"How did you even come up with that idea?"
Kakashi stared at Souma like he'd seen a ghost.
Danzō…
That guy had already approached Souma?
Of course he had.
A genius like Souma was like the bright moon hanging over Konoha—who could possibly ignore him?
Danzō was ambitious by nature. Of course he'd want to pull Souma into his camp.
Kakashi's expression hardened at once.
"That man is bad news. Whatever he told you, don't believe a word of it."
"Ahem, sensei, that's not what I meant."
Souma lowered his voice.
"What I'm saying is—if the ninja tools 'just so happen' end up in Danzō-sama's hands, and we study them in secret on our side… that buys us time."
Kakashi's gaze flickered rapidly.
He understood Souma's point, but…
This kind of maneuver wouldn't fool anyone for long.
And Danzō, for better or worse, still represented Konoha. If he seized the tools, wasn't that basically the same as the village doing it outright?
That was Kakashi's first thought.
But very quickly, after a moment of quiet contemplation, he realized:
It actually wasn't the same.
Souma wasn't saying "never return them."
He just wanted to fully understand them before handing them back. And this time, Craftsmen Village was in the wrong to begin with—
They definitely wouldn't be in any position to raise their voices.
That way, both sides have a step down.
The only thing really taking a hit… would be Danzō's reputation.
But as the "Darkness of the Leaf," Danzō didn't exactly have much of a positive public image to begin with.
Compared to the stuff he'd done in the past, this was nothing.
Kakashi scratched his head.
"Er… I'll discuss it with the Hokage when we get back. But you—"
He looked at Souma very seriously.
"—stop coming up with schemes like this just because you're bored."
"Opportunities like this don't come often," Souma said softly.
"And this time, we're the ones on the right."
Kakashi gave a small nod.
As a former ANBU captain, he wasn't naïve or rigid.
He knew very well that certain methods were necessary.
There was no way research on the ninja tools could be completed in just a few days.
The more time they had… the greater Konoha's advantage.
It really was a rare opportunity.
With Souma having poked that hole open, the thoughts Kakashi, Tenten, and Hazuki had for "getting back to the village quickly" solidified all at once.
As for Hazuki…
She wasn't particularly interested in ninja tools. Her heart was already back in Konoha's training grounds, swinging her blade. She didn't want to waste any more time on the road anyway.
The four of them swallowed soldier pills, then set off again, racing toward the village.
By the time they reached the Konoha gates, it was already dusk. They checked in, then went straight to the Hokage Tower to make their report.
Kakashi first gave Hiruzen a brief rundown of how things had played out.
Originally, he'd wanted to send Souma and the girls out first, then privately mention the "Danzō idea" to the old man.
But Souma had his own business to bring up.
"Hokage-sama, the chakra metal you promised me last time… you haven't used it for anything yet, have you?"
"…"
Hiruzen sighed helplessly and nodded.
"Don't be in a hurry to use it," Souma said, grinning.
"If we actually manage to figure out something special, we'll need that chakra iron for testing anyway."
Hiruzen waved a hand, shooing them.
"Alright, you kids go on. Kakashi and I still have things to discuss."
Souma obediently headed for the door.
Just as he stepped out of the Hokage building—
His right arm was suddenly hugged from the side.
"Tenten? What are you doing?"
"Souma-kun~ you, um… you're getting chakra metal, right? Think you could… let me try it? Just a little?"
Her voice was soft, almost pleading—
a little like she was… coquettishly begging.
Hazuki, standing off to the side, turned bright red.
Tenten… that's way too bold!
And also—
That's chakra iron we're talking about! How can you just ask to "try it"?
"Of course." Souma nodded.
"But I need one blade, and one length of wire that can conduct chakra. While I'm figuring out the design, you should really study up and prepare yourself."
"That's great! I definitely will!"
Tenten pumped her fist, eyes shining.
Chakra metal, right in front of her.
If she didn't give this everything she had, she'd regret it for the rest of her life.
The rush of excitement quickly gave way to something else—
a mix of emotion and guilt.
