Early February. The chill of winter had yet to fade, but faint signs of spring were already emerging.
Treading across the wilderness where green shoots had begun to sprout, Kosuke led Aozora's group back into Konoha.
When they had barely reached the village gates, Hagane Kotetsu and Chuyue Shenyun—who now served as guards—blocked their path.
Seeing that Aozora and his companions bore no restraints whatsoever, Hagane Kotetsu and Chuyue Shenyun exchanged glances before saying, "The Hokage is waiting for you at the Hokage Tower!"
The group picked up their pace again and soon entered the Hokage Tower, heading straight into the small meeting room.
Kosuke went directly to his seat. Hiruzen Sarutobi, Koharu Utatane, and Torifu Akimichi were already seated there.
Koharu Utatane looked at Aozora and his two unrestrained companions with evident confusion, glancing toward Kosuke.
Hiruzen Sarutobi also briefly showed surprise in his eyes, but calmly took a puff from his pipe before saying, "Report everything about your mission execution in full."
Aozora nodded and recounted every detail exactly as it had happened.
After he finished speaking, The Third said flatly, "You three may leave first. We will discuss further and then issue our judgment."
Having had several previous schemes ruined by Aozora's sharp words, The Third clearly knew that keeping Aozora here would only cause more trouble.
Although unwilling, Aozora understood he wasn't qualified to participate in discussions among Konoha's leadership, so he left together with Guy and Junping.
As soon as they exited, Aozora immediately channeled chakra into his right eye, only to discover that Yin Eye abilities were blocked by the barrier surrounding the meeting room.
Once Aozora was gone, Kosuke blurted out, "That's what happened—the three of them were framed."
Beside him, Torifu added, "They're all Konoha Jonin—one even lured Orochimaru away alone to protect the camp. Another has a father who killed four of the Seven Swords of the Bloody Mist. And the third has accumulated many merits over the years. These three deserve our trust."
Listening to their statements, Koharu Utatane didn't openly express agreement, but gave a slight nod.
Hiruzen listened without a word, puffing slowly on his pipe while the rising smoke obscured his face.
After everyone had spoken, Hiruzen finally set down his pipe and said slowly, "Kosuke, I'm willing to believe you—and also willing to believe Aozora and the others.
But the problem remains—they were responsible for guarding areas near Kyoto. Plus, one of the Daimyo's Guardian Shinobi witnessed their presence and confirmed they attacked 'Autumn Leaf Collection'."
At this point, hesitation crossed Hiruzen's face. He placed a document on the table and continued, "Over the past two years, we've been rebuilding Konoha while fending off an invasion from Hidden Cloud (Kumo). Our village finances have become extremely difficult. This year brings an even greater threat—Iwagakure… If the Daimyo (lord) cuts our budget in half…"
While speaking, Hiruzen sighed deeply, clearly struggling with the situation.
The document was passed around among Torifu and the other three.
Looking at the long list of major expenditures alongside minimal income, the Konoha leaders suddenly fell silent.
Bang!
A loud slamming sound broke through the meeting room's silence. Torifu scanned the three people before him and declared, "Our top priority now is identifying who framed Aozora and his companions!"
Aozora had mentioned that the Anbu were impersonating Kosuke's orders, and later those same Anbu attacked them.
Pausing slightly, Torifu looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi and asked, "Hiruzen, have the Anbu been thoroughly cleansed? Could there still be spies loyal to Danzo among them?"
Kosuke nodded. "Especially that Bobcat who was severely wounded by Aozora. Investigate his background thoroughly!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi remained silent for a moment before nodding. "I will personally reevaluate the entire Anbu force and also investigate who framed Aozora and his group."
Then he paused and asked, "So then, what should we do about Uchiha Aozora and the other two?"
Torifu replied, "They haven't committed any wrongdoings, so why must they be dealt with?"
Koharu Utatane shook her head in disagreement. "While logically we should trust Uchiha Aozora and the others, as the saying goes, you can't judge a book by its cover. Since they're under strong suspicion now, how can we just do nothing?"
