News that Hinata had met the Third Hokage and been granted extraordinary authority and freedom quickly reached the innermost circle of Konoha's power.
Hokage Building, a heavily guarded classified conference room.
The atmosphere was heavy and tense, a stark contrast to the relaxed air of the Hokage's office.
The other two core members of the Konoha Council—Homura Mitokado and Utatane Koharu—were already seated.
Most striking of all was the figure in the shadowy corner, radiating sinister menace, his right eye and right arm thickly bandaged—Danzo Shimura.
Hiruzen swept his gaze across the room, weariness in his eyes but steel in his voice.
"That is the arrangement for Hyuga Hinata."
The Third's words echoed through the room via a special device.
"She has preserved the Village, her strength is unfathomable, and she has clearly stated she desires no power. Maintaining the status quo while granting her respect and freedom is the most suitable course."
Homura spoke in a low, steady voice.
"Hiruzen, I understand your decision. That girl's power is beyond imagination; forcing constraints or probing deeper could bring disaster. Her willingness to stay out of disputes is rare. Granting her appropriate treatment to keep her stable benefits the Village."
Utatane Koharu nodded slowly.
"Indeed, thanks to her we suffered minimal losses. Konoha still needs time to recover, and she is already hailed as a hero by the villagers. Hyuga Hinata's very existence deters neighboring powers; as long as she poses no threat, she is Konoha's fortune."
The two Advisors essentially endorsed the Third's approach. They might be conservative, but they were not foolish; faced with absolute power that could shift the balance, conciliation was far wiser than confrontation.
Yet from the shadows Danzo let out a cold, mocking laugh.
"Hmph! Still as naive and indecisive as ever."
Danzo's single visible eye fixed on Hiruzen like a hawk's.
"Allowing an uncontrollable monster of unknown origin to roam free? You're courting the tiger for its skin!"
His voice was hoarse and oppressive.
"Right now her power can already alter the situation. In a few years Konoha could reach unprecedented heights! Such strength must rest in the Village's hands, guided by someone capable—not left to a twelve-year-old girl!"
Greed and possessiveness flashed openly in Danzo's eye. He coveted the Sharingan, coveted Wood Release; now that an even more mysterious and formidable power had appeared, how could he bear to let it slip?
"Control?"
The Third's tone carried a hint of fury.
"Danzo, how do you propose to control her? Even Orochimaru fled battered before her! The reincarnated forms of Hashirama and Tobirama were broken effortlessly by her! Will you send the Foundation to test her thunder? Why don't you try yourself?"
"That's a matter of method!" Danzo slammed the table, leaning forward.
"As long as she remains a Konoha Ninja she must obey the Village's will! We can use other means—resource incentives, even people or matters she cares about—to guide and study her step by step until we fully control that power! Or find a way to research its source and even strip it away! That is true responsibility to the Village—not enshrining an uncontrolled bomb!"
"She saved Konoha!" the Third shot back.
"And this is how you treat a hero?"
"Hero? Ridiculous!" Danzo sneered.
"Power is fundamental! For Konoha's absolute might and stability, individual honor or sentiment can be sacrificed!"
"Enough, Danzo!"
Homura cut off the quarrel, frowning at Danzo.
"Danzo, Hyuga Hinata has shown no sign of harming the Village; on the contrary she rendered great service. Hiruzen's approach is the safest choice based on reality. Your radical plan carries too much risk."
Koharu nodded as well.
"Indeed, if she goes out of control, have you considered the consequences? The matter will proceed according to the Third's decision."
"At this stage, stability takes absolute precedence. Any provocation is forbidden."
The two seniors sided with the Third. They might not fully share his ideals, but they knew the catastrophic price of angering Hinata now.
If it came to that, not only would popular opinion turn, Hinata could well become a Rogue Ninja—unstoppable—and once she grew further, Konoha would face her wrath.
Danzo looked at the three unanimous colleagues, cold light almost spilling from his single eye. No expression could be seen beneath the bandages; only the white-knuckled grip on his cane betrayed his seething fury.
"Hmph. I hope you won't regret today's decision."
He delivered the sinister remark and fell silent, but the chill of resentment and calculation filled the room.
The council adjourned on a sour note… Almost the moment it ended, Hinata—who was in her courtyard attempting to draw meager stellar power to temper her bones and meridians—felt her Divine Sense stir.
She clearly perceived that several surveillance points around the Hyuga Clan Compound, previously withdrawn or well hidden, had reappeared.
"Root… Danzo, it seems you're tired of living, old fool."
You watched when I was weak and I let it slide; now that I'm strong you still dare?
A cold gleam flashed in Hinata's pale eyes, but she was in no hurry to act.
A mere shift of mind, and spiritual power circulated quietly; an imperceptible ripple spread outward with her at its center.
In the next instant the newly positioned Root agents were horrified to find every sensory jutsu, telescopic technique, even basic line of sight locked onto Hinata's courtyard suddenly veiled—blurred, twisted, the target lost completely.
The courtyard was still there, yet they could see nothing inside; it had become a blind spot for both vision and perception.
"What's going on?!"
"Our sensing is being disrupted!"
"Genjutsu? No… doesn't feel like it…"
The Root operatives exchanged bewildered glances.
Sensing the flustered, uncertain auras outside, Hinata ignored them.
Before her absolute power Danzo was nothing but muck in a gutter, unworthy of a second glance.
If he dared extend a claw, she would not mind uprooting this shadowy filth of Konoha ahead of schedule—
His ambition ground to dust along with him.
She closed her eyes again, her mind sinking into the vast star chart; the clamor outside was merely ants to her.
True powerhouses pay no heed to insects beneath their feet—her gaze was ever fixed upon the boundless river of stars.
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