Crack

Kōtarō was just a pretext; Chōjūrō's goal was to stir up the village's concerns about the Chiyo Clan.

The villagers wouldn't say, "Kōtarō did this," but rather, "The Chiyo Clan people did this."

Chiyo's character truly had no points to attack. She wasn't a perfect person, but given her status, those flaws were ignorable.

But the Chiyo Clan was different. No matter how strong Chiyo was, she couldn't control people's selfish desires.

It was fine when she was in power; the clan members would still restrain themselves.

But after she let go, although Ebizō had prestige, his restraint was far weaker than Chiyo's.

Especially after the clan members discovered that Chiyo seemed to truly not care about their affairs anymore, they acted like completely different people. Some became more arrogant and overbearing than those of other clans, as if venting all the pent-up dissatisfaction from previous years.

The villagers also noticed that the Chiyo Clan people seemed to have assimilated with other clans in a short period.

In the Chiyo Clan's view, becoming like other clans was only right, even a disadvantage.

But in the villagers' eyes, the village's foremost clan had become like this, and the only person who could uphold justice for them was gone.

In the eyes of other clans, the Chiyo Clan's sudden aggression would also trigger their sense of crisis. After all, no clan could withstand Chiyo's encroachment on their interests.

This formed a vicious cycle. The Chiyo Clan members felt the growing distance from others, leading to dissatisfaction. Others, in turn, became more worried due to the Chiyo Clan's dissatisfaction, thus distancing themselves from them, and so on.

Although the incident had only erupted for a short day, the village wasn't large. One day was enough for most people to know about it. Chiyo also keenly sensed a hint of conspiracy, but before she could act, Chōjūrō had already requested an Elder Council meeting.

"I believe that people like Kōtarō are isolated cases within the Chiyo Clan. Most Chiyo Clan members are very patriotic and rule-abiding."

Chōjūrō spoke calmly and composedly. Then, he changed his tone: "However, many people in the village are currently concerned about this phenomenon. We are all elders who have grown with the village for decades. Such things should not happen again~"

Ebizō snorted, "Which clan doesn't have a few rats? Just get rid of them. Are you, Lord Chōjūrō, going to conduct a major overhaul of the entire clan?"

"A few rats are fine, but I fear it has already become a rat's nest."

Ebizō straightened his body, his previously hunched and aged appearance vanishing. He leaned forward slowly, his icy gaze fixed on the other man. "Sour Melon, do you know what you're saying?"

Sour Melon was a nickname given to Chōjūrō by older children when he was young, saying he was jealous of what others had while possessing nothing himself.

The instigator of this nickname was Ebizō.

Ever since Chōjūrō became an Elder, he hadn't heard this word in many years.

"Tagalong, I am considering the village's best interests."

Chōjūrō didn't dare confront Chiyo directly, but he was not afraid of Ebizō at all.

Without your sister, you're just a little brother!

When I was bravely fighting on the battlefield, you were behind your sister!

When I infiltrated Iwagakure to assassinate high-ranking officials for the village, you were behind your sister!

When I mastered various ninjutsu and my taijutsu was unparalleled in Sunagakure, you were STILL behind your sister! What right do you have to bark at me?!

The two were at loggerheads, while the others remained silent, waiting for Chiyo to break the stalemate.

But Chiyo's gaze was lowered, and she remained silent.

In her eyes, "home" meant the collective and her own small family.

The collective was the village she had built with her own hands. Her small family consisted of her children and siblings. As for the clan, she didn't even know the names of some of her blood relatives.

She had watched Chōjūrō grow up. His intentions were completely hidden from her, but precisely because she understood him, she chose not to speak.

Once she intervened, it would surely provoke Chōjūrō, who was being betrayed by his allies. Currently, Chiyo had a stable three seats in the Elder Council, the Kazekage faction had four seats, and Chōjūrō's faction had four seats. However, due to issues with resource allocation, a rift had formed within Chōjūrō's faction, and Chōjūrō wasn't sure if his allies would unequivocally support his actions.

If the conflict between the two clans were to be made public at this juncture, Chōjūrō would only have two choices: yield or fight with all his might.

Considering his age, he would most likely choose the latter, which would be a complete disaster for Sunagakure.

"Please calm down, the priority now is to deal with this incident."

Rasa, sitting in a subordinate position at the round table, spoke to ease the atmosphere, but clearly, someone wasn't receptive.

"Rasa, this is a matter for the Elders. Some things can be discussed when you are truly qualified to sit at this table."

Rasa hadn't expected Chōjūrō to retort, his expression becoming unsightly, as if he had been bitten by a mad dog.

Just then, Hoshino Maki, who had been standing behind Chiyo, came to her side, covered his mouth with one hand, and whispered into Chiyo's ear.

Chiyo frowned after listening but didn't say anything.

The meeting hall was large, but there were few people. Hoshino Maki's actions were naturally seen clearly by everyone.

"My Lords, since the incident has already occurred, we can only find ways to remedy it. Kōtarō's actions are unforgivable, and the Chiyo Clan will not allow such things to happen."

Chōjūrō frowned and was about to say something when he heard the other person continue, "However, the Chiyo Clan does bear some responsibility for inadequate guidance. Before the internal cleansing, perhaps the village's finances could be managed by Elder Yūta and Elder Hyakki's clans. At the same time, starting today, each clan head and Elder will send personnel to form an enforcement team to supervise the execution of the Elder Council's orders. What do the Elders think?"

There was no response for a moment.

The management of the village's finances would fall to the Kazekage faction and Chōjūrō's faction. The formation of the enforcement team was essentially a restraint on the subordinates of the Great Clans, indirectly increasing the Elder Council's authority.

This was undoubtedly a weakening of the Chiyo Clan.

In the past, members of the major clans were only responsible to their own clans. If someone from a major clan clashed with the Elder Council's orders, it often devolved into a shouting match, especially with the Chiyo Clan members, who often only listened to Chiyo and not the Elder Council.

Now, with people from all major clans forming an enforcement team, anyone who resisted would be considered an enemy of the entire Elder Council.

Even the Chiyo Clan members couldn't bear that.

Having lost control of finances and being constrained by the Elder Council, even Chōjūrō felt Chiyo would not agree.

But Chiyo merely closed her eyes to rest, as if she hadn't heard.

"Sister."

"Address Elder Chiyo here."

Chiyo opened her eyes, glanced at Ebizō, then swept her gaze over everyone's faces before slowly standing up.

"Let's do it this way."

With that, she picked up the straw hat on the table and slowly left.

Hoshino Maki wanted to follow and help her, but his hand was pushed away.

Behind her stooped figure, the elders watching this scene exchanged glances.

Thanks to @书友20210710160041820 for the monthly ticket, and thanks to @9527号观测者 for 2 monthly tickets!