
Once the news had spread, Hiruzen Sarutobi had no good way to salvage the situation, as it was a fact that Sakumo Hatake had failed his mission, and it was also a fact that the Village had suffered losses.
Not imposing any punishment on Sakumo Hatake was already the most he could do.
If he forcibly tried to suppress the news, he, Hiruzen Sarutobi, might well be scorned by the villagers along with Sakumo Hatake the very next day.
As Hokage, he still had some image anxiety.
On another note, Hiruzen Sarutobi, having been deeply involved in politics for many years, could naturally see who would be the biggest beneficiary of Danzo's actions.
Orochimaru was originally his choice for Hokage, but recently Orochimaru and Danzo had been getting closer and closer.
He was a bit worried that the position of Hokage in Orochimaru's hands might not be a good thing.
Sakumo Hatake had no idea Hiruzen Sarutobi was thinking so much; he was here today for only one thing.
Resignation! Resignation! Still resignation!
"Hokage-sama, I know this failed mission has caused great losses to the Village, and I must bear the greatest responsibility."
"No one can always succeed. As Hokage, I also bear some responsibility."
"Hokage-sama, you don't need to comfort me. After this lesson, I've realized that I'm not suited to continue being a Ninja. Here is my resignation letter." Sakumo Hatake handed the already prepared document to Hiruzen Sarutobi with both hands.
"Hmm, well, coincidentally, there's a... what (๑•̌.•̑๑)ˀ̣ˀ̣ resignation?!" Hiruzen Sarutobi stood up from his chair, looking bewildered.
The detailed process won't be mentioned, but Mitsuki, on the other side, thoroughly enjoyed watching.
Especially after Sakumo Hatake left, when Hiruzen Sarutobi shouted, "Call Danzo over here!"... Hiruzen Sarutobi was extremely angry now. The war situation on the front lines was already bad, and he had incompetent teammates dragging him down in the Village.
He now missed the days when Teacher Tobirama was around. Why hadn't he noticed Danzo's foolish side back then?
"Hasn't Danzo arrived yet?"
"Hiruzen, what do you need me for?"
Danzo walked into the Hokage Office with his usual grim expression. As Assistant Hokage, he naturally didn't need to be announced to see the Hokage, especially when Hiruzen Sarutobi had actively sought him out.
"See for yourself." Hiruzen Sarutobi tossed Sakumo Hatake's resignation letter to Danzo.
Danzo's eyes narrowed slightly. After catching and reading the scroll, he seemed to know he was in the wrong, but he naturally wouldn't admit it, especially not to Hiruzen.
He didn't speak, and Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't speak; they just stared at each other in silence.
This, however, made Mitsuki on the other side anxious. Are you two putting on a silent play?
Finally, Danzo spoke first: "Hiruzen, you agreed?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi puffed on his pipe and said, "What else could I do? This incident was caused by you leaking mission information first. On what grounds could I refuse Sakumo's request?"
"You're too soft-hearted, Hiruzen." Danzo immediately blamed him.
"You went too far, Danzo." Hiruzen Sarutobi's anger grew when he saw no sign of remorse from Danzo.
"Everything I do is for the Village!" Danzo retorted, unwilling to back down.
"I think it's for Orochimaru, isn't it?"
"Hiruzen, are you serious?"
After a few loud arguments, Hiruzen Sarutobi calmed down. Since things had come to this, instead of blaming each other, it was better to think about what to do next.
Outside the door, Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado pushed the door open and walked in. As Konoha Elders, they naturally didn't need Anbu to announce them.
Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at them and knew immediately that these two must be the reinforcements Danzo had called on the way.
"Hiruzen, Danzo did make a mistake this time, but right now, we still need to prioritize the front lines."
"That's right, Hiruzen. Without Danzo's Root, the front lines will only be at a greater disadvantage. Whatever it is, let's wait until the war is over to discuss it."
Hiruzen Sarutobi was speechless. You two don't even know what happened, and you're already defending Danzo?
He slowly sat back in his chair, with only one thought in his mind: "Teacher Tobirama, save me."
...