Uchiha Falls, Higher-Ups Feast

"What?!"

"What did you say?!"

"The entire Uchiha clan has been wiped out!"

"And the one who committed such a heinous crime is none other than Itachi Uchiha, an S-rank missing-nin at only thirteen years old!"

"Holy crap... this is a massive disaster..."

This shocking news swept through the entire ninja world like a violent, unstoppable storm, moving with lightning speed.

It spread as rapidly and crazily as a virus, reaching almost every corner until everyone knew of it. In an instant, the once-calm ninja world began to churn with dark undercurrents.

Ōnoki of Iwagakure: "Sarutobi Hiruzen, you've done a fine job. Someone, investigate further... have the border ninja probe them..."

"Activate the deep-cover agents. See if there's a chance to snatch an Uchiha survivor; if not, kill them outright... An Uchiha is only good when they are dead..."

"The ninja world."

"Must never allow a second Madara Uchiha to emerge."

The Fourth Raikage of Kumogakure: "Damn it, if you didn't want the clan, you could have given them to us, you bastards... bastards..."

"Send men to track Itachi Uchiha's movements. Bring me that Mangekyō—tell him that we in Kumogakure are willing to protect him and support him in spreading his lineage in the Land of Lightning..."

Rasa of Sunagakure: "Damn it, that bastard Shukaku is rampaging again; I can't even spare the hands to fish for some benefits..."

Yagura of Kirigakure (under control): ...

Amegakure: "Madara, is this your masterpiece?!"

Takigakure: ...

Kusagakure: ...

The major ninja villages reacted in various ways.

Regardless, the point was to send scouts to probe and see if they could take advantage of the situation to scrape some benefits from the Land of Fire or Konoha.

"Sss~" Far away, upon learning of the matter, Orochimaru curled his lips into a cunning smile and muttered to himself: "Sarutobi Sensen, you and Danzo finally couldn't hold back anymore, could you~"

"Indeed, that fascinating Mangekyō Sharingan truly possesses endless charm."

"The divine power of the Uchiha clan."

At this moment, Orochimaru naturally locked his gaze onto Itachi Uchiha, who had just joined the organization, his eyes flashing with greed and fervor.

"He possesses the same Mangekyō Sharingan as Madara Uchiha? This is simply too interesting~" He licked his tongue.

"I really want to dissect you right now to see what secrets lie inside... what an enviable clan indeed..."

In Orochimaru's view, the Itachi Uchiha before him was nothing more than a wet-behind-the-ears brat.

After all, the destruction of the Uchiha clan must have been planned and led by Sarutobi Hiruzen and Danzo. Itachi Uchiha was nothing more than a scapegoat they had found.

He did not doubt the power of the Mangekyō; he only questioned whether someone as young as Itachi Uchiha could truly master such power.

Such a young child, no matter how strong his talent, how formidable could he really be? One must remember, he was one of the Sannin—Orochimaru—who had survived countless brushes with death and bathed in the blood of brutal battlefields!

To Orochimaru, that pair of mysterious and powerful Mangekyō Sharingan had already been marked as his own prize.

On the other side, upon hearing the news, Jiraiya couldn't help but sigh deeply: Teacher~ if you push things too far, you will lose the hearts of the people~

Tsunade, however, wore a look of utter disdain and snorted coldly: "Hmph~ As expected, the village has become truly filthy!"

Qingwu saw the village's public announcement.

"Heh~ How disgusting, playing the saint while being a hypocrite..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen even went out of his way to give a speech at the Hokage Building, spouting nonsense about the meaning of fire and bowing in apology~

"This time, it is my fault."

"I failed to perceive the wolfish ambition of Itachi Uchiha."

"I allowed him to commit such a monstrous crime."

"The demise of the Uchiha clan fills me with great sorrow; they, too, made many contributions to Konoha~"

"Regardless of anything else."

"This is my dereliction of duty as Hokage."

Sarutobi Hiruzen took off his hat once more and bowed in apology.

