Revitalizing the Uchiha clan starts with becoming a Kage.

"shadow!"

"Yes!"

The thought of the potential for serious consequences is unbearable.

The Third Hokage immediately summoned the ANBU member he had sent out the previous night to inform Orochimaru.

"You will immediately lead two squads directly to Orochimaru's residence. If any unexpected situations arise, conduct a thorough investigation immediately and report back as soon as possible. Understand?!"

Hiruzen looked at the brown-haired ANBU in front of him and said in a deep voice.

"Yes, Lord Third Generation!"

The powerful ANBU member lowered his head and replied. With Hiruzen's wave of his hand, he immediately left the spot and, after gathering two squads of ANBU members, rushed towards Orochimaru's residence.

After his own direct subordinates left.

The third generation leader was still uneasy, always feeling that something was about to happen, just as he decided to summon his two old partners again.

Danzo Shimura, however, arrived a step ahead of time.

With a gloomy expression, he told Hiruzen Sarutobi some shocking news.

"What did you say? The Uchiha clan seems to be making strange movements, behaving in some odd ways!? Are you sure about that, Danzo!?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi stood up, looking at Danzo with a very surprised expression, and asked in a slightly raised tone.

103. Beyond Words

The direct conflict broke out just yesterday.

The Uchiha clan has made unusual moves today? What are they planning? Are they really going to start a rebellion? At this critical juncture? Or did they prepare in advance? Was yesterday just an excuse?

Hiruzen Sarutobi thought to himself with a look of shock and anger.

But it was only for a second before other thoughts crossed his mind, causing the Third Hokage to suppress them for the time being. For one thing, there was no sign of any rebellion from the Uchiha clan in the past. They had even sent nearly a hundred clansmen to the front lines to fight. Judging from the feedback from Suzaku in Nara and the surveillance by the Anbu, the Uchiha clan had indeed not done anything wrong. If they were to do anything, it was only a last-minute decision made after yesterday.

Even so, there are still many problems. The most important point is that the person who reported this news was Danzo, not En or Koharu. This makes Hiruzen more cautious. Indeed, this dark figure of Root is too easily swayed by these matters and deliberately causes trouble.

"No, Danzo, the news from the Anbu is that the Uchiha clan is still maintaining its usual practices, and there haven't been any major personnel changes in the Security Department either. What information have you gathered? Do you have any evidence? Although we do need to be highly vigilant about the Uchiha clan, and it's time to deal with them, now is not the best time!"

The Third Hokage looked at Shimura Danzo with a very serious expression and spoke in an extremely low voice.

"Hmph, of course I know that. There's no concrete evidence yet, but the Root's surveillance footage shows some strange activity at the Uchiha clan's base. Some people seem to be preparing something. The routine operations of the Security Department are definitely covering something up. I'm pretty sure of that. Hiruzen, we've already made mistakes before, and we can't afford any more mistakes now!"

Danzo met Hiruzen's gaze without backing down, and the deliberate mention of the past in his last sentence caused Hiruzen's expression to freeze. He knew very well that Danzo was saying this on purpose to remind him that a second mistake in the matter of the Uchiha clan was unacceptable.

Although the Third Hokage himself understood this, his personality and style of doing things meant that he could not make the decision to wipe out the largest ninja clan in a village so easily. At least before completing the necessary preparations, he absolutely could not take that step, especially since the other side had not yet taken any substantial action and was only making some vague, illusory moves.

It is indeed very difficult to judge.

"I understand what you mean, Danzo, but we still need to be patient for now. You yourself said that the Uchiha clan hasn't taken any substantial action yet, so it's hard for us to have a reason to act. Most importantly, you should know how terrifying the Mangekyou Sharingan is. There's a high probability that it can be proven that Uchiha Shoji is not the mastermind behind this a year ago. This means that the Uchiha clan has two pairs of Mangekyou Sharingan! If we act without being fully prepared, even if we eventually wipe out the Uchiha clan, the village will definitely pay an extremely heavy price. This is a situation that neither of us wants to see!"

If it weren't for the fact that his own strength and the power of Root were indeed somewhat lacking, Danzo would have already recklessly charged forward on his own. Arrogance is one thing, but making a fool of himself is another. In dealing with the Uchiha clan, Danzo knew very well that he would definitely need the approval of the Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, before he could mobilize enough power to wipe out the Uchiha clan.

But Hiruzen Sarutobi's personality really annoyed Danzo!

At a point like this, what's the point of talking about being cautious?!

