Chapter 421: Bad News!
Chapter 421: Bad News!
The valley became a bustling hub of activity.
All the Leaf Village ninjas, fully armed, left their resting places and began to assemble.
With such a commotion, the Byakugan Wolf couldn't expose too much information without being noticed, so he had no choice but to leave immediately.
"Lord Douhei, Elder Danzo and the strategist request your presence!"
A Leaf Village ninja approached the treehouse and reported.
"Alright!"
Douhei stepped out, glanced at Houshi Yamayama and Hyuga Cangyue who had arrived, nodded, and then led Houshi Yamayama towards the gathering.
As for Hyuga Cangyue, she naturally stayed behind as a precaution.
Even if she couldn't openly take action, with her presence, there was no fear of the Byakugan Wolf turning back to attack.
The few dozen ninjas from the Oilada Clan were all members of the Heavenly Fortress, and they couldn't be allowed to be silenced by the Byakugan Wolf.
Douhei intended to make good use of this clan, as insects could accomplish too many tasks and had high potential. He truly couldn't bear to see any of them get injured.
On the other side!
Douhei, accompanied by Houshi Yamayama, arrived at the command cavern, already illuminated by the torches on the walls.
"This is..."
As soon as he entered, he smelled the bloody stench and saw the fresh pool of blood.
'No way!'
Douhei's mind flashed with the image of the Byakugan Wolf.
If the opponent had come here first, then it would truly be troublesome...
"Shinzo has met with an accident!"
Nara Kujousei exhaled, his face dark as the bottom of a pot.
"This matter is related to your Uchiha clan!"
Danzo spoke with a cold, knife-like tone, shifting the blame.
Although the incident had nothing to do with him, who else was present that could clear his name?
Despite Sarutobi Kazumi showing no signs of favoring his eldest son, it didn't mean he disliked him.
If he truly disliked him, he wouldn't have allowed him to serve as the long-term head of the Shadow Division.
Now, it seemed that Sarutobi Kazumi was in grave danger, and one could only imagine how heartbroken he would be when he received the news.
Would the responsibility be the same if an ordinary ninja encountered trouble compared to a Shadow Level Powerhouse?
"What do you mean?"
Douhei naturally understood the malice in Danzo's words and retorted directly.
Did Danzo think that just because he had been well-behaved lately, he had reformed and lost his rebellious nature?
"I'm not making baseless accusations. Look!"
Danzo pointed to the writing on the stone bed.
He could recognize Sarutobi Shinzo's handwriting, so he immediately ruled out any possibility of forgery.
Seeing the 'Uchiha' writing with traces of blood (from a pricked finger), Douhei was truly speechless.
The information left by the opponent was indeed correct.
Obito!
Wasn't he from the Uchiha clan?
That single Sharingan eye was the perfect 'advertisement'.
Just like during the Nine-Tails Rebellion, even without evidence of Uchiha involvement, the Sharingan in the Nine-Tails' writing was enough for everyone to assume it was the Uchiha's doing.
"Just now... I also encountered this assassin!"
Douhei took the opportunity to reveal some information about the opponent.
At the very least, he wanted the village to know that there was such a dangerous Uchiha in the Shinobi World.
"What!!?" Nara Kujousei anxiously asked, "Was the opponent really from the Uchiha clan?"
He was the one who least wanted the assassin to be an Uchiha.
After all, if it was proven that the assassin was an Uchiha, the village's situation might very likely change.
"Yes, but the opponent was wearing a mask, so I couldn't tell who it was!"
Douhei described the Byakugan Wolf's disguise.
Since Zetsu hadn't revealed himself to him, he naturally couldn't disclose his identity.
In general, he used this attack to expose the Byakugan Wolf's disguise, but he never intended to completely unmask him.
If he did that, it might be time for the hidden LYB to make their move.
"It's indeed the evil Uchiha!" Danzo said subconsciously, but upon seeing the unrestrained anger in Douhei's eyes, he added, "I wasn't referring to you!"
There was no choice; he didn't want to turn against Douhei at this moment.
"We can't jump to conclusions about this matter. After all, whether it's the clues left by Shinzo or what Douhei saw, it's possible that someone is impersonating them."
