For ten consecutive days, the entire Konoha was tranquil.
So much so that Nojuro Ryun thought the Bounty Station had realized it had been deceived and directly destroyed the intelligence concerning him.
Yet ten days later, a large number of Konoha-nin were dispatched in force, with many ninjas having their leave directly canceled.
The commotion was not only noticed by Ryun himself but also by the civilians of Konoha, who even began to speculate if war was about to arrive once more.
Ryun, meanwhile, obtained some inside information from Tenten and Anko.
The Hokage had issued an order for all Konoha-nin to conduct a special manhunt within the Land of Fire. Those not on the mission were unaware of what exactly they were searching for.
Ryun, however, realized from this that Sarutobi Hiruzen was attempting to prevent the intelligence from flowing out of the Bounty Station.
But such efforts were destined to be futile, because Ryun had sold the intelligence outside the Land of Fire right from the start.
"Bang!"
Inside the Hokage Office, Sarutobi Hiruzen's face was ashen as he slammed his pipe heavily onto the desk, even cracking the surface.
Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura also wore expressions of shock and fury as they passed around a piece of intelligence that had just been intercepted by Konoha-nin.
It recorded several of the darkest histories within Konoha, all scandals starring Danzo.
This forced Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others to glare furiously at Danzo.
"Danzo, these are the troubles you've stirred up. You handle them!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen's merciless words gave the feeling that he was already prepared to abandon Danzo at any moment.
Indeed, this was the case.
If Danzo was not sacrificed, then who had condoned his dark past?
Was the Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, aware? Did Danzo represent the will of the Hokage's faction?
Sarutobi Hiruzen understood that no one would believe he was completely unaware.
All he could do was admit that he had been soft-hearted back then and forgave Danzo for the assassination attempt. The rest had to be pinned entirely on Danzo.
Otherwise, it wouldn't just be Danzo who was disgraced; the current generation of Konoha's leaders, and even the Will of Fire he had been preaching for years, would become a complete joke.
If the situation became even more severe, Kumogakure and Iwagakure might find an excuse to declare war on Konoha once more!
The current Konoha simply could not withstand another war!
Shimura Danzo's face remained expressionless as he stared at Sarutobi Hiruzen and said, "Hiruzen, I don't believe you haven't noticed. This intelligence is half-truth and half-fabrication, with many parts being pure fabrication."
"For a piece of false intelligence, you want to kill me as a sacrifice? This isn't like you, Hiruzen. You were the kind who would sacrifice yourself for your comrades."
"Danzo, I can sacrifice myself to protect the village, but I cannot sacrifice the village to protect you!"
This time, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura also stood firmly on Sarutobi Hiruzen's side.
Utatane Koharu angrily rebuked Danzo, saying, "Danzo, this intelligence is clearly aimed at you. At this critical moment, we cannot let the entire Hokage faction be buried with you."
Mitokado Homura also said, "Danzo, it may be necessary for you to make a sacrifice."
Shimura Danzo sneered and said, "You are quite right. This is indeed intelligence targeting me, but that makes it all the more problematic."
His gaze swept over the three of them. "Many of these secrets are known to only a handful of people. Who could piece together such intelligence?"
"What is their purpose? Is it really to target me? Perhaps their target is you, Sarutobi Hiruzen, or even the entire Konoha!"
"First, they use this to disrupt our morale. Then, after we are divided, they wipe us out in one fell swoop."
Danzo's words were undoubtedly very compelling.
Especially the most crucial point: who could piece together and record these events?
All three of them certainly had that qualification. The heads of the remaining major clans could also do it if they secretly communicated.
Thinking of this, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu showed signs of panic. Had a force opposing them already formed within Konoha without their knowledge?
Sarutobi Hiruzen also frowned, pondering the possibility.
Although he very much did not want to believe it, he could think of no other explanation.
He looked at his old comrades and did not believe they would target Danzo in this way at such a time. So, the answer could only be those few people...
