"Hiruzen, what do you mean by that? Danzō didn't seem to refuse the benefits we gave to the Shimura clan, did he?"
Homura Mitokado frowned, clearly confused by Hiruzen Sarutobi's statement.
Hiruzen fell silent for a moment before letting out a sigh.
"You both know that Shimura Danzō is an extreme person. His attachment to the idea of family is far weaker than ours."
"What he truly cares about is the Root organization under his command—not the Shimura clan."
"You may have given the Shimura clan many resources, but as far as I know, most of those resources were used by Danzō to develop Root."
"That's why, even until today, the Shimura clan can only be considered a medium-sized clan in Konoha, neither particularly large nor particularly influential."
"So even if your affairs implicate the Shimura clan, I believe Danzō would deal with the entire clan without hesitation."
"To sacrifice a mere Shimura clan in exchange for the downfall of two Konoha Elders—that's exactly the kind of thing Danzō would do."
"He might even seize the opportunity to break apart the Shimura clan entirely and absorb its members into Root."
Koharu Utatane looked stunned.
"That can't be true… Is Danzō really that ruthless? He doesn't even trust members of his own clan?"
Hiruzen shook his head.
"It's not a matter of trust."
"In any clan, there will inevitably be elders who are devoted entirely to the clan's prosperity. Even the clan head must be constrained by those elders."
"But Shimura Danzō is someone who places his personal interests above everything else. The clan's interests come afterward."
"So he frequently uses the clan's power to serve his own purposes."
"When the elders of the Shimura clan eventually realized something was wrong, they began guarding against him. As a result, his authority within the clan was greatly restricted."
"In that sense, the Shimura clan has actually become a constraint on Danzō rather than an asset. It's far less convenient than controlling Root."
"After all, the members of Root have been branded with cursed seals, ensuring they can never disobey his commands."
"So in Danzō's mind, the importance of Root actually ranks above the Shimura clan itself."
"Breaking up the clan in order to strengthen Root may very well be something he has long wanted to do."
Koharu and Homura might not fully understand all of Danzō's actions, but Hiruzen Sarutobi knew most of them.
Among the three of them, Hiruzen was the one who understood Danzō best.
Although all four of them were part of the Konoha's Four Elders, Homura and Koharu were still slightly less familiar with Danzō's true nature.
Homura's expression darkened.
"If that's really the case… then things are indeed troublesome."
In this matter, Danzō was essentially barefoot and unafraid of those wearing shoes. Unlike them, he had far fewer concerns holding him back.
Hiruzen continued:
"So our top priority is to handle two matters as quickly as possible."
Koharu asked, "Which two?"
Hiruzen replied solemnly,
"Whether or not Danzō becomes the Fourth Hokage, two key factors cannot be avoided."
"First—the Uchiha clan."
"Second—the Fire Daimyō's court."
"If Danzō fails to become the Fourth Hokage, then the only thing he can do is pressure us through the Daimyō's court and buy time."
"And whether he can become Hokage in the first place depends on the support of the Uchiha clan."
"Likewise, whether he can gain help from the Daimyō's court also depends on the Uchiha clan."
"So the real problems we need to solve right now are the Uchiha clan and the Daimyō's court."
Homura nodded thoughtfully.
"Your analysis makes sense. But how do we deal with the Uchiha clan?"
"If I remember correctly, you already tried negotiating with them once, but they still sided with Danzō. Can they really be trusted?"
Hiruzen was less pessimistic.
"On that matter, I actually have some confidence."
During the previous Jōnin Assembly, Hiruzen had already noticed that the relationship between the Uchiha clan and Danzō was merely a mutual interest alliance.
As long as he could offer sufficient benefits, the Uchiha clan might still be persuaded to support them instead.
Hiruzen explained his reasoning before continuing.
"Previously, I did send Minato Namikaze to negotiate with the Uchiha clan. However, they were dissatisfied with the conditions I offered and made their own demands."
"But the terms proposed by the Uchiha clan were difficult for me to judge, so I didn't give them an immediate response."
"The main reason was that I didn't expect Danzō to reach an agreement with them so quickly."
"That's why we lost the initiative during today's meeting."
"So strictly speaking, the Uchiha clan hasn't betrayed us. There is still room for negotiation."
Koharu frowned slightly.
"But what kind of terms can we offer them?"
"I've heard some rumors that the condition Danzō offered the Hyūga clan was a seat among the Konoha Elders. The conditions he gave the Uchiha clan certainly wouldn't be any lower."
Hiruzen had clearly already made up his mind.
"If Elder Shimura can offer the position of Konoha Elder, then naturally we can offer the same."
Homura frowned.
"This… isn't the cost a bit too high? A Konoha Elder is part of the village's highest decision-making body."
Hiruzen waved his hand dismissively.
"As long as we can reach an agreement with the Uchiha clan, granting them a seat among the Konoha Elders is nothing."
"After all, Shimura Danzō's position as a Konoha Elder will definitely be removed."
"It's simply replacing one with another."
"With the three of us plus Minato, that makes four votes."
"Four against one—the Uchiha clan won't be able to cause any real trouble."
Homura and Koharu pondered this carefully before nodding.
As long as there were no internal problems among them, giving the Uchiha clan a seat among the Konoha Elders was acceptable.
Hiruzen continued,
"Once the Uchiha clan issue is resolved, the Daimyō's court will effectively be handled as well."
"But just to be safe, I intend to send someone to find Tsunade and have her visit the Daimyō's court personally."
Koharu looked at him.
"Are you certain Tsunade will follow your arrangements?"
Hiruzen's expression turned somewhat weary as he sighed.
"At this point, I'll have to set aside my pride."
"Besides, the village itself was built from the efforts of the Senju clan. Even if she won't do it for me, she may still do it out of respect for that legacy."
"In other words—if not for the monk's sake, then for the Buddha's."
"The chances of Tsunade helping are still quite high."
"After all, she wouldn't want to see Shimura Danzō governing Konoha either."
Homura spoke again.
"Let's proceed with that plan. However, I still feel it's not entirely safe."
"Since we're already giving away one Konoha Elder seat, giving away one more won't make much difference."
Hiruzen narrowed his eyes.
"You mean…"
Homura replied calmly,
"I'll go negotiate with the Hyūga clan."
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