"On second thought, maybe we shouldn't… It's chakra metal," she muttered.
"Even the Hokage-sama probably doesn't have much left. If I waste it, that'd be—"
"Don't worry," Souma said calmly.
"If you're scared of wasting it, then that just means you should work harder and not waste it."
"…Yeah!"
Tenten nodded heavily.
She was going home to work on ninja tools.
Rest? She could sleep later—after she'd made something worth that metal.
Hazuki hesitated, then finally spoke up.
"Souma-kun, I… I wasn't worried about Tenten," she said quietly.
"I just meant… that is chakra iron."
"If we can raise a truly excellent ninja smith out of this," Souma replied, stretching lazily,
"What's a little chakra metal in comparison? Tenten has the talent for it. My job is to support her."
"Come on. Go rest. Tomorrow's probably going to be busy."
Busy for you, Hazuki thought silently.
She knew very well that Souma might wear a genin forehead protector, but he'd long since stepped onto a different road than them.
If that weren't the case, the Hokage wouldn't have built this entire team around him.
And he certainly wouldn't have gone out of his way to bring in someone like Hatake Kakashi.
The Copy Ninja.
Hazuki suddenly thought of Yuichi, then let out a small, involuntary laugh.
"What are you laughing at?" Souma glanced at her.
"Nothing. I just…" Hazuki lowered her gaze.
"…I just realized both Kakashi-sensei and you are good at learning other people's techniques. Maybe someday, the title 'Copy Ninja' will belong to you instead."
"Doubt it."
Copying was the lowest-level method.
Taking someone else's jutsu and thoroughly digesting it until it became your own—
That was a real skill.
Souma added that silently in his heart.
At the base of the Hokage Tower, he said his goodbyes to Hazuki, and they separated to head home.
Upstairs.
Hiruzen stood by the window, watching them disappear from sight. He took a long drag on his pipe, and only then spoke:
"The Four Celestial Beasts of Craftsmen Village… and their tools. Who has them right now?"
"Tenten," Kakashi replied.
"She wants to study ninja tools. And in that regard, she's got real talent."
He briefly described Tenten's "ninja tool notebook."
Even if it was inspired by Souma's habit of keeping a research journal, everything written in it was Tenten's own work.
There was no hiding that kind of talent.
Hiruzen mulled it over.
Just as he was thinking, Kakashi laid out "his" idea.
After listening, the old man couldn't help chuckling.
"Kakashi, that sounds more like Souma's idea than yours."
"Ahem."
Kakashi coughed into his hand.
"Whatever the case, it's a method that benefits Konoha. And the Four Celestial Beasts really did try to ambush our team and trigger a war between Iron Country and the Land of Fire."
"If you hadn't realized something was off, any other team that accepted the mission might not have come back."
Hiruzen's gaze turned solemn.
"Yes."
Kakashi did not downplay it.
Because it was simply the truth.
The only reason the Kiyota clan and the Four Celestial Beasts had been dealt with so cleanly was not just because of Kakashi's overwhelming personal strength—
but because he and Souma had carefully divided the battlefield and taken down each enemy in turn.
Most squads could not do that.
"Craftsmen Village really is in the wrong here," Hiruzen said slowly.
"I'm not worried about them. I'm worried about the other villages."
The Four Great Ninja Tools were powerful, and everyone had an eye on them.
The only reason no one had made a move all these years was because they were all wary of each other.
No one wanted to be the first to start a war over them.
He was afraid this entire mess might actually be poisoned bait.
Kakashi frowned, about to speak—
"Honestly, Hiruzen, I think that brat's plan is pretty good."
A voice came from beyond the doorway.
"The ones who got attacked this time were our people. We're the victims. What are you so worried about?"
"At worst, we drag our feet while we research them thoroughly. Retreating won't solve anything."
The door slid open.
Shimura Danzō walked in.
Kakashi's brows knit together.
Hiruzen lifted his pipe again, taking his time to cover his expression with a cloud of smoke. Then he waved his hand gently, signaling Kakashi to leave.
What came next…
was a conversation between him and Danzō—and no one else.
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