Chapter 319: Neji's Choice
Hearing that Tsunade wanted to personally visit the Uchiha clan, Hiruzen and the other three were all shocked. For Tsunade to do this was almost equivalent to the Senju lineage yielding to the Uchiha, almost like admitting defeat to Madara Uchiha on behalf of Hashirama Senju, who had never lost.
Setting aside Danzō, even Hiruzen found it somewhat unacceptable. Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado exclaimed aloud in shock. Danzō stood up immediately and shouted, "Tsunade, you are trampling on the glory of your two grandfathers!"
"Hiruzen, Koharu, Homura, have you all forgotten Lord Tobirama's teachings?"
Hiruzen was originally wavering, but after being prompted by Danzō, he hesitated again because the policy of targeting the Uchiha was set by Tobirama Senju back then.
...
Hearing that Tsunade wanted to go to the border herself, Hiruzen and the other four were shocked. Tsunade doing this was almost equivalent to...
...
Hearing that Tsunade wanted to go to the border herself, Hiruzen said, "You cannot leave the village at this time. Your departure will only further expose the village's weakness."
"Tsunade, consider letting the Hyuga clan make a sacrifice," Hiruzen continued to persuade.
"Impossible! I will not use the ninjas of my own village to exchange for this kind of unreliable peace!" Tsunade slammed her palm heavily on the desk again, roaring furiously.
"Sigh." Hiruzen sighed. He also didn't know if Tsunade's choice was right or wrong.
However, Tsunade had taken all the pressure upon herself and had not pressured the Hyuga clan. But someone had made the opposite decision for her. This person was Danzō.
Although Danzō was at the front line, he had sent his Root members back to the village to spread the Cloud's demands. He had no choice. When facing Ikura alone, he had expressed no fear. But with the addition of a Tsuchikage and a Jinchuriki, Danzō expressed that the fact he didn't flee on the spot was already doing Tsunade a favor.
Thus, just as he had dealt with White Fang back then, Danzō easily aimed the spearhead at Hiashi Hyuga.
And this time was different from when Danzō dealt with White Fang back then. At that time, Konoha was largely at peace, without the suffocating feeling of an external enemy at the gates. But this time was different. This time, the armies of both the Cloud and Iwa were pressing on the border. The Fourth Raikage and the Fourth Tsuchikage had both personally come to the border.
Although the fighting hadn't started yet, the atmosphere of war within Konoha was already very thick.
Under these circumstances, the efficiency of Danzō spreading rumors was extremely high. Without him needing to build it up too much, the news spread throughout Konoha Village.
Although the villagers of Konoha knew that it was wrong to hand over Hiashi to exchange for peace, they couldn't help but discuss it. In addition, Hiashi was the head of a powerful clan, not a hero like White Fang, so the hurdle in everyone's heart was even easier to cross.
Hiashi naturally also received the news. He felt very embarrassed. Suicide was impossible. His life was not just his own; he was now the only adult main family member of the Hyuga clan. If he died, the Hyuga clan would probably fall into chaos.
Fortunately, he didn't have to struggle. Soon, someone made the decision for both him and Tsunade.
His own younger brother, Hizashi Hyuga, had "committed suicide."
Whether it was a real suicide, Ishiro, a fan of the original story, was not clear. Anyway, Hizashi had used his own life to end the rumors and also saved Hiruzen from having to苦苦 (kǔkǔ - bitterly/painstakingly) persuade Tsunade.
Thus, very quickly, news spread within Konoha Village that the head of the Hyuga clan had committed suicide.
Just as Tsunade and Hiruzen were discussing who to send to deliver Hizashi's body to the Cloud front line, the leader of the Iwa delegation, Jun'ichi Hirabe, came to them.
"Hokage, I am here on the orders of our Lord Tsuchikage to conduct a transaction with you," Jun'ichi said, getting straight to the point.
Tsunade and Hiruzen exchanged a look. They were actually relieved, thinking, "Finally." Iwagakure indeed had a plan. But why choose this particular time?
Hiruzen asked, "What transaction does the Tsuchikage intend to make?"
"We are willing to exchange peace for a son of the Hyuga clan, Hizashi: Neji Hyuga."
Facing Jun'ichi's unreasonable demand, Tsunade was naturally furious and refused on the spot.
But Jun'ichi was not flustered. He had long since received Ishiro's signal and said, "Lord Tsuchikage said that if Konoha is unwilling, then Iwagakure will not withdraw its troops. I believe that as long as Iwagakure does not withdraw, the Cloud will not either."
Tsunade's eyes narrowed. She understood in her heart that Iwagakure probably already knew that the one who committed suicide was Hizashi and not Hiashi.
This Jun'ichi was actually threatening her. If she didn't hand over Neji, then they, Iwagakure, would tell the Cloud the truth. Once the Cloud had a pretext, they probably wouldn't withdraw their troops easily.
But Tsunade would not be threatened. Danzō's meddling had caught her off guard before; she would not compromise again this time.
Seeing this, Jun'ichi said calmly, "If the Hokage insists, we can let Neji Hyuga make the choice himself."
Tsunade's eyes narrowed. She did not answer directly. She was thinking whether Iwagakure had contacted Neji beforehand.
Jun'ichi, however, said, "Hokage, please rest assured. Our Iwagakure has not contacted Neji. Moreover, does the Hokage not believe in the Will of Fire in Neji's heart? He is a genius. He has surely inherited his father's Will of Fire."
