23 Hokage and Konoha Council
A/n: ngl I felt that this chapter was shit but was too lazy to rewrite it 😒
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Hiruzen shook his head as he remembered it. Though just as he was about to head back to his seat the door opened as three figures walked in.
"Hiruzen! We need to talk!" An elderly figure said. He was a man that looked to be the same age as Hiruzen if only a bit older, his face was mostly covered by bandages which covered one of is eyes. An x-crossed scar on his chin.
Following behind him were two other elderly figures. One man and one woman.
"I heard you took in the Jinchuriki!" The bandage covered old man stated.
Hiruzen inwardly sighed as he waved his hand. Signaling the anbu to leave as well as make sure no one goes near the room.
Then Hiruzen narrowed his eyes as he spoke. "Watch how you speak to me, Danzo. Though we may be old friends, I am still your Hokage"
"...!" Danzo was a little shocked at the sudden change of attitude as did the other two. Though the other two didn't dwell on it too much as they hastily replied.
"Don't mind him Hiruzen, he was still shocked at the sudden turn of events" The other old man said.
"Indeed, are you perhaps thinking of grooming the boy, like you did with the sannin?" The old woman inquired.
"Homura, Koharu... and Danzo" Hiruzen said as he looked at the trio. "What is this sudden unannounced visit?"
"We are here to talk about the Jinchuriki..." The one now named Danzo said.
"Oh, and what of young Naruto?" Hiruzen said leisurely as he took out his pipe and took a puff.
"You were the one who ordered all shinobi that knew of his origins to stay away from him... to think you would be the one to break your own promise" Danzo said.
"Danzo!" Homura and Koharu said at the same time, although they were all friends, Danzo was really pushing his boundaries.
"So? Indeed I was the one who ordered it, but at the same time does that apply to me? I, the Hokage of the Hidden Leaf?" Hiruzen said.
"This..." The other two elders said with furrowed brows as they had no answer. Hiruzen was indeed the person chosen by their sensei, Tobirama, in the position of Hokage.
"If it was so... then you might as well give the boy to me to train!" Danzo said to Hiruzen who narrowed his eyes.
"Train? For what? Your root organization has long been disbanded" Hiruzen stated calmly as he stared at Danzo, daring him to say something.
"Hmph, you're making a mistake Hiruzen. That child doesn't need care, he needs to be trained as a tool for the village!" Danzo said as if stating fact.
Though Danzo's words inevitably triggered Hiruzen slightly as he flexed his chakra increasing the room's already tense pressure.
"How dare you Danzo! You know that child's origin just as much as I do, after all the things Minato had done for the leaf, you still dare to say such things?!" Hiruzen roared in anger.
"No matter his origins, he is a jinchuriki. It is his purpose to be a deterrent and weapon against enemy villages. Look at what happened at his birth. Kushina's seal broke, if we don't train him now, he'll never be able to tap onto that power and perhaps even lose control!" Danzo argued.
"Don't overstep your boundaries, Danzo. Like I stated all those years ago at the night of the Uchiha Massacre. You are no longer the second in command, Danzo. Don't act presumptuous with me" Hiruzen said as the pressure in the room suddenly increased by tenfold.
Danzo had hidden it well as he stayed somewhat composed, but there were inevitable beads of sweat that began forming on his forehead by the sudden pressure brought about by Hiruzen's chakra. Though the other two elders, who were inferior in strength, already began to tremble slightly.
"There is no need for the three of you to question my motives, I am the Hokage, here in the village my word is law!" Hiruzen suddenly bellowed at the three of them as the he pressured the three of them as he flexed his Chakra.
"Remember, Uzumaki Naruto is under my protection!" He stated at the three of them. Not giving the three of them a chance to speak. He was familiar with Danzo, he would bring the other two to back him up.
So the best thing to do was not to give him any more of a chance to speak.
"Dismissed!"
"Hizuren you…" Danzo said as he gripped tightly on his cane before he grit his teeth and turned around.
With a snort, he left the room.
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When he saw Danzo finally leave, Hiruzen stopped circulating his chakra before he sighed lightly.
"Hiruzen you" The old woman, Koharu said.
Hiruzen waved his hand lightly "It's fine, Danzo just needs to cool his head"
He had long gotten used to butting head with Danzo.
"Yes, he has always been impulsive." Homura nodded before turning to Hiruzen.
"More importantly Hiruzen, is what Danzo said real? You intend to take in the boy?" He asked. They originally came with Danzo because of this piece of information.
"Yes, I was wrong the whole time. Right now, Naruto probably has no real bonds so to speak" Hiruzen stated to the two.
