The day after the kidnapping incident, the atmosphere in the Hokage's office was heavy with tension.
At this moment, all the village's high-ranking officials and the heads of the major ninja clans were gathered here, including the Third Hokage, Danzo Shimura, Homura Mitokado, Koharu Utatane, Hiashi Hyuga, Fugaku Uchiha, Ryota Akimichi, Shikaku Nara, and Inoichi Yamanaka.
Last night's kidnapping incident had caused an uproar in the village.
The Third Hokage wanted to handle the matter discreetly, but the Cloud Village delegation, who had come for peace talks, wouldn't allow it.
On the second day, they approached the Third Hokage, citing the disappearance of their leader, Toro, and requesting Konoha's help in finding the Cloud Jonin.
These people already knew that Toro was dead.
The commotion last night had been too great to conceal the news.
The Third Hokage dealt with this with a few simple words.
But soon, the news that Toro, the leader of the Cloud Village delegation, had died in Konoha spread throughout the village.
The news spread further and further, becoming more and more outrageous.
By the afternoon, rumors that Konoha's high-ranking officials wanted to sabotage the peace and had deliberately dispatched Tatsuya Akimichi to assassinate Toro were rampant.
As a result, Konoha had to deploy the ANBU to control the narrative.
However, the issue remained unresolved.
The peace treaty between Cloud and Konoha had just been signed, and now the leader of the Cloud delegation had died in Konoha.
With such an event, Konoha had to give Cloud an explanation.
Regarding Tatsuya Akimichi's account of events, the remaining members of the Cloud Village delegation directly denied it.
They refused to admit that their leader, Toro, had kidnapped the Hyuga clan's heiress, and they pinned Toro's disappearance and death, as well as Hinata Hyuga's kidnapping, entirely on Tatsuya.
The second-in-command of the Cloud Village delegation had already declared that if Konoha did not hand over the murderer, Tatsuya Akimichi, to them for punishment, they would return to Cloud Village tomorrow and prepare for war.
Faced with the aggressive Cloud Village delegation, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, had no choice but to urgently summon the village's high-ranking officials and the heads of the major ninja clans to discuss the matter.
"Shikaku, please start by briefing everyone on the investigation's findings," the Third Hokage said, directing his words to Shikaku Nara, who was sitting beside the office desk, amidst the heavy atmosphere.
Since being boldly appointed by the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, Shikaku Nara had been serving as a key secretary and member of the advisory group in the Hokage's office.
After the Fourth Hokage's death, the Third Hokage, upon resuming the Hokage position, did not revoke his position.
The Third Hokage had entrusted Shikaku Nara with leading the investigation into Tatsuya's killing of the Cloud Village delegation's leader.
The Third Hokage did not avoid using Shikaku due to the relationship between the Akimichi, Yamanaka, and Nara clans, clearly demonstrating his stance.
He couldn't afford not to support them! The three families of the Ino-Shika-Cho combination were a vital part of the Hokage-aligned forces. If he couldn't even retain their loyalty, the balance of power in the village would truly be lost!
"Yes, Lord Hokage! After our ANBU investigation, the results are basically consistent with Jonin Tatsuya Akimichi's account. Yesterday, Tatsuya Akimichi was ordered to lead a small squad of the Konoha Military Police Force to maintain order in the village. He separated from his two subordinates from the Police Force at around 6 PM. During this time, Jonin Tatsuya Akimichi and his two subordinates ate a bowl of ramen at a ramen shop not far from the Hyuga clan compound. The owner of the ramen shop and many villagers can testify to his movements during this period. This time frame overlaps with the time of Miss Hinata's disappearance, essentially ruling out the possibility of his involvement."
Hearing this, Shikaku Nara respectfully acknowledged the order and began to explain his investigation and conclusions.
"Third Hokage-sama, it was clear that Toro, the leader of the Cloud Village delegation, failed to kidnap the Hyuga heiress last night and deliberately framed Tatsuya," Ryota Akimichi immediately spoke up in Tatsuya's defense after hearing Shikaku Nara's account.
As the head of the Akimichi clan, seeing that his clan had finally produced a talent, how could Ryota Akimichi stand by and watch him be harmed by the Cloud Village's schemes?
"Third Hokage-sama, I also agree with Ryota and Shikaku's assessment. Toro, the leader of the Cloud Village delegation, was a hawk within Cloud who favored continuing the war. It's obvious that he was deliberately causing trouble this time. If Tatsuya falls into their hands, he will surely be killed. He is a hero who has just rendered great service to the village. If he were to die because of this, it would likely cause dissatisfaction among the villagers towards the village's leadership," Hiroki Nara added immediately after Ryota Akimichi finished speaking.
"Third Hokage-sama, I also agree with this assessment. We cannot hand Tatsuya over to them!" Shuzo Yamanaka also nodded in agreement.
Seeing the three of them successively express their stance, the rest of the people in the office were not surprised.
In Konoha, the Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi clans had always acted in concert. If the Akimichi clan wanted to protect Tatsuya, the Nara and Yamanaka clans would naturally not stand idly by.