Finally, facing the probes from various forces in the ninja world, he declared that although he was old, he would do everything in his power to protect everyone, even if it meant dying in battle, burning his own Will of Fire.

"Oh, oh~ Long live the Hokage."

"We believe in you, Lord Third..."

"It's all those damn Uchiha. I've always said that clan is mentally ill, suffering from red-eye disease..."

"Exactly. It was their own infighting; it has nothing to do with you, Lord Third. Please, you must not blame yourself~"

"Without the Hokage, there would be no peace today."

"..."

Clearly, this performance by Sarutobi Hiruzen, bolstered by shills mixed into the crowd, had successfully won over the public, allowing him to distance himself from the Uchiha clan's annihilation.

"..."

The various great clans in the village were not fools.

Yesterday's joint operation between the Anbu and Root, with all those barriers and checkpoints, made it clear that the high-ranking officials had definitely participated in the Uchiha clan's destruction—they were likely the masterminds.

For a moment, a sense of "the rabbit dies, the fox grieves" permeated the air.

A clan as massive as the Uchiha was gone just like that.

What about them?

They felt a lingering fear.

Yet, Sarutobi Hiruzen settled it all with a single Jonin meeting.

"Due to the passing of the Uchiha clan, a vacancy has appeared in the Police Force. We are now preparing to reorganize it."

"For the new captain, I recommend Hyuga Hiashi, head of the Hyuga clan. As for the vice-captain and the various squad leaders, see if you have any suitable candidates to recommend."

"The reconstruction of the Police Force is a major event for all villagers, so everyone should participate actively."

"Invitations are open to all registered ninja; those who pass the assessment can serve in the Police Force."

"The vacated seats in the Jonin meeting should be filled by recommending excellent fresh blood."

"As for the eight training grounds, that child Sasuke doesn't need so much space, so the village will step in to reclaim them and provide him with monetary compensation."

"..."

There was no helping it; Sarutobi Hiruzen offered too much. Whether it was positions in the Police Force, large training grounds, or even seats previously held by the Uchiha, he distributed them among all parties.

"Lord Hokage is wise~"

"We will always support Lord Third~"

"Thank you, Lord Hokage, for giving us a chance to get ahead~"

"We swear to defend Lord Third to the death~"

"..."

The various clans and civilian ninja all received tangible benefits, and many civilian ninja knelt on the spot, swearing their loyalty to the death.

Danzo watched with extreme jealousy: Hiruzen is grandstanding again. Damn it, if this continues, when will I ever become Hokage?

"Alright, everyone, go back and prepare well."

"Assume your posts as soon as possible. Do not let this affect the village's operations or security, and don't let opportunists take advantage of the situation~"

Sarutobi Hiruzen was also very satisfied with his performance. A crisis of trust had been resolved just like that. Learn from this, Danzo.

Afterward.

The Konoha F4 held a secret meeting.

The content remained unknown.

However.

According to a civilian staff member who wished to remain anonymous.

When the elders left.

They were grinning from ear to ear.

Qingwu received the news and laughed happily.

"Sarutobi Hiruzen, oh Sarutobi Hiruzen, you are truly courting your own death. On the surface, you've resolved the crisis of trust."

"It looks like everyone is satisfied, but in reality, you only gave them empty titles. The actual benefits—the commercial district and the Uchiha collections—were all carved up by the four of you. No one is a fool..."

"The clan has been wiped out, the orphan is still in a coma, and you couldn't wait to shift the blame and divide the inheritance."

"The thorn of 'the rabbit dies, the fox grieves' has already been planted."

"I finally understand why, in the original story, everyone was just going through the motions during the Konoha Crush plan years later, putting in no real effort and refusing to save Sarutobi Hiruzen. The root of it lies here."

"Their hearts were all chilled."

"Tsk tsk tsk~ You really played yourself to death~"

"Everyone is looking forward to their own shadow dying."

"You really are something else~"