Dispute

The bright moon was worth admiring for long; all night, it circled the clear pool.

"Let's go. We're heading back."

"Mm." Hearing Ning Qi's voice, Hanabi's unsettled heart instantly calmed. She jogged over and slipped her hand into Ning Qi's palm.

"I thought you'd gone back..." she said, sniffling.

It was already the middle of the night. Her clothes were rather thin, and she was freezing all over.

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"No. But do you want to see your sister Hinata? She just woke up."

"No. I want to go home now..."

The home Hanabi meant was clearly not the gloomy clan head's residence beneath their feet, but Ning Qi's cramped little house.

Ning Qi nodded, studying Hanabi beside him.

How strange. Could the This-Realm Naraku Technique really have such a huge impact on a child's mind?

Or had she experienced something in the illusion?

Otherwise, why would she keep clinging to a stranger like him?

He touched his own face.

Could this kid be an extreme face-con?

Remembering Hiashi's request that he take Hanabi away, Ning Qi gave a slight nod. If he could easily deal with Konoha's pursuit force later, taking her along when he defected would not be impossible.

After all, Hanabi's Byakugan was exceptionally pure, and she was from the same clan as him. Whether he trained her as a fighter, a test subject, or a living Byakugan reserve, she would be an excellent fit.

"Do you think I'm handsome?"

"Handsome!" Hanabi shouted.

The next morning, Hanabi came down with a high fever. Ning Qi had his younger brother Neji look after her while he went to carry out Root's daily task of monitoring the Uchiha.

A bird streaked across the sky before lightly landing on the mountaintop. Its orange-red claws scattered the dust beneath its feet as it came to rest atop the four enormous faces of Hokage Rock.

Looking down over the entire Hidden Leaf Village from Hokage Rock, its streets sprawled like a dense net. Shops along the roads were bustling with business, while leaves shredded the sunlight and people strolled leisurely beneath the cool shade.

Lowering one's gaze, one could see a tall crimson cylindrical building standing at the foot of the mountain like a massive drum. That was the Hokage Tower—the pinnacle of power in the Hidden Leaf Village, and a place countless Konoha shinobi aspired to reach.

Yet even the Hokage often could not act alone, and was helpless against many situations within the village that lay beyond his control.

For example, at this very moment, inside the tightly sealed Hokage's office.

There were no leaders of the major shinobi clans, no ANBU recording the proceedings, and no guards stationed outside the door. Only the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi; the two senior advisors, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu; and the Hokage's nominal assistant but actual head of Root, Shimura Danzō, had gathered together—the four men and women standing at the pinnacle of Konohagakure's power.

This meeting could directly determine the ultimate fate of the Uchiha Clan, who were plotting a rebellion.

Of course, because the four of them had always disagreed on this matter, such meetings had already been held more than ten times at Danzo and the others' insistence. Yet they had failed to reach a final consensus every time. Fortunately, the Uchiha Clan's unusual movements had become increasingly obvious, so each meeting had made more progress than the last.

"I think it's time to make a decision," Mitokado Homura said calmly.

"What decision?" The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, drew on his pipe and lifted his eyelids at the words. The reason the decision to "destroy the Uchiha first" had remained unresolved and dragged on until now was, in truth, because the supreme commander of Konohagakure had yet to nod his approval.

"Strike first and crush the Uchiha Clan's rebellion in its cradle," Utatane Koharu followed up. "Takizawa Yamaaki is dead. That is a signal. He must have stumbled upon the Uchiha's rebellion plans and been killed for it!"

"There is still no direct evidence that Yamaaki died at the hands of the Uchiha Clan... Besides, I sent him to investigate the case involving Hyuga Tokuma and the others. How could he have stumbled upon the Uchiha's plans? It simply makes no sense." The Third Hokage tapped the ash from his pipe and shook his head.

"You're too stubborn, Sarutobi. The autopsy report is already perfectly clear. Do we have to carry the corpse before you before you'll admit it?" Danzo said with a frown.

On this issue, it had always been three against one.

"Something like that would not be difficult to forge," the Third Hokage said evenly. "I suspect someone is deliberately creating conflict between us and the Uchiha Clan."

"Whether it is real or not is unimportant. We can use this to pressure the Uchiha Clan into handing over the culprit," Homura suggested after some thought. "It is merely a test. If they refuse to hand him over, then we can strike directly."

"You are deliberately creating tension. Even if they did not intend to rebel in the first place, you will force them into it."

"If they had not been preparing to rebel from the beginning, how could they be forced into rebellion?" Homura countered.

Smoke rose from his nostrils. The Third Hokage pondered for a moment, then still shook his head.

"War will only leave both sides wounded. This is not a decision that can be made lightly. We need to wait and see."

"Only a decisive cut can minimize losses. Besides, we did not choose this war. The Uchiha were the ones who provoked it," Koharu said coldly.

"The Uchiha Clan has known no peace since Madara's time. It is an inherent flaw in that clan. If it does not erupt today, it will erupt tomorrow. This is the perfect opportunity to eliminate this hidden danger within Konoha," Homura said.

"They also contributed greatly to Konoha during the previous shinobi world wars." The Third Hokage was still willing to give the Uchiha Clan a chance.

"You keep saying we should wait... What exactly are you waiting for?" Danzo asked directly, having no patience for further persuasion.

"The outcome. I have ordered Itachi to do everything he can to halt the progress of the rebellion within the Uchiha," the Third Hokage said slowly. "Even if he ultimately cannot prevent it, we will receive word the moment the Uchiha decide to rebel and can respond appropriately."

"That informant?" Danzo turned his head, a strange look on his face. "He is the reason you have held out until now, unwilling to make up your mind and eradicate the Uchiha Clan?"

The reason these Konoha higher-ups had learned of the Uchiha Clan's planned rebellion was precisely because Itachi Uchiha, the eldest son of the Uchiha Clan head, had voluntarily informed on them.

"I have to say, Sarutobi, you really have grown old."

"You have actually tied the safety of all Konoha to one person. What if his allegiance is only an act? Do you know what kind of outcome we would face?" Danzo demanded.

"Pretending to defect would not affect the preparations we have already made. But if he truly succeeds, then we can avoid a situation where both sides lose," the Third Hokage said earnestly.

"Both sides lose? So the Uchiha are really that important? That indispensable?" Koharu could not help speaking up.

"We clearly still have the Hyuga clan, the Sarutobi Clan, and so many other clans like the Nara Clan, Yamanaka Clan, and Inuzuka Clan. Must we really bear such a huge risk because of the Uchiha?"

"You also know that so many shinobi clans are watching. If we rashly move against the Uchiha, would that not make those clans think too much?" Sarutobi kept shaking his head. "Wait a little longer. Let's wait and see."

The discussion once again reached a deadlock. There was clearly an enormous divide between the three of them and Sarutobi, but there was nothing to be done. Sarutobi was the one who truly held the power to decide. So long as he did not nod, the stalemate could only continue.

Starting with Danzo, who was the first to leave with a sweep of his sleeve, the four parted on bad terms once more. Seated in the Hokage's chair, the Third Hokage felt especially exhausted.

"Bring Itachi to see me."

He summoned an ANBU and gave the order.