Danzo's Appreciation

"Damn, they came fast." The Second Elder cursed inwardly, but had no choice but to step forward to meet them.

However, he wasn't about to give them any pleasantries right now.

After all, their purpose was to stop the clan from rescuing his granddaughter—it would be strange if the Second Elder had a good attitude.

Of course, the Third Hokage and the others understood this perfectly well and wouldn't hold his rudeness against him.

After a round of pointless back-and-forth, neither side could convince the other.

But the rescue team's operation was delayed as a result.

With no other option, Kyosuke stepped forward and looked directly at the Third Hokage and the others.

Normally, with Kyosuke's current strength and status, he wouldn't have the right to speak. But who could argue with his title of "Third Hokage's grand-disciple"?

So when he stepped forward, everyone stopped arguing, ready to see what this little genius had to say.

"Earlier, while on patrol, I saw two kids fighting," Kyosuke began, speaking of something that seemed completely unrelated. Yet no one interrupted him; they listened quietly.

"The reason was simple. One kid wanted the candy the other had, so he tried to take it."

"The scared kid just gave him the candy and ran away, thinking, 'If I give him the candy, he won't bully me anymore, right?'"

"But that wasn't what happened. The bully didn't stop—he got worse, even stealing the money from the other kid's pocket."

As Kyosuke told his story, the scene fell into dead silence.

"Until one day, the bullied kid finally couldn't take it anymore and fought back. He knocked one of the bully's teeth out, then walked away smugly while the bully cried."

"After that, I noticed the original bully followed him a few times. But every time he tried to steal something, the wound in his mouth reminded him—it hurt."

"In the end, he never dared to bully that kid again."

"Because every time he thought of that kid, he felt it."

"Pain!!!"

Finishing his story, Kyosuke looked up, meeting the Third Hokage's eyes and asked, "Right now, isn't Konoha just like that bullied kid?"

"If we back down now, will the Sand Shinobi really stop?" Kyosuke shook his head silently, his tone firm. "No. They've already tasted the sweetness, and they'll only push harder."

"In the end, it won't just be them. The Cloud Ninja, the Rock Ninja, even the Mist Ninja across the sea—they'll all charge in like starving dogs, tearing off every piece of meat from us."

Kyosuke closed his eyes as he spoke, then snapped them open. The eerie Sharingan in his pupils spun faintly. "To avoid that, there's only one solution: make them feel what pain means!!!"

After hearing Kyosuke's words, everyone stared at him with astonished eyes.

Until a loud shout shattered the silence.

"Well said!!!"

The one praising him wasn't the Uchiha elders, nor Fugaku and the others, and certainly not the Third Hokage.

It was Danzo, who had been silent the whole time!!!

At that moment, his exposed single eye gleamed with light as he stared at Kyosuke, as if he had found a kindred spirit.

Kyosuke's argument was exactly the policy Danzo had always advocated and insisted on.

Unfortunately, that kind of thinking wasn't accepted by the peaceful Third Hokage and his ilk, leaving Danzo with plenty of frustration but nowhere to vent.

Because under the shadow of the "Will of Fire," the vast majority of Konoha ninjas couldn't accept Danzo's radical ideas.

Until today, here, from the mouth of a five-year-old child, he heard the same insight. For a moment, Danzo's emotions surged violently.

"Hiruzen, have you wasted all these years living like a dog? You can't even see as clearly as a child!" The more Danzo thought, the more agitated he became, leading to that spontaneous praise.

But then, noticing the strange looks from everyone, even his face—trained to be impervious to Kunai—flushed faintly red.

After an awkward moment, he finally steadied his emotions.

Stomping his cane firmly, Danzo spoke with a resolute tone, "I approve of sending a rescue team, but not in Konoha's name. Do you understand?"

The Uchiha members nodded one after another, silently thinking, "We never expected you to."

Seeing this, the long-silent Third Hokage finally nodded slowly, signaling his approval.

Then they took their leave.

But just before leaving, Danzo gave Kyosuke another long look with his single eye before turning and walking away.

The Second Elder watched the Hokage depart, then walked over excitedly. He wanted to ruffle Kyosuke's hair, but when his hand rose, it paused unexpectedly, then changed to a pat on the shoulder.

Kyosuke nodded at him, and the rescue team finally set off.

"Second, this kid... he's really something. Really something." The Great Elder watched Kyosuke and the others' retreating figures, speaking quietly to his brother beside him.

The Second Elder smiled smugly at the words but said nothing.

"If they can successfully bring Nagisa back this time, then let Fugaku take the position of Uchiha Clan Head." The Great Elder left these words hanging in the air as he turned and walked away.

And he didn't bother to hide them from any clan members.

Outside Konoha, in the vast forest.

The Kyosuke who had been so imposing moments ago was now being carried on the back of one of the clan's Jonin, speeding forward.

Actually, this wasn't surprising. If Kyosuke had to run on his own, he probably wouldn't even make it out of Konoha's core area before collapsing from exhaustion.

And even if he could run, with his pace, by the time he reached the border, those Sand Shinobi would already be home drinking tea.

So, despite the undignified posture, Kyosuke lay there with a clear conscience.

In fact, having been jolted awake in the middle of the night, he was already planning to catch some sleep first.

"I'm still growing, after all—I need to make sure I get enough rest." Having successfully convinced himself, Kyosuke sprawled across that shinobi's broad back and fell asleep.

Maybe it was because he was anxious, or perhaps because his emotions had been running too high earlier, but not only did he fall asleep, he even started snoring softly.

Though the snores were faint, all the shinobi present were highly skilled, and they noticed his sneaky nap right away.

They exchanged glances with each other, smiled faintly, and then, as if by unspoken agreement, stopped their conversation.

And without compromising their travel speed, they did their best to land lightly with each leap and step.

So as not to disturb Kyosuke's sleep.