In the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi leaned back in his chair, eyes downcast and silent, puffing smoke from his pipe.
The air was as suffocating as a sealed clay pot under high pressure, making one want to shatter its walls or tear open the lid to escape.
"Ahem!"
It wasn't until Koharu Utatane couldn't help but cough that the unbearable silence was finally broken.
"Hiruzen, about this matter..."
Homura Mitokado let out a sigh of relief. He glanced at the stubbornly unyielding Danzo beside him, then turned to persuade Hiruzen. "This time, Danzo really did go a bit too far..."
"Conducting Wood Release experiments in secret, hoarding the research results and the Wood Release user—is that not 'going too far' enough?"
Before Homura could continue to make excuses for Danzo, Hiruzen interrupted, his face impassive. "That is Wood Release. Don't tell me you two don't understand what that means!"
At these words, Homura's old face flushed slightly, and he gave Danzo a helpless look.
Yes, a Wood Release user.
Who would have thought Danzo's audacity had grown so large that he dared to hide a Wood Release user?
If it weren't for the investigation into Orochimaru's recent defection, they would still be in the dark about Wood Release reappearing in the world.
Danzo's current control over Root was enough to frighten even Homura.
"Root is the root of Konoha, the root of the ANBU, and my root. But now, it dares to hide such crucial intelligence from me, the Hokage. Does that not mean..."
Hiruzen paused, narrowing his eyes at Danzo as he questioned, "that it has become an independent organization for someone's personal gain?"
Hearing this, the previously expressionless Danzo said in a low voice, "Everything I do is for the sake of Konoha."
Listening to his old friend's resounding reply, Hiruzen silently exhaled a puff of smoke. His face was shrouded in the hazy white mist, his expression inscrutable from Danzo's perspective.
"Hiruzen..."
Koharu Utatane, who had been silent all this time, couldn't help but speak up.
"Enough." Hearing that they were about to plead for Danzo again, Hiruzen waved his hand irritably, signaling them to stop.
After Master Tobirama died due to the Hidden Cloud's schemes, he had been appointed in a time of crisis, taking the position of Hokage from his teacher's hands.
But being "Hokage" was different from his youthful fantasies. As soon as he took office, he faced the pressures of war and the ninja clans, which instantly shattered his illusions about the role.
Initially, both the Hyuga and Uchiha clans followed his orders but not his lead.
Fortunately, as Hokage, he had the moral high ground in power struggles. Besides his own Sarutobi Clan, he also had the support of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio.
So he adopted a strategy of suppressing one group while pulling in another. With the help of Danzo and others, he used some special means to set the two great clans, Uchiha and Hyuga, against each other.
Only then did he finally secure his position as Hokage, grasping the power that belonged to it and placing his confidants in important departments.
And the "Root" from Tobirama Senju's era was actually just a training department for the ANBU.
It wasn't until he let Danzo take control of "Root" to handle the dirty work that couldn't be done in the ANBU's name—like surveilling the ninja clans—that it gradually evolved into an intelligence organization.
The "Root" under Danzo's charge was, in essence, equivalent to an ANBU squad. According to ANBU structure, Danzo, as a squad leader, could only lead four teams, totaling seventeen people.
However, under Hiruzen's deliberate or unintentional indulgence, "Root" continued to expand and grow. Under Danzo's influence, its methods became increasingly dark, leading to the situation today...
If "Root" was allowed to continue developing like this, it would inevitably become too powerful to control, completely degenerating into Danzo's personal armed force.
Therefore, it had to be restricted.
"There's no need to mention the matter of the Wood Release user 'Kinoe' again. I've already had him join the ANBU. Now, there is another matter."
Ignoring Danzo's resentful expression, Hiruzen looked at the three before him with a deep gaze and asked, "Intelligence has come from the border. It seems the Hidden Cloud Village is mobilizing its troops, possibly planning some new move."
"What are your thoughts on this?"
At these words, Koharu and Homura frowned simultaneously.
"Here they come again? How disgusting!" Homura's brows furrowed tightly, his tone serious. "No matter what, we cannot act rashly."
"Homura is right," Koharu Utatane nodded. "Whatever they're planning, we just need to be on guard. We cannot give them any reason to start a war!"
Hiruzen remained noncommittal. He tapped his pipe and looked at Danzo, asking, "And what do you think?"
Danzo's dark eyes narrowed slightly. After a moment of silence, he stated bluntly in a low, hoarse voice, "Of course, we hit them until it hurts!"
"..."
Hiruzen said nothing. With the pipe in his mouth, he took a deep drag, held it in his lungs, and then exhaled the smoke.
Although the Third Great Ninja War was over, the shinobi world was, in fact, not stable.
This was mainly due to Konoha's severe lack of high-level combat power. First, there was the suicide of Konoha's White Fang, who had made a great name for himself in the Second Great Ninja War. Then, the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, and the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Kushina Uzumaki, died in the Nine-Tails' attack.
The combat power lost from fighting on four fronts in the Third Great Ninja War had not yet recovered, and many more ninja had died in the Nine-Tails' attack orchestrated by the masked man. No matter how large and deep Konoha's foundations were, it was struggling to bear the strain.
Anyone could see the awkward situation of Konoha's generational gap. Although the Hidden Cloud and Hidden Stone villages had been hit hard by Konoha, they couldn't help but feel restless at such a rare opportunity.
Therefore, both had been constantly probing the borders of the Land of Fire. Almost every few months, a border conflict would erupt due to provocations from the Cloud and Stone, with the number of casualties increasing each time.
There was nothing to be done. Konoha's consistent display of weakness had greatly fueled the arrogance of the Cloud and Stone villages.
Fortunately, it hadn't been long since the end of the Third Great Ninja War. The anti-war sentiment among the people of the Land of Lightning and the Land of Earth was still strong. The Hidden Cloud and Hidden Stone villages did not dare to defy world opinion and unilaterally declare war on Konoha without reason.
However, they were only one legitimate reason away from escalating the conflict into a full-blown war.
A "legitimate" reason that could stir up the war sentiment of the daimyō, the nobles, and the populace.
It was precisely because Hiruzen didn't want to give them this reason that he had chosen to endure their provocations time and time again.
He truly didn't dare to gamble.
And Konoha couldn't afford to gamble anymore.
"Huuu."
At this thought, Hiruzen exhaled a cloud of smoke and looked down at the report submitted by the ANBU.
His gradually aging face was shrouded in smoke. Even under the sunlight from the window, his expression was momentarily unclear.
"The Hidden Stone Village, the Hidden Cloud Village..." After a moment, Hiruzen sighed. "Let's endure for now. Summon a group of ninja to the border to guard against the Cloud."
Danzo frowned and subconsciously retorted, "Doing that will only make those damned bastards more arrogant!"
Hiruzen glanced at him and said calmly, "In that case, you can dispatch a group from my Root to aid the border."
"What?" Danzo was stunned.
Hiruzen narrowed his eyes and said meaningfully, "Is there a problem?"
If there is any more of a problem, I will remove you from your position as the head of Root.
Realizing this, Danzo's expression became uncertain. He snorted coldly and turned away, saying with resentment, "Hmph, what problem could I have? It's your 'Root,' after all!"
With that, he turned to leave, then suddenly stopped, his voice filled with unwillingness. "Hiruzen, remember your choice today. You will definitely regret it!"
"Watch your attitude, Danzo," Hiruzen tapped his pipe and said in a low voice. "Remember, I am the Hokage!"
Hearing this, Danzo's face twitched.
"Then be a good Hokage!" he gritted out, grabbing the doorknob.
BANG!!