"As long as a Sarutobi ninja is strong enough, has good character, and respects Yan, I can guarantee they won't be treated differently. They'll have a fair shot, just like everyone else."
That was as far as Tsunade was willing to compromise.
If the Third Hokage still wanted to push his luck, she'd have no choice but to refuse outright.
Pulling strings to get someone in? Not a chance. These were the conditions, take them or leave them.
If he didn't agree, then the Sarutobi clan's ninjas would just have to find other opportunities elsewhere.
To be a tutor in the program, strength was important, but so was good character.
How could someone with a bad attitude and questionable morals be trusted to educate students?
It'd be lucky if they didn't lead the kids astray.
Look at Jiraiya and Orochimaru—they were both excellent teachers, but each had serious flaws. Jiraiya had a habit of abandoning his students to wander around, taking a hands-off, overly lenient approach to teaching.
Orochimaru, on the other hand, was too dark. Who knew if one day he'd decide to put his own student on an operating table for an experiment?
They could train strong disciples, but they weren't fit to be tutors in a structured program. Their personal flaws were too big.
A tutor had to handle all kinds of students, not just one or two.
Most importantly, they had to show enough respect for Yan.
Yan was the Hokage's advisor. To put it bluntly, only Tsunade held more power than her in the village.
Yan controlled everything about the tutoring program.
Yet the Sarutobi clan's ninjas wanted to badmouth her behind her back while also expecting to get a job under her?
That was like eating from someone's bowl and then cursing them the moment you put your chopsticks down.
That kind of behavior couldn't be tolerated.
"Tsunade, is this really necessary?"
The Third Hokage frowned. He had personally stepped in, yet this was all he got?
Could this even be called a favor?
The Third Hokage had confidence in the clan's ninjas—not just in their strength but also in their character. He would personally select the participants.
For Yan, maintaining respect at all times was a bit difficult. At most, he could keep up the appearance of respect.
After all, everyone in Konohagakure knew that the relationship between Yan and the Third Hokage was strained.
The Hokage's advisor and the retired Third Hokage were not on good terms. In such a situation, expecting the Sarutobi clan to genuinely respect Yan was unrealistic.
"I think it's necessary."
Tsunade didn't bother to be polite to the Third Hokage. Instead, she reminded him:
"Old man, the Sarutobi clan may be labeled as a civilian family, but don't actually think of yourselves as civilians.
Competing with other ninjas already gives you a natural advantage."
"The education you receive from childhood, the inheritance of skills, and various other factors give clan ninjas an edge that civilian ninjas simply can't match."
"Giving the Sarutobi clan the right to compete fairly for responsibilities is already unfair to civilian ninjas."
"And besides, the past is already behind us. Yan isn't targeting your Sarutobi clan anymore, so I hope you all know when to hold back as well.
Yan is the Hokage's advisor. To put it bluntly, in this village, his status and authority are second only to mine. In some cases, when he hasn't received direct orders, his authority even surpasses yours."
"If the Sarutobi clan refuses to lower their heads and show him the respect he deserves, why do they keep trying to get close to him?"
"The Uchiha clan hates you to the core, but have they ever disrespected you?"
Put yourself in their shoes and think about it. The Uchiha clan despises you and Danzo, but aside from Yan, who has always been a tough one, have any of them ever done anything disrespectful toward you?"
No, they haven't. In fact, they've been nothing but obedient.
If even the so-called 'crazy' Uchiha clan can do it, why can't the Sarutobi clan?
"..."
The Third Hokage was speechless because everything Tsunade said was true.
He had no argument against it.
"Sigh… I'll advise them and try to correct their attitude."
"It's not about advising or correcting. I want you to fix this immediately!!!"
Tsunade slammed her hand on the table, her tone already laced with anger.
"My patience has limits, and Yan has an even worse temper—you know this very well. If the Sarutobi clan still clings to their old ways and does whatever they please…
Then if Yan really decides to turn his blade against you, don't expect me to step in because of past relations."
"As the Third Hokage, you should be well aware of how easy it is for someone like Yan—who holds great power and influence—to target certain people."
He wouldn't even need to confront you openly. Just a few mission assignments or commissions could be enough to put you in a bad spot.
The Uchiha clan suffered from this kind of treatment before, but no one could call it out for what it was.
The rules are the rules. As long as I operate within them, even if you know I'm targeting you, what can you do about it?
For example, if I assign you a suicidal mission, will you go or not?
If you refuse, that's insubordination.
Don't doubt it—there are some missions that ninjas can refuse, but there are others that they have no choice but to accept, like clan-assigned missions.
If those kinds of missions get pushed onto the Sarutobi clan, can you refuse?
"..."
Thinking back on some of the things he had done in the past, along with the tactics Danzo often used, the Third Hokage suddenly felt uneasy.
He started coughing uncontrollably.
He imagined the scene for a moment and was instantly shaken.
When he used this tactic against others, it didn't seem like a big deal. But if someone were to turn it against his own clan, the Sarutobi family would be in serious trouble.
They would suffer heavy losses.
"Take a look at this information yourself. Yan collected it. Ever since you became the Third Hokage, the Uchiha Clan has been sent on missions and assignments where their casualties are always higher than those of other clans.
Everyone in the ninja world knows how strong Uchiha shinobi are. That's a fact."
"You know exactly why their casualty rate is higher than everyone else's.
Yan hasn't forgotten these things, and he never will. So, you'd better think carefully about your actions."
Just because Yan doesn't bring something up doesn't mean he's let it go.
For example, making sure the Sarutobi Clan is given the same type of missions where the Uchiha once suffered heavy losses.
