Chapter 222: Cleansing the Rats
As Uchiha Akira's final words fell—the declaration of imminent war—the atmosphere in the entire High Council Chamber, which had been simmering with anticipation, finally boiled over.
It turned completely fanatical.
The conference room immediately erupted!
The extreme suppression of battle intent, the years of simmering resentment towards other villages, the sheer, intoxicating ambition of Akira's plan—it all completely exploded at this moment!
Many Jōnin stood up abruptly, slamming their hands on the table, their faces flushed with excitement and raw bloodlust!
The entire room hummed with a dangerous, barely contained energy!
"Unify the Shinobi World!"
"Under Lord Hokage!"
"For Konoha!"
"Very good."
Uchiha Akira smiled slightly, a cold, satisfied glint in his eyes.
He raised his hand and gently pressed it down, palm facing the floor.
The chaotic, roaring conference room instantly returned to absolute silence. Every eye—filled with awe and fanaticism—was fixed on him.
"However," Akira continued, his voice calm again, cutting through the thick tension, "before the war officially begins, we still have one crucial thing to do."
"All the contents of today's meeting—the plan, the targets, the timing—are Konoha's highest-level secrets."
"From the moment you walk out of this conference room, I do not wish to hear even the slightest rumor, the faintest whisper, related to it leaking out."
Akira's gaze swept across the room, meeting the eyes of every clan head, every Jōnin commander.
"Everyone present is a pillar of Konoha. And I have no doubt about your loyalty."
"However," his voice hardened, "to ensure the absolute, foolproof nature of the plan, before we go to war externally... we must first conduct a thorough internal cleanup."
"Cleanup?"
Nara Shikaku frowned slightly. His sharp mind instantly understood Akira's chilling meaning.
"Hokage-sama means... to clear out the internal spies? The nails planted within the village?"
"Precisely." Uchiha Akira nodded, his expression turning cold.
"Over the years, the other Great Shinobi Villages—Iwa, Kumo, Kiri, Suna—have planted many spies, many 'nails', within our Konoha. I believe everyone here is aware of that."
"Previously, due to various reasons—political sensitivities, lack of conclusive evidence, the Sandaime's... softness—we mostly turned a blind eye to these rats hiding in the walls."
Akira leaned forward, his voice serious. "But now, it's different."
"I will not have our shinobi fighting valiantly on the front lines, only for unnecessary casualties to occur in the rear due to intelligence leaks."
"Therefore," his voice dropped, becoming deadly serious, "these rats hidden in the shadows... they must all be cleaned up. Rooted out. Without a single one remaining!"
As soon as these words were spoken, the temperature in the conference room seemed to drop by several degrees. The earlier fanaticism was replaced by a cold, grim understanding.
Everyone present was a clan head or an Elite Jōnin from various prominent families. They, of course, knew how complicated Konoha's internal situation was. How deeply some roots ran.
Spies have always existed. It was a fact of life in the shinobi world.
They just hadn't expected the Godaime Hokage's methods to be so swift, so decisive, so... merciless.
This wasn't just surveillance. This was a purge.
"Hiashi."
Akira's gaze fell on Hyūga Hiashi, the stoic head of the Hyūga clan.
"Here," Hiashi immediately responded, his voice level.
"From this moment on, you will personally lead the operation. All members of the Hyūga Clan currently within the village are to be deployed. Activate their Byakugan."
Akira's orders were precise. "You will conduct indiscriminate, continuous surveillance of the entire Village. Every street, every building, every person."
"I want you to find every individual with abnormal chakra flow, suspicious behavior patterns, or unauthorized communication seals. Synchronize their locations in real-time with the Military Police Force."
"Yes, Hokage-sama!" Hiashi's reply was without the slightest hesitation. His clan's duty was clear.
The Byakugan, the ultimate dōjutsu for reconnaissance and insight, was perfectly suited for such a task. There would be nowhere to hide.
"Kenji."
Akira then looked at Uchiha Kenji, who stood silently, respectfully, behind him.
"Subordinate here!" Kenji knelt instantly.
"You will lead the entire Uchiha Military Police Force (Konoha Keimu Butai). Cooperate fully with the Anbu Black Ops and the T&I Department (Interrogation Division)."
[Inorin's Note: The Konoha Keimu Butai (Konoha Military Police Force) was traditionally led by the Uchiha clan before the massacre. Under Akira, it has been re-established and empowered.]
"Any suspicious targets marked by the Hyūga Clan are to be secretly apprehended. Immediately. No delays."
"Remember," Akira stressed, "it's a secret apprehension. Swift, silent, and clean. I don't want to cause any panic or unnecessary disruption in the Village."
"Once apprehended, send them directly to the Interrogation Division. They are to be handled by Yamanaka Inoichi."
"Yes!" A glint of fierce, loyal excitement flashed in Uchiha Kenji's eyes.
