Inside the Hokage's office in the Fire Shadow Building.
Hiruzen Sarutobi leaned back in his chair, eyes lowered in silence as he drew slowly on his pipe, exhaling steady curls of smoke.
The air hung thick and stifling, like the inside of a sealed jar under high pressure—the kind that made you want to smash the walls or pry open the lid just to breathe.
"Cough, cough!"
Only when Koharu Utatane let out an involuntary cough did the unbearable silence finally break.
"Hiruzen, about this matter…"
Homura Mitokado breathed a sigh of relief. He glanced at Danzō, who stubbornly refused to lower his head, then looked back at Hiruzen Sarutobi. "This time, Danzō really went too far…"
"Secretly conducting Wood Release experiments, concealing research results and a Wood Release shinobi—don't tell me that isn't excessive enough?"
Before Homura could continue making excuses for him, Hiruzen cut in with an expressionless face. "We're talking about Wood Release. Don't pretend you don't understand what that means!"
At those words, Homura's aged face flushed slightly. He shot a helpless glance toward Danzō Shimura.
Yes. It was Wood Release.
Who could have imagined Danzō's audacity had grown to the point where he would hide a Wood Release shinobi?
If not for the investigation into Orochimaru's defection, they still wouldn't have known the Wood Release had resurfaced.
The extent of Danzō's control over Root sent a chill even through Homura.
"Root is Konoha's root, the root of the Anbu, and my own root. Yet now it dares to withhold such vital information from me—the Hokage. Does that mean…"
Hiruzen paused, narrowing his eyes at Danzō. "It has become an independent organization serving the private interests of certain people?"
Danzō, who had remained stone-faced until now, answered in a deep voice, "Everything I've done has been for Konoha."
Hearing his old comrade's resolute reply, Hiruzen silently exhaled another puff of smoke. His face was veiled in hazy white mist, making his expression impossible to read from Danzō's angle.
"Hiruzen…"
Koharu Utatane, who had stayed quiet until now, finally spoke up as well.
"Enough." Sensing they were about to plead on Danzō's behalf again, Hiruzen waved his hand irritably, cutting them off.
After his teacher Tobirama had died from Kumogakure's betrayal, Hiruzen had taken the Hokage position in a time of crisis.
But the reality of being Hokage was nothing like the ideals he had held as a young man. The moment he assumed the role, he was confronted with war and the pressure from the major shinobi clans, shattering those dreams instantly.
Both the Hyūga and Uchiha clans had initially treated him with defiance—they would obey orders but never truly submit.
Fortunately, as Hokage he held the moral high ground in any power struggle. Besides the Sarutobi clan, he had the support of the Ino–Shika–Chō alliance.
So he had used a strategy of divide and rule—pitting some against others while winning the rest over. With help from Danzō and the others, he employed certain special methods to set the Uchiha and Hyūga clans against each other.
Only then had he secured the Hokage seat, grasped its full authority, and placed his own trusted people in key positions.
The Root from Tobirama's time had originally been nothing more than an Anbu training division.
It was only after Hiruzen placed it under Danzō's command—to handle the dirty work that couldn't be done openly in the Anbu's name, such as monitoring the clans—that it gradually evolved into a full intelligence organization.
In reality, the Root Danzō led was equivalent to an Anbu squad. According to Anbu structure, as squad captain he should only have commanded four teams totaling seventeen people.
Yet under Hiruzen's tacit approval, Root had expanded relentlessly. Under Danzō's influence, its methods had grown darker and darker—until now.
If things continued this way, Root would become too powerful to control and turn into Danzō's personal private army.
It had to be reined in.
"There's no need to mention the Wood Release shinobi 'Kinoe' again. I've already assigned him to the Anbu. Now there's another matter."
Ignoring Danzō's resentful expression, Hiruzen looked at the three of them with deep, penetrating eyes. "Border intelligence reports that Kumogakure appears to be mobilizing troops. They may be planning another provocation."
"What are your thoughts?"
Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado frowned at the same time.
"Again? How disgusting!"
Homura's brows knitted tightly, his tone serious. "No matter what, we cannot act rashly."
"Homura's right," Koharu nodded. "Whatever they're planning, we simply need to stay on guard. We can't give them any excuse to start a war!"
Hiruzen offered no comment. He tapped the ash from his pipe and turned to Danzō. "What do you think?"
Danzō's shadowed eyes narrowed slightly. After a moment of silence, he spoke in a low, raspy voice. "We hit them hard enough to make it hurt!"
