What?
What do you mean Sarutobi Hiruzen has been spending "a lot of time" with Danzo?!
Sogetsu walked in silence for a few steps, Rinkaku's explanation still echoing in his head, and then simply… stopped.
Danzo gender-swapping, he could understand.
He'd done that.
But Sarutobi Hiruzen…
What exactly are you doing, old man?
Planning to follow Emperor Roselle's example and "love freely across all boundaries"?
"Cough… just don't spread this around," Rinkaku muttered, looking around guiltily before leaning closer.
"You haven't seen Danzo after she changed. She's… a demon. That figure, that skin, those eyes…"
He clicked his tongue twice.
"If I didn't know it was Danzo, I might not be able to help myself either."
Sogetsu took half a step sideways.
That was… too much honesty.
It seemed he'd underestimated the raw, brute-force impact of the Witch pathway in this world.
Charm like that was more dangerous than most genjutsu.
If even Roselle couldn't resist it, Sogetsu thought, lips twitching, what chance does a village chief with a mid-life crisis have?
"Anyway," Rinkaku said briskly, snapping back to his professional tone, "let's go see Hokage-sama. The sooner you report, the sooner you can rest."
Suddenly I don't want to go anymore, Sogetsu thought.
But he nodded on the surface.
"Right."
—
Sarutobi clan compound.
Led by Rinkaku, Sogetsu passed through the front courtyard without so much as a token inspection.
Neat stepping stones lined the path. Walled in by low fences and whispering bamboo, the little garden had the kind of quiet, old-fashioned charm you'd see on a postcard.
Even in winter, the bamboo was still a deep, rich green.
At the bend in the corridor, a pair of sliding doors stood half-open.
Inside, the Third Hokage sat on a cushion in a loose bathrobe, a tray of delicately arranged dishes and a small sake bottle on the low table before him.
He sipped warm liquor while watching the snow fall in the garden.
"Reporting in, Hokage-sama," Rinkaku said, kneeling at the door. "Uchiha Sogetsu has returned."
"Hokage-sama, I've come to report my mission," Sogetsu added.
"Ah. Sogetsu. Good, good. It's good you're back."
Sarutobi set down his cup with a smile and waved lazily.
"Don't be so stiff. Come, sit. Let's talk."
Rinkaku bowed and withdrew, quietly drawing the door mostly shut to leave the two of them alone.
Sogetsu crossed the tatami and sat opposite the Hokage.
As he settled, his brows knitted very slightly.
There was a smell in the air.
Not ordinary alcohol. Not incense. Something… rancid.
Not in the physical sense—in the way spirituality rotted.
A sweet, rotting, seductive stench that clung to the mind.
His guard went up at once.
A ripple of power slid behind his pupils.
Spirit Vision.
What he saw made his eyes sharpen.
Witch residue.
Lingering spiritual traces clung to the room like smoke—and more importantly, to the Hokage himself.
Sarutobi's heart-light was drowned in a vivid, rosy joy, burning hot and uncontrolled. Behind it, his astral body had been stained a foggy gray, filaments of corruption crawling through it like invisible bacteria.
Quiet.
Slow.
Inescapable.
Sogetsu almost laughed aloud.
He swallowed it down by force.
This progress bar… is moving way too fast.
If he hadn't seen it for himself, he wouldn't have believed it.
The biggest winner of the Danzo gender-bending incident… was Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Danzo, Sogetsu thought, a beat of stunned silence in his mind, you really are something.
"Hmm? What is it, Sogetsu?"
The Hokage's voice pulled him back.
Hiruzen's dark-ringed eyes blinked at him, a little tired, a little guilty.
He coughed twice.
"Do I have something on my face? Why are you looking at me like that?"
No flowers on your face, old man.
If anything, the flowers are probably blooming in your heart.
Sogetsu forced his features to relax and exhaled lightly.
"It's nothing, Hokage-sama. I was just a bit surprised to see you looking… worn out. Please take care of your health. No matter how busy you are, you have to rest."
"Work… right. Yes. Work."
Hiruzen's cough grew more awkward.
"I'll keep that in mind. Don't worry."
Sogetsu let him off the hook—for now.
"Hokage-sama, regarding Kirigakure," he said, expression turning serious. "I believe they've already joined hands with Iwagakure. They're preparing to launch a war against us."
Hiruzen's eyes sharpened.
Whatever else he'd been "busy" with, some instincts hadn't dulled.
"I'm already making arrangements," he said, setting the sake aside.
"A portion of our forces has been deployed quietly to the front. If they make the first move, we'll have justification to respond with full force."
"Hokage-sama, once we're in open war, we need to be cautious of Sunagakure and Kumogakure as well," Sogetsu said. "They won't sit idle."
"Don't worry. Suna won't make a move just yet."
Hiruzen sounded confident.
"As long as we project enough strength early on, both Suna and Kumo will think twice before jumping in."
"If you're confident, Hokage-sama, then I'm relieved."
Sogetsu's gaze drifted, almost lazily, toward the room next door.
He could practically feel that witch's presence leaking through the wall.
He smiled faintly.
"I've only just returned, and I've reported the essentials," he said smoothly. "If there's nothing else, please allow me to withdraw and rest."
"Ah. Yes, yes. Go on."
Hiruzen patted his shoulder, fatherly warmth back in place.
"You overdid it this time, but there's no denying the merit. I intend to appoint you as commander of the ANBU. Do your best."
"Thank you, Hokage-sama," Sogetsu said, bowing his head.
He stayed just long enough to chat a little more, then took his leave.
—
As the sliding door clicked shut behind Sogetsu, another door opened.
From the adjoining room, Danzo stepped out.
Steam still curled faintly from her skin. Draped in a thin blanket, long hair unbound and falling over her shoulders, she padded barefoot into the living room.
Her cheeks were flushed.
Her lips were pink, breath warm with the scent of sake.
She sat down opposite Hiruzen, one long, pale leg folding elegantly under her. The blanket slipped just enough to suggest more than it showed.
Powerful, intoxicating allure rolled off her in waves—the pure, thick breath of a Witch.
"So?"
Danzo's eyes were sharp despite the haze. She lifted the sake cup, knocked it back in one go, and narrowed her gaze at him.
"Done with your little chat?"
"Yes." Hiruzen swallowed.
His Adam's apple bobbed visibly.
"It's done."
Danzo brushed her hair back with one hand, smooth white neck arching, then settled, arms crossing under her chest.
"Don't forget what you promised me," she said, voice cold.
The hardness in her tone didn't cancel the seduction in her eyes. If anything, it sharpened it.
"Of course."
Hiruzen thumped his chest once, trying to look confident.
"After everything we've been through together, when have I ever lied to you?"
When haven't you, you old fox, Danzo thought, a vein twitching in her forehead.
But she bit back the retort, huffed, and turned her face away.
—
Walking back through the streets of Konoha, Sogetsu covered his face with one hand.
He'd always known the Witch pathway was dangerous.
He'd still underestimated it.
The base trait alone was enough to chew through the self-control of a veteran Kage, just like that.
If even Roselle had stumbled there, expecting Sarutobi Hiruzen to resist was… wishful thinking.
"So the Witch's flavor is that good, huh?" he muttered.
The corner of his mouth twitched.
Whatever the case, one thing was now clear:
He needed to speed up his plans.
If he kept letting things develop on their own, there was no telling whether Sarutobi Hiruzen would survive the Witch's corrosion—physically or mentally.
And if the Hokage collapsed now…
Well.
That would be very inconvenient.
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