"It seems you understand now, Hiruzen."
"The top priority is to conduct a purge within Konoha, suppressing all elements preparing for rebellion, just like the Uchiha Clan back then."
These words struck a nerve with Sarutobi Hiruzen. He snorted coldly and said, "We can't find a second Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi."
"Do you want Konoha to erupt into civil war by conducting an internal purge now?"
Danzo still wanted to argue. "If we act swiftly—"
"Enough!" Sarutobi Hiruzen interrupted Danzo roughly. "The most important thing now is unity, not further internal division."
"Today, I will meet with the heads of several clans to gauge their stance."
Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed, as if he had aged ten years, and said, "Koharu, Homura, do you have any ways to alleviate the external pressure on Konoha?"
Utatane Koharu thought for a moment and said, "Since this is half-true, half-false intelligence, have the Anbu ninjas spread intelligence about each village, mixing truth and falsehood while writing even more scandals."
"Then every village will have to start investigating themselves. That way, the pressure on our shoulders will lessen."
Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes lit up. This was indeed a good idea.
"Danzo, you handle this. This is for your own life and Konoha's safety. Can you do it?"
This time, Danzo surprisingly did not snort coldly but nodded silently.
He was not as calm as he appeared on the surface.
Although he didn't think Hiruzen would be willing to deal with him, those he had offended joining forces for revenge was also a great threat to him.
Fortunately, this intelligence did not mention the Akatsuki organization or his continued collusion with Orochimaru. Otherwise, he really wouldn't know how to explain it.
Sarutobi Hiruzen put on his hat and left the Hokage Office, heading in the direction of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio.
He was going to ask his old comrades and subordinates to help analyze whose handiwork all this was.
Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura, meanwhile, cornered Danzo and said something that nearly made him spit blood.
"Danzo, if this matter can be resolved, you should still step back to a secondary position."
"Yes, Danzo, this is also for your own good. You bear too much. Continuing like this will lead to backlash."
Danzo looked at the two as if they were fools. If he relinquished his position and no longer had the loyalty of the Root ninjas, that's when the backlash would come.
By then, not to mention enemies outside the village, even the next leader of Root would not let him go.
Danzo could only chose to leave the Hokage Office, returning to the deepest part of Root to seal himself off with sealing techniques.
At the same time, he had not given up on investigating who was behind all this. It was just a pity he currently had very few people to use.
However, Danzo was not completely helpless.
He summoned a trusted subordinate and slowly said, "Tell Orochimaru the plan remains unchanged. His actions need to be even faster now."
Since Sarutobi Hiruzen already had the idea of pinning all the blame on him and ending the grudge with his death.
Then Danzo naturally could also have the idea of becoming Hokage himself and ending Sarutobi Hiruzen's dark and bloody rule.
That was what you called bonds.
On Ryun's side, he continued his normal training life.
In recent days, even Anko, Yūhi Kurenai, and Team Guy had been dispatched. The people coming to find Ryun had returned to the few girls who had not yet graduated from the Ninja Academy.
Everyone was also uneasy due to Konoha's situation, their expressions serious, lacking the previous cheerful atmosphere.
Even the few of them trained harder than before, seemingly preparing for a possible future war.
Ryun could have comforted them, telling them not to be nervous, but seeing them work so hard, he let them be.
People always need some pressure to grow. Currently, Ino and Sakura were clearly in a state of insufficient pressure.
Ryun originally thought this state of affairs would continue for a while longer, but he unexpectedly received an invitation from Hyūga Hiashi.
What could Hyūga Hiashi want with him at this time?
Could it be... Ryun's eyes gleamed slightly. Was it because Hyūga Hiashi suspected him?
Ryun realized this was indeed possible.
Even if Hyūga Hiashi had no evidence, he knew Ryun had the motive to do all this.
Not because he knew Ryun would be attacked by Danzo, but because he knew Ryun wanted to revitalize the Senju Clan with Tsunade!
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