I, who just wanted to be lazy, was forced to become the Hokage.

Chapter 69 The Questioning in the Hokage's Office!

The former leader of the Jonin class, the current leader of the Analysis class, and a direct subordinate of the Second Hokage.

The leaders of the three tribes—Pig, Deer, and Butterfly—traveled together, and their entourage was suspected of carrying two corpses...

Even the Uchiha police force, responsible for maintaining order in Konoha, dared not arbitrarily obstruct or question this group, allowing them to move freely within the village.

As for Nara Rankei and Yakushi Nonou, who were quietly following behind the big shots, they were naturally overlooked by the onlookers, even though they were the victims of this incident...

The Ino-Shika-Cho trio arrived at the Hokage Building very quickly.

After a series of procedural announcements, the Ino-Shika-Cho team arrived smoothly at the Hokage's office on the top floor of the Hokage Building.

"Quifeng, Luye, Hairen, Lujiu."

Hiruzen Sarutobi, sitting behind his desk, frowned and called out the names of several big shots in order of familiarity. Like the others, he ignored the presence of Nara Ranka and the other two.

"What are you doing?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze was fixed on the corpse that Akimichi Torifu was carrying with him.

With the Third Hokage's sensory and observational abilities, he was naturally able to discern that the person behind Yamanaka Inoto was merely unconscious.

"This ninja's name is Shimura Shin."

Akimichi Torifu threw the corpse in his hand onto the floor of the Hokage's office.

In his earlier years, he was a teammate who fought alongside Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Therefore, the conversation between the two does not need to be overly polite.

"Hiruzen, you should know the meaning of this name."

Hiruzen Sarutobi, as expected, grasped the key point, his brows furrowing even more deeply. "Shimura..."

The Shimura clan was one of the first ninja clans to join Konoha in its early years.

And the leader of the Shimura clan—without a doubt—is Shimura Danzo!

Why would Torifu bring the corpse of a Shimura clan ninja to the Hokage's office?

Hiruzen Sarutobi's mind was filled with a multitude of thoughts.

"And what's going on with that ninja behind Inohito, who's in a coma...?"

"The leaders of the Pig, Deer, and Butterfly clans all mobilized at the same time, so why didn't we get any prior intelligence?"

"Yes, Danzo came from the Shimura clan."

Akimichi Torifu nodded, then turned his gaze to Yamanaka Inoto.

The latter understood and stepped forward, gently setting down the forest in the mountains behind him.

"Sandaime-sama."

Compared to Akimichi's attitude towards the wind, Yamanaka Inoto's attitude was much more polite.

"This is Rin Yamanaka, a Jonin of our Yamanaka clan."

"As far as I know, Yamanaka Rin joined the Dark Division many years ago."

"I know her."

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Rin Yamanaka, who showed no signs of waking up, and nodded slightly.

"Yama no Rin has a thorough understanding of your clan's secret techniques. She can easily observe and detect the actions of other ninjas by observing birds, which is why she was able to join the Anbu in the first place."

Even as the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi might not have been able to know every single ninja in the village.

But as far as the "Jonin" level is concerned...

Hiruzen Sarutobi knew every single Jonin in the village like the back of his hand.

However, the special Jonin duo of "Shimura Shin" and "Yamano Hayashi"...

Hiruzen Sarutobi's brow remained furrowed as he turned his gaze toward Kano in Nara.

But Nara Kano had already retired.

At this moment, he simply coughed lightly, and Nara Shikaku stepped forward.

"Sandaime-sama."

The newly appointed leader of the Jonin squad was respectful in attitude but sharp in words.

"Just now, Shimura Shin, together with Yamanaka Rin, launched an attack on Nara Ranke, a genin of our Nara clan, and Yakushi Nonou, the director of Kikyo Orphanage."

"Senior Inoto examined the brains of these two ninjas and confirmed that these two Jonin from the Anbu were acting on orders from their superiors, which is why they committed such a crime!"

idiot!

