Five days later, in the morning.
After recording their merit points, many Anbu squads were directly given leave to go back and rest temporarily.
Meanwhile, the core leadership of Konoha gathered in the Hokage Office.
No one spoke; they just sat in their chairs, everyone lost in long periods of contemplation.
Their faces were filled with a sense of dazed confusion.
It couldn't be helped!
As Konoha's core leadership, they knew about the operations from a few days ago.
But compared to their previous worry and fear, their faces were now filled with a dazed emptiness.
The Daimyos and nobles, who had ruled the Ninja World for thousands of years, had actually been killed off so easily?
Just... that simple?
It was incomprehensible! Unacceptable!
But more than that, it was a long-lasting sense of emptiness!
Creak.
Accompanied by a soft sound, the door was pushed open from the outside.
Nara Shikaku walked in with a serious expression and spoke in a very low tone.
"Hokage-sama, something major has happened!"
"Information from the Daimyos Mansion's hidden sentries reports that the mansion was bathed in blood by mysterious individuals. It has now been confirmed that the Daimyo and countless nobles are all dead."
"Right now, the Daimyos Mansion—and even the entire Land of Fire—has fallen into complete chaos!"
"Due to the loss of their leaders, the entire Land of Fire has begun to spiral into disorder."
"Furthermore, based on the intelligence we possess, similar heinous incidents targeting Daimyos and nobles have occurred simultaneously in the other four great nations. So, what should we do next?"
"Hokage-sama, you must make a decision!"
Nara Shikaku's face was full of worry.
It was as if the sky was truly falling. Unfortunately, the people in the Hokage Office had a very lukewarm reaction to this 'earth-shattering news'.
Everyone's face was calm; some were even yawning.
But just then.
Uchiha Jin slammed his hand on the table with a bang, then roared with righteous indignation.
"Dammit, who exactly did this?"
"This is a provocation against the Land of Fire, and even more so, an insult to our Konoha!"
"Investigate! Go investigate immediately!"
"The Daimyo and nobles are the pillars of the Land of Fire! To those bastards who dared to strike them, I, Uchiha Jin, swear by the Six Paths Sage: if I don't kill them, I'll resign from this Hokage position immediately!"
"Kakashi..."
"Get your Anbu moving immediately. Send out every single Anbu Member."
"Not just in the Land of Fire—even in other nations, go and investigate immediately!"
"Investigate with great fanfare. There's no need to worry about any other hidden villages; this is my special authorization to you!"
"If other hidden villages ask, tell them that the Land of Fire's Daimyo and nobles are all dead, so Konoha must find these arrogant bastards!"
"Whether they understand or not, our Konoha will investigate to the very end!"
"Go!"
Uchiha Jin was filled with righteous indignation.
At this moment, his face was written with fury as he shouted directly in the Hokage Office.
Everyone present was startled, looking at Uchiha Jin in a daze!
Tsunade, who was in the middle of a yawn, was so shocked she almost choked.
Then.
The way everyone looked at Uchiha Jin turned to disdain; their lips twitched, and they could hardly stop themselves from rolling their eyes at him.
Who was the killer?
Heh.
Aren't you fucking calling the kettle black right now?
Senju Tobirama, with his arms crossed, was currently covered in black lines. His gaze toward Uchiha Jin became incredibly complex.
After thinking for a moment, he couldn't help but sigh!
He was impressed!
A man who was powerful himself, knew how to play politics, and had top-tier planning abilities—who would have thought his skin was also this thick? To be able to lie through his teeth like that, it would truly be against heaven's will if Uchiha Jin didn't succeed!
At the same time.
This was enough to prove one thing: the Uchiha's position as Hokage was secure!
As long as Uchiha Jin didn't die young and continued to hold the Hokage position for another twenty years, no one would ever be able to take it away in the future.
Kakashi: "..."
At this moment, his lips were twitching.
He was truly helpless because there was no need to look for the killer!
You, the Hokage, are the mastermind, and he, Kakashi, was one of the executors. What the hell am I supposed to have the Anbu investigate with such fanfare!
But there was no choice!
Since Uchiha Jin had spoken, a subordinate like him could only take the order!
"Yes, Hokage-sama!"
After saying that.
Kakashi immediately stood up and left the Hokage Office.
However.
Once he actually arrived at the Anbu and gathered all the members, his gaze began to turn dazed and lost.
It couldn't be helped!
Having executed missions his entire life, he truly didn't know how to carry out today's task!
Asking him, the killer, to find the killer? This was truly a nightmare!
Where was he supposed to find this 'killer'!
Thinking of this, Kakashi scratched his head until his scalp was almost raw, but he still couldn't think of a good way.
This... was also normal!
Kakashi didn't have the ability to see the big picture; at most, he was just a sharp blade.
He didn't understand 'going through the motions','slacking off', 'lying flat', or 'following protocol'. In his mindset, as long as he accepted a mission, he had to complete it 100%.
In the past, he would just accept the mission and execute it!
Now, however, it was different!
But there was no way around it.
With a helpless sigh, Kakashi could only brace himself to issue the order to the many Anbu before him.
"Everyone, an S-rank mission!"
"A few days ago, the Land of Fire's Daimyo and all the nobles were completely slaughtered by mysterious individuals."
"The Anbu's next mission is to find the mastermind behind this!"
"Start the investigation in the Land of Fire first. If no results are found, you are permitted to enter other nations for the investigation."
"Prepare yourselves. We set out in one hour!"
For the current Kakashi, he could only bite the bullet and proceed.
As for how he was supposed to report back on this mission later, it seemed he would have to meet Uchiha Jin in secret later. Otherwise, he really wouldn't know how to execute this task!
Meanwhile.
The Anbu Members were unaware of Kakashi's thoughts; on the contrary, they were shocked by the mission itself.
What?
The Daimyo and nobles are all dead, and not even a single bloodline was left?
These people didn't know the 'mastermind' was the Hokage and the executor on the scene was their direct superior, Kakashi. So, they all accepted the order with serious tones and went directly to restock their ninja tools and Food Pills.
Kakashi gave a sigh.
Watching all the Anbu leave, he helplessly scratched his head before heading toward the Hokage Office.
Clearly, before truly executing this mission, he had to get a clear objective from Uchiha Jin, the Hokage.