At this time, Hiruzen tugged at Tsunade's sleeve.
Tsunade slowly exhaled and said, "Alright. Let Neji make the choice himself. If he chooses Iwagakure, I am willing to let him go."
Jun'ichi calmly nodded and said, "At that time, I must also ask Lady Tsunade to communicate with the Hyuga main family not to activate the Caged Bird on Neji."
Tsunade gritted her teeth and said, "That goes without saying. But I'm afraid the envoy has come to a conclusion too early."
After speaking, Tsunade, along with Hiruzen and Jun'ichi, left the Hokage building and headed straight for the Hyuga clan's territory.
Due to their clan territory being destroyed, the Hyuga were still rebuilding. It was just that no one had expected that before the rebuilding was even complete, they would encounter such a thing again.
The mood of the entire Hyuga clan was very low. Hiashi was perhaps because he had lost his younger brother, but what the members of the branch family were thinking, probably only they themselves knew.
Seeing the two Hokage arrive, the members of the Hyuga branch family just gave Tsunade a polite nod. They were ninjas and naturally knew that Tsunade had been resisting the pressure from the Cloud on their behalf. And Tsunade had also stepped in to support their Hyuga clan before.
As for Hiruzen, in the eyes of the Hyuga branch family, it was as if they couldn't see this person. Danzō was not in the village; the one who spread the rumors could have been Hiruzen. And they had also heard that Tsunade was for war, while Hiruzen advocated for handing over Hiashi.
There was no helping it. The blame was there; someone had to take it. If Danzō didn't take it, then his best buddy had to.
Looking at the lifeless Hyuga clan, Tsunade felt very sad. Since she came to power, very few things had gone smoothly. She was clearly doing her best to maintain things, but the result was very unsatisfactory.
Tsunade and Hiruzen soon met Hiashi and explained their purpose for coming.
Hiashi looked at Jun'ichi with eyes full of killing intent. He knew it was precisely because of Iwagakure's involvement that the Konoha higher-ups couldn't withstand the pressure and chose to compromise. This was what led to his younger brother's suicide.
Jun'ichi didn't say a word. For this kind of thing, Tsunade, the Hokage, would coordinate it. There was no need for him, an outsider, to interject.
Hiashi faced Tsunade and said, "Hokage, you mean to hand over Neji?"
Fearing that Tsunade would be embarrassed, Hiruzen spoke first, "Clan Head Hiashi misunderstands. We are just here to ask for the child Neji's own opinion. If he chooses to stay in the village, then naturally it's fine."
Hiashi took a deep breath and said, "Follow me."
After speaking, he turned and headed towards Hizashi's house. After the incidents with Orochimaru and Sasori, Hiashi understood that his family's strength was far from comparable to Konoha's higher-ups. With two Hokage personally visiting, he could only compromise.
If the Hokage gave him face, he was the head of a powerful clan. If the Hokage didn't give him face, then he was not much different from any other ninja.
This was the truth of the ninja world. The ninja world had never been as beautiful as the Will of Fire propaganda made it out to be.
The group unhurriedly followed in Hiashi's footsteps.
Soon, the group arrived at Hizashi's house. To call it a house was an overstatement; it was now just a temporary small building. The real house was still under construction. Neji was sitting alone at the entrance of the house.
Seeing Hiashi arrive with a group of people, Neji's hands trembled. Then he mechanically stood up, lowered his head, bowed, and said, "Lord Clan Head."
Hiashi did not speak but turned to leave the space for Tsunade's group behind him.
With Danzō not around, the role of the villain could only be played by Hiruzen himself. He stepped forward, ruffled Neji's small head, and said, "Neji, right? Your father is a hero of the village."
"He voluntarily sacrificed himself for the peace of the village. Don't be sad. You must take good care of yourself. When you grow up, become an outstanding ninja like your father."
Neji looked up at Hiruzen. He also recognized this person; he was the village's Third Hokage. Recently, his clansmen had been discussing this person constantly.
First, they said he had destroyed his home. Then they said he was spreading rumors to force the clan head to commit suicide, and as a result, his own father had committed suicide in the clan head's place.
Although some people also said that the one spreading the rumors was another high-level official, other clansmen immediately said that even if this person was not the main culprit, he had agreed to it.
"This is an enemy," Neji thought to himself. "But, I am still small and have no power. I cannot be angry now. I cannot let people see my anger," Neji constantly admonished himself in his heart.
He nodded slightly, indicating his agreement with Hiruzen's words.
Then Hiruzen pointed at Jun'ichi Hirabe and said, "This is a ninja from the Village Hidden in the Stones. Their village wants to adopt you, to take you away from Konoha, away from the Hyuga clan, to live alone in a faraway place. Are you willing?"
Jun'ichi frowned. This Hiruzen was no good person. These words, weren't they hinting something to Neji? He was about to speak, but who knew that at this moment, Neji's eyes suddenly lit up, and then quickly dimmed again.
Jun'ichi, chosen by Iwa to be the head of the delegation, had a good head on his shoulders. After a quick thought, he understood the key.
He quickly said, "Neji Hyuga, your Hokage has already agreed. If you go to Iwagakure, no one will activate the Caged Bird Seal on you."
At this time, Neji could no longer hold back and quickly asked, "Is that true?"
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