Chapter 163: The Third: “ikeizumi Isn’t The Culprit!”, Don’t Underestimate The Sin Of Humanity
Homura Mitokade also hurried over upon hearing the news. He walked into the Sarutobi Clan Residence filled with a weird atmosphere, then looked at Sarutobi Hiruzen standing beside the corpse.
Breathing in the sulfur smell in the air, Homura Mitokade’s expression changed slightly, but upon careful thought, he felt something was a bit off.
He scanned the surrounding Sarutobi Clan members, each with anger on their faces.
He walked behind Sarutobi Hiruzen, lowered his voice, and whispered, “Hiruzen, do you really think Uchiha Ikeizumi killed her?”
Sarutobi Hiruzen, standing motionless in place, slowly took a deep breath. He turned his head to look at Homura Mitokade.
A silent exchange of glances made Homura Mitokade nod slightly.
“Let’s talk outside.” Homura Mitokade said.
The Sarutobi Clan members made way for a path. The two Konoha high-level advisors walked outside under everyone’s gaze. No one followed, because they all knew the Hokage wanted to communicate privately with Homura Mitokade.
“Hah…”
Sarutobi Hiruzen had a grim face as he exhaled a breath of turbid air and said, “I do not believe Ikeizumi is the murderer.”
Homura Mitokade was stunned.
He was somewhat puzzled, stared at Sarutobi Hiruzen’s grim face, and couldn’t help asking, “But I heard you were extremely angry, even ordering Root and Anbu to handle this matter together.”
“Especially those from Root. After receiving your orders, they caused some chaos in Konoha. Since you think the possibility of Ikeizumi being the murderer is low, then why…”
Sarutobi Hiruzen interrupted him: “Because I cannot show that I do not believe Ikeizumi is the murderer.”
Sarutobi Hiruzen clasped his hands behind his back, anger still burning in his eyes: “Someone is using my daughter-in-law’s life to try to make me kill Ikeizumi, trying to provoke a military conflict between the Will of Fire and Absolute Justice, plunging the entire Konoha into chaos.”
“Once I show a posture that sees through this trick at a glance, the rat hiding in the dark will be startled.”
“If that rat leaves Konoha, finding him and knowing who he is would be like finding a needle in a haystack.”
Hearing this, Homura Mitokade finally understood.
Sarutobi Hiruzen was deliberately playing the role of a “Konoha Hokage whose head was clouded by anger due to his daughter-in-law being killed,” to lower the real murderer’s guard and buy time to drag out the culprit.
Homura Mitokade thought for a moment and asked, “But Elder Koharu seems to really believe you are going to act against Uchiha Ikeizumi. Her Root Ninja subordinates today didn’t hold back much…”
“Wait!”
Homura Mitokade suddenly realized, looking at Sarutobi Hiruzen in shock: “Are you suspecting Elder Koharu? So you didn’t tell her? And let her Root run wild?”
Sarutobi Hiruzen said expressionlessly: “I now reasonably suspect everyone in the village who has serious conflicts with Ikeizumi or me.”
He added: “Including Elder Koharu.”
Homura Mitokade was quite shocked in his heart.
He could see that with his daughter-in-law mysteriously killed, Sarutobi Hiruzen was truly very angry and very saddened.
And at such a time, this Third Hokage could still calmly see through the clues and turn the scheme against them.
“Hiruzen, I finally understand… why Teacher Tobirama recommended you as Konoha’s Third Hokage before his death. Among us, you are always the one whose thinking is least swayed by emotion. You can always see clues others cannot.”
Homura Mitokade sighed: “If this matter has nothing to do with Elder Koharu, it means her level is worlds apart from yours.”
Then, he asked again: “And you telling me this, does it mean you trust me a lot?”
Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded frankly with a grim face: “Because you never refute some of my tough opinions.”
“Moreover…”
“You don’t have such deep conflicts with Uchiha Ikeizumi either.”
Homura Mitokade fell silent, and after a long while, he said, “So what are you going to do next?”
Sarutobi Hiruzen rubbed a small piece of volcanic rock between his fingertips and slowly said: “In public, I openly ordered Kakashi and Yamato to pursue and bring back Ikeizumi and the others.”
