Naruto: The Hyuga Mastermind

Chapter 82: We're Just Cannon Fodder!

"You think the same way? Even now, you still haven't given up."

Hyuga Fuji looked at Jonin Genji, who hesitated for a moment. Staring at the intelligence reports, he nodded helplessly with a bitter smile.

"Do with us as you wish, but please spare our clans. We only agreed to Danzo's plan and never took action. They don't know anything about it."

Hyuga Fuji chuckled softly. "When Danzo devised this plan, the first people he thought of were your weak clans. And now that Danzo has fallen, the first ones who couldn't hold back from seeking me out were also you."

Genji's brow furrowed deeply. He took Fuji's laugh as mockery, yet he couldn't find the words to refute it.

They lacked strength and confidence—that was the reality.

Because Danzo had leverage over them, they were naturally more anxious than the other clans.

Those larger, more powerful ninja clans were beyond their reach. Those clans were confident that Konoha needed them; the smaller clans couldn't say the same.

On the other side, Kurama Unkai, feeling conflicted, caught a subtle hint in Fuji's words.

Danzo had first approached weak clans like theirs…

As far as he knew, all the clans who agreed to Danzo's plan were small or, like his own, once powerful but now weakened for various reasons.

Kurama Unkai's expression suddenly turned serious. He rose and bowed deeply to Hyuga Fuji. "Thank you, my lord, for your guidance and for sparing us. From now on, the Kurama Clan will follow your lead."

As he spoke, he signaled to Genji with his eyes. Though puzzled, Genji trusted his old comrade and quickly stood up to say something similar.

Hyuga Fuji didn't respond much, only saying indifferently, "You may leave."

"Yes!"

Kurama Unkai replied respectfully and left with a bewildered Genji.

When they returned to the Kurama household, Genji couldn't hold back his questions. "Why?"

That single word encompassed all his confusion.

Why hadn't Hyuga Fuji punished them?

Why did Kurama Unkai thank Fuji and stake everything on him?

"Think carefully. Which clans were involved in this plan?" Kurama Unkai asked with a grim expression.

"I don't know much. There's your Kurama Clan, the Toritani Clan, and our Urakawa Clan…"

As Genji spoke, his brows furrowed.

"See it now? They're all small clans, with little strength or presence in the current ninja world."

Kurama Unkai's tone was somber.

"We once believed this plan had considerable support, which is why we joined. But Danzo never disclosed the list of clans involved. Was it due to secrecy or because there were so few participants?"

Genji spoke hesitantly. "At least Root should have helped. This was Danzo's plan to dominate the Land of Fire. How could he…"

Kurama Unkai cut him off coldly, asking a strange question. "In your eyes, who has a higher status, the Daimyo or the Hokage?"

"The Dai…"

Seeing Kurama Unkai's indifferent gaze, Genji closed his eyes. "The Hokage."

As members of the ninja village, they might respect the Daimyo who funded them, but if they had to choose, they would side with the Hokage.

From childhood, they had been taught that the leader of Konoha was the Hokage, and they were to follow the Hokage's orders.

The Daimyo?

Was there any group in Konoha dedicated to glorifying the Daimyo?

Who would dare claim the Daimyo was the true ruler of the Land of Fire and outranked the Hokage? Perhaps near the Daimyo's palace, but certainly not in Konoha. From education to daily life, the Hokage's power and status were supreme.

Minato's recent actions had only reinforced this impression. The ninjas who had stood behind the Fourth Hokage surely believed the Hokage outranked the Daimyo.

"It's just us here; speak plainly. Don't deceive yourself."

Kurama Unkai's gaze forced Genji to admit the truth. His tone softened. "If the Hokage holds such high status, then what of those beneath him?"

Genji finally understood. "The powerful clans, the high-ranking officials of Konoha—they are the Land of Fire's nobility."

This was evident when the Third Hokage succeeded the Second. Although the Second Hokage had named a successor, the Daimyo still consulted the clans.

The Second Hokage's prestige and the backing of strong clans allowed Hiruzen to take the position smoothly.

If a similar situation arose today and Minato hadn't named a successor, the Daimyo would consult Hyuga Fuji, Tsunade, Uchiha Fugaku, and Jonin Commander Nara Shikaku.

In the Land of Fire, those whom the Daimyo treated carefully were the nobility.

"The Hokage appears to need the Daimyo's approval, but in essence, it's an internal Konoha decision. The Hokage and the Daimyo are equals, and those below them match the Land of Fire's upper ranks."

Kurama Unkai's gaze was complicated. "The 'one nation, one village' system—the nation and the village are equals."

"Careful!" Genji warned gravely. "That's not for us to discuss."

"Why not? Recently, Sarutobi Asuma had a huge fight with the Third."

Kurama Unkai continued coldly, "The Third's son wasn't part of the Fourth's team and didn't witness that event. He still believes the Daimyo's authority is supreme and even wants to join the Twelve Guardian Ninja."

This incident wasn't widely known, but most clans had heard about it. The Third choosing to guard Danzo was partly due to this.

He'd been so infuriated he couldn't stay with his clan.

Genji was stunned, then sighed. "Our positions aren't the same."

Kurama Unkai glanced at him. "Let's drop it then. Do you understand our situation now?"

"Yeah." Genji nodded, his eyes filled with complexity. "Danzo's plan—only people like us would agree to it. The powerful clans are already vested interests."

Those clans already occupied the highest rungs of power in the Land of Fire. Because of their ninja status, they didn't often display this publicly.

As vested interests, would they protect their status and the existing system, or gamble on a new division of power? The conflict between Danzo and the Fourth Hokage made this clear.

Most clans would consolidate their power, not risk the unknown. The Uchiha sided with the Fourth because they weren't part of the core power structure. If they had been, they might not have taken that risk.

They were similar to the Uchiha, but weaker. The Uchiha had the strength and courage to back the Fourth and reap the rewards.

As weaker clans, they lacked the confidence to take that gamble and instead went along with Danzo's plan.

With Danzo's backing, they thought they were safe—but they were gravely mistaken!

"We were just Danzo's cannon fodder to test the resistance against abolishing the one nation, one village system!"

Genji gritted his teeth.

(End of Chapter)