"…"
Hiruzen said nothing. He took a deep drag on his pipe, filling his lungs, holding it, then slowly exhaled.
Although the Third Shinobi World War had ended, the shinobi world was far from stable.
The main reason was Konoha's severe shortage of top-tier fighters. First the famed Konoha White Fang had committed suicide during the Second Shinobi World War. Then the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, and his wife Kushina Uzumaki—the Nine-Tails jinchūriki—had died in the Nine-Tails' Attack.
The heavy casualties from the Third Shinobi World War, fought on multiple fronts, had yet to recover, and many more shinobi had perished in the Nine-Tails' Attack orchestrated by the masked man. No matter how vast Konoha's resources and deep its foundations, the village was beginning to feel the strain.
Anyone could see the awkward talent gap Konoha now faced. Though Kumogakure and Iwagakure had been hurt by Konoha, they couldn't resist stirring at such a rare opportunity.
The two villages had been constantly probing the borders of the Land of Fire. Border clashes triggered by their provocations erupted every few months, with the number of casualties steadily climbing.
There was no helping it. Konoha's repeated displays of weakness had only fueled the arrogance of Kumogakure and Iwagakure.
Fortunately, not much time had passed since the end of the Third Shinobi World War. Anti-war sentiment among the people of the Land of Lightning and the Land of Earth remained strong. Neither village dared risk universal condemnation by launching an unprovoked war against Konoha.
Still, only a single legitimate pretext stood between them and full-scale conflict.
A "just" reason that could rally the daimyō, the nobles, and the public to support war.
It was precisely because he refused to hand them that pretext that Hiruzen had chosen to endure provocation after provocation.
He truly didn't dare gamble.
Konoha could no longer afford to gamble.
"Whew."
With that thought, Hiruzen exhaled a plume of smoke and looked down at the intelligence report the Anbu had delivered.
His gradually aging face was veiled in smoke. Even in the sunlight streaming through the window, his expression remained unreadable.
"Iwagakure… Kumogakure…" After a long moment, Hiruzen sighed. "For now, we endure. Assemble a team of shinobi and send them to the border to guard against Kumogakure."
Danzō frowned and instinctively objected, "If you do that, those bastards will only grow bolder!"
Hiruzen glanced at him calmly. "In that case, pull some people from my Root to assist at the border."
"What?" Danzō was stunned.
Hiruzen narrowed his eyes meaningfully. "Is there a problem?"
Any further objection, and he would be removed as Root's leader.
Realizing this, Danzō's expression flickered. He let out a cold snort and turned away, resentment thick in his voice. "Hmph. What problem could I have? It's your Root, after all!"
With that, he headed for the door, then suddenly stopped. His tone was unwilling. "Hiruzen, remember the choice you made today. You will regret it!"
"Watch your attitude, Danzō." Hiruzen tapped his pipe, his voice heavy. "Remember—I am the Hokage."
Danzō's face twitched at the words.
"Then be a good Hokage!" he growled through clenched teeth, grabbing the door handle.
Bang!!
The door slammed shut with a thunderous crash. Koharu Utatane flinched.
Seeing this, Homura Mitokado sighed inwardly. Danzō was still firmly in Hiruzen's grasp.
He could only hope this lesson would make Danzō behave himself for a while…
"By the way, Hiruzen."
Homura seemed to remember something. He frowned and lowered his voice. "The village's forces are already stretched thin, and Jiraiya is still out there. Is that really all right?"
At the mention of Jiraiya, who had left the village under the pretext of pursuing Orochimaru, Hiruzen sighed inwardly but kept his tone calm. "He'll return when the time is right."
Homura and Koharu exchanged a glance, sensing Hiruzen didn't want to elaborate. They could only shake their heads helplessly and take their leave.
Click.
Hiruzen stared at the closed door in silence for a long time. The only sound in the room was his breathing.
After a while, he stood up stiffly and walked to the window. His clouded eyes were obscured by the smoke rising from his pipe.
Konoha always looked especially clean after the rain. Raindrops clung to the eaves, and scattered water stains gleamed like scattered mirrors on every surface—on the leaves, the street lamps, the tiled walls—reflecting the village's prosperity from every angle.
Gazing at the scene outside, Hiruzen's thoughts drifted far.
He thought of the hard-won peace Konoha now enjoyed, of the internal and external troubles lurking beneath that peace, of Orochimaru and Jiraiya who had left the village, of Tsunade who drowned her days in the casinos to numb herself, of the orphan left behind by Minato and Kushina, and of the hopeful gaze that child from the Hyūga clan had given him…
"Hiss…"
Hiruzen's chest rose high as he drew in a long, bitter breath, then slowly let it out. The ember in his pipe glowed brighter, pressing every emotion deep into his heart.
