Hiroya personally delivered the 100,000 ryo to Byakuya's door.
Byakuya invited the Vice-Principal to sit. Hiroya's face was flushed with excitement today.
The money sat on the table, next to a steaming cup of tea.
"What are you planning to do with this money, Byakuya?"
"It's only 100,000 ryo. Can't do much with that. Well, I can at least treat you to a big meal, Principal."
Compared to the outside world, prices within the Hidden Leaf were exceptionally high.
If you wanted to live comfortably in the village and have savings for emergencies, a ninja had to hustle hard on missions. Ordinary civilians had to work themselves to the bone just to survive.
"Fair point. By the way, I have good news. The Hokage is about to step down from his active role as Principal. He'll only remain as the Honorary Principal."
Hiroya beamed as he spoke. Lord Danzo had promised him the position of the new Principal.
It seemed like a small step up, but the significance was huge. Even the noble clans would be sending their children to his school.
As Principal, he would finally be a big shot with real status.
Even if the village higher-ups saw him as an expendable pawn, he would at least be a pawn with some weight.
"So, you're going to be the new Principal?" Byakuya asked.
Hiroya nodded vigorously. "I've worked tirelessly for the Academy, slaving away for the Third Hokage. And now Lord Danzo has personally promised to help me secure the spot. Who else could it be but me?"
Seeing Byakuya's skeptical expression, Hiroya suddenly grew anxious. "You don't think... something could go wrong?"
Ever since that day in the office when Byakuya decided to be frank with him, the two had gradually formed a partnership.
It had been four days.
Hiroya had provided him with a lot of sensitive intel about the village.
For example, the Hyuga brothers, Hiashi and Hizashi, were not on good terms, and the rift between the Main and Branch families was deep. The Uchiha clan head, Fugaku, had personally gone to the front lines. Minato Namikaze, whose fame was rising rapidly, had a crush on a red-haired girl named Kushina Uzumaki—and apparently, Kushina had been so violent in the Academy that even Hiroya was afraid to mess with her.
It was also from Hiroya that Byakuya learned about the day Kushina was kidnapped by Cloud Ninja. The village's defenses had seemingly been paralyzed that night.
Fortunately, Minato had defeated the kidnappers and rescued her.
Hiroya still shuddered when recalling the incident. An Academy student kidnapped on their way home? If the village decided to investigate, he would be slapped with a charge of "incompetence in education." After all, if he had taught the students how to handle kidnappings better, maybe Kushina wouldn't have been taken.
To become the true Principal, he couldn't afford a single stain on his record.
Byakuya looked at his partner, wondering if the man was blinded by ambition or truly oblivious to the political intricacies involved.
"Principal Hiroya, is the Academy the Hidden Leaf's Academy, or is it the Hokage's Academy?"
"Of course, it's the Hidden Leaf's... well, naturally, it is the Hokage's Academy."
Byakuya asked calmly, "If Lord Danzo recommends you to the Hokage, whose man are you? The Hokage's, or Danzo's subordinate?"
"..."
Cold sweat instantly broke out on Hiroya's forehead.
The Ninja Academy was loyal only to the Hokage. Therefore, the person serving as Principal should—no, must—be the Hokage's confidant.
If Danzo recommended him for the position, then no matter how hard Hiroya had worked before, in the Hokage's eyes, he would be seen as having defected to Danzo's side. He would be a traitor!
"Th-th-this..." Hiroya shot up from the sofa, pacing back and forth in a panic, his steps getting faster and faster. "What do I do? What do I do? Should I go ask Lord Danzo for help?"
"Principal Hiroya, how many external personnel have you recruited for Root?"
"Twenty or thirty, maybe. Just some underwhelming commoners. I wouldn't dare touch the kids from noble clans. The missions weren't hard, mostly clearing out minor threats on the outskirts of the village or surveillance within the village. Oh, and monitoring the Uchiha clan was a priority."
Byakuya smiled. "So, under the shadow of war, you forcing me to sign that application was actually an act of kindness?"
"I've told you more than once, I was friends with your parents. They were heroes of the Leaf. A hero's child shouldn't die on the battlefield. That was my selfish wish. Byakuya! Please believe me!
"Making you sign the Root application... I was just swamped. Root gives me a quota every quarter, ordering me to use my position as Vice-Principal to recruit for them. Because Mimura from the Anbu is watching the Academy, I didn't dare blow my cover."
"I was a beneficiary of your kindness, and I just happened to fill a slot?"
"Sigh. It was a desperate move. I had no choice."
"And what happened to the other kids?"
"Last year and the year before, they were monitoring VIPs in the village, watching the Uchiha, or bringing back people with special constitutions from within the Fire Nation. Once the war started, they were all sent out."
Byakuya picked up his tea cup and took a leisurely sip, his face unreadable. "No wonder my missions were so difficult."
"You've got the wrong idea."
"Hmm?"
"The first mission to clear out rogue ninja happened because the lower-tier external personnel were all unavailable, so I had to send you. Based on past missions I've handled, the first assignment is usually just tailing someone—tracking a VIP's movements for a day."
"Root has 'lower-tier' external personnel?"
"Byakuya, if the great tree of Konoha has 'Roots,' why can't the roots have 'root hairs'? In places we can't see, Root's tendrils are everywhere. Maybe even Teuchi at Ichiraku Ramen is one of them.
"When you have a lot of people, there's bound to be a hierarchy. At the time, you... well, you hid your skills too well."
After saying all this, Hiroya just wanted to know if Byakuya had a plan to deal with the Hokage's suspicion.
Hiroya suddenly remembered something and added hurriedly, "Lord Danzo once said that even worthless cannon fodder can be priceless if used correctly."
"Izumi told me she belongs to the Hokage and is responsible for monitoring you."
"Izumi? She really said that?"
"Why would I lie to you?"
"Strange. Ever since I started following Lord Danzo, I've been extremely careful about my movements. I never noticed Izumi watching me."
"Not even once?"
"Not once!"
"I see."
So, the baby-faced teacher had another identity.
"Oh, come on, Byakuya, stop beating around the bush! I'm panicking here and I can't think straight. You look like you have a plan—tell me how to keep the Principal job!"
A grown man asking a ten-year-old child for advice. If anyone saw this, they'd laugh their heads off.
Byakuya spoke easily. "It's simple. Go to the Hokage and report everything you've done, exactly as it happened."
"What? Isn't that suicide?"
Byakuya countered, "Do you really look down on the Third Hokage that much? Do you think he knows nothing?"
Previously, it was always Hiroya patting Byakuya on the shoulder like a superior.
Now, Byakuya patted Hiroya's shoulder. "Go openly to the Hokage's office and find Hiruzen Sarutobi. Aside from the information about me, report everything else to him. If you do that, the position of Principal is yours. It's a sure bet; no one can compete with you. After all, a turned spy is the most useful tool of all. Hiruzen won't pass up that opportunity."
"But what if Lord Danzo asks why I went to the Hokage's office?"
"You are the Vice-Principal managing the Academy's daily affairs. A large batch of students just graduated. You went to report on Academy work to Hiruzen Sarutobi."
Hearing Byakuya refer to the Hokage by his full name so casually left Hiroya stunned.
Even after he left in a daze, he couldn't shake the feeling of disbelief.
The Third Hokage, revered by everyone as the God of Shinobi and the protector of the Leaf... Byakuya didn't seem to respect him at all.