Uzumaki Kuming rose calmly from his seat under everyone's gaze. He surveyed the ninjas gathered in the conference room, then slowly began:
"Before we make any specific arrangements for the peace talks, there's something you need to know."
"When I was leading my team from Konoha to the front-line base, we were ambushed by Stone Ninja!"
The moment Kuming finished speaking, silence fell briefly over the conference room. Danzo was the first to react. He stared at Kuming in shock. "An ambush?! You were attacked by Stone Ninja?!"
After Danzo recovered from his surprise, several ninjas cried out:
"Stone Ninja actually tried to assassinate Lord Kuming? They never intended to negotiate. The peace talks were just a sham!"
"Damn Stone Ninja! How could they do something like this?"
"If Lord Kuming was ambushed, how did Stone Ninja learn his route?"
"A spy! There's a Stone Ninja spy in Konoha! They must be high-ranking!"
The discussion among the ninjas quickly filled the conference room. They began eyeing one another suspiciously, while some sat silently, trying to recall whether they had seen anyone acting strangely.
Kuming didn't stop them. Instead, he studied Danzo closely. He had initially thought Danzo was the one who leaked his whereabouts to Stone Ninja, but judging by Danzo's reaction, that seemed highly unlikely.
Thinking it over, that made sense. Shimura Danzo was selfish to the core, but selling out Konoha—and Kuming—would gain him nothing. Everything Danzo did was aimed at securing the Hokage seat. Having the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki captured by Stone Ninja would hardly help him achieve that.
"Quiet!" Having worked it out, Kuming turned his attention back to the gathered ninjas and called for silence.
"I'm not telling you this so you'll suspect your comrades. I'm telling you because you need to understand that Stone Ninja's