"You're too impulsive, Kaede."
Namikaze Minato remained calm, watching Kaede with a serious expression. He said, "Danzo was the Hokage's advisor. Even if he did something wrong, he must be judged through proper trial…"
"So what was the verdict of that trial?" Kaede replied coldly, staring at Minato. "A Hokage advisor who's served the village diligently since World War II, trying to persecute Konoha's heroes, the outcome is to remove him from his position, dissolve Root, and at most, imprison him."
Though Minato's power was divided by Hiruzen Sarutobi and others, if he handled the matter, he would strictly follow the rules. In the end, Danzo would not face the death penalty.
But for someone like Danzo, as long as he wasn't dead, he would continue to lurk in the shadows.
And that's exactly what happened.
In the original story, after Danzo's assassination attempt on Sarutobi, Sarutobi removed him as Hokage's advisor and disbanded Root. Danzo wasn't killed, but he later reformed Root. During the Nine-Tails' rampage, Orochimaru's invasion, and Pain's attack, Danzo did nothing.
Others might be redeemable, but not Danzo. His so-called "for the prosperity of Konoha" and "the greater good" was just an empty slogan, from start to finish, it was about his own lust for power.
"That was also the final judgment."
Minato raised the Flying Thunder God Kunai in front of him and looked at Kaede seriously. "Now, Kaede, you've killed the Hokage's advisor without permission. As the Fourth Hokage, I must imprison you first... Forgive me."
The moment his words fell,
Minato threw a Flying Thunder God Kunai at Kaede.
Whoosh!
A flash of silver light, and Kaede darted from in front of Minato to behind him. A silver thread sliced through the air, grazing Minato's body.
Minato vanished from sight and reappeared at the location of another Flying Thunder God Kunai.
Although he dodged Kaede's attack, a tear appeared on one side of his Hokage cloak. If he had been a moment slower, he would have been hit!
"So fast!"
Minato's eyes shifted.
He knew Kaede was fast, but facing him directly revealed just how terrifyingly fast he really was!
Whoosh!
Minato flashed in front of Kaede again and threw another kunai. This time, Kaede didn't dodge but swung his Kusanagi sword to slice the kunai mid-air.
Crack!
The Flying Thunder God Kunai shattered instantly.
Minato's face changed again.
"With reaction speed and attacks like this, the kunai breaks in an instant... Flying Thunder God's second technique can't be used either. Looks like I'll have to rely on my shuriken clones combined with my Rasengan, Rasen-Flash Super-Circle Dance Howl Stage Three"
Muttering this to himself, Minato vanished from sight.
Shhh!
Where he'd stood, a silver light flashed, and the ground silently cracked open.
In the next instant, Minato appeared behind Kaede, flicked his hand forward, and threw a Flying Thunder God Kunai that multiplied into many afterimages mid-air.
Each afterimage burst into a Yellow Flash at almost the same time, so dazzling it was hard to keep one's eyes open.
Swish!
Kaede narrowed his eyes, swung the Kusanagi sword forward, and instantly slashed out countless blades, forming a web of arcs that sliced all the kunai before him to pieces.
Minato's attack covered a wide area, so some kunai flew past from several meters away.
Among them, two kunai moved strangely. When they neared behind Kaede, a slight collision caused a change in their trajectories.
Clang!
One kunai bounced off the other, then flew toward Kaede's back.
At that moment, Minato appeared at the kunai's position with a Rasengan pressed against Kaede's shoulder.
"Rasengan!!"
Though his vision was blocked, Kaede sensed Minato's move and swung his sword backhandedly. Minato vanished again, barely dodging the slash.
When Minato flickered behind Kaede, he didn't catch the Flying Thunder God Kunai, which had moved to Kaede's front right.
Swish!
Minato blinked to the front right of Kaede, pressing the Rasengan against his shoulder again.
Got him!
A gleam appeared in Minato's eyes, but it vanished immediately as he realized the Rasengan on Kaede's shoulder didn't hurt him. Instead, the Rasengan froze the instant it touched Kaede, then instantly dissipated.
Kaede's right hand gripped the Kusanagi sword, swinging it at Minato.
"Oh no!"
Minato's pupils shrank. He immediately activated Flying Thunder God, blinking far away, but because the movement was too large and Kaede's speed too fast, he couldn't completely avoid the strike.
Several dozen meters away, his Hokage cloak was torn, a clear wound appeared on his right shoulder, and blood dripped.
Kaede calmly looked at Minato.
"I can't stop you…"
The two locked eyes for two seconds before Minato sighed.
He had absolute confidence in his strength. Even against Kaede, he believed he could win, but the fact was, he couldn't.
That last Rasengan couldn't break through Kaede's defense, meaning Minato could hardly threaten him anymore.
Unless he used the Reaper Death Seal.
But Kaede wasn't the kind of enemy that required such means.
And Kaede's goal wasn't to destroy Konoha.
"Killing Danzo was actually a good thing for you, the Hokage."
Kaede said faintly, looking at Minato.
Minato shook his head. "Maybe. But I'm the Hokage. I can't solve problems that way. I'll protect the village my own way."
"That's exactly why they support you as Hokage."
Kaede said calmly.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
At that moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen finally arrived.
Noticing the state of the ground, Minato's injury, and Kaede's expression, his face changed slightly.
"Kaede... you killed Danzo…"
"Dead."
Kaede looked at Sarutobi calmly. "Are you going to intervene too, Third Hokage?"
Sarutobi's face shifted. He glanced at Minato, then at Danzo's corpse nearby, before finally looking at Kaede and making a decision.
"Danzo attacked Konoha's heroes without permission. Kaede, your counterattack was self-defense. I now declare Danzo removed as Hokage advisor and Root disbanded… Let's end this here."
Minato's wound showed he had fought Kaede and was clearly defeated, unable to handle him.
Though Sarutobi was emotionally conflicted over the death of a longtime comrade, he knew the internal strife could not continue.
"Very well."
Kaede glanced at Sarutobi and Minato. "I won't interfere in village affairs anymore. Since Minato, you consider yourself Hokage and want to protect the village your way, the rest is up to you. Also, stop sending people to watch me. This is your final warning."
With those words, Kaede vanished in a flash of silver light.
Only Sarutobi and Minato remained, one staring at Danzo's body with a complicated expression, the other looking toward where Kaede had disappeared.
"Sorry... Kaede…"
Minato murmured to himself. He knew the responsibility lay with Danzo. Kaede's actions were something anyone would have done. But as Hokage, Minato had to uphold Konoha's rules, not let them be broken lightly.
There's no absolute right or wrong, only different ideals.
Kaede had now abandoned his responsibilities and would no longer interfere with the village. To Minato, that might not be a bad thing, because he was confident he could protect Konoha as Hokage himself.
Note: Not really a fan of characters who are so good-natured they're basically walking halos. Like, they're kind to everyone, even the villain who just burned down their village. I really prefer characters who snap a little, hold a grudge, and not a saint on a redemption tour.
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