Chapter 64: Danzo: Hiruzen, Do You Want to be His Dog? A Way to Counter Ishihara!

Chapter 64: Danzo: Hiruzen, Do You Want to be His Dog? A Way to Counter Ishihara!

Fugaku and the clan leaders quickly left.

Today's events had been a significant shock to them, and they all needed to return and deliberate on their next course of action.

The situation had developed somewhat beyond expectations, and Ishihara also needed time to think.

Originally, he had planned to slowly acquire Konoha's secret and forbidden techniques while steadily increasing his own strength.

However, it now seemed that obtaining these techniques might be easier than he had initially imagined.

But he wasn't in a hurry. Calmly, he returned to continue researching the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Konoha, however, was far from calm at the moment.

The Third Hokage, along with the heads of the major ninja clans, had made a grand appearance, which naturally attracted the attention of the entire village.

Some even suspected that another war was on the horizon.

Speculation ran rampant, causing a sense of unease and tension throughout the village.

Yet, the major clans paid little mind to this. Upon returning to Konoha, they immediately convened clan meetings.

Meanwhile, back at the Hokage's office, Danzo, along with Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, were already waiting, having been alerted by the commotion.

As soon as the Third Hokage entered the office, Koharu immediately questioned with dissatisfaction, "Hiruzen, where have you been? What caused such a big stir? The entire village is in turmoil."

The Third Hokage frowned slightly and walked over to the window to look outside.

From there, he could see numerous Konoha shinobi gathered on the streets, conversing in hushed tones as they slowly made their way towards the Hokage building.

"I have something important to discuss with all of you. I need your decision."

He sighed, rubbing his temples in frustration, then sat down, looking at his three old friends, each with a different expression.

Homura's face was grave. "What exactly happened this time? Is Uchiha planning to make a move?"

Although Shisui's death some time ago had temporarily quieted the Uchiha clan, they had never let their guard down, instead staying on high alert, constantly wary of any potential Uchiha uprising.

Danzo perked up at this. After all, the Uchiha situation was something he had orchestrated. Could it be that the Uchiha were finally being pushed to their limits?

"It's not the Uchiha."

The Third Hokage shook his head, causing Danzo to look disappointed.

Koharu and Homura, however, breathed a sigh of relief, though they were still puzzled. "Then what's going on?"

"This situation might be even more serious than the Uchiha."

The Third Hokage's expression turned somber.

The trio's hearts sank as they focused all their attention on him.

The Third Hokage asked, "Do you remember the mission Kakashi and Itachi went on not long ago where they suffered heavy casualties?"

"Of course I remember. I lost several men from the Root because of that. But you ordered Kakashi and Itachi to keep the details confidential, so we still don't know what really happened."

Danzo spoke angrily.

As a high-ranking official in Konoha, not knowing the reason for his subordinates' deaths was something he had made note of.

The Third Hokage replied, "This current situation is related to that mission."

He then stopped beating around the bush and directly relayed the information he had obtained from Itachi, as well as what had happened today.

As they listened to the intel about Ishihara, the trio's expressions shifted from shock to disbelief, and finally, to a heavy silence.

The office fell into an eerie quiet.

Koharu hesitated for a moment before speaking, "Hiruzen, it's not that we don't believe you, but...what you're saying sounds a bit too far-fetched!"

Developing numerous S-rank secret techniques!

Possibly mastering the Lightning Release Chakra Mode of the Hidden Cloud Village!

Possessing Kage-level strength!

Potentially mastering space-time ninjutsu!

Improving Uchiha's forbidden technique, Izanami, in just a few minutes!

And all of this was achieved by a six-year-old boy.

No matter how she looked at it, it didn't seem credible.

The Third Hokage's face remained grave. "Though it's hard to believe, after personally verifying it, I think it might actually be true!"

"The most important thing now is that the Uchiha clan has already made contact with Ishihara. You all know how detrimental this could be for us!"

A war between the Uchiha and the Konoha leadership could break out at any moment.

That was his greatest concern.

Homura asked, "What exactly are you worried about?"

The Third Hokage took a deep breath and stared at the three of them, speaking in a low voice, "I'm worried that Ishihara might help the Uchiha awaken the Mangekyō!"

"That's impossible!"

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, both Koharu and Homura immediately objected.

The Mangekyō Sharingan was an extraordinary power, even the Uchiha clan themselves struggled with it. How could an outsider like Ishihara possibly help them awaken it?

It was simply absurd.

The Third Hokage smirked, "He developed the Sharingan on his own. Do you really think it's impossible for him to help the Uchiha awaken the Mangekyō?"

Koharu and Homura fell silent at those words.

If the intel was true, then it wasn't entirely out of the realm of possibility!

The two exchanged a glance, a sense of unease creeping into their hearts.

"Hiruzen, what do you plan to do?"

The Third Hokage took a deep drag from his pipe, exhaling a thick cloud of smoke as he said, his voice drifting, "I'm considering cooperating with Ishihara."

"And become his dog?!"

Danzo's cold voice made the Third Hokage freeze, then erupt in anger, "Nonsense! What are you talking about?"

Danzo stared at him coldly and asked, "Isn't that what it would mean? If Ishihara really has that kind of power, do you think working with him wouldn't come with a price?"

"Don't be naive, Hiruzen. Think about how we treat the common shinobi of Konoha. Think about the Hyuga clan's main and branch family system."

"And think about everything we've done to protect our village's jutsu!"

"If you want to cooperate with Ishihara, wouldn't that mean becoming his dog?"

The office fell into a deep silence, with only Danzo's furious outburst echoing through the room.

Koharu and Homura, watching Danzo's rage, didn't dare speak.

The Third Hokage breathed heavily as he glared at Danzo, gritting his teeth.

"You think I want to?"

"Ishihara has mastered space-time ninjutsu. There's nothing we can do against him!"

"If he decides to ally with other ninja villages, what will happen to Konoha then?!"

Danzo's expression was icy, his tone decisive as he slammed his hand on the desk and shouted, "How do you know Fugaku isn't deceiving you? Who can prove that Ishihara has truly mastered space-time ninjutsu?!"

"You panicked without even verifying the facts. Hiruzen, you've disappointed me!"

"And even if he has mastered space-time ninjutsu, so what?!"

"Didn't the Second Hokage leave behind ideas on how to counter space-time ninjutsu?"

"Don't forget your own Reaper Death Seal! As long as we get just one moment, you can kill Ishihara!"