Because Hiruzen 'understood' Makoto quite well, knowing this little fellow had a very peculiar train of thought, acting on whims, he wasn't too worried about it being an Uchiha Clan's conspiracy.
This was the power of reputation!
Thinking this, Hiruzen brought his pipe to his lips, took a deep drag, the smoke rings slowly dispersing before his eyes, mixing with the snowy air seeping through the window, carrying a damp chill: "I understand."
He tapped his pipe against the corner of the desk. Sparks sizzled into the wood grain, leaving a small charred spot that spread in the deep brown wood, like an un-wiped bloodstain.
"Go tell Clan Head Fugaku to set his mind at ease. It's just children building a snowman, no need to be on high alert."
After a pause, Hiruzen looked out the window towards the Land of Lightning, the direction of Kumogakure. His knuckles lightly tapped the desk corner, making tapping sounds.
"The envoys from Kumogakure will arrive soon. The village cannot afford the slightest mishap, to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings."
"The Military Police Force needs to keep a close watch during this period. The tasks are heavy, don't let anyone with ulterior motives find an opening."
Hearing this, Shisui's shadow clone respectfully took his leave and exited the Hokage Tower.
The moment he stepped over the threshold, with a poof, he turned into white smoke. Snowflakes swirled in place for a moment before being swept away by the draft wind, soon scattering into the snow-filled sky.
Not far from Makoto, Shisui's main body received the memories from his shadow clone.
He softly clicked his tongue, formed hand seals with his fingertips, and summoned another shadow clone, sending it speeding towards the Uchiha Clan's compound.
After doing this, Shisui couldn't help but mutter under his breath, his exhaled white breath mingling with snowflakes: "I knew Itachi was just overly worried. How could two kids building a snowman overturn Konoha? He's really making a mountain out of a molehill."
"Whenever it involves his two brothers, his brain seems to freeze up like snow, all his cleverness gone."
In the Hokage's Office, Hiruzen watched the dissipating white mist outside the window, his brows furrowing again. The wrinkles at the corners of his eyes looked like paper soaked in snowmelt, deeper and denser.
He murmured: "Uchiha... the Uchiha Clan..."
Then, Hiruzen cleared his throat. A light cough, like a piece of ice dropped into boiling water, instantly broke the room's stillness.
Two Anbu's members appeared almost simultaneously, like ink blending into shadows, whooshing down to one knee before the office.
Their movements were as uniform as if measured with a ruler, even the dull thuds of their knees hitting the floor overlapped. Their breathing was as light as falling snow, perfectly synchronized.
"Send two teams to the area near the small grove to protect the Kyubi's Jinchuriki."
As the words fell, Hiruzen tapped his finger on the desk, his knuckles white, the embers in his pipe flickering: "Remember, don't let the Uchiha child say anything he shouldn't. Keep a close watch."
He paused, leaned forward, his voice lowering further, almost brushing the desk surface.
"The remaining Anbu, go 'patrol' outside the Uchiha Clan's compound. Don't miss even the sound of a leaf falling. Report any situation to me immediately."
"Yes, Hokage-sama!"
The moment the Anbu acknowledged the order, their figures had already faded like smoke, leaving only two faint footprints on the floor, so fast it seemed like an illusion.
Just as Hiruzen caught his breath, the door to the Hokage's Office was knocked on with a bang.
"Enter…"
A white-haired Anbu pushed the door open and entered, still carrying unmelted snowflakes. He knelt on one knee and said:
"Sandaime-sama, Danzo-sama has left the base with two teams of Root's members, heading west with great force. Judging by the direction, it's likely towards the small grove."
Hearing this, Hiruzen's face instantly darkened. His fingers tapped the desk faster, the wooden desk emitting a dull thumping sound.
Having been old partners for decades, he knew Danzo too well.
'This guy had had Root stationed outside the Uchiha Clan's compound for over half a year, just to get back at Makoto for that verbal lashing in front of the Hokage Tower. His magnanimity was smaller than a pinprick, yet he kept claiming everything he did was for Konoha.'
Thinking this, he stood up, walked to the window, and looked towards the outline of the Hokage Rock not far away. Snow fell on Nidaime's stone face, blurring his resolute brow.
"Tell Danzo, no matter how great his personal grudge, it must wait until after the ceasefire agreement with Kumogakure is signed!"
Hiruzen's voice carried unconcealable fatigue, the wrinkles seeming to accumulate snow: "Anyone who dares disrupt the signing of the ceasefire agreement at this time is a traitor to Konoha!"
"Konoha's blood... can no longer be shed."
The last few words were as light as a sigh, mingling with the wind outside the window, dispersing in the room full of tobacco smoke.
The snow continued to fall, large flakes pouncing on the Hokage Rock, covering the faces of the successive Hokage increasingly blurrily.
The white-haired Anbu's response was almost simultaneous with his movement. A low "Yes, Hokage-sama" squeezed from his throat as his entire body seemed to be yanked backward by an invisible string.
