The patriarchs of various shinobi clans had just arrived. They stared at Naraku, and he stared back—but no one spoke. A collective breath was drawn.
They had all been waiting for this moment.
"ABSURD!" the Third Hokage barked, unwilling to allow the tide to turn against him. As Naraku opened his mouth to speak again, Hiruzen shouted:
"Hyuga Naraku, you attacked a village elder without permission or valid cause. Now you dare to slander him? ANBU, seize him!"
"Yes!" an ANBU operative responded, stepping forward.
"Wait a moment," Hiashi Hyuga interjected, activating his Byakugan.
"Why, Patriarch Hiashi? Are you going to betray the village too?" Hiruzen asked with a grim expression.
"That's not true." Hiashi remained firm. His glowing Byakugan eyes focused on Danzo's right hand. "What Naraku said is true. There is an unusual chakra signature in Danzo's right hand."
A member of the Sarutobi clan standing beside him closed his eyes and used their secret technique to sense chakra flow. After a moment, he nodded in agreement.
"There is indeed a strong chakra reaction," the Sarutobi elder confirmed, "and it does not match Elder Danzo's original chakra signature."
"And more!" Fugaku Uchiha stepped forward. "Elder Danzo, what exactly are those eyes on your right hand?"
Danzo's right hand was wrapped in bandages, but beneath them were three sealed eyes. Fugaku recognized it immediately—Sharingan. It was the Uchiha clan's forbidden dojutsu technique: Izanagi.
"I want to know," Fugaku demanded, "why Elder Danzo has Sharingan from our clan?"
Each Sharingan was considered sacred. Years ago, when Obito Uchiha entrusted his Sharingan to his comrade Kakashi, it had already caused significant unrest among the clan elders.
"Is it possible Elder Danzo secretly killed Uchiha clan members?" Fugaku's voice turned sharp.
The thought crossed everyone's mind. No one believed Danzo had acquired the eyes through honorable means.
Danzo remained silent for a moment before raising his bandaged hand, revealing the closed Sharingan. "Do you have any proof these are actual Sharingan?"
The three eyes had lost their light, likely used up through Izanagi. Without activation, there was no immediate proof that they were indeed Uchiha Sharingan.
Yet Fugaku's fury grew. He knew—these were real.
Danzo hadn't just stolen their dojutsu; he had used them. Desecrated them as tools of resurrection.
Even Fugaku, known for his cold composure, couldn't accept such sacrilege.
"Lord Hokage, this is Sharingan. I request Elder Danzo be punished accordingly," Fugaku said firmly. "Moreover, he defiled the body of the First Hokage. This crime must be punished by death!"
The Third Hokage scowled, clearly displeased by Fugaku's tone.
"Don't be ridiculous!" Hiruzen snapped. "A chakra reaction doesn't prove he used the First Hokage's cells!"
"And those eyes—we have no confirmation they're actually Sharingan! I will assign the ANBU to investigate, and you'll have your answers in due time."
Naraku sneered and moved toward Danzo. "No need. I'll provide the evidence myself."
He struck Danzo's right arm with a quick burst of chakra, disrupting the delicate balance of Yin and Yang inside.
"AAAHHHHHH!!"
Danzo howled in agony as his arm began to swell grotesquely.
Whoosh!
Green vines burst from his arm. In an instant, a tree began to grow out of it.
"This is…!" someone gasped. "The Wood Release!"
The final shred of doubt was gone. No one but the First Hokage possessed the power of Wood Style.
"Lord Third," Shikaku Nara spoke up, "I recall that Elder Danzo was not part of the official experiments involving the First Hokage's cells."
The audience, all high-ranking officials, knew of those secret trials. They had all failed. The subjects died.
But here was Danzo, clearly having survived—and now growing a tree from his arm.
"Lord Third, I believe it's now obvious," said Shibi Aburame. "Danzo has secretly experimented with Lord Hashirama's cells. The evidence is literally growing from his body."
Shibi's brother stepped forward, his face grave. "Danzo attacked Naraku again today. This is not the first time. I support immediate execution."
Danzo, now pinned to the tree that had grown from his own flesh, writhed in agony.
"Enough!" Hiruzen thundered. "You cannot execute an elder on such a basis!"
He forced himself to calm down and addressed the crowd:
"The ANBU will fully investigate. You will receive a fair explanation."
"Is there anything else unclear?" asked Shibi's brother quietly. His son, Shino, had joined Root to protect their clan. That decision had been difficult.
"I demand punishment for Danzo—and the complete dissolution of Root," the elder said, his eyes hidden behind glasses and a wide-brimmed hat.
"His opinion is mine as well," Shibi added softly. He owed his brother and son deeply.
"The Nara clan agrees," Shikaku chimed in. Many from his clan had been forced into Root.
One by one, clan after clan gave their support.
Danzo Shimura—once a shadowy pillar of Konoha—had finally been exposed.