"Foolish."
"If I kill you, those things are ours anyway."
The moment Aiden Sarutobi said those words, everyone present froze.
Mitokado Homura, the person directly involved, took several seconds to even process them.
"Ah… ah?"
Not just Homura—
even Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzo exchanged stunned looks.
They genuinely hadn't thought of it that way.
Just moments ago, they'd been weighing whether sparing Homura might be worthwhile.
Turns out—
they really were getting old.
Their thinking just wasn't as sharp as the younger generation anymore.
"Good, good, good!"
"This method is excellent!"
Almost instinctively, the two of them began praising Aiden.
That praise terrified Homura even more.
He opened his mouth, desperately trying to beg—
but this time, Hiruzen and Danzo gave him no chance at all.
After all,
wiping out two advisor families would be more than enough to greatly strengthen the Sarutobi clan once again.
Before Aiden even needed to act,
two ANBU appeared instantly and sealed Homura's mouth.
At Hiruzen's signal, the office was swiftly "cleaned."
This included both Utatane Koharu's corpse—
and the still-struggling Homura.
In just a short while, the Hokage's office looked spotless again.
As if the two advisors had never existed.
With the matter settled, Aiden had no reason to stay any longer.
Stacks of documents lay everywhere—just looking at them gave him a headache.
After casually greeting the Third Hokage and Danzo, he left the Hokage Tower with Izumi.
Watching Aiden depart, Hiruzen and Danzo exchanged another look.
Their expressions were full of helplessness.
Their grandson was outstanding in every way—
except for that personality.
Utterly detestable.
But now wasn't the time to dwell on that.
They had just eliminated two advisors.
The real prize lay with those advisors' families.
"Danzo, I'll leave it to you."
"ANBU aren't very convenient for this kind of work."
Danzo naturally had no objections.
After all—
Root existed precisely for situations like this.
"Leave it to me."
That very night, Root moved.
Large numbers of operatives swiftly surrounded the two advisor clans.
As darkness fell, a one-sided massacre quietly began.
By dawn—
both clans would be erased from existence.
As for their resources, ninjutsu, and secret techniques—
everything was gathered and funneled into the hands of Hiruzen and Danzo.
All of it was used to further strengthen the Sarutobi and Shimura clans.
Even though Root's actions were fast and discreet,
the disappearance of two established clans was no small matter.
The news spread quickly.
Every shinobi clan in Konoha received word.
Within the Ino–Shika–Cho clans,
Nara Shikaku let out a helpless sigh after reading the report.
"Do what you've always done."
"Don't investigate."
"Everything stays the same."
"I think you understand what that means."
Akimichi Choza and Yamanaka Inoichi both nodded.
As firm members of the Hokage faction,
as long as they didn't overstep—
they were the safest ones in the village.
As for smaller clans,
many wouldn't even receive the news.
Those that did—like the Aburame and Inuzuka clans—
were also part of the Hokage's side.
None of them would react.
Everyone understood one thing clearly:
as long as the Third Hokage remained in power,
certain thoughts were forbidden.
What was meant to be given to you would be given.
What wasn't—
you were not allowed to take.
Compared to the other clans,
the Uchiha and Hyuga clans were far more excited.
Uchiha Clan — Naka Shrine
After reading the intelligence, Uchiha Fugaku and the elders were visibly thrilled.
"That means both advisor seats are vacant!"
"Fugaku, this is our opportunity!"
"As long as we secure an advisor position, we'll finally have real influence in the village!"
"That's right! It would greatly improve our clan's situation!"
The elders eagerly pressed Fugaku, as if the advisor seat were already theirs.
Even Fugaku himself thought so.
As Konoha's largest clan,
how could the Uchiha not have even a single advisor position?
"I understand," Fugaku said decisively.
"Tomorrow, I'll raise this matter with the Third Hokage."
"At the same time, we'll have Izumi speak well of us in front of Aiden Sarutobi."
"But—"
His gaze swept coldly across the elders.
"During this period, I don't want to hear a single discordant voice from within the clan."
The elders immediately agreed.
This was a matter of the clan's future—
none of them dared take it lightly.
Hyuga Clan
Sharing similar ambitions was the Hyuga clan.
Upon receiving the news, both main-branch and branch-family elders gathered together.
Compared to the Uchiha,
the Hyuga clan's position was far more relaxed.
But that didn't mean the Hokage had no concerns about them.
Especially the division between main and branch families.
On the surface, it was a clan tradition—
but in reality, it had slipped beyond the Hokage's control.
Because of this system:
Branch members bore the Caged Bird SealThe main family rarely went on missionsHokage-issued missions were handled by the branch familyAnd the branch family obeyed the main family—not the Hokage
As a result,
the Hyuga appeared obedient—
yet their power remained firmly in their own hands.
"Everyone, what do you think?"
"Should we involve ourselves in this advisor seat?"
As Hyuga Hiashi posed the question, the elders quickly began discussing.
In the end, they reached a unanimous decision:
They would compete for it.
Even if the Hyuga didn't move—
other clans would.
Especially the Uchiha.
Both were dojutsu clans.
Why should the Hyuga stand beneath the Uchiha?
This position had to be contested.
Seeing the consensus, Hiashi nodded.
"Very well."
"Tomorrow, I'll present the proposal to the Third Hokage."
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