Nara Kujousei spoke with a hoarse voice.
At this moment, the Leaf Village's strategist, Nara Kujousei, had lost his usual composure and his spirit seemed to waver.
He was well aware that even though Sarutobi Kazumi might not blame him and might even comfort him, it didn't mean he wouldn't have other thoughts.
After all, he had been entrusted with the safety of the person in the Hokage's office.
But now, with the person's life hanging by a thread, he couldn't escape the responsibility and would likely bear the brunt of the blame.
However, Nara Kujousei still tried to clear Uchiha's name.
This wasn't a joke; if the Uchiha clan really rebelled, the Leaf Village would suffer greatly.
"That's right, it could be someone impersonating an Uchiha, because right now, no Uchiha can escape from my hands!"
Lord Tang Ping agreed with Nara Kujousei and even tried to exonerate him.
He really didn't want to pin this blame on the Uchiha clan.
After all, the Uchiha clan wasn't just present in the village; there were also members in the Skyguard Lineage. If he were to be thoroughly investigated, he might also be suspected.
But who knew if the Byakugan Wolf, Danzo, had any hidden tricks up his sleeve? If he concealed the truth, it might make things worse, so he decided to be straightforward.
Thus, the blame fell squarely on the Uchiha clan.
(Uchiha: Damn!)
It could be said that the Uchiha clan was doomed by the Byakugan Wolf and the Great Filial Son, the 'Dragon and Phoenix' pair.
One specialized in throwing blame onto the Uchiha, while the other had a bizarre idea of massacring his entire clan.
"Hmph, that's not impossible. The Uchiha clan's 'Instant Calm' might just work!"
Danzo retorted, unconvinced.
Instant Calm!
The young Uchiha, barely in his teens, had indeed earned a notorious reputation in Kirigakure, and was the Uchiha clan's rising star.
"The opponent is not Uchiha Shisui!"
Lord Tang Ping spoke calmly, leaving Danzo without a rebuttal.
With his pride as a powerful ninja, he was truly unwilling to deceive others.
This was evident from the fact that even though the village elders disliked Lord Tang Ping's rebellious nature, they never doubted his honesty.
Ninjas were full of contradictions.
During missions, deception and lying were commonplace, but when not on missions, the words of powerful ninjas were as true as they could be.
Therefore, both of them knew that the opponent couldn't be Uchiha Shisui.
As for how Lord Tang Ping confirmed this, neither of them asked.
"Regardless, we must inform the village about this matter immediately!"
Nara Kujousei concluded.
There was no way to hide the truth; Sarutobi Shinzo was the commander of the Ninja Army, and now he was gone without a trace. Others weren't blind; there was no way to keep it a secret. They had to notify the village right away.
"No, we're not considering informing the village right now, but rather how to escape. If they can find this place, don't you think the Cloud Village Ninja will too?"
Lord Tang Ping reminded them.
The Byakugan Wolf had attempted to assassinate both Sarutobi Shinzo and himself, clearly targeting them.
Since the assassination attempt on him had failed, the opponent would surely reveal their whereabouts to the Cloud Village Army that was searching for them.
Borrowing the enemy's knife to kill! If the opponent had any sense, they would definitely do this.
Previously, he thought Nara Kujousei's plan had no chance of success because of the Byakugan Wolf. Any plan he came up with would never go smoothly.
Hmm, with these words, he was also shifting the blame for the 'assassin' onto the Cloud Village Ninja.
Of course, there was also the possibility that the pot would get blacker, and the village elders might suspect the Uchiha of colluding with the Cloud Village.
All he could do was leave it to the Uchiha to seek their own fortune.
"What?!"
Nara Kujousei panicked and began to gather the troops, not even having time to deal with Sarutobi Shinzo's funeral arrangements.
There was no choice; no matter how important the Hokage's son was, he couldn't be more important than the remaining six hundred Leaf Village ninjas. So, they had to prioritize this matter.
Thus, the team, which had just rested for a short while, set off again.
Before the team departed, they also received a letter sent using a secret technique from the village.
Along with it came a piece of intelligence.
After reading the information, Lord Tang Ping finally understood what the Byakugan Wolf's true killing move was.
(End of Chapter)
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