Chapter 218:The Hokage's Choice
At night, Homura Mitokado found the Hokage Office still brightly lit. Hiruzen Sarutobi was still in the Hokage Building and hadn't left.
After knocking and entering, he curiously asked Hiruzen Sarutobi why.
He was surprised to learn the shocking information from the Hokage.
Homura Mitokado also fell into a brief silence.
After a long time, he said to Hiruzen Sarutobi with a somewhat complex expression: "Hiruzen, since the truth has been thoroughly investigated, are you going to announce it publicly? I worry that you might be overstimulated today and not thinking clearly, so I need to remind you."
"If you announce it publicly, the reputations of Sarutobi Nadoko and the two other Sarutobi clan members will definitely plummet. Even the entire Sarutobi clan's reputation will take a hit. After all, the actions of those three are no different from those of a missing-nin."
"But if you don't announce it publicly, how will you suppress the anger within the Sarutobi clan, and the current antagonism between the Sarutobi clan and Absolute Justice, Hiruzen? This antagonism will only breed more young people who take impulsive actions."
Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep breath, his face equally complex: "The Old Man knows he has to make a choice." The two options Homura Mitokado presented each had pros and cons.
It depended on what sacrifices he, the Hokage of Konoha, was willing to make.
If he chose the former, he, Hiruzen Sarutobi, would probably become a dog for Absolute Justice within the Sarutobi clan. His status in the Sarutobi clan might become similar to Fugaku's.
Although he possessed greater authority and prestige than Fugaku, isolation and estrangement from his clan members were certain.
If he chose the latter, when Ikeizumi Uchiha returned, Hiruzen Sarutobi dared not imagine how much trouble that young man would cause.
As this thought flashed through his mind, Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately knew how to choose.
"Announce it publicly!"
He sighed.
Homura Mitokado nodded: "Hiruzen, you should rest for the next two days. You look unwell. You need to take two days off. The Old Man will handle this for you."
Hiruzen Sarutobi thanked him: "Thank you, Homura. At a time like this, you are probably the only one in all of Konoha who would willingly help the Old Man bear this pressure and not cause more trouble."
Homura Mitokado caught a hint of dissatisfaction in Hiruzen Sarutobi's tone regarding Koharu Utatane's ability to manage affairs.
True.
Since Koharu Utatane took over Danzo Shimura's Root organization, she hadn't managed many things well.
Especially when it came to Absolute Justice.
Koharu Utatane had botched it every time. Her capabilities were even worse than Danzo's.
Not long after, somewhere in the ninja world.
"This should be the location where Lord Ikeizumi and Orochimaru fought, right? Even after a day and a night, the air in this area still has a strong smell of sulfur."
Three Uchiha ninja arrived at the battle-scarred wasteland.
As far as the eye could see, the area was covered with traces of solidified magma, volcanic rock, and scorched earth.
The visible area ahead had turned into a barren land, with no vegetation growing. Even if there had been plants, they were probably long since incinerated by the magma.
"The scale of the battle is extremely exaggerated."
One Uchiha Jonin, with one hand in his pocket, said expressionlessly: "If this area of effect were superimposed over Konoha, the entire village would probably be annihilated in this great battle. Who knows how many tens of thousands of casualties there would be among civilians and ninja combined."
Another Uchiha ninja, carrying a cloth bag emitting a faint smell of quicklime, asked doubtfully: "So, where is Lord Ikeizumi now? Has he killed Orochimaru?"
Just as his voice trailed off, the three men's pupils suddenly contracted.
They quickly became vigilant, all looking in the same direction.
In their line of sight, a figure was walking toward them unhurriedly.
It was Ikeizumi Uchiha, whom the three of them were waiting for!
"It took some time to return here from Ryūchi Cave." Before the three could even ask questions, Ikeizumi Uchiha stated directly: "Orochimaru is dead, and incidentally, the entire Ryūchi Cave was also cleansed by me. Now, what about the mission I gave you? Did you deal with the great merchant Gatō?"
The three Uchiha ninja: "!!!"
Lord Ikeizumi's results in executing justice far exceeded their expectations.
They thought he had only killed Orochimaru. They never expected he had actually purged Ryūchi Cave, one of the three Sage Regions.
Surely this won't offend the White Snake Sage?
However...
