Konoha Notes

Chapter 430 Under the Night (Part 2)

September 6th, Konoha Year 59, Night.

Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, travel-worn, crossed the brightly lit streets of the stadium area. The two advisors, who were originally supposed to return directly to the village, tacitly changed direction as they passed the main stadium.

They stepped into the empty stadium and climbed the stairs leading to the top floor.

When the door to the VIP box was pushed open, Hiruzen Sarutobi was facing away from the doorway, his gaze fixed on the brightly lit stage below.

Hearing the commotion, the Third Hokage didn't even look over, but knew it was his two old buddies.

"You must have had a long journey back at this time, Yan, Xiaochun."

Koharu Utatane didn't immediately respond to her old friend's greeting. She walked side by side with Homura Mitokado to the floor-to-ceiling window and looked down through the one-way glass—there, the seven Jinchuriki were doing their final rehearsals for the opening ceremony that was coming soon.

“At a time like this…” Koharu Utatane finally turned around and sat down next to Homura Mitokado, sitting upright, “Is it really appropriate to allow them to play this kind of game, Hiruzen?”

Her voice betrayed no weariness from the long journey, only caution and disapproval.

Mitomon Homura picked up the conversation, his tone as straightforward as ever: "From a strategic perspective, the village's ability to accommodate all Jinchuriki is indeed a rare achievement."

“But, Hiruzen, you need to see this clearly. These Jinchuriki are all adult ninjas, their wills are already formed, and their stances are rooted in their respective villages.”

"Konoha can provide shelter, but it can't truly change their allegiance. Once the situation changes, they will still be loyal to their own Kage first."

"And as a result, we bear the most concentrated pressure. Xiao's attention is now almost entirely focused on this."

Koharu Utatane chimed in, "This time, Akatsuki openly launched an attack on the border of the Land of Rivers and spread such remarks. The impact has already exceeded the scope of the ninja world."

“When we communicated with those subordinate officials in Daming Prefecture, we could clearly feel an atmosphere of unease spreading.”

“Some important figures who were originally scheduled to attend the match,” Mitokado Homura added, “are reconsidering their schedules. Even two relatives of the daimyo have formally submitted letters of apology this afternoon 'due to illness'.”

“You should understand what this means, Hiruzen,” Koharu Utatane said.

Hiruzen Sarutobi listened to his old buddies' concerns and simply smiled, saying, "At first, I also thought it was noisy."

"But after listening to it for a while, I actually find it quite inspiring."

Koharu Utatane frowned even more: "Hiruzen, we're not discussing the farce that's happening below."

Mitokado Homura adjusted his glasses: "To counter the Akatsuki's threat, we've made too many concessions. Allowing Jinchuriki to make a public appearance at the opening ceremony is like setting up a highly conspicuous target. If a conflict breaks out that day..."

“Once it breaks out,” Koharu Utatane’s voice lowered considerably, “if we, as the home team, suffer heavy losses, will the other four still be staunch allies?”

What you give away, once your own strength is damaged, is truly gone.

To take it back, they might have to fight another war. The two advisors believed that Hiruzen Sarutobi should be aware of this possibility.

They had fought together in the Shinobi World War for decades and had seen this kind of thing far too often.

"Tsunade and Shuuji did a better job than we did back then. Trust them." Hiruzen Sarutobi remained calm and composed.

Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado exchanged a glance. After a moment, she stood up and said, "Let's go to the Hokage Building first and report the specific details of this negotiation with the Daimyo to the Fifth Hokage."

“Alright, at least the meaning of the daimyo is clearly conveyed.” Mitokado Homura followed her.

When the two left the private room, Hiruzen Sarutobi did not get up to see them off. He simply picked up his pipe and turned his gaze back down.

On stage, Naruto was practicing a spinning move when he lost his balance and landed on his bottom, which made Fu laugh.
-
The lights in the Hokage's office were still on.

Tsunade lay on the desk, her cheek pressed against an open document, her breathing even and deep. A few strands of golden hair fell across the paper, rising and falling gently with her breath.

Until a deliberately exaggerated cough rang out.

"Well……!"

Tsunade woke up with a start, and as she sat up, a small piece of paper torn from the report was comically stuck to her forehead. She blinked sleepily before reaching out to pull the piece off, her movements still sluggish from just waking up.

"I overslept," Shuuji said without looking up from behind another desk.

