Old Third—discuss: is there really a conspiracy theory? How should we judge him!?
The spacious office was empty save for him.
His gaze fell on the family photo atop the desk: Biwa-ko smiling gently; Asuma still young and stubborn; and beside him, his elder son beaming in the sun—those days were gone.
Biwa-ko and his eldest son had long since passed away, and Asuma too… there was always something standing between father and son; the boy would rather wander outside than return to this cold, empty home.
Perhaps… Hiruzen Sarutobi felt the same.
Rather than go back to that hollow mansion filled with memories and pain, he preferred to stay in this paper-strewn office, drowning himself in busy work to numb the emptiness and the ache of losing those closest to him.
"Before I knew it… night has fallen again."
Hiruzen gazed at the lights of countless homes beyond the window, murmuring to himself, his voice laden with loneliness no one could share and the weariness of a seventy-year-old man.
Just then, a knock sounded at the office door.
"Come in."
Hiruzen reined in the emotions that had slipped out.
The door opened and Yamato stepped in silently, halting before the desk, his face still dusted with the grime of a mission just completed.
"Hokage-sama."
"Oh, Yamato." Hiruzen gave a gentle smile at the sight of him, tapping his pipe lightly. "Back from the mission? Judging by your look, things didn't go smoothly?"
Yamato's lips moved, as if unsure how to begin; finally he spoke in a low voice:
"Hokage-sama, we…"
…Meanwhile, deep within the Root base.
The figure of Aburame Torune emerged, addressing the silhouette leaning on a cane in the darkness.
"Danzo-sama, Yamato's squad —including the target Tejima Shinichi —returned to Konoha ten minutes ago and have now entered the Village."
Shimura Danzo stood with his back to him, motionless in the shadows, yet the hand gripping his cane tightened slightly.
Silence.
A suffocating silence spread through the darkness.
Last night, Fu Yamanaka's squad had limped back, the news they delivered still echoing in his mind.
Team Tanuki had been nearly wiped out —one Jonin and three Chunin lost.
And the one who did it was the Genin he'd considered already in his pocket —Tejima Shinichi!
According to the surviving Chunin's account… this was no talented Genin; he was a monster whose Chakra roiled like the sea, flinging Ninjutsu about at will, wild yet cunning in battle.
Alone against five Root elites, he'd killed four and crippled one; had Fu not arrived in time to intervene, they wouldn't even have known why the ambush team was annihilated.
This wasn't a mere miscalculation —he had been utterly blind to the truth.
Such power, such potential… and such an untamed, ruthless temperament!
"Evil brat…"
Once more Shimura Danzo spat the curse through clenched teeth.
How many times had it been now?
Since he'd set his sights on the Tajima Family boy, setback after setback.
First, his face had been publicly slapped in the Hokage's office; now an entire elite squad had been lost!
In recent days he'd lost his temper more times than in the entire previous year combined.
Tejima Shinichi was like a venomous splinter; every touch brought searing pain.
Aburame Torune stood silently, the expression behind his mask unknowable, though his lowered head showed he was weathering Danzo's fury.
"From this moment, suspend all operations targeting Tejima Shinichi."
"Yes, sir."
Torune accepted the order and withdrew.
Alone in the shadows, Shimura Danzo struck the floor heavily with his cane.
He knew Hiruzen would summon him soon; the incident could not be hidden, and he would have to face the Hokage's wrath.
But Danzo never fought unprepared; he turned and walked toward the exit of the base.
"It's time… to visit Homura and Koharu."
His voice sounded at just the right moment.
He needed allies, voices that could counterbalance the Hokage.
Only by uniting the two senior advisors could he make Hiruzen… compromise again!
…Hokage Office.
After hearing Yamato's report, Hiruzen's face was livid.
"Highly trained, perfectly coordinated, Yamanaka secret arts… targeting Shinichi," he said icily. "Inside the Land of Fire —who else would dare?!"
Yamato remained silent.
The answer was obvious.
Hiruzen drew a deep breath, forcing down his rage.
"I understand." He waved wearily. "Let Shinichi calm himself. I will handle this."
Yamato bowed and exited.
Watching Yamato leave, Hiruzen sat in silence for a moment, his expression grave.
"Someone."
An Anbu figure flickered into existence.
"Notify Shimura Danzo, Homura Mitokado, and Utatane Koharu —report to the Hokage Office at once for an emergency council."
"Yes!"
The moment the order was given, the Anbu's form vanished.
Hiruzen closed his eyes, fingers drumming the desk as countless images flashed through his mind—
Tejima Shinichi's stellar performance at the Ninja Academy, his composure during the graduation exam, the astonishing combat power he'd unleashed alone against five Root elites, the deadly risks he had survived… and Shimura Danzo's ever more arrogant face hidden in shadow.
Time and again!
After the Nine-Tails disaster, the relentless pressure on the Uchiha; the behind-the-scenes push that led to Sakumo Hatake's death; the insane attempt to assassinate him, the Hokage… and now, ignoring repeated warnings, Danzo had openly dispatched an elite squad to kill a Village prodigy inside the Land of Fire.
"For your twisted notion of 'Konoha,' for your bloated hunger for power, Danzo… you've sunk beyond any bottom line! Treating the village as your private property, comrades as tools, darkness as the only truth!"
"Are you… still the comrade I once placed such hopes in… the one who helped build Konoha?"
Tap, tap, tap…
As Hiruzen whispered, the sound of his fingers on the desk grew faster and heavier.
At last—
The tapping stopped abruptly!
Hiruzen's eyes snapped open!
The gaze that was usually so gentle now blazed with the sharpness of his younger days!
A vast, long-absent pressure erupted from his stooped frame, flooding the room in an instant, the very air turning thick and heavy!
Slowly Hiruzen rose to his feet, the Hokage cloak stirring though there was no wind.
"Danzo…"
A low voice filled the office, no longer hesitant or lost… "This time… I will not let you… have your way!"
"The leaves of Konoha will not… be gnawed at will by vermin like you!"
The last thread of old sentiment and compromise toward his former friend was severed cleanly.
For Konoha's future, for the tender shoots growing beneath the sun, he would wield the authority of the Hokage and cut away that hand hidden in shadow —too long outstretched, too stained with filth!
This time, he would tolerate no more, compromise no more!
Hiruzen took up his brush and swiftly wrote several orders upon a blank scroll, stamping them with the seal of the Hokage...