Eliminating the Uchiha clan is more important than anything else! As for losses or threats from other ninja villages, Danzo considers them minor issues.

But Hiruzen Sarutobi just wouldn't nod.

This made Danzo feel very frustrated.

"Hiss... Huff..."

"Alright, I understand what you mean, but you must prepare as soon as possible. I will have Root further monitor the Uchiha clan, Hiruzen. I hope you will be right this time!"

"Monitoring is fine, but Danzo, I don't want to see another disastrous turn of events. You understand what I mean? The village is already on the edge of a cliff. Any wrong step could have disastrous consequences!"

"Are you warning me!? Hiruzen!?"

Danzo's expression froze for a moment, then he asked back with a very gloomy look.

"No, this is just a reminder, Danzo!"

The Third Hokage shook his head solemnly and said...

"Hmph, I know!"

It was easy to tell that his best friend was indeed serious. Danzo's expression and attitude were still hard, but he had suppressed the little thoughts that had just emerged in his heart. The previous plan had gone smoothly. Although there was a slight problem with Orochimaru, who did not come to him immediately, it was not a big problem. He would still go along with the Third Hokage's wishes for the time being.

The key is to successfully eliminate the threat posed by the Uchiha clan. We must avoid any further accidents, as this is the last thing Danzo wants to see.

Of course, Danzo was unaware that Orochimaru had already defected from the village in the early hours of the morning. Unlike in the original story where he was discovered and fled, and was pursued by enemies, in this life, Orochimaru left the village with ease. As a high-ranking member of Konoha, a disciple of the Third Hokage, and one of the strongest contenders for the Fourth Hokage, Orochimaru's presence was impossible to detect through the sensory barrier and the patrols in the outer area.

It can be said that, at the same time.

Hiruzen and Danzo, these two 'best friends,' were both stood up.

As Hiruzen watched Danzo leave, he frowned slightly. He was quite worried that Danzo might do something strange. Danzo's unauthorized arrest of Uchiha clan members had already made Hiruzen very dissatisfied and suspicious.

Although the Uchiha clan's fate is irreversible, even if evidence is eventually found to prove that these events have nothing to do with the Uchiha clan, since they have already broken off relations, one side must be completely defeated.

But the thing is, the Third Hokage will not let go of the information that needs to be investigated, just like the current disappearance case. The truth of these matters will determine how Hiruzen Sarutobi should treat Danzo in the future.

Therefore, after Danzo left, Hiruzen immediately arranged for a group of Anbu to monitor Root members to prevent any further accidents.

These things will not be allowed until I am fully prepared.

104. Hiruzen Sarutobi's mentality completely shattered.

Of course, it's not limited to the root side.

As for the Uchiha clan, although Danzo might often make baseless accusations and deliberately use underhanded tactics, he could still be trusted at times, especially in the current special situation. Hiruzen didn't want any overly extreme scenarios to occur.

However, today was clearly not Hiruzen Sarutobi's lucky day. As the saying goes, one wave subsides only for another to rise. Just as he had finished arranging the relevant matters and dispatched a group of ANBU to carry out the corresponding mission, the ANBU squad leader who had been sent out earlier—the Shadow—returned on time. The news he brought back made the Third Hokage's expression instantly turn ferocious and distorted.

"What did you say?! You found a basement research lab in Orochimaru's house where forbidden human experiments were being conducted?! And all the subjects were people who had disappeared from the village?!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi stood up, leaning forward, and looked at the kneeling figure in front of him with a sharp and cold gaze. He spoke in an incredulous yet extremely sinister tone.

"Yes, Hokage. Based on the intelligence comparison within the Anbu, the cell extraction from these corpses, and the examination of some facial features, we can confirm this with 100% certainty. Furthermore, Orochimaru is confirmed to have left his home at 1 a.m. this morning. According to the traces, he has been heading east and has most likely already left the village!"

The dark squad leader known as Shadow was well aware of the significance of the information he was reporting. It was safe to say that if this news were made public, it would absolutely cause turmoil throughout the entire village!

The Hokage's disciple actually captured and killed his fellow villagers to use as material for forbidden human experiments. This is an absolutely heinous crime!

Therefore, Shadow dared not say anything more and could only try to state the facts in the most plain and concise way.

How to deal with one of Konoha's proudest Sannin is a question that must be decided by the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi!

At this moment, after learning this information, Hiruzen immediately connected it with the series of forbidden research and special experiments that Orochimaru had been involved in. In addition, he already knew that Orochimaru was related to Danzo in some experimental fields. He also thought about Danzo's strange behavior in the disappearance case, especially his decisive action against the Uchiha clan, and how he shifted all the blame for the disappearance case onto the Uchiha clan.

