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"Danzo, did you see it? Tsunade managed to achieve what we couldn't decide or resolve. Perhaps she's more suited to becoming the Hokage of the village than I am."
Looking back at Danzo, whose body lay motionless like a corpse, shriveled and lifeless, the Third Hokage sighed deeply.
Since Kazuki severed the arm transplanted with Sharingan from Danzo, his bodily functions had been deteriorating.
Day by day, his condition worsened. Even though the hospital administered nutrient solutions regularly, it couldn't stabilize his bodily functions.
This was perhaps the price of transplanting cells from Hashirama Senju.
Given Danzo's current state, it wouldn't take long for his bodily functions to decline to a catastrophic level, eventually turning him into something neither fully human nor fully ghost—a grotesque tree-like being.
"Hiruzen, Danzo, he…"
Koharu and Homura, who had accompanied him to the hospital ward, looked at the figure on the bed. They could hardly believe this was the Danzo Shimura they once knew.
He looked like a pale corpse, with only skin stretched tightly over bones.
If it weren't for his faint breathing, they might have thought he was already dead.
This sight was horrifying.
Even the two seasoned elders, accustomed to storms and tribulations, felt a chill in their hearts.
"Sigh."
The Third Hokage let out a weary sigh and said.
"Because Danzo transplanted the First Hokage's cells, which were previously suppressed by the Sharingan, the cells are now retaliating. His condition worsens every day. If this continues, Danzo will turn into a tree. That will likely be his ultimate fate."
The Sharingan could suppress the power of Hashirama's cells, but could the village still find more Sharingan for Danzo to transplant?
Clearly, that was impossible.
The Third Hokage, though conflicted, could only watch as Danzo's condition deteriorated daily.
He realized Kazuki had done this intentionally—not killing Danzo outright, but sparing his life, leaving him to endure this prolonged torment at the end of his days.
This torment was not only aimed at Danzo but also at him, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and the entire group of elders.
Because they had been close to Danzo, watching him suffer in such a horrifying state became a daily source of pain and anguish.
Kazuki left Danzo alive precisely to create this moment.
The two elder advisors fell into silence.
It was true they had been close to Danzo, but they weren't so deluded as to think they could acquire more Sharingan to suppress the cell backlash for him.
The village's hostility toward the Uchiha had already been lifted, and past misunderstandings were resolved.
This meant they could no longer treat the Uchiha as they had before. Any subtle scheming would immediately provoke Tsunade's opposition.
"Is there no other way?"
Koharu couldn't help but ask.
The Third Hokage shook his head slightly. If there had been a solution, the Konoha Hospital would have already implemented it.
The fact that nothing was done showed there was no viable treatment—only this slow, painful decline. Sometimes, the Third Hokage even felt tempted to grant Danzo a release from his suffering, though he always restrained himself.
"Do you have any thoughts on this situation?"
Not wanting to linger on Danzo's grim condition, the Third Hokage shifted the topic.
"None at all," Koharu replied helplessly. "After the previous incident, Tsunade has zero tolerance for us. At a time like this, do you think we could freely intervene? Some smaller clans united to make proposals and sought us out. As advisors, it was our duty to relay them, so the proposals were submitted to the Hokage's office."
"Tsunade might think we're involved in this, though."
"Misunderstandings will clear up eventually. We just need to hold steady."
The Third Hokage didn't comment further on the matter.
He was wary of getting entangled in it himself.
The Sarutobi clan was already in a precarious position. If Tsunade were to harbor further suspicions, the clan could face disaster.
The Third Hokage was well aware that if the Sarutobi clan made a misstep, Tsunade wouldn't hesitate to "teach them a lesson," just as they had once repeatedly provoked the Uchiha.
The irony was, if you gave others leverage against you, you could only grit your teeth and endure the consequences without room for protest.
"Is there any news from Shinnosuke?"
Knowing the Third Hokage wanted to avoid the current issues and didn't want the Sarutobi clan implicated, Homura shifted the subject to Shinnosuke.
Shinnosuke had accepted a mission to investigate the Akatsuki organization in the Land of Rain, for both Asuma and the village's sake. Quite some time had passed since then.
Ordinarily, regardless of the outcome, he should have sent back some kind of report.
But as days went by, there hadn't been a word from Shinnosuke.
That was why the two elder advisors sought out the Third Hokage, hoping he might have received some news.
"Nothing yet."
To their surprise, the Third Hokage's reply was the same—there had been no updates on Shinnosuke.
It was as though Shinnosuke had vanished into thin air in the Land of Rain.
Could something have happened to him?
The thought surfaced in their minds, and they exchanged uneasy glances, too afraid to voice such an ominous possibility.
Asuma had already met with misfortune. If something were to happen to Shinnosuke as well, wouldn't the Third Hokage lose all his sons?
Thankfully, Shinnosuke left behind a child.
That could be considered a consolation prize.
At least for the Third Hokage, it offered some measure of solace, providing him with a bit of hope to hold onto.
However, Shinnosuke's son had a slightly mischievous nature, a bit of a wild and unruly personality.
Recently, news about the public nominations for selecting teachers had spread like wildfire throughout the village. At this point, Kazuki suddenly remembered he had something to discuss with Tsunade, but he had completely forgotten about it until now.
Just as Kazuki was about to head to the Hokage's office, he ran into members of the Hyūga clan as he stepped out of Kurenai's house.
The Hyūga representative immediately made it clear that he was there on behalf of the clan leader, who was extending an invitation for Kazuki to join them for tea the next day.
"..."
Tea, of all things!
Why not just invite me to dinner?
Having tea as a leisure activity was pure torment for Kazuki.
Every time he watched Fugaku fuss endlessly over tea ceremonies, it bored him to the point of drowsiness.
In this regard, Hiashi was no different.
"Please let your clan leader know I will be there on time."
Even though he wasn't particularly interested, a proper invitation had been extended, and it was important to maintain good relations. Relationships are a two-way street, after all.
Satisfied with Kazuki's response, the Hyūga guard departed, eager to return and inform the clan leader that Kazuki had accepted the invitation.
"Huh…?"
When Kazuki arrived at the Hokage's office, Tsunade, who was busy with work, looked up in surprise and said.
"It's rare for you, Kazuki, to show up voluntarily."
"..."
She makes it sound like I'm some idle wanderer with nothing better to do! Who just randomly visits the Hokage's office without a reason?
I'm a Hokage advisor, not a Hokage secretary.
Even secretaries have their breaks, don't they?