A Marriage of Convenience

One month after the Nine-Tails incident.

Reconstruction is far more difficult than destruction; this past month has been spent solely on clearing rubble and tallying the casualties.

With the Fourth Hokage dead, Konoha is in urgent need of a new leader to take charge of the overall situation.

Of the Sannin, who were the most qualified candidates, Orochimaru has defected, Tsunade cannot be reached, and while Jiraiya has been contacted and is currently on his way back, he has explicitly refused to succeed as Hokage.

Sarutobi Hiruzen, who had stepped down, was forced to accept the mandate in this time of crisis to hold up a chaotic and weakened Konoha.

--

In the conference room of the Hokage Building.

Bang!!

The one-armed Shimura Danzō slammed his hand against the table, his voice chilling: "What kind of joke is this! The entire Uchiha clan has defected, and you people actually didn't send anyone to hunt them down!!"

Nara Shikaku, the current leader of the Jonin squad, looked at Shimura Danzō with slight dissatisfaction: "Lord Danzō, you have just returned and are not yet familiar with the situation. This is..."

"Why did you let me come back!"

Shimura Danzō could not suppress his anger: "Was that brat using me as a bargaining chip!"

"Are you all idiots!"

"Since I was captured, it signifies the end of a ninja's life. There was no need to worry about me; you should have just slaughtered the entire Uchiha clan!"

To perish alongside the Uchiha clan—though it fell far short of his inner ambitions, Danzō felt it would not have been a loss.

"This was the final order of the Fourth."

From the head of the table, Sarutobi Hiruzen spoke indifferently.

"The Fourth... he had no idea what kind of people the Uchiha are! He didn't know, but don't you know either! No..."

"Danzō, your own affairs aren't settled yet, so stop shouting and yelling."

Sarutobi Hiruzen's voice grew colder, and a fierce glint appeared in his eyes as he looked at Danzō.

On the night of the Nine-Tails, he had repeatedly instructed Danzō not to provoke the Uchiha and to simply ensure they did not get near the Nine-Tails.

And yet, look at what he did!

Regardless of who struck first, what are your legs for, Shimura Danzō? Couldn't you have run back to report to me?

Fighting was one thing... but he couldn't even win!

He was caught red-handed, and his secret hoarding of Sharingan was exposed, leading the situation to an irreversible point.

It was utterly foolish!

Danzō was naturally unconvinced and was about to retort...

Utatane Koharu hurriedly tried to mediate: "Danzō, stop talking for now. The situation is... even more complicated than you think."

Sarutobi Hiruzen pointed his finger toward a certain direction outside the window and said in a deep voice: "Danzō, you must have seen that dead zone outside the village when you returned. Use your experience to tell me what kind of power could cause such a scene."

Danzō pondered for a moment before speaking: "Was it the Fourth using the Flying Thunder God to teleport the Nine-Tails' Tailed Beast Bomb?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head.

"I sent people to follow the departing Uchiha... that was caused by Uchiha Sora's summoning beast."

"You should understand what this means..."

"The Uchiha clan possesses power on the level of a Tailed Beast!"

"So... what of it? If we don't kill that Uchiha brat now, are we just going to give him the chance to grow?"

"Three thousand, seven hundred and twenty-one."

Sarutobi Hiruzen reported a number and said slowly: "This is the number of sacrifices from the village. Most of them were ninjas, including many elite Jonin."

"Even the Fourth and his wife have sacrificed themselves. Do we still have the strength to hunt down the Uchiha clan?"

They certainly had the strength; a starving camel is still bigger than a horse.

With Konoha's remaining combat power, a full-scale assault would make wiping out the Uchiha clan no difficult task.

But what then?

If they fought until only a handful of people were left, could they still hold onto the Land of Fire, the most prosperous territory?

Danzō was not a fool, and he quickly understood the crux of the matter.

The Fourth's final order was merely a pretext. Sarutobi Hiruzen's own wife had died at the hands of the Uchiha; he was a human being too, so why wouldn't he want to take revenge on the Uchiha clan?

But he couldn't...

He still shouldered the expectations of too many people, and there were too many who needed his protection; he could not act on impulse.

Danzō's eyes darkened as a scheme took shape.

"The Uchiha Clan... they possess a rare Kekkei Genkai; many would be interested in them."

"If we only tell Kumogakure..."

