AI Model: kimi-k2-instruct-0905Chapter 241 – When Will You Get Married?
"It means nothing."
Read Taiwan's Finest—Superb Selections.
En Yui ignored the irritation in his tone, the corners of her mouth curving slightly. "Because you two are too old; it's time to give your seats to the younger generation."
The entire council chamber fell silent.
The station of hokage advisor is exalted.
By Konoha's laws it is practically equal to the Hokage, with full authority to take part in every decision, large or small.
Even Senju Tsunade had no power to shut them out.
In name, the daimyo rules Konoha.
But that is only on the surface.
No daimyo before now ever meddled casually in Konoha's internal affairs.
Much less openly strip two hokage advisors of their posts.
"Your Excellency!"
Homura Mitokado and Utatane Koharu rose together.
Tsunade frowned faintly but did not stop them, her gaze drifting to Naruto behind them.
The message was clear: the mess you two stirred up, you fix it yourself.
She refused to believe En Yui would appoint Naruto and Sasuke as hokage advisors for no reason—someone had to be pulling the strings.
Then again, Tsunade reflected, if it had to be those two… it might not be so bad.
The Tianming Organization and the White Lotus Sect were firmly in hand.
Even if Naruto were still a Genin, Konoha could not afford to ignore his words.
In that case, giving them the title of hokage advisoramounted to the same thing.
Besides, if push came to shove Tsunade could simply quit and hand the Hokage seat to Narutobefore running off.
She was certain the brat would never betray Konoha.
With the backing of the Tianming Organizationand the White Lotus Sect, wouldn't Konohabecome the strongest village in history?
Her chances of borrowing money later would also improve.
The more she thought about it, the more it felt like a windfall.
"This is Konoha's internal affair!"
Homura said in a low voice. "The Hokage alone makes such appointments, not you."
Though furious, he had not lost his reason.
Opposing the daimyo would only end in his own loss.
Fortunately, after decades in the Ninja World he quickly found a pretext.
By law, the Hokage governs Konoha, the daimyo governs the Land of Fire and has the right to approve or reject a Hokage candidate; nothing else is specified.
Previous daimyo and Hokage had both honored the arrangement.
"You are correct."
En Yui offered no rebuttal, turning her head to ask, "Hokage-sama, what do you say?"
Beside her, Tsunade's face stiffened; she wanted nothing more than to curse.
Why did the buck keep landing back at her feet?
A most ominous sign.
Feeling the two hokage advisors' murderous glares, she arched a brow.
The old pair were certainly hot-tempered.
Like Hiruzen Sarutobi, they clung fiercely to power.
Indeed, even when Naruto eventually became Hokage in the original story, Homura and Koharu remained Advisors, popping up regularly to voice opinions, determined to serve till death.
A veritable pair of turd-stirrers.
Tsunade pondered a moment, then spoke: "The daimyo is right."
"???"
Homura and Koharu stood frozen.
Never in their dreams had they imagined Tsunadewould say such a thing.
They knew she disliked them, but after all they were still family; a few quarrels should have been the limit.
Why such a public slap today?
The clan heads watching were equally dumbfounded.
But since the matter did not concern them, they saw no need to speak for the Advisors.
Hyuga Hiashi, head of the currently largest clan, the Hyuga, had no wish to help; in fact he wanted to add his agreement.
Once Homura and Koharu stepped down, who stood to gain the most?
Hinata—or the Hyuga Clan.
After all, the boy was their son-in-law.
Whatever happened, the Hyuga would benefit.
Yet Hiashi glanced at Naruto, calm as could be, thought better of it, and kept silent.
If the man himself wasn't anxious, why should he be?
Homura and Koharu, however, were anxious indeed.
How had things come to this pass?
They were stuck; they could neither advance nor retreat.
They had just declared the Hokage had sole authority, and in the next breath the Hokagedefected.
They wanted to shout: Your Majesty, why rebel against yourself?
"Since the Hokage agrees, you may retire at once," En Yui said.
Silence.
No one in the chamber spoke.
"I refuse!"
Homura snapped, neck stiff. "Strip us of our posts if you will, but give us a reason we can accept!"
"It appears the two Advisors refuse to admit their age."
En Yui's expression remained unchanged. "I could say 'because I say so,' but that would make me a tyrant. Naruto-kun, explain it yourself."
The others started.
Was a brawl about to break out?
Hiashi shot his future son-in-law a look: Are you up to it?
