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The Hyūga matter was already causing an uproar in the village.
Kazuki took the opportunity to disclose information about various ninja clans to the public.
This allowed the villagers to see that ninja clans weren't as mysterious as they had imagined.
Of course, each clan's heritage and secrets couldn't be disclosed. Kazuki wouldn't actually dig up the roots of the ninja clans.
Appropriately releasing some information about the ninja clans was meant to bridge the gap.
To make the villagers unconsciously feel that ninja clans weren't so high and mighty, so unattainable.
In fact, many clans – especially small, struggling ones – didn't have it as good as some civilian families.
At this point, some sharp-eyed villagers noticed a blind spot.
"Isn't the Sarutobi clan a ninja clan? When did they become a civilian clan?"
"Who knows? I haven't heard about that either. Maybe it was in some old announcement."
"But that doesn't make sense. How can a civilian clan be more developed than major clans like the Uchiha and Hyūga?"
"They have way too many ninja."
Questions arose. The Hyūga and Uchiha were major clans known to the villagers, always mysterious.
The villagers acknowledged the strength of these major clans.
But what about the Sarutobi clan?
Claiming to be a civilian clan, yet they had more ninja than the Uchiha – nearly as many as the Uchiha and Hyūga combined. That didn't add up.
Even if a large portion were genin, the villagers still focused on the core issue.
They were curious why the Sarutobi clan had so many ninja – nearly as many as the Hyūga and Uchiha combined – not debating the percentage of genin.
Ninja didn't engage in production, so supporting one ninja was expensive.
Not all ninja could support themselves and their families through missions alone.
Many ninja took side jobs and did business to make money.
So, how did the Sarutobi clan support so many ninja?
"What does he think he's doing?!"
Learning of this, the Third Hokage trembled with rage.
He'd only offered a suggestion at the Hokage's office, and the retaliation came that quickly.
Was that necessary?
The Third Hokage felt stabbed in the back.
Kazuki, without saying anything, was secretly retaliating against the Sarutobi clan.
After the basic information about various clans was released, the Sarutobi clan became the focus of public opinion.
Together with the Hyūga, they became the "Twin Peaks" of Konoha gossip.
The Hyūga didn't treat Branch House members like humans. The Sarutobi were even more exaggerated – supporting as many ninja as the Uchiha and Hyūga combined. How was that possible?
Could they bear it?
Hot on the heels of the Hyūga, the Sarutobi clan also became the center of public opinion. Kazuki hadn't anticipated this.
He simply felt that if he was going to release information, he should release it for everyone. Why should other clans be included but not the Sarutobi?
There was no intention of targeting the Sarutobi.
Unfortunately, the Sarutobi clan themselves had too many points of criticism, and the villagers latched onto them.
Both the Hyūga and Uchiha had extensive clan holdings, easily supporting their ninja.
Plus, many of their ninja focused on missions, and some held official positions. The number requiring clan support wasn't too high.
What about the Sarutobi?
Their holdings... didn't seem extensive.
Positions... they had quite a few working for the village.
Still, income and expenses didn't balance.
How did they manage it?
Supporting a huge clan with an income of a hundred and expenses of tens of thousands – was that possible?
And on top of that, they called themselves a "civilian clan." Civilians with a clan?
Once the blind spot was discovered, grievances from civilian ninja that had been suppressed for years came to light. Good heavens – fuel on the fire.
From the Third Hokage down to a common genin, they all bled the village dry, using village funds to support clan ninja.
The news exploded.
The Third Hokage couldn't stay seated. He came to the Hokage's office again. He needed an explanation from Kazuki – a reasonable one.
But what the Third Hokage didn't expect was that when he arrived at the office, before he could even question Kazuki, his anger dissipated.
"Continue your report."
Kazuki glanced at the Third Hokage, who'd entered without knocking, ignored him, and signaled the Anbu to continue.
"Yes, sir."
The Anbu continued.
"Following the intelligence and leads, we eventually captured many spies. They deliberately released the information, twisting the villagers' understanding, angering them, and directing the conflict toward the Sarutobi clan. Lord Advisor's announcement of basic information about various ninja clans gave these people an opportunity. They hoped to disrupt Konoha and manipulate public opinion."
"Have the interrogation results come in?"
"Yes, sir. This is the Yamanaka clan's recording scroll."
The Anbu immediately handed over the scroll.
Kazuki opened it, glanced at it, then casually rolled it up and handed it to the Third Hokage.
"Take a look. The culprits are Iwagakure and Kirigakure. Why they're working together requires further investigation. The Sarutobi situation has nothing to do with me."
The suspicion was dispelled before the Third Hokage could even question it.
"And here is what I released. These are the messages the spies spread. See for yourself. Don't say I'm disregarding Tsunade's feelings, am hounding the Sarutobi clan."
Comparing the scrolls repeatedly, the Third Hokage's hands trembled.
This was a conspiracy!
Konoha had stabbed Iwagakure in the back, repeatedly sold supplies to Sunagakure, and driven away Kirigakure's envoy delegation, essentially offending Kirigakure.
Thus, spies from both villages worked together, using the Sarutobi clan as a pretext to dig a big pit. Their operation had succeeded, just not completely.
Some villagers had noticed the blind spot. Kazuki was surprised but didn't dig deeper. Not everyone was a fool. Some clever villagers would always focus on the key points.
Public opinion shifted, and problems emerged.
So the Anbu acted immediately and caught many big fish.