"It's fine," he murmured after a long silence, his voice slightly hoarse, as if speaking to himself. "No matter what I have to sacrifice, I will protect everything Konoha has gained."
—
At the same time, in Training Ground 44—the Forest of Death on the edge of Konoha—sunlight filtered through the branches, scattering golden flecks across two figures' shoulders.
"Senior, power rises from the ground, surges through the spine, blending hard and soft…"
"Ha!"
Both wooden posts in front of Hyūga Kumokawa and Might Guy had been shattered. Kumokawa's post had clearly burst apart from the inside, while Guy's looked like it had been brutally pummeled by raw force.
Watching Might Guy's completely unrefined, brute-force style that sent splinters flying, even Hyūga Kumokawa—who had been teaching him all morning—found his smile starting to strain.
"Whew." Might Guy, who could normally run laps around Konoha all day without tiring, was now drenched in sweat and breathing hard. He scratched the back of his head with a helpless grin. "Kumokawa, this modified Gentle Fist of yours is really tough to learn."
"After all, you've spent over a decade mastering Strong Fist, senior. Adjusting those instincts isn't easy," Kumokawa replied, shaking his head. "Let's call it a day here."
During the second stage of the Chūnin Exams, in the Neji versus Hinata match, Might Guy and Rock Lee had once discussed taijutsu classifications.
Techniques focused on external damage—breaking bones or causing visible trauma—were called Strong Fist. The Hyūga clan's style, which targeted the opponent's chakra network and internal organs, was Gentle Fist. And techniques like those used by Tsunade and the Fourth Raikage, which combined ninjutsu with taijutsu, were known as nin-taijutsu.
What Kumokawa was attempting now was to merge the strengths of both Strong Fist and Gentle Fist, eventually developing his own taijutsu system based on the Eight Gates.
"All right, then—"
Guy's words cut off mid-sentence as Hyūga Kumokawa suddenly felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. An icy chill surged through him.
It was abrupt. Terrifying.
Every muscle in Kumokawa's body tensed. Veins bulged around his Byakugan.
Swish!!
Sure enough, the instant he reacted, a nearly inaudible sound of splitting air reached his ears.
This was an assassination—an attempt on his life, lethal killing intent aimed directly at him.
At this distance and speed, there was no time to search, no time to dodge.
Realizing this, Kumokawa's originally grim eyes suddenly grew calm. Acting on pure instinct, he closed them.
In the next instant, an invisible ripple spread from within him. Kumokawa felt as if he had stepped into another world.
All physical senses shut down, leaving only spiritual "perception."
No howling wind. No insect chirps. No breathing. No heartbeat…
The world fell into absolute, deathly silence.
It was as if time itself had stopped for him.
And then he "saw."
Hyūga Kumokawa "saw" the kunai behind him, wrapped in sharp streams of wind.
Wind Release: Vacuum Blade—a ninjutsu that combined shape and nature transformation, infusing wind-natured chakra into an object to turn it into an incredibly sharp, lightning-fast blade.
The assassin had mastered the technique to its peak. The speed was so great that even Might Guy hadn't reacted.
Yet under Kumokawa's heightened senses, the kunai—which should have been impossible to see clearly at such velocity—seemed to drag a long, endless thread, gliding toward him in extreme slow motion.
Kumokawa didn't turn. He raised his hand, fingers spread like the wings of a crane about to take flight. His knuckles gleamed with the pale calluses earned from years of training.
He caught the kunai's handle. The wind blade pierced his palm but struck an invisible wall, halting dead in midair.
Kumokawa opened his eyes. His calm, snow-pale pupils reflected Might Guy's tense face beside him and the fragmented forest depths sliced by falling leaves.
Whoever it was, returning the favor was only polite.
"Then I'll give it back."
He spun and hurled the kunai. The motion was as swift as wind-scattered leaves. His robe hem fluttered, revealing a lean waist and a spine arched like a drawn bow as he unleashed every ounce of his strength.
The next instant, the kunai left his hand.
Whoosh!
A piercing shriek tore through the air beside Might Guy's ear. Falling leaves were pulverized in the blink of an eye. Dry leaves on the ground swirled up in the violent gust.
Almost simultaneously, the distant sound of a blade sinking into flesh rang out.
Thud!
***
If you want to read up to 25 chapters ahead, don't hesitate to visit our patron: pat reon . com / XElenea (remove space)