“But in reality, that is not my real order. My real order is—for Kakashi and Yamato to lead and monitor all Jonin in the village.”
“The ‘all’ here naturally includes Utatane, Uchiha, Ino-Shika-Cho, Hyuga…”
“Even the Jonin in the Sarutobi Clan.”
Homura Mitokade’s mind suddenly shook, and he couldn’t help turning to look at the agitated Sarutobi Clan Ninjas not far away.
“Hiruzen, they should…”
Sarutobi Hiruzen interrupted him again: “Anything is possible.”
Not knowing what he thought of, a trace of gloom flashed in Sarutobi Hiruzen’s eyes. He took a deep breath and said helplessly: “Never underestimate the sins of human nature.”
Homura Mitokade felt this sentence was somewhat familiar.
In his impression.
Uchiha Ikeizumi seemed to have said something similar.
……
Homura Mitokade left the Sarutobi Clan with a heavy mood. He racked his brains but couldn’t figure out who was secretly trying to provoke a military conflict between the Will of Fire and Absolute Justice.
Could it be Elder Koharu?
Elder Koharu indeed had major disagreements with Uchiha Ikeizumi, even repeatedly gossiping about his Absolute Justice behind his back.
And she was also repeatedly quite dissatisfied with Hiruzen’s indecisiveness.
But logically, based on his understanding of her, she shouldn’t do such a thing.
Or…
Could it be Fugaku?!
Homura Mitokade had such a guess—Uchiha Fugaku, the Uchiha Clan Leader, had almost been sidelined by Absolute Justice. To regain control over the Uchiha Clan, Fugaku decided to take a risk and use the Hokage’s power to eliminate Uchiha Ikeizumi.
But is that right?
“What Fugaku least wants is for the Uchiha Clan to be feared by the village. If he really did this, whether Hiruzen, I, or Elder Koharu, we would all be very wary of his scheming.”
Homura Mitokade shook his head again.
It couldn’t be the Hyuga Clan, could it? For example, the Hyuga Main Family headlocked in Konoha Prison by Uchiha Ikeizumi?
They hated Uchiha Ikeizumi a lot, but they lacked the power to deal with him, so they carried out such a conspiracy?
But that doesn’t make sense either.
Sarutobi Fujiko… was originally one of Hiruzen’s left and right arms, and she herself was a fairly strong Jonin. There are almost none in the Hyuga Clan who could instantly kill her!
Unless it was the clan leader Hyuga Hiashi himself, but he was in Konoha Prison, and someone was specifically guarding him.
Homura Mitokade shook his head. The person hiding now hasn’t shown their tail yet, and he couldn’t guess any useful information for the time being.
“However, Hiruzen doing this is ultimately a bit extreme.”
Homura Mitokade murmured: “Elder Koharu mistakenly thinks we really want to act against Uchiha Ikeizumi. She will inevitably offend him because of this. Hiruzen unintentionally dug a pit for Elder Koharu this time.”
“Though, given her level of disgust toward Uchiha Ikeizumi, she doesn’t care about offending him anyway.”
Homura Mitokade thought about whether to remind Elder Koharu.
But on second thought, Sarutobi Hiruzen still suspected Elder Koharu.
He should just silently observe the development of the situation!
“Who would have thought that with Uchiha Ikeizumi away from the village, the village became even more chaotic…”
He said to himself helplessly.
……
Ding—two kunai collided in mid-air. Uchiha Izumi’s three-tomoe Sharingan flashed red in her eyes. She quickly crouched low, dodging the blade slashed at her by the Root Ninja.
Immediately after, she thrust her ninja sword diagonally upward, the sharp blade slicing open the opponent’s mask, revealing an ordinary face.
Izumi shouted softly, supported herself with one hand on the ground, and kicked upward.
The Root Ninja, caught off guard, was kicked hard in the abdomen.
“Cough cough cough—”
The Root Ninja’s expression changed drastically as he clutched his abdomen with one hand and retreated repeatedly. Beads of sweat overflowed from his forehead, and his gaze toward Uchiha Izumi carried a hint of shock.
This kid…
Is she really only twelve? Really just graduated from the Ninja Academy not long ago?
