Naruto: Fooling the Ninja World, I'm Hailed as a Savior

The Hyuga clan head, Hyuga Hiashi… No, it should be Hyuga Hizashi now.

Hyuga Hizashi was currently impersonating Hyuga Hiashi, and he felt uneasy about his current situation.

He had been cooped up in his room, meticulously mimicking Hyuga Hiashi's habits and characteristics. Thankfully, because Hyuga Hiashi's personality was inherently strict and rigid, and his usual demeanor towards family and clan members wasn't particularly warm, Hizashi's actions hadn't aroused any suspicion.

Everyone simply thought he didn't want others to see his grief. This gave Hyuga Hizashi the time to thoroughly familiarize himself with his new identity.

By now, Hyuga Hizashi could mimic Hiashi to about eighty percent accuracy. Even if a slip-up occurred, he could find a suitable excuse. Don't ask, just say it's because of his "brother's" death and his guilt, which changed his mindset and temperament. No one would criticize or doubt a brother who had lost his "sibling."

Despite this, Hyuga Hizashi still felt somewhat nervous, not for anything else, but for Hyuga Kawa and that person. The escort team had left Konoha three days ago, and he still hadn't received any news.

The atmosphere within the village and the Hyuga clan had changed. He both hoped that person's mission would go smoothly and that Hyuga Kawa would return safely. Therefore, upon receiving the notice for the jōnin meeting, he immediately set off.

But upon opening the door, he wasn't among the earliest arrivals. Shimura Danzō, Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado, and the heads of various ninja clans like the Uchiha, Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi were already there, all seemingly eager to know the outcome of the Hidden Cloud envoy incident.

Previously, Hyuga Hizashi would always stand respectfully behind Hyuga Hiashi during jōnin meetings. This was his first time attending such a high-level meeting as clan head, and he felt both nervous and a little excited.

Then, the conference room door opened, and Hiruzen Sarutobi's figure appeared. Hyuga Hizashi and the others stood up together. Seeing the figure following behind Hiruzen Sarutobi, Hyuga Hizashi's mouth dropped open, stunned.

"Kawa? How is he…?"

It wasn't just Hyuga Hizashi; many present revealed looks of confusion and surprise upon seeing Hyuga Kawa. Shimura Danzō had already heard about Hyuga Kawa's performance and strength from Aburame Ryoma, and he knew about the words Hyuga Kawa had spoken in the infirmary from Koharu Utatane.

"They want war, so we'll give them war!"

It was so exhilarating, so cool. If he could, he wished he had said those words to Hiruzen, instead of "Hiruzen, you'll regret this!" At this thought, Shimura Danzō couldn't help but narrow his eyes as he looked at Hyuga Kawa. Noticing that Hyuga Kawa's gaze also met his, a stiff smile actually appeared on Danzō's cold, hard face.

"???"

Homura Mitokado, noticing this scene from the side, showed a look of horror on his old face, feeling as if he had seen a ghost. Danzō actually smiled?? And such a benevolent smile at that?! What in the world was happening?

Meeting Shimura Danzō's conciliatory smile, Hyuga Kawa merely returned a polite smile, then swept his gaze across the assembled crowd. Konoha's core was mostly gathered in this conference room.

If a spy could infiltrate this setting and carry out a suicide bombing, Konoha would be completely buried in its grave along with the collapsing buildings.

After confirming that the ratio of ninjas without clan crests to those with clan crests in the conference room was close to one to two, Hyuga Kawa inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. Indeed, it is as I thought. In that case, there would be no problem.

This time, he would not only push Konoha decisively into war but also elevate his own political standing. The thought of what he was about to do made Hyuga Kawa's body tremble slightly. It was too interesting, too thrilling, too joyful. This feeling of manipulating everyone…

Hiruzen Sarutobi walked past the crowd, everyone's gaze fixed on him. And on the young man who consistently followed behind him.

Creak.

Seeing Hyuga Kawa pull out a chair for Hiruzen Sarutobi, and Hiruzen Sarutobi sit down without a hint of surprise, Nara Shikaku's gaze immediately became meaningful.

He glanced out of the corner of his eye at the stunned "Hyuga Hiashi" beside him. 

Noticing the shock on his face, Nara Shikaku instantly understood that the Hyuga clan head was completely unaware, and he couldn't help but feel a headache coming on. Trouble. It seems this meeting won't be easy.

"Please, have a seat. Everyone has worked hard this late, thank you for coming specifically."

