Everyone's expression changed dramatically. Anyone could see that this was an attempt to seize power!
A rebellion had broken out in Konoha at a time like this!
Hiruzen's expression darkened. He abruptly stood and looked at the chaos outside, his thoughts impossible to read.
Just then, the Kazekage sitting beside him sprang into action. He moved behind Hiruzen and easily pressed a kunai against the vital spot on his neck.
"Hiruzen, you really have gotten old. I never thought I'd take you down so easily."
"Oh? Is that so?" Hiruzen remained calm.
"Hiruzen, can you hear the people outside? So many of them want you to step down. What do you think of that?" The Kazekage laughed sinisterly.
"Ah, I see. Now I understand. No wonder you didn't care when those two Sunagakure ninjas forfeited. You'd already planned to make your move, hadn't you?"
"At a time like this, that's what you care about?"
"I just regret that an alliance we've maintained for so many years is about to be destroyed because of you."
"I think an unfair alliance like this shouldn't have existed in the first place!"
As he spoke, a glint of malice flashed in the Kazekage's eyes. He pressed down hard with the kunai.
Thud!
No blood spurted out as expected. It turned out that this had been a Shadow Clone all along!
The worst part was that he hadn't seen through it at any point. What a joke.
"Damn it! That old man played me!" The Kazekage instantly realized what had happened. Furious, he kicked over the table in front of him!
Where had Hiruzen's real body gone?
No one knew.
The question was, if Hiruzen had prepared in advance, had he already guessed what would happen today?
Thinking this, the Kazekage decided it was unsafe to stay there any longer. He turned and left.
Keiichi had witnessed everything from below.
He was utterly astonished. This wasn't how it was supposed to go!
Wasn't Hiruzen's real body supposed to be sitting there?
Wasn't the Kazekage supposed to be Orochimaru in disguise?
Yes, a rebellion had broken out, but it wasn't supposed to happen like this!
What exactly was Orochimaru trying to do?
Chapter 72: Uchiha Keiichi
Keiichi suddenly felt lost. For the first time, he couldn't predict what would happen next.
"What exactly is going on?" Sasuke came over and asked, his face full of worry.
It was obvious that the Chunin Ninja Exams couldn't continue. Even the chief examiner had gone to suppress the rebellion.
"From the looks of it, Sunagakure is probably behind this. But the Anbu made the first move, so there must be a traitor inside Konoha, too." Keiichi furrowed his brow, putting on a show of having figured it all out, though he'd known the truth all along.
He'd had a hand in stirring things up, after all.
"You mean someone inside Konoha has colluded with Sunagakure?" Sasuke was shocked. How could that be possible?
"Whatever's going on, we should find Naruto and the others first. We'll just follow Kakashi's orders."
"But what if Kakashi is one of the rebels?"
"Have you really lost that much faith in your teacher?" Keiichi rolled his eyes.
What an ungrateful brat. Kakashi had just given you special training, for goodness' sake!
No wonder you'd been so cold and heartless for a while in your past life. It took Naruto's Friendship Face-Breaking Fist to knock some sense into you.
"Keiichi, your eyes..." With no one else around, Sasuke deliberately slowed his pace and asked in a low voice.
"Yes, you guessed right. It's the Sharingan."
As he spoke, Keiichi lifted his goggles, revealing his One-Tomoe Sharingan. From this angle, only Sasuke could see it.
"Can you tell me where you got it?" Suspicion began to show in Sasuke's eyes. He would never allow anyone to desecrate his clansmen's remains.
"Come on, what are you thinking? When the Uchiha Clan fell, I was the same age as you. What do you think I could've done?"
"Then explain how this happened!" Sasuke snapped.
"It's a long story. A few days before we left on our mission to the Land of Waves, my Team 25 got caught in a brutal battle. Our Chunin leader, Tatsuya, sacrificed himself to protect me. That's when I awakened these eyes."
As he spoke, Keiichi even pretended to wipe away a couple of tears, though he could barely remember the face of that bit-part teacher.
There wasn't much warmth between Commoner Ninjas. That teacher had never taught him a single jutsu.
"You're saying you awakened the Sharingan yourself?!" Sasuke was stunned. This was completely different from what he'd suspected.
But he'd awakened his own Sharingan after witnessing his family's deaths and being overcome with emotion. Considering that, Keiichi's explanation seemed plausible.
"Yeah. I don't know how it happened, either."
"Why should I believe you?"
"Remember when we left on that mission? Kakashi thought it was strange that I wore goggles. The truth is, I'd already been consciously trying to protect my eyes. They're the only thing I can rely on to get stronger."
Hearing this, Sasuke suddenly felt as if he'd found a kindred spirit. He felt the same way.
He even felt tempted to buy a pair of goggles himself. Hadn't he been careless about protecting his eyes?
"Besides, you should know that someone who wasn't born into the Uchiha Clan couldn't do this..."
As he spoke, Keiichi took off his goggles. His Sharingan slowly faded, and his eyes turned completely black, leaving no trace of it behind.
That finally convinced Sasuke.
Even if an outsider got hold of a Sharingan, they couldn't deactivate it at will. That was why Kakashi had to keep that eye covered with his Forehead Protector, so he wouldn't use it too much without realizing it.
Keiichi's ability to do this clearly meant he had pure Uchiha blood.
