"Ow, ow, ow—be gentle, Feng Bai!" Obito sat on the ground, grimacing as Feng Bai's small hands worked over his face.
"Tch, stop being such a baby. Didn't you say you wanted to be Hokage? If you can't handle a little pain like this..." Feng Bai shot him a look of disdain and applied the ointment even more forcefully.
Alright, that should do it.
Seeing that Obito's facial wounds had been thoroughly covered with ointment, Feng Bai finally walked over to the nearby stream and washed his hands in the flowing water.
He had to admit, Kakashi was surprisingly thoughtful—actually carrying wound ointment with him.
"Since when does the Hokage need someone else to apply medicine? Medical-nin would've already used that green-glowing Mystical Palm Technique to heal everything instantly." Obito pouted, adjusting his crooked goggles.
"Yes, yes, future Hokage-sama. So where exactly is your medical-nin right now?" Walking back to Obito, Feng Bai vigorously rubbed his wet hands on Obito's clothes, leaving all the moisture behind.
"Medical-nin, hehe, well, uh—" Obito's cheeks flushed as if he'd thought of something, completely oblivious to Feng Bai using him as a towel.
Judging by that dopey expression, he must have met Rin already.
Watching Obito's lovestruck face, Feng Bai couldn't help but picture that "white moonlight" of his.
"If there's nothing else, I'm going back to training." Not wanting to watch these two idiots interact anymore, Kakashi put his hands behind his head and spoke in a lazy tone.
"How sneaky, Kakashi. You want to leave this low-IQ guy for me to babysit? He's our joint responsibility, you know." Seeing Kakashi trying to slip away, Feng Bai lunged forward and grabbed his arm, refusing to let him escape.
"Hey, what do you mean 'joint responsibility'?" Kakashi widened his dead-fish eyes, struggling to break free from Feng Bai's grip.
Obito was stunned for a moment, then caught on: "Damn it, Feng Bai! What do you mean 'low-IQ'? I'll fight you!"
With that, Obito pounced like a rabid dog, joining the scuffle.
The three became entangled, and when someone lost their footing, they all tumbled into the nearby bushes, rolling away in a heap.
...
"So Fugaku hasn't taken any measures—not even planning to convene a clan meeting?" Finally locating his pipe, Hiruzen Sarutobi hurriedly lit it and took a deep drag, exhaling thick smoke with a satisfied expression.
Chatting with women and smoking—these were Hiruzen's two greatest pleasures.
That's why he appeared on Konoha's streets every day.
After all, most paperwork was handled by the advisory council, while Danzō managed military and intelligence matters. As Hokage, Hiruzen only needed to control the big picture to keep Konoha sailing smoothly through the ninja world.
"Yes, Lord Third."
"In that case, we adults shouldn't interfere in children's squabbles. Konoha is vast—kids fight constantly. If the Military Police Force had to intervene in every scuffle, the Uchiha clan would be overwhelmed." Exhaling his final puff of smoke, Hiruzen smiled and patted the ANBU's shoulder, making his stance clear.
The Uchiha clan's problems were obvious to anyone with eyes, but Hiruzen had no effective solution.
All he could do was ensure this powder keg capable of destroying Konoha didn't explode prematurely—at least not until the next generation, or the one after, produced an inheritor of the Will of Fire who could resolve this threat without violence.
"Let the Uchiha suffer hardship, let Danzō bear the infamy."
This was Hiruzen Sarutobi's universal solution for the Uchiha problem.
Confident that the Uchiha clan wouldn't take any drastic action for now, Hiruzen returned to Konoha's streets with a smile, ready to chat with young, attractive women.
Meanwhile, Danzō led his men back to Root headquarters, where Orochimaru awaited him.
"Lord Danzō." Orochimaru greeted him in his signature sinister tone.
Seeing Orochimaru's arrival, Danzō, who had anticipated this visit, dismissed his subordinates: "You may leave us."
"Orochimaru, what brings you here at this hour?" Once certain they were alone, Danzō feigned ignorance and inquired.
"Hehehe, I simply wanted to inform Lord Danzō that there's been some new progress in the Hashirama Cell experiments..." Orochimaru extended his tongue, licking his lips.
That shadowy serpent.
Danzō subtly raised an eyebrow.
Orochimaru was trying to use Wood Release research as bait to capture his attention and seize control of the conversation.
Unfortunately, while his former self would have agreed immediately, now...
"Is that so, Orochimaru? If I recall correctly, your teacher Hiruzen Sarutobi has already issued explicit orders completely prohibiting Wood Release experiments. By doing this, you're showing blatant disregard for the Hokage's authority." Danzō spoke coldly.
This old bastard!
Orochimaru's expression instantly darkened.
If this old man hadn't approached him for cooperation in the first place, he would have long since pursued immortality instead of wasting so much time on Hashirama Cells.
Now, not only had his research funding been inexplicably cut off, but Danzō was ready to turn his back and sever all ties.
Shocked by Danzō's shamelessness, Orochimaru was momentarily speechless. The two stood in awkward silence.
"I'll pretend today's conversation never happened. Leave." Having already decided to completely cut ties with Orochimaru, Danzō began walking deeper into the Root base.
"Lord Danzō..." Unable to abandon Danzō's funding, Orochimaru couldn't help but call out.
"Oh, and I'll inform Hiruzen that with your abilities, Root is beneath your talents. You should return to serve under Hiruzen." Without pausing, Danzō's next words directly expelled Orochimaru from Root.
"I see. I understand." Orochimaru had his pride too. If Danzō was determined to cut him off, he wouldn't grovel for scraps.
Seeing Danzō's unwavering resolve, Orochimaru dropped all pretense. The look he directed at Danzō's retreating figure was venomous as a serpent's.
"I hope you won't regret today's decision, Lord Danzō."
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