Exchanging intelligence

In truth, Minato Namikaze was overthinking things. Or perhaps Xia Yan's acting talent was simply a little too good.

The Senju Clan did have its own family intelligence network, but by now, that network had long since become all but defunct.

Back then, Tobirama Senju had formed the Anbu to deal with the Uchiha, then established Root to keep the Anbu in check.

He had poured practically the entire clan intelligence network into them as well.

The Senju Clan now had pitifully few sources of intelligence available. Aside from his own conjectures, Xia Yan had gone to considerable trouble to obtain the information he had handed over.

But Konoha could not possibly know every detail of the Senju Clan's actual circumstances, which gave Xia Yan an excellent opportunity.

He could say whatever he liked. After all, Minato Namikaze could not be a hundred percent certain otherwise, could he?

Looking at Minato Namikaze's grave expression, Xia Yan maintained his smile. He could sense the struggle and conflict within Minato Namikaze.

But that conflict was exactly what he wanted!

He had never expected to have Naruto's power to sway people, even though he had been building a persona of someone "trustworthy, gentle, and refined."

Still, too little time had passed. And one could not forget that he was an Anbu.

That struggle and conflict meant Minato Namikaze was thinking. Once he started thinking, Xia Yan stood a very good chance.

Even if Minato Namikaze was actually more inclined to trust Hiruzen Sarutobi, who had personally elevated him and allowed him to fulfill his lifelong dream of becoming Hokage.

But the situation he now faced truly left him no choice but to think further. Xia Yan had seized precisely this opportunity, one that left Minato Namikaze conflicted yet found difficult to refuse.

Only after a long while did Minato Namikaze nod slightly. "I understand. Thank you for the information."

"It's my duty, Lord Hokage," Xia Yan replied with a smile.

"But I still have a few questions."

Minato Namikaze gazed at Xia Yan and asked, carefully enunciating each word.

"Are you sure there's no problem with handing over your clan's intelligence like this?

"Also, you marked that captain as belonging not to Lord Third, but to a mysterious person. Do you have any more details?"

"Please rest assured, Lord Hokage. Although I haven't reported this to my family, this is probably a good thing as far as they're concerned."

On the matter of intelligence, Xia Yan kept his remarks brief and ambiguous, but he believed Minato Namikaze would certainly understand.

Sure enough, after Xia Yan said this, Minato Namikaze nodded as though he understood.

Xia Yan had said that this was his personal undertaking and had nothing to do with his clan all along.

Whether it truly had nothing to do with them, however, was well worth considering. Minato felt that even if they knew, they would tacitly pretend otherwise.

They would still provide whatever intelligence they ought to provide and never ask questions they should not ask. This was effectively establishing another line of contact.

Hedging their bets was nothing unusual. Putting all their eggs in one basket would have been the truly strange thing.

Unless they had no choice.

Xia Yan paused briefly before continuing, "As for that captain whose affiliation wasn't clearly marked, I believe there's someone you must have heard of, Lord Hokage."

"Who?" Minato Namikaze asked directly.

Xia Yan smiled faintly, then slowly spoke a name. "Shimura Danzō."

Minato Namikaze froze slightly at those words, then his expression turned exceedingly strange.

Naturally, he was very familiar with that name. After all, the man was one of Konoha's powerful figures who held real authority!

But why would this man reach into the Anbu?

Minato Namikaze did know that Shimura Danzō had always wanted to become Hokage. After all, Danzo had never concealed that ambition.

Besides, what Konoha ninja did not dream of becoming Hokage?

Yet Danzo and the Third Hokage were so close. They were not merely former classmates, but comrades who had shared life and death.

And even now, the Third Hokage still controlled the Anbu. Had this been tacitly permitted, or had Danzo been making moves in secret?

Minato Namikaze truly could not understand it, because what Danzo had done was practically tantamount to betraying the Third Hokage.

He leaned more toward the possibility of tacit permission, but why would the Third Hokage give Danzo a portion of the authority over the Anbu?

Danzo already controlled Root!

"Could there be a mistake?" Minato Namikaze frowned. "Or is there more to this?"

"Lord Hokage, you're asking the wrong person."

Xia Yan smiled and helplessly spread his hands, looking utterly innocent.

"I'm just an Anbu squad leader. How would I know so much?

"But what I can tell you, Lord Hokage, is that this captain chose Danzo sometime before you were elected Hokage."

Before I was elected Hokage?

Then that would have been when I was nominated and competing against Lord Orochimaru?

All of a sudden, Minato Namikaze seemed to connect a great many things!

Judging by some scattered pieces of information, Danzo had apparently not supported Orochimaru at first.

At the time, rumors about Lord Orochimaru's human experimentation had been spreading throughout Konoha.

But afterward, certain events had forced his Root to reorganize. During that period, those rumors had begun to fade, and Danzo had turned to supporting Orochimaru.

Was it the incident that forced Root to reorganize that made Danzo eager to acquire the Anbu, offering his support for Lord Orochimaru's rise in exchange?

And because he thought Lord Orochimaru was certain to win, did he start making moves on the Anbu ahead of time?

The more Minato Namikaze thought about it, the more he felt he was approaching the truth.

And the more he did, the colder his spine grew. The internal struggles within Konoha High Command had truly gone far beyond anything he had imagined. Was this really what he had looked forward to as Hokage?

Taking a deep breath, Minato Namikaze suppressed his inner agitation and turned his gaze toward Xia Yan.

At that moment, his gaze was somewhat complicated. Giving him this information had led him to think through so many things.

If all this information was true, the help it offered him was simply unimaginable!

If it was false, then Xia Yan-or rather, this declining Senju Clan-wanted to destroy the village!

I must investigate this thoroughly. I have to personally verify this intelligence with care.

Minato Namikaze quickly made his decision. He truly dared not trust anyone now.

This vast Konoha had always given him a sense of warmth, but now he had the illusion of having plunged into an icy cavern.

Looking earnestly at Xia Yan, Minato Namikaze quickly composed himself before speaking. "I understand. Thank you for this information. It's very useful to me."

"There's no need to say that, Lord Hokage." Xia Yan shook his head, his smile fading as he said seriously, "You should still verify this intelligence yourself, Lord Hokage. After all, there are some things even we can't confirm."

Xia Yan's candor prompted a slight nod from Minato Namikaze, but he did not continue the subject.

He placed the scroll Xia Yan had given him on the ground, then immediately formed hand seals and released a Fire Release jutsu. The scroll ignited at once and quickly burned to ashes.

Wisps of smoke rose. Watching the flames slowly die away, Minato Namikaze spoke calmly. "Now, I'm going to teach you sealing jutsu and the Flying Thunder God Technique. Are you ready?"

"Of course I am." Xia Yan gave a warm smile. "Then I look forward to your instruction, Lord Hokage..."