Koji glanced toward the door.
A moment later, a Uchiha shinobi entered, dragging a man bound tightly with a rope. The prisoner's head hung low, his eyes unfocused. From the vacant look on his face, it was obvious he was trapped inside a genjutsu.
"We placed him under an illusion," Koji said calmly, his gaze shifting toward Advisor Kiyomori. "You may recognise him."
Advisor Kiyomori frowned and looked at the bound man.
At first, he couldn't place the face.
Then Elder Kiyomori suddenly stiffened.
"Daigo..."
The old man's voice was low but certain.
The advisor immediately turned toward him.
"You know him?"
"He is one of our clan's servants," the elder replied before looking back at Koji. "Why has he been apprehended?"
Koji walked over to Daigo and stopped beside him. The servant remained motionless, still trapped within the illusion.
"The last time some of your people visited, this servant was attempting to secretly copy our transaction reports."
The room grew quieter.
"We discovered him, but chose not to act immediately."
Koji's fingers tapped lightly against Daigo's shoulder.
"Because it led us to something... interesting."
His eyes settled on Advisor Kiyomori.
"He was delivering information to someone."
The advisor remained silent, waiting for him to continue.
"To a shinobi of Konoha."
Koji paused.
"More specifically, to a Root operative."
Advisor Kiyomori's expression changed slightly.
The word Root immediately brought another report to mind—Danzo had been confined, and Root was supposedly in the process of being dismantled.
"So he betrayed us for money."
The advisor looked at Daigo with disgust.
He had seen servants like this before. Men are willing to sell their master's secrets for a handful of coins.
His gaze shifted toward the samurai standing by the door.
The samurai understood the meaning behind that look and stepped forward.
Traitors rarely received mercy.
"No."
Koji's voice stopped him.
"There is no need to speak of betrayal if he was never yours to begin with."
The advisor frowned.
Before anyone could respond, Koji grabbed Daigo's jaw and forced his mouth open.
With one hand, he pulled out the man's tongue.
Several people leaned forward.
There, clearly visible, was a cursed seal.
A Root seal.
"He was a Root shinobi from the very beginning."
Silence followed.
Advisor Kiyomori stared at the mark.
Beside him, Elder Kiyomori's eyes widened.
Neither had expected this.
A servant who had worked within their clan for years...
Had been a Konoha spy all along.
But Koji wasn't finished.
His gaze slowly shifted toward the elder.
And the next question struck far harder than the revelation itself.
"The real question is..."
He let the words hang for a moment.
"Since when?"
The room went still.
For the first time, unease appeared on more than a few faces.
Elder Kiyomori stared at Koji, his face flushed with anger.
"If Root has been inside our clan for years, what else do they know?"
"How dare they?"
His hand slammed against the armrest.
"What does Konoha hope to gain by doing something like this?"
He turned toward the advisor.
"Clan Head, we cannot let this go. Today, they infiltrated our clan. If this is left unanswered, tomorrow they may become bold enough to infiltrate the Daimyo's palace itself."
His jaw tightened.
"No. This matter must be brought before the Daimyo."
The rage in his voice was impossible to miss.
Koji watched him quietly.
Then he spoke.
"Well..."
He sat down in his chair.
"They've already done something that audacious."
The room froze.
Several samurai exchanged uneasy glances.
Advisor Kiyomori's expression stiffened.
"What do you mean?"
For the first time, there was a trace of unease in his voice.
Without answering immediately, Koji reached into a drawer and pulled out a document.
He handed it over.
The advisor accepted it and quickly scanned the contents.
A frown appeared on his face.
Then confusion.
"This..."
He looked up at Koji.
"This is a confidential agreement between our clan and the Daimyo."
"It is."
Koji folded his hands on the table.
"We recovered it from one of Daigo's contacts."
The advisor's grip on the document tightened.
Only a handful of people should have known about this agreement.
The fact that it had ended up in someone else's hands was deeply troubling.
Koji leaned back slightly.
"We believe there are already Root operatives inside the Daimyo's palace."
The words landed heavily.
Several samurai instinctively straightened.
One of them muttered a curse under his breath.
Advisor Kiyomori remained silent for several moments.
His eyes lowered to the document before slowly rising again.
His expression had darkened considerably.
He had suspected Konoha was keeping an eye on the nobility.
But this?
This was something else entirely.
"Do you have proof?" he asked at last.
His voice was calm, but the tension beneath it was obvious.
Koji nodded slightly.
"Not enough."
"We cannot simply search the Daimyo's residence or begin arresting people based on suspicion."
He paused before continuing.
"That is why we need your cooperation."