Hiruzen Sarutobi placed his hat on the table before him, nodding slightly to those present. His voice was gentle. "Besides those on missions outside, everyone should be here, right?"

Homura Mitokado stood up and reported the number of attendees. Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded and directly stated the main topic of the meeting. "I assume you all already know that to provide an explanation to the Hidden Cloud Village, Hyuga Hizashi, head of the Hyuga branch family, voluntarily sacrificed himself in place of the main family head. His body was recently sent to the Hidden Cloud by the escort team, but…"

He paused, his voice suddenly turning cold. "According to intelligence, the Hidden Cloud Village dispatched the Magnet Release ninja Toroi and dozens of Anbu ninjas to meet the escort team. After receiving Hizashi, the Hidden Cloud ninjas suddenly attacked the escort team!"

"Not only that, after Akimichi Doto and others held out until border reinforcements arrived, nearly a hundred more Hidden Cloud ninjas, who had been lying in ambush, suddenly appeared, directly causing the deaths of one jōnin, ten Special Jōnin, and countless chūnin!"

"It was precisely because of their sacrifice that Akimichi Doto and the others from the escort team were able to return safely. Otherwise, including the escort team, all of them would have probably died at the hands of the Hidden Cloud, and no one would know the truth!"

By this point, Hiruzen Sarutobi's tone was extremely angry, half genuine, half feigned.

"What?!"

Everyone present instantly changed color, hardly believing their ears. Had those brainless hotheads from the Hidden Cloud Village gone mad? Or had they discovered that the body was Hizashi's, not Hiashi's? But even so, they shouldn't have directly torn off the veil! Wouldn't that lose them public support?

"Without a just cause, how dare they directly tear off the veil?"

"Without the support of the Land of Lightning's Daimyo and its people, has the Fourth Raikage gone insane?"

"The Hidden Cloud Village is going too far! They're absolutely pushing their luck!"

The previously solemn conference room now resembled a noisy marketplace. Hyuga Kawa stood behind Hiruzen Sarutobi, observing the clamorous scene with cold eyes. This was Hiruzen Sarutobi's lie, a necessary lie. Humans are very complex yet also very simple animals.

When people identify with something, they unconsciously criticize its opposite. Similarly, when people criticize something, they unconsciously identify with its opposite.

Stances bring all kinds of people together, but no one believes themselves to be the evil side. As many stances as there are in the shinobi world, so too are there many kinds of justice.

Hiruzen Sarutobi could not reveal the truth that Hidden Cloud and Konoha ninjas died at the hands of a "monster," nor would anyone believe it. Now, only by shifting all blame onto the Hidden Cloud could Konoha gain the moral high ground.

This was the only way to say it, and only by saying it this way, would Hidden Cloud be evil and Konoha righteous.

"Cough cough."

Hiruzen Sarutobi coughed lightly, and the room gradually fell silent, everyone casting various glances at him. "I intend to gather our forces and declare war on the Hidden Cloud Village." He paused, his gaze sweeping over everyone's faces, and said gravely, "What do you all think about this?"

At these words, the entire conference room instantly fell into an eerie silence. The chandelier cast a warm white light, and the marble floor gleamed like a mirror. The previous clamor seemed never to have existed.

The previously boisterous crowd was now silent, so quiet that only rapid breaths and heartbeats could be heard. Especially the clan heads present, their minds were clear as day; they knew the Hokage was asking for personnel again.

No one wanted to be the first to speak out, clearly intending to resist Hiruzen Sarutobi with silence.

Until, a voice broke the stillness.

"Third Hokage, please allow me to join the ranks!"

Hyuga Kawa stepped forward, saying gravely, "I believe, if our heads are already in the tiger's mouth, reasoning cannot get us out!"

As his words fell, many faces in the room darkened. Among them was Hyuga Higo, standing behind Hyuga Hizashi. "Hyuga Kawa!" he stared at Hyuga Kawa with shadowy eyes, saying coldly, "Know your place! This is a jōnin meeting, you have no right to speak!"

"Cough cough."

Before Hyuga Kawa could respond, Hiruzen Sarutobi coughed lightly, interrupting Hyuga Higo. "I forgot to tell you," he said, smiling with narrowed eyes, "Hyuga Kawa has already been promoted to jōnin by me. The appointment notice will be issued tomorrow. He now has the right to attend meetings and speak."

At these words, everyone's flickering gazes immediately froze. They turned their attention to Hyuga Kawa, as if seeing this "waste" of the Hyuga clan for the first time.

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