Elder Koharu ordered him to capture Uchiha Izumi, but he unexpectedly ran into a tough opponent! Both he and Elder Koharu had underestimated this Uchiha girl.
“Hah…”
Izumi, getting a moment to breathe, gripped the hilt of her ninja sword tightly. She stared at the Root Ninja ahead and demanded, “Does Root want to completely fall into the abyss of darkness? What is Root’s purpose in attacking me? Is it related to Senior Ikeizumi?”
The Root Ninja ignored her, coldly bit his thumb, and slammed his palms on the ground.
“Summoning Technique!”
The next second.
A massive ninja dog suddenly appeared and, under the Root Ninja’s command, pounced straight at Uchiha Izumi.
……
A pitch-black venomous snake bit hard into the shoulder of a Root Special Jonin.
Mitarashi Anko turned with a kunai in hand to block, stopping another Root Ninja’s sneak attack from behind her.
Several more venomous snakes emerged from her sleeve.
Biting at the Root Ninja who ambushed her.
Mitarashi Anko hadn’t expected to be attacked by Root Ninjas twice in just two short days! If she hadn’t rested well last night and recharged, she probably would have been taken down in one encounter by these two Root Ninjas.
This made nameless anger rise in Mitarashi Anko’s heart.
Do these Root guys have no end to it?!
What was that short-sighted old woman Elder Koharu thinking? Was she trying to make an enemy of Absolute Justice?
After blocking another attack from the Root Ninja, she suddenly thought of a possibility. While grappling with the opponent, she frowned and demanded, “Are you not just targeting me? Did that old woman Elder Koharu take advantage of Ikeizumi’s absence to also act against Izumi and Sasuke?!”
Unfortunately.
Root Ninjas are always taciturn, and even though the Root Ninjas had changed batches, this style persisted.
Neither of the two Root Ninjas besieging Mitarashi Anko answered her question.
But this made Anko’s mood even heavier.
Because she felt she had guessed correctly!
……
“It shouldn’t be Elder Koharu.” Yamato, sent out by Sarutobi Hiruzen, arrived at the Sarutobi Clan Residence and found Sarutobi Hiruzen.
He lowered his head and reported to the Hokage: “My Anbu squad and I have been observing every move of the Root Organization.”
“No clues from the Root Organization for now.”
Yamato paused and continued, “By the way, Hokage. Root’s Ninjas seem to be going overboard. Whether it’s Elder Koharu’s deliberate instruction or some other reason, the methods they used while trying to take Ninjas who believe in 「Absolute Justice」 back to the Root Organization were exceptionally aggressive.”
“Hokage, should we intervene to stop Root’s actions?”
“No need.” Sarutobi Hiruzen, with a taut old face, shook his head: “Before finding out who the real mastermind is, as long as Root and Ikeizumi’s subordinates don’t cause deaths, Anbu doesn’t need to interfere.”
Yamato hesitated to speak, feeling this approach seemed somewhat improper.
The Hokage was using Elder Koharu and also using Uchiha Ikeizumi, baiting both sides to lure out the rat.
Logically speaking, as Hokage, he was indeed not wrong to do so.
Even if Elder Koharu found out later she was being used, she probably wouldn’t say much.
The problem is…
Could the Hokage guarantee that Uchiha Ikeizumi wouldn’t mind?
Yamato felt the Hokage was indeed a bit too hasty.
He was playing with fire.
If played well, this fire could burn the mastermind behind it; if not, it might backfire.
“Continue observing everyone’s every move in the village.” Sarutobi Hiruzen’s words pulled Yamato back from his thoughts.
A complex expression flashed under Yamato’s mask.
But due to his position, he ultimately didn’t remind Sarutobi Hiruzen.
“Yes, Hokage.”
……
At the same time.
Just as two Root Ninjas were about to take Uchiha Sasuke and Neji Hyuga to the Root Base together, a rather tall figure suddenly appeared in front of the two.
Causing the two Root Ninjas’ pupils to contract slightly.
“Sannin… Jiraiya!!!”
Jiraiya, blocking in front of the two boys, coughed lightly: “That’s right! I… am the legendary Sage Jiraiya!”