This is precisely why they willingly follow Ikeizumi Uchiha!
Daring to challenge any powerful existence for the sake of justice!
"We dealt with him." The Uchiha ninja holding the cloth bag opened it, revealing Gatō's head, frozen in an expression of terror. The head had been specially treated for easier preservation; keeping it for ten days to half a month was no problem.
Ikeizumi Uchiha glanced at it dismissively.
"Let's return to the village."
He added one final sentence: "The three of you have passed the test. The ninja world needs you to execute Absolute Justice."
Land of Rain.
Juzo Biwa felt his situation was somewhat dangerous.
That woman Konan, who was bullying him in the workplace, pretended not to mind him getting too close to Ikeizumi Uchiha, but who knew what the true intentions of that scheming woman were?
Especially when he realized that Ikeizumi Uchiha was already wanted by the Akatsuki organization, and he was kept in the dark by those people.
Juzo Biwa knew he could be a pawn at any moment.
He could be placed on the Akatsuki's assassination list at any time.
They would discard him at any moment, or rather, clean house.
As for the reason to kill him, Juzo Biwa?
In an extreme organization like this, did they need a reason to clean house?
"Ikeizumi Uchiha, we can't stay in the Land of Rain any longer!" Juzo Biwa immediately said to Ikeizumi Uchiha's Wood Clone: "I can't guarantee when they will classify me as an enemy. And I am exposed, they are concealed. If they want to kill me, it would be as easy as turning over their hand."
The Wood Clone glanced at him, saying flatly: "Where you go is irrelevant to the main body. The main body did not restrict your freedom. Why do you have the misconception that you need to report to the main body wherever you go?"
The Wood Clone's words made Juzo Biwa freeze for a moment.
He remained silent for a full ten seconds, then stood up expressionlessly, shouldering his Kubikiribōchō.
Juzo Biwa seemed a little embarrassed.
He turned and walked away without a word.
However, before he had walked a few steps, a voice suddenly reached them: "Lord Sasori, the target has been found. But are you sure you don't need to wait for reinforcements from the other Lords in the organization?"
Immediately after, another voice rang out: "There's no need for such a fuss to deal with one Konoha ninja. Furthermore, we've already gathered most of the intelligence on him. His Dōjutsu is useless against my puppets."
"And I don't like to wait."
When Juzo Biwa and Ikeizumi Uchiha's Wood Clone looked simultaneously toward the source of the voices.
They saw two figures standing nearby in that direction.
Their gaze was firmly locked on Juzo Biwa and the Wood Clone.
"—That guy!"
Juzo Biwa's pupils slightly contracted. He recognized one of the individuals. He immediately gripped his Kubikiribōchō, adopting a stance ready to fight, his eyes filled with vigilance and dread.
"That guy is one of the core executives of the Akatsuki organization! He keeps himself covered in very thick clothing, and I don't know his true nature, only that his codename is Gyokun (Jewel)!"
Juzo Biwa immediately shared the information he knew with the Wood Clone.
He had no choice.
Aside from Ikeizumi Uchiha's Wood Clone, he was practically alone, isolated, and helpless! Now, he could only rely on the Wood Clone.
"The other guy is not a core executive member of the Akatsuki organization but 'Gyokun's' subordinate. I remember this guy talking to me when I first joined Akatsuki; he was clearly trying to pump me for information. He said his name was Kabuto, but he didn't give his surname."
Juzo Biwa said warily: "This kind of guy clearly has a deep inner scheme. On the surface, he presents a kind and somewhat clumsy appearance. But how many people who join this organization are genuinely kind? The clumsy ones are already dead!"
Just then, he suddenly heard the Wood Clone next to him slowly speak: "One is Sasori of the Red Sand, and the other is Kabuto Yakushi."
Juzo Biwa was momentarily confused.
Huh?
How did he know?
But he immediately realized—Right! That guy, Ikeizumi Uchiha, knows more details about the Akatsuki organization than I do, an actual member of Akatsuki!
He heard the Wood Clone continue calmly, even directly revealing the hidden secret intelligence of the two men in front of them: "The one on the left, Sasori of the Red Sand, is from Sunagakure and is a genius puppeteer. His appearance is only a puppet, and his true body is inside that puppet shell."
