Chapter 27.5- One Thousand Hands

XXXXXXXX- SARUTOBI HIRUZEN

FIVE YEARS (DAYS) BEFORE THE SECOND GREAT SHINOBI WORLD WAR

The old man sighed. He looked at the person across from him and he sighed again. Old man, he thought with a chuckle. He’d begun referring to himself as that out of a sense of irony. He was still in his thirties and had decades in front of him to live but the young Kushina Uzumaki had taken one look at him and christened him ‘old man’. It had made him chuckle at the time but now the term was beginning to become more and more true with time. There was a heaviness to his body now that had not existed scarce months ago. He knew what it was. The Hat. It weighed a mere two kilos on any scale he put it on to check, but on his head it was like that weight amplified itself a thousandfold. The weight made him feel many things at many different times, but now he just felt old.

“When is your birthday again?” He asked the boy, searching for anything to talk about that would mean something. He had watched his Sensei, the boy’s Granduncle die before him while he stood unable to do anything, and now he was going to have to ask him to give even more.

“A month away. I’ll turn fifteen on the seventh of next month.” He said with a raised eyebrow.

Hiruzen searched for a way to bring it up. An easy way to have the conversation he had been putting off for so long. But he could not think of a single way that avoided the reaction that Tsunade had warned him to expect.

“I am placing you on the active list” He said in lieu of any of the more subtle ways of bringing up the conversation. Shorirama Senju had never seemed one to enjoy beating about the bush. With how little the boy spoke it was no surprise that he liked to keep conversations short and appreciated those who did the same. Unless they were Sensei, his mind whispered that fact to him and he acknowledged it with a nod. Sensei and his Grandnephew would spend hours in this very office speaking of anything and everything. It was the kind of relationship he longed to have with his own children whenever Biwako conceived. But that was going to be sometime away.

“I refuse”

“You cannot. The Hokage has the power to place any fit shinobi on the active list and from what I’ve noticed, you’re more than fit.” He replied.

“I’m mourning. I know my rights.” He replied instantly.

“And if you were the Senju Clan head or even heir then you would be right.” He winced internally as he said those words and even further as he saw the way the words hit the boy like a cart left to run downhill.

“As you lack both positions then you will be treated as any other Konoha shinobi and that means that your mourning period is limited to one month. You’ve had six times as much time out of respect of the grief you suffer” He soldiered on regardless of the impact he knew his words would have. War was coming to the Elemental Nations one way or another and it would be silly for Konoha to have one of their most powerful assets out of the running because of grief of all things. Even beyond that, there was something to be said of the morale effect that having the Grandson of Hashirama on the battlefield with them would have on his shinobi.

His Granduncle’s death and the fact that he had killed both the three tails and the second Raikage had done wonders for Shorirama’s reputation. The detached boy who received special treatment had been elevated in the eyes of many to one of Konoha’s loyal bastions to be looked upon in the times to come.

“I see” He said in reply.

“I would rather not do things this way. And if I had any other choice, I would not. But the world around us stands on the precipice. Kumo has elected a new Kage and their two tails jinchuriki has submitted to him. Iwa remains as militarized as ever. Suna stands unharmed from their lack of participation in the battle of Uzu. Kiri lost both their jinchuriki and their kage but a new Kage has been elected and the seven swordsmen remain a threat capable of immense damage as a unit. In opposition to all that arrayed against us, we have lost our Second Hokage, the Greatest of us all, our ANBU Commander, Kagami Uchiha, and several promising Jounin. We stand stronger with the inclusion of the Uzumaki clan in our village but until they are able to elect a new head, we are unable to utilize their military might.” He said, laying down the depths of the situation and watching the way the boy winced as he calculated just how deep in it they were.

“So what would you have me do?”

“You will be going on the first mission of what might be considered this war. We have received word of a meeting between Kiri and Kumo. We suspect that Kiri is hesitant to join in on the forces levied against us and will be relying on assurances made by Kumo to commit their forces. We need a team to sabotage that meeting and if possible, engineer a conflict between both sides.” He said.

“You want me to lead a mission that important?” Hiruzen nearly laughed out loud at that thought.

“Lead the mission? Oh heavens no. You will be a cog in the machine, but an important one nonetheless. Welcome to your first S-ranked Mission Shorirama. Let them in” His last words were spoken in a louder tone to ensure that he was heard beyond his door.

The door swung open seconds later, and in they came. A team he’d personally chosen for this dangerous mission. They were practically guaranteed to enter into conflict with either Kage or their chosen representatives, and he’d designed the team with that in mind.

The first in was Hatake Sakumo, a dangerous shinobi and one who was quickly building a name for himself outside the village. After him came the second member of the team. In contrast to Sakumo’s proper march, he seemed to slither into the room with the way he prowled. Orochimaru wore that smile of his that told of his nerves. The way it failed to reach his eyes. The way his hands never left his sides as he moved.

The last to come in, the leader of this team, was his best friend. Danzo Shimura. Everything about him was still as a statue. Non-expressive as the perfect shinobi ought to be to his flawed estimation. He probably thought himself unreadable. But Hiruzen could see the way his eyes flashed to the hat every few seconds. He coveted the position Hiruzen now held, and if not for the love he held for his Sensei and his village, he would allow him have it. Such was the love he had for his friend.

“The Four of you have all been briefed. Go forth with the will of fire in your hearts. Do whatever is necessary to see this foul alliance broken. The meeting is in five days. Godspeed.” He said finally, as all four kneeled before him.

A/N; And that’s the chapter. Did I stick the Hiruzen POV?