This was the only word that came to Hiruzen Sarutobi's mind after hearing Shikaku Nara's report.

A Jonin from the Anbu, following orders, attacks his fellow villagers?

This is practically a direct statement that it was the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, who ordered the two Jonin to carry out a secret mission to eliminate the other ninjas in their village!

Considering the ninja identity of the "Yamanoka-rin" clan...

There may also be some sinister intentions hidden within this, such as trying to sow discord among the alliances of the three races: the pig, the deer, and the butterfly!

Everyone present could understand what Nara Shikaku said.

Even the yakushi Nono, who was still dazed from being kissed, finally realized what the leaders and bigwigs of the Ino-Shika-Cho clans were about to do.

Ultimately, Yakushi Nonou is a true legendary spy with an exceptional talent for gathering intelligence.

Yakushi Nonou knew very well that the two Jonin, Yamanaka Rin and Shimura Arata, were dispatched by Root leader Shimura Danzo to carry out their mission.

She also knew that Nara Rinka definitely knew this.

However, according to Nara Shikaku, who should also know the whole story, the person who gave the order for this mission changed from Shimura Danzo to Sarutobi Hiruzen...

Pharmacist Nonou lowered her head slightly, focusing her gaze on the office floor, resisting the urge to look at the true mastermind beside her.

"Is this the plan that Lan Gui mentioned before?"

Yes!

This is the plan to capture the laurel in Nara.

What's the point of just throwing the evidence at Shimura Danzo's bandaged face?

That old man was already infamous.

Even within Konoha Village, Danzo Shimura did not have a good reputation.

He was known in the ninja world as the "Darkness of the Ninja," making him a universally disliked and iconic figure.

If you take Shimura Shin and Yamanaka Rin directly to confront Shimura Danzo, the latter can simply refuse to listen to reason.

After all, Shimura Danzo was a ninja who lived in the shadows, so "speaking nonsense" and "eliminating dissidents" were not derogatory terms for him.

However, compared to Shimura Danzo.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, who lived entirely in the light, was a completely different case.

Since the "Darkness of Ninja" absorbed all the darkness of Konoha.

Then the "Third Hokage" can only be pure light!

The kind of pot that can't get even a little bit black.

Faced with Nara Shikaku's questioning, what could Sarutobi Hiruzen say?

Did he know nothing about Shinji Shimura and Hayashi Yamanaka's actions?

or……

Was it he who sent Shinichi Shimura and Hayashi Yamanaka to kill people?

Hiruzen Sarutobi moved his lips a few times, but when the words reached his lips, he still didn't know how to say them.

Does he have any room to refute Nara Shikaku?

No.

That's the real crux of the problem.

Even though Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't know much about "Shin Shimura," a Jonin from the Shimura clan.

However, "Yama no Rin" is indeed a genuine ANBU Jonin!

That alone was enough to shut Hiruzen Sarutobi up.

"Shimura... Inokacho... Nara... Danzo!" 』

The clues swirled through Hiruzen Sarutobi's mind. He recalled the conversation in the office a few days ago and immediately identified the "real suspect."

"Shimura Danzo!" 』

"I will definitely give you three races, the Pig, the Deer, and the Butterfly, an explanation regarding this matter."

"I speak solemnly," Hiruzen Sarutobi said, raising his hand to give the order. A member of the Anbu ninja emerged from the shadows.

"Go to the root section and bring Shimura Danzo to see me!"

"yes!"

The ANBU ninja responded respectfully, indicating that he was preparing to act immediately.

Just then, an old, hoarse voice came from outside the door.

"No need to go."

Danzo Shimura pushed open the door and entered, his expression calm and indifferent.

"I'm here."

The actions of the three races—pig, deer, and butterfly—were indeed swift.

However, just as the enemy was approaching the Hokage Building, Danzo Shimura had already received the intelligence.

After considering Hiruzen's personality...