It was his honor to personally clean up these filthy rats for his Hokage-sama, and for the Uchiha Clan! This was their duty reborn.
"Inoichi."
"Here." Yamanaka Inoichi stood up, his expression already solemn, understanding the weight of his task.
"Your mission is the most important," Akira's voice became serious, almost grave.
"I want you to pry open the mouths of all captured spies. In the shortest possible time. Dig out all their intelligence networks, their handlers, their dead drops, and any potential accomplices or collaborators hiding behind them."
Akira looked directly at Inoichi. "I give you the highest authority. You can use any means necessary. Failure is not an option."
"Understood," Yamanaka Inoichi nodded grimly. His clan's mind-walking techniques would be pushed to their limits.
"As for everyone else," Akira scanned the room, his gaze resting on the remaining clan heads and Jōnin.
"From today onwards, strengthen the internal vigilance of all your clans and departments. Double the security. Trust no one outside your immediate circle."
"Externally, everything remains as usual. Maintain normal operations. Act as if this meeting was never held."
"Do you all understand?"
"YES, HOKAGE-SAMA!"
Everyone responded in unison, their voices filled with a chilling, unified determination.
"Meeting adjourned," Akira waved his hand.
Everyone rose, one after another, leaving the conference room with heavy steps and complex, grim emotions.
They filed out into the hallway, the weight of the Hokage's orders settling upon them.
From this moment on, perhaps the very history of the Shinobi World would be completely rewritten because of this meeting...
Night gradually deepened over Konoha.
The streets seemed as usual. Shops closed one after another, their lanterns extinguished. Villagers returning late hurried along the familiar paths, eager to reach the safety of their homes.
But if one observed carefully, if one had the senses of a trained shinobi... they would notice a faint, almost imperceptible tension tightening the air.
On the rooftops, cloaked in shadow, the number of patrolling Military Police members was three times higher than usual.
Moreover, every team was now a chillingly efficient combination: the penetrating gaze of the Hyūga, and the swift, decisive action of the Uchiha.
Inside an inconspicuous, popular ramen shop near the market district.
"Boss! Another bowl of tonkotsu ramen! Extra pork!" A drunken, off-duty Chūnin slurred, shouting towards the kitchen.
"Coming right up! Please wait, honored guest!"
The ramen shop owner, wearing a chef's hat and appearing honest and simple, with flour dusting his apron, enthusiastically responded. He turned to go into the back kitchen.
The moment he turned... the moment his back was exposed...
Two silent shadows appeared at the back kitchen door, materializing from nowhere.
"Byakugan." One was a Hyūga clansman. Veins bulged around his pure white eyes. "Target confirmed."
"This person's name is Hashimoto Takashi. Apparent identity: ramen shop owner. True identity: Iwagakure spy. Lurking in Konoha for twelve years."
"Received," the Uchiha clansman next to him nodded. His crimson 3-tomoe Sharingan instantly locked onto the target's back.
"Magen: Kasegui no Jutsu!" (Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique!)
[Inorin's Note: Magen: Kasegui no Jutsu is a Sharingan genjutsu that binds the opponent mentally, making them feel as if stakes have been driven through their limbs, immobilizing them.]
The ramen shop owner's body suddenly stiffened. Just as his instincts screamed, just as he was about to react... his eyes instantly became vacant.
His entire person seemed to be nailed to the spot, paralyzed, unable even to fall.
"Take him."
The two shadows moved. Supporting the ramen shop owner, who was now like a mindless puppet, they silently melted back through the rear exit.
The entire process was fluid, silent, and took less than three seconds. It did not alarm any of the noisy, drunken customers in the ramen shop.
Similar scenes were simultaneously playing out in various hidden corners of Konoha Village.
Inside an ordinary civilian house in a quiet residential district.
A woman, seemingly a simple housewife, was mending clothes under the soft glow of a lamp. Suddenly, she felt a sharp pang in her heart. A premonition.
She abruptly looked up, her needle dropping, gazing out the window.
The window was empty. There was only the rustling of wind through the leaves in her small garden.
Is it... a delusion?
A trace of deep unease flashed through her mind.
As a Sunagakure spy who had been lurking in Konoha for fifteen years, already indistinguishable from an ordinary villager, her intuition had saved her many times.
Tonight, this unease was stronger, colder, than ever before.
She made a decisive move. She put down her needlework, got up silently, walked to the bed, and lifted the heavy wooden bed board.
Beneath it, hidden under the tatami mats, was a pre-prepared escape tunnel.
Without hesitation, she immediately slipped inside, pulling the board back into place above her.
She crawled quickly through the dark, damp earth.
However, just as she thought she was about to escape, just as she saw the faint moonlight at the tunnel's exit...
At the very end of the tunnel, a pair of crimson 3-tomoe Sharingan slowly lit up in the darkness.
"I've been waiting for you."
The cold, Uchiha voice was the last thing she ever heard.
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