Naruto suddenly had a terrible feeling wash over him...they meant him.
"And you propose to do this…how?" drawled Shikaku, not liking the direction things were going.
"Simple. As I said the Akatsuki want the Bijū and they'll stop at nothing until they've obtained them all. Therefore, as long as we have the Kyuubi, we are in danger. What I suggest is we banish the container so that Konoha itself will no longer be a target" Koharu responded.
"NO! I WILL NOT ALLOW THIS! I WILL NOT ALLOW YOU TO BANISH ONE OF OUR MOST LOYAL SHINOBI SIMPLY BECAUSE YOU'RE AFRAID TO FIGHT THE AKATSUKI! YOU CAN'T DO THIS, AS HOKAGE, I FORBID IT!" roared Tsunade.
When Naruto heard Koharu's plan he felt like his heart was going to stop. He met her once or twice when he was younger, visiting the old man. While the man named Homura treated him nicely enough, the woman Koharu treated him like the plague. Her tolerance of his existence was just barely present, and he'd received many a glare from her, for his pranks, or his casual way of referring to the Sandaime as 'jiji'. But when Tsunade started to shout that she would not allow them to banish him, hope started to rise in Naruto. He knew Tsunade as the Hokage would have final say and she would never banish him.
But when a small evil smirk appeared on Koharu's wrinkled old face, that hope shattered.
"I'm afraid you're wrong Tsunade. We can do this…you see, in the village charter recorded by your Grandfather the Shodaime Hokage, it is stated that when there is a situation that threatens the safety of the village and the Hokage is unwilling, or incapable of dealing with it, then the village Council may overrule the Hokage on the decisions on how to deal with the situation, so long as the majority of the Council is in favour of it" said Koharu, still maintaining her smirk.
"WHAT!" Tsunade roared in disbelief.
"Wait! Even if we banish the boy all we're doing is handing him to the Akatsuki. This plan if it can be called that will not eliminate the threat that the Akatsuki poses. All this will do, give them more power and further aid their goals, making them an even bigger threat than they are now. I also disagree, both fundamentally and professionally, with your blasé treatment of Naruto. To just throw a young ninja of our village to the wolves in this manner, in spite of all that he has accomplished, is an insult and is against everything Konoha stands for." declared Chouza, in righteous anger.
Tsunade and Naruto both smiled, glad that they had some support, and happy that at least someone else could see reason.
"THAT IS NO BOY! HE IS A DEMON, PLAIN AND SIMPLE!" shouted out Ashikaga Shin, head of the merchant guild in Konoha.
He had lost his only daughter, a young kunoichi, his pride and joy, on the night of the Kyuubi attack and held a great deal of hatred for Naruto. Shin's bias against Naruto prompted him to have Naruto banned from the majority of shops and restaurants that served the village, or in lieu of outright banning him, the merchants only gave him the worst things they had and even overcharged him for them. The only businesses that weren't like this were Ichiraku Ramen and Mikumo Ninja Gears and Weapons store.
Additionally, Mikumo Tenshin's (the owner of Mikumo Ninja Gear and Weapons store) reputation as the finest weapons maker in the village, made him untouchable regardless of his membership in the Merchant's Guild. Also the most he could do to Ichiraku Teuchi was to not allow him to have a site or section to build a Ramen restaurant in the village, which didn't hurt the man much. Plus, although Ashikaga Shin would never say it to anyone, he was actually intimated by the old Ramen chief, ever since an incident when he had spoken badly about the 'Kyuubi-brat in front of him. He had received a broken jaw for his troubles.
"You lot are all fools. If we listen to you then we'll be giving the most powerful and destructive force that we know to a bunch of criminals and I don't think what those criminals have in plan for the Bijū's will be for the benefit of Konoha or any other village and country in the bloody Elemental continent!" said Ino's father Inoichi.
"Do not worry about handing over the power of the Kyuubi to the Akatsuki Yamanaka-san. Both Danzo and I have taken into consideration that the container would very much likely be captured by them, which is why we've a plan that'll activate once we banish the container, and eliminate the threat of the Akatsuki at the same time." said Koharu.
"And what exactly is this great plan of yours that will eliminate nine S class criminals in one go?" Tsunade snarled out.
"I'm sorry Tsunade, but considering how sensitive this plan is and how vital it is to the village's security, we cannot tell you now. And due to your relationship with the container, we'll inform you and the rest of the Council once we feel the time is right," said Danzo with a barely seen smirk.
All Tsunade could do was growl and glare at the old war hawk, seething with suppressed rage and an overwhelming urge to rob Danzo of his remaining eye and limbs.
"I now propose that we cast a vote to decide the container's fate" stated Koharu.
Ashikaga Shin- "I vote yes. Let's get rid of the demon".
Inuzuka Tsume- "I vote no. The boy shouldn't be treated like this! As the Hokage has said, he IS a loyal shinobi to this village and doesn't deserve to be banished! I've known him since he was a young pup and he often played with my own son when they were younger".
Hojo Akira (a civilian politician who went wherever the civilian people went as long as it kept him in his comfortable position) - "I vote yes. This village will be much better off without him causing us trouble".
Nara Shikaku- "Not only is this meeting troublesome, but it is also stupid. This vote is stupid.You guys, who are for banishing him, are stupid. So I vote no".
Akimichi Chouza - "Like Tsume's son Kiba, my son Choji has known Naruto since childhood. He was even one of Choji's first friends. And if I vote yes I will never be able to face my son. Plus, he is the only person that can eat more Ramen than me or Choji. My vote, is no" Chouza said with a slight chuckle.