Danzo Shimura decided to come up himself.

"Shimura Arata!"

Danzo Shimura's gaze was fixed on the corpse on the ground, a fleeting look of dissatisfaction and anger flashing in his eyes.

"This is a Jonin of our Shimura clan! You Ino-Shika-Cho clan have openly murdered your comrade within the village! Your crimes are heinous!"

Upon his arrival, Danzo Shimura immediately turned the tables and accused Shimura of wrongdoing.

"Elder Shimura."

Nara Shikaku's tone was also very cold.

"Senior Inoto has already searched the memories of these two ninjas, and we have confirmed that these two Jonin were acting on orders from a high-ranking official."

Are you questioning the professional competence of the analysis team?

"All I know is that the Shimura clan's ninjas are dead, while the Yamanaka clan's ninjas are still alive."

Danzo Shimura gave a cold laugh and said noncommittally.

"Moreover, this is the result of a self-examination by the ninjas of their mountain clan."

"If you ask me, it would be better to hand these two ninjas over to me and let my subordinates personally examine and confirm their brain memories."

"I will definitely give you an explanation when the time comes."

snort!

Upon hearing Shimura Danzo's words, the people present couldn't help but sneer inwardly, marveling at the shamelessness of this old man.

Entrusting these two ninjas to you is like throwing good money after bad, a sure way to lose them forever.

Nara Shikaku simply ignored the ruthless, shameless, and unreasonable Shimura Danzo and looked directly at the Third Hokage.

"Does the Third Hokage also think so?"

The Ino-Shika-Cho trio's idea was simple: focus the problem on the Third Hokage and bypass Shimura Danzo.

Faced with Nara Shikaku's persistent questioning, Sarutobi Hiruzen silently took a puff of his pipe.

To be honest, he originally planned to call on Shimura Danzo to take the blame.

Then the two former teammates played the roles of "good cop, bad cop" to deal with today's events first.

The stage was almost set up, but the actors on the other side didn't follow the script at all!

Just as Hiruzen Sarutobi was pondering what to say to the Ino-Shika-Cho trio...

Danzo Shimura, who had intended to stand by and watch, still offered a step forward.

"At such a tense moment, to cause such a ridiculous farce, I really don't know what you three races (Pig, Deer, and Butterfly) were thinking!"

Danzo Shimura once again drew fire for his old friend, delivering a scathing jab while simultaneously dropping bombshells.

"Did you know that Sunagakure has already sent troops to search for their Third Kazekage?!"

There's really nothing we can do about Hiruzen Sarutobi and conspiracy theories.

As a powerful Hokage, he ruled Konoha for at least several decades.

After Shimura Danzo, the "number one scapegoat," was forcibly pushed out.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, faced only two paths:

First, he was so foolish as to fail to see Shimura Danzo's actions;

Secondly, he was so incompetent that he could only condone Danzo Shimura's evil deeds.

Or it might just be a fictional third way.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was also the mastermind behind the conspiracy.

-

Ashin wouldn't force some vague conspiracy theories to be attributed to Hiruzen Sarutobi.

However, it is not believed that Hiruzen Sarutobi is truly the "pure and innocent third generation of fire."

-

The disappearance of the Third Kazekage is generally regarded as the trigger for the Third Shinobi World War.

But there's a second half to the sentence.

In chapter 266 of the manga, a high-ranking member of Sunagakure mentions something like, "If we hadn't gone looking for the Third Kazekage, but instead focused on pacifying the village."

In other words.

After the Third Kazekage disappeared, Sunagakure fell into prolonged chaos.

Ashin personally analyzed the triggers for the three battles as follows:

Sasori of the Red Sand assassinated the Third Kazekage;

With the Third Kazekage missing, Sunagakure is leaderless and plunged into chaos;

The Hidden Sand Village took the initiative to send troops into another country's territory, thus triggering the Third Shinobi World War.

(End of this chapter)