The tent was silent except for the faint rustle of papers as Danzo flipped through intelligence reports.
At this hour, Jiraiya was still awake somewhere in the camp, and so was Danzo.
Since taking control of Root, Danzo's sleep had become shallow and brief. Even the slightest disturbance would wake him instantly.
He finished reviewing the documents in his hands and slowly raised his head.
Besides him, two Root ninjas stood motionless, waiting for orders.
"How did Fuya, the leader of Yugakure, respond?"
Danzo's gaze shifted to the taller of the two.
The Root ninja immediately replied in a respectful tone.
"Fuya rejected the invitation. He said Yugakure is a small village that values peace and lacks the strength to take part in the war between Konoha and the Hidden Cloud Village. He wishes to remain neutral."
"Neutral?" Danzo let out a cold sneer.
The war had already spread across the entire shinobi world. There was no such thing as neutrality anymore, especially not for countries caught in the middle.
In war, there were only allies and enemies. Those who tried to stand in between would simply be crushed by both sides.
Still, Danzo had no immediate intention of forcing Yugakure into the conflict. A careless move could easily push them toward the Hidden Cloud Village instead.
That was precisely why he had held back until now.
But the situation had changed.
Konoha's current strategic priority was the conflict against Iwagakure, and resources could not be endlessly diverted to the Land of Hot Water front.
Though, in truth, troop numbers in that region had never been small.
Jiraiya had brought reinforcements when transferring from the Land of Wind, and Homura Mitokado had also sent multiple support units.
Even so, they were still being overwhelmed by the Hidden Cloud Village. In Danzo's judgment, that meant one thing, insufficient manpower.
And if there was a shortage of manpower, but victory was still required, there was only one answer.
Use everything available.
That included the local forces of the Land of Hot Water.
Yugakure was small, weak, and lacking in military strength, but even a mosquito contained meat.
Unfortunately, Fuya had rejected cooperation outright.
In Danzo's eyes, that was nothing but ungrateful.
"How is contact with Sakai progressing?" Danzo asked, folding his hands together.
Sakai was one of Fuya's subordinates. He had ability, ambition, and most importantly, dissatisfaction with remaining under someone else.
Even more importantly, he was willing to cooperate with Konoha.
Danzo valued people like that. Ambitious, useful, and controllable.
"I want Sakai to find an opportunity to lure Fuya out," Danzo said calmly. "Then send a squad to assassinate him and frame the Hidden Cloud Village."
The method was simple, even crude, but effective enough.
There would certainly be suspicion within Yugakure afterward, but that did not matter.
Yugakure was too small. Few would risk their lives for a dead leader.
It was not worth it.
After finishing the Yugakure matter, Danzo turned his attention to the second Root ninja.
"Tell me about the Jashin Cult."
In the Land of Hot Water, two forces had emerged recently.
Yugakure, the established village, and the Jashin Cult, a strange religious organization that had appeared from nowhere.
The Root ninja responded carefully.
"According to intelligence, the Jashin Cult is a religious group. The exact details are unclear, but their doctrine promotes unrestricted killing without consequences. It even encourages members to slaughter each other."
Danzo narrowed his eyes, his fingers tapping lightly against the table in a steady rhythm.
"The Land of Hot Water is called the land forgotten by war. It is unusual for such an extreme organization to emerge there."
The Root ninja continued.
"Further investigation shows the Jashin Cult has existed for some time. However, Yugakure suppressed information about it to protect tourism, fearing economic damage."
"Previously, it was only a minor organization and was not considered a threat."
He paused before adding,
"However, due to the war, many people in the region lost their homes. Under the influence of the cult's teachings, its influence has rapidly expanded."
Danzo gave a slight nod.
The sudden rise of the Jashin Cult and its series of attacks had already drawn his attention.
"Whether caused by war or not, external forces are likely supporting it," Danzo said in a low voice.
Just like how he intended to support Sakai and the former Akatsuki organization, other villages would also use proxy forces.
The question was, who?
His thoughts landed on one possibility.
The Hidden Mist Village.
They had previously allied with the Hidden Cloud Village and operated within the Land of Hot Water for a time. Their internal ideology of blood and slaughter also aligned closely with the Bloody Mist policy.
Both motive and opportunity existed.
It even made sense as retaliation against Konoha's Lightning Flash strike on the Hidden Mist.
In Danzo's mind, conclusions were always quick to form.
Someone must be responsible. Blame would be assigned first, details later.
At that moment, footsteps sounded outside the tent.
"Is that Otsuki?" Danzo asked.
"Yes, Lord Danzo."
"You two leave," he ordered.
"Yes, Lord Danzo."
The two Root ninjas disappeared without hesitation.
Soon after, a Root operative entered.
"What is it?" Danzo picked up a cup of cold tea and took a slow sip.
"It is related to Lord Jiraiya and his disciple, Minato Namikaze."
Danzo's hand slammed the cup onto the table.
"A commander and a Jonin, running around the camp in the middle of the night causing disturbances, what kind of conduct is that?"
Otsuki remained silent. He had no authority to comment on another commander.
Still, this was not unusual. Danzo had never been fond of Jiraiya.
In his view, Jiraiya was inefficient. If he were truly capable, the battlefield situation would not have deteriorated this much.
Of course, if Jiraiya showed strength comparable to Hayashi, Danzo's attitude would change, likely into concern over political balance and credit distribution.
After a brief pause, Otsuki continued.
"Lord Danzo, Jiraiya mentioned the Flying Thunder God Technique."
Danzo froze for a moment.
"What did you say? Are you certain?"
Otsuki nodded.
"Yes. I was nearby and heard it clearly. Minato Namikaze was testing the technique when he encountered Lord Jiraiya. They should have noticed my presence, but I did not conceal myself."
===
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