"Third Hokage-sama, the Hyuga clan also believes that Jonin Tatsuya Akimichi is innocent in this matter. If Cloud insists on using this as an excuse to start a war, the elite of the Hyuga clan are willing to be the vanguard!" After Ryota Akimichi, Hiroki Nara, and Shuzo Yamanaka finished speaking, Hiashi Hyuga was the first to stand up, firmly supporting Tatsuya.
Thinking about how the Hyuga clan's Byakugan bloodline limit was almost stolen by Cloud last night, Hiashi Hyuga's back chilled, and he felt a deep hostility towards Cloud, the instigator, and a strong sense of gratitude towards Tatsuya, who had saved Hinata by chance.
If the Hyuga clan, as one of Konoha's top clans, did not dare to speak out in this situation, then the Hyuga clan's dignity would be lost.
However, after Hiashi Hyuga spoke, no one else in the room spoke up.
Those present were not fools; they also believed Shikaku Nara's account and assessment.
There were no doubts about last night's events. As a meritorious Jonin of the village, Tatsuya Akimichi had no motive to do such a thing, and it was clearly bad luck that he had stumbled into Toro's trap.
But the Cloud Village delegation was threatening war, and even if it was blatant coercion, Konoha could not take it lightly.
After all, it was a fact that Toro had died in Konoha, and it was also a fact that Tatsuya had killed him.
In this situation, apart from the heads of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, no one else was willing to easily express their stance.
If they supported the Cloud Village delegation's demands, they would simultaneously offend the Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi clans.
This was something that even Danzo, who had always acted without restraint, had to consider.
In Root, he had talented individuals from these three clans serving as his trusted aides.
Moreover, if Danzo wanted to become Hokage in the future, the support of these three clans was crucial.
If they did not support them, they would be suspected of disregarding the bigger picture and encouraging the village to go to war with Cloud.
If this were to spread, and if the situation were to collapse and Cloud and Konoha really went to war, they could all become sinners of the village and be criticized behind their backs.
For a time, the room fell into a brief, silent pause.
On the Hokage's seat, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, saw that no one else was speaking up, but he did not rush them.
His gaze was distant, and as he scanned the expressions of everyone in the hall, he fell into deep thought.
In fact, after learning the details of the incident, the Third Hokage had already made up his mind.
He absolutely would not hand Tatsuya over to the Cloud Village delegation for punishment.
The Third Hokage had gathered everyone here to discuss the matter was just to go through the motions and to see everyone's stance.
Before the meeting, the Third Hokage had already anticipated that everyone would be unwilling to easily offend the Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi clans.
In this situation, if the Third Hokage made the decision to reject the Cloud Village delegation's request, no one would likely openly object.
The Third Hokage's thoughts were not focused on whether or not to hand over Tatsuya, but rather on pondering some of the details of last night.
For example, how did Toro, the leader of the Cloud Village delegation, manage to kidnap the Hyuga clan's heiress from within the heavily guarded Hyuga clan compound and successfully escape all the way to the village's outer wall?
If it hadn't been for Tatsuya Akimichi happening to stumble upon him, he would have succeeded.
It was conceivable that if the Hyuga clan's heiress had truly gone missing from within their own compound, it would have caused a considerable uproar in the village.
Because in Konoha, the only ones capable of doing this were the Uchiha clan and Konoha's high-ranking officials.
Once the seeds of suspicion were planted, it would also be very unfavorable for Konoha.
The village's two major bloodline limit clans would become estranged from the village, and Konoha's power would be further weakened.
Moreover, according to Tatsuya Akimichi's account, before he arrived, the two ninjas on the village's outer wall had already been taken down. The ANBU investigation also showed that the two had been hit by a genjutsu and were instantly incapacitated.
Tatsuya Akimichi clearly did not possess such an ability, indicating that there was an internal collaborator working with Toro.
Thinking of this, the Third Hokage's gaze couldn't help but lightly glance at Fugaku Uchiha, who was sitting calmly.
The only ones capable of using genjutsu so skillfully, apart from the deceased Shinku Yuuhi, were likely the Uchiha clan members who had awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan.
Since the time before the Nine-Tails' attack, the Third Hokage had always had a faint feeling that the village was being secretly watched by an internal traitor.
The primary suspect was the Uchiha!
Noticing the Third Hokage's gaze, Fugaku Uchiha's brow furrowed slightly. He had the feeling he and his clan were going to be made the scapegoats again.
After a moment of silence, the Third Hokage finally made his decision: "Toro, the leader of the Cloud Village delegation, took advantage of the slight relaxation of vigilance after the peace talks to attempt to kidnap the Hyuga clan's heiress. He was already deserving of severe punishment! Although Tatsuya Akimichi accidentally killed him, it was also out of consideration for the village. We cannot hand him over to Cloud for punishment. However, in order to appease Cloud Village, we must provide a suitable way out. Tatsuya Akimichi will be punished with one month of confinement, to be carried out immediately! Shikaku, you will inform the Cloud Village delegation of the village's decision later. If Cloud Village declares war on Konoha because of this, then we will meet them head-on."
At the end, the Third Hokage's words were filled with killing intent.
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