In the Hokage's office, smoke billowed.
The Third Hokage,Sarutobi Hiruzen, held his pipe between his teeth, the tobacco in its bowl flickering on and off.
His fingertip lightly tapped the smooth surface of the crystal ball. The blurry light and shadow within instantly sharpened, focusing on the corner by the window in Class 3-A of the Konoha Ninja Academy.
Beside him, in a large armchair, Uzumaki Mito sat perfectly upright.
The traces of time on her face were cleverly locked away by the Yin Seal, leaving only a pair of eyes, deep with wisdom, now watching the scene in the crystal ball with great interest.
The ball showed Kushina snatching food and Ryo protecting his.
It was far from refined, even a bit wild, but to the two figures before the crystal ball it felt like the warm sun in winter, comforting their hearts.
"Hehe." The Third Hokage exhaled a long plume of smoke, the wrinkles on his old face relaxing somewhat. "Mito-sama, look, this child Kushina is starting to put down roots in Konoha. She is finding her own bonds." He glanced at Mito, his tone carrying the relief of a heavy burden lifting.
The Third Hokage might not fully understand jinchuriki, but he understood the power of bonds.
Ryo, this ruthless commoner he had secretly observed for a long time, forming a connection with the future jinchuriki was simply a stroke of luck.
Mito's gaze remained on the two small figures wrestling in the crystal ball, her eyes showing a gentle understanding of the world.
She saw deeper than Hiruzen.
The brat Ryo, with his scowling face as he protected his food, the helpless yet genuine offer of a pig's trotter, was proof that his heart had been touched.
"Saru, I am old," she nodded slightly, her voice soft but weighty. "The Konoha of the future will ultimately be supported by these youngsters, just as Hashirama and Tobirama entrusted the burden to you back then, trusting you all the same."
Hiruzen's expression grew more solemn, and he nodded gravely. "Yes, Mito-sama. Your teachings, I have never dared to forget."
"Do not interfere too much with Kushina," she instructed, her gaze lingering on the girl's satisfied smile in the crystal ball. "Let her enjoy this time in the academy like an ordinary child. A jinchuriki's heart naturally has a void that needs to be filled with happy memories. The strongest shackles are not imprisonment, but warm bonds." As the current vessel of the Nine-Tails, her words carried authority.
"I guarantee it, Mito-sama." Hiruzen's voice was heavy and resolute. He understood the immense weight of Mito's entrustment.
Mito said no more, simply nodded gently, and rose to leave.
The heavy office door closed silently behind her, leaving the Third alone in the smoke-filled room with the still-boisterous scene in the crystal ball.
The quiet lasted less than two minutes.
"Bang!"
The Hokage's office door was pushed open unceremoniously, so hard the doorframe shook. Shimura Danzo walked in without pleasantries or even a polite facade, going straight to the point.
"Hiruzen." Danzo's voice was low, laced with suppressed anger. "Uzumaki Kushina, as a crucial future jinchuriki, should be immediately placed under strict supervision. Train her into a precise, ruthless weapon that only obeys orders. That is the safest plan. Allowing her to fool around in school is like exposing a top-tier strategic weapon to uncontrolled variables. You are playing with fire."
He glanced at the crystal ball, just in time to see Kushina "steal" another piece of fragrant grilled meat from Ryo's lunchbox, their two red heads nearly touching. Disgust deepened in his eyes. "Especially that brat named Ryo. His very existence is a source of interference. All contact between him and the jinchuriki must be severed immediately."
Hiruzen's expression became calm. He gently tapped the edge of his desk with his pipe. "This is Mito-sama's choice, Danzo." His voice was not loud, but exceptionally firm, directly invoking Mito Uzumaki's will.
"Mito-sama's choice?!" Danzo's tone suddenly rose, dripping with sarcasm. "Hiruzen, your weakness is that you are too soft, too superstitious about these so-called bonds. It is womanly compassion."
He stepped forward, almost glaring down at Hiruzen. "Bonds? What are those intangible bonds? Can you guarantee that this little girl, with the seeds of hatred for the destruction of the Land of Whirlpools buried deep in her heart, and the stubborn blood of the Uzumaki clan in her veins, will fully identify with Konoha just because of a few so-called friends? She was not even born in Konoha."
He spread his hand, as if sketching a blueprint. "Give her to me. To Root. I guarantee you, within half a year, I will return to you a perfect weapon, absolutely obedient, with a heart of stone, burning only for Konoha. This is the most responsible approach for the village." Danzo's voice was full of persuasion, yet carried a mechanical coldness.