Naruto had to say yes; anything less and how could he ever hold his head up before Hinata?
He stood. "Retire—or die. Simple as that."
"Insolent whelp!"
Homura roared, incredulous. "Do you even know what you're saying?"
"Naruto."
Tsunade shook her head, meaning: Don't turn the council chamber into a bloodbath.
"Got it."
Understanding, Naruto said, "Sasuke, your turn."
Sasuke's Mangekyo Sharingan flared open, his face blank.
"???"
Tsunade was speechless.
You understand nothing!
Did I tell you to do that?
"What kind of Sharingan is this?"
Hiashi, feeling a Dōjutsu Power beyond measure, could not help asking.
He considered himself among the elite of Jonin, yet his Dōjutsu Power was less than a tenth of Sasuke's.
Did that mean ten of him combined could not beat this one man?
The rest exchanged glances.
The flare of power Sasuke had just released frightened them witless.
Some were reminded of the Nine-Tails' rampage.
"Sasuke, escort them out."
Naruto waved a hand.
Sasuke took control of the pair and marched them out of the Hokage Building.
Homura and Koharu came to their senses on the busy street, cold sweat pouring down their foreheads.
They had offered no resistance, sensed nothing.
Had Sasuke wished to kill them, it would have been effortless.
"Damn it!"
Homura longed to rush back, but Naruto's words held him frozen.
They clung to power, yet valued their lives more.
Death would leave them with nothing.
"We need to plan carefully,"
Koharu said, equally shaken; her dread of Narutoand Sasuke now surpassed even that of Tsunadeand Jiraiya.
"Find Danzo first,"
Homura gritted his teeth.
News of Danzo's death had not yet been released; he was said to be away on business and would return in a couple of days.
Back in the council chamber, En Yui continued as if nothing odd had happened. "The third item: an alliance."
Hiashi and the others glanced at her.
An alliance between the Land of Fire and Konoha?
Wasn't that redundant?
Only Tsunade and Jiraiya understood she meant an alliance with the Tianming Organization and the White Lotus Sect.
"Do you have specific terms?" Tsunade asked.
Konoha had little room to bargain; accepting the alliance was the best outcome.
Refusal might trigger worse trouble.
Konoha could wage war against the Tianming Organization and the White Lotus Sect, but severing ties with the Land of Fire would leave the village a rootless tree doomed to wither.
En Yui came prepared, producing a scroll and handing it over.
Tsunade unrolled it and read.
How to put it?
The terms were generous; Konoha would lose nothing.
They covered many areas—roughly three main points.
First, the economy and taxation: the Land of Firewill send specialists to teach Konoha how to make money.
Second, mutual military aid—if Konoha is in danger, the Land of Fire, the Tianming Organization, and the White Lotus Sect will all lend a hand, and vice versa.
Third, education: the Ninja Academy will expand enrollment beyond Konoha, and the curriculum will also change.
Konoha won't have to pay for construction or tuition; the Land of Fire will even cover teachers' salaries.
Honestly, apart from the second clause, Tsunadehad never even considered the rest.
But is this a bad thing?
Not really.
Konoha's economy is actually in rough shape right now; most of its income comes from the Land of Fire's aid.
If they can earn more, the merrier.
As for the third clause, Tsunade couldn't see everything, but she spotted En Yui's ambition.
If Ninja academies are eventually set up throughout the entire Land of Fire, that huge population base is bound to produce plenty of civilian prodigies.
What the future holds is hard to say.
Konoha might increase its number of Ninja, yet it could also end up sharing its military authority.
"Jiraiya."
Tsunade tossed the scroll to Jiraiya. "Take a look, all of you."
Jiraiya glanced at her face—calm, as if the treaty weren't bad.
He already had an inkling and secretly thought Naruto finally had a conscience.
But after reading, surprise flashed across his face.
Tsunade might not understand, but he did.
Having thoroughly studied the White Lotus Sect's doctrine, he knew exactly what the Tianming Organization intended.
The first clause was to seize complete control of Konoha's economic lifeline.
The second clause was straightforward enough.
But the third aimed to capture the entire future of the Ninja.
Imagine: every child who enrolls will study the White Lotus teachings, attending schools built and funded by the Tianming Organization.
How terrifying and insidious is that?
If it were him, he'd probably pledge absolute loyalty to the Tianming Organization.
Especially students from civilian families.
They'd never had a chance at education; barring a miracle, they'd live out their lives in mediocrity.
