Chapter 158: Tsunade Directly Threatens Danzo

One can only wonder, Danzo—after reading this scroll, will you feel relieved that Takuya couldn't be bothered with you? And that, due to your health, you didn't act on your plans?

Tsunade was certain of one thing: if Danzo dared to make a move against Takuya, the boy wouldn't back down. He'd strike back immediately, no hesitation.

Although such an event would undoubtedly harm the village's unity, Tsunade would still enjoy seeing Danzo being put in his place. Ever since her grandmother's passing, Danzo had grown increasingly arrogant, and perhaps it was high time someone made him taste defeat.

"Yes, Lady Tsunade." The Intelligence Division ninja didn't understand what Tsunade was plotting, but obediently took the scroll and headed toward the command center.

In the command center's resting area, Danzo lay there, still recovering. Once the scroll arrived, one of his Root ninjas opened it for him and set it in place.

Bang!

Danzo's eyes barely scanned the contents before his fist slammed into the wooden bed. A loud crack echoed as the wood snapped under the force, and to the stunned horror of his Root subordinates, Danzo tumbled off the bed, rolling onto the ground with a few undignified spins.

"Danzo-sama!"

His subordinates panicked, rushing to scoop him up into a princess carry before sprinting toward the medical tent.

What in the world...?

Tsunade was peacefully enjoying a cup of tea, savoring the moment when suddenly, the Root ninjas burst into the room, cradling a stiff, stone-faced Danzo.

"Lady Tsunade, Danzo-sama accidentally fell from the bed!" one of the Root ninjas blurted out, visibly shaken.

"..."

Danzo lay there with his eyes closed, feigning intense pain. Tsunade's mouth twitched slightly.

This old fox is faking it, she thought. He's embarrassed and now pretending to be in pain just so no one suspects anything.

If word got out that Danzo fell from his bed and rolled around, he'd never live it down.

Cough, cough. Tsunade stifled her laughter and put on a serious face. "What were you thinking, moving around like this at your age? Didn't I tell you not to move before we fully detoxify your body? What if the poison spreads and you end up paralyzed?"

She turned her gaze toward the Root ninjas. "How did he end up on the floor?"

One of them, more puppet than person, responded mechanically: "Danzo-sama saw the intelligence report, got agitated, and hit the bed. The wooden frame broke, causing him to fall."

"..."

Tsunade pinched her hand under the table to keep from laughing. Looking at Danzo's performance, she had to suppress her amusement.

Pretending to check him over, she put on her best serious face. "Danzo-sama, is he going to be alright?" asked one of the ninjas nervously, clearly alarmed by Tsunade's exaggerated concern.

Danzo, with his eyes still closed, was silently cursing his luck. He wanted nothing more than to leap up and strangle this idiot.

Could you be any denser?

I'm perfectly fine! Tsunade is just pretending!

At first, Danzo was worried about any lasting effects from his fall, but when he saw Tsunade's shoulders subtly shaking as she turned away, he knew.

She was laughing at him.

Danzo realized it then: Tsunade was faking her concern, just as he was faking his injuries. Both were putting on a show. But he couldn't call her out on it—if he did, she'd expose him. Worse, she'd tell everyone about how he broke the bed and rolled around on the ground.

"Leave us," Tsunade finally ordered, waving off the Root ninjas. One of them hesitated, glancing at Danzo's still-pained expression before bowing and scurrying out of the room.

"They're gone," Tsunade said with a huff, slumping back into her chair.

Danzo opened his eyes and snorted in response, saying nothing. He picked up the file Tsunade had been reading earlier, returning to his silence.

For a while, the two simply sat there, working in their respective ways. Eventually, Tsunade broke the silence.

"Yagami Takuya is under my protection," she began, her voice firm. "And I expect that misunderstandings—those that could lead to conflict—won't happen again."

"Everything I do is for the village," Danzo countered, his tone calm but unyielding. "As the Hokage's advisor, I act with the village's best interests at heart."

Ah, the village's best interests. The same old excuse.

Tsunade's lip curled into a sneer.

"I'm sure you believe that," she said with a mocking chuckle. "But let me tell you something, Danzo. I have records—about Sarutobi and your own Shimura clan—highlighting some... let's call them 'irregularities' in their development."

Danzo's one good eye widened, and his pulse quickened.

Impossible.

Tsunade had never shown any interest in such matters before. She couldn't have looked into the questionable dealings of the Sarutobi and Shimura clans, could she?

The 'irregularities' she mentioned referred to how the two clans had used their influence to make it seem like their families were just ordinary civilians, benefiting from all the village's public resources. In truth, they were still major players within Konoha.

The Shimura clan wasn't the worst offender, but the Sarutobi clan? They were the most blatant.

Just because Tsunade hadn't spoken about these things before didn't mean she didn't know. It just meant no one had crossed her.

Until now.

Danzo's recent behavior had pushed her too far. She knew that once they returned to Konoha, he'd likely rally the Third Hokage, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado against her. Together, they'd try to pressure Takuya.

Tsunade wouldn't let it come to that. So, she dug up some old skeletons.

"I've kept quiet all this time," Tsunade continued, leaning back in her chair. "But push me, and I'll take this to the Daimyō's court. Let's see how you explain yourselves then."

The Daimyō wouldn't directly intervene—he didn't have that authority. But the real threat wasn't legal intervention. Tsunade wanted the scandal to spread. Once word got out, the villagers would turn against them in an uproar.

Just the thought of it made Danzo's stomach churn.

Tsunade wasn't bluffing.

Her next words were spoken loud enough for the departing Root ninja to hear.

"Go on, take your Danzo-sama back to his quarters. Tomorrow, I'll have him transported back to the village by carriage for further recovery. The poison in his nervous system will take a long time to clear, and the process will be smoother in Konoha."

In her mind, Tsunade had originally planned to treat Danzo over the course of two months. Now she'd changed her mind.

Danzo still found ways to stir up trouble while lying down.

Looks like he's got too much energy.

Time to extend his treatment—at least six months, she decided. It'd give her more time to keep him under control.

This was a golden opportunity to teach Danzo a hard lesson.

Following her orders, the Root ninja carried Danzo out. If his acting hadn't been convincing, his tumble from the bed would've spread across the village and left everyone in stitches.

By evening, the report from Takuya's escort mission had reached Konoha, landing in the hands of the Third Hokage. He was just finishing a meeting in his office when the report was delivered.

After the meeting ended, the Third Hokage unrolled the scroll and began to read, his brow furrowing with each line.

"Sigh. Take a look," he said after a long pause, handing the scroll to Koharu and Homura, who had been waiting in the room.

Like the Third Hokage, their reactions were not of joy, even though the scroll reported that Takuya had decimated a large Suna force.

"His progress is... troubling," Homura muttered. "Yagami Takuya is advancing too fast."

Having a prodigy was a good thing for the village, no doubt about it. Takuya's rise would bolster Konoha's strength. But when a genius became too powerful, it posed a different problem.

One Hatake Sakumo had been hard enough for the upper echelons to manage. Now with Yagami Takuya coming up, the pressure on the old guard was mounting.

Even though Takuya wasn't aiming for any of their positions, his continued growth would inevitably challenge the status quo.

The more achievements he stacked up, the more rewards he'd be owed. Eventually, they couldn't just keep offering him token gestures. Sooner or later, Takuya would have to be brought into the inner circle, and that would mean a redistribution of power.

That was something the Third Hokage and the elders couldn't afford to let happen.

***********important********

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