Ryuma answered methodically.
"Is that so?"
"Moreover... according to the information I've received, when the two advisors visited the Hyuga Clan that day, there was no conflict. Instead, they smoothly obtained permission from the Main Clan Elders of the Hyuga Clan. Only the Branch Family seemed to have some complaints."
But the Branch Family has always been irrelevant to the core power within the Hyuga Clan, so their opinions are also insignificant.
After all, ever since the defection incident, the control over the Branch Family has become even stricter.
"..."
Hearing that the Hyuga Main Family actually responded this way, Danzo was a little surprised.
He could have expected that Hiruzen would try to make some amends. But for the Hyuga Clan's Main Family to make such a concession—for them to stubbornly reject the advisors' search operation and get away with it—Hiruzen would not have pressed the matter. In this regard, Root would also consider the Hyuga Clan's standing within the village and back them up.
However...
Danzo was unable to foresee whether this matter would be good or bad for the village's future.
But upon careful thought, he found it somewhat reasonable after all.
The Main Clan Elders of the Hyuga are all Main Family ninja who have been retired for many years, at least twenty or even thirty years out of battle, living comfortably in the village, having long forgotten their drive for advancement. Compared to offending the higher-ups, their inclination to avoid disputes is more in line with their usual compliant attitude.
"For the village at present, the Hyuga Clan's response may actually be a good thing."
Ryuma hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"No, it's only a good thing during wartime. However, this can easily be manipulated from the shadows. If someone is orchestrating this behind the scenes, in the long run, Konoha has already lost."
Danzo forced this sentence out through gritted teeth.
"You mean..."
"Hyuga Ayane."
"Isn't that a bit alarmist?"
"I've fought all three of them personally. They're by no means ordinary ninja. Especially Uchiha Ruri—her battle with Hiruzen that day, she was only slightly at a disadvantage."
Although in that battle, Hokage Hiruzen, out of concern for the safety of the Nine-tailed, did not go all out and used only containment tactics, it cannot be proven that Uchiha Ruri fought at full strength either.
Moreover, Hyuga Ayane's strength is equally remarkable. Judging from the final display of her power that day, it may well take Might Duy, a taijutsu ninja who practices the Eight Inner Gates, plus Root's entire combat force, just to barely subdue her.
The strength of these two women is, without a doubt, at the level that can rival the Five Kage.
"Are there any spies in the Hyuga Branch Family?"
"It's just a suspicion, but that is precisely the problem. We can't push the Hyuga Clan too hard, nor can we leave them entirely unchecked. If Hyuga Ayane is acting with intent, then in the future, the Hyuga Clan will become a ticking time bomb within Konoha. With their ability to unlock the 'Caged Bird' technique, how could they not exploit such a useful pawn?"
A sharp gleam flashed in Danzo's eyes.
If he were in their position, he would also use such an open-handed stratagem.
For the Hyuga Clan, unlike the Uchiha Clan, even knowing there's a high probability of informants within, leaking information about Konoha, they still cannot act rashly. Excessive measures towards the Hyuga Clan are not allowed.
The Hyuga's Byakugan has always been Konoha's most important strategic weapon, its usefulness far surpassing the convenience brought by the Sharingan.
Many of Konoha's surprise attacks and countermeasure operations have only run smoothly because of the Byakugan.
"How should we prevent this?"
Faced with Ryuma's question, Danzo merely shook his head; within a short period, he couldn't come up with an effective solution either.
"For now, all we can do is leave the Hyuga Clan be. Since the situation in the village has barely been stabilized by Hiruzen, bringing a swift end to the war with Hidden Sand and Hidden Rock must take priority."
"Root is drastically short-staffed right now."
Ryuma stated the predicament Root was facing.
"No matter. I'll select six Jonin from the Shimura Clan to fill in at Root as temporary members."
Knowing that Root was short-handed, he had no choice but to bring out his own clan's resources to temporarily make up for the gap in Root's combat strength.
"With all due respect, if this continues, the Shimura Clan..."
Ryuma sensed that the missions Root would face next would be extremely harsh and difficult.
"This is the fate of ninja. It is also the fate of Root. As long as it is for Konoha, their deaths are not in vain. Next, we're going to the Land of Rain."
Danzo's gaze was as sharp as a blade, as if he had already determined that this country would face an unprecedented storm of bloodshed.
"The Land of Rain?"
"Hidden Rock is a tough nut to crack—especially their large-scale collaborative ninja techniques, which are their specialty. Furthermore, Hidden Rock has stationed more manpower in the Land of Grass than Konoha; in a direct confrontation, we can only barely hold out. I'll leave Duy here to supplement our strength; Root's next battlefield will be the Land of Rain."
Danzo jabbed the tip of his cane against the territory of the Land of Rain marked on the map, his gaze cold as ice.
"If we want to break the alliance between Hidden Sand and Hidden Rock, we must start with the weakest link—Hidden Sand."
"But..."
Ryuma hesitated.
Hidden Sand's combat power was indeed inferior to Hidden Rock, but Hidden Sand could give their all to launch attacks against Konoha; they had nothing to worry about on the home front.
Orochimaru was fighting a defensive battle in the Land of Rain, and because no cost was spared, the level of brutality far exceeded what was happening in the Land of Grass.
"It's fine, I already have a solution. In a week, once my body has recovered, I'll set out. Go make preparations—transfer the Shimura Clan's Jonin here."