Family

The atmosphere in the meeting room was somewhat dull.

Sarutobi didn't speak, sitting in the main seat with an air of composure, watching Danzo.

War was not child's play. Since Danzo's mind was made up and he intended to lead the charge, he wouldn't refuse.

Thinking about it carefully, Danzo's decision wasn't bad for him either.

On one hand, it could weaken Danzo's hidden forces in the village, and on the other hand, it could regain the face lost by Cloud Village.

Moreover, as long as he was still sitting in the Hokage position, no matter what Danzo did, the final praise would only be for him, Sarutobi Hiruzen.

When the time came, he would gain both fame and fortune, and he would definitely not lose out.

After a long silence with no response, Danzo's face turned ugly.

From the moment Sarutobi had voiced his suggestion, no force present had responded to him.

"Cough cough."

Finally, Hiashi Hyuga broke the silence, stood up, and said, "If Lord Danzo can persuade the Daimyo, the Hyuga Clan is willing to follow Lord Danzo into battle."

Officially, Hiashi Hyuga should do his part for Konoha.

Privately, Danzo's actions this time had protected his younger brother's life and the Hyuga Clan's reputation, and he should also contribute to Danzo's expedition.

At the very least, he couldn't let Danzo lead Root to the front lines alone to die.

Faced with the sudden rise of Hiashi Hyuga, everyone else had their own thoughts.

And Sarutobi also frowned.

Since Madara Uchiha's defection from the village, although the Hyuga Clan was the second largest clan in the village, most of their behavior and decisions had been inclined towards neutrality.

And after Sarutobi took office, they had been closely following Sarutobi's footsteps.

But he didn't expect that they would choose to support Danzo this time.

Did his forcing just now make Hiashi angry?

Sarutobi thought to himself.

"Don't worry, Hiashi, even for the sake of Konoha, I will persuade the Daimyo."

Danzo finally forced a smile on his face. Although he was mostly sure that this war wouldn't break out, he couldn't be certain of the outcome if he really led Root to the front lines as a lone commander.

And as Danzo's words fell, he heard Uchiha Fugaku next to him also stand up and say, "If the Daimyo agrees, I will also lead the Uchiha people to join this counterattack."

As soon as these words came out, Sarutobi's originally furrowed brows became even more unsightly.

And the other families looked at each other. With the first and second families starting to support Danzo, they had nothing to hesitate about, and they spoke up one after another.

Most of the Hokage faction spoke out to help Danzo under the leadership of Hyuga, and even the Uchiha, who had always been ostracized by the village and were like fire and water with Danzo, supported him.

Sarutobi's heart was filled with coldness. What tricks had this Danzo played in secret?

But in fact, Danzo himself didn't know what was going on.

He looked at Uchiha Fugaku somewhat blankly.

Danzo's original body inherited the Second Hokage's ideology and was extremely repulsed by the Uchiha. From his memories, every meeting this guy had with the Uchiha was tense, never peaceful.

But this time, Uchiha Fugaku actually spoke up to help him, which left Danzo somewhat bewildered.

However, he wasn't the original Danzo and didn't quite agree with the Second Hokage's ideas.

Since the Uchiha intended to repair their relationship with him, Danzo naturally wouldn't refuse. He forced a gentle smile and gave Fugaku a friendly nod.

This smile of his, however, made Uchiha Fugaku tremble all over, regretting his decision just now.

Putting aside the positions between Danzo and the Uchiha, Fugaku actually supported Danzo quite a bit and agreed with some of Danzo's decisions in his heart.

Like the Cloud Village incident this time.

When he heard that Danzo wasn't attending the meeting, he thought this old guy had given up his long-held beliefs, but he didn't expect this guy to be so ruthless, directly killing the envoy and disrupting the peace talks.

Fugaku, or rather the Uchiha Clan, was also a member of the pro-war faction.

A peace talk meeting, everyone started off harmoniously.

Under Danzo's disruption, it successfully turned into a mobilization meeting.

With all the news being blocked, the people of Cloud Village had no idea that this time Konoha would be led by Danzo to make decisions.

In their hearts, the aging Sarutobi Hiruzen would definitely choose to seek peace, rather than start a war.

Danzo bid farewell to the heads of the various clans with a smile. In the meeting room, only Sarutobi, Torifu Koharu, and Mitokado Homura were left, the three old geezers.

"You... you've changed a lot," Torifu Koharu said first, her eyes full of scrutiny as she looked at Danzo.

At first, she was also somewhat opposed to Danzo's decision, but later, inexplicably, she was persuaded by Danzo, so she didn't stop him.

"Cloud Village is also facing considerable pressure. Ōnoki of the Rock Village, although older than Sarutobi, is much stronger in his heart than Sarutobi," Danzo looked at Sarutobi, whose face was unsightly in the main seat, and couldn't help but mock him again.

"Hmph."

Sarutobi Hiruzen snorted coldly, not refuting.

Torifu Koharu and Mitokado Homura also didn't speak. They both understood this matter in their hearts, but the main thing was that Konoha couldn't afford to gamble.

Since the First Ninja World War, the Land of Fire and Konoha had been the target of public criticism because of the First Hokage and Madara Uchiha.

Which war had ever faced a ninja village fairly?

Each time, several ninja villages mixed with a large number of small ninja villages, a large group of people rushed over in a chaotic manner. Although Konoha had won every battle it participated in, the losses were equally heavy.

They didn't think that if the war really broke out this time, Cloud Village would be the only village at odds with Konoha.

"If you have nothing to say, then I'll leave first."

Seeing that they didn't speak, Danzo didn't want to continue staying with these old guys.

Although his body's seniority in the ninja world was not small, the soul in his body was only in his thirties, in his prime, when his energy was at its peak.

"Danzo."

Just as he was about to leave, Sarutobi called out to him.

Staring at his old friend Danzo, who looked young and handsome, yet somewhat unfathomable, Sarutobi asked, "What kind of existence is Konoha to you?"

"Home."

Danzo answered without hesitation.

On the way back, Danzo didn't have the Root ninjas carry his sedan anymore. Instead, he strolled leisurely through the streets alone, occasionally buying snacks and greeting acquaintances.

Just like an ordinary commoner, living a peaceful and serene life.

"Youth! Is all about doing frog jumps with effort!"

"Yes! A Kai Teacher!"

From afar, a familiar roar could be heard, accompanied by hurried footsteps.

One large and one small, two figures clad in green jumpsuits hopped this way from the street entrance.

Their strange attire and actions made the commoners on the street laugh, but there was no mockery in the laughter, only friendliness.

"A Kai, training with your student again!"

"Come to my house for barbecue after training, you need to be full to have the strength to train! I'll give you a 20% discount!"

They greeted kindly, A Kai and Xiao Li responded to familiar people while doing frog jumps.

They often did various training exercises in Konoha Village, and the villagers had long since become accustomed to it. Over time, they developed a sense of admiration.

"A Kai Teacher! It's Danzo-sama!"

Xiao Li suddenly pointed at Danzo, who was sitting on the side of the street eating something.