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15 Advanced Chapters @ patreon.com/aizenDuchiha0
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Hiruzen stood, finally forcing silence. His voice carried the steel that had made him Hokage in the first place. "Enough. This council is not here to gamble with the soul of the village. The Kyūbi is not a weapon of convenience. It is a last resort, to be used only if Konoha itself is at the brink of annihilation. Kushina is still learning to live with her burden. Forcing her into this war could unleash a disaster greater than anything Kumogakure could dream of."
Danzo's expression didn't change, but his silence was heavy, calculated.
For a long while, the chamber was still. Then Hiruzen spoke again, quieter but with a weight that allowed no argument.
"We will muster reinforcements. Not squads. Not platoons. A full battalion - eight hundred shinobi at minimum. That is the force we need to challenge Kumo's base, and that is the force we will prepare. Minato will remain at the Iwa front. Onoki has not committed his full strength, and if Minato shifts, the Stone will surge. But we will find commanders capable of leading against Kumo. This war is not yet lost."
Koharu still looked dissatisfied, but she bowed her head slightly. Homura muttered something about logistics. Dan looked down, ashamed but silent.
Danzo's gaze lingered on Hiruzen. "And if eight hundred shinobi fall as the last thousand did?"
Hiruzen met his stare without flinching. "Then I will bear that responsibility. But I will not sacrifice a child to spare myself from hard choices."
The meeting adjourned, but the chamber's walls seemed to hold the tension long after the council dispersed. Outside, Konoha bustled as always, children trained in the academy, market stalls rang with chatter, shinobi came and went through the gates. Yet behind the calm, the village now stood on the edge of a decision that could shape the war, and perhaps its own soul.
Danzo walked out last, his steps slow but deliberate. The glint in his eye had not dimmed. If Hiruzen would not use Kushina, then others might have to ensure she was… prepared, with or without the Hokage's blessing.
And so the debate ended for the day but the war was far from waiting.
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After a month of fighting with council, hiruzen conceded and allowed kushina to enter battlefield under dew conditions.
That day, the Hokage's office always smelled faintly of ink and old parchment, but that day, it carried something heavier. Kushina stood with her arms folded, lips pursed, eyes narrowed in defiance at the Third Hokage. Her fiery hair framed her face like a blaze, her words sharp enough to make most men flinch.
"So what does the old man want now?" she said, almost spitting the words.
Behind her, Minato gave the slightest bow of apology, his golden hair dipping as he murmured, "Forgive her, Lord Hokage. She speaks—"
Hiruzen raised a hand before Minato could finish. His eyes were steady, patient. He had seen far worse tempers, and Kushina's harshness reminded him of Mito Uzumaki herself. "I take no offense. Let her speak as she will. This matter affects her life more than anyone's."
Kushina blinked, surprised he didn't scold her. She shifted, but her glare didn't soften. "Tch. Fine. Then just say it straight. What's this all about?"
Hiruzen exhaled slowly. "We've lost a thousand of our shinobi at the Kumo front. More than numbers, we've lost the chakra ore mine four months ago. That mine now fuels Kumogakure's weapons and armor. By now, they are armed to the teeth. We can no longer fight them by conventional means without paying an impossible cost."
Minato's brow furrowed. He had read the reports, but hearing the Hokage say it aloud put weight on the truth.
Hiruzen turned his gaze fully on Kushina. "Kumo unleashed their jinchūriki. The Eight-Tails himself fights on the front, in partial transformations. To stand against them, we must do the same. Kushina, you must learn to control the Nine-Tails. To speak to it. To wrest some measure of power. Without that, we have no answer."
Kushina's lips curled. "Talk to that fox? Hah. He never said a word to me. Just sits there, brooding and snarling. I tried a few times, when I was a kid. Silence. Dattebane."
For a moment, Hiruzen was quiet thinking. [She is the last of the Uzumaki clan in Konoha. We cannot find another vessel, even if we wanted to. She hold both our burden and our hope.] With not so heavy heart he said, "I will not lie: this is a cruel thing to ask. But if Konoha is to survive, the Kyūbi's strength must be brought to bear."
The room seemed colder. Kushina's eyes, usually fierce with stubborn fire, flickered with something else—doubt, maybe even fear. She masked it quickly, scoffing. "So you're just throwing me into the pit, huh? Nice."
"No," Hiruzen said gently. "I'm giving you time. Three months. To learn. To try. You won't walk that path alone." His eyes shifted to Minato. "You already possess rare talent in sealing arts. With Kushina, you'll study her clan's fuinjutsu and adapt the seal. Help her communicate with the beast. Where the Eight-Tails' host can partially transform, we must achieve the same."
Minato bowed deeply this time. "Understood."
Kushina crossed her arms tighter, glaring at Minato now. "So you're dragged into this too, eh? You better not mess it up."
Minato's lips quirked in the faintest of smiles. "I'll do my best not to."
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A/N: Lovely moments between Red- hair and Yellow flash. So, Kushina will be training to control nine-tails.