"Following your instructions, I only examined the memories from the five minutes before their deaths. There's no doubt they were all killed by a mysterious person who looked like Fujiwara Chiya. And while I was analyzing the memories, I saw the mysterious person use techniques similar to Kakashi's Lightning Release: Chidori. I can say with confidence that the person who performed these two techniques may well have been a single Shadow Clone."
As he spoke, Yamanaka Inoichi played footage of Chiya's Shadow Clone using Chidori Sharp Spear and Chidori Senbon to slaughter dozens of Sarutobi Clan shinobi.
Watching the footage, where the victims were cut down as easily as vegetables, Sarutobi Hiruzen and Danzo fell silent, their expressions growing increasingly grim.
"Inoichi, seal away all this footage together. I'll send someone to retrieve Shinnosuke and the others' bodies later. From today onward, classify this as Konoha's highest-level secret. No one is allowed to view it without my order." Sarutobi Hiruzen rose from the bed and addressed Yamanaka Inoichi.
"Yes, sir." Yamanaka Inoichi replied respectfully, put away the equipment, and disappeared from the room.
The curtains were drawn back, and the room filled with light again. Danzo said from the side, "Hiruzen, Fujiwara Chiya once learned Chidori from Kakashi. With that kid's talent for ninjutsu, it wouldn't be surprising if he'd perfected Chidori over the course of a