Naruto: I Roamed the Ninja World as a Woman

Chapter 122 What will become of our Konoha in the end? (Sad)

It was already very late at night.

But the Hokage Building remained brightly lit, and many people couldn't sleep at all.

On the top floor of the building, the door to the Hokage's office was tightly closed, with wisps of smoke occasionally drifting out.

The somber atmosphere was so palpable.

So much so that when an office worker occasionally passes by carrying documents, they wish they could flatten themselves into a line and inch their way past the wall, for fear of being affected by the important figures inside.

On the other side of the door.

The large office was now full of people, even more than during the afternoon's talks.

Sakumo Hatake was a good ninja.

Although the Root base by the Naka River had been sealed and destroyed by the "Outer Four Symbols Sealing Technique", he still brought back enough evidence from Danzo and other Root ninjas!

Survivors who have experienced it firsthand.

There are signs of battle left at the scene.

There are remnants of the experimental logs.

There was even a very complete Wood Release experiment advancement plan titled "Three Years to Sprout, Five Years to Mature" —

In short, all the evidence collected so far indicates that Danzo had been planning the Wood Release cell experiment for a long time!

The evidence is irrefutable!

Under the pressure of this irrefutable evidence, Konoha's internal efficiency was pushed to its limit.

In less than three hours, an emergency meeting to deal with Danzo and Wood Release was officially held here!

Hiruzen Sarutobi, seated in the main seat, looked around.

Not to mention powerful clans like the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, Uchiha, and Hyuga, even small ninja clans like the Gekko and Kurama, which have never had much of a presence, sent their clan leaders or elders.

In addition, there was a large number of civilian Jonin, led by Yuhi Shinku and Kato Dan.

It's no exaggeration to say that these people represent more than 85 percent of Konoha's power!

Everyone's face was solemn, and everyone's eyes were filled with disappointment!

Danzo, you have truly incurred the wrath of the masses this time!

The Third Hokage sighed inwardly.

Actually, there's another piece of news that I'm not sure whether to call good or bad.

That is, none of Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya's three disciples came—

At least I, as the teacher, won't lose face in front of my student anymore.

"I'm sure everyone already knows what happened."

Hiruzen Sarutobi tapped his pipe, took a deep breath, and said, "So I won't repeat myself here!"

Swish swish!

The moment the sound rang out, countless gazes flew towards them.

For the first time in his life, Hiruzen Sarutobi understood exactly what it meant to feel like "sitting on pins and needles"!

From his time as the Third Hokage to the present, over the years, he has gradually become accustomed to being the center of attention.

But only this time did he feel uneasy and uncomfortable!

It was as if the crowd wasn't there to hold a meeting and solve problems, but rather to criticize and denounce him!

"Sakumo, why don't you tell us about the current situation?"

The Third Hokage sighed and added, "Tell the truth, don't feel guilty!"

Sakumo Hatake was not intimidated.

He picked up a page of the report and read it aloud, point by point: "First, there is economic embezzlement. Preliminary estimates suggest that during his tenure as head of the Dark Bureau, Advisor Danzo misappropriated nearly 100 million taels of silver to build the Root base and purchase various research equipment—"

His opening remarks were always a bombshell.

But before the crowd could discuss it, he continued reading: "To conduct live experiments using Wood Release techniques, Danzo abducted and murdered over two hundred children under the age of ten! Of these, about one-third were from the village—"

"And, under the pretext of expanding the Anbu, Danzo demanded additional manpower from various ninja clans in the village—"

Finally, he closed the report and added, "In addition, it should be noted that the above are all conservative estimates, and the specific figures need to be finalized."

Good guy!

Hearing about these numerous atrocities, even Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't hold back anymore.

When did Danzo's ambitions grow so large?

"That's anything but conservative!"

Someone whispered, "I've never seen so much money or killed so many children in my entire life."

With everyone present possessing extraordinary abilities, who could possibly fail to hear his mutterings?

Everyone kept their eyes down, lost in thought, each with their own ideas, creating a very subtle atmosphere.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyelids twitched.

He pretended not to hear the sarcastic remark and then said, "So, what do you all think we should do?"

Having said that, he glanced around at everyone and said in a low voice, "Shimura Danzo was my contemporary. To avoid any appearance of impropriety, I will not participate in this vote!"

Upon hearing this, the high-ranking officials turned their attention to Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu.

"Ahem! Although Koharu and I were Danzo's classmates, our relationship was only so-so."

Mitokado coughed and assured everyone, "Please rest assured, we will not show favoritism!"

The crowd's gazes immediately turned disdainful.

Hey! Who doesn't know you guys are a small group?

But seeing that the Third Hokage was the first to withdraw, they didn't say much and simply accepted his explanation.