His gaze met the advisor's.
"But I can assure you of one thing."
The room grew quiet.
"There may already be many infiltrators operating throughout the Fire Capital."
Advisor Kiyomori looked at Koji, suspicion clear in his eyes.
"Isn't this all a little too convenient?" he asked. "How exactly did the Uchiha discover all of this?"
Several samurai glanced toward Koji.
The question had been on more than a few minds.
Koji remained calm.
"If you suspect we are deliberately trying to damage the relationship between Konoha and the Land of Fire," he said, "then I can offer a better explanation."
The advisor said nothing.
Koji continued.
"From Daigo and his contacts, we learned something else."
He paused briefly before speaking.
"The Daimyo has begun training his own shinobi force."
A ripple passed through the room.
"With the assistance of a monk. The project is known as the Guardian Ninja."
This time, Advisor Kiyomori's composure cracked.
His fingers tightened around the document in his hand.
That information should have been impossible for outsiders to obtain.
Only the Daimyo and a handful of trusted advisors were aware of the project.
Yet the Uchiha knew about it.
Which meant one thing.
The leak was real.
Far more real than he wanted to admit.
His gaze lingered on Koji.
For the first time since entering the room, he genuinely believed Koji.
No matter how cooperative the Uchiha appeared, they were still shinobi.
And not just any shinobi.
They were one of the strongest clans in the village.
That fact alone demanded caution.
For several moments, neither side spoke.
Then Koji broke the silence.
"You could always allow our people to assist with the investigation."
The advisor looked up immediately.
There it was.
The offer.
Or perhaps the request.
"What do you gain from this?" Advisor Kiyomori asked.
His eyes never left Koji.
"Or perhaps I should ask... what exactly do you want?"
He wasn't about to allow the Uchiha access to the Fire Capital without understanding their motives.
Koji leaned back in his chair.
Unlike before, he answered without hesitation.
"If everything I've told you is true, then Konoha will suffer greatly from the fallout."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"And we have no intention of letting an opportunity like that pass us by."
The room fell silent once more.
At least this answer was honest.
Dangerously honest.
Back in the present.
Toyoma looked at Jiraiya and Hiruzen as he finished his explanation.
"After we finished identifying the Root operatives who had infiltrated the noble houses and the Daimyo's residence..."
A grin spread across his face.
"The Daimyo agreed to our proposal."
He leaned back in his chair.
"We were granted permission to establish a security company to protect our goods and assets."
The grin widened as he victory sign.
"So now, we are officially a recognised security force of the Land of Fire."
"Whom you can hire for low cost, that's our promise."
Toyoma said, advertising the security company, looking at his playful look. Everyone fell silent.
Hiruzen, Jiraiya, Homura, and Koharu all stared at him with dark expressions.
To them, Toyoma might as well have proudly announced how he had turned Konoha's political disaster into an Uchiha victory.
And the worst part?
He didn't look guilty in the slightest.
"Heh."
Toyoma chuckled.
"If a few idiots hadn't tried stealing our things, we never would have discovered such a wonderful opportunity."
He shook his head.
"Honestly, if I ever meet them, I should thank them and pray for their well-being."
A strange sound escaped from somewhere behind him.
Setsuna immediately lowered his head.
Beside him, Uzuku pressed a fist against his mouth.
Both men were struggling to keep straight faces.
Neither was succeeding very well.
The elders' expressions darkened further.
Jiraiya looked away and rubbed his forehead.
Somehow, every time he spoke with Toyoma, his headaches got worse.
Hiruzen took a slow breath before speaking.
"Why didn't the Uchiha inform Konoha first?"
His voice was calm, but there was a hint of dissatisfaction beneath it.
Toyoma blinked.
Then he looked genuinely surprised.
"Believe me, I asked Uncle Koji the same thing."
Several people in the room immediately focused on him.
Toyoma continued without hesitation.
"He told me he was already speaking to the highest authority in the Land of Fire."
He shrugged.
"So it never occurred to him to report it to Konoha first."
The corner of Jiraiya's mouth twitched.
Even Hiruzen's eyelid jumped slightly.
The implication was obvious.
From Koji's perspective, the Daimyo's authority mattered more than Konoha's.
Toyoma tilted his head.
"And besides..."
A smile slowly appeared on his face.
"Root has already been disbanded, hasn't it?"
His eyes met Hiruzen's.
"So there shouldn't be any reason for Konoha to worry."
For a moment, nobody spoke.
The smile on Toyoma's face remained unchanged.
Meanwhile, the expressions around became even darker.
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P@treon - Hear_tteeth [18 +]
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