Unceasing Turmoil

Adofuku Street, more than ten kilometers from Konoha.

Inside a hall, several geisha performed songs and dances for those present while musicians seated nearby played lilting, melodious tunes. The man seated at the head of the room watched the performance with great enjoyment.

"What is it, Third Hokage? You seem troubled. Is the performance not to your liking?"

"You misunderstand, Lord Gen. I merely suddenly remembered that there is still official business in the village left unattended, so I was distracted for a moment," Sarutobi replied. He was starting to feel uncomfortable. This was not the first time the daimyo had invited him out for entertainment. At first, it had felt novel, but after too many such occasions, it began to feel far too decadent.

Yet he could not easily refuse the daimyo's invitations, so every time he could only steel himself and attend, suffering and enjoying it at once.

"The Third Hokage is truly dedicated. With you governing Konoha, I believe it will soon regain its former strength," Lord Gen said with a hearty laugh.

"You flatter me, Lord Gen."

Besides the two of them, Mitokado Homura, Shimura Danzō, Uchiha Fugaku, Hyuga Hiashi, and others were also present.

The Twelve Guardian Ninja were not in the room, but concealed elsewhere, protecting them in secret.

Lord Gen continued, "But this is a time to relax. Don't trouble yourself over work. Look at Mitokado—he certainly knows how to enjoy himself."

Mitokado Homura, who had been intently watching the singing and dancing, heard the daimyo suddenly mention him and smiled awkwardly, unsure whether he was being praised or subtly mocked.

Lord Gen suddenly waved his hand, signaling the geisha to stop. "Is there anything better? Something to cheer up the Third Hokage."

Everyone withdrew. Before long, several scantily clad, ravishing women entered, all of them exceptional in both figure and beauty.

Sarutobi could only groan inwardly. If Biwako found out about this scene, he would inevitably get another scolding.

Hiashi and Fugaku also wore awkward, troubled expressions.

They were ninja. Though they were prominent clans in the village, they were not truly high-ranking nobles. They simply did not know how to handle such occasions.

Yet Lord Gen found their expressions amusing.

Sarutobi spoke up then. "Lord Gen, we ninja have rules we must observe. Please do not make things difficult for us."

Lord Gen was taken aback, then remembered the Three Ninja Taboos.

They referred to the three things that corrupted the human heart: money, women, and alcohol.

Lord Gen immediately lost interest and waved dismissively. "Fine. All of you, leave."

Only then did everyone breathe a sigh of relief.

But just then, one of the women suddenly charged forward, a sharp blade in hand, and stabbed straight at the daimyo!

"Lord Gen!"

Lord Gen turned pale in shock. Fortunately, two figures moved faster and stepped in front of him. Fugaku and Hiashi subdued the woman in an instant.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The Twelve Guardian Ninja rushed over at once upon hearing the commotion. All the women present were forced to the ground. Some screamed, but were immediately knocked unconscious. At the same time, half of the men left to seal off the hall.

"Lord Gen, are you all right?"

Fugaku asked the daimyo behind him, but the woman he and Hiashi had pinned to the floor suddenly spat blood. Her entire body jerked violently, and then she went still.

He bent down to examine her and discovered that she had taken poison. Fugaku's expression immediately darkened.

Lord Gen was still shaken. His gaze swept over everyone in the room, then settled on the dead woman.

He rose to his feet in fury. "Who is this person?!"

One of the Twelve Guardian Ninja examined the woman's corpse and found a Kirigakure forehead protector.

The expressions of all the Konoha people present changed at once.

How stupid would this woman have to be to carry her own village's forehead protector while carrying out an assassination? Konoha and Kirigakure were currently at war—did she really need to frame them?

Moreover, while the woman was fairly agile, she was not a ninja at all. That was why no one present had noticed anything unusual about her at first.

She had tried to assassinate the daimyo, then taken poison to kill herself. This was clearly aimed at Konoha!

Sarutobi felt a chill rise from the depths of his heart. This method was far too vicious.

He turned to look at the daimyo and met his icy gaze.

"Lord Gen..."

Lord Gen sneered. "Third Hokage, what exactly is this supposed to be?"

Sarutobi hurriedly said, "It was our failure that allowed Lord Gen to be frightened!"

Lord Gen mocked, "What, the Third Hokage did not know about this beforehand?"

Sarutobi's scalp went numb. "I do not understand what Lord Gen means..."

One of the Twelve Guardian Ninja at the side demanded, "How did the Mist Ninjas learn that Lord Gen was here?"

Sarutobi had no answer. This woman was definitely not a Mist Ninja; she had been disguised as one by someone else. But how was he supposed to explain that to the daimyo?

Even if he pointed that out, it would sound utterly absurd to outsiders, and it would only make him seem as though he were trying to excuse Konoha.

Mitokado Homura spoke then. "Lord Gen, you misunderstand. Konoha has always been utterly loyal to the Land of Fire. We would never—"

Lord Gen cut him off. "So there are those who are disloyal?"

The moment Sarutobi heard Mitokado Homura's words, he sighed inwardly. That was exactly the line the daimyo had been waiting for.

Lord Gen questioned Sarutobi, "Has that traitor been found?"

"...No."

Lord Gen continued to sneer. "Sarutobi Hiruzen, you are doing an excellent job as Hokage. Do you think I, the daimyo, am in your way?"

"I would never dare."

Lord Gen walked up to Sarutobi and swept his gaze across everyone in the room, including the subdued women.

He ordered, "Arrest everyone and interrogate them thoroughly. Arrest any suspicious person in this town immediately!"

One of the Twelve Guardian Ninja accepted the order and then left the hall to convey it to the local officials.

The women were taken away. Sarutobi said then, "Konoha will assist with the investigation. We will certainly find the true culprit behind this. Lord Gen, please move to Konoha for now, so that we can strengthen your protection."

Lord Gen merely sneered. "Protection? Adofuku Street is not far from Konoha, is it? If Mist Ninjas can cross the Land of Fire and reach this place, can I still trust Konoha's abilities?"

Sarutobi immediately promised, "We Konoha ninja will protect Lord Gen with our lives. We will never allow Lord Gen to suffer even the slightest harm!"

Lord Gen only snorted coldly and left the room with his hands clasped behind his back.

The Twelve Guardian Ninja followed behind him. Some among them were originally from Konoha, and though they were conflicted by the situation, they could only follow the daimyo out of the room.

Mitokado Homura moved closer. "Sarutobi, we..."

He, too, hesitated to speak.

Danzo said then, "As long as the traitor remains, Konoha will never know peace. Leave this matter to Root."

Sarutobi was silent for a long while before finally speaking. "The wind still has not ceased."

If this person was not eliminated, they would sooner or later bring all of Konoha to ruin!

Regarding the daimyo, I feel it is necessary to explain a little more.

The daimyo in the world of Naruto really are rather unreasonable. In a world where strength reigns supreme, they should not exist at all.

But Kishimoto wrote them in anyway. And in Naruto, the daimyo's attitude toward Tsunade and Konoha was rather impolite, yet the latter still did not dare act presumptuously.

The only explanation is that Japanese people see things differently from us.

This world needs daimyo to govern it, and ninja villages need daimyo to support them. The vast majority of ninja naturally believe from the bottom of their hearts that the daimyo are kings and hold a higher status than themselves. Only a small number regard the daimyo as beneath notice.

Naruto has plenty of plot holes, so do not dwell too much on this.