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Later, Sasamoto had the students do walking-on-water exercises. Most failed quickly. Neji failed faster.
Splash.
He surfaced coughing, eyes wide. "Cold!"
Lee laughed. Tenten fished him out with a training pole. "You're hopeless, Neji."
He coughed. "And yet I try again."
That evening, the three walked home along the canal. Leaves were turning gold. Lee talked about wanting to break his own record of push-ups. Tenten dreamed aloud of building her own weapon forge.
Neji listened, watching them quietly.
"You're quiet," Tenten said.
Neji nodded. "Nothing thinking about something"
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The crisp morning light slanted across the rooftops of Konoha as word spread quickly through the Academy: the Hokage himself was coming to visit.
"Class!" Sasamoto Orui clapped his hands. "Stand tall! Straighten up! Lord Third will be here shortly. Today, you'll see what a true shinobi stands for."
Neji sat with arms crossed on his desk, his eyes half-lidded in false awe.
Finally. The monkey king himself comes to inspire the masses.
Externally, he whispered with wonder, "The Hokage... I never thought I'd meet him up close."
Beside him, Rock Lee trembled with anticipation. "He's a legend! This is the proudest day of my life!"
Tenten polished her forehead protector, even though she wasn't required to wear one yet. "We should all do our best to make a good impression."
Neji smiled faintly, masking his thoughts.
Elsewhere that same morning, the shadows within the Hokage Tower stretched long as political games twisted into quieter corners of power.
"We've sent multiple reminders to the Fire Daimyo," Koharu Utatane said, adjusting her shawl. "But the budget's been delayed for the fourth time."
"He grows slow with age," Homura Mitokado muttered. "We need those funds to bolster our Academy and patrols."
Danzo, seated with arms folded behind his back, leaned in with a smooth whisper. "Perhaps if the Hokage himself issued the next message, it would add weight."
Hiruzen puffed his pipe and exhaled slowly. "The Fire Daimyo surely has valid reasons. Let's not escalate this yet. Instead, we'll increase levies on merchants and restaurants. Infrastructure must be maintained."
The elders exchanged glances and nodded.
"Fine by me," Homura said. "The people won't protest too loudly."
Then Danzo's tone shifted. "There is a more delicate matter."
Hiruzen narrowed his eyes. "Speak."
"Hinata Hyuga. She's unstable. Her father's death at Kumo's hands weighs heavily. It's best if she's... guided."
Hiruzen leaned back. "You mean Root."
Danzo's eye glinted. "I can mold her into Konoha's weapon. She is a Hyuga. If left alone, she may one day resent us for using her father as tribute."
There was a beat of silence.
"Not yet, Danzo."
Danzo stiffened. "You'll regret this."
Hiruzen stood. "I am the Hokage."
Danzo's thoughts were already elsewhere.
Danzo paced behind the veil of Root headquarters, his only companions the cold air and the shadows that flickered at the edge of torchlight. His fingers clenched around a scroll—the Kumo intel report extracted by Yamanaka Fu. The pages were stained with sweat and blood.
"So," he muttered under his breath, eyes narrowed, "you dared sneak into our village under the mask of diplomacy."
The captive, a Kumo spy disguised as a minor retainer to the Elite Jounin Raikou, had proven unusually resistant. It took three full sessions in the sensory chamber for Fu to finally rip out the truth like a parasite from flesh: a ploy to test Konoha's defensive resolve. The information he'd fed Raikou about a potential weak link in the Hyuga line was deliberate. A lure.
Danzo was no fool. He saw the angles: if the Kumo Jonin made a move on Hinata Hyuga and failed, Konoha would be forced to respond. But if he succeeded? The Hyuga bloodline—one of the village's most powerful dōjutsu—would be compromised.
It was then that Danzo crafted his plan.
Let them act. Let Raikou move. Let him kidnap Hinata, just long enough for the incident to spiral. And then, Root would execute a swift and sanctioned assassination. Raikou's death would not be mourned.
"You were too soft, Hiruzen," Danzo muttered. "Too trusting."
If Hinata were taken, even briefly, the Hyuga Clan would demand answers. They would scream for restitution. And the people would look to the Hokage for blame. Failure to protect a child—especially one of noble standing—would crack the Third's façade of peace.
Danzo would arrive like a shadowed savior: a man who knew the cost of hesitation.
Root operatives worked fast. A forged communication was slipped into Kumo's diplomatic channels, ensuring Raikou believed the Hyuga girl would be unattended for a window of time. The security at the compound was subtly adjusted, not enough to raise alarm, but just enough to make the opportunity feel real.
In truth, the Hyuga elders were kept unaware. Only Danzo, a few high-level Root members, and the compromised surveillance team had the full picture.
"Monitor him," Danzo ordered, addressing Fu and Torune. "If Raikou attempts the abduction, let him think he succeeds. Then we strike."
Fu hesitated. "And the girl?"
Danzo's one visible eye burned with quiet fury. "She will be recovered. Untouched. The delay will be brief, the damage cosmetic."
Torune adjusted his cloak. "And the Hokage?"
Danzo's lips curled into something between a smile and a snarl. "He will see that the village needs a stronger hand."
His plan now rested in patient silence.
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