Then, Jiraiya’s gaze fell on the constantly struggling Sasuke and the unconscious Neji.
Jiraiya said in a deep voice: “No need to go so heavy on two kids, right? I heard you say at the Ninja Academy this was the Hokage’s order. What exactly happened? Can you let me know?”
The two Root Ninjas exchanged glances.
“Jiraiya, this is not something you should interfere in.” At that moment, a sudden voice rang out behind Jiraiya.
When Jiraiya turned around, he saw Elder Koharu walking over here, protected by two Root guards.
Elder Koharu took the initiative to speak and told Jiraiya what happened today in front of him.
Then, she continued: “That’s why I had my subordinates capture these two kids.”
Jiraiya was stunned.
The old man’s daughter-in-law…
Was killed?!
“Wait…” Jiraiya said while sorting through his chaotic thoughts: “If I remember correctly, Uchiha Ikeizumi’s eyes can see through others’ sins. Him killing the old man’s daughter-in-law, does it mean the old man’s daughter-in-law was actually a…”
“Jiraiya.”
Elder Koharu interrupted Jiraiya and said: “Hiruzen’s decision this time actually has two interpretations.”
“First: Sarutobi Fujiko is innocent. But Uchiha Ikeizumi killed her by mistake. His eyes can’t be infallible forever. In anger, Hiruzen decided to completely settle scores with Absolute Justice.”
“Second: Sarutobi Fujiko is not innocent, but Hiruzen wants to use this opportunity to eliminate Absolute Justice. Because he finally realized Absolute Justice only harms Konoha.”
“Avenging a family member is a good excuse. Even if Hiruzen doesn’t hold the high ground of justice, there’s no big flaw to pick.”
Jiraiya: “…”
For some reason, he saw a hint of fanaticism in the eyes of this Konoha high-level advisor.
Jiraiya always felt Sarutobi Hiruzen didn’t think that way.
But his knowledge of the matter was limited to Elder Koharu’s retelling.
For the moment, he couldn’t analyze it clearly.
“Elder Koharu, is there this possibility?” Jiraiya suddenly said: “Someone is deliberately provoking the old man and Uchiha Ikeizumi? Someone is framing Uchiha Ikeizumi?”
No matter what, he had to first protect Uchiha Sasuke, the suspected Child of Prophecy.
If he got interrogated at the Root Base.
Jiraiya felt that after Uchiha Sasuke came out.
He would probably be ruined!
“Absolutely impossible.”
Elder Koharu said coldly: “Who in the village doesn’t know Uchiha Ikeizumi’s deeds? With such understanding of him, who in the village would frame him?”
Though somewhat annoyed, Elder Koharu still said: “After all… with that extreme justice kid’s abilities, he could easily drag out anyone who frames him.”
Hmm…
It seemed to make a bit of sense.
A flash of inspiration hit Jiraiya, and he proposed another possibility: “What if it’s from another village?!”
Jiraiya took a deep breath: “It’s not been long since the end of the Third Shinobi World War!”
Elder Koharu was stunned.
“Another village…”
Elder Koharu argued stubbornly a few times: “What ability do foreign village Ninjas have to infiltrate the Sarutobi Clan Residence? You know that’s one of Konoha’s most heavily guarded places, since Hiruzen, as Konoha Hokage, needs to live there after work.”
But at this point, she didn’t continue.
Both Elder Koharu and Jiraiya fell silent.
In this brief exchange of sharp words, both independently came up with the same idea—maybe someone was colluding with foreign village forces from inside and out!
And this person must be very familiar with the Sarutobi Clan, possibly even a Sarutobi Clan member.
Because only then could they pull this off!
Elder Koharu fell silent.
Just as Jiraiya secretly breathed a sigh of relief, he vaguely felt a strange ominous premonition. Unable to resist, he followed that premonition and looked up.
Jiraiya’s pupils contracted.
—Bang!!!
A deafening roar accompanied by rolling, tumbling smoke and dust spread in all directions.
Tsunade’s voice rang out from within the rising smoke.
“With that kid gone for one day, old things come out to stir up trouble.”
Tsunade’s cold eyes looked at Elder Koharu.
“Let them go.”
She said.
……
……
