The Daimyo's residence in the Land of Water—
The ministers murmured among themselves in hushed voices.
"What is the Mizukage trying to pull? We shouldn't have supported her in the first place."
"Exactly! Without the backing of the Daimyo's estate, would she have ever become Mizukage?"
Their discontent stemmed from Kirigakure's outright rejection of their officials, refusing to allow them into the village. The ministers present all wore expressions of anger and dissatisfaction.
Sitting above them, the Daimyo raised a hand, halting the heated discussion.
"Enough. If they don't want our officials, so be it. Reduce Kirigakure's budget to ten billion this year."
At these words, most of the ministers showed satisfied smiles.
"That's how it should be."
"We should learn from the Land of Lightning and tighten the noose around their necks."
"Ninja villages exist to serve the nobility…"
Clearly, they were pleased with how the Daimyo was handling Kirigakure. After all, it was Konoha that had set a bad precedent—trying to use so-called 'laws' to limit the power of the nobility.
"Enough about that. I received an invitation from the Land of Fire to attend the Chunin Exams. The Fire Daimyo and the Wind Daimyo will be attending in person… I'll send the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Internal Affairs in my place."
After issuing the order, he turned to a general clad in armor beside him.
"You will escort them. I don't trust Kirigakure."
"Yes, my lord."
"We will not bring disgrace to the Land of Water."
After the court session ended and the officials departed, the Daimyo returned to his chambers. His gaze slowly became unfocused…
...
Konoha
As the Chunin Exam approached, the streets of Konoha bustled with excitement. Merchants from various nations and some nobles had also come to visit the village.
"It's lively as always, but not quite like it was five years ago."
Danzō bit into a tri-colored dango, then casually held out the skewer to Yakushi Nonō.
Nonō hesitated for a moment before smiling gently, leaning in to take a bite and slowly savoring it.
"Let's check out the fried rice cakes."
With that, Danzō took her by the wrist and led her to a nearby food stall.
"Do you think the kids at the orphanage would like these?"
"I think if an adult buys them, they'll be very happy."
"Boss, fry up a big batch. Someone will come to pick them up later."
After paying, he grabbed another skewer of rice cakes and continued strolling with Nonō.
Danzō found himself enjoying these leisurely walks with her. She never looked at him with the same deference or fear as others did, which, oddly enough, made him feel more at ease.
"Nonō-sama…" A hesitant voice called out from behind them.
"Is it really you? I can't believe I ran into you here!"
Anko Mitarashi practically dragged Kurenai Yūhi along, her face brimming with excitement.
"Nonō-sama." Kurenai bowed respectfully.
"Anko, and this is…?"
"This is Kurenai, my best friend. Nonō-sama, your outfit is so pretty—I almost didn't recognize you!"
Danzō's expression darkened slightly. He had spent quite some time picking out that outfit for her. Of course, it looked good.
And these two had no sense at all.
If they were in Root, they'd be assigned to clean the latrines for this kind of behavior.
"Is this Nonō-sama's boyfriend? Are you two on a date?"
Anko finally turned her gaze toward Danzō, her eyes lighting up as if she had discovered some great gossip.
"Anko…" Kurenai, sensing Danzō's displeasure, tugged at her sleeve and quickly bowed again.
"Apologies for the intrusion."
Nonō simply smiled gently at Kurenai. "It's fine."
She neither confirmed nor denied anything, but that didn't stop the two from letting their imaginations run wild. Even Kurenai started sneaking glances at Danzō.
Yakushi Nonō was something of a legend—a former high-ranking leader of Root, an essential figure in Konoha's operations during the Fourth Hokage's tenure, and someone held in high regard by the major clans.
Among female ninja in Konoha, only Tsunade had a greater reputation. Many young kunoichi idolized her.
She had, however, faded from the public eye in recent years. Seeing her today was an unexpected surprise.
Unlike Kurenai's discreet curiosity, Anko was unabashed in her scrutiny of Danzō. She even nodded occasionally, looking like a mischievous troublemaker sizing him up.
"Alright, what exactly do you two want?" Danzō finally asked.
"We're just looking out for Nonō-sama! You look kinda young…"
"Anko!" Kurenai quickly tugged her sleeve again, clearly embarrassed.
"Sorry, she doesn't mean any harm. It's just her personality."
Danzō frowned slightly. Anko's complete lack of boundaries was irritating.
He took another bite of his dango.
"Oh, so you're Anko… Orochimaru's student. I heard he didn't even bother taking you when he defected."
His words struck like a knife. Anko's expression darkened instantly.
Kurenai, alarmed, stepped in front of her friend and hastily bowed.
"Apologies! We have other matters to attend to. Sorry for disturbing you, Nonō-sama—let's go, Anko!"
She dragged the fuming Anko away in a hurry.
Nonō turned to Danzō, who looked rather pleased with himself.
"Why argue with a child?"
"Annoying brat. Just giving her a little lesson."
Still, he had to admit—Kurenai was quite beautiful. Those red eyes of hers were particularly alluring.
Too bad she ended up with that layabout, Asuma Sarutobi…
"What are you scheming now?" Nonō's voice pulled him from his thoughts.
"Nothing. Just wondering if this counts as a date."
Nonō didn't respond. Her expression remained unchanged, but she simply smiled gently and gazed at him, as if silently asking him the same question.
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
Fanfic is finished on Patreon (195 chapters in total.)
Patreon(.)com/Jixo (for only $4.50, read this entire fanfic)