Yet the Tianming Organization gave them a new life—skills, vision, everything.
Naturally they'd feel closer to the Tianming Organization, both emotionally and logically.
In time, Konoha would no longer be Konoha—or at least, not the Konoha Sarutobi-sensei had hoped for.
"Let me see."
Hiashi couldn't hold back his curiosity.
Earlier, Naruto and Sasuke had already stunned him—two teenagers inexplicably becoming Konoha's hokage advisors.
And neither Tsunade nor Jiraiya had objected.
Their strength had also seemed to skyrocket overnight, as if two kittens had suddenly turned into tigers.
Jiraiya hesitated, then handed the scroll to Hiashi.
Everyone here was part of Konoha's core.
If they approved the treaty, these people had to be on board.
They'd find out sooner or later; might as well know now.
"Tianming?"
Hiashi exclaimed in shock.
The rest, unable to resist, crowded closer.
He simply spread the scroll on the table so they could all read.
Gasps rippled around the room.
The Tianming Organization.
Two of its members had once blocked the gates of Hidden Cloud Village; sky city's firepower surpassed even a Tailed Beast.
Because of those feats, the Five Great Villagesalready treated the Tianming Organization as their equal.
But never in their wildest dreams had they imagined the mysterious Tianming Organizationwould ally with Konoha—and send the Land of Fire's daimyo as its representative.
Everyone in the council chamber looked dazed.
An outsider might've thought they were up to something else entirely.
Tsunade clapped her hands, drawing everyone's attention.
"This alliance is no small matter. Let's vote by show of hands."
She herself was torn, so she resorted to majority rule.
After a long silence, Hiashi was the first to raise his hand.
Seeing that, Naruto couldn't help smiling.
Family really is family.
Right after Hiashi, Shikaku raised his hand.
As Konoha's chief strategist, he was making the most rational choice.
One by one, the others followed suit.
The last was Jiraiya.
His face was grave, but his body was honest.
From this day forward, Konoha was hitched to the Tianming Organization's war chariot.
At that moment, he thought of the Great Toad Sage's prophecy.
Perhaps this had been fated all along.
The thought relaxed him a little.
At least his prophecy was almost fulfilled.
Even if he hadn't really done much.
Tsunade signed her name on the scroll.
Next came En Yui.
After signing, she tossed it to Naruto with a grin, "You're the boss; you have to sign."
"Fine."
Ignoring the horrified looks on Hiashi and the others—as if they'd seen a pig climb a tree—Naruto wrote down "Uzumaki Naruto" and "The Fool."
The treaty signed, the meeting adjourned.
Hiashi wasn't sure how he got back to the Hyuga Compound.
He was so dazed he didn't even respond when the two gate guardians greeted him.
Only the sound of fists clashing snapped him back to reality.
In the courtyard, Hinata and Hanabi were sparring.
Hanabi was nine, her talent on full display—no less than Hinata or Neji.
Hiashi felt genuinely proud.
Both his "main" and "side" accounts were outstanding.
Even if one got poached, it wouldn't matter.
But now it seemed his outlook had been too small.
Hinata would instead give back to the Hyuga Clanin the future and lead them to greater heights.
Watching their match, Hiashi fell into thought.
Calling it a match was generous; Hinata was guiding Hanabi.
After merging with her lunar Character Card, she had the strength to qualify as a village's Kage.
Hanabi was gifted, but still far behind.
A dozen minutes later, Hinata stopped and patted her little sister's head. "That's enough for today."
The two walked over to Hiashi.
"Father."
"Mm, well done. Hanabi's improved a lot."
Hiashi smiled and praised her.
Hanabi blinked, a bit taken aback.
Something felt different.
Usually he was strict, but today he seemed relaxed.
"Hanabi, go inside and rest. I need to speak with your sister."
"Okay."
Hanabi turned and left.
The match had left her sweaty and uncomfortable; she wanted a bath and a change of clothes.
"What is it, Father?"
Hinata asked, neither servile nor arrogant.
Apart from Naruto, she no longer blushed or grew shy.
"You've really grown up."
Hiashi sighed.
"Did something good happen today, Father?"
Like Hanabi, Hinata could see he was in an unusually good mood.
"Not really."
After a few seconds he asked, "When will you and Naruto get married?"
"Huh?"
Hinata froze on the spot.
Of course she wanted to marry him—but they were only fourteen.
Father, are you…?