[This is the last chapter, not many people are reading it and it is not worth the effort and spending money on it, I'm really sorry if you are reading it, but don't worry, new fanfics are coming, check my profile or the one in my main acc.!]
Hiss…
The Third Hokage paused his pen, then blankly rubbed at his eyebrow.
His left eyelid was twitching hard. His right eyelid too.
What was going on?
And it wasn't even one at a time—left twitched, then right, then right, then left, back and forth without end.
It left his heart feeling oddly unsettled.
But lately there hadn't been anything happening…
Everything below was calm. Most likely that "good lad's" Ninja Academy moves had finally stuffed people's mouths shut.
They knew how to share the burden for the upper ranks, so they'd stopped running in to make noise.
Even Danzo couldn't do anything about it. If the rank-and-file weren't causing trouble, he had nothing to fan into flames.
So the Third Hokage's days had been downright comfortable.
Whenever he had time, he'd even slip off to his secret base to stroke his precious jade-seat golden Buddha.
Heh…
In the end, he really was getting old.
To think he'd started worrying over nothing.
Chuckling, the old man shook his head.
Konoha's in a golden age of peace—what could possibly happen?
And staring at the "beautiful" numbers coming up from below, he felt like his vitality had hit its peak.
Because most people were praising the Third Hokage as wise and mighty—the restorer who'd brought Konoha back to greatness.
And, coincidentally, the old man believed that too.
Otherwise…
He wouldn't have gone out of his way to write himself into the Academy textbooks in such grand fashion.
Plain as day.
He was the type who loved acclaim.
Fingertips grazing the figures on the page, the Third Hokage took a long pull from his old pipe, pleased as could be.
A peaceful Konoha.
That was the political achievement he'd always wanted…
Meanwhile.
Danzo stared at the intelligence report in his hand like he'd turned to stone.
What!?
Lately, that blockhead Sasuke had been sticking close to Hiruzen?
Why?
Danzo's gaze sharpened instantly.
He did not want that blockhead tangled too deeply with the good lad.
The moneybag belonged to everyone.
It couldn't all get shoveled into the Sarutobi family's pockets!
Besides, Sasuke had spent years picking fights with the Shimura clan.
Danzo hadn't forgotten that grudge for a second.
So he'd given his Second Elder a direct order:
Keep that blockhead Sasuke under a microscope!
You will find his weakness—and hand it to that bastard Hiruzen!
"Clan Head… something's not right…"
Oh?
Not right how?
"It's like this…"
The Second Elder leaned in close, speaking carefully.
Because if it was what he suspected… then the Third Hokage had made an enormous political mistake.
"Since Sasuke's been sticking close to that person, our people don't dare get too close."
"But when Sasuke's away from that person, he's spending money like it's water—rare for him."
"And he's been doing it for days. No one knows where the money's coming from."
Mm…
Danzo mulled it over for a moment—then his pupils constricted.
"Hm!?"
The hell… where else could it be coming from!?
Isn't it obviously coming from the good lad!?
How was that acceptable?
Everyone knew the good lad's money almost all went into developing Konoha's various departments.
So what was Sasuke trying to do?
Steal meat off the other departments' plates!?
Danzo's face went green.
Because when you really did the math, the money the good lad used to develop Konoha's departments included Danzo's share, too.
If Sasuke ate more, the rest of them ate less.
The moment that equivalency clicked in Danzo's head, his lungs practically exploded with rage.
Cut it out. This was robbery.
This was stealing his money!!
Danzo couldn't sit still anymore.
His old face turning iron-dark, he started to rise—ready to storm the Hokage Tower and settle accounts with that dog Hiruzen.
But the Second Elder hurriedly stopped him.
"Clan Head! You can't rush this!"
"Hah!? Not rush it!? That dog is stealing my money!"
"No—Clan Head, listen to me…"
The Second Elder's heart was hammering. His eyes were bright.
"Clan Head, haven't you always wanted to seize control of the Anbu?"
"This is the perfect opportunity!"
Hm?
The moment he heard the words "Anbu"—his sun and moon, his treasured light—Danzo sat back down.
Seize control of the Anbu?
Good.
That was good.
As long as he could seize control of the Anbu, Danzo could begrudgingly accept losing some money.
And afterward, he could just make that blockhead Sasuke cough it back up.
"How?"
Danzo already understood: his elder was about to pave him a road—using Sasuke as a steppingstone upward.
"Heh. Look—he's fighting the people for profit. How much can he even eat in a few days?"
"Why not let him have a free hand for now…"
Danzo sucked in a cold breath and stared at his Second Elder.
Heh!
You old bastard… you're rotten in the best way.
I like it.
Let the blockhead keep fighting the people for profit. Let him take more and more.
Then slam that giant black pot right onto Hiruzen's head.
Just imagining it made Danzo so excited he could barely sit still.
"Fine. Let him have a free hand. For now, watch him—but don't alert the child's security detail."
Understood.
The Second Elder nodded quickly.
They absolutely couldn't drag the moneybag into this.
If Sasuke got that connection firmly established, and it involved the moneybag, then the whole matter would get softened—big becomes small, small becomes nothing.
And that couldn't be allowed.
After all, they'd finally found a real pressure point on Hiruzen.
Danzo couldn't help reminiscing about the day he'd gotten to stomp on that pressure point.
Hm?
Whose move was that fast?
Kangetsu stopped what he was doing, and Komachi finally let out a heavy breath.
S-So annoying…
All you do is "mine."
If you've got the guts, then mine me to death already…
Rolling her eyes, Komachi curled into the dog of a man's arms.
Don't touch.
Off to the side.
Kurenai, sipping tea, could only choose the tactically polite option: keep sipping tea.
This was really…
You weren't even pretending anymore!
At least have the decency to avoid doing it in front of people!
I'm still sitting right here!
What?
If she was interested, she could join?
After a brief pause, Kurenai stared at Kangetsu's bloodshot eyes.
She raised a hand in refusal.
No, no.
She still wasn't used to that.
Even if she was Kangetsu's bodyguard now, you had to take things slow.
Like, talk first and then make a move?
Like, go out for a romantic dinner?
Like, watch a tearjerker movie?
Kurenai might be an older woman, but she still longed for the sweet, pure romance tropes.
You couldn't just jump straight to the meat.
What kind of nonsense was that?
Helping Yukine grind tea, Mikoto's cheeks flushed red anyway.
…Damn.
She really had jumped straight to the meat with that dog of a man.
Yukine's expression turned faintly complicated.
He wants it, and you just give it?
He insists!
Kangetsu frowned.
He felt like Mikoto was slandering him out of thin air.
Wasn't it you who insisted on giving it…
(End of Chapter)
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