The council chamber in the Hokage Tower was a square room, with dark wooden walls and a window overlooking the carved faces of the previous Hokage. In the center, a long oak table, worn by the elbows of generations of leaders, was covered with maps, reports, and half-empty teacups.
The smoke from Hiruzen Sarutobi's pipe rose in lazy spirals toward the ceiling. His fingers, still young though already marked by responsibility, drummed on the arm of his chair. At thirty-something, the Third Hokage did not yet have the deep wrinkles that history would later carve into him, but his dark circles were already deep. The First War had hardened him too soon.
—The envoy has returned —he said, in a tired voice—. He was turned away at the border. They didn't even allow him to present his credentials.
To his right, Homura Mitokado, with his characteristic round glasses and hair combed back, frowned over a map of the Land of Sky.
—It's a direct affront —he murmured—. We extended the olive branch, and they've returned it to us in splinters.
—Not only that —intervened Koharu Utatane, seated on the other side of Hiruzen, her dark hair tied in a bun and her eyes sharp as blades—. Our reports indicate they have been mobilizing troops toward our western border. This isn't just diplomatic rejection. It's preparation for war.
Hiruzen took a deep drag from his pipe and exhaled slowly.
—And what do you propose?
—Patience —said Homura, adjusting his glasses—. We do not yet have the capacity for a large-scale offensive. The First War left us decimated. We lost the Second Hokage, we lost hundreds of elite shinobi… our ranks are full of green recruits and chronic wounded.
—Patience is a virtue for those who have time —Danzo Shimura's voice came from the end of the table, deep and sharp as a blade.
Hiruzen did not need to turn around to know what expression his friend would have. Danzo was always like this now. Since Tobirama's death, something in him had hardened, grown more… dark.
—What do you suggest, Danzo? —the Hokage asked, not hiding his reluctance.
—The same thing I have suggested from the beginning. We cannot allow a lesser nation to openly challenge us. The Land of Sky has technology, yes. But their shinobi are mediocre, and their leader is nothing more than a dying old man.
Danzo stood up slowly, walking toward the map hanging on the wall. His fingers traced the territory of the Land of Sky.
—If we wait, if we show weakness, other nations will take advantage. Cloud, Stone, Sand… they are all watching. All waiting to see how Konoha responds to this threat.
—And what do you propose? —Hiruzen repeated, this time in a tone that already knew the answer.
—Lightning war. Attack before they finish consolidating their strength. Destroy their factories, their research centers, their arsenals. We do not need to conquer the country. Only to prove that they cannot stand against us.
Homura shook his head.
—That's madness. We don't know enough about their technology. Those winged devices… if they launch a massive aerial attack on our supply lines, we could lose thousands of shinobi before even reaching their capital.
—That is precisely why we must be swift —Danzo insisted—. Attack by surprise. Use the ANBU to infiltrate and sabotage their defenses before the main assault.
—ANBU —Koharu repeated, skeptically—. An elite corps still in formation. Do you really think they can carry out such a complex mission?
—If they cannot, we will train them better. But the alternative is to wait for them to attack first. And when they do, it will not be with swords and kunai. It will be with those flying machines.
The debate continued for hours.
Hiruzen barely intervened, mostly just listening in silence as he smoked his pipe.
And as he listened, he saw his council divided. Homura, the cautious one, the academic, clinging to reason and prudence. Koharu, the pragmatist, seeing the numbers, the casualties, the costs. And Danzo… with that steely gaze, that conviction that force was the only answer.
—I wish you were here, sensei —Hiruzen thought, remembering Tobirama—. You would know what to do.
But Tobirama was dead. And he, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was the Hokage now.
Finally, he stood up.
—Enough —he said, and his voice, though not a shout, cut through all the discussions—. I have heard your arguments.
Danzo looked at him expectantly. Homura and Koharu as well, though with different expressions.
—Danzo is right about one thing —Hiruzen continued, with evident reluctance—. We cannot appear weak. The Land of Sky has challenged us, and if we do not respond, other nations will do the same.
—Hiruzen… —Homura began.
—I have not finished. —The Hokage raised a hand—. I am not saying we go to total war. But we will send a message. A limited operation to show that Konoha does not tolerate provocations.
The room fell silent.
Danzo nodded slowly, a shadow of satisfaction crossing his face.
—It is a wise decision.
—It is not wise —Hiruzen replied, bitterly—. It is necessary. There is a difference.
—And diplomacy? —Koharu asked—. Do we abandon it entirely?
—Diplomacy requires two parties willing to talk. They have made it clear they are not.
Hiruzen turned to the map, observing the borders marked in red.
—Prepare the battalions. Danzo, coordinate with the ANBU for the infiltration. Homura, review our supply lines and ensure we can sustain a short campaign. Koharu, contact our allies in the Land of Fire. We will need their logistical support.
He turned to the window, where the sun was beginning to set behind the Hokage mountain.
—We will give the order at dawn.
Behind him, the advisors began gathering their documents and whispering among themselves. Danzo was the first to leave, his robe billowing behind him like a war banner.
Hiruzen was left alone.
He took another drag from his pipe, but this time the smoke tasted of ash.
I wish you were here, sensei, he thought again.
But Tobirama would not return.
And he, Hiruzen, would have to bear the consequences of his decisions.
Outside, in the streets of Konoha, the citizens still lived in the relative peace of the postwar era. They did not know that dawn would bring the first of many conflicts that would trigger the Second Great Shinobi War ten years later.