"The one on the right, Kabuto Yakushi, is a spy planted by Orochimaru within the Akatsuki organization. Orochimaru placed him under Sasori to gather more intelligence on the Akatsuki organization."
"Evidently, Sasori of the Red Sand is unaware of this. He truly believes Kabuto Yakushi is his capable subordinate."
Juzo Biwa: "???"
Wait—
Isn't your intelligence a little too detailed? Haven't you just exposed the entire background of the two people opposite us? If you were to give even more detail, like revealing their abilities and weaknesses, Juzo Biwa felt he might even have a chance to assassinate these two. In fact, his chances of success might be quite high.
Juzo Biwa took a deep breath, pushing aside the chaotic thoughts in his mind. He said: "So, they are here to hunt you?"
The Wood Clone replied: "Maybe you, too. Otherwise, why wouldn't they inform you in advance so you could attack me from the inside?"
Juzo Biwa: "...Can you be a little more tactful next time? You make me look stupid. I'm just a little flustered; otherwise, I would have figured it out myself."
Meanwhile, inside the Kamui dimension.
"Obito! Obito!" The Spiral Zetsu immediately shouted when it saw Obito enter the Kamui dimension: "Black Zetsu isn't yelling anymore!"
Obito Uchiha was slightly startled, then his expression immediately darkened, a hint of gloom in his eyes: "Did he not make it in the end? It seems the Dōjutsu of that Ikeizumi Uchiha's eye can not only inflict endless pain but also kill people. I must be even more cautious of his Mangekyō Sharingan in the future."
"Huh?"
The Spiral Zetsu was stunned, scratching its non-existent hair. It said: "That's not what I meant!"
A sudden voice slowly sounded behind Obito.
The voice was filled with unprecedented exhaustion and listlessness.
"The effect of Ikeizumi Uchiha's left Mangekyō Dōjutsu is over. Although I didn't die, I was nearly tortured to death. That pain is hard to describe with any current language. In short—I never want to experience his Dōjutsu a second time."
Obito immediately turned his head, seeing a puddle of black liquid slumped weakly on the ground, revealing only a pair of eyes and a mouth.
Obito also saw Black Zetsu sticking out its tongue and rolling its eyes.
This was the first time he had seen Black Zetsu display such a "broken" expression.
If it were accompanied by two peace signs, it would be even more fitting.
Obito immediately shook his head at this sudden, strange thought, internally cursing the deep influence that the weird manga books he curiously read in his youth had on him.
After Black Zetsu finished speaking, it took a long time to recover before continuing: "Obito—Ikeizumi Uchiha must be eliminated somehow. He will become the biggest obstacle to our plan."
Obito let out a soft cold snort, saying: "I was already doing that without your reminder. Now, the Akatsuki organization has already made Ikeizumi Uchiha its number one hunting target!"
Black Zetsu paused, then said: "You made the correct decision."
Its subtext was: You finally grew a brain. It wasn't easy!
However, Obito clearly didn't pick up on the subtext. He even lifted a confident corner of his mouth because of Black Zetsu's "praise."
On the other side.
"Lord Sasori, what should we do about him?"
Kabuto Yakushi adjusted the round-framed glasses on his nose. The light reflecting off the lenses prevented Sasori from clearly seeing the expression in Kabuto's eyes.
Sasori said coldly: "If he's not in the way, then leave him alone; if he's in the way, deal with him too."
As his voice fell.
Sasori, controlling Hiruko, took out two scrolls. As the scrolls were opened, thrown forward, and followed by two puffs of white smoke, two bizarre-looking puppets suddenly appeared before them.
Sasori's voice followed: "That slimy, disgusting snake thinking he can get Ikeizumi Uchiha's body is a pipe dream. Who would hand over a ninja body with multiple Kekkei Genkai to a guy with no artistic sense to research?"
"After killing Ikeizumi Uchiha, I will use his body to create an even more perfect puppet. Heh, let's use these two puppets to test the opponent's abilities."
Listening to Sasori's complaints and slights toward Orochimaru, a trace of an expression, difficult to detect, flashed across Kabuto Yakushi's face.
"Hmph. The one who is truly disregarded by Lord Orochimaru is you, Sasori of the Red Sand! You are completely being played in the palm of the Lord's hand, yet you are utterly unaware."
You are still too young.
.............
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