Sarutobi Hiruzen was agitated. He suppressed the anger in his heart and said, “Because of the hostage mission, the Land of Rivers Daimyo has now issued an edict. All their missions will be entrusted to Suna for the next ten years. Do you know how much Konoha lost because of Aburame Ryoma?”
Shimura Danzo put away the scroll and asked in a low voice, “Hiruzen, tell me, what do you want?”
Hiruzen decisively replied, “Ryoma must die.”
“Alright.” Danzo agreed without reluctance. Someone’s head must roll for such a grave matter. Since Ryoma was a mere tool for him, he would simply forfeit it. However, this was not enough to placate Hiruzen. He continued, “Root will be downsized and its annual funding will be halved. The personnel will be let go on a large scale.”
Danzo immediately raised his voice, “Hiruzen, do you want to destroy Konoha?”
Hiruzen snorted and replied indifferently, “Three days later, I’ll hold a meeting with the patriarchs and senior officials from Konoha’s various clans to discuss this. Prepare yourself.”
Hiruzen left Root after throwing these words at Danzo, who was left alone and stood quietly on the same spot for a long time.
Later in the day, Ryoma’s voice could be heard in the Root. “Danzo-sama, I failed to fulfill my duty in this mission, I’m willing to accept any punishment.”
Danzo sat in his seat. In the shadows, his finger continuously tapped on the armrest.
Tap, tap, tap…
Time passed little by little. Finally, Danzo broke the deadly silence. “Send people to spread this news. I want everyone in Konoha to know about this before tomorrow’s sunrise.”
“Yes.”
“You’ve to come together with me in the meeting three days later, where you must insist you were asking White Fang to save the mission back then. White Fang alone decided to give up on it. I don’t believe Hiruzen will punish him. This is the only way to save your life and the Root.”
“Yes.”
……
The next day, the entire village began to talk about this S-ranked mission.
“Did you hear? Some time ago, White Fang-sama and Aburame Ryoma teamed up to save the Land of Rivers’ Princess. White Fang-sama saved the hostage, but Suna poisoned Ryoma. White Fang-sama had to exchange the hostage for the antidote to save him.”
“I also heard about this yesterday. Now, to show their gratitude, the Land of Rivers will entrust all its missions to Suna for the next ten years.”
“It’s a big loss. These missions should’ve been Konoha’s.”
“Yes, Konoha’s already not receiving enough missions lately. My son has been resting at home for a month already, but he still has no mission to take.”
“If you ask me, everything is Ryoma’s fault. He’s really useless.”
“Yes, why did White Fang-sama save him? Shinobi should prioritize the mission.”
“I heard that Aburame Ryoma is an Anbu, and he’s stronger than most jonin. In these years, he has completed many S-ranked missions. Anyone would’ve chosen to save him at that time.”
“Anbu? So he is White Fang-sama’s comrade… no wonder.”
“How do you think this will be resolved in the end?”
“I don’t know. I heard the higher-ups will hold a meeting in two days to discuss this.”
“The damage to Konoha is too heavy. I guess Ryoma will be executed.”
……
Tonan also heard these rumors in his clan’s district. His mind was filled with several thoughts. “This is bad. If Aburame Ryoma says this was entirely Sakumo’s decision, the villagers will turn against Sakumo. Even if most people didn’t want Sakumo to die, this concerns everyone’s interest. Some unpleasant words will be said.”
“For some people, words have no destructive power but for an overly sensitive person like Sakumo, it’ll be like a blade scraping his bones. I must prepare.”
Tonan slowly drew out the chakra tanto and caressed its shiny blade. In his mind, he repeatedly recalled the samurai spirit Sanbo Motoyoshi had described.
That afternoon, he headed to the Hatake household and trained with Kakashi as usual. Sakumo was sitting under the eaves, watching the two. On the surface, he didn’t show anything unusual. Perhaps, it was because the villagers’ words were not targeting him but Ryoma.
After their training, Kakashi said while panting, “Tonan, you’ve become stronger again.”
Tonan stood there calmly, adjusted his glasses, and gently replied, “In order to make you train to your heart’s satisfaction, I’m always pushing hard every time.”
“Really?” Kakashi was doubtful. In the past, every time Tonan used this excuse, Kakashi believed it. But today, Tonan looked very fake.
Tonan shrugged his shoulders and smiled, “For us, true or false isn’t important.”
Kakashi was dumbfounded for a moment hearing his words. Then, the corners of his mouth slightly rose under the mask. He put his hands in the trouser pocket, recovering his usual sluggish look, and changed the topic, “These white pigeons are here again.”
Tonan looked at a pigeon’s flock in the courtyard’s garden and walked over. Stroking a white pigeon’s head, he said, “They’ve already become my ninja beast.”
“Ninja beast?”
“Yes, I’m rearing them. It’s just that they don’t seem very intelligent. I don’t know how they can help me.”
Kakashi thought for a bit and said, “A weak ninja beast like this can be used for scouting at best.”
Tonan nodded. “That was my plan as well but no matter how many special feeds they eat, they won’t be able to speak or communicate.”
Kakashi hesitated for a moment. “If you want, there are some sealed summoning scrolls in my house. You can pick a summoning beast you like.”
Tonan, however, shook his head and said, “No, it doesn’t matter if they can’t help me. I feel attached to them after raising them for so long.”
Tonan patted a white pigeon’s head and said, “Alright, go.”
The other white pigeons flapped their wings and flew away, but the one in front of him cooed twice and pointed its butt to Tonan.
Tonan said with a doting smile, “I just said a few words, and you’re angry. Forget it, I don’t care about you. Kakashi, I’ll leave now.”
Tonan bade farewell to Kakashi and walked towards the Hatake household’s gate. When he was passing through the front courtyard, he bowed to Sakumo. “Sakumo-senpai, I’m sorry to disturb you.”
Sakumo smiled and nodded. He looked at Kakashi after Tonan left and said, “Kakashi, you need to work harder.”
“I know.”
“Tonan has already surpassed you.”
“I know…”
After saying this, Kakashi went back to the courtyard and began to train again.
