"The campaign led by Orochimaru of the Sannin has resulted in the injury of the Third Raikage, severe wounds to the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, the death of the Two-Tails Jinchuriki, the escape of the Two-Tails itself, the collapse of Kumogakure's defenses, and the leakage of a vast amount of strategic data."
"Furthermore—"
"On that same day, the Daimyo of the Land of Lightning was assassinated once again!"
"One week from now, the Third Raikage, A, will take his son to Unming City to apologize to the enraged Daimyo!"
"I believe this is an opportunity!"
Konoha Village, Land of Fire. The conference room of the Hokage building.
Only three people sat in the room.
The person in the primary seat was middle-aged with a long, donkey-like face. He wore a headpiece adorned with three flame patterns shaped like a fan and held a short folding fan in his hand. As June approached and the weather grew sweltering, he flicked the fan back and forth to keep cool.
Sitting beside him were the two most powerful men in Konoha: Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Hokage, and Danzo Shimura, the Hokage's assistant and leader of Root.
The identity of the man in the center seat was self-evident—he was the sovereign of the Land of Fire, the Daimyo.
"So, Danzo, what are you planning now?" the Daimyo asked casually, casting a sidelong glance at Danzo while maintaining a refined, aristocratic tone.
"Currently, the Land of Lightning has suffered heavy losses. One more strike will ensure they lose their voice entirely in the Third Shinobi World War," Danzo replied, his eyes narrowing as a cold light flickered within them. "That strike lies in the military funding the Lightning Daimyo promised to Kumogakure. Therefore, I ask Your Lordship to issue a mission."
"I suggest we invite the Lightning Daimyo to come and 'sit' with us in the Land of Fire for a while~"
"Impossible!" The Fire Daimyo's gaze instantly turned cold.
Although Danzo hadn't explicitly stated what he wanted to do to the Lightning Daimyo, targeting a sovereign—even an enemy one—was an act of extreme disrespect to the very institution of the Daimyo.
Furthermore, the Fire Daimyo understood the subtext perfectly. The reason the Daimyos and nobles held status over shinobi far stronger than themselves lay in their absolute control over politics and economy. Danzo's suggestion seemed to be for the sake of the war, but it was actually a move to break the barrier between classes and weaken their collective authority.
"Hiruzen, you seem to lack discipline over your subordinates~"
The Fire Daimyo didn't even give Danzo another look, turning instead to Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was puffing on his pipe.
"Danzo, do not mention this matter again," Hiruzen said, exhaling a cloud of smoke. He intended to offer a more diplomatic persuasion. "However, Your Lordship..."
Before he could finish, the Fire Daimyo interrupted with a look of feigned amazement.
"Hoh, but speaking of which, that battle was truly magnificent. To face three top-tier experts of Kumogakure alone and create the opening for his teacher to raid the village... this child named Ren Uchiha is quite extraordinary, isn't he?"
"Is he your hand-picked candidate for the Fourth Hokage, Hiruzen?"
Hiruzen shook his head. "The strategy for this battle was formulated by Orochimaru. As the commander-in-chief, he is the greatest contributor, and I intend for him to—"
Hearing this, the Fire Daimyo sighed and tapped his closed fan against the table twice.
"However, while Kumogakure suffered heavy losses, Konoha didn't fare much better. I heard, Third, that your disciple Orochimaru and your grand-disciple Ren Uchiha have both gone missing?"
"What a pity~ Such a pair of genius master and apprentice, fallen here... We shall discuss this matter another time~"
With that, the Fire Daimyo rose and left the conference room without another word.
Left behind, Danzo Shimura stared at Hiruzen with a darkened face.
"Hiruzen, I told you long ago," Danzo growled. "This approach is too soft, and that man would never agree! I say we should send men disguised as foreign shinobi to coerce the Lightning Daimyo into stopping war funding. We should sweep Kumogakure off the board entirely!"
Hiruzen shook his head. "You still don't understand."
"At this specific moment, too many people want to kill the Lightning Daimyo. Furthermore, the Daimyo's mention of 'losses' was a hint that Kumogakure's core strength hasn't been truly crippled yet. If someone frames Konoha and ignites the Lightning Daimyo's fury, Kumo still has the strength for one last stand."
"The Daimyo will not gamble the Land of Fire on such a risk. As long as the 'Kings' do not meet, there is still room for maneuver."
Danzo frowned. "What exactly are you trying to do?"
Hiruzen let out a short laugh through his pipe. He wouldn't tell Danzo that he was only applying pressure to the Daimyo to gauge his thoughts.
As for the situation in the Land of Lightning...
"I said it already—at this juncture, many people want to throw dirt on Konoha. Where Kumogakure's remaining firepower is aimed remains an unknown. Therefore, the Lightning Daimyo cannot die! At least, not before he accepts the Third Raikage's letter of apology..."
"In fact, we must protect him!"
As he spoke, Hiruzen narrowed his eyes, recalling the top-secret intelligence Orochimaru had sent back and the insane plan Kumogakure had originally devised.
"Utterly nonsensical!"
Danzo's face darkened. He stared at Hiruzen, knowing him all too well—after decades together, he could tell just by the look on Hiruzen's face that the man was hiding something.
BANG!
With a cold snort, Danzo turned and slammed the door as he left, leaving behind a final warning: "Hiruzen, you will regret this!"
After leaving the Hokage's office.
Danzo marched toward the south side of the Hokage building. He didn't know what Hiruzen was up to, but he knew that Ren Uchiha and Orochimaru were under his jurisdiction, and the credit for this massive victory should belong to him.
In his eyes, Hiruzen's move to make him offend the Daimyo today was clearly a ploy to push him off the board and clear the path for Hiruzen's own disciples.
The achievement was simply too vast! The merits earned by the master-and-apprentice pair of Orochimaru and Ren Uchiha were large enough to change the entire landscape of the Third Shinobi World War.
With all of Kumo's strategic defenses, outposts, and invasion plans leaked, Konoha could now use a minimal force to pin Kumo down in the Land of Rice Fields. Coupled with the extinction of the Chinoike clan, Kumo's plan for a surprise raid across Hell Valley had completely evaporated.
If he could take it one step further and force the Lightning Daimyo to cut funding, the northern threat would be permanently neutralized. That would mean Danzo's Root—a mere subsidiary of the Anbu—had achieved the feat of defeating a Great Nation.
Such a merit could finally give him a real shot at the seat of Hokage.
At that thought, Danzo's gaze turned freezing.
"The Daimyo... what does he matter! Anyone who dares block my path, even if you are the Son of Heaven, you must die!"
It was unclear if he was thinking of the Lightning Daimyo or the Fire Daimyo at that moment.
Lost in thought, the fast-walking Danzo soon stood before a gate marked with two red-and-white Uchiha crests. He knocked three times. This was the residence of the Police Force Head of the Uchiha, the most prestigious clan in Konoha.
Inside the house, the two men Danzo wanted to see—Minato Namikaze and Fugaku Uchiha—happened to be present.
Note: Support me and get early access to chapters on Pat reon.com/XareonMTL
very cheap btw