Locking eyes with Homura, Hiruzen and Danzo both understood—this wasn't the time for the two of them to keep arguing.
"For our two advisors to come in person, the matter must be serious," Hiruzen said with a genial smile after a brief pause.
"It is serious," Homura shot back. "Kirigakure wants an explanation. If not for their demand, we still wouldn't know what happened!"
"A clan head died at Konoha's hands. Why weren't we informed of something this big?"
His gaze cut to Hiruzen and Danzo, displeasure plain.
"Just a minor Mist shinobi. You two are making a fuss over nothing," Danzo snorted.
At that, Homura turned fully, eyes narrowing. "Don't tell me you 'don't know' about the bounty the Mist posted half a month ago."
"Even that bounty proves how important Kinoshita Jiro is to the Mist. Danzo, do you think I don't know Root operatives slipped out of the village recently?"
Koharu, silent until now, spoke stiffly: "On the way here we questioned Iruka. We have the general picture."
"Our relations with the Mist may not be warm, but they've been peaceful. If this incident sours them, who takes responsibility?"
Under their combined stare, Danzo's face darkened.
Even if he didn't want to admit it, he had to concede he was the likeliest culprit. It wouldn't be the first time he'd done such a thing. But none of his Root operatives had returned; he knew little—too little to even make a proper judgment.
"Until Kakashi wakes, we shouldn't jump to conclusions," Hiruzen said, eyes glinting as he drew deeply on his pipe. He turned to Homura and Koharu with a mild smile.
All of them had spent most of a lifetime together. Everyone knew everyone else's tells.
Danzo pressed down on his cane and said coolly to the two advisors, "The Mist problem may be thorny, but the two of you can handle it. No need to circle around the point."
With his bluntness laid bare, Homura didn't flinch. "As I understand it, just before dying, Kinoshita Jiro handed a scroll to Root. Can you produce it?"
What!
Surprise flickered across Hiruzen's face—he hadn't heard that.
"Before coming here we stopped by the hospital," Koharu added with a small, pleasant smile. "We got quite a bit from a genin named Sakura. Iruka is a fine teacher, but he's not much of an investigator."
Hiruzen's expression soured, but before he could speak, Danzo's voice cut in.
"The scroll isn't with me. It's simple enough to check whether those Root shinobi made it back. As it stands, I believe they're dead."
His eyes narrowed. From a handful of fragments, he'd already pieced together most of the picture.
Silence settled over the office.
"Who did it?" Homura asked, voice low.
"Sand? Cloud? Rock? Or some minor village?" Koharu said, tone sharp.
Danzo didn't sound like he was lying. If so, Root had been hit by another village's strike. The Mist was the first the four of them ruled out; who would use their own clan head as bait?
The bounty on Kinoshita Jiro had been up for over half a month, and Kakashi's assignment had been last-minute. Unless someone in the Mist could see the future, their likelihood was negligible.
More to the point, the Mist's current strength rivaled Sand's at best. Even Hiruzen couldn't believe they'd dare provoke Konoha.
"This is something only Kakashi is likely to understand in full. Until he wakes, I'll have to trouble the two of you to handle talks with the Mist," Hiruzen said, a thread of worry passing through his eyes. A bad premonition tugged at him, and he couldn't say why.
Koharu and Homura traded a glance. They'd heard the gentle dismissal in his words.
"Until this is fully clarified, Hiruzen, Danzo—you two will answer for it," Koharu said coolly. She turned, and the advisors left together.
"To think a mere Mist village has them so tied in knots. They've gotten old," Danzo scoffed.
It had been a long time since the Third Shinobi World War. Every village had recovered its strength. In Danzo's eyes, the next war could break out any day. Before it did, weakening the others was the only correct path.
"For now, Root will keep its head down. And stop bringing up the jinchūriki," Hiruzen said after a moment, pipe at his lips, tone flat.
Danzo's face tightened. He knew Hiruzen was bartering—Mist trouble in exchange for shelving Root's ambitions.
Whether he had ordered Jiro's death or not, the blame sat on him—for he was the root buried in the dark.
"Fine. But Hiruzen—you're too soft," Danzo said coldly, then turned and strode out.
Watching him leave, Hiruzen sighed. He knew what Danzo meant.
Judging by the Mist's recent showings, they weren't on Konoha's level. Konoha could have ignored their pressure.
But Danzo's private operations had become more and more brazen. He'd likely intended to do the same this time—until some unknown shinobi cut in.
"Was giving Root to Danzo ever the right call? And lately…the shinobi world feels restless," Hiruzen murmured, worry creasing his face.
//Check out my P@tre0n for 20 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810