"What Koharu says makes sense," Hiruzen Sarutobi agreed.
After a brief pause, he volunteered, "According to the rules, they should be imprisoned. However, considering their past contributions, I suggest placing them under house arrest temporarily while being monitored by the Anbu. What do you think?"
After hearing this, Torifu and the other three considered it briefly before finally nodding in agreement.
With the four now in agreement, they summoned Aozora and the other two, announcing their punishment.
Hiruzen's gaze swept gently across the three of them. "Please bear with this situation for a while. I'll clear your names as soon as possible."
Upon hearing this, Guy immediately responded, "No problem at all! I trust the Hokage!"
Aozora stayed quiet briefly, then met the eyes of each of the four leaders before saying, "I believe in Konoha, and I believe in all of you!"
Ping echoed Aozora's words, declaring, "I believe in Konoha, and I believe in all of you!"
After announcing their punishment, each of the three exited the Hokage Tower accompanied by two Anbu members.
Just after descending the Hokage Tower steps, Aozora saw Kyudai and Itachi already waiting for him.
Seeing the two Anbu following Aozora, Itachi expressed concern, asking, "Sensei?"
Aozora smiled. "Bodyguards assigned by the Hokage!"
However, before Itachi and Kyudai could appreciate Aozora's humor, one of the Anbu stated plainly, "We've been ordered to monitor you!"
Aozora shrugged helplessly before walking home together with them.
Noticing Kyudai hesitating, Aozora directly said, "Say whatever is on your mind. No need to hold back, since I have nothing to hide!"
Seeing this, Kyudai proceeded to explain the recent rumors circulating around the village.
Aozora shook his head slightly upon hearing this. Was Hiruzen trying to destroy him like what happened to Sakumo Hatake?
But then again, he had already mastered the first layer of [Lightning-Fire Golden Body]—his skin was literally tough enough to block knives!
Still, Aozora had no intention of letting these rumors spread unchecked. After thinking for a moment, he directly told Kyudai, "Spreading false rumors among villagers won't help. We shouldn't shut people down, but we should help them understand better."
Kyudai caught on quickly and asked excitedly, "Should we spread the word about your achievements?"
Aozora nodded thoughtfully. Then he shook his head slightly and said, "Yes, promotion is needed—not only for us three, but also for Might Duy and Sakumo Hatake's stories."
"Especially emphasize the promotion of Sakumo Hatake—we must help redeem his reputation!"
Sakumo Hatake had originally been driven to suicide by public opinion. Re-promoting him now could easily lead sharp minds to suspect manipulation through propaganda, and even make neutral villagers watch their words more carefully.
Kyudai and Itachi soon departed, while two Anbu operatives conveyed Aozora's words directly to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Hiruzen Sarutobi listened to the report, shook his head with a faint smile, but made no further response.
The next day, among Konoha's townsfolk, rumors began circulating about Aozora's group both committing atrocities against civilians and performing heroic deeds.
Before long, the villagers couldn't tell what was true and what was false anymore.
Time quickly moved forward to Friday, and Konoha's high-level meeting commenced as scheduled.
At the conclusion of the meeting, Hiruzen had his assistant distribute documents to each Jonin present.
"Jonin Might Guy, Tokubetsu Jonin Junping Uchiha and Uchiha Aozora are suspected of murdering innocent civilians, which has greatly angered the Feudal Lord. He might reduce this year's budget allocation accordingly, so I've prepared an emergency plan."
Everyone accepted the thick documents, which detailed everything from commoner taxes and infrastructure plans to ninja welfare programs and departmental budgets.
Being all ninja present, they immediately flipped to examine the mission reward distribution section.
Upon seeing the village's commission rate increase from 30% to 50%, the meeting room exploded into chaos.
Meanwhile, senior officials from various departments saw their allocated budgets slashed by more than half, causing their faces to darken considerably.
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