The Senju elders departed as quickly as they had arrived. Having secured a guarantee from Hiruzen Sarutobi—given in his capacity as the student of both Hashirama and Tobirama—they rose to take their leave.
They had long since retreated from the village's center of power and knew when to press and when to fold. This was no longer their era. To cling too greedily to authority would only harm the village they had built from the ground up, enduring countless hardships alongside their former leaders.
Unfortunately, few people possessed such grace.
Power is a fruit so sweet and enticing that even when people know it is laced with poison, they will shove each other aside to consume it, eventually becoming nothing more than puppets to their own ambition.
"Alright. Nawaki and Inoichi haven't fully recovered yet. Tsunade, take them to the hospital for a full check-up and get them settled into rooms so they can rest properly."
Having seen off the Senju elders, a mentally exhausted Hiruzen Sarutobi clearly had no desire to listen to more bickering. He waved a hand, signaling for Tsunade to leave.
"Minato and Hatani, stay behind. Danzo... you should head back as well."
Seeing that Tsunade remained rooted to the spot, her eyes flashing with blatant hostility toward Danzo, Hiruzen was forced to clarify his orders.
"Hiruzen! Are you really intending to shield a criminal? One who colluded with enemy spies and could cause irreparable damage to this village?!"
Danzo's face darkened instantly. He had assumed that once Tsunade was out of the way, he would have the perfect opportunity for a counterattack. His heart seethed with indignation.
As a man capable of deceiving even himself, Danzo never truly believed he was in the wrong. Even when he would eventually move to assassinate Hiruzen, he would do so firmly believing it was for the good of the village rather than his own obsession with the seat of Hokage. In his mind, his logic was flawless: Only I can save Konoha. To save Konoha, I must become Hokage. To become Hokage, I must have absolute power.
Since even the sitting Hokage could be "sacrificed" for his "ideal," was there anyone in Konoha who couldn't be?
"Enough!"
Hiruzen finally snapped. He slammed his desk, his voice a low, dangerous growl aimed at his old friend. "Whether or not Hatani colluded with spies to sell out village secrets—you know the answer to that better than anyone else in this room!"
If Danzo refused the olive branch, Hiruzen wouldn't hesitate to slap him down.
The sudden loss of face left Danzo's expression looking like a painter's palette—shifting rapidly between pale, flushed, and a sickly green.
"Hmph."
Before Danzo could deliver a classic line like "Hiruzen, you will regret this!" and storm out, Tsunade let out a deliberate, mocking snort. Hearing Hiruzen finally take a firm stand, she grabbed Nawaki and turned to leave.
Behind them, Akimichi Choza—who looked simple and honest but possessed the legendary shrewdness of the Akimichi patriarchs—hurriedly bowed to Hiruzen. He hoisted the injured Inoichi onto his back and followed her out. When giants fought, a man of his stature was essentially walking on thin ice; he wasn't about to miss the chance to escape.
"Hmph!"
Danzo finally let out a furious grunt of his own, sweeping his sleeves back and departing with a stone-cold face, his resentment toward his old friend reaching a new peak.
"Phew..."
With Danzo gone, Hiruzen finally slumped back into his chair, letting out a long, weary sigh.
Minato, still standing in the middle of the room, let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. He looked at his younger brother with a comforting gaze. In his mind, even if Hatani had acted heroically earlier, the boy must have been terrified inside. After all, that was Danzo—the man whose title as 'Darkness of the Shinobi' was enough to make crying children go silent.
However, Hatani wasn't nearly as shaken as Minato imagined.
In fact, he was currently marveling at the power of "connections." If he hadn't had Tsunade's protection and the pre-established tie to Jiraiya, he wasn't at all sure that a master of political pragmatism like Hiruzen wouldn't have handed him over to Danzo just to keep the peace.
"Now then, with those annoying matters settled, let's talk about you and Jiraiya," Hiruzen said, sitting up and letting a smile return to his face as he looked at the two brothers.
Konoha Main Camp, Land of Rain
"I didn't think you'd actually have the heart to come back."
Inside the command tent, Orochimaru looked at the familiar figure before him and rolled his eyes.
"I am still a shinobi of the Leaf, aren't I? The war was winding down before, and with you and Tsunade holding the line, I figured I could afford to be a bit more... free-spirited. But now that things have escalated, how could I stay away?"
Jiraiya's expression held a touch of genuine apology.
"You've arrived at the perfect time," Orochimaru replied, skipping the pleasantries. "We move out tonight."
"To the Land of Grass? Or a direct strike against the Land of Earth?" Jiraiya asked, raising an eyebrow.
"What do you think?" Orochimaru countered.
Central command had yet to send official orders, and Nara Shikashin was still embroiled in negotiations with Hanzo, yet to finalize the treaty. But Orochimaru had no intention of sitting around waiting.
"Heh. Knowing you, you'll strike straight at the Land of Earth to force the Stone into an early full-scale war before they've finished their preparations," Jiraiya chuckled, answering without a second's hesitation.
"I was hesitating before, but now that you're here, why would I delay?"
Orochimaru smiled. On those two young, powerful faces, there was nothing but sheer confidence.
"Nagato... why are people so greedy?"
In the small cottage of the orphan trio, Yahiko had fallen into a somber, melancholic mood ever since Jiraiya left.
Initially, he believed wars happened because of misunderstandings between people—unfortunate frictions that spiraled into conflict. He wanted to form an organization that could serve as a bridge of peace between people and nations.
But after meeting Hatani, hearing the boy's "stories," and learning the cold reality behind this war, his heart had begun to waver.
He still wanted to believe that people were inherently peace-loving, and that wars sparked by pure greed like this one were the exception. He wanted to believe his dream wasn't flawed.
But now, as the Hidden Stone declared war on the Leaf, his idealism took another heavy blow.