Orochimaru simply smiled at Hiruzen's words and gave no reply.
But his meaning was already perfectly clear.
Seeing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi became even more furious. His breathing grew heavier, and the anger in his heart surged.
At the same time, his dissatisfaction toward Shimura Danzō reached its peak.
If Orochimaru's own changes were the primary reason Hiruzen abandoned him as a successor, then Orochimaru's association with Danzō was the second.
What kind of person was Shimura Danzō?
The darkness of the shinobi world.
Danzō's work had always been the kind that could never see the light of day. If Orochimaru was cooperating with someone like that, what good could possibly come of it?
The Hokage of Konoha was meant to be the leaf bathed in sunlight.
How could someone bearing such stains occupy that position?
Moreover, Hiruzen understood Danzō's ambitions better than anyone.
Danzō had coveted the position of Hokage for years. Only various circumstances had prevented him from achieving that goal.
If Orochimaru continued cooperating with Danzō in those shady dealings, it would be equivalent to handing Danzō leverage over him.
Should Orochimaru ever become the Fourth Hokage, the outcome would be obvious.
With Orochimaru's secrets in hand, Danzō would become the Hokage above the Hokage.
His power would reach a terrifying level.
Konoha, like a great tree, indeed needed roots buried deep underground—roots that handled the unsavory work no one else could do.
But if those roots ever emerged above the surface…
Then the great tree itself would not be far from collapse.
Hiruzen would never allow such a thing to happen.
As for Danzō…
Hmph.
If you were a root, then you should accept the role of a root.
The seat of Hokage was something he should stop dreaming about.
Thinking about the recent schemes Danzō had been conducting behind the scenes, Hiruzen silently made up his mind.
It was time to properly rein in his old comrade.
"Enough," Homura Mitokado interjected, trying to smooth things over.
"Now isn't the time for this."
He changed the topic.
"Hiruzen, what about Minato Namikaze? He still has over a thousand shinobi standing by."
"That's too large a force. If they stay hidden for too long, someone will notice."
"When the other clans in the village start asking questions, we won't have an easy explanation."
A thousand shinobi constituted a formidable military force.
Such a force could easily sweep through any nation outside the Five Great Shinobi Countries.
Deploying such a force outside the village without explanation would raise serious concerns if discovered.
Of course, everyone with a brain knew the truth:
The force was meant to counter the Uchiha clan.
But some things could be done—
Yet never spoken aloud.
After all, the Uchiha had not committed any extreme actions so far. In fact, throughout this entire turmoil, they technically appeared to be the victims.
If the village openly prepared military defenses against them based on an unproven suspicion, it would be impossible to justify.
And once trust was lost—
The village's unity would begin to crumble.
Hiruzen frowned and pondered for a moment.
"If it can't be hidden, then we simply won't hide it."
"Once the sun rises fully, issue another announcement."
"We'll say the village plans to hold a grand military parade to coincide with the inauguration of the Fourth Hokage—to deter potential enemies."
"In the coming days, shinobi will gather for training exercises in preparation."
Koharu Utatane immediately shook her head.
"That's risky."
"The war has only just ended. The situation between the villages is still tense."
"If we make such a large military display right now, other villages might react aggressively."
"They might think Konoha is preparing to start another war."
Even though a ceasefire had been signed, the great villages remained on edge.
Seeing Konoha suddenly assembling a thousand shinobi would undoubtedly alarm them.
Homura added,
"And it would attract far too much attention."
"If the Uchiha truly launch a coup and both sides end up heavily weakened…"
"Those villages might strike first while we're vulnerable."
Hiruzen immediately realized the flaw in his plan.
Unfortunately, he couldn't think of a better solution at the moment.
Orochimaru chuckled softly.
"If the target is too large…"
"Then simply break it into smaller pieces."
"Divide them into platoons and squads and distribute them across the village."
"Have them remain on standby."
"If anything happens, they can quickly regroup into a combat-ready force."
In truth, Orochimaru simply wanted to end this conversation and return to his research.
Konoha wasn't a small village.
If the thousand shinobi were divided and concealed with ANBU assistance, hiding them would be easy.
And as long as the combat alert remained active, regrouping them later would take very little time.
Homura's eyes lit up.
"Hiruzen, that's a good plan."
"We can even arrange their positions based on the location of the Uchiha Clan Compound."
"With proper positioning, nothing major should go wrong."
Hiruzen looked deeply at Orochimaru.
A sigh rose in his heart.
If his student hadn't strayed down the wrong path…
Orochimaru would truly have been the best candidate for Hokage.
"…Very well. We'll do it that way."
Just as Hiruzen raised his hand to finalize the decision—
Swish!
An ANBU shinobi suddenly appeared in the office using the Body Flicker Technique.
Hiruzen's eyes sharpened.
"Shinnosuke," he said immediately.
"Has something happened with the Uchiha?"
Sarutobi Shinnosuke nodded.
"Lord Hokage."
"Three minutes ago, members of the Uchiha clan began packing their belongings and returning to the Uchiha Clan Compound under the arrangements of Uchiha Setsuna and Uchiha Ya."
Hiruzen froze.
"Setsuna and Ya… together?"
Shinnosuke nodded firmly.
"Yes."
Hiruzen frowned deeply.
Setsuna represented the Radical Faction of the Uchiha.
Ya represented the Conservative Faction.
The entire purpose of last night's clan assembly had been to determine which faction would gain control of the clan.
Yet now—
The leaders of both factions were working together.
What exactly had happened during the Uchiha clan meeting?
Which faction had won?
Or had something entirely unexpected occurred?
Just as Hiruzen was lost in thought, Shinnosuke continued speaking.
"Additionally, Uchiha Fugaku, the Uchiha clan head, and Uchiha Ren are currently on their way to the Hokage Tower."
"They say they have urgent matters to discuss with you."
"They also request that you summon the Konoha elders and department heads to witness the transfer of authority over the Konoha Military Police Force."
Hiruzen Sarutobi: ???
Koharu Utatane: ???
Homura Mitokado: ???
Orochimaru:
"…Yaaawn."
Narrative Note:
This chapter sets up a major turning point—the transfer of the Konoha Military Police Force, which historically is controlled by the Uchiha. Ren bringing this into the Hokage office with witnesses suggests a political maneuver rather than a rebellion, which will likely shock the entire Konoha leadership in the next chapter.
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