Naruto: With Favorabiltity System

Chapter 251: The Daimyo's Scheme

After leaving the Daimyo's residence, Haneda ordered ROOT to gather all those who had declared their allegiance to him during the earlier confrontation—those who had "called the deer a horse."

In the capital of the Land of Fire, within a luxurious hotel,

Haneda sat with his legs crossed, holding a glass of red wine, his gaze fixed on the nervous ministers standing before him.

Once everyone had arrived, Haneda said nothing.

The silence was suffocating, putting the ministers on edge.

These were officials who had fallen out of favor in the political arena. Now, their only hope was to align themselves with Haneda to climb the ranks.

It was clear to them that Haneda intended to turn the Daimyo into a puppet.

To achieve this, Haneda would undoubtedly purge the loyalists supporting the Daimyo.

These loyalists, holding high-ranking positions, would leave vacancies that Haneda could fill with his own supporters.

But now, despite summoning them, Haneda remained silent.

This left them anxious and desperate—they had already declared their allegiance in front of the Daimyo. They had no way back.

Finally, a young minister, Honda Tadakatsu, spoke hesitantly, "Lord Hokage, why have you summoned us here?"

Haneda swirled his wine glass and smiled faintly.

"What you are thinking," he said, "is exactly what I intend to do."

After exerting enough pressure, Haneda got straight to the point.

He snapped his fingers, and several masked ROOT shinobi appeared, kneeling on one knee in the center of the room.

"Tonight, I will use force to eliminate all who oppose me," Haneda declared.

"The Daimyo's silence does not mean he will remain passive. You all know who the Daimyo's most loyal followers are, don't you?"

"Write their names, positions, and residences on this list."

Honda Tadakatsu, still uneasy, asked quietly, "What will happen to them, Lord Hokage?"

"They will submit—or they will die."

Haneda swirled his wine glass again, his back to them.

"Anyone who betrays me will also die. Tonight's actions will reshape the Land of Fire."

The ROOT shinobi distributed sheets of paper to the ministers.

Each minister, pen in hand, carefully recalled the names of their colleagues loyal to the Daimyo.

Some, however, saw an opportunity and added the names of their political rivals or superiors to the list.

Haneda paid no mind to these ulterior motives.

Regardless of their personal agendas, having chosen to align with him, they now had no choice but to follow through.

For the sake of their careers and their lives, they would ensure the most prominent loyalists to the Daimyo were named.

Later, Haneda would simply tally the most frequently mentioned names.

As for others whose names appeared, Haneda would focus only on those with higher positions.

Once the lists were collected, Haneda dismissed the ministers.

Some ministers, fearing assassination, chose to stay overnight in the hotel.

Others began writing letters to like-minded officials, seeking alliances.

In no time, the political arena of the Daimyo's court was in turmoil.

After everyone had left, Haneda rinsed his wine glass with a Water Release jutsu and refilled it with orange juice.

Holding the glass in one hand and the compiled list in the other, he reclined on the sofa, lost in thought.

"General of the Northern Frontier, in charge of the northwestern border near the Land of Hot Water…"

"The Daimyo and Kumogakure have been colluding for a while. I'll spare him for now."

...…

Meanwhile, at the Daimyo's residence.

Deep within a hidden underground chamber beneath the palace,

The Daimyo sat with a folding fan in hand, his expression dark.

Among the ministers who had aligned with Haneda, he had planted a spy.

Through this insider, he had learned that Haneda intended to purge the ministers loyal to him.

This wasn't just a warning to stop his behind-the-scenes scheming—it was a blatant move to turn him into a puppet.

He was the Daimyo, the master of the Land of Fire. Haneda's actions had crossed a line.

If he didn't resist now, his descendants would be nothing more than puppets of Konoha.

The Daimyo glanced at the group of loyalists gathered before him.

His gaze lingered on his strategist, Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu; the left and right prime ministers, Kawashimo Hikozaemon and Matsunaga Hisahide; and finally, the General of the Northern Frontier.

"Uchiha Haneda is an immoral young man," the Daimyo began.

"He blatantly called a deer a horse, forcing you all to take sides to distinguish the loyal from the treacherous."

"Fortunately, like me, you all understand the value of patience and resilience. Only true men can endure humiliation to plot great things."

"Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu, what do you think?"

Having prepared his response beforehand, Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu immediately replied:

"Uchiha Haneda is a cunning, treacherous, and shameless villain. We must resist him!"

"Lord Daimyo, Haneda is the Hokage of Konoha, commanding thousands of shinobi. Our army cannot compete with Konoha."

"However, since Kumogakure is already at war with Konoha, we can secretly supply them with resources and intelligence, forcing Haneda to focus on the war."

"Meanwhile, we can build a ninja army loyal to you, Lord Daimyo. This way, the Daimyo's office will no longer be threatened by the Hokage."

The Daimyo, hearing this plan to pit Kumogakure against Haneda, slapped his thigh in approval.

"Excellent! Truly excellent! You are indeed my brilliant strategist!"

The left and right prime ministers quickly chimed in, praising the Daimyo's leadership.

However, a minister asked, "Who will carry out this plan? Haneda is already planning to strike against us tonight."

All eyes turned to the General of the Northern Frontier.

The Daimyo opened his fan and smiled.

"This task will be entrusted to the General of the Northern Frontier. Since it is still early, I suggest you all leave the capital for now."

Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu, wiping tears from his eyes, said emotionally, "Lord Daimyo, you…"

"I will endure humiliation in silence and await your triumphant return with the righteous army," the Daimyo replied.

...…

After leaving the Daimyo's residence, Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu boarded a shabby carriage and navigated through narrow alleys to his home.

Quickly gathering his valuables, he abandoned his wife and children, taking only a few loyal samurai in an attempt to flee the capital.

As he climbed over the wall of his mansion, he was met by a masked, sword-wielding shinobi.

Knowing the strength of shinobi—especially masked ones—Yanagisawa immediately knelt and pleaded for his life.

"Master Shinobi, please don't kill me! I am a loyal servant of the great Lord Hokage!"

"I know all of the Daimyo's schemes against Lord Hokage! I was just packing up to expose his plot and pledge my loyalty to the great Lord Hokage!"

The ROOT shinobi, holding a photo to confirm Yanagisawa's identity, replied coldly:

"Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu, beloved by the Daimyo and granted the title of National Strategist. Primary target of the Long Night of Blades operation."

"If you value your life, come with me—alone."

Yanagisawa waved off his samurai, knowing they stood no chance against a shinobi.

Even if their numbers were multiplied tenfold, they wouldn't stand a chance.

(T/N: This fever and headache is such a pain! But decided to translate because there is nothing else to do.)

***

To read an advance 190+ chapters

Support me at [email protected]/NahinS77

Change @ to a

Or go to that website and search