Chapter 233 : Two Hokage Advisors And Tsunade Are Standing Together
Riku chuckled and said, "Captain Yamato, Naruto and the others are a handful. You’ll still need to keep a close eye on them."
Yamato looked at Riku. At first, he had only regarded Riku as a kid—but now, at just sixteen, he had become the Hokage’s personal guard. Not only that, he possessed formidable strength, possibly even the strongest in Konoha.
Even Jiraiya might not be able to defeat him.
Yamato felt a mix of admiration and unease.
"All right," Yamato replied, "but honestly, I thought you’d be the one handling this mission yourself."
Riku smiled faintly. "I don’t have that much time. This mission is more about investigating whether Orochimaru is planning anything against Konoha. After his arms were sealed by the Third Hokage, his situation shouldn’t be great. It’s possible he’ll try to strike again—so while you’re out, I hope you can get a clear idea of Orochimaru’s intentions regarding the Wood Release."
"As for whether Sasuke can be brought back... I doubt it. Right now, Sasuke might be stronger than Naruto, Sakura, and you combined."
"Because Orochimaru understands the Sharingan far too well. I’m afraid Sasuke has already awakened the forbidden eyes."
"I believe Kakashi-sensei also spoke to you about this—about the Mangekyō Sharingan."
Hearing this, Yamato’s expression darkened slightly. He finally understood how dangerous this mission really was.
If Sasuke had truly awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, then none of them—neither Yamato, Naruto, nor Sakura—would stand a chance.
In fact, even without it, just Sasuke’s mastery of the Three Tomoe Sharingan would be enough to overpower them.
After all, even with the standard Three Tomoe, Sasuke’s Sharingan could already suppress Kurama’s chakra.
That was a unique trait of Sasuke’s Sharingan.
Perhaps it was due to Indra’s chakra—either way, Sasuke’s Sharingan was far superior to that of the average Uchiha at the same level.
While he might not match Uchiha Itachi in raw talent, the fusion of Indra’s chakra with the unique nature of his own made Sasuke significantly more powerful than most members of the Uchiha clan.
Even Uchiha Madara would have acknowledged it.
He would have seen Sasuke’s eyes as something extraordinary.
After a moment of silence, Yamato nodded solemnly. "I understand. I’ll protect the two of them with everything I’ve got."
Riku turned toward Tsunade and smiled. "I’m guessing we still need to deal with the two elder advisors and Danzo on this matter. After all, Naruto is a Jinchūriki, and Sunagakure just lost Shukaku. If Naruto is leaving the village now, you’ll have to compromise with those three."
Tsunade nodded. "I’ll explain the situation to them myself."
Yamato didn’t offer an opinion—this was typical of someone raised in ANBU.
Like Kakashi, he had served in both ANBU and the Root division. He knew what had to be done at times like this.
Sure enough, just as Riku finished speaking, Shizune entered the Hokage’s office.
"Lady Tsunade, the two advisors are here."
Tsunade sighed, looked at Shizune, and asked calmly, "You told them, didn’t you?"
Shizune’s heart clenched. She had gone to the two advisors about this.
Because she truly believed it was important. Naruto was a Jinchūriki, and with Sunagakure having just lost theirs, how could Konoha risk letting Naruto leave the village?
What if the Akatsuki came after him?
Shizune lowered her head. "I’m sorry, Lady Tsunade. I just thought... this matter is really important, so I—"
Tsunade looked at her seriously. "I don’t want there to be a next time."
Shizune let out a quiet breath of relief. In truth, she didn’t believe she’d done anything wrong.
After all, a Jinchūriki leaving the village at such a volatile time was a matter that needed serious discussion.
If anything happened to Naruto, it would be a huge loss for Konoha—and Tsunade would ultimately bear the responsibility.
Shizune was only trying to protect her.
Riku stood up and said with a smile, "Lady Hokage, I’ll come with you."
Tsunade nodded.
Right now, Riku was a well-known figure in the ninja world. His presence beside Tsunade would only strengthen her case with the advisors. And even if they didn’t agree, they no longer had any real authority to oppose her.
Their power was now mostly symbolic. They could advise—but not decide.
Tsunade’s control over the village was far more consolidated than during Hiruzen’s time.
Although she wasn’t a tyrant and often listened to her advisors, she still held nearly all of Konoha’s true authority.
Riku had observed this closely and found Tsunade’s political finesse terrifying. She maintained a soft demeanor, yet nearly all of Konoha’s operational control rested in her hands.
One order from her, and the shinobi forces of the entire village would move without hesitation.
As her personal guard, Riku had learned a great deal just from watching how she handled village affairs day after day.
In fact, it was Tsunade’s intention to educate Riku this way. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have kept him by her side whenever he wasn’t on a mission.
While she clearly enjoyed having him around, her deeper purpose was to prepare him—to teach him what it meant to be Hokage.
Tsunade walked toward the adjacent council room.
She was followed by a tense Shizune, the composed Yamato, and Riku.
This lineup was intimidating.
The Hokage. Her elite bodyguard, known throughout the shinobi world. The head of ANBU. And her personal assistant.
All of them were at least Jōnin level. Two of them were Kage-level in strength, one was an elite Jōnin, and one was a high-level Jōnin.
Even visiting another Great Nation’s village with such a formation would be considered overkill.
They arrived at the council room.
Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu were already seated.
Tsunade entered with the others in tow.
The Hokage strode in and sat on the couch, one leg crossed arrogantly over the other.
But Riku knew very well this wasn’t arrogance. Tsunade’s demeanor was simply unpretentious.
Looking at the two elders seated across from her, Tsunade spoke plainly, "All right. Let’s hear your conditions."
The two elders exchanged glances and sighed.
Ever since Tsunade had taken office, it had only taken her a few months to strip them of all their actual authority. Now, as Hokage advisors, they held only the power to recommend—not to decide.
But even so, neither of them had ever considered replacing her.
Though they had their flaws and self-interests, both truly believed Tsunade was the best choice to lead Konoha.
Danzo, on the other hand, had never been an option in their minds.
From the very beginning, their ideologies had clashed entirely with Danzo’s.
At the very least, maintaining the stable development of Konoha had always been their bottom line.
And truthfully, their influence wasn’t all that inferior to Danzo’s.
Danzo had Root—but these two elders had people of their own embedded in ANBU.
Don’t assume they were just a pair of powerless old advisors.
There was a reason why the Third Hokage had once respected them so deeply.
They had allies across many departments of the village.
Their influence might have been slightly less than the Hokage’s, but not by much.
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