On the way there—
Homura spoke with heavy earnestness as he advised that old bastard Danzo.
"Old buddy, perk up!"
"Don't embarrass yourself!"
"So what if it's the Hokage?"
"Don't be afraid of him!"
"The two of us have your back!"
Koharu handed a cup of tea to the warming-up Danzo.
"Danzo, don't get careless. Hiruzen isn't that easy to squeeze."
Rolling his shoulders and stretching his legs, Danzo took a sip to wet his throat.
"Good! You two—today, I want to see what else Hiruzen has to say!"
His excitement practically spilled out of him.
Hiruzen.
Today, you're going to accept this whether you want to or not. If you won't accept it… you'll accept it anyway!
In the distance—
Hospital staff were just as excited, running over to watch the spectacle.
This is insane!
That old bastard Danzo actually dares to openly challenge the Third Hokage?!
Did someone report it to the boss?
What?
The boss already knows?
Then it's fine.
Kangetsu didn't bother with the hospital worker who came to report it.
Two old men clawing at each other, that's all.
What was so worth watching?
As Konoha's only "high-achiever" and businessman—
His position was so stable it couldn't be more stable.
No political storm, no matter how big, could touch him.
As long as anyone had the nerve to try, they'd see whether the beneficiaries would allow it.
Forget the forces below— even the Third Hokage and those other old men would temporarily set aside their personal grudges and work together to strangle whoever dared.
You want to reach into Konoha's money pouch?
That's asking for the old man's life…
Under countless eyes—
Danzo finally stepped into the Hokage Tower.
Who would win?
Plenty of people waited for news, buzzing with excitement.
No matter who won—
To Konoha's major factions, it was a good thing either way.
If Konoha's upper ranks worried about the lower ranks forming a bloc, then why wouldn't the lower ranks worry about the upper ranks uniting against them?
It was impossible.
A splintered leadership was the best kind of leadership.
Just like how they looked at the Uchiha.
Danzo pushed open the Hokage office door and saw the Third Hokage seated behind the desk.
With a smile that wasn't a smile, Danzo prepared to greet him.
"Hi—"
"Hi what, exactly?!"
"My name is Hiruzen. Don't be so hotheaded."
"Danzo! Remember this—I can call you Danzo, but you don't get to call me Hiruzen!"
"Why not?!"
"Because I'm the Hokage!!"
Hah…
So the Hokage's got quite the official air, huh?
Nice little show of dominance.
You think I'm really going to swallow that?
Danzo had come alone.
Those two trump cards were for playing at the critical moment.
So Danzo sized up the seemingly calm Third Hokage.
The Third Hokage, not to be outdone, took a drag from his old pipe.
See that?
This puff of smoke is my political achievement as Hokage!
Don't ask whether the tobacco business is losing money right now—just tell me whether it counts as an "achievement"!
Right now, sure, it's losing. But in the long run, the benefits will be endless.
An indisputable fact.
So Danzo wasn't going to fight him on that.
Just like the Third Hokage expected—
Danzo was here to kick the crippled leg.
"Fine. You're the Hokage. I'll call you Hokage-dono."
"Then tell me, Hokage-dono—do you even know how many of Konoha's common people can actually eat their fill under your leadership?!"
"Shut up!! 'Konoha's common people'—you don't get to say those words, Danzo!"
"I think Hokage-dono has gone senile! Konoha's safety is carried on the shoulders of me, Shimura Danzo!"
"I'm the one responsible for Konoha's security! Not you!!"
"Oh? So what you mean is: 'All the credit of my Anbu gets eaten by your Root'?!"
"I never said that!"
"I think that's exactly what you meant!"
Two old men—one shouting at the top of his lungs.
The other shouting even louder.
As if whoever was louder was right.
And they looked practically identical.
Danzo had been ground into the dirt by the old bastard across from him before, so he had bandages wrapped around his injuries, leaning on a cane to support his lame leg.
And the Third Hokage?
After being chased down for debt by three advisors, dark circles swamped his eyes. His face was bruised and swollen beyond recognition.
But both of them wore deadly serious expressions.
Neither one mocked the other's injuries.
If the straightforward way won't work, then we'll do it the crooked way.
Danzo let out a cold laugh, then pulled a personnel-promotion list from inside his clothes.
"Take a look, Hokage-dono. See if there are any worms in your Anbu."
"Don't even look at anyone else—just Sarutobi Sasuke."
"I'll say it outright: that man climbed the ladder in Anbu purely on flattery."
The Third Hokage's face went dark.
Damn it.
The old bastard found a crack.
His eldest brat was capable, that much was true, but his promotions had been too fast.
Strictly speaking, it violated the rules.
"Our famed Anbu ace has had a smooth road, hasn't he?"
"Just the other day, I remember this 'Anbu ace' working the tobacco fields. And now he can't take the hardship there and comes crawling back!"
"And how many bribes has this 'Anbu ace' taken along the way? Eating and taking everywhere he goes!"
"I even heard that because the previous Anbu commander's own son died, this one went to the grave and wept there!"
Bang!
The Third Hokage couldn't take Danzo's sarcasm anymore and slammed the desk.
"Weeping at a grave? You're bringing that into this? Do you even know why Sasuke cried?"
"He's an Anbu captain. He can't be moved by a comrade's sacrifice? He can't feel something real and let it out?!"
"Fine! Say it was real!"
Homura and Koharu couldn't sit still anymore. They both turned their heads.
Danzo was being shameless…
You can criticize him, sure, but why are you attacking someone's family like that?
Which one of us doesn't have relatives serving in our own departments?
Which one of us hasn't fast-tracked a junior at some point?
Danzo—are you really so pure and impartial?
Seeing his two old partners' dissatisfied looks, Danzo gave a tactical cough.
He'd been careless.
Or rather… he'd gotten carried away.
That sort of thing really couldn't be said out loud.
Fine. Then we'll only talk about Hiruzen's personal issues, and nothing else.
"My personal issues? What issues could I possibly have?"
Seeing Homura and Koharu seemingly stand behind Danzo, the Third Hokage's heart sank with a thud.
Not good.
That old thing actually pulled political resources to his side.
That didn't make sense…
Those two should've stayed perched on the fishing platform, watching tigers fight—that was the smart play.
There was no need to personally jump in and get splashed with filth…
As for the Third Hokage's "pleading look," Homura and Koharu acted like they hadn't seen a thing.
All they could do was apologize in their hearts.
Sorry, Danzo-king.
Today, we're making you taste the combo-technique of the Advisor Trio's friendship.
(End of Chapter)
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