The Shocked Old Coin, Danzo's Thoughts

"What? This is Hyuga Hoze!"

Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzō stared at the middle-aged man before them, their faces filled with shock and confusion.

They could not believe their eyes; this spirited, black-haired middle-aged man was Hyuga Hoze, the once white-haired, hunched Great Elder of the Hyuga.

"Impossible..." Sarutobi Hiruzen muttered to himself, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"To have actually regained his youth... how is this possible..."

Shimura Danzō's eyes widened as well, a complex surge of emotions rising in his heart—mostly greed and burning desire. If he, this old man, could obtain this secret and return to his youth...

Following that, both of their aged faces darkened.

Hyuga Hiashi, do you feel no shame in saying that? You claim this middle-aged man is Hyuga Hoze. Fine, this old man will accept that.

But for you to say he is in poor health? That is a blatant lie. If he is in poor health, then look at this old man and tell me if I am in good health.

Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzō were men who had weathered great storms, and they quickly adjusted their emotions: "Ahem, ahem... Hiashi, what is going on here? The Great Elder, he..."

Faced with the temptation of regained youth, even the deeply calculating Sarutobi Hiruzen could not hold back.

"Sarutobi Hiruzen, if you have something to ask, ask me directly. I am right here; why are you whispering to Hiashi?" Hyuga Hoze was in no mood to be polite. This was his usual temperament, and he knew that the tougher he acted, the safer the Hyuga would be.

Heh heh... shocked, aren't you?

Being shocked is exactly right.

All thanks to having such a good grandson.

Hyuga Hoze sat there, looking at them nonchalantly, as if he had long anticipated their reaction.

Damn it, just like my grandson said, these two old bastards are just here to probe the bottom line...

There are no airtight walls in this world. Even if he kept a low profile, his recovery of youth would eventually be exposed. In the eyes of the Konoha high-ups, even though they had compromised the day he stormed the Hokage building, that did not mean they held no grudges or thoughts of retaliation.

In their eyes, Hyuga Hoze was nearly at the end of his rope.

Coming here today meant exactly that: a mix of probing and intimidation.

Rather than waiting for them to test him, it was better to hit them with something big and disrupt their train of thought.

Although Sarutobi Hiruzen was choked by his words, he still said with a smile: "If the Great Elder can personally clear up my confusion, that would be for the best..."

The appearance of a rejuvenated Great Elder made the entire situation increasingly complex, something neither of the two old men had expected, bringing Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzō even more confusion and doubt. What exactly had happened to the Hyuga...

"How could it be him?" Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned, trying to clear his thoughts.

"Sigh... you both know that the child Qingwu was born prematurely, and his health has never been very good."

"Having lost his parents early, I had no choice but to use some life-force-stimulating items to help him grow up," Hyuga Hoze said with a helpless expression, a trace of sadness in his eyes, as if he were truly about to die...

"Don't look at me as if I'm still young; in reality, this is just a final flash of brilliance before the end. Who knows which day my life will reach its conclusion..." Hyuga Hoze sighed and shook his head, as if he had already foreseen his impending fate.

"So, when that time comes, I must ask you, Third Hokage, to look after Qingwu. Otherwise, this old man truly will not be able to close his eyes in peace." Hyuga Hoze's voice trembled, and tears even welled up in the corners of his eyes.

"Wuu wuu wuu... Qingwu... my poor grandson..." Hyuga Hoze began to cover his face and weep, as if he were truly plunged into immense grief, his tears flowing freely.

Meanwhile, the brothers Hyuga Hiashi and Hizashi Hyuga struggled to suppress their laughter. Their shoulders shook incessantly, their faces turning beet red as they nearly burst out laughing.

"Sigh... Great Elder, you..."

They kept their heads down, feigning a sorrowful appearance to avoid being discovered by Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzō.

The Great Elder is too good at spouting nonsense, the two thought to themselves. His skill is profound; he can cry on command.

Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzō had black lines across their faces, their mouths twitching uncontrollably.

They thought: Damn it, you old bastard look healthier than Kakashi, and you're talking about watching your grandson grow up.

Can your "final flash" last for several years? Are you taking us for fools?

However, they dared not directly expose Hyuga Hoze's lie. After all, the other party was the Great Elder of the Hyuga clan, a figure of high status, and they were currently in the Hyuga compound.

No matter how the two questioned him or tried to steer the conversation, Hyuga Hoze remained feigned ignorance, refusing to take the bait.

He persisted with his previous excuse, claiming he had consumed a secret clan medicine that stimulated his life force, and that this was merely a final, fleeting recovery before his imminent death.

"What? Is there any more of that secret medicine?"

"None left. There was only that one portion; it is a treasure passed down through the clan for thousands of years."

"If it weren't for Clan Head Hiashi seeing my plight and remembering my lifelong service to the Hyuga, he would never have made an exception to grant it to me."

"Otherwise, this old man would have been buried in the ground long ago. Clan Head Hiashi is the great benefactor of our grandfather and grandson!"

Hearing this, Hyuga Hiashi, the head of the Hyuga clan, was moved to tears: "Great Elder, you are too kind."

"You have worked tirelessly for the Hyuga your entire life, and you are the pillar of our clan."

"Forget about this ancestral secret medicine; even if you needed my life to save yours,"

"I would offer it without the slightest hesitation."

Hyuga Hoze said with a look of immense gratitude: "Clan Head..." and bowed deeply to Hiashi.

"Great Elder..."

"General Yu Jin here... The lineage of Hyuga Hoze is willing to go through fire and water for the clan for generations." Cough, cough, cough~ wrong script.

"Great Elder..."

Seeing Hyuga Hoze make such a heartfelt declaration, Hiashi began to act as well. With tears streaming down his face, he responded with equal fervor: "Great Elder..."

Hizashi was stunned.

It was one thing for the Great Elder to be an old fox and a master of acting, but his brother, who was usually so stern and rigid, was actually putting on a show too.

They were saying such stiff, nauseating words so naturally. Perhaps this was the reason why he could never become the clan head.

For a moment.

Some of the obsessions in Hizashi's heart dissipated.

Not being the clan head was actually quite nice.

"You two, you two..."

Watching the two of them perform, Sarutobi Hiruzen and Danzo were thoroughly disgusted. What the hell, we're talking about a thousand-year-old Nine-Tails, why are you playing these games? This topic shift is way too clumsy.

No, I must obtain the secret to regaining youth.

As time passed, Danzo felt increasingly powerless and drained. He even felt that even if he became Hokage, he might not last a few years; fighting with Sarutobi Hiruzen all these years had been far too exhausting.

"Right, the disappearance of Root members."

"I don't care about a few subordinates, but if I can use this to coerce the Hyuga into handing over their secret techniques, then their deaths will have served a purpose."

"I'm looking forward to seeing what Grandfather will do."

Qingwu, watching from the shadows, knew that this old man was brewing more mischief just by looking at Danzo's thoughtful expression. However, he was only here to watch the show today; the old man had promised to let him broaden his horizons~