Konoha,
Hokage's Office,
The four senior leaders sat quietly.
"Speak—what do you all think? We've cut off the Police Force's supplies for half a year, and also reduced mission allocations for the Hyūga clan, the Aburame clan, and the Inuzuka clan. But the results have been minimal."
Hiruzen Sarutobi was the first to speak.
"Hmph, Hiruzen, you're still too soft. These ninja clans are tumors within Konoha. They should be eradicated with the full force of the village—especially the Uchiha, the worst tumor of them all."
Shimura Danzō immediately snapped back.
He still hadn't forgotten the fire that burned through his Root half a year ago.
"Eradicate, eradicate—Danzō, can you use your brain for once? Uchiha Kamito and Hyūga Hiyasu are heroes of Konoha. Aburame Shiken now keeps the Aburame clan hidden away—you'd have a hard time even finding their clan grounds. And Inuzuka Ryoha—do you even know how vast Inuzuka Logistics has spread across the Land of Fire?"
Utatane Koharu immediately retorted.
"Koharu, calm down."
"Danzō, in the past, it wasn't that we didn't want to act against the clans. But now it's different—we can't act against them. One move affects everything. The ninja clans are too deeply tied to the Land of Fire now. The Inuzuka can't be touched, and the Aburame can't even be found."
Mitokado Homura stepped in, as usual, to mediate.
But Danzō didn't give them any respect at all.
"Hmph, it's all because you were indecisive. If we had acted earlier, they wouldn't have reached this point."
"Danzō, even before, we couldn't act. The ninja clans are Konoha's strength. They can die in wars against external enemies—but they must never die at the hands of their own."
Hiruzen exhaled twice and spoke calmly.
The room fell silent for a moment.
"The village… needs to select the Fourth Hokage."
"What? Hiruzen, the village can't do without you."
"Hiruzen, you're still young—you can continue serving."
Koharu and Homura hurriedly tried to persuade him otherwise.
Danzō, however, remained silent, a trace of joy flickering in his heart—the Fourth Hokage could only be him.
"Koharu, Homura, don't be anxious. I said we need to select one, not that I'm stepping down immediately. We must use this time to cultivate the next Hokage. We can't repeat what happened before. Have you forgotten the situation we faced after Tobirama-sensei brought us back?"
Koharu and Homura both recalled the time when Hiruzen first took the Hokage position.
Back then, Konoha had only existed for about ten years. How could a group of old men who survived the Warring States era respect someone like Hiruzen, who had grown up in Konoha?
At that time, accomplishing anything was harder than reaching the heavens.
And now? Each of them held unquestionable authority in Konoha.
"Then who do you plan to train, Hiruzen? We'll help however we can."
"Orochimaru. Among my three students, only he has that kind of talent."
Hiruzen said firmly.
"Orochimaru… he is indeed capable. Ruthless, calculating—I have no objections."
Koharu said.
"But Hiruzen, among the people, Sakumo's reputation is extremely high."
Homura added.
"Hmph, just a pretentious show-off. 'Hokage's Half-Sleeve'—what a grand title."
Danzō said sarcastically.
"Danzō, you can't blame Hiruzen for that. Sakumo's achievements in the Second Shinobi War were enormous. First, he held back the Third Raikage on the Cloud Village battlefield. Then he penetrated deep into the Land of Lightning, intimidating the Cloud Village. Finally, he switched battlefields overnight to fight the Sand Village. How else could we reward him?"
Homura explained on Hiruzen's behalf.
"Enough, Homura. I'll handle Sakumo's matter."
"Hiruzen, leave Hatake Sakumo to me. And have Orochimaru come learn under me—this will help him deal with trouble. Konoha doesn't need another indecisive Hiruzen Sarutobi."
With that—
Danzō turned and left.
"Danzō, you…"
"Enough, Koharu. Danzō ultimately shares the same goal as us."
Hiruzen smiled.
Their goal might be the same—but how things would be handled was another matter entirely.
As the saying goes:
You're not afraid of a godlike opponent… but of a teammate just like that.
...
Outside the Land of Fire,
"Kubisaki, you really don't know who Kishimoto Masashi is?"
"This old one has had countless contractees in his lifetime. How could I remember them all? Who knows when that contract was made?"
Senju Hideki chatted idly with Kubisaki, the large lizard whose head was covered in bumps.
Hideki stared at the striking name on the summoning scroll.
My god… this is the summoning beast of the author of Naruto. How could it possibly be weak?
"Well… Kubisaki, you could say we became friends through conflict. So when are you going to teach me Sage Arts?"
Kubisaki rolled his eyes at him.
You beat me up and now you want good stuff from me? Do I look like an idiot?
"Well… I wonder if this suits your taste."
Hearing this, Kubisaki turned his head.
"Hm."
His long tongue flicked out and curled back.
"Whoa—chewy, rich, flavorful, delicious! Hooded boy, give me more!"
"Of course, as you wish."
"Aburame Secret Technique: Giant Insect Hosting."
Several parasitic insects, infused with chakra, rapidly grew to enormous sizes—
Each one as big as a yellow ox.
"Mmm, delicious, delicious."
Kubisaki devoured the food nonstop.
Uchiha Kamito quietly nudged Aburame Shiken.
"If you do this, won't the insects get angry?"
Shiken responded with a speechless look.
"I saw that, Kamito. Shiken just gave you a look full of exasperation."
The three of them turned—
Only to discover that Hyūga Hiyasu had activated his Byakugan at some point.
Is that really how your bloodline is supposed to be used?
Also—
"Idiot, turn off your Byakugan."
The three spoke in unison.
No one liked the feeling of being seen through.
Absolutely no one.
Hiyasu turned off his Byakugan and clicked his tongue.
"I was just worried you wouldn't understand Shiken's expression. Honestly, kindness really is wasted on you."
The reasoning made sense—but still felt off somehow.
Hideki and Kamito both looked coldly at Shiken.
"No making eye expressions while wearing sunglasses."
"No communicating with others through eye contact while wearing sunglasses."
Saying everything out loud completely ruins the style, you know.
You people really have no taste.
Besides, eye contact isn't about the eyes—it's about mutual understanding.
Shiken suddenly felt that while everyone else was drunk, he alone was sober—that while the world was muddied, he alone remained pure.
Still, he spoke calmly:
"Have you been listening to too much of Ryoha's nonsense? Insects are just tools, right? And tools are meant to be used however we want. When you raise sheep or pigs, do you do it just for the sake of raising them? In the end, isn't it all for eating them?"
It sounded reasonable… but something about it felt off.
Unfortunately, Inuzuka Ryoha wasn't here.
Otherwise, he would definitely have countered:
"When you raise dogs or cats, do you do it so you can eat them?"
Thankfully, he wasn't present.
Otherwise, Uchiha Kamito, Hyūga Hiyasu, and Senju Hideki would have been forced to face a deeply profound philosophical question.
Philosophical Question: Any difficult question involving language falls under my domain.