Naruto: Hyuga Warlord

Inside the Central Command Tent, Shirakawa Namiko still wore a friendly smile on his face. He seemed utterly unfazed by Hyuga Soushu's anger, Yechame Hamako's quiet maneuvers, or even Danzo's audacious power grab.

Of course, this was not because Shirakawa Namiko had such an open heart and selfless devotion to public affairs that he would simply ignore his elite Jonin being undermined. Rather, he was merely leaving the opportunity for Hyuga Soushu—said to be the rising star of the Martial Faction.

The incident that had occurred during the banquet hosted by the Minister of State at the Fire Daimyo's court had already spread throughout the circle of veteran Jonin in Konoha. Fully aware of what had happened, Shirakawa Namiko wasn't at all opposed to following the Main House Hyuga's approach—using Hyuga Soushu as a blade. At worst, he could tilt credit toward Hyuga during post-event reports to the village as a reward!

Naturally, Shirakawa Namiko also had valid reasons for disliking Danzo.

Danzo's sudden appearance at the Western Camp from southern Land of Rain was no coincidence.

From information gathered privately by Shirakawa Namiko, Danzo had left the village under the guise of coordinating Root Division's special missions. He went straight to the Rain Country headquarters originally planning to seize full command over Rain Country's Ninja Force but was pushed back by the combined resistance of the Hokage's three apprentices, forcing him to retreat south into the Land of Rain to plot his schemes.

After successfully eliminating Sand Hidden ambush ninjas, Shirakawa immediately reported to the Hokage Tower. Learning of the same event, Danzo promptly volunteered to head south, even going so far as to lower his status and arrive as an envoy under the guise of investigating the cleanup operation.

But in Shirakawa Namiko's eyes, this was nothing more than Danzo attempting another power grab—this time targeting Shirakawa himself after failing in Rain Country!

"It is said that Danzo, who once commanded the Rain Country Frontline forces, suffered repeated defeats. Now it seems clear—He really does treat ninja like expendable pawns! No wonder he's now the target of universal scorn!"

Hyuga Soushu's verbal counterattack came as Shirakawa Namiko had anticipated—swift and sharp, striking the core issue directly: "When I first arrived at the Rain Country battlefield, I'd already heard how Danzo likes to make examples by decapitating subordinates. Now it seems those rumors circulating among the troops were absolutely true!"

Here we go again!

Yechame Hamako, well-prepared in advance by Shirakawa Namiko, immediately sat upright and ceased her quiet distractions, assuming an air of attentive listening!

"In the days before Jonin Orochimaru and others arrived at the Rain frontline to assume command, it was supposedly Danzo who fell for Iwagakure's arrogant soldiers' deception, suffering heavy losses and complete defeat. If it weren't for the intervention of three elite Jonins turning the tide, the Land of Rain would have completely severed ties with Konoha by now!"

Hyuga Soushu sneered coldly, ruthlessly salting Danzo's old wounds!

As for Danzo's accusations regarding his lack of discipline, or the tag-team performance put on by Shirakawa Namiko and Yechame Hamako—Hyuga Soushu dismissed them entirely from his mind.

That was just his personality. He always marched forward his own way, no matter where the attack came from.

A thief is caught with evidence, and a man is beaten where it hurts most. Immediately, Hyuga Soushu's provocation enraged Danzo beyond control!

"You're lying!"

"Obviously, you're rubbing salt into an old wound!" Danzo immediately found himself trapped in an impossible situation of self-defense. "You're distorting the truth! That's not how things went in the Land of Rain at all!"

"Are we already rewriting history, Director Danzo?"

Hyuga Soushu immediately rebuked him indignantly. "Even if you can alter records and village propaganda through power, the facts remain unchanged! The truth cannot be buried!"

"Don't try to wriggle your way out! The spirits of those two thousand Konoha shinobi from the Rain campaign are still crying out, and their families haven't finished mourning yet. You're too eager to clear your own name!"

"You don't need to stoop to such despicable methods just to whitewash yourself!"

One accusation after another was hurled at Danzo without mercy, darkening his already gloomy face until it turned as black and red as pork liver.

Shirakawa Namiko, though, felt slightly taken aback.

Before the Hokage's three apprentices arrived for reinforcements, Danzo indeed commanded the ninja forces in the Land of Rain. However, he only led slightly more than two thousand mobilized shinobi, mostly civilian shinobi at that time. Both their combat capabilities and fighting willpower were considered second-rate. Additionally, Iwagakure's sudden attack came swiftly and fiercely, while the Rain Ninja Village never ceased its harassment either. It was actually quite impressive that Danzo managed to defend the garrison of the Land of Rain forces.

Of course, during that defense, Danzo did employ numerous ruthless tactics—including forcing injured shinobi to wrap themselves in explosive tags and use Body Flicker Technique to charge into Iwagakure's formations. Shirakawa had also heard rumors about even darker things he'd done.

But speaking practically, if completing the mission by any means necessary was the priority, then what Danzo did wasn't exactly wrong. However...

The current prevailing theme in Konoha emphasized the Will of Fire—where the spirit of Konoha dances, fire burns eternally!

Therefore, although Shirakawa didn't fully agree with Hyuga Soushu confronting Danzo, she had no intention of stopping it either.

After all, every jonin present seemed to wear expressions filled with agreement. As a commander, Shirakawa had absolutely no interest in stirring this murky water—especially when the one being criticized was the universally disliked Danzo.

"Ninja must have the awareness to sacrifice themselves for the village!" Danzo ranted furiously.

"Sacrifices without purpose only drain the village's vitality!" Hyuga Soushu coldly retorted. "Lose land but preserve people, and both people and land will remain. Lose people but preserve land, and both will perish! If you don't even understand this principle, I think you should crawl back underground and live like a rat forever!"

"Brilliant words!"

Upon hearing this, the jonin assembly could no longer hold back their approval. One after another voiced support for Hyuga Soushu.

This only placed Danzo further on the proverbial spit, roasting over hot coals!

"You dare claim responsibility for missing the jonin military meeting!"

Danzo's forehead veins bulged as he shouted, attempting to steer the discussion back.

Hyuga Soushu smirked and said nothing more.

The fire had already been lit. What followed was no longer his concern!

"During the Sunagakure Campaign, Soushu Jonin made the greatest contribution."

Shirakawa Namiko acknowledged Hyuga Soushu with a respectful nod before speaking. "Ninja are only human—it makes perfect sense to take some time to rest after hard work. However, I must admit that my judgment was lacking regarding today's matter. I prioritized allowing Soushu Jonin time to rest over recognizing the importance of the Jonin Military Meeting. I failed to send out a proper notice—I hope Soushu Jonin will forgive me for this."

"Commander Namiko speaks too humbly."

Hyuga Soushu politely stood and returned a bow.

Their exchange appeared harmonious—an obvious contrast to the confrontational tone he had used with Danzo earlier.

The other jonin voiced their agreement once more, praising both Shirakawa Namiko and Hyuga Soushu while delivering subtle jabs at Danzo beneath their words.

This reflected Konoha's prevailing opinion at present—no one denied Danzo's talents in intelligence gathering and behind-the-scenes maneuvering, but nobody was foolish enough to believe he possessed the capability to conduct legitimate affairs openly in the light of day.

Therefore, their stance was clearly defined.

As Hyuga Soushu put it, Danzo really should retreat underground—he's just making a fool of himself basking in the sunlight!

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