At this moment.

Hiruzen Sarutobi has figured everything out.

Orochimaru! Danzo!!

His ever-changing expression and turbulent inner world revealed not only his heartache for his most valued disciple, but also his anger and frustration towards his close friend Danzo. He truly hadn't expected his disciple to be so depraved and his friend to be so twisted—these were comrades from his own ninja village!

And it also involves the Uchiha clan!

At this point in time, Hiruzen understood everything. The Nine-Tails' attack was hard to say, but the disappearance was definitely a frame-up. However, as mentioned before, it was pointless to discuss these things now.

The Uchiha clan has broken ties with the village.

Shoji even displayed a power that could threaten the stability of the village. The 'Mangekyou Sharingan' is the most forbidden and evil power in the Uchiha clan, and it is also the source of power that can control tailed beasts!

Even for this reason, Hiruzen Sarutobi was well aware that he and his group were no longer able to reconcile with the Uchiha clan, or at least with the powerful adult members of the clan such as Shoji and Fugaku.

Even more terrifying.

From yesterday to today, Uchiha Shisui still hasn't come to explain anything, which forces Hiruzen Sarutobi to raise the threat level of the Uchiha clan by one level. Even though he now understands that all of this was caused by Danzo behind the scenes, he has no choice but to follow this path unless Hiruzen is willing to risk trusting the Uchiha clan again, but the probability of that is no higher than the sun rising in the west.

Even if the Uchiha clan had no past misdeeds, given Hiruzen Sarutobi's personality, he would absolutely not be able to do this; he is not the kind of person who would relinquish the initiative.

And the most important point is that...

Hiruzen Sarutobi, in essence, also believed that the Uchiha clan was 'evil,' but this was only because he was confident that he could control everything and believed that his personal charisma and abilities could control the Uchiha clan.

Now that this thin film has been punctured, all of this has become meaningless.

"Immediately dispatch personnel to investigate along the surrounding border areas, ensuring the investigation is conducted in small teams! Once we track down their movements..."

It is necessary to handle this.

However, when it came to this crucial moment, the Third Hokage still felt a slight hesitation. It wasn't that he was still doubting or anything; it was a stark reality that he was facing a real challenge—the decision to take action against his own disciple.

The Third Hokage still couldn't bear to do it.

However, this life is vastly different from the original story, presenting an uncontrollable and gradually collapsing situation.

A thousand thoughts raced through my mind in that instant.

After taking a deep breath, Hiruzen's eyes flashed with a resolute light: "Classify him as an S-rank rogue ninja, regardless of whether he lives or dies!"

The Third Hokage looked at the ANBU squad leader in front of him and said in a cold voice.

"Yes, Lord Hokage!"

Shadow lowered his head and replied, then leaped away and disappeared from the spot to carry out Hiruzen Sarutobi's latest order!

"Orochimaru..."

A mindset that's completely shattered.

Outsiders couldn't see it, but in reality, he was experiencing an overwhelming surge of emotions. It must be said that it was rare for the Third Hokage, who was nearly sixty years old, to be so moved or have his mindset drastically changed. However, the Orochimaru incident truly plunged the Third Hokage's emotions to rock bottom.

He simply couldn't believe that his most valued disciple would do such a thing. Forbidden research was nothing compared to this. Even research involving the First Hokage's Wood Release cells was Konoha's top research secret that had been going on for decades. But there was a condition: you can't use your own comrades from your own village as research material!

The crime of harming innocent comrades without cause is a heinous crime in any ninja village.

Moreover, Orochimaru's actions clearly lasted for a considerable period of time, involving more than ten or even more of his comrades. During the Third Shinobi World War, there were already sporadic cases of bizarre and inexplicable disappearances, but since it was during a major war and these were indeed isolated incidents, no one paid any attention to them.

The Third Hokage naturally didn't care.

In retrospect, all of this was foreshadowed, and the Third Hokage was perfectly able to tell that Danzo Shimura was behind all of this!

For a moment, the Third Hokage had an impulse to lead the Anbu directly to question Shimura Danzo.

But it was just an impulse.

In the village right now, Hiruzen Sarutobi knows better than anyone what is most important. Even though the seriousness of the situation is due to Danzo Shimura's reckless actions, Hiruzen Sarutobi has to suppress it.

This is Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage whom Konoha Village is "proud of".