Since I have the authority to issue missions and assignments, I'll make sure your clan gets a taste of the same treatment. Take your time and enjoy it.
"I understand. I'll go back and warn my clansmen to show proper respect and reverence to those in power. This kind of thing won't happen again."
The warning couldn't be any clearer. If the Third Hokage still didn't wake up after this, he'd truly be a fool.
Yan wouldn't gather this kind of information for no reason. If he had it, that meant he was ready to act at any time.
If the Sarutobi Clan refused to change, they would have to bear the consequences themselves. There would be nothing I could do to help them.
As long as Yan still had the power to assign missions, as long as no one stripped him of that authority, this was bound to happen sooner or later.
And Tsunade wasn't going to keep an eye on Yan forever.
Besides, why should she go out of her way to monitor Yan just to protect the Sarutobi Clan? That would only create conflict and mistrust between them.
Tsunade wasn't about to do something that stupid.
What, cause problems with my own man just to help you guys? Am I crazy?
"Forget it. Sit down and have some tea first."
It had been a long time since she had sat down and talked with the Third Hokage. Tsunade stopped him from leaving in a hurry.
"The situation isn't that bad yet. This is Yan's final warning. He might hold grudges, but he cares more about the bigger picture than you or Danzo ever did."
Don't use your own standards to judge others.
And don't assume that everyone else is as shameless and reckless as you.
"*Cough, cough!!*"
The Third Hokage nearly choked on those words.
That was enough. Saying any more would only make things awkward for everyone.
Tsunade didn't press him further. Instead, she unrolled the scroll that Yan had sent.
"Yan went to Iwagakure. This is the scroll he sent back. I haven't read it yet, so I don't know how things turned out over there."
"If Iwagakure is making a move like this, they're probably trying to intimidate us."
They were all old rivals, and the Third Hokage understood Oonoki's personality and intentions all too well.
To put it bluntly, Oonoki only had to lift his ass, and the Third Hokage would know exactly what kind of nonsense he was about to spout.
On the surface, it might look like he had no choice.
But in reality?
Everyone knew the truth.
"Heh… Oonoki sure is bold," Tsunade sneered.
If this had been back when she had just inherited this mess, she wouldn't have been confident enough to say something like that.
But now…
Forget posturing and intimidation—if Oonoki has the guts, he should try launching another war against Konohagakure and see for himself.
Let's see if Iwagakure's army can withstand the impact of several Susano'os.
"Bang!!"
After glancing at the contents of the scroll, Tsunade slammed her hand on the desk in anger.
The Third Hokage, who had been waiting for her to finish reading so they could discuss the matter, was startled by her reaction.
Without worrying about whether it was appropriate or not, he immediately stood up, walked over, and looked down at the scroll.
After scanning the contents for a few seconds, he understood why Tsunade was so furious.
Oonoki was using the situation with Kusagakure to provoke Konohagakure?
No, it wasn't just provocation—he was trying to assert dominance over them.
He had realized that, at some point, Konohagakure had stopped taking Iwagakure seriously.
When Tsunade first became the Fifth Hokage, Iwagakure and Kumogakure were still major threats to Konohagakure.
But now? Tsunade could roll up her sleeves and say, "Come at me!" without hesitation.
That wasn't a good sign for Oonoki, so he felt the need to act.
Otherwise, why would he even bother with Kusagakure's petty affairs?
"What a clever move! But he picked the wrong person to mess with."
If someone else had been sent to Iwagakure, they might have backed down a little for the sake of maintaining peace.
They would have sat down, negotiated, given Kusagakure some empty promises at most, and handled the situation diplomatically.
And once the talks were over and they returned home, who would still care about Kusagakure?
If they had the guts, they could try coming to Konohagakure and demanding benefits.
Otherwise, they should just shut up.
Unfortunately for Oonoki, the person sent to Iwagakure was Yan, and he wasn't going to play along.
If Oonoki wanted a fight, Yan was more than ready—whether it was a direct confrontation or threats of war, he didn't care.
In fact, he would be the first to issue a threat.
If Oonoki dared to make a move, that would be an open declaration of war against Konohagakure. And the current Konohagakure wasn't afraid of war.
If he had the guts, he could go ahead and try.
Did Oonoki want to keep Yan from leaving Iwagakure?
Honestly, he wanted to, but he didn't dare act recklessly.
"Looks like Kusagakure needs to be cleaned up. That village has gotten way too chaotic."
With that one sentence, Tsunade made it clear that she supported Yan's decision—to purge Kusagakure, remove some of its higher-ups, and replace them with people who knew how to respect Konohagakure.
Would that be too much?
If the situation got out of hand and word spread, wouldn't it hurt Konohagakure's reputation?
That was the Third Hokage's first reaction.
But before he could say it out loud, he swallowed the words.
Konohagakure wasn't the same village it had been under his leadership.
The current Konohagakure didn't care about small things like public opinion or how others viewed them.
Their strength spoke for itself—whether others liked it or not, they had no choice but to bow down.
Had his own foreign policy really been too soft?
Thinking back to how Danzo once said he was too soft on outsiders, the Third Hokage couldn't help but start doubting himself.
Now that she understood Oonoki's intentions and knew about Yan's plan, Tsunade made a quick decision—she simply chose not to get involved. She let Yan handle it however he wanted.
After all, Iwagakure wouldn't dare start a war with Konohagakure so easily. And even if they did, Konohagakure wasn't afraid of fighting them either.
So what was there to worry about?
It was just about cleaning up Kusagakure. No big deal.
As for Iwagakure—bring it on. No matter what they try, Konohagakure will handle it.
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