“I am going to be straight with you… the village needs the explicit support of the Hyuga Clan!”
Hearing Tsunade’s words, Kuroto fell silent and glanced at Tsunade.
As far as he can think, Tsunade’s reliable source of information is definitely Uchiha Izumi, who is another one of her disciples. And knowing this, Kuroto couldn’t help but feel pity for the Uchiha Clan.
Up until now, they have sent three children into the Hokage faction, as a pipeline to connect the Uchiha Clan and the Hokage faction, but unfortunately for them, all three children betrayed the trust of their clan. Shisui did so, Itachi was no different, and now, Izumi has probably followed suit… Neither of the three seems to support the intentions of their clan and seems to have sided with the opinions of the Hokage faction.
This shows the scary side of the Hokage faction… especially their brainwashing abilities.
But that is a different matter altogether and we won’t be discussing it now.
As for what Tsunade has said, to Kuroto, it does make some sense.
As far as Kuroto sees it, at this point in time, other than Sarutobi Hiruzen, no one is more suitable to serve as the Hokage in Konoha…
There are several reasons behind this line of thought, first is that Sandaime Hokage is highly experienced and will be able to stabilize the situation of the village one way or the another, and the second reason is that he is quite old, which means he won’t be able to serve as the Hokage for very long, which means, sooner or later, others will have their chance… So whether it is someone who is ambitious for the position of Konoha’s Hokage, or not, everyone will be willing to serve him for a while.
To be honest, Kuroto doesn’t really have any problem if someone from the Uchiha Clan serves as the Hokage, but, what worries him is that that person should also consider the overall situation, not just their clan.
As far as Kuroto can think, other than Shisui, and Itachi, no one seems to match that criteria at this point. Shisui is obviously unsuitable to be the Hokage, while Itachi is too young… so for a while, the Uchiha Clan will have to stand on the side.
This is why, Kuroto agrees with Tsunade that if the Uchiha Clan is allowed to rule the village at this point in time, then there might be some unwanted trouble in the village, and what Kuroto needs more than anything is stability in Konoha.
But all this aside, what confused Kuroto is, “Putting aside the matter of keeping the Uchiha Clan at the bay, what I don’t understand is that if you want the explicit support of the Hyuga Clan, why to contact me instead of Patriarch? My opinion isn’t that important in the clan… I am just a member of the branch family…”
“Oh don’t try to be modest in front of me.” She said, then added with a sigh, “True you are a member of the branch family, but you have deep influence over the Hyuga Clan… I have come to notice that even the Patriarch of your clan takes your opinions seriously… This is why I am asking you…”
Based on her personal investigation and all her observations, Tsunade has come to understand that Hyuga Kuroto really does have a deep influence over the Hyuga Clan. Although some members of the main family don’t seem to like him very much, there still exist a few who side with him… and what’s most important is that the Patriarch of the Hyuga Clan, as well as the leader of the branch family, both of them seems to trust Kuroto, and deeply care about him. And that’s not it, most of the members of the branch family seem to love him, admire him, and feel proud of his achievements.
“I see…” murmured Kuroto, “You seem to have done your research…”
Tsunade nodded, “Mm-hmm.”
Kuroto pondered a little, then said, “I can try to do it… but are you really sure it would work? We both know that the Hyuga Clan may be one of the two major clans of Konoha, but it doesn’t stand in the same league when compared with Uchiha Clan…”
Tsunade was surprised, “It’s surprising for a member of the Hyuga Clan to admit such a thing so openly…”
Kuroto said, “What’s true is true… Not accepting it won’t change it… Accepting it leads to the possibility of changing it if we work to change it, but if we don’t even accept the reality, then nothing can be done… But that’s not important, as I said… are you sure it would work?”
Tsunade shook her head, “Probably for some time…”
Kuroto questioned doubtfully, “And you still want me to do it?”
Tsunade nodded, “Yes.”
Kuroto nodded, “Alright then.” And added, “I will make sure that the Hyuga Clan stands on the Hokage faction.” Then asked, “Is there anything else?”
Tsunade looked at Kuroto for a while, and asked, “There is also something I want to ask…”
Kuroto nodded, “Ask away then.”
Tsunade questioned, “How did you make Uchiha Shisui loyal to you?”
Kuroto asked in confusion, “What makes you think he is loyal to me?”
Tsunade replied, “My women’s intuition tells me.” Then questioned, “How did you do it?”
Instead of giving a direct answer, Kuroto questioned instead, “Then tell me how did you do it with Uchiha Izumi?”
Tsunade narrowed her eyes… “So you were able to figure it out?”
Kuroto replied as a matter of fact, “I was in the Anbu for several years… I was also the leader of the most elite team in the Anbu department… obviously, I can figure out such simple things…”
Tsunade nodded, “Makes sense…” and added, “You are too sharp for your own good.”
Kuroto chuckled, “That’s why I tend to stay anonymous…”
Tsunade sighed, and said, “Forget it… I don’t want to listen to how and why Uchiha Shisui became loyal to you… I only hope that you can keep him under control… just make sure he doesn’t get involved in things he shouldn’t…”
Listening to Tsunade’s words, Kuroto was thoughtful…
To be honest, gaining the loyalty of Shisui wasn’t that difficult for him. In fact, if the Hokage faction really try to trust Shisui, then Shisui would become completely loyal to the Hokage faction as he was until a few years ago. It’s a pity that Hokage-sama didn’t do that…
But if you think about it, even Sandaime-sama isn’t to be blamed… After learning that Uchiha Shisui has awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan, and hearing the details of Kotoamatsukami, it’s not strange for him to be vigilant of Shisui…
‘Well not that it matters to me.’ He thought, and agreed, “I’ll do what I can.”
Tsunade nodded happily, “Alright then…” Then she took out a scroll from the pocket of her vest, and tossed it towards Kuroto, “Here take this.”
Kuroto caught the scroll and muttered in confusion, “This scroll is?”
Tsunade explained, “The scroll Yui gave to you was meant for her… you are not allowed to have it… return it back to her… Instead of that, you can have this scroll… it also records the Yin-seal and might prove to be more helpful to you…”
Kuroto muttered in surprise, “Helpful?”
Tsunade nodded, “I don’t have enough time to explain it to you… You will understand when you study it… anyway… you have only seven days… after that, you must return it to me… so you better hurry up.”
“Seven days… huh?” Kuroto pondered, then nodded, “Alright.”
Seeing that Kuroto agreed, Tsunade added, “Oh, and one more thing… The Yin-seal was designed for females… so whether you can master it or not is hard to say… If I were you, I won’t get my hopes too high…”
Kuroto is not worried about this problem, and said, “Thanks for reminding me… But that’s my problem, you don’t have to concern yourself with it.”
Tsunade turned around and jumped out of the window, but before disappearing, she didn’t forget to remind him, “Make sure to not spread it.”