Danzo left the Hokage's office with a dark, simmering expression.
Anger layered over anger — at Shiki, at Hiruzen, at everything.
He didn't say another word as he walked out, but the fury rolling off him was obvious.
When Shiki Returned Home
Senju Tsunade and Yūhi Kurenai had already been waiting for quite a while.
"Shiki-nii!"
Kurenai, who had been pacing anxiously at the entrance, immediately ran over the moment she saw him.
Tsunade's reaction wasn't as dramatic, but even she let out a small breath of relief once she confirmed Shiki was unharmed.
"Hmph! Danzo's mutts really know how to get on my nerves," Tsunade growled, cracking her knuckles.
"One day I swear I'm going to smash that old war hawk into fertilizer."
Danzo targeting Shiki even while she was present had genuinely pissed her off.
"You talked pretty big yesterday. Didn't look like your 'face' stopped Danzo at all."
"Oi."
Tsunade twitched. "You're still this awful at talking. Whatever — I shouldn't have worried about you in the first place."
"Shiki-nii, you're not hurt, right?"
Kurenai looked up with those worried crimson eyes.
"Don't worry."
Shiki placed a hand on her head, patting softly.
After stepping inside, he set his blades aside and casually said to Tsunade:
"Kato won't bother you again."
"...Huh?"
Tsunade froze for half a second.
Then her expression shifted sharply.
"Don't tell me— Kato was working under Danzo too?"
Shiki gave her a sideways glance.
"Oh? Look at you. Smart today."
"...You—!"
She hadn't expected him to clap back instantly.
But she wasn't stupid — the moment Shiki said that, everything fell into place:
—Kato attacked Shiki.
—He only had the guts because he had Danzo backing him.
—He was among the ones ambushing Shiki this time.
If he wasn't Danzo's lapdog, he would've never dared.
"Well, whatever. At least that fly won't buzz around me anymore."
With that annoyance gone, Tsunade actually looked a bit relieved.
"I really hope things stay peaceful for a while…"
Shiki didn't respond — just gave her a short, meaningful look.
And Tsunade understood.
Peace never lasted in the shinobi world.
A Few Days Later
For a brief period, both Konoha and the entire ninja world experienced a rare calm.
But quiet in the shinobi world was always temporary.
Because on this day—
Konoha's White Fang — Hatake Sakumo — committed suicide at home.
The news shook the entire village like an earthquake.
Nobody ever imagined that Konoha's White Fang — a man considered one of the village's pillars —
would die not in battle…
but by his own hand.
"White Fang… committed suicide…? How—?"
"How could a man like him die like that…?"
People who had mocked him before suddenly fell silent.
"W-We're the ones… who pushed him…?"
"Did our words kill him…?"
Guilt hit many like a stone.
But even then — not a single villager stepped forward to apologize.
To them, gossip had always been just gossip.
They never thought words could turn into knives.
And now the man they stabbed was gone forever.
Just like that, as if a great name had been erased.
As if a person died and the light simply went out.
White Fang's death became the final spark.
Sunagakure, which had previously shown signs of surrender, immediately reversed its stance —
and declared war on Konoha once more.
Thus, the Second Great Ninja War…
continued its bloody march forward.
Hokage's Office
"Danzo!!"
Hiruzen slammed both palms on his desk, fury boiling in his eyes as he glared at Shimura Danzo.
Hatake Sakumo… White Fang…
He was dead.
Just like that.
Hiruzen never thought things would go this far — never thought it would end in such tragedy.
"Who could've known," Danzo shrugged, completely unfazed, "that the so-called White Fang had such a fragile heart?"
Hiruzen clenched his teeth so hard it looked painful.
"You—!!"
For the first time in a long while, he found himself utterly speechless before Danzo's shamelessness.
The two elders — Koharu and Homura — hurried to intervene.
"All right, Hiruzen," Koharu said sharply. "What matters now is the Sand Village. The battlefield must take priority."
"Hmph…"
Hiruzen exhaled coldly but took the step they offered him, suppressing his anger… temporarily.
"The jackals in Sunagakure only backed down because White Fang was here. His blade countered their puppets perfectly. But now that he's gone…"
Sand declaring war again was no surprise.
To them, Sakumo had been the greatest obstacle.
Danzo folded his arms, uninterested in strategy.
In his mind, Sunagakure wasn't worth worrying about.
Let them fight.
As far as Danzo was concerned, Konoha was invincible — and so was he.
His delusional confidence bordered on absurd.
Compared to him, Hiruzen was painfully realistic.
"…Fine. Summon everyone."
If the enemy wanted war, Konoha would answer.
Moments later, ANBU stationed around the Hokage Building flickered away to notify the clan heads and elite shinobi.
Naturally, Shiki's home was among them.
"Shiki-sama, Tsunade-sama — Hokage-sama orders all combat-capable shinobi to assemble at once!"
"Got it. Go ahead, we'll follow shortly."
Shiki fastened the blades at his waist and waved the ANBU off.
"Yes!"
The ANBU vanished.
Tsunade and Yūhi Kurenai approached as soon as he turned.
"Shiki-nii…"
"Stay home. I'll be back soon."
Kurenai always worried whenever Shiki was called for something major.
"Mm!"
She nodded hard, her little face earnest.
"Shiki-nii, Kurenai will wait for you to come back!"
Shiki let out a quiet sigh.
"…I must've accumulated some kind of karmic debt."
Tsunade frowned slightly, sensing the shift in the air.
"It seems something big really happened."
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