Chapter 104: Aftermath

In the early morning light, the atmosphere in the Hidden Leaf Village today seemed a bit uneasy.

Ninjas who usually would be taking on missions or training were instead gathered on rooftops or power poles, much like sparrows in the morning, which infuriated the actual sparrows that felt their territory was being invaded.

"What's going on? Where are all these Hyuga Branch Family members going?"

A cry broke out from the crowd as numerous figures looked towards the police department building. They saw members of the Hyuga branch family slowly coming out, escorted by the department's staff.

"By the order of Root Deputy Director Orochimaru, all Hyuga branch family members are to move to a new location."

After this announcement, a crowd of ninjas maintained order and escorted the Hyuga branch family toward the outskirts of the Hidden Leaf Village. Many curious ninjas were hopping around on both sides, watching.

After all, this was a big event; never before had something like this happened in the ninja world. A prominent clan was splitting up, filling the usually mundane lives of the ninjas with curiosity.

Uchiha Yoru looked gravely at Kakashi and said, "Kakashi, you are ordered to go to the Hokage's office and report everything that has happened here."

Even Hizashi, the leader of the Hyuga branch family, sternly added, "Kakashi, please inform the Hokage that the Hyuga branch family is relocating by order of the Root."

Boom!

After Hyuga Hizashi's loud proclamation, the sharp senses of the ninjas caught every word. Many were shocked, wondering what was going on.

"Indeed, I knew someone must have thought the cage-bird curse of the Hyuga clan was too cruel."

"Yes, the Hokage is indeed merciful."

Many civilian ninjas, unaware of the severity of the situation, spoke up for the Hyuga branch family, admiring the Hokage's kindness. However, they did not realize that after Hyuga Hizashi's loud proclamation, some ninjas who were in the know looked alarmed.

This is bad!

In a grand procession, the Hyuga branch family arrived at their new living quarters in half an hour, escorted by many of their fellow village ninjas. Although they felt awkward, they would accept anything in exchange for freedom. When they saw the new location, everyone was shocked. Wasn't this the Uchiha clan's territory?

At this moment, many felt pity for the Uchiha. The Root had played this hand beautifully, not only splitting the Hyuga clan but also implanting a sharp force in the Uchiha clan's territory, even taking their land.

As expected, many saw the angry Uchiha clan head and the elders heading straight for the Hokage's office.

Watching the bustling scene, Uchiha Yoru's eyes were full of smiles, but he still declared sternly, "The Seventh Squad, under the command of Root Deputy Director, is here to assist the Hyuga branch family in settling down."

The Seventh Squad of the Police Force mostly followed Orochimaru. There weren't many Uchiha ninjas in it, so they simply carried out their orders. After all, it wasn't their own land being taken.

"Yugao, go and purchase food quickly. The people of the Hyuga branch family came lightly equipped; they'll probably run out of food today."

"Yes!" At this moment, Yugao Uzuki was bewildered. She, like many other Hidden Leaf ninjas, could not understand what was happening.

…

–

Hokage Office.

Uchiha Fugaku, along with Elder Uchiha Setsuna, stormed angrily into the Hokage conference hall. Before they even entered, the elder's angry roar could be heard.

"Shimura Danzo! You've gone too far!"

At this moment, numerous elite ninjas had gathered in the conference room, all lowering their heads to watch the scene unfold. This was high drama, stretching from last night to now, very exciting.

Danzo stood up angrily in the face of the ranting Uchiha Setsuna and shouted with his one good eye, "How dare you! This is the Hokage's conference room, not Uchiha territory!"

"Danzo! Stop your nonsense. Who are you to allocate Uchiha land to the Hyuga branch family?"

"Uchiha Yoru took your Root Division's orders, so explain this to me!" Although Elder Uchiha Setsuna was old, his rage caused the assembled elite ninjas to step back. He was clearly here to file a complaint.

Uchiha Setsuna held up the orders from Root, walked angrily to the front of the room, and slammed the desk, glaring at the Third Hokage, "Can you give me a reasonable explanation? When did Root get involved in Uchiha affairs? Directly ordering us to cede land to the Hyuga clan?"

At this moment, the elite ninjas looked at Danzo. Many were already dissatisfied with Root, and this only made it more apparent.

Danzo, you've gone too far. First splitting the Hyuga and now trying to benefit from the Uchiha. It's like killing two birds with one stone. The plan is just ridiculous.

"Why wasn't I, the Hokage, informed about this Root order?"

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, also became furious after seeing the Root order in Uchiha Setsuna's hand. He yelled at Danzo.

"Danzo, how could you!" At this moment, Danzo was speechless because the orders were real, coming from Orochimaru, who was part of Root. How could he escape responsibility?

He had never felt so wronged. He had narrowly missed becoming the Third Hokage back in the day.

Hiruzen was also angry. Why didn't Danzo tell him about the Hyuga division plan earlier? The envoy from the Land of Lightning meant nothing to him. It was just a small trick, and he was only using it as an excuse to pressure the Hyuga.

Both Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu were also unhappy with Danzo. Everyone knew that this was Orochimaru's doing. But since Orochimaru was under Danzo's Root, who else should take the blame?

"Elder Setsuna, I will surely give you a satisfactory explanation for this matter. Is that acceptable?"

After scolding Danzo, Hiruzen turned back to Elder Uchiha Setsuna, his face filled with sincerity. With that sentence, he shifted the blame onto Danzo.

Uchiha Setsuna knew that these higher-ups were all in cahoots, but he could only snort in dissatisfaction, sitting down cross-legged, "Fine, today I expect a satisfactory answer from the Hokage regarding Danzo's Root division and the Uchiha clan."