"Lord Danzō, please calm yourself," Nara Shikaku couldn't help but interject.

"Do you think if Kumogakure learned the entire Uchiha Clan had defected, they would prioritize hunting down the Uchiha, or attacking Konoha first?"

"Once we guide Kumogakure to strike at the Uchiha, given the temperament of that Uchiha Sora, he would defect to Kumogakure without hesitation and attack Konoha!"

"Is it better to pay a heavy price for a few Sharingan, or to gain the entire Uchiha Clan and devour the fat piece of meat that is Konoha... The Raikage is no brute; he knows how to choose."

"Lord Danzō, you are tired. It would be best to go and rest for a while."

In the past, Nara Shikaku would never have dared to speak to Danzō like this.

But Danzō's actions had truly infuriated him.

That arm embedded with several Sharingan had been seen by more than just one person; the news had already spread.

The Uchiha Clan's mass defection was wrong, but was there no responsibility on your part, Shimura Danzō?

Why did you have to push them so far!

Danzō's gaze shifted, and he noticed that the jōnin present were looking at him with ill intent.

Even his old friends, Utatane Koharu and Homura, wore expressions urging him to let the matter rest.

He said nothing more, realizing that the current situation was not suitable for further argument.

"This old man... is indeed tired."

He needed to lie low now and rebuild the strength of Root before he could reclaim his voice!

"Then rest well at home and do not go out," Sarutobi Hiruzen said calmly, passing judgment on Shimura Danzō.

In the end, Shimura Danzō took one last deep look at Sarutobi Hiruzen, leaving one sentence unspoken.

Hiruzen, you will surely...

--

After Danzō left, Nara Shikaku handed over a document.

"The Uchiha Clan has set up camp at the ruins of the Land of Whirlpools. Judging by their actions, they intend to settle there."

"The Land of Whirlpools, is it..."

The Land of Whirlpools was a small coastal nation that had once been the home of the Uzumaki Clan.

This location could be considered a bridgehead for the Land of Fire against the Land of Water. Having experienced the destruction of the Uzumaki Clan, no one had dared to live there since.

"This is a letter sent by Uchiha Sora. Please take a look."

Sarutobi Hiruzen took the envelope, opened it, and studied it carefully.

The entire letter spoke of only one thing.

If Sarutobi Hiruzen was willing, he could announce to the outside world that the Uchiha Clan remained an ally of Konoha.

It would simply be a matter of internal discord, with them relocating to the Land of Whirlpools to help Konoha guard against the Land of Water, much like the Uzumaki Clan once did.

Of course, both sides knew full well whether they were truly allies.

If Sarutobi Hiruzen was unwilling, Uchiha Sora would take his entire clan and join Kumogakure.

Uchiha Sora understood very well that even if the Uchiha were the strongest ninja clan in the world, they could not compare to the power of a Great Nation.

If they wanted to buy time to develop, they had to swallow their pride and hide behind Konoha's banner.

Konoha was in the same boat.

They were even more afraid to tell the outside world that the Uchiha Clan had defected.

The Uchiha accounted for at least one-fifth of Konoha's strength, and perhaps even more now.

If such a force were to break away and other Great Nations found out... there was no need to say more.

The two sides were now like a divorced couple who, to avoid outside interference, had concealed the fact that they were no longer together.

The Uchiha had choices.

At worst, they could surrender their sovereignty and join another Great Nation; no Great Nation would refuse such power.

Ah, except for the Land of Water.

Hmm... the Land of Earth would be difficult too; that old man had a phobia of the Sharingan.

As for Konoha, they had no choice.

Sarutobi Hiruzen let out a deep sigh, his eyes dark and heavy.

Compared to the strength Uchiha Sora had displayed, this shrewd ability to precisely grasp the timing of the situation made him even more wary.

Reflecting on it, there truly could not have been a more suitable time for a defection than the night of the Nine-Tails.

In the years prior, the village held absolute suppression over the Uchiha.

In a few years' time, the village would have recovered its strength; even if dealing with the Uchiha then incurred losses, it would not have shaken the foundation...

Even Sarutobi Hiruzen only realized this after the fact.

Had this brat really considered everything the moment the incident occurred...

In the few times they had interacted, Sarutobi Hiruzen was well aware that he had been led by the nose.

He knew it... yet he was helpless to stop it.

"Let it be... let us move on to discuss the reconstruction plans for the village."