Once outside the Hokage Tower, he merely lightly pushed off with his toes on the frozen, hardened snow. The crisp sound of his soles crushing ice shards had just begun when he had already transformed into a blurry white shadow.
Swifter than a jackdaw skimming treetops, the snow powder stirred behind him trailed a half-arc of silver that vanished in an instant, disappearing into the wind in the blink of an eye.
The white-haired Anbu intercepted Danzo before he reached the small grove, in an open, snowy area. Kneeling with a dull thud into the snow, he relayed Hiruzen's words verbatim.
Danzo stopped walking, standing still. The turbidity in his single eye was like a muddy swamp accumulated with snow, fixed on the white-haired Anbu before him.
The wind, carrying snow pellets, beat against his black robe, making faint crackling sounds mixed with his slightly heavier breathing, echoing in the empty snowfield.
The surrounding Root's members were like stakes driven into the snow, even their breathing lightened. Their eyes beneath the masks stared unblinkingly ahead; no one dared look up at Danzo's face.
This lord's silence was never calm, but the buildup before a storm.
Suddenly, the corner of Danzo's mouth lifted very slightly, fleeting like a dead leaf stirred by the wind, gone in an instant.
He and Hiruzen had been old partners for decades, they still had this much tacit understanding.
'So Hiruzen's meaning was that after the ceasefire agreement with Kumogakure was signed... I could then deal with that Uchiha brat without restraint.'
Thinking this, a fierce glint flashed in Danzo's turbid single eye, filled with intense malice, 'In all of Konoha, besides Hiruzen, who dared not give me, Shimura Danzo, respect?'
A mere, inherently evil Uchiha brat, after cursing him out, had actually been allowed to live for over half a year. This was simply a silent insult to him, the Darkness of the Shinobi World.
Then, thinking again of the Kumogakure ceasefire agreement, his brows knitted into a tight knot again.
A nearly inaudible snort escaped his throat, carrying an icy chill.
'Hiruzen really was growing more spineless with age. The former Shinobi Professor now only knew how to compromise.'
'If I, Shimura Danzo, sat in the Hokage's seat, I would never easily sign a ceasefire agreement with Kumogakure. I wouldn't have to bow and scrape like Hiruzen, watching others' moods.'
Unfortunately, he wasn't Hokage yet. Thinking this, a stifling anger clogged his chest. Danzo squeezed out two words from between his teeth, the sound like frozen wood cracking and rubbing: "Go back."
Although the Root's members were puzzled, not one dared to ask. They turned in unison and followed Danzo back towards the Root's headquarters.
As they turned, their steps were cautious, remarkably, no one made any extra noise.
Only Danzo's figure walked at the very front, his black robe hanging straight in the wind and snow, like a black spear thrust into the snow, radiating an indescribable gloom.
The white-haired Anbu, seeing Danzo leave, glanced towards the distant small grove and murmured: "Uzumaki Naruto, huh..."
Then, he vanished.
…
In the small grove, Sasuke and Naruto had finished building the snowman. The latter kept talking to the former.
Sasuke was extremely aloof, barely responding. But whenever Naruto mentioned Makoto, although Sasuke remained aloof, he was always willing to reply a few words...
Itachi stood outside the grove. The snow on his eyelashes grew thicker, even his shoulders were covered in a thick layer, yet he seemed unaware.
His brow was slightly furrowed, his heart full of anxiety.
Just then, extremely light footsteps sounded behind Itachi.
Shisui's shadow clone, after reporting to Fugaku at the clan's compound, had come here. He patted Itachi's shoulder, his voice very low, carrying a reassuring tone:
"Relax, I already reported to Sandaime-sama. He said it's just children playing, no need to be nervous."
"With Sandaime-sama's tacit approval, Danzo-sama won't say anything either."
Itachi's tense shoulders relaxed slightly, the anxiety in his eyes lessening a bit. But instantly thinking of Makoto, his heart tightened again.
'No, I couldn't wait any longer.'
He took a deep breath and called towards the grove: "Sasuke!"
His voice passed through the sparse branches, like a small stone thrown into a noisy lake.
Hearing Itachi's voice, Sasuke seemed to hit a pause button, instantly stopping his conversation with Naruto.
"My nii-san is calling me."
He tossed out this sentence, turned, and ran out of the grove, not even looking back when Naruto called after him.
Seeing this, Naruto's expression instantly dimmed. He squatted back down alone by the snowman.
Just then, Sasuke's voice floated back from ahead, "Next time... if Makoto tells me to come play with you again, I'll come."
Naruto's eyes instantly lit up like little lanterns being ignited. He jumped up and called out his address to Sasuke's retreating back.
Sasuke didn't turn around, just waved his hand to indicate he understood, his short legs making a series of rapid tapping sounds on the snow.
Once outside the grove, Sasuke, who had been extremely aloof towards Naruto just moments before, saw Itachi in the snow and immediately pounced over like a kitten finding its nest...