Of course, it wasn't just the external situation that worried Danzo. Because of his old associate's mistakes, the clans had become more active in Konoha's political arena, sensing a great opportunity to reduce Hiruzen's influence and replace him with a more suitable candidate.
Despite recent personal differences, the head of Anbu Ne still acted as a united political bloc together with the elders and Sarutobi, promoting a long-determined course of stealthy weakening of the clans in favor of the Hokage's power and the possible displacement of an associate on the clan leader was undesirable.
At the same time, the current situation completely suited the aging veteran - Hiruzen began to actively promote Orochimaru as a candidate for his post, even increasing the funding of his research, obviously trying to increase his influence on his student in this way.
But the snake sannin had already been cooperating with Root for a long time, having received not only a perfectly equipped laboratory complex, test subjects and money, but also the knowledge accumulated by the organization. He was more loyal to Danzo than to his old teacher.
Shimura wouldn't mind replacing one Hokage with another who was more loyal to him personally and had a much tougher policy. He knew Orochimaru very well and realized that research for the snake summoner meant much more than power itself - he needed the Hokage's position to gain freedom in that regard.
And while he was busy in the lab for days on end, someone had to run the village and deal with the day-to-day problems. The one-eyed shinobi was confident that he could pull not only Koharu, but Homura as well, gaining much more power than he had now.
Hiruzen, on the other hand... Hiruzen would remain just the head of his clan and nothing more. Hiruzen will be just the head of his clan and nothing more. He may entertain vain hopes of changing the status quo and work for the good of his companion, but when the time comes, he will not expect to stand at the Hokage's chair as an advisor.
Sighing, the head of Anbu Ne put the long-term plans out of his mind - everything has its time - and returned to his work, writing "approved" on Orochimaru's request and putting it back in the finished stack.
***
Shenesu Nara leaned back in his favorite chair with a sigh and allowed himself to smoke a pipe of the fragrant tobacco supplied by the Sarutobi clan. He did so only at the most important moments of his life, having learned the habit from his father.
It was an appropriate occasion - the preparations for the Hokage's removal from office were well underway, and quite successful. Hiruzen was a bone of contention for almost all the clans, and his recent mistake had alienated most of the clanless shinobi that had grown in strength in recent years and could already have a significant influence on the village's politics.
Nara had done a lot of preparatory work to prevent Sarutobi from climbing out of the hole he'd dug for himself, and in the meantime, he'd begun negotiations with the other clans, who'd previously taken a wait-and-see attitude, about replacing the current leader with a candidate that everyone was happy with - the head of the Hatake clan.
In addition to an excellent reputation among the armed forces, Sakumo had enough personal power to qualify for the title of Kage, had decent personal qualities, and had the desire to compete for the post. And just as importantly - he was loyal to Nara, thanks to his friendship with his nephew.
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