Chapter 226:
Konoha Village.
"Calm down, Naruto. We have no way of knowing how many people in the village are actually impostors. If we launch an open investigation, we'll only end up causing a panic among the villagers."
Sasuke walked beside Naruto, whispering cautiously to him, worried that Naruto might act impulsively in a moment of hot-headedness.
"Don't worry, Sasuke. I understand all of that."
The two arrived at the door of the Hokage's office. Before pushing it open, Naruto turned to Sasuke and said.
Besides stirring up panic among the residents, such an investigation could even spark an all-out war between Konoha and the impostors. Even if they ultimately won, Konoha would be left severely weakened.
When they pushed the door open, they saw Shikamaru at his desk, busy with paperwork. Shikamaru's face lit up when he saw them.
"Naruto, Sasuke, you're back. That's great news."
"Shikamaru, did anything troublesome happen in the village while I was gone?"
Naruto stepped forward and asked. Based on what Sarada and Shuyu had speculated, even some high-ranking officials in Konoha might have been replaced by impostors.
Shikamaru nodded. "Actually, Mirai Sarutobi, the Sixth Hokage, and Might Guy went on a trip outside the village together. But in the end, only Mirai came back—and she helped a stranger steal the Sealing Scroll and the Mount Myōboku Scroll from the village. Sasuke knows about this too."
Naruto turned to Sasuke, who gave a small nod.
"I believe Mirai must have had her reasons," Shikamaru continued. "So even though I issued a warrant for her arrest, I ordered that she must be brought back alive."
Naruto thought for a moment, then said, "Shikamaru, cancel the warrant on Mirai. I believe she would never betray the village."
"Understood. I'll take care of it right away, Naruto."
Although Shikamaru's decision might appear cold, Naruto felt that he had already done everything he could to protect Mirai. Just the theft of the Sealing Scroll and the Mount Myōboku Scroll would usually be grounds to be executed as a rogue ninja—but Shikamaru had merely issued a warrant, and even specified that she had to be captured alive.
Once Shikamaru had completely left the Hokage's office, Naruto turned to Sasuke.
"So? Did you notice anything strange about Shikamaru?"
Sasuke shook his head, his expression serious. "I can't be sure. These impostors are so well-disguised that even the Sharingan can't detect them."
"...Sasuke, I need your help with something."
Naruto paused and then spoke.
"You want me to leave the village and head to Mount Myōboku to find Mirai Sarutobi, right? Looks like we're on the same page… Mirai must have discovered the impostors hiding in the village."
Given the current state of Konoha and Mirai's behavior, it wasn't hard to deduce that she had realized impostors were infiltrating the village. And the stranger who had accompanied her back then was most likely Kakashi.
Which meant that stealing the Sealing Scroll was likely just a diversion. What Mirai truly wanted was the Mount Myōboku Scroll—so she could go to Mount Myōboku and find Boruto, who hadn't been replaced.
"Also, Shikamaru never mentioned anything about the patrol shinobi all being impostors."
"In other words," Sasuke analyzed, "either Shikamaru himself is an impostor, or he hasn't been replaced, but the people around him have been—so the truth never reached him. It's a lot like the White Zetsu during the Fourth Great Ninja War."
"It's actually even worse than White Zetsu back then," Naruto said with a wry smile. "My Sage Mode's ability to sense good and evil doesn't work on these impostors at all. It's like they have no sense of morality whatsoever."
"I think there's a high chance this whole thing was orchestrated by S.H.I.E.L.D."
Right now, the only entities with clear hostility toward Konoha were S.H.I.E.L.D. and Kara. But Kara was still under siege by the five Kage, led by Naruto himself. There's no way they had time to prepare something like this.
Which made the true culprit obvious.
"S.H.I.E.L.D. does seem like the most likely suspect."
Naruto nodded in agreement. If anyone had the ability to create impostors even more advanced than White Zetsu, it would be the mysterious and elusive S.H.I.E.L.D.
"Also, that night when Mirai stole the Mount Myōboku Scroll, I almost managed to stop the person who was likely Kakashi. But in the end, someone with a shield showed up and helped him escape."
"If Kakashi-sensei and Mirai really have discovered the impostors in the village," Naruto mused, frowning, "then there's no way they'd trust a stranger so easily..."
"Which means," Sasuke said slowly, "this person had something strong enough to prove their identity and earn Kakashi and Mirai's trust… Could it be Hydra?"
"Exactly! Sasuke, do you remember what the Jar Merchant said about Hydra? After they splintered, they used code words to identify each other. That has to be it!"
Naruto clapped his hands.
Since the Jar Merchant's death, Konoha had lost all contact with Hydra. This had left Naruto somewhat uneasy lately. But now that someone suspected of being a Hydra member had reappeared, Naruto felt strangely reassured.
After all, when it came to dealing with S.H.I.E.L.D., Hydra had offered all kinds of support.
"So if a Hydra member is with Kakashi and Mirai, do I still need to go to Mount Myōboku?"
In truth, Sasuke didn't want to leave Naruto alone in a village that might be crawling with enemies.
"You still have to go to Mount Myōboku, Sasuke. When the time comes, bring along Sarada, Shuyu, Tentō, and Shinki—everyone whose identities we've confirmed."
Sasuke didn't want to leave Naruto alone to face danger at any moment. But Naruto didn't want Sasuke staying either, not when the village could become deadly at any time.
Besides, sending Sasuke out was also a contingency plan.
If the worst happened, Sasuke would be the one person capable of protecting Boruto.
Sasuke stared at Naruto and gradually understood what he meant.
"I got it, Naruto. Be careful while you're here alone."
"Yeah, don't worry, Sasuke. I'm not going to die that easily."
Naruto gave his trademark goofy grin, which brought Sasuke a little peace of mind.