Onoki's reply had not yet arrived.
In order to reduce the impact of the rumors in the Land of Wind, Hiruzen Sarutobi could only have the fake Jiraiya "perform," creating the appearance that he and Jiraiya were on harmonious terms.
At the same time, he secretly sent people to guide public opinion.
"What kind of joke is this? How could Hokage-sama possibly sell out one of his own?"
"If that were true, would Jiraiya-sama still have such a good relationship with Hokage-sama?"
"Use your brains and think."
"Don't believe every rumor you hear. Don't let others influence you."
"You must have the ability to think independently."
…
A figure quickly ran toward Shimura Danzo.
"Danzo-sama!"
"What is it?"
Danzo had been in a good mood recently.
He knew about Jiraiya's disappearance.
He had also seen the gap between Orochimaru and Hiruzen Sarutobi grow larger and larger.
In Danzo's view, his opportunity might very well be coming.
"In all things, prosperity gives way to decline."
"Hiruzen, your good days should be coming to an end."
"And my situation is already bad enough. What comes next will be my chance to turn things around against the wind."
"Everything you have will become mine."
Danzo seemed to already see the grand spectacle of Hiruzen Sarutobi and Orochimaru both suffering heavy losses while he stepped onto the stage.
"Danzo-sama, I found this."
This former Root ninja took out an envelope.
"What is it?"
"A suicide note."
"A suicide note? What is there to see in a suicide note?"
Danzo frowned.
"Danzo-sama, this suicide note is different. It is Hyuga Hizashi's suicide note. I compared the handwriting and confirmed it was personally written by him. In the note, apart from many accusations against the main family and Konoha…"
"There is also a description of the incident involving Jiraiya's betrayal."
"The one who passed the intelligence to Sunagakure was none other than Hyuga Hizashi himself."
"He originally thought that after completing this mission, he would receive Hiruzen Sarutobi's reward and use the Hokage's power to change his fate as a member of the Hyuga branch family. But he never expected that what awaited him was death."
Danzo's pupils constricted.
"Hyuga Hizashi? Jiraiya's intelligence was sold that early?"
"Hiruzen truly made good calculations!"
"Did he already want Jiraiya dead even back then?"
"And he had Hyuga Hizashi do such a thing. Not only did he give him no reward, he even killed the man."
The former Root ninja opposite him said,
"Exactly. Something this excessive—even you, Danzo-sama, could not do it."
Danzo: "???"
Seeing Danzo's expression turn strange, the former Root ninja finally realized he had misspoken and hurriedly lowered his head.
"Danzo-sama, that is not what I meant. My loyalty to you can be witnessed by the sun and moon. Otherwise, I would not have come to you immediately after obtaining this suicide note."
Only then did Danzo's expression improve a little.
"You have indeed done well in this matter. This is a great achievement."
"I, Danzo, have always rewarded people according to their merit."
"However, I cannot reward you immediately. Do you have the patience to wait?"
The former Root ninja hurriedly shook his head.
"No problem, Danzo-sama. I am not in a hurry."
Danzo nodded.
"You may go back first. I need to properly consider how to handle this matter."
"Yes, Danzo-sama."
Watching the other party leave, Danzo held the suicide note and fell into thought.
If this suicide note was released, it would inevitably stir up a huge wave. Of course, Danzo could imagine how Hiruzen Sarutobi would respond once the suicide note was exposed.
Nothing more than denial.
He would deny the authenticity of the suicide note.
He would claim this suicide note had been forged by another shinobi village.
But there would definitely still be an impact.
However, Danzo was not satisfied with only that.
"If the impact is merely this small, then it would be far too unworthy of this suicide note."
"Hiruzen, since you are unkind, I can only be unjust."
Danzo decided to make this matter even larger.
"Send the edited original version of this suicide note to Sunagakure. Send samples of Hyuga Hizashi's usual handwriting to Sunagakure as well."
"After that, first spread copied edited versions of this suicide note near Konoha."
"I refuse to believe that after this, Hiruzen, you can still sit peacefully in the Hokage's seat!"
Danzo looked toward the Hokage Building, a cold ruthlessness appearing in his eyes.
"In the past, I would never have done something like this."
"But you forced me."
"You forced me to do this."
"You stripped me of my position as elder and confined me to the Shimura clan."
"If there were any other choice, I would never do something that harms Konoha like this."
"I love this village too much."
"For the village, I can sacrifice everything."
"But now, Hiruzen, your existence is an extremely terrible thing for the village."
"To drive you down from the Hokage's position, allowing the village to suffer a little injury is acceptable."
"And this will not damage the foundation."
"With the Hyuga clan's usual style, they will still remain in Konoha."
"They do not have the courage to rebel."
"This will only affect you, Hiruzen."
Just as Hiruzen Sarutobi received Onoki's reply—
The rumor Danzo had designed also began spreading near Konoha at the same time.
Copied edited versions of Hyuga Hizashi's suicide note appeared in various places.
"What is this?"
"A suicide note?"
"Hyuga Hizashi's suicide note?"
"Who is Hyuga Hizashi?"
At times like this, people Danzo had arranged would secretly explain.
They explained Hyuga Hizashi's identity as a member of the branch family.
They explained what Hyuga Hizashi had done.
—He had done dirty work for Hiruzen Sarutobi and sold Jiraiya's intelligence to Sunagakure.
But Hiruzen Sarutobi had failed to fulfill the conditions he promised Hyuga Hizashi. Instead, he had killed Hyuga Hizashi in an attempt to bury this secret forever.
This edited version of the suicide note emphasized Hiruzen Sarutobi's problem above all.
It did not mention the others in Konoha.
Even the parts where Hyuga Hizashi accused the Hyuga main family had been greatly reduced.
"Why edit it?"
"Because the one I want to target is Hiruzen, not Konoha."
"That way, the negative impact on the village can be minimized."
Danzo was quite satisfied with the operation he had planned.
"This control over degree is an ability Hiruzen does not possess."
"If I were Hokage, how could Konoha possibly have fallen to its current state?"
"Hiruzen, you are the true sinner."
People discussed it one after another.
"Even a suicide note has appeared. This can't be fake, right?"
"I never expected Hokage-sama to truly be this kind of person."
"Then why is Jiraiya-sama still so close to Hokage-sama?"
"Because Jiraiya doesn't know the inside story?"
"Or is Jiraiya-sama enduring his grievances and cooperating with Hokage-sama for the sake of the village?"
"If that's the case, Jiraiya-sama's sacrifice is far too great."
"He is too noble."
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