"Danzo—"
The Third Hokage was a bit angry and stood up; his originally good mood had been ruined by Danzo's appearance.
Could such divisive words even be spoken?
Danzo was even more agitated than the Third Hokage, pointing at him and saying, "Sarutobi, do you know what you're doing? The Sensei has already been unearthed."
"He would never want to see you accepting the Uchiha!"
Obito stood up to ease the tension.
"Forget it, it's not easy for anyone. For the sake of Obito's reputation, why don't we all take a step back?"
Danzo glanced sideways at Obito. "Who do you think you are? Get lost!"
Obito was startled by Danzo's glare and quickly slunk back into the crowd like an ostrich.
Danzo was no longer afraid of disrupting the balance between the Uchiha and the Village, as they already had other Shinobi Villages forming the Shinobi Allied Forces.
If the Uchiha dared to step out and say it would be better to join Madara now, they could just deal with them all at once.
Koharu and Homura joined forces with the Senju Clan elders to pressure the Third Hokage.
"Hiruzen, do you know what you're doing?"
"Allowing Shisui to become Jiraiya's disciple was already our greatest concession. We absolutely cannot let anyone from the Uchiha Clan sign Mount Myōboku's summoning scroll."
Koharu and Homura feared that the Uchiha Clan would privatize the Mount Myōboku scroll; the Uchiha's genjutsu combined with the physical bodies of the Mount Myōboku toads...
That would be terrifying.
The Uchiha Clan should just stay cooped up in their nest and play with their Hachimi and crows.
Shisui became apprehensive upon hearing such a violent reaction from the Village's top brass.
"Jiraiya-sensei, forget it. I already have a suitable Summoned Beast."
Jiraiya pulled Shisui behind him and stood up, looking solemnly at the three high-ranking officials and the Senju Clan elders.
He asked seriously, "Back then, was it you people who called off the romance between Ryou and Tsunade? And sent Ryou to the front lines?"
"..."
Everyone fell silent for a moment, which was a tacit admission.
The Senju Clan could not bear to see their princess marry a useless Uchiha.
Tobirama's disciples were even less willing to see the Uchiha Clan break their constraints; they had to be firmly chained and kept as Konoha's dogs.
Danzo said, "In any case, the Uchiha Clan must never touch the power of Mount Myōboku, and you are not allowed to take an Uchiha as your successor."
Danzo's previous claim about taking Itachi as a disciple was just a lie; the Senju faction would never tolerate the existence of the Uchiha.
The Uchiha Clan watched from the side, a thousand people with a thousand faces—some in disbelief, some sneering, and others filled with rage.
They finally saw the true colors of the higher-ups.
Jiraiya snorted. "You people were the ones who forced Ryou to turn dark back then. Do you want to force even more Uchiha to defect from the Village now?"
"I just don't understand. Why don't you see why Uchiha Madara and Ryou became problems for the Shinobi World?"
"It's all because of your prejudice! If there's no love, then why did you join forces with the Uchiha to establish Konoha in the first place?"
A Senju Clan elder replied to Jiraiya, "That was Lord Hashirama's policy. At that time, the Uchiha and Senju were the strongest in the Shinobi World."
"As long as the Senju and Uchiha were united, the chaos of the Warring States Period could be quelled."
"But Madara attacking Konoha with the Nine-Tails made Lord Tobirama realize that the Uchiha's power is the root of trouble."
"As long as an Uchiha awakens the Mangekyo, they become a problem!"
Jiraiya thought of Shisui's Kotoamatsukami. It was indeed a problem for all shinobi, but Shisui had never used it on a comrade.
"No, this is just the prejudice of you relics of the Warring States Period. I won't let another Ryou appear!"
"Shisui, come here!"
Jiraiya grabbed Shisui's hand and, before Shisui could react, pricked his finger, drawing blood.
He held Shisui's hand, intending to have him sign the name.
Danzo formed a seal. "Jiraiya, stop right there, or I'll have the Lord Second possess me!"
"..."
Jiraiya suddenly stopped. Tobirama wasn't Danzo's guardian spirit; how could he possess Danzo?
Danzo was bluffing, but Tobirama was no bluff.
He had already been brought back through Edo Tensei by Orochimaru, and was likely stationed at some base in Konoha.
Orochimaru and Danzo were collaborating; surely he knew how to summon Tobirama?
If Tobirama appeared, this matter would not end well.
"Elder Danzo, this is getting ridiculous. How can the dead interfere in the affairs of the living?"
"I don't care. Regardless, you must not let Uchiha Shisui sign Mount Myōboku's summoning scroll."
Jiraiya snorted. "In that case, I'll let the Toad Sage of Mount Myōboku decide."
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Jiraiya directly summoned Fukasaku from Mount Myōboku.
The summoned Fukasaku was wearing nothing, bare-chested, with a plump insect clamped in his chopsticks.
"..."
Fukasaku looked around, staring blankly at everyone.
"Little Jiraiya, why do you have no sense of boundaries? You're even taking up my dinner time."
...
Jiraiya explained the situation to Fukasaku with an embarrassed look and had the BBQ shop owner grill some centipedes to present to Fukasaku as an apology.
Only then did Fukasaku's anger subside. He looked at Danzo with some confusion. "Danzo, I thought you were dead?"
Danzo: "..."
Danzo had previously insulted the Great Toad Sage, and Fukasaku and Shima had led a toad army from Mount Myōboku to settle the score with him.
He had publicly claimed he was killed by Madara.
He had originally planned to have the Aburame family send thousands of pounds of insects as an apology, but it was delayed because of the Orochimaru incident.
So, in Fukasaku's eyes, he was already dead.
Fukasaku snorted coldly and reached out. "Since you're not dead, then die now!"
Oh no!
A Sage has made a move! If someone was killed by a Sage, no one would avenge them; they'd just say he deserved it.
The Third Hokage quickly stood up to ease the tension. "Lord Fukasaku, please stay your hand. I will personally see to it that this ignorant junior, Danzo, makes amends to you later."
"But for now, let's deal with Shisui's matter first!"
Fukasaku nodded. "We'll settle our score later!"
Danzo breathed a sigh of relief; he had almost activated Izanagi to escape.
Fukasaku glanced at Shisui's hollow eyes and nodded. "Little Shisui is a special Uchiha—kind-hearted and sentimental."
Fukasaku looked down on Koharu, Homura, and the others. "The boy even sacrificed his eyes for your Konoha, yet you still reject him for his Uchiha identity."
"That's exactly how you drove Little Ryou to become so unhinged back then."
Koharu, Homura, and the Senju Clan elders didn't dare to talk back, obediently accepting Fukasaku's criticism.
Given Fukasaku's seniority, even if Hashirama and Tobirama were here, they would only be considered juniors. He was qualified to judge anyone in Konoha.