Rengoku withdrew his chakra and stepped out of Sage Mode.
He walked up to Akimichi Torifu and said, "Elder Torifu, the subsequent trivial matters are left to you."
Akimichi Torifu patted his belly, "Don't worry, leave it to me."
Then Rengoku went to stand beside Elder Nara Shikaku.
Although Nara Shikaku had already taken over as clan head, he still had the dignity of an elder.
The Ino-Shika-Cho trio would, of course, be led by the Nara family.
That old man was very clever.
Rengoku continued, "Elder Shikaku and Elder Torifu are old friends. Please cooperate more with the village's affairs."
Shikaku's face didn't show much expression; in a formal voice he said, "Elder Rengoku, rest assured. I will ensure Konoha's operations run smoothly."
Rengoku smiled softly, "Elder Shikaku, rest assured, we Uchiha are not people who seek our own deaths."
Shikaku nodded, understanding Rengoku's meaning.
With Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others driven out, the highest leaders of Konoha now were Rengoku, Torifu, and the elders led by the Ino-Shika-Cho.
Rengoku's recent show of strength had given those elders who chose to stay in Konoha a big reassurance.
But with Shikaku's intelligence, he still thought Konoha was risky now.
Although he didn't know how Tsunade agreed to this plan, there was no doubt that expelling Sarutobi and the others would at least halve Konoha's strength.
For clans that wanted peace, that was extremely unfavorable.
But the arrow was already on the string, there was no choice but to do it.
After all, every elder had seen that many Anbu had changed their loyalty from "the Hokage" to "Sarutobi Hiruzen."
And Hiruzen had made the Nine-Tails' jinchuriki into someone of the Sarutobi clan.
Was the meaning not obvious?
Even if they were stupid, they wouldn't choose Hiruzen.
Otherwise, who knew when Hiruzen would turn on them.
Rengoku's words made it clear they were mentally prepared for Konoha's strength to decline.
And clearly they had coping strategies.
Shikaku relaxed, ever since Rengoku rose, he hadn't done anything foolish yet.
———
In the hours that followed, the whole of Konoha was thrown into turmoil.
In less than an hour, every bulletin board had posted the list.
They wrote out Sarutobi Hiruzen's crimes in full: framing Hatake Sakumo, harming the Senju heir Nawaki, causing Dan Kato's death, crimes against the Senju clan, the Uchiha clan, and so on.
Including but not limited to humiliating Naruto, embezzling the Fourth Hokage couple's estate, seizing the Nine-Tails, etc.
They stated that despite the evidence being solid, Hiruzen refused investigation and confronted the village with a large number of Anbu.
Senior advisors Uchiha Rengoku and Tsunade, granddaughter of the First Hokage Senju Hashirama, for the safety of the villagers, did not force Hiruzen's group by military means.
Instead, they expelled them from Konoha.
The matter of the Hyuga family being attacked by Obito was also posted, but people didn't pay it much mind.
After all, the bulletin didn't mention that the Hyuga main family had been wiped out.
Everyone's attention was focused on Sarutobi Hiruzen.
By every bulletin board stood either Uchiha people or members of the Ino-Shika-Cho families.
One group maintained order, the other read aloud the postings.
The characters themselves weren't complicated, but the content was explosive.
Not only were the people of Konoha dumbfounded, but even spies from other villages were stunned.
Every big shinobi village normally has spies hidden in civilian areas, that's normal.
But they could only get ordinary or public information.
Konoha, however, had just made its intelligence public.
And this public intelligence was a bombshell: the village had expelled the Hokage.
And not just one person, all people related to that Hokage.
Just the Sarutobi clan alone, including civilians and fighters, numbered nearly ten thousand.
Add the other clans, and the total was over thirty thousand.
The spies were stunned, 'Is this for real?'
'If Konoha does this, wouldn't it split?'
They transmitted the information back to their villages as fast as possible.
Konoha's situation was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
As for the ordinary people in the Sarutobi, Mitokado, Utatane, and Shimura clans, many of them cared more about keeping their surnames than about Rengoku's intentions.
So even when told they must leave Konoha if they refused to change their names, about eighty percent still chose to follow Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Rengoku didn't bother those people. Life and death are destiny and wealth is Heaven's decree.
If they chose to go with Hiruzen, they had to bear the corresponding consequences.
———
Everyone in the Forest of Death knew nothing of what had happened in Konoha.
Because of the chaos outside, the Third Match was immediately held in the tower inside the Forest of Death.
They finished quickly and were released.
The elite class took the Chunin Exam far too early; most were under eleven.
The final result was, unsurprisingly, elimination for all.
When they finished and came out of the Forest of Death, they realized the world outside had changed.
Many of those Genin taking the Chunin Exam were connected to various clans.
Some people, upon stepping out of the forest, discovered they were no longer considered Konoha people.
Others were just spectators.
Some with foresight began to worry about Konoha.
They also learned about the attack on the Hyuga clan.
Neji had just left the Forest of Death testing grounds when Hyuga Hiro took him away.
The Forest of Death was some distance from the Hyuga clan.
After Hyuga Hiro pulled Neji away from the other examinees, he finally spoke.
"Neji, you need to be mentally prepared."
His tone was solemn, and Neji felt his heart clench.
When Hyuga Hiro first saw Neji he had said, "The clan was attacked, come with me now."
Neji didn't ask then; now it was clear things were worse than he expected.
He planted his feet, "Senpai, exactly what happened to the clan?"
Hyuga Hiro opened his Byakugan and scanned all directions.
After making sure no one was around, he lowered his voice, "The main family is all dead."
Neji's expression froze, "W-What?"
Hyuga Hiro continued, not sparing details, "Clan head Hiashi, the great elder Sarumito, the second elder…"
He didn't bother to spare names, he recited the main family's names from top to bottom.
After all, he had wanted those bastards dead for years; every name was carved into his soul.
"We will never again be enslaved by the caged-bird system," Hyuga Hiro said, relief and emotion in his face.
Neji's eyes went blank. He had come to take a Chunin Exam, had the main family really been wiped out?
Had his father's revenge been taken?
Neji shook his head and, with a complicated expression, asked, "What about Hinata and Hanabi?"
Hyuga Hiro answered, "Those two were taken by Elder Rengoku."
Neji felt a small weight lift from his chest.
But Hyuga Hiro had only told him about the main family's fate.
"How badly were we damaged?", Neji asked.
When the words left his mouth, Hyuga Hiro's expression turned grim.
"You'll see when we get there."
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