That night, three medical ninjas from the National Ninja Army were assassinated in their respective homes.
The news that "Shinnosuke has lost his fertility. Konohamaru's parentage is questionable" quickly spread within the Sarutobi clan.
"I heard that the young clan head is going to flee with his wife and son."
"They're running away with treasures, but leaving us here to die."
"He's truly Hiruzen's son, both father and son are equally selfish."
Inside the clan shrine, discussions were rife.
Next to them were the memorial tablets of Sarutobi clan members, arranged in 14 rows. White funeral couplets fluttered in the wind, like crying souls.
Originally, when Hiruzen led the entire clan to pledge allegiance to the Land of Fire Daimyo, their clan had 1587 ninjas. But the continuous wars in the Land of Fire caused many Sarutobi clan members to die in battle. Now, the Sarutobi clan only had 314 ninjas left, so many clan members were very dissatisfied with Hiruzen.
A dozen Sarutobi clan members, dressed in black, gathered in the secret room of the shrine.
Sosuke's eyebrows slanted, and his eyes blazed with killing intent.
Three days ago, his son had died in battle on the eastern front, not even leaving a complete corpse, yet the clan's heir was thinking of taking refuge. How could he tolerate this?
"Hiruzen is old, he only cares about his own son and doesn't care about our lives at all."
"Isn't this deceiving us? We risk our lives for the clan, is it just to protect an outsider?"
"Shinnosuke running away with that fake son is just to leave us to die in the Land of Fire."
"We can't let them go. Shinnosuke and Konohamaru must be killed to keep the Sarutobi clan's bloodline pure."
"But assassinating the clan head's son…" A younger ninja hesitated.
Another voice excitedly interrupted. "He's no longer fit to be clan head. From the moment he kept sending our clan members to the front lines to die, he was no longer fit to be our clan head."
Angry emotions spread in the cramped space, and eventually, everyone reached an agreement, and an assassination plan gradually took shape.
Five people finalized the plan.
Sosuke would lead ten elite ninjas, scout the escape route in advance, and set up an ambush near the mass grave in the city outskirts. That area was desolate and uninhabited, making it easy to hide and dispose of bodies.
— — —
At eleven o'clock at night, Shinnosuke and others, escorted by two Anbu, departed from the secret passage of their residence. This secret passage was narrow, allowing only one person to pass at a time.
Oil lamps were placed every few steps on the walls, their dim yellow light illuminating the path ahead.
Konohamaru was held in Hatano's arms as they quickly moved through the secret passage.
At one in the morning, they finally emerged from the secret passage's exit, reaching a forest outside the city.
It was less than a kilometer from the mass grave, and the surroundings were eerily quiet, with only the rustling of leaves in the wind.
The Anbu opened the map he carried and whispered, "We follow this path southeast, and in another day, we'll reach the border of Uzushiogakure, where there will be people to meet us."
Hatano nodded, and just as she was about to step forward, she suddenly stopped. She keenly sensed at least dozens of Chakra signatures hidden in the surrounding forest.
"Oh no, it's an ambush!"
As soon as her voice fell, dozens of kunai suddenly shot out from the surrounding forest, heading straight for the vital points of the group.
Hatano reacted extremely quickly, instantly forming hand seals.
Earth Release: Earth Style Wall!
A thick earth wall rose from the ground, blocking all the kunai.
At the same time, she pushed Konohamaru into Shinnosuke's arms and drew the kunai from her waist.
"You certainly have some skill. No wonder Hiruzen chose you as his daughter-in-law."
Sosuke walked out from behind a tree, followed by ten ninjas armed with weapons.
"Unfortunately, no matter how capable you are, you cannot protect this father and son who have defiled the clan's bloodline."
Shinnosuke roared, "Are you crazy? We are all members of the Sarutobi clan!"
The two Anbu immediately rushed forward, engaging in battle with the assassination squad's ninjas. The clashing sound of kunai was particularly harsh in the silent night.
Meanwhile, Hatano, with her agile movements, weaved through the group of ninjas. With each swing of her kunai, she precisely dodged enemy attacks and even found opportunities to counterattack.
A Sarutobi clan member who had lost his son charged forward with bloodshot eyes. "We don't have a young master like you! My son died fighting for the clan, yet you want to run away with an outsider. Do you deserve the ancestors of the Sarutobi clan's efforts?"
Shinnosuke could only barely raise his arm to block, the blade clashing with his gauntlet, producing a piercing sound. His strength was not top-tier to begin with, and with his injuries not yet healed, he was quickly forced to retreat step by step. Then, his back slammed against a large tree, wincing in pain.
Seeing this, Hatano immediately turned to provide support, kicking away the ninja's sword with a whirlwind kick.
At the same time, she shouted to Shinnosuke, "You retreat with Konohamaru, I'll hold them off here!"
But in the instant she was distracted, a ninja circled behind Shinnosuke, plunging his kunai into his abdomen.
"Shinnosuke!"
Hatano's pupils contracted, wanting to help but it was too late.
Shinnosuke coughed up a mouthful of blood, but still held Konohamaru tightly, shouting, "Hatano, hurry… you must survive…"
Hatano frantically repelled the surrounding ninjas, wanting to rush to Shinnosuke's side, but she was surrounded by even more assassins.
At this moment, Sosuke's gaze fell on Konohamaru, and the sword in his hand slowly rose.
"This bastard must not be left alive."
Seeing this, Hatano, filled with despair and urgency, shouted, "Don't kill him! He's not a bastard! He's Hiruzen's child!"
At this moment, only by revealing this secret could Konohamaru possibly survive, this was her only hope.
Everyone froze, including the assassins led by Sosuke. They all stopped their movements, their eyes filled with shock.
Hearing this, Shinnosuke's eyes widened in anger, and he coughed up several spurts of blood, finally dying from a fit of rage.
The next second, Sosuke suddenly sneered, his tone filled with ruthlessness, "Then he deserves to die even more."
"What did you say?" Hatano couldn't believe her ears.
Sosuke spoke with long-suppressed anger, "Hiruzen only cares about his own bloodline and doesn't care about the lives of us clan members at all. When my son died in battle, he merely said, 'He died gloriously, sacrificing himself for the country.' But when it comes to his own son, he flees to a distant land for refuge, leaving us to die in the Land of Fire! Kill him. Let Hiruzen taste the bitterness of losing a loved one too."
Before his words finished, Sosuke swung his sword at Konohamaru's neck.
Hatano's eyes were bloodshot with fury, and she used all her strength to activate Ninjutsu.
Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!
A huge flame erupted from her mouth, forcing back the surrounding ninjas, but it was ultimately a step too late.