The Chains of Commanding
Given the present company, Hiruzen permits him to let out a bone-weary sigh, as he lets his eyes cross the papers in front of him. One from the Iron Daimyo, requesting that his bastard son be allowed to live in Konoha, exiled. Another a long rapport, based on the observations from the various watchers assigned to the Satomura household over the years. A third, the Uchiha Police rapport on the incident that had seen the young Daisuke kill the man who was supposed to be his protector.
And finally, a seemingly innocuous slip of paper, a simple Academy Registration form, Hundreds of which crosses Hiruzen's desk every year.
This one, however, might well be the cause of a war one day.
Not for the first time since his attention was brought to this debacle, Hiruzen curses Gai. If the overenthusiastic jounin hadn't decided to skirt the rules and provide... guidance for a child, this entire mess wouldn't exist.
Hiruzen is tempted to reprimand Gai and give him a chain of "penance missions", simply due to the inconvenience the man's actions has brought the aging Hokage, but he knows that politics will not permit him to do so.
"Would we be in violation of our agreement?" he asks, despite knowing the answer already.
It's Homura that answers, not bothering to look down at the printed-out copy that lies on the table. "We merely promised to provide shelter and protect them from external assassins," when they had signed it, they had politely pretended to not know that the child's guardian was also his possible executioner, "with no provisions dictating what the child could or could not do."
After a few seconds of pause, Koharu adds her thoughts on the matter. "If anything, one could easily argue that Lord Imagawa has broken the laws of Konoha, by attempting to carry out an assassination within our walls."
Just barely, Hiruzen manages to suppress a scoff. If the assassination had succeeded, this discussion wouldn't have been taking place, a child would be dead, and relations between Fire and Iron wouldn't be any worse. Perhaps a bit better, as a potential thorn in the side for the next Iron Daimyo would be dead.
But the child didn't die. Instead, he signed up to become a Konoha shinobi, killed his guardian-turned-executioner, and seems to have a drive and talent rarely matched within the Academy.
In other words, if he manages to survive the next ten years, his face might well be plastered across Bingo Books across the Elemental Nations, with every Hidden Village - and by extension, the various other Daimyo - knowing his background.
"What are our options for preserving good relations with Iron?" Hiruzen asks, not expecting any ideas he hadn't thought of already, but nevertheless hoping to be pleasantly surprised.
His old teammates exchange glances, and he recognizes the warnings in their eyes, seeing that they do not support the ideas they are about to float. "We could potentially save the Iron Daimyo some possible embarrassment by ensuring that the child fails the Academy."
With a headshake, Hiruzen dismisses the idea. He'd considered it, but while he might be willing to sabotage a child's development, no matter how much it went against everything he believed in, Gai's rapport painted a picture of a boy talented and driven enough to be able to succeed despite that.
"We could deny the registration, citing security concerns, but the Daimyo wouldn't like it," Koharu says, and the room's three other inhabitants have no trouble realizing the words that she's not saying, namely that it would be the Daimyo's advisors that wouldn't like it, and that covering up something like this from their nominal ruler would be difficult and perilous.
And then his old - and likely current - rival speaks up, his voice calm in a stark contrast to his words. "Kill the boy, and make it appear as if it was the Samurai who did it, but then committed Seppuku afterward. The mother will either have to have her mind adjusted or preferably merely killed." Danzo paused for a few seconds, as if just now realizing another possibility. "Or we could let him graduate, and then make sure that one of his first missions outside of the village goes wrong."
Hiruzen gives Danzo a hard stare but shakes his head. "I will not have a citizen of the Leaf killed when they have done nothing wrong, particularly not when it's a child."
Given how his old rival doesn't push the point, Hiruzen instantly knows that Danzo didn't actually want that to happen.
"Very well. If you will not have him killed, then let me train him. He shall disappear from the streets, learn to stalk in the shadows, and become a true Shinobi. For all the outside world will know, he would be dead."
It speaks to Hiruzen's desperation with this entire situation that he actually considers condemning the child to Danzo's tutelage. It would remove the child from the sight of the Iron Daimyo's spies. If they were all ten years younger, he would deny the request immediately... but by the time the child would be grown enough to be a useful pawn for Danzo, the man himself might well be dead of old age.
With another weary sigh, Hiruzen shakes his head, waiting a few seconds before speaking. "No. You will not take another promising child. We will let the child attend the Academy, and send a private envoy to the Iron Daimyo that we condemn the attempted assassination within Konoha's walls, and warn him that another such action will be viewed as an attack on Konoha herself."
In other words, the relations between Iron and Fire would be stained for decades, possibly even generations, unless the child is put in place of his father or half-brother, and even then, the population will likely still resent Fire for the usurpation.
Once more, Hiruzen curses Gai. Why couldn't the man have developed an interest for any other child?
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