It was rare for Gekko Chizan to steal a bit of leisure from his busy schedule, and he put Neji through an intense round of training.
By the time Hyuga Hizashi found them, Neji was already sprawled on the ground, completely limp.
"Hehehe, Chizan, I have to say, with the way you teach, the entire village probably approves of you as a teacher."
"Give me a break. Don't I know my own reputation? The brats at the Academy are still willing to call me teacher, but in the mouths of those ANBU bastards, I'm just a devil instructor."
Hyuga Hizashi looked at his son, who was surrounded by a massive black snake, and burst out laughing.
With training methods like that, how could you not be a devil?
"Hizashi, this time Kumogakure has sent people over. You should all be a bit more cautious."
"Konoha's bloodline limits are mainly the Uchiha and your Hyuga clan. I don't believe those Kumogakure bastards don't have ideas."
"If something happens, notify ANBU immediately. Here—use this."
Gekko Chizan tossed over a signal flare. This was a brand-new type used after the ANBU reforms. Pink light—absolutely one of a kind.
Even the color was personally chosen by Gekko Chizan, all about being distinctive.
"So you're saying Kumogakure might sign a peace treaty on the surface, while secretly doing something out of line behind the scenes..."
"That possibility isn't zero. Kumogakure has been very unstable lately."
As the Hyuga clan's second-in-command, although from the branch family, ever since Gekko Chizan cleaned up those old fossils, the relationship between the main and branch families had improved dramatically.
And he had always been on good terms with his brother Hiashi—only constrained by those damned rules.
Now it was different. He was firmly the Hyuga clan's number two, able to devote all his energy to building up the clan.
The moment he heard Gekko Chizan's words, he immediately used every brain cell he had to analyze the situation. The conclusion he reached was that Kumogakure was very likely to make a move against the Hyuga.
"I understand. After I go back, I'll organize the clan to conduct twenty-four-hour patrols."
"But, Chizan, why didn't you tell Hiashi about this? By rights, he's the clan head."
Faced with Hizashi's question, Gekko Chizan grinned shamelessly.
"Isn't it because Hiashi tries to hit me the moment he sees me?"
"He keeps muttering that I want to abduct his precious little princess. Sigh, Hizashi, back then we were such good frinds, and now he's actually chasing me down to beat me."
"If it weren't for the fact that he and I might become in-laws in the future, I'd have sent him straight to the sky to experience the feeling of high altitude!"
Those words left Hizashi speechless. After all, he was a father himself now—though he had a son—but he could still understand a bit. Hyuga Hinata was, after all, the Hyuga clan's princess.
...
Several days later, Kumogakure's four-man squad arrived in Konoha.
At Konoha's main gate, a squad was likewise there to receive them.
But although both were four-man teams, the pressure radiating from these four was overwhelming. The man in the lead even openly revealed his pair of crimson Sharingan.
"Everyone from Kumogakure, welcome to Konoha."
"I am Uchiha Fugaku, responsible for receiving you."
Uchiha Fugaku was currently in charge of the entire village's security and defense, and one of the Hokage's right-hand men.
That he personally came to handle Kumogakure's squad showed just how seriously Konoha was taking them.
The leader of Kumogakure was a man with bandages wrapped around his head, his forehead protector worn at a slant, giving him a somewhat lewd appearance.
This man was named Dōkaku—a head figure in Kumogakure, and a jōnin.
"Hehehe, the Uchiha personally coming to greet us—not bad."
"Then let's go. I still have documents here that need the Hokage's signature. After all, it concerns the peace treaty between our two villages."
Dōkaku showed no concern for the pressure coming off the Uchiha. Anyone capable of being a leader would naturally have considerable strength.
A flash of displeasure passed through Fugaku's eyes. They were all veterans of the battlefield—what was he putting on airs for?
Before long, this Kumogakure squad temporarily settled down in Konoha.
At the same time, Minato Namikaze summoned both Fugaku and Chizan to the Hokage's office.
"Dōkaku, tsk tsk. This guy is actually related to Kinkaku and Ginkaku?"
"With his kind of conduct? Yeah—only worthy of being copper."
Leaning back on the sofa, Gekko Chizan openly voiced his sarcasm toward Kumogakure's envoy.
Back then, Kinkaku and Ginkaku had ambushed the Second Hokage, pushing the relationship between Konoha and Kumogakure to the absolute breaking point.
Coupled with the fact that he himself had been injured under the Fourth Raikage back then, he still hadn't been able to let it go after all these years.
Who was he? Gekko Chizan. He could stroll around the battlefield without getting his clothes dirty—yet because of that brute, his finger had actually fractured.
The grudge was huge. Enormous.
"Hmph. His strength is passable—jōnin level at least. He could still stand under my pressure."
"But I can sense the darkness in his heart. They definitely have unspeakable secrets."
Uchiha Fugaku's Sharingan slowly spun. Though he didn't explicitly express disdain, every word carried contempt for the Kumogakure shinobi.
"Chizan, everything on the ANBU side has been arranged, right?"
"Don't worry. The entire village is under ANBU surveillance. If they make a move, it'll be discovered."
Gekko Chizan guaranteed it with confidence. After all, ANBU's counter-reconnaissance and concealment courses were all taught by him—top-notch, without question.
With his assurance, Minato Namikaze finally felt at ease.
The three exchanged glances. They all understood—now they were just waiting for Kumogakure's shinobi to take the bait themselves.
...
On the other side, the Kumogakure squad.
"Dōkaku-sama, do we continue with the plan?"
"Continue. Why wouldn't we? Hehehe. Didn't we come to Konoha precisely for this purpose?"
Dōkaku looked out the window at Konoha's scenery, a trace of surprise flashing through his heart.
Kumogakure also had intelligence on the Nine-Tails' rampage. Linking it to the tailed beast incident, he hadn't expected Konoha to recover this quickly.
It seemed there would be some obstacles when taking action.
But it wasn't a big problem. After all, he was here precisely for this mission.
Just as Gekko Chizan and the others had anticipated, this group had come with a clear objective.
...
The next day, Dōkaku personally went to the Hokage Administration Building.
"Hokage-sama, this is the peace treaty prepared by our Raikage-sama. We hope our two villages can coexist peacefully from now on."
With a grin, Dōkaku handed a document to Hokage Minato Namikaze.
Minato Namikaze took the document and carefully reviewed it, but didn't rush to sign.
"Alright, I understand. I'll convene the advisors to review it together later."
"During this period, I'll have to trouble everyone from Kumogakure to stay in Konoha for the time being."
"The accommodations we've provided should be suitable, yes?"
Dōkaku laughed heartily. He was quite satisfied with the lodging. Minato Namikaze simply nodded in response.
However, both men had their own calculations.
The former believed he had ample time to prepare for action.
The latter believed he had ample time to prepare defenses.