Chapter 117: Scapegoat

"Quick! Stop those four Anbu!"

Aozora's startled cry snapped everyone back to attention.

The crowd instantly reacted—sending one Anbu after another.

If even one of the four had been marked with Absolute Silence, the information was bound to be exposed.

Whispers and murmurs filled the meeting room immediately.

"It can't be true! Those four are the Hokage's personal guards."

"Who knows? It's already too late to chase them now. We'll find out how many return."

"If this is actually happening, then whoever is behind it must be terrifying!"

"Perhaps… even the Third…"

"Shh! Don't say such things recklessly! The Third? Impossible!"

"Even if he isn't involved, his personal Anbu becoming spies…"

"Just now, Elder Danzo's behavior..."

"…"

The murmurs from the crowd were too chaotic and faint. Unless using a Ninjutsu technique, Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't clearly hear their words. Still, he could read something from their expressions.

The looks they gave him were no longer filled with the usual reverence; now they held suspicion and doubt.

Despite having his own suspicions, Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't heed Aozora's suggestion. At this moment, he could only trust those four Anbu guards.

After shouting once, Aozora fell silent, hiding behind Fugaku.

If there truly was something suspicious among the four Anbu, chasing them now would be pointless—the information had definitely already been transmitted.

If nothing was wrong with the four Anbu, questioning them like this would appear to challenge the Hokage's authority, potentially inviting retaliation later.

Time passed slowly. Everyone in the meeting room felt today's minutes crawling by unbearably.

Of course, that was just their perception—time never stops or slows down.

After a while, messenger Anbu arrived one after another, bringing each Anbu squad captain.

Soon, the area in front of the conference table became crowded. Aozora and Fugaku also returned to take their seats at the table.

Although the Anbu wore masks and their figures were concealed beneath dark cloaks, everyone immediately noticed that one of the original four Anbu guards was missing.

Aozora quickly counted the squad captains' command tags—there were nine in total.

This number accounted only for those currently stationed in Konoha; definitely more were deployed on missions abroad.

By this estimate, the Anbu must have had at least twenty-five squads, with at minimum one jonin per team, and elite teams possessing even more. Assuming an average of two jonin per squad, the Anbu likely had around fifty jonin in total.

No wonder Fugaku and Shisui felt so desperate—the sheer might of Anbu alone was enough to crush the Uchiha Clan.

But would the Anbu retain such power in the future?

Five minutes after the nine squad captains entered the meeting room, no others returned.

Fugaku spoke, "Hokage-sama, don't wait any longer. If we delay further, the rogue Anbu will escape the Land of Fire."

Hiruzen Sarutobi hesitated upon hearing this. He knew waiting longer would accomplish nothing.

Struggling to contain his fury, he snapped at the Anbu squad captains before him: "Remove your masks and stick out your tongues!"

Though taken aback, the squad captains obeyed and removed their masks, sticking out their tongues. Not a single one showed the sealing mark on their tongue.

But this did nothing to dispel the suspicion among the present ninja toward Anbu.

The composition of Anbu personnel had always been a top secret. However, the representatives from major clans in the village had a rough understanding of Anbu's strength and were aware that the village possessed far more than just the nine Anbu squad captains currently present.

Hiashi Hyuga spoke up, asking, "Hokage-sama, may we know who else hasn't arrived yet?"

"Hirano Haruto, Murakumo Kurama, and..."

He paused briefly at this point, his expression turning bitter before he continued, "...Sarutobi Takao!"

Upon hearing this, an uproar erupted among the gathered ninjas. Even with several additional brains, none could have possibly imagined that the mastermind behind everything was Sarutobi Takao, Hiruzen's own nephew.

Before astonishment fully settled in, Hiruzen Sarutobi had already made his decision: "Vice Head of Anbu Sarutobi Takao, along with squad captains Hiranoh Haruto and Murakumo Kurama are suspected of betraying the village. Squads Three, Five, and Seven, apprehend them immediately! Should they resist arrest, kill them without mercy!"

The three squad captains responded in unison: "Understood!"

"Wait a moment!"

This time, it wasn't Aozora or Fugaku who spoke but rather Hiashi Hyuga, who had previously remained silent.

He continued calmly, "Hokage-sama, although the current Anbu captains don't bear the seal mark on their tongues, this only proves they haven't been marked with Curse Mark of Tongue - Silencing Death. It doesn't necessarily prove their innocence."

Tsume Inuzuka added supportively, "Exactly! Since information leaks from Anbu already let some escape, if they go easy on them again, how many of these rogue ninjas will we really catch?"

After multiple incidents like this, people had significantly less reverence for the Third, and the ninja present weren't fools.

With one precedent where Anbu summoned Anbu, would they really expect different results by sending Anbu to capture Anbu?

Furrowing his brow slightly, Hiruzen Sarutobi asked reluctantly under pressure, "Then Hiashi Hyuga, do you have a better suggestion?"

Hiashi replied, "Entrust the suspects to our respective ninja clans here for pursuit. Many of us have lost comrades, so we'll ensure these traitors don't slip away easily."

Hiashi's words struck a chord with other attending ninja.

While their clan members might not actually lie in the pit beneath Dahe City, filled with bones and decaying flesh, compared to accidental deaths, they preferred to believe their talented clansmen were victims of someone's hidden machinations. Therefore, everyone felt enraged and wanted personally to seek vengeance for their fallen comrades.

When the tide had turned, resisting the will of the crowd was pointless.

Sighing inwardly, Hiruzen Sarutobi finally agreed, "Very well, I'll follow your suggestion."

Immediately afterward, Hiruzen Sarutobi established a special pursuit unit.

He appointed Hiashi Hyuga as captain, with Tsume Inuzuka and Aburame Chiao as vice captains, and most of the remaining ninjas joined the pursuit team.

Meanwhile, Fugaku and Aozora remained unusually quiet throughout, practically mute.

Somewhat taken aback, both Aozora and Fugaku found events developing too quickly. The so-called "mastermind" had directly emerged, and the pursuit preparations proceeded rapidly.

Aozora's mind raced, trying to devise a clever way to redirect everyone's attention from Sarutobi Takao back onto Danzo.

The evidence at Dahe City was scarce—barely enough to imply collusion between Anbu's leadership and Shimon Hiruko.

In fact, there was absolutely no solid proof regarding the Curse Mark of Tongue - Silencing Death; it was completely speculative.

If Aozora hadn't seen the 'answers' first, he never would've suspected Danzo at all.

Aozora sighed inwardly and stood up. "Hold on!"

Sarutobi Hiruzen felt a surge of irritation and said, "Say what you need to say quickly! Don't waste the Pursuit Team's time!"

Aozora nodded. "First, I want to apologize to Elder Danzo."

Everyone frowned at his words and turned their gaze toward Danzo.

Danzo's lone eye flickered with brief surprise, but he offered no outward reaction.

Only then did Aozora continue, "During my battle with Hiruko in Dahe City, he slandered Elder Danzo, claiming that he had once collaborated with him."

Danzo replied coldly, "Knowing it was slander and still daring to pollute my ears with it?"

Aozora ignored Danzo's remark and raised his voice louder. 

"Hiruko claimed that he and Elder Danzo once worked together, using the [Chimera Technique] to forge a special right arm for him."

<><><><><><><><>

Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!

~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!

<><><><><><><><>

~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!

~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!

patreon.com/Tansnovel

<><><><><><><><>