Stay Away from Him!

"Cough, cough, cough..." Li Tong coughed violently, doubled over, and nearly fell to his knees.

He wasn't giving in!

How could anyone be like this?

Could this be what they meant by being hopelessly addicted to gambling? Was that why she was willing to lower herself and become the disciple of a twelve-year-old ghost Genin just to learn a gambling technique? Li Tong couldn't understand it. Tsunade was just too strange!

"Still... I might be willing to become your disciple and learn your gambling technique." Li Tong coughed as Tsunade drew out her words. "But first, I have to test your skills. If you claim to have mastered the strongest gambling technique, you'll have to prove it to me. Also, our relationship can't be made public, and I won't perform the disciple's formalities for you!"

Li Tong abruptly straightened up, his expression turning stern. "I refuse every condition you've proposed. If you won't teach me, forget it!"

With that, Li Tong walked around Tsunade and strode away.

Tsunade turned to watch him, the corners of her mouth twitching. Then she vanished in a flash.

"Kid, you're really getting cocky!" Tsunade suddenly appeared in front of Li Tong. He crashed into her, bounced back a meter, and only then managed to stop. Tsunade stood with her hands on her hips, looking imposing.

Li Tong stared at Tsunade with dead-fish eyes, as if to say, "What do you want from me?"

"Kid, let me remind you..." Tsunade fixed Li Tong with an amused smile and began to speak.

Whoosh!

A figure appeared out of nowhere behind Tsunade, dropped to one knee, and bowed his head. He spoke rapidly. "Lady Tsunade, Lord Hokage wants you to come see him!"

He was a Konoha Anbu Ninja, one of the most powerful figures in Konoha Village. Even he had to kneel when speaking to Tsunade!

"Oh?" Tsunade glanced at the Anbu Ninja and replied coolly, "I understand."

"Lord Hokage hopes you can come at once," the Anbu Ninja added, then vanished in a flash.

Tsunade turned to Li Tong again, lifting her chin with a mischievous smile. "Kid, you're lucky this time. At the casino, you said your name was Li Tong, right? I'll remember it. I'll come find you again! See you!"

Tsunade winked at Li Tong, formed Hand Seals, and disappeared.

Li Tong stood motionless for a long time, staring at the spot where Tsunade had vanished. Eventually, he muttered, "I'm so screwed."

He felt completely terrible!

******

The sun sank in the west, and the evening clouds were as red as blood.

Deep inside Konoha, in a plain residence under heavy guard, candles had been lit in an elegant, antique-style hall. Their dim, yellow light glimmered strangely across White Fang's cold mask.

Hatake Sakumo stood respectfully beside the long wooden platform at the back of the hall.

A low table rested on the platform, with a pot of tea, two cups, and more than ten unopened intelligence scrolls on it. A middle-aged man of about forty knelt beside the table. A beard lined his chin, and he looked remarkably imposing, his stern face radiating authority.

He was the leader of Konoha Village, the Third, one of the most powerful men in the entire Shinobi World—Hiruzen Sarutobi!

"Lord Hokage, would you like me to speak with the Hyuga Clan?" White Fang asked respectfully.

"Speak with them?" Hiruzen Sarutobi shot a sidelong glance at White Fang, his most trusted confidant, and took a small sip of tea. He considered it for a moment before replying, "There's no need. He killed a Hyuga Clan ninja, so the Hyuga Clan is seeking revenge. No matter how you look at it, the Hyuga Clan is in the right! Even if you went to negotiate with them on my behalf, they might agree to stop in public, but behind the scenes... would they really let it go?"

"But this child is more promising than all the defectors we've taken in before. He's lost his memory and has no past. If we show him some kindness, he'll surely serve us wholeheartedly. If something still goes wrong..."

"Then that's his own problem." Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head, his voice growing quieter. "I truly hope he survives! Only then will it prove that the Surrender Acceptance Plan is viable..."

"But you..."

"You don't understand." Hiruzen Sarutobi set down his teacup and tapped the table twice with his fingers. "Danzo and I devised the Surrender Acceptance Plan together, but it wasn't approved at the council meeting. I used my authority as Hokage to pass it by a single vote... The other leaders don't support this plan. If I warn them now, it won't do me any good—and this child isn't worth going that far for..."

White Fang fell silent.

He had understood the implications when the first few recruits had been killed. Konoha was, after all, made up of one clan after another. The rules of those clans—especially major ones like the Hyuga Clan—took precedence over Konoha's laws.