"Stop nagging..." Tsunade muttered, rubbing her cheeks vigorously to try and shake off the lingering sleepiness. "I'm going to stay up until the second half of the night, so what's wrong with catching up on some sleep in the first half?"

Chakra flowed through her palm, and the faint marks on her skin quickly faded. After doing this, she turned her head and gestured with her chin towards Shuuji: "Where are the marks?"

Xiu Si then looked up, his gaze lingering on her smooth face for a moment.

“That’s enough,” he said briefly.

No sooner had he finished speaking than a rhythmic knocking sound came from outside the door.

When Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado pushed open the door, this was the scene they saw: the Fifth Hokage sat upright in the main seat, looking energetic, though his blond hair was slightly disheveled; Shuji was behind the desk on the side, calmly working on documents.

This is not the first time such a scene has been witnessed since Tsunade took over and Shuji's position was established.

In the early days, there wasn't the kind of dual leadership that we have now. After all, back then, Tobirama Senju was always the one who had the most say.

As for her thoughts... she recalled what Hiruzen Sarutobi had just said and sighed softly in her heart.

These two are doing a good job—so good that no one can find fault with them. Even with all her worries, she has to admit that they are indeed leading Konoha in an unprecedented direction.

What can we criticize? We can only marvel at how clever young people are at having fun.

Shuji stood up and invited the two advisors to sit on the sofa in the reception area. Tsunade also came out from behind her desk and sat down on the other side.

After a brief silence, Mitomon Homura spoke first, reporting the core content of their trip to the City of Fire.

"His Highness the Daimyo has expressed clear concern about the recent tensions at the border."

He asked whether, given the threat posed by the Akatsuki, the joint military exercise should be postponed in favor of prioritizing the complete eradication of this rogue ninja organization.

He finished speaking and waited for a response. His gaze shifted between Tsunade and Shuji.

“There is no need for a delay,” Tsunade said decisively. “The Akatsuki’s goal is to create chaos, and delay and fear are exactly what they intend.”

"The fact that the military exercises will proceed as scheduled is itself a statement that we will not be affected by those actions."

"Moreover, a delay would disrupt the arrangements of all the villages, which might actually create more opportunities for Xiao to infiltrate and sow discord. It's better to maintain the original plan and keep the initiative in our own hands."

Koharu Utatane's eyes flickered slightly: "Then what about security? On the opening day, all seven Jinchūriki will be on stage at the same time. That's like putting the most tempting targets under the spotlight. What if Akatsuki chooses to launch an attack then..."

Shuji said, "We already have several solutions for this."

"In addition to the increased vigilance and the support of elite troops from each village, there are some contingency measures in place."

"I have already had preliminary communication with the Hidden Cloud Village. If we cannot get a credible response from the Akatsuki before the martial arts competition begins, or detect any concrete signs of a large-scale operation targeting the opening ceremony... we plan to leak a piece of information through a controlled channel."

Mitokado immediately grasped the key point: "Leaked? What information? Through whom?"

"The message is: Konoha is secretly negotiating with Kumogakure, intending to use some of the tailed beast chakra as a bargaining chip in exchange for certain strategic benefits or technology sharing."

“Among the ninjas stationed at the Sand Village’s Affairs Bureau, there is one named Yura,” Shuji said calmly. “There is a very high probability that he is an Akatsuki spy. Information would naturally flow through his hands.” “Compared to the heavily guarded, high-profile main arena of martial arts competitions, a secret trading location that seems to offer an opportunity to obtain tailed beast chakra is obviously more attractive to Akatsuki.”

"In order to keep them in check, we can let them succeed this time."

“And the chakra used as bait could be the Seven-Tails’ chakra,” Shuuji said. “After all, they already have it.”

"This will not only confirm Yoshiro's identity as a spy and lay the groundwork for future countermeasures, but also temporarily divert some of Akatsuki's attention and even his main force to a battlefield that we have pre-planned and that is relatively far from the core area."

After listening, the doubts in the eyes of the two consultants were significantly reduced.

Having a more feasible solution at least proves that the two people in charge now have genuinely considered the risks and have not been blinded by past successes.

They are still calmly calculating the risks, still preparing various contingency plans, and still prioritizing the safety of the village.

After exchanging some details about communicating with the City of Fire, the two advisors got up to take their leave.