Hiruzen met Danzo's oppressive gaze, his eyes unwavering, like bedrock. "I said, this is Mito-sama's choice, Danzo."
'If I hand the jinchuriki over to you, I am afraid I will not sleep soundly again.'
"..."
You bastard.
Danzo almost suffocated himself.
This excuse again.
It is always Mito-sama's choice. Can't you come up with a different one?
Danzo was enraged by the unyielding refusal.
Control over the core asset, the jinchuriki, was right before his eyes, yet he could not touch it because of an old woman's will.
His thoughts raced, and he decisively took a step back, though his gaze stayed fixed on the other red-haired figure in the crystal ball, like a predator locking onto prey.
"Fine. If you insist on handling the jinchuriki according to Mito-sama's way, I will give up." Danzo's voice was cold and hard.
"But that boy, Ryo Kamiyama. His actions in the academy are no secret. A genius who, at such a young age, can subdue all the teachers and students in the entire academy, his potential needs guidance, and more importantly, control. Hand him over to Root. My newly established department needs precisely this kind of ruthless, strong seed that can take root in the shadows and draw nourishment for Konoha."
A person who could dominate the entire school in such impoverished circumstances, with such tenacity and immense potential, was tailor-made for Root.
All that was needed was to sever unnecessary emotions and refine him into absolute loyalty to the village, the essence of a ruthless blade.
In the future, he would be Root's deadly weapon, buried in Konoha or deep within enemy nations. The sharpest blade in Danzo Shimura's hand.
Hiruzen picked up his pipe, refilled it with tobacco, his movements slow and steady. He lit it with a match, took a deep puff, and let the pungent smoke swirl in his lungs. When he spoke again, through the billowing smoke, his gaze became extremely sharp, piercing Danzo.
"Ryo is not suited for Root," the Third said, clear as a steel nail driven into wood. "He has light within him. His path should be walked openly, under the sun. He is one of the inheritors of the Will of Fire, the future of Konoha I envision, not some root buried deep underground."
He did not mention Ryo's Senju lineage, nor the secrets of his early observations, but the protective intent in his words was beyond doubt.
"Inheritor of the Will of Fire?!" Danzo sounded like he had heard the most preposterous joke. He laughed in anger, his eyes bloodshot with agitation.
"Sarutobi Hiruzen, are you blind? A commoner brat who only sleeps in class and dominates through fighting, and you dare call him an inheritor of the Will of Fire? His chakra reserves are so low that even graduation is in question. Putting him under your imagined sunlight will only raise an unruly brute. Root," he suddenly clenched his fist, his nails digging into his palm, "Root is the true foundation of Konoha. Only there can he be molded into a true pillar. Hand him over to me and let him become the sharp sword that guards Konoha's roots. Isn't that maximizing his value? Your so-called sunny path is just letting him run wild."
"Hiruzen, you are too greedy." Danzo slammed his hand on the table.
You will not give me the jinchuriki.
Fine. That is the village's nuclear weapon, I will leave it.
Now, you want to monopolize an outstanding genius too.
You will not let go of either.
How can you hog all the benefits?
Hiruzen slowly stood up. His physique was not massive, but at this moment he exuded undeniable authority.
He no longer cited Mito's name, nor did he continue to argue about Ryo's value. He simply stared calmly at Danzo with eyes that seemed to see through people's hearts, and said, word by word:
"Danzo, remember."
He paused, then declared with absolute clarity:
"I, Sarutobi Hiruzen, am the Hokage."
The Third directly used his authority to suppress him.
Hiruzen's meaning was clear. I am the Hokage. I want it all. If you do not like it, tough luck.
The single phrase, "I am the Hokage," struck Danzo's soft spot.
A higher rank crushes people. Danzo truly dreamed of becoming Hokage.
He had long wanted to experience what it felt like to have Hiruzen beneath him.
"Good, good, good. Sarutobi Hiruzen, you will regret this."
Danzo took a deep breath, calming himself.
Ultimately, he was not the Hokage, only an assistant to Konoha's Hokage. Root was still in its infancy. In front of Hiruzen, all he could do was threaten, spit harsh words, and then leave.
With a bang, Danzo left the Hokage's office, a place that haunted his dreams.
…
The office immediately returned to silence, only the slightly trembling door proving the intense confrontation that had just occurred.
Hiruzen slowly sat back in his chair. He took a deep breath, picked up his pipe again, his gaze deep and distant.
(To be continued.)
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