For example, the head of the Hyuga Main Family could decide whether any Hyuga Branch Family ninja lived or died. He could pass judgment without involving Konoha, and Konoha had no right to interfere!

And when a Hyuga Clan ninja was killed, the Hyuga Clan didn't have to notify anyone. They could take revenge directly. It was only natural!

Hiruzen Sarutobi could certainly warn the Hyuga Clan. Given his relationship with the head of the Hyuga Main Family, he could absolutely put a stop to this. But it wasn't worth it! Even a Hokage couldn't make the Hyuga Clan bear a grudge and give up its revenge for the sake of a kid!

Why should they?! They were loyal to him, loyal to Konoha, yet he wouldn't just refuse to protect them—he'd also expect them to swallow their anger?

White Fang understood that.

But this was what he couldn't understand: if that was the case, what was the point of the plan? Did they really expect that kid to withstand one assassination attempt after another from the Hyuga Clan? Forget him—even an elite Jonin couldn't survive the Hyuga Clan's revenge. It was impossible!

They knew he would die!

Did any of this really mean anything?

Whoosh!

A gust of wind whirled through the hall. Tsunade appeared out of thin air, still holding her Hand Seals. There were only a handful of people in all of Konoha who dared to use the Body Flicker Technique to appear directly in the Hokage's room.

When Hiruzen Sarutobi saw Tsunade, a faint smile appeared on his face. Of his several personal disciples, she was the only woman. He had watched her grow up and doted on her.

"Teacher, you sent for me?" Tsunade came rushing in, took two quick steps to the platform, and bowed to Hiruzen Sarutobi. Then she glanced at White Fang, whose mask gave him an air of mystery, and patted his shoulder. "White Fang, you're here too!"

Tsunade was only two years younger than White Fang. They belonged to the same generation and had known each other since they were young. Though they weren't especially close, they knew each other very well.

White Fang remained silent.

"Someone just reported that you went to the casino again?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked, his voice sinking as his smile faded.

"Uh... well... Teacher... you know I can't quit..." Tsunade said awkwardly.

"I'm not against you gambling. I know you can't quit," Hiruzen Sarutobi said quickly. "What I want to know is whether you met a Dual-Colored Eyes ninja at the casino, around eleven or twelve years old..."

"You mean Li Tong?" Tsunade blinked in surprise. "You know him? He's just a ninja, right? What's so special about him?"

"He only became a Konoha Genin today!"

"Hmm... Did he just graduate from the Ninja Academy?"

"No. He wasn't a Konoha Ninja before."

As Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke, he took a scroll from beneath the low table and handed it to Tsunade.

Tsunade looked puzzled as she took the scroll and quickly scanned it. Her expression soon changed. It contained all the information Konoha had gathered about Li Tong, including his origins in Amegakure, his killing of a Hyuga Clan ninja, and his amnesia and defection to Konoha. At the end were details about the Surrender Acceptance Plan.

"Stay away from him!" Hiruzen Sarutobi said, taking another sip of tea.

"What?" Tsunade lowered the scroll from in front of her face. "Why? Hasn't he already joined Konoha? And he's lost his memory. At eleven or twelve, he's still impressionable—we could assimilate him..."

"The Hyuga Clan wants him dead. Don't get involved," Hiruzen Sarutobi interrupted.

Tsunade was taken aback again. She thought for a moment, then asked, "He killed a Hyuga ninja before defecting, so the Hyuga ninja want revenge. But, Teacher, don't they know about your plan? Since you've already accepted him as a Konoha Ninja, why would the Hyuga Clan still..."

"I'm only telling you not to get involved. I'll arrange for people to protect him. Whether he survives is up to him."

"You... but then why won't you let me get close to him?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't answer right away. There were many things he could tell White Fang, but he really didn't want to tell Tsunade.

"Tsunade, you're Lord Hokage's personal disciple," White Fang said. "If you step in to protect Li Tong, it could cause a direct conflict between Lord Hokage and the Hyuga Clan. The Hyuga Clan's revenge is only natural! Every clan in Konoha is watching. You should understand Lord Hokage's predicament. There's nothing else we can do about this..."

Tsunade stood there with her mouth slightly open, stunned for a moment before saying, "So he's as good as dead?"

"Mm." White Fang nodded, instinctively glancing at Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Suddenly, he felt there was far more to this than met the eye. What was Lord Hokage really planning?