As he watched Shimura Danzō grow agitated, Hiruzen Sarutobi chuckled and said, "Of the two hundred registered shinobi, the weakest is an Elite Chunin. The clan has over a thousand people, and aside from children under ten, even the weakest have the strength of a Chunin!"
"And they have four allied clans! Just those four clans together are hardly any weaker than us!"
"Do you think the more than three thousand civilian Ninjas we have now could hold off two hundred Senju registered Ninjas for half an hour?"
The Aburame, Inuzuka, Hatake, and Kurama clans had one Kekkei Genkai and three secret techniques between them. They alone could hold off their four clans.
The Senju had only two hundred registered Ninjas.
But if they mobilized the whole clan, bringing out another seven or eight hundred Chunin wasn't impossible.
That was what made this bodily Kekkei Genkai so terrifying: it didn't need to awaken at all.
They might be called ordinary clan members, but "ordinary" meant compared with their own clan, not compared with civilians!
Listening to Hiruzen Sarutobi, the three of them clearly weighed the situation in their minds.
Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura sighed and resignedly closed their eyes.
Shimura Danzō, however, was still unwilling to give in and stubbornly argued, "We have the Uchiha, the Hyūga, and Ino-Shika-Cho. We have the means to take a gamble!"
Seeing his old friend refuse to accept reality and keep making excuses,
Hiruzen Sarutobi dropped his previously casual demeanor.
He rose to his feet, glared at Danzō, and scolded him sharply. "Is your pride more important than the lives of thousands of people from the Sarutobi, Utatane, Mitokado, and Shimura clans?"
"Are thousands of people from the four clans supposed to risk their lives so you can take a gamble? If someone gives you a way out, you'd better take it. If you dare throw it away, this time next year will be the anniversary of our four clans' deaths!"
"The Senju are willing to negotiate only because they don't want the Hyūga and Uchiha to benefit from the situation. It's not because they can't kill you, Shimura Danzō, or me, Hiruzen Sarutobi!"
"And you still have the nerve to bring up the Uchiha, the Hyūga, and Ino-Shika-Cho?"
"If not for Uka Senju's Wood Release, we wouldn't even have the right to negotiate. If the Senju stepped in to interfere with the Shinobi Clans, they'd take the lead and the others would join them in wiping us out!"
The angry shouts in his ears pulled Shimura Danzō out of his narrow-minded fixation. He sat there, stunned.
Indeed, without Wood Release, the other clans would have no place in Konoha once the Senju took the lead.
They didn't have the strength of Teacher Tobirama or Lord Hashirama. Daring to break the rules and interfere in the internal affairs of a Shinobi Clan was already tantamount to courting death!
The only reason they had a chance to negotiate in the current situation was that the Senju had Wood Release.
That was why the other Shinobi Clans had chosen to stay out of it and watch from the sidelines.
And it was also because the Senju had Wood Release that they had chosen to negotiate instead of simply drawing their blades!
Looking at Hiruzen Sarutobi's stern expression and Shimura Danzō, still dazed in his seat to the right,
Mitokado Homura sighed softly and advised his stunned old friend, "Danzō, you understand all this. You just haven't washed your face clean yet!"
"Go wash it again. This was only the first slap. When you walk into the Senju compound, there'll definitely be an even harder slap waiting for you!"
"Prepare yourself mentally. Remember, as long as you're alive, there's still a chance. Once you're dead, it's all over."
Listening to Mitokado Homura's heartfelt advice, Danzō unconsciously touched his face as he sat in his chair.
After a long while, he lowered his hand and said calmly to the three of them, "I'll go wash my face. Once the entrance gift is ready, I'll arrange for someone to deliver it."
After saying that, Shimura Danzō paid no heed to their reactions. He rose and left the Hokage Building!
Watching Danzō leave the office with his shoulders slightly slumped and his steps somewhat stiff, the three of them could only shake their heads helplessly.
Hiruzen Sarutobi had deliberately exaggerated a lot of what he'd said, but the fact remained that their four clans were at a disadvantage!
Underground, in Root!
"Pfft-!"
A flash of the blade, and red blood spurted out.
After a series of rolling sounds, the round head bounced happily along the ground as soon as it touched down.
It laboriously traced a half-circle, rolled to the feet of the black-robed, middle-aged man, and came to a stop with its face turned up!
Without lowering his head to look at the eyes glaring up at him from the severed head,
Shimura Danzō wiped the blood from the blade with his sleeve, then hung it back at his waist.
Looking at the thirty-six bodies before him, young and old, large and small,
a hoarse voice came from his mouth. "Tanuki, burn them!"
"Wrap up the head and send it to the Senju!"
"Yes!" A figure emerged from the shadows in the corner, bowed, and stepped forward to gather up the gifts on the ground.
After giving his orders, Shimura Danzō didn't linger. He turned and walked into the washroom nearby.
He turned the water up to full, cupped it in both hands, then slapped it hard against his face and scrubbed vigorously.
He was washing his face, just as his old friend had told him-washing it thoroughly clean.
11 a.m.
Hokage's office.
The four of them sat around the tea table once more, waiting for word from the Senju.
"Knock, knock, knock!"
At the sound of the knock, Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't turn around. He calmly said, "Come in!"
At his words, the Anbu who had knocked opened the door and entered, reply in hand.
He walked to the tea table, looked at the four of them, and bowed. The middle-aged Anbu, wearing a cat mask, said, "Lord Hokage, a reply from the Senju!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi took the letter, gave the Anbu a signal to leave, then opened it and skimmed through it. He passed it to the two beside him and said, "Get ready. Only Danzō and I will go."
"Yes!" Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura nodded.
Although the Senju had invited them to the feast, and were very unlikely to attack, they had still prepared for the worst.
At this point, the people of the four clans and their subordinates had all assembled. They could set out as soon as they saw the signal!
Of course, this was only in case the two of them were killed on the spot by the Senju. It didn't mean they planned to attack.
Without looking at what the reply said, Shimura Danzō stood up and followed Sarutobi toward the Senju compound.
As they walked along Konoha Main Street, Hiruzen Sarutobi had already sensed more than ten watchful gazes.
He paid no attention to the spies sent by the Shinobi Clans.
He walked forward with a smile on his face.
Now and then, when he spotted an unusual little stall, he would stop to look around for a moment and chat with the stall owner about how life in Konoha was going.
The spies watched this scene with great admiration. If they hadn't known the truth,
they would have thought Hiruzen Sarutobi was out shopping, rather than going to the Senju to seek peace!
After wandering around for another ten minutes or so,
Hiruzen Sarutobi led Shimura Danzō into the Senju Clan Compound.
Standing before the gate, wide enough for four horse-drawn carriages to pass through at once, he looked at the guards, who stared straight ahead.
He smiled and greeted them. "Please inform them that the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, has come with Elder Shimura Danzō to pay his respects!"
Looking at the Third Hokage, who wore white Hokage robes and a red hat,
the Senju guard, having already received notice, replied expressionlessly, "There's no need to inform anyone. You may enter in half an hour."
Though he'd been stopped outside, Hiruzen Sarutobi still wore his usual smile.
Ignoring the gazes of the spies behind him, he nodded and led Danzō to the side.
Like guards, they stood quietly beside the gate to the Senju Clan Compound and waited.