After a moment of silence, it was the Hyuga clan head, who was usually quiet, who spoke first: "Hokage-sama!"

He glanced at Hiruzen Sarutobi's aged face, then asked bluntly, "I want to know, to what extent has Danzo Shimura's research on Wood Release progressed? Has he achieved a perfect restoration?"

The Hokage coughed and said, "Let Sakumo and Fugaku answer this question; they're both here."

Fugaku Uchiha: "

'

What Wood Release? He knows nothing about it!

Fortunately, Sakumo Hatake was reliable and took the initiative to answer: "Judging from the performance, the restoration of Wood Release was a failure! Although it can control plants, its power is not very strong."

He bluntly stated, "Moreover, the only child who used Wood Release, although his strength is comparable to most Jonin, has completely lost his mind."

"Is that so?"

The Hyuga clan leader pondered for a moment, then said calmly, "Then I have no problem."

On the other side, Uchiha Setsuna, the eldest elder of the Uchiha clan, immediately breathed a sigh of relief without making a sound.

He almost peed his pants when he received the news!

I almost thought that the man who dominated the ninja world and defeated Madara Uchiha was coming back!

Thankfully, it was just a false alarm!

He suppressed his fear and asked loudly, "I have a question: Why did Shimura Danzo, who was researching Wood Release, establish a base next to the Naka River?"

Uchiha Setsuna was extremely aggressive.

"In Konoha, who doesn't know that the area around the Naka River is our Uchiha clan's territory?"

He stared directly at the Third Hokage's aged face and said coldly, "Does this action imply targeting or monitoring our Uchiha clan?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi coughed once, remaining completely calm.

"Elder Setsuna, perhaps Danzo did indeed have such a motive in his heart—"

"But in my eyes, all the ninjas in the village are one family, and I would never harbor any intention of targeting one another!"

The Hokage spoke earnestly and frankly: "It is precisely because I value every single person in the village that I summoned everyone immediately after learning of Danzo's actions!"

Uchiha Setsuna fell silent, then simply snorted and gave a lukewarm laugh: "Heh~"

The crowd was initially moved by the Hokage's sincere attitude, but upon hearing this mocking laugh, they hesitated again.

Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at him, a fierce glint in his eyes.

Seeing the topic about to veer off course again, Jonin Squad Leader Nara Shikanaru had no choice but to speak up: "Right now, we still need to gather evidence against Shimura Danzo. Until all the evidence comes out, I suggest we remove Shimura Danzo from all his posts and imprison him! At the same time, we should take over the Root ninjas and inventory all Root bases to prevent similar incidents from happening again..."

He is the current head of the Nara clan, the father of Nara Shikaku, and the grandfather of Shikamaru.

He is usually known for his wisdom and resourcefulness.

Nara Shikanobu has just announced a whole host of measures, which are quite reasonable and well-founded.

But Uchiha Setsuna interrupted, "Well, so after killing so many children, all you got in the end was imprisonment?"

He crossed his arms, glanced at the Third Hokage, and sneered, "Fugaku, you tell me, according to the security regulations established by the Second Hokage, how should murder be punished?"

Without hesitation, Fugaku Uchiha said, "Those who kill without cause shall be executed, and those who injure without cause shall be punished. If the victim is an elderly person, a woman, or a child, the punishment shall be doubled."

Listen to this!

Uchiha Setsuna laughed heartily: "It's only been a few years since the Second Hokage passed away? Don't the ninjas of today remember the rules he set out back then?"

He sighed and bowed to the sky, lamenting, "Alas, Second Hokage, you could never have imagined that in the end, it would be us, the Uchiha, who would inherit your will?"

Nara Shikamei sighed and fell silent.

He knew in fact that he had suffered an undeserved misfortune.

The other party wasn't targeting him personally, but rather venting their long-standing resentment at being suppressed by higher-ups, while also expressing their suspicions.

If Danzo were to cultivate the roots right in front of his own house...

Let alone the Uchiha clan, who have never been favored by the Hokage, even if it were me, I would have my doubts!

"That's enough!"

Unable to bear his sarcastic tone any longer, Mitokado Homura shouted, "Danzo made a mistake, but you don't need to bring up the Second Hokage to humiliate him!"

"Besides, which of you here hasn't killed someone?"

He retorted, "According to your logic, does that mean you should arrest me, the Hokage, and all the clan leaders and put them all in the guard force?"

With Mitokado's death, the atmosphere in the conference room immediately became tense.

The Uchiha clan hadn't yet reached the point where everyone hated them. There were many of their former vassals in Konoha Village, and they immediately started exchanging insults, making for quite a lively scene.

Nara Shikame sat back down and gave him a wink.

The two old buddies instantly understood.