"Keiichi, your parents must have had an important background. At least one of them was probably from the Uchiha Clan." Sasuke naturally arrived at that conclusion.
"I lost my parents when I was very young and grew up in an orphanage. I don't even remember what they looked like. How would I know what kind of people they were?" Keiichi gave a bitter smile.
"But... this is great..."
"What's great?"
"Knowing that I still have a clansman in this world—and that he's someone I respect. That's great!" Sasuke smiled, a rare sight, and patted Keiichi on the shoulder.
He really was treating Keiichi as one of his own.
That was how the Uchiha were: passionate and sincere. They could hate someone with all their heart, but when they saw someone as family, they'd trust them completely and give them everything.
Sasuke was genuinely happy. For the past six years, he'd always felt alone and treated everyone else as an outsider.
Only now, upon discovering that Keiichi was a clansman he'd lost track of, did he finally feel what family meant.
He wasn't alone anymore.
"Uchiha Keiichi!" Sasuke called out impulsively.
"Uh..." Keiichi looked a little awkward.
"Uchiha Keiichi!"
"..."
"Uchiha Keiichi!"
"Enough, enough! Sorry, but even though I awakened the Sharingan, I've never lived among the Uchiha. I don't understand what being an Uchiha means, so stop calling me that."
"It's fine. I believe that one day you'll understand what the Uchiha name stands for. After all, we have the same blood flowing through our veins!"
Sasuke's eyes were so warm that Keiichi felt intensely uncomfortable.
Couldn't you go back to how you were before?
He liked you better when you were aloof and rebellious!
You're giving him goosebumps.
You probably wouldn't believe it, but he also had the same blood as Naruto. In fact, if they were talking about pure blood, he and Naruto were the real brothers.
"Forget it. I think things are fine as they are." Keiichi waved a hand.
Seeing how Keiichi shied away from it, Sasuke gradually understood. Keiichi had never lived among the Uchiha. What did it matter if he really had Uchiha blood?
Could he understand the deep hatred behind the clan's massacre?
In the end...
He was still moving forward alone.
As they talked, the two of them finally made their way to the stands. They saw Kakashi helping evacuate the crowd, while Sakura and Naruto lay unconscious nearby. They had obviously been affected by the mist, too.
"Perfect timing. Lord Hokage just gave us our orders: we're to escort these dignitaries safely out of Konoha Village. We have to protect them at all costs," Kakashi said hurriedly.
"Lord Hokage? Where is he now?"
"I don't know. But the orders came through a Konoha Jonin, so the source is reliable. There's no way Root fabricated them."
Clearly, Kakashi knew that Root must have been involved in the rebellion. The Anbu had probably been infiltrated by Root as well.
"At a time like this, he's still worried about protecting these parasites?" Sasuke scoffed, unable to understand.
"Come on... don't forget that Konoha's military budget comes from these parasites. Why make enemies of them?" Kakashi waved a hand helplessly.
"What about Naruto and Sakura?"
"I'll stay here and protect them. The antidote will be here soon. Once they wake up, go meet up with them."
Although they didn't understand, the two immediately got moving. They ran to the VIP section and joined the other Konoha Genin in protecting the richly dressed parasites as they headed for the village gates.
Fortunately, the parasites valued their own lives and at least followed basic discipline.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have gotten anywhere in that chaotic crowd.
"Remember, Lord Hokage gave the order: if we encounter any ninja who isn't from Konoha on the way, kill them on sight, no exceptions."
Kakashi's final words sent a chill down their spines.
Chapter 73: The Hokage Building Collapses
If this order to kill without exception had been given to all Konoha ninjas, one could only imagine what a bloodbath would unfold in the village.
After all, ninjas from several other villages, large and small, had come to take part in the Chunin Ninja Exams. Were they all supposed to be killed, too?
Yes, every one of them. Even if they were criticized afterward, even if relations with those villages rapidly deteriorated.
At a time like this, they had to cut through the confusion quickly and act decisively.
Everyone was smart enough to understand why Hiruzen had to do this. At a time like this, it was better to kill a thousand by mistake than let a single one escape. No one knew which villages had taken part in the rebellion.
If they didn't harden their hearts now, the rebellion would only cause more damage.
In fact, the Hokage everyone was looking for was sitting in the Hokage office right now, without having gone anywhere.
The person who had attended the Chunin Ninja Exams had been nothing more than a Shadow Clone.
He knew very well that once a rebellion broke out, he himself was the most important figure. Staying here allowed him to issue orders as effectively as possible.
The Konoha Jonin gathered around him were all people he trusted most. Aside from Kakashi, nearly all of them were here.
The Anbu, on the other hand, had become the people he trusted least. No one knew how many Root spies had infiltrated their ranks.
He issued one order after another methodically, as if the rebellion had no effect on him. Then the Jonin left the office one by one to carry out his orders.
"Have the reconnaissance squad search all of Konoha Village. If they find Danzo, immediately... tell him I'm waiting for him here. I'll give him one last chance to explain himself."
"Yes!"
After issuing his final order, Hiruzen had sent out all the Jonin and could finally catch his breath.
He'd waited a whole month for Danzo, but the other man had continually avoided meeting him. That made him increasingly suspicious that Danzo was plotting something.
But even though there was now ample evidence that Root had incited the rebellion, and even though people had begun calling for him to step down, Hiruzen was still willing to give Danzo a chance to explain, despite the culprit being obvious.
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