"I'm afraid if this keeps up, he will not hold any affection for the leaf. In the future he might very well defect and I can't bear to cause Minato's child to do that" he explained.
"…" The two other elders stayed silent but knew how important this matter was.
"Is it too late?" Koharu asked.
"Fortunately no, Inoichi's daughter has somehow entangled herself with the young boy" Hiruzen chuckled slightly as the other two had confused looks.
Shaking his head he spoke "Nevermind, but just know that, Naruto is not what he makes him out to be, he's a prodigy. I see in him the qualities that I've seen from many of the prodigies over the years"
"Are you sure? From what I've heard he's been at the bottom of his class" The other elder said skeptically whilst the other nodded.
"I see in him qualities that I've seen in my students. Orochimaru's intelligence, Tsunade's fierceness, and Jiraiya's drive… he even has a bit of Itachi's wisdom" Hiruzen said with a bit of pride.
"I want to see how far he can go, what he can achieve… I'll train him as my future successor" Hiruzen told them finally stunning the two elders.
"My only problem now is Danzo, you've both seen it as well haven't you? How Danzo has long changed?" He asked the two as they both sighed and nodded.
"Yes, we both have long since noticed. In fact Koharu and I already noticed the many dark secrets he's done over the past few years" Homura stated as Koharu agreed.
"We've even suspected that he might have been responsible for Shisui's disappearance" She said as Hiruzen nodded.
"You both suspected as well?" He asked as the two nodded.
"Hmm… Yes, he might even be hiding both of Shisui's mangekyo sharingan. Just before Orochimaru's defection Danzo has been meeting with him frequently…"
"Hiruzen, you don't mean?!" Koharu asked as Homura also had widened eyes.
"You have both seen it as well right? Despite being a cripple and even a bit older than us, Danzo still walks with his back straight. Not to mention his hair has not yet lost it's color, yet we who are younger and healthier are already filled with white and gray hair" Hiruzen explained.
"This…"
"Yes, it makes sense" Homura nodded
"Both of you, be more careful of Danzo. Also, do note that Root has probably not been disbanded but just been hidden by Danzo" he warned.
Listening to Hiruzen both elders sighed before nodded.
"Yes, we'll be more careful. Also Hiruzen, since you have much faith in the jinchuriki, I'll support you" Homura said while Koharu also agreed.
"I as well"
Hiruzen nodded as he bid the two farewell.
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Meanwhile, Danzo who had long since left, gnashed on his teeth.
"Damn it!" He cursed as his cane his single visible arm held was crushed.
'What's the use of acting as Hokage now, Hiruzen?!' He inwardly questioned. To him, Hiruzen was never fit to be a kage.
That day, he should have been made Hokage!
"Now you're preventing me to use the jinchuriki as well!" He cursed.
Honestly, he never thought anything of Minato's spawn. Other than being the vessel of the Kyuubi and inheriting Kushina's Uzumaki lineage, he was nothing special.
The only reason why he still bothered to monitor the boy was because of the Kyuubi along with the hope that perhaps the boy would one day awaken the Uzumaki's chakra chains.
During the night of the Kyuubi's rampage, he was informed by his root shinobi that the Uzumaki's Adamantine Sealing Chains held even the Kyuubi at bay.
If the boy were to awaken it, wouldn't he be the perfect tool to use the Kyuub's power?!
Alas, the boy showed nothing but a disappointing display. If not for the fact that he resembled Minato, he might have thought he was a bastard.
Though Hiruzen's sudden actions of taking in the boy had rekindled his fading interest of the brat.
"Prioritize in monitoring the jinchuriki, though make sure to do it cautiously. Only do so when he exits the Sarutobi household" he ordered before he heard a reply.
"Yes, Danzo-sama"
'Good' He thought before he narrowed his eyes. 'Though it seems Hiruzen is now wary of me, even Homura and Koharu are starting to get suspicious'
Danzo knew that the four of them would not have the same relationship as they did in the past. To him, it was all Hiruzen's fault. If only he reigned as the Hokage!
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Chapter End
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a/n:
Sorry for the slow updates, I took a booster shot and for the past few days I've been literally dying. My arm sore, massive headache and literally felt like I had no strength on my body to the point that I've just been laying down for the past few days. Even the pills that they gave me to relieve the pain and headaches barely work.
...
Was originally going to have Koharu and Homura go against Hiruzen but remembered they literally had less screen time than Tenten but remembered they were somewhat reasonable. I mean they listened to Jiraiya when he told them that Tsunade was a better hokage than him...
Also just wanted to remind you guys again that this fic is slow paced... Anyway next chapter will be back to slice of life stuff…
