Konoha's two oldest and most powerful ocular technique clans, the Uchiha and the Hyuga Clan, were joining forces.
The signal was far too clear.
So clear that it made everyone uneasy.
Inside the Hokage's Office.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sat in the chair that symbolized the pinnacle of power. Overnight, he seemed to have aged another ten years.
"Hyuga... Hiashi..."
Hiruzen Sarutobi kept repeating that name.
How dare he!
How dare he betray him!
Had all the support and preferential treatment he had given the Hyuga Clan over the years been fed to the dogs?
Although forcing the Hyuga Clan to hand over Hizashi had cost them face, hadn't he already explained it to Hiashi? At the time, Konoha had been beset by troubles both within and without. It simply could not afford a war with Kumogakure.
"Hiruzen."
The sole remaining Hokage Advisor, Mitokado Homura, looked equally grim.
"We must find a way to stop this disciple-taking ceremony."
"Once they successfully form an alliance, Uchiha Yao's momentum will reach its peak."
"When that happens, your prestige in the village will vanish entirely."
"We truly will have no chance left to turn things around."
Turn things around?
A trace of bitterness flashed through Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes.
With what was he supposed to turn things around?
With those ANBU under his command, who grew fearful the moment they heard Uchiha Yao's name?
His authority had already been utterly shattered by Uchiha Yao at Naka Shrine.
"It's too late."
Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head.
"If Hyuga Hiashi dared to announce it publicly, that means he has already made up his mind."
"Trying to stop it now will only make us look even more like a joke."
Mitokado Homura fell silent.
That was right.
What authority could a Hokage who could not even suppress the Great