The Heiress (UNDER REVISION UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE)

VII. Protector

"Tadaima." The seventeen year old pinkette spoke softly as she entered the house, feet walking steadily towards her bedroom.

No one was there to welcome her home, as she had suspected. No one was awake at this time of hour.

The house was as silent as it could get and upon reaching her bedroom, she looked at the note taped on her door.

'Welcome home, onee', it read.

Suddenly, her small pack of clothes and ANBU tattoo seemed cold and heavy.

---

"The Uchiha is planning a coup. What can you say about it, oh dear clan heir?" Sarutobi asked the figure in front of him.

Sakura remained silent as she continued to read the report made by her own brother, Itachi. She was not blind to how both the council and the clan had played her little brother like a disposable pawn. She was also aware that without her finally stepping up, her brother would've been ultimately forced to commit the highest treason possible. He would've been used as a door mat just to keep the council's name clean.

"This would result into a civil war, leaving Konoha vulnerable to outside forces." the Sandaime spoke, "The endgame is not something we should take lightly."

"And what of Oto?" Sakura asked, eager to shift their topic towards the newly found village led by a certain snake. "Konoha can't take a hit on two fronts, my Lord."

He chuckled, "It can. We can. But the results are not favorable to us." He had a glint in his eye that reminded the pinkette of his title, The Professor.

No doubt the Sandaime was old, but he was still a battle - hardened warrior with more than enough knowledge and wisdom to back it up.  "That's why I'm asking for your opinion. As the youngest ANBU Captain at the tender age of thirteen, as the ace of Konoha, what can you say?"

Emerald eyes blinked, "We eliminate Danzo."

"Oh? And how is he related into this?"

"Danzo is still operating ROOT, directly disobeying your orders from a few years ago. My squad has enough evidence to back up all the child abduction cases under his name, and enough evidence to get him thrown to death."

"And with him gone?"

"We get direct authority for ROOT. Undeniably, ROOT has a vast network of information with connections deeper than the Black Markets all over the nation. We can use ROOT to keep tabs on Oto and Ame."

Sarutobi nodded. Although the death of his former teammate unnerved him, sacrifices had to be done and Danzo was just dumb enough to think of himself as untouchable. "What of your clan?"

"I believe I proposed the plan last week."

He nodded, "I've considered it. But are you sure?". To him, the heir's logically made proposal on The Equality on All Shinobi Registered Clan among Konohagakure no Sato was a genius move.

The proposal was brought up in a private discussion yesterday with a few major clan heads, excluding Uchiha Fugaku, and they had agreed that it was time to put biases and favoritism behind.

Sakura nodded, "This will ensure the clan that they are being recognized by the village, as it should've been decades ago. Despite losing a few favorable positions, the proposal will be enough to subdue the ego of the Clan Elders."

"Hm," the Sandaime hummed as he sipped his afternoon tea, "I'll set everything in motion tomorrow at the Clan Meeting. Team Alpha will take care of Danzo discreetly, can I trust you on that, Cat - taichou?"

---

Sarutobi sighed as he watched the clan heads bicker amongst themselves like cats and dogs. Ideally, this was the reaction he had hoped for but even this meeting was becoming preposterous.

Fugaku was silent, his eyes re - reading the proposal over and over. The Sandaime could see the gears turning in his head, all the more reason to reveal the one who had proposed the entire paper.

"Who thought of this?" Shikaku asked, his voice effectively silencing the room.

Sarutobi merely blinked before he set his gaze on Fugaku, "Uchiha Sakura." The name was enough to settle the arguments that sat on the tongues of the clan heads.

"Let me be frank, this proposal will cut a few privileges to all clans, but I ask you to reconsider. How will we move forward with all this backward thinking that has been passed down by our ancestors. The Shodaime and Nidaime was not perfect, they did not play by the book when they started our home. This is the time to set everything straight," he said. 

He began to stand up, mind made up and irrevocable. "As everything should be."

As he began to walk away, he steeled his heart and kept his back straight. He was the Third Hokage, and everything will be done for the glory of his home.

---

On Friday that week, the whole village was shocked upon hearing that the Council Elder, Shimura Danzo, was found in his bed murdered and missing a limb.