At this moment, Uchiha Fugaku also stood up. Compared to the anger of Elder Setsuna, he appeared calm. "Hokage, Uchiha Yoru delivered this order directly to me, saying it was an order, not a discussion. The Uchiha clan knew nothing about this, but for the sake of the village's stability, we could only watch as the Hyuga branch family moved in."

"The Uchiha are part of Konoha, as is the Hyuga clan, but this issue has already affected our family internally!"

Uchiha Fugaku also expressed strong dissatisfaction, making Sarutobi Hiruzen very frustrated. He also gave Danzo a disdainful look.

"You messed it up again!"

"Hokage, the Hyuga clan is now on war alert. The situation is extremely dangerous, and a single mistake could lead to internal conflict within the Hyuga clan."

"Exactly, the main and branch families of the Hyuga are their own internal affairs. We shouldn't be involved, and now!"

People from all major families also expressed their dissatisfaction. This time, even Shikaku expressed tentative displeasure. After all, no clan in Konoha, except the Uchiha, could compare with the Hyuga. If this continues, how many families can bear it?

Just then, the door burst open again, this time with greater force than before, and slammed against the wall.

Everyone looked over and saw Hyuga Hiashi and the elder of the Hyuga clan walk in, looking furious. Everyone shut up at that moment.

The real stakeholders are here; this is getting big.

"Hokage, didn't the Land of Lightning envoy want the Hyuga bloodline? Here we are, the clan leaders of the Hyuga. Hand us over. If that's not enough, there are many more in the main family. If that's still not enough, hand over Danzo's organization too, so we're not blamed after the war."

He entered and started berating both the Third Hokage and Danzo right away.

Just then, the elder of the Uchiha clan saw the elder of the Hyuga clan and couldn't help but laugh, faking anger and yelling, "Hyuga, you can't even manage your branch family and let them occupy our land. You must give me an explanation this time."

The two elders were now confronting each other. The elder of the Hyuga clan was extremely frustrated and began to curse loudly. His dignified demeanor was gone.

"What does the branch family have to do with me? If I could control them, they'd be in the Shimura or Sarutobi families! You pick on Danzo, stop nagging me."

"Danzo, you're ruthless! You've broken the cage bird seal of our Hyuga clan, well done! I admire you!" The Hyuga elder, after berating the Uchiha, turned to Danzo, furious but giving a thumbs up.

"Our century-old Hyuga tradition is ruined today. Danzo, name your price. How many ninjas do you need? I'll negotiate a number with you today, or I'll jump off this Hokage building."

"Danzo, just say it. Whether you want money or people, rest assured. The Hyuga clan will have no more caged birds, curse seals are all yours. If it's not enough, Hyuga Hiashi and I can also join. Just to become your loyal subordinates, say it."

The Hyuga elder was fully fired up, venting all his anger. Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane chose to remain silent. Even the Hyuga clan had to vent.

All the Jounin present looked at Danzo with caution. Although they knew he was ruthless, this was too much. They also looked at the Hyuga clan with eyes full of pity and sympathy.

This is the most tragic situation; the branch family is gone, and it almost led to a civil war within the family.

"Shimura Danzo! From now on, I have decided to relieve you of your duties in the Root! The Root will be temporarily supervised by the Anbu!"

After watching the Hyuga elder vent his anger, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, also looked furious. He slammed his hand on the table angrily. The table had been hit numerous times today, and he began to scold Danzo directly.

"Me! You!"

Danzo's exposed eye was full of fierce and suppressed anger, glaring angrily at everyone. He was wronged! He was aggrieved! But what the hell can he do about it?

"Sarutobi! You'll regret this!"

Seeing that Danzo was still not willing to give in, Sarutobi got angry and slammed the table, shouting: "Danzo! I am the Hokage!"

Danzo was at a loss for words, completely speechless. He had suffered more injustices today than in his entire life. In his anger, he even thought of Orochimaru and then looked at the righteous and angry Sarutobi.

Danzo was so furious he could bite his own teeth. Both you and your disciple, Orochimaru, are not good people. Orochimaru openly went to the border and left the village, putting all the blame on him, while the Hyuga branch family ultimately became his force.

Both the master and the disciple are of the same ilk; the old one lets him take the blame, and now the young one does too.

Fine! Sarutobi, you and your disciple are ruthless. I will not let you go!

Danzo, filled with anger towards Sarutobi and Orochimaru, slammed the table and chose to leave the meeting room.

"Danzo! You've been relieved of your duties in the Root!"

Just as he walked out the door, he heard Sarutobi's angry shout. Danzo nearly lost his breath, suppressing his anger and shouting: "I'm going home!"

As Danzo left the Hokage's meeting room, the cold wind suddenly blew, and his mind became clear. At this moment, it seemed like he realized something and the eye that was exposed showed a burst of anger.

Fine, I was wondering why I was suddenly being blamed. So this is all your calculation, Sarutobi.

He really didn't know about Orochimaru's secret research on the Caged Bird Seal, but what about Sarutobi?

Sarutobi must have known all along but chose to remain silent. When things went wrong, he stepped in to play the good guy, but the blame was left for him to bear.

Sarutobi ended up with a divided Hyuga clan, fueling hatred between the main and branch families. It's a good thing they didn't start fighting.

A prestigious family, second only to the Uchiha, was split in half and fell to the level of Ino-Shika-Cho, posing no threat to the Leaf Village anymore.

It seems that Orochimaru gained the Hyuga branch family as a power source, but Sarutobi knew he was going to deal with Orochimaru soon. Well done!

Everyone is just a chess piece on the board, and only he, Sarutobi, is the one who has the last laugh.

Thinking about all this, Danzo broke into a cold sweat, turned his head to look at the righteous Sarutobi in the meeting room, and thought to himself, Monkey! So this is how you became the Hokage, but I won't admit defeat!

~~~

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