Spy

"I left Minato with a mess to clean up. Although he came from a civilian family and civilian-born shinobi naturally felt close to him, without the support of the shinobi clans, his orders would be difficult to carry out."

"Strength could solve many problems, but it couldn't help him govern the village."

"And then there were those three old friends of mine..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head helplessly. "Koharu and Homura have many interests tied up with others. Numerous shinobi clans are connected to them, and even some elders of the Sarutobi Clan. Danzo, on the other hand, has drawn a clear line between himself and the clans. But he controls Root and is used to handling everything through underhanded means, which makes him the most dangerous of them all."

After all, whether it was the Hokage or the two advisors, they had to consider their reputations and the effects of their actions. Danzo didn't care about any of that.

People who acted without restraint and stopped at nothing were often the most dangerous.

Danzo had always regarded the shinobi clans as useful tools. He had never considered appeasing them. If Hiruzen hadn't kept him in check, the clans would probably have already lost patience and moved against him.

Some of the powerful shinobi in Root had been forcibly transferred from the clans by Danzo!

"Kushina once complained to me about why I hadn't removed them from office. But if I really did that, the consequences would be unpredictable."

If the clans and Root took it as a signal that he was moving against them, Konoha would be plunged into civil war.

And they couldn't afford losses like that.

Unless he could uproot the forces behind all three while dealing with them, or have them die at the hands of an outside enemy, those three would probably remain in Konoha's upper ranks for a long time—longer than any one Hokage's term...

With a sigh, Sarutobi Hiruzen turned his gaze to the other Hyuga shinobi there.

"Minato is close to the current Uchiha Clan Head, and Kushina has a good relationship with the Uchiha as well. With the support of the Hyuga Clan and Shikaku's group, he can gradually secure the Hokage Position."

He didn't mention the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans. Although Shikaku and the others were clan heads, like Hyuga Hiashi, they couldn't speak for their entire clans.

"Perhaps there's nothing we can do about the shinobi clans that have taken such deep root in Konoha, but at least Minato, who came from a civilian family, won't let things get worse than before. I've made the wrong choice too many times. This is the one time I can't afford to be wrong."

"I've put you in a difficult position, Tokuma."

"Without me keeping him in check, Danzo will certainly try something. Please keep an eye on him for me. I'll take care of the Cursed Seal on your head. As for your dereliction of duty this time, I'll explain it as well."

"Yes, Lord Third!" Hyuga Tokuma replied in a low voice.

Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Hiashi.

"My apologies, Clan Head Hiashi. I criticized the Hyuga Clan quite a bit in what I said. I hope you'll understand."

Hyuga Hiashi shook his head. "I understand. The shinobi clans are all rotting from within. If they're allowed to govern Konoha, then one day, Konoha and the clans will both meet their doom."

Just like before, when the Main Branch had suffered the backlash, hadn't it?

Hyuga Hiashi gave a bitter inward smile, composed himself, then asked in confusion, "Lord Hokage, why did you have Tokuma infiltrate Root? If you only wanted someone to keep an eye on Danzo, surely there were better choices."

"The recent events in the Hyuga Clan give Tokuma a plausible reason to infiltrate Root as a Branch Family member who resents the Main Branch. If someone else joined Root at a time like this, it would only arouse suspicion. Given how well Danzo knows me, he'd certainly guess that I was behind it."

Sarutobi Hiruzen explained quietly:

"Besides, Root's new Cursed Seal was derived from the Caged Bird. Danzo knows the Caged Bird Technique too, and I'm worried he might decipher the Cursed Seal Tsunade and I created, then make a move against the Hyuga Clan. With Tokuma as an inside man, we can respond in time."

It wasn't impossible. Danzo coveted the Hyuga Branch Family too. After all, they'd been trained by the Main Branch for hundreds of years and had little inclination to resist, making them the most useful tools.

They had only recently erupted once, but things had soon calmed down thanks to Hiashi's measures.

Sarutobi Hiruzen glanced at Hyuga Tokuma's composed face. Even though Danzo held his life in his hands, he still remained loyal to the Main Branch.

It wasn't the body that had submitted, but the heart.

The Caged Bird Technique... It was truly terrifying.

"Are you worried Danzo will move against the Main Branch and take control of the Branch Family?"

Hyuga Hiashi's face paled. He clenched his teeth. "How dare he?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed softly. "There's nothing he wouldn't dare to do. He could make it look like an internal conflict among the clans, and the Hokage wouldn't have the authority to hold him accountable."

If Root got its hands on the Byakugan, a kekkei genkai like that would even let Danzo monitor the movements of all Konoha. Why wouldn't he want it?

When they returned to the clan compound with the troubled Hiashi, Hyuga Tokuma didn't stay long. He soon left for a secluded spot.

He entered an underground passage through a hidden cave. At the far end, someone was waiting for him.

Hearing footsteps, the figure turned around.

Hyuga Tokuma dropped to one knee and reported, "Lord Hane, I've successfully infiltrated Root."

Hyuga Hane looked at his subordinate and nodded.

"Thanks for the effort. Get up."

In the information he'd given Minato, he'd left out one word in his assessment of Hyuga Tokuma: patient.

The first person in the Hyuga Clan to pledge himself to Hane hadn't been Hyuga Yuki, but Hyuga Tokuma, whom he'd known since the Ninja Academy.

This calm, mature shinobi, who would one day serve as Hinata's bodyguard, harbored a deeper resentment toward the Main Branch than anyone could have imagined.

"I've already sent the boy who was with Raiga Kurosuki to your Laboratory No. 3."

Hyuga Tokuma stood and continued his report to Hane. "As for the Third, his attitude was a little strange. He seemed very worried about what Danzo might do."

But the Third was in Konoha and could keep Danzo in check himself. Why have Tokuma infiltrate Root?

Hyuga Tokuma briefly summarized what the Third had said, then recounted it to Hane.

After listening, Hyuga Hane didn't speculate about the Third's actions. He simply said:

"The Fourth Hokage will head to the battlefield in two days."

Hyuga Tokuma was confused at first, unsure why Hane had brought it up. Then realization dawned on him. "The Third will go to the battlefield too?"

Even then, he couldn't understand why a retired Hokage had to go to the battlefield.

"If he wants to weaken the Sarutobi Clan, isn't the Mist Village Battlefield the perfect opportunity?"

Hane's question made Tokuma understand at once. A chill ran through him.

That was right. In a war led by the Fourth Hokage—a war they were bound to win—anyone confident in their strength would want to head to the battlefield and earn some merit.

No one in the Sarutobi Clan could have imagined that their clan head, Sarutobi Hiruzen, would use this as a pretext to weaken his own clan!

But did Sarutobi Hiruzen really have that kind of resolve?

Hyuga Hane said, "According to frontline intelligence, after Jiraiya led the advance team in as reinforcements, the Third Mizukage entered the battle. Both Tailed Beasts have been deployed to the battlefield."

"Those famous Mist Village fighters are gradually appearing on the battlefield too. The frontline has already been forced to retreat once. Any ordinary shinobi who goes in will simply become another part of the meat grinder."

Putting everything else aside, Hane knew that the Third hadn't lied about what happened with the Second.

The Uchiha clan-massacre game wasn't unique to Itachi in the Shinobi World.

And now, the Third wanted to follow in his teacher's footsteps and do it again.

Tokuma felt an even deeper chill.

The Third had probably acted knowing all this intelligence!