The Zero Tails Jinchuriki #10

Disclaimer - I don’t own anything. As the corporations say these days, you will own nothing & be happy. I don't, and have never claimed

Disclaimer - I don’t own anything. As the corporations say these days, you will own nothing & be happy. I don't, and have never claimed to, own Naruto or any of its characters. With that out of the way, let’s goooo!

Hokage Tower, Konoha, Land of Fire

–Hiruzen Sarutobi–

“Are you out of your mind?” He whirled on Danzo as soon as the doors were closed to his office. “What did you plan on doing out there? Huh? Embarrass me and yourself in front of everyone?”

Danzo shamelessly sat down on the chair as he controlled his breathing. He was just so angry, and tired of all this. “Danzo, I do not have time for your games right now. So, explain yourself before I have ANBU toss you out.”

“Hiruzen,” Danzo began, “I have a right to know, about the meeting and your plans. Introducing the Jinchuriki as a Senju? Paving the way for him to get the Senju Clan seat? Do you even see what you are giving an outsider? A weapon like him should not be in our village, Hiruzen. I still think that we–”

“Are you done?” He asked the man with lidded eyes. “There is no we in this situation here, Danzo. I am the Hokage here and you are not, simple as that. Sensei chose me, do not forget that. You don’t even hold any post of power here.” He couldn’t say he did not enjoy the sudden bout of rage that overcame Danzo.

“Careful there,” He said, “Wouldn’t want Kenta to sense your hatred and come rushing here to kill you, thinking you were a threat. After all, he is a Sage.”

He grinned as he got the intended reaction. A silver lining about this whole situation was that Danzo had no grounds to stand on, and with the stunt he pulled earlier today, disbanding the council publicly seemed like the only option for him, if he wanted to maintain the prestige of the Hokage Seat for longer.

Otherwise, the Council would enjoy an inordinate amount of power for not even doing anything. He had not forgotten their actions during the Nien Tails’ attack, especially Danzo’s. Restricting the Uchiha clan from fighting and forcing them to prioritise evacuation was a mistake that Danzo should not have made.

He wouldn’t go so far as to air the dirty laundry and do a public trial or hearing about Danzo’s crimes but Danzo overextended his authority, authority that he had stripped off when Mintao became Hokage. 

“So,” He asked the man who had been silent for a while, “What do you have to say for yourself?”

____xx___

–Danzo Shimura–

“Sensei chose me, do not forget that. You don’t even hold any post of power here.”

It took everything he had in him to stop himself from reacting, from moving even an inch from his place as Hiruzen continued to goad him. Even then, it did not help mask his emotions as the hatred was palpable on his face. 

No matter, he had achieved his goal for the day. He did not crash that meeting because he wanted to cling to some long gone pathetic power in name. No, he had purposefully done that for this.

To get a meeting with Hiruzen, void of his ANBU, in his office, where he was most vulnerable against him. He knew after that first meeting that Hiruzen was never going to give him the same privileges he enjoyed before the Namikaze brat took over and forced his entire operation to go into hiding.

His actions with the Uchiha Clan, however justified they may be, also were a crime, because he simply did not have the authority, especially in a wartime situation, to order around an entire clan full of shinobi to not fight and do search and rescue. 

He had no doubts that had the Namikaze brat survived, he would either be behind bars or executed by now. Yet, his gamble paid off.

The Uchiha were being questioned at every turn. About their inactivity during the attack, about how they stayed back while other shinobi marched ahead to their deaths. Their reasoning of them just following orders never stuck, as he made sure to fan the flames, putting the pressure of public opinion on them.

He knew it was stupid of shinobi to care about the opinion of civilians but then again, he had used the same for his benefit as well. Sakumo’s situation came to mind as he slightly shook his head and came back to the situation at hand.

At such close range, it was bound to work. It would not get him more than a few years but even that was enough for him as it would allow him breathing room to expand his forces. So, as he was about to push chakra into his eye, he heard Hiruzen say something that made his blood freeze.

“Wouldn’t want Kenta to sense your hatred and come rushing here to kill you, thinking you were a threat. After all, he is a Sage.”

He froze on the spot, chakra sputtering away as he reeled at the news of that man becoming a Sage. Konoha’s second Sage. A second Sage in Hiruzen’s employ, one that will live in the village full time and is probably just as strong as Jiraiya, if a little hampered by Kenta’s lack of Fuinjutsu expertise.

“I see,” was all he said as he understood why Hiruzen was doing this. He agreed as well, if only because it seems like the easy choice at the moment. Tsunade was worthless to the village right now and having a Senju, a Sage Senju at the moment in the village would just further increase their worth in the eyes of the Daimyo.

News must have no doubt already on the way to the Daimyo about the newest addition to Konoha.

No, his plan has failed, as much as it pained for him to admit it. With Kenta here, and no doubt in regular close proximity with Hiruzen, his actions would be revealed. Kagami’s eyes, no doubt, were potent but not enough to hide the chakra residue, at least in the short to medium term.

A Sage would have an extraordinary sensory range, even if they were not in Sage Mode, and he could not risk having an angry Sage after him. It would simply not be worth it. It was why he was so glad that Jiraiya remained outside the village most of the time.

“I have nothing to say for myself. I believe Kenta’s addition to Konoha’s roster to be valid but I still think he should not be given any political power within the village. Having the Senju Clan seat active again will mean losing a significant chunk of voting power. He will have a veto, you know that, right?”

“That is for me to worry about. You can leave now, Danzo. As of right now, you are unofficially disbarred from any administrative duties. ANBU will come with official papers once they are ready, after the State Funeral.”

He just nodded and left, still reeling from how close he had come to being exposed, to his entire life collapsing around him.

No, he had to take a step back here. He would now have to account for and manoeuvre around the new variable that had been placed on the board. A Sage, huh?

___xx__

–Kenta Akimichi–

With the meeting out of the way, he could finally ditch the outfit and the makeup that had been forced on him as he made his way through the village, to make an entire round of it. He still had time before he had to meet Tsunade, who was absent for the meeting, and until then, he just wanted to take a look around.

Really he just wanted another excuse to visit Teuchi’s stall as he hopped down from the rooftop and touched down right in front of the temporary tarp that had been laid down on four poles to create a makeshift tent large enough to house all of Teuchi’s clients.

“Ah, welcome, shinobi-san. Another Miso ramen?”

“Yes.” He said as he sat at the counter, taking in the aroma of this place. Honestly, during all his years, he had long since learned how to cook properly and with some supplies from the village, had thought that he was not missing out on much, having eaten with the same spices that other people do.

Apparently, he was wrong because he had never had ramen before, not even once, even before his exile when he was in the village. Which was a travesty because it was so good.

Teuchi worked on his craft inside the question, which was devoid of any other people this time, as he waited. His eyes slid to the side as he saw the man, the Nara Clan head sit right next to him with sleepy eyes and dark circles under his eyes.

The man muttered something under his breath, “Troublesome,” before placing his head on the counter with a grunt.

Huh, this could be interesting.