The pig, deer, and butterfly always advance and retreat together; they tacitly remain silent and observe from the sidelines.

Hiruzen Sarutobi silently lit another cigarette.

From a leader's perspective, he certainly knows that arguing is the most useless behavior.

But arguing is a good option right now.

As the argument escalates, those trying to mediate will become annoyed, and the arguing parties will shift their conflict onto each other. At that point, Danzo can once again disappear without a trace.

Before I knew it, another pipe of tobacco had been gone.

boom!

Just then, the door opened and someone entered.

Uchiha Setsuna had already lost her temper and immediately yelled, "Which blind fool is it—?"

"Um----"

But upon seeing who it was, he swallowed the rest of his sentence and pulled off a stunning reversal: "You saw you coming but didn't even inform us so we could go out and greet you!"

Uchiha Setsuna's docile, kitten-like tone nearly made Hiruzen Sarutobi's jaw drop.

But when his gaze pierced through the hazy smoke, he also shuddered and instantly became alert.

"Mito-sama————"

The Hokage stood up from his seat, forcing a smile: "What brings you here?"

Mito Uzumaki snorted and retorted, "What? I can't come to the Hokage Building?"

She had all her legs, but instead of walking, she was in a wheelchair, pushed there by Kushina Uzumaki and Tsunade.

Upon hearing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi broke out in a cold sweat.

Mito stood up from her wheelchair, went to the Hokage's seat, and sat down without any hesitation.

Hiruzen Sarutobi had no choice but to step back a few steps and stand behind her, becoming nothing more than a foil.

Mito Uzumaki didn't care about his feelings.

The old man picked up the Hokage hat from the table, a symbol unique to the Hokage, comparable to the seal in the hands of a king.

But at this moment, no one dared to criticize her overstepping her bounds.

Mito stared at the character for "fire" above, slightly lost in thought, and no one dared to disturb her.

After a while, the old man finally came to his senses.

She picked up the documents on the table, looked at the photos of the children, and said softly, "How Danzo is dealt with is none of my business as a woman. But these children, they've been wronged, has the village thought about what to do?"

Only then did everyone realize what was happening.

Everyone is condemning Danzo for embezzling funds, speculating about his thoughts when building the base, and arguing about the outcome of Danzo's case.

Yet no one has ever paid attention to these injured children.

Hiruzen Sarutobi had no choice but to speak, asking softly, "What do you mean?"

"After I die, the orphanage will be moved to my residence, and Tsunade will become its director."

"What?"

Mitokado was the first to speak, expressing his astonishment.

As the financial advisor, he had his eye on that land for a long time.

But before he could express his opinion, Mito continued calmly, "I wonder if any audacious individuals will dare to kidnap them again under the watchful eyes of the First and Second Hokage!"

'

"

The moment those words were spoken...

Even if Mitokado was incredibly stupid, he had no choice but to shut up, unwilling to accept it.

He stole a glance at Hiruzen Sarutobi, wondering why Mito-sama spoke of the gazes of the two previous Hokage but didn't mention the monkey.

Seeing that no one objected.

Mito Uzumaki paused again before continuing, "Also, regarding the Danzo issue, please give this old woman some face."

"No matter how much you argue or make a scene."

"Please wait until after the Chunin Exams are over before continuing."

Mito sighed, "Please don't let outsiders laugh at Konoha."

Uchiha Setsuna was not convinced again.

On what grounds?

He was about to speak when he noticed Mito's gaze fixed on him: "Elder Setsuna, you're so familiar with the rules set by the Second Hokage, do you still remember the first rule of the Hand-on Regulations?"

Uchiha Setsuna clenched his fist: "In the face of important matters, the security force must unconditionally obey—the Hokage's orders!"

"That's right!"

Mito Uzumaki slammed her hand on the table, her voice rising: "What I say now is an order! You disagree?"

A surge of chakra, as powerful as a tidal wave, exploded on her petite body!

The old man's pupils were dyed a strange gold color, and everyone who saw him avoided him, not daring to look directly at him.

"Anbu! From this moment forward, imprison Shimura Danzo, the Hokage's senior advisor, with the highest level of protection!"

She said coldly, "No one is allowed to visit or approach Danzo before the Chunin Exams are over, including the Hokage!"

Sarutobi Shinnosuke's vest was soaked.

He never imagined that an old man, frail and dying, could possess such a terrifying aura.

Ignoring his father's expression, he hurriedly replied, "Understood by the Anbu!"

"Meeting adjourned!"

With her command, the emerging signs of conflict within Konoha were once again ruthlessly suppressed by Mito Uzumaki.

The group filed out of the conference room.

Watching the backs of these high-ranking officials, Mito let out a silent sigh.

Between the pillars.

What will our Konoha eventually become?

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