There are no more people on the schedule who need to be received by Shuji today.

He didn't even bother to tidy up the files on his desk: "I'm leaving."

"Okay." Tsunade sat back down at her desk. "Remember to come early tomorrow."

"You should at least not sleep too soundly."

"Wordy."

When Shuji left the Hokage Building, the stars in the night sky were already very bright.

Upon returning to the western suburbs, he noticed that the door of the old house was only ajar, not closed.

A dim, yellow light leaked from the crack in the door, casting a warm band of light on the stone path. When Xiu Si pushed the door open, the first thing he saw was two figures under the eaves.

Temari sat there, hugging her knees, her chin resting in her arms, her gaze unfocused as she stared at the clump of summer chrysanthemums beginning to wither in the corner of the courtyard. Kankuro leaned against a pillar, his fingers forming chakra threads as he fiddled with two kunai.

Upon hearing the sound of the gate opening, Temari was the first to raise her head.

Kankuro also stopped what he was doing, and the kunai fell silently back into his hand.

"Mr. Shuji."

They greeted him.

Shuji nodded to the two of them and walked to the stone table in the courtyard, where he sat down. The stone table still retained the warmth of the daytime, and felt slightly cool to the touch.

"I'll be quite busy for a while, so I probably won't be here often, mornings and evenings."

Upon hearing this, Temari replied almost without hesitation, "I will make breakfast and lunch bento boxes. Please take care of me and Grandma Momoka during this time."

"The groceries will be delivered," he said. "Just let us know in advance if you need anything else."

After explaining these things, Xiu Si said no more and leaned against the stone table to rest with his eyes closed.

Seeing this, Temari and Kankuro silently walked towards the corridor leading to the backyard.

The sound of footsteps was gradually absorbed and faded away in the wooden corridor.

The courtyard returned to silence.

Only the final chirping of autumn insects, intermittent and broken, seemed like a farewell performance for summer. The glow of lanterns swayed slightly in the wind, lengthening and shortening shadows in an endless cycle.

After an unknown amount of time, a series of light but steady footsteps approached from the direction of the courtyard gate and finally stopped in front of Xiu Si.

Shuji opened his eyes.

Gaara stood there, his red hair appearing somewhat dim in the lantern light, his face still expressionless, but his blue-green eyes staring straight at him.

"What's wrong?" Shuuji asked.

Gaara was silent for a few seconds before speaking: "When rehearsal ended today, Yugito spoke with me, Naruto, and Fu."

What did she say?

"She hoped that the three of us...would not perform on stage on the opening day."

Shuji raised an eyebrow slightly: "Naruto, Fu, and you? What's your reason?"

Gaara nodded and continued, "She said that the opening ceremony is a very serious occasion, and countless eyes will be focused on it. That kind of pressure is not something a child should bear."

She also said...we are 'kids' and shouldn't be put in that position so early.

Shuji listened and said with a smile, "That's true. I have heard that some people get so nervous that they vomit from being stared at too many people. Standing on a stage under the spotlight definitely requires a strong heart."

His tone was relaxed, even slightly teasing. But Gaara neither laughed nor looked away.

"Is war coming?" Gaara asked, "Because of us Jinchūriki?"

Shuji's smile faded.

He reached out and placed his palm on Gaara's head, then ruffled it.

Gaara is still waiting for an answer.

“It’s not because of the Jinchūriki,” Shuji finally said, his voice exceptionally clear in the night, “but because of Shukaku and the others. Or rather, to get to the bottom of it, it’s just because of something from a long, long time ago… something that happened a very, very long time ago, but has followed us like a shadow ever since.”

"As for war..." Xiu Si withdrew his hand and leaned back against the stone table, "It won't be now. Nor will it be the kind of war you're imagining."

"So, would you like to go on stage?" Shuji laughed again.

Gaara remained silent for a moment.

“I want to go on stage,” he said, his tone unwavering. “Not because I’m not afraid, nor because I want to prove anything.”

"This is something I promised Killer Bee."

"Naruto and the others are also looking forward to it."

"Even if it's Shukaku..."

“During this time, it has been mocking us, but even so, Shukaku is still looking forward to it.”

Shuji watched him quietly. After a moment, he reached out again and gently patted Gaara's shoulder.

“Then let’s go on stage,” he said. “As for the rest…”

"Leave it to us."

(End of this chapter)