Chapter 84: The Marriage Alliance
"A frame-up?"
With the evidence as iron-clad as it was, Danzō's defense was pale and powerless. Never mind the various clans who were already on unfriendly terms with Root; even his old friends, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura, who were inclined to side with him, couldn't find a single favorable word to say.
Hiruzen tapped his fingers on the desk. "Danzō," he said coldly, "you lead the Root organization, shouldering the heavy burden of protecting the village, yet you have repeatedly made disastrous decisions, causing the village to suffer immense losses. If I do not punish you, it will cause public outrage."
Koharu and Homura exchanged a look, their eyes filled with helplessness. The murder of Uchiha Itachi, concealing the mysterious Uchiha who was the suspected mastermind of the Nine-Tails attack, dispatching Aburame Torune to assassinate the Hokage—every single one was a grave crime. If Hiruzen were to indulge Danzō again, he would lose all support, and his position as Hokage would become unstable.
"Cough, cough." Homura glanced at Danzō's ashen face and cleared his throat, pleading for his old friend. "Hiruzen, Danzō's contributions to the village over the past decades are undeniable. And Konoha is in dire need of manpower right now. I hope you will be lenient."
At these words, the other clan heads looked displeased. 'Contributions mean he gets leniency? By that logic, a lot of people are waiting for leniency. Orochimaru is still a fugitive; why haven't you revoked his rogue-nin status?'
Hiruzen ignored him. "Danzō," he said, his voice firm, "from this day forward, you are stripped of all official authority. Furthermore, Root is to be disbanded."
"What?" Koharu was stunned. This punishment was too severe. More importantly, Danzō had done countless dirty deeds, and he had survived this long because the Hokage needed him to do those things. Disbanding Root? Wasn't that the same as cutting off one's own arm?
Koharu was about to plead for her old friend, but one look at Hiruzen's resolute expression made her words die in her throat.
Danzō himself was so furious his chest felt like it would explode. He didn't care about Root being disbanded. Everyone in Root was bound by his Tongue-Cursing Seal; he controlled them completely. He could re-form them at any time.
But his position as Advisor to the Hokage was different. That position gave him direct power over village policy and was only one step removed from the Hokage's seat. Forcing him to give that up was like plunging a knife straight into his heart.
"Hiruzen—"
"Hmph!" Hiruzen slammed his hand on the table, cutting Danzō off. His tone was indisputable. "Danzō, I am being merciful by sparing your life. I hope you will recognize your mistakes and repent."
Seeing Hiruzen's unyielding attitude, Danzō slumped back in his chair, gasping for air like a fish out of water. Honestly, Hiruzen's punishment was lenient. But Danzō felt no gratitude, only a festering, intensifying hatred. The truth was, from the moment Tobirama Senju chose Hiruzen to be Hokage, Danzō had started down a dark path. He was now beyond saving.
After punishing Danzō, Hiruzen changed the subject. "We have new intelligence. Kumogakure's Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, Killer Bee, is leading two thousand Cloud ninja and is stationed at the border of the Land of Hot Water. Iwagakure's Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, is also leading his elite forces toward our border."
Hearing this, the office fell silent. The simultaneous mobilization of Iwa and Kumo meant they saw the Uchiha's defection as an opportunity. If they launched a Fourth Great Ninja War, Konoha, in its current state, could not possibly hold out.
Outsiders might not know, but everyone in this room knew the truth: without the Uchiha, Konoha's combat strength had dropped by at least thirty percent. On top of that, the battle with the Uchiha had cost them nearly three hundred shinobi, the weakest of whom were Chūnin, with Jōnin casualties in the double digits. The only person left who could truly hold the line was Hiruzen himself. They could not fight a two-front war. The situation was grim.
Hiruzen's gaze swept the room. "The threat from Iwa and Kumo is greater than the Uchiha. Therefore, we will immediately cancel the pursuit of the Uchiha clan. Those forces will be redirected to the Land of Hot Water to defend against the Cloud. As for Iwagakure... Koharu, Homura, you two will go personally to negotiate with Ōnoki."
This was classic Hiruzen. His priority was stability. Even if letting the Uchiha go would create a severe threat, that was a problem for the future. The key now was to prevent an immediate war. Almost everyone agreed. Danzō objected, but having been stripped of his post, his words carried no weight.
"Hiruzen, you will regret this!" he roared, as ANBU agents forcibly removed him from the office.
Hiruzen ignored him. Dealing with Iwa and Kumo was the priority. As for the Uchiha? He now knew they were joining one of the other villages. It was terrible news, but he was powerless to stop it.
Hiruzen walked to the window, staring at the second face on the Hokage monument. "Teacher," he murmured, "I wonder, seeing this, if you regret suppressing the Uchiha clan."
Land of Waterfalls.
The Fourth Raikage, traveling at full speed, crossed from the Land of Lightning to the Land of Waterfalls in less than two days. He found the Uchiha clan, who had just made camp. Learning that the Raikage himself had come, the Uchiha were stunned and flattered. Shisui went out personally to greet him.
"Lord Raikage, this is the Uchiha's new clan head, Uchiha—" Yugito began to introduce him.
"Shisui of the Body Flicker," the Raikage cut her off, extending his hand with a broad smile. "Your name is well-known to me. Shisui-kun, you've all worked hard!"
Shisui took a deep breath and gripped the Raikage's hand, his face showing the appropriate gratitude and respect. "Thank you, Lord Raikage, for coming to receive us personally. The Uchiha will remember this debt."
As he spoke, Shisui deliberately adjusted his tone. The Raikage coming himself was the ultimate show of sincerity. From this moment on, the Uchiha were part of Kumogakure. This change in status would take time to adjust to, and he had to be conscious of the details. If the Uchiha didn't see themselves as Kumo shinobi, Kumo would never truly accept them.
"Nonsense, Shisui-kun! It's what I should do as Raikage. We are comrades now."
The right words can close distances and build goodwill. In this, the Fourth Raikage was crude, but with subtlety. He might look like a simple meathead, but a meathead could never become Raikage. If he were, he'd never have earned the loyalty of strong subordinates like Killer Bee, Dodai, and Yugito.
"It was I who was being too formal," Shisui said, his expression firming as he gripped the Raikage's hand tightly. "From now on, we are comrades!"
Although he knew there would be many problems to solve, at least the beginning was a good one.
Dodai, leading a large medical corps, arrived three days later. The Uchiha had almost no Yang-style chakra users and no real medical-nin; their wounded had not been properly treated, and their conditions were worsening.
"Dodai-dono, your arrival is truly timely. You've solved our most urgent problem," Shisui said gratefully.
"Lord Raikage, Clan Head Shisui," Dodai said, his face serious, "the most important thing now is to get the Uchiha back to the village. Although Konoha has given up the chase, Iwagakure is also coming for you. Our intelligence reports their vanguard is less than two days from here. This is a hot-spot; we must leave as soon as possible."
"We absolutely must," Shisui agreed. "We will depart as soon as the wounded are treated."
"Then it's settled," the Raikage agreed, accepting the counsel.
Several nights later, in a command tent.
The Fourth Raikage, Dodai, Neji, and Yugito sat around a low table.
The Raikage, lifting a dumbbell, said, "In three more days, the Uchiha will be in the Land of Lightning."
Dodai, his face stern, didn't follow up. Instead, he changed the subject. "Lord Raikage, how do you plan to settle the Uchiha clan?"
Hearing this, the Raikage put down his dumbbell and spread a map of Kumogakure on the table. He pointed to a large, empty area. "The village will be expanded. We will establish the Uchiha district here. This area is larger than that of any other clan in Kumo."
Neji narrowed his eyes. He felt Dodai was referring to something else, and the Raikage was answering the wrong question.
Even though the Uchiha had lost nearly half their best shinobi, their remaining power was likely on par with the Yotsuki clan. A clan this powerful suddenly joining Kumo... the other clans would certainly not welcome them.
It wasn't about old grudges; the Uchiha had mainly fought Kiri on the eastern front and had little direct conflict with Kumo. The animosity was for three reasons. First, the Uchiha's fearsome reputation; the weak naturally fear the strong. Second, the Uchiha's innate arrogance. They didn't get along with the other clans in Konoha; how would they handle their new neighbors? Third, and most critical, was the issue of resource distribution.
The Uchiha's arrival meant the village's limited "cake" would have to be re-sliced. In the future, Kumo would replace Konoha as the #1 village and the whole cake would get bigger, but that was the future. The immediate pain was that their existing shares were being cut. Therefore, even the most broad-minded leaders would struggle to see the Uchiha rationally.
Only the civilian-born shinobi and the Yotsuki clan, loyal to the Raikage, were optimistic. The Uchiha would only be truly accepted when they started generating massive profits for Kumo. No one likes a freeloader. To earn respect, you must create value.
But Dodai's next words showed Neji that their lines of thinking were different.
"Lord Raikage, the clan district, even their integration, these are not the key problems," Dodai said. "Those can be solved in a few months or years."
The Raikage scratched his head. "Dodai, what are you worried about? Speak plainly."
Dodai took a sip of hot water. "The Uchiha are different. The Second Hokage, after studying them, declared them an 'inherently evil clan.' While that was certainly prejudiced, I don't believe they are completely without problems. In the fifty-plus years since Konoha's founding, Uchiha Madara betrayed the village, Uchiha Setsuna attempted a coup, the Nine-Tails attack was caused by an Uchiha, and now they have defected. These are all precedents. We must be on guard."
The Raikage's face was grim. "Dodai, we cannot suppress them just because of something that might happen. Besides, the Uchiha staged a coup for power. If they make outstanding contributions to Kumo, why not give them power? What's wrong with one of them becoming Raikage?"
As he said this, he gave a pointed look at Neji. An Uchiha becoming Raikage? Not in the next fifty years. He had absolute confidence that as long as Neji-kun was around, the Uchiha wouldn't be able to make any waves.
Dodai did not back down. "I'm not talking about suppression. I'm talking about binding them to Kumo... to make them fight for Kumo's cause, permanently."
The Raikage's expression softened. "What's your method?"
"A marriage alliance."
"This...?" The Raikage began to ponder.
Neji-kun's eyes lit up. A political marriage was indeed a classic move to solidify an alliance. The Uchiha, while stubborn, were nowhere near as conservative as the Hyūga. They had examples of marrying outside the clan—Uchiha Izumi's father, for instance, was an ordinary ninja.
"By marrying the Raikage's faction with the Uchiha's high-ranking members, generation after generation, we can tie them to us with blood and shared interests," Dodai explained. "Right now, many of our clans are grumbling about the Uchiha's arrival. A marriage alliance would be the perfect way to silence them."
The Fourth Raikage nodded. He was not an inflexible man. To truly win over the Uchiha, one needed both vision and political skill.
Hashirama Senju had the vision—he didn't persecute the Uchiha after Madara's attack. But he lacked the political skill, and they grew restless after his death. Tobirama Senju had the skill—he created the Konoha Military Police Force to corner the Uchiha. But he lacked the vision, and in doing so, planted the seed of their eventual defection. Both of these brilliant Hokage failed to solve the Uchiha problem. Kumo had to learn from their mistakes.
"Dodai, who among the Uchiha is a suitable woman for this?" the Raikage asked.
A sharp light flashed in Dodai's eyes. "An ordinary woman wouldn't carry enough weight. After much consideration, I believe only the wife of their last clan head, Uchiha Mikoto, is suitable."
"Uchiha Mikoto?" The Raikage nodded. "She's a widow, but her status is undeniable. It would have to be her. Very well, the village must find a man of suitable status to match."
At that moment, Neji stood up and said with the utmost seriousness, "Lord Raikage, Dodai-dono... for the good of the village, Neji-kun is willing to accept this heavy burden."