Unsealing Legacy

Chapter 9:Bond from Forgotten Legacies

"If they chose you to be their master, they're yours to wield...
I'd rather my family's legacy be in use than just sitting here and collecting dust in this old, abandoned chamber."
Uzumaki Naruto

Political language... was designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and give the appearance of solidity to pure wind. Naruto had read that from one of his favorite book, and when it came to the politics of a Shinobi village, it couldn't be truer. It was ironic in a sense that the Shodai Hokage had formed an alliance with Madara to build the village – nobly intending to stop conflict between the clans – but in the end, the physical fight had turned into a political conflict, full of underlying political opposition and bribing. Naruto hated all those despicable political issues with the fire of a burning sun. While he couldn't deny a government and military body like Konoha's could live without it, it didn't mean he had to like it. He just accepted it as a part of nature, like a food chain.

Shimura Danzo.

Hakurei had warned him that the scarred veteran had been sniffing around them, fearing the tower would become a threat to Konoha. Fortunately, Hakurei was nowhere near as softhearted as the Sandaime when it came to Danzo. The Sandaime let Danzo handle the dark, unmentionable actions that had to be done for the sake of Konoha. Hakurei, on the other hand, had no wish for Danzo's wrinkled hands to be anywhere near his young master or their tower. If there was one thing Hakurei and 'Aizen' ever agreed on, it was that they disliked Danzo trying to worm his way into the Sealing Tower. The old war hawk could snoop around in hell for all they cared, but The Tower was off limits.

Apparently a few months after Uzumaki Mito's passing, ROOT had done the grave mistake of bringing The Tower's wrath upon them. Like any other military organization, ROOT couldn't keep everything they did a secret. However, instead of revamping their security or re-inspecting their personnel, Danzo had dared to steal the Iwazaru no Fuuin (Speak No Evil Seal) from the Tower's archive to prevent the information leakage of his organization. The Tower had been furious when they'd found out and had demanded the Sandaime execute Danzo, but it was denied because of the lack of evidence. The Sandaime however was wise enough to officially disband ROOT to appease The Tower's wrath, much to Danzo's ire.

That was the start of the widening rift between The Tower and Konoha. The Tower, distrustful of Konoha's government, set up another layer of security seals to ward off Danzo. Iwazaru no Fuuin was a complex seal that keyed into his chakra signature to control his subordinate's speech, and it was easy for seal masters in the tower to ward their place by triggering the seal. If any ROOT member marked with Iwazaru no Fuuin came anywhere near The Tower's ward they would be paralyzed – just like if they tried to speak anything about Danzō – rendering them unable to speak or move.

The old war hawk had been infuriated when he'd found out The Tower created a seal that responded to him and his men. Since then, Danzo had held a grudge against the tower for the humiliation it had done to his person and organization. Which was why even though Hakurei was a loyal vassal, and he wasn't hesitant in relaying Danzo's work to Naruto. Regardless of how unsightly it was for the eyes of a young child. The Tower might be careless of what became of Konoha before Naruto came, but they were not ignorant of potential enemies such as Danzo. Naruto had to say he had never expected Konoha to be this rotten in their root, and Danzo was the source. From what Naruto had been informed, that man really had no qualms when it comes to Konoha's greater good.

When Hakurei described what kind of man Shimura Danzo was, and what the scarred veteran had done for Konoha, Hakurei asked Naruto what he thought about Danzo. "Hm... he is despicable for sure." An expected response for Hakurei, "But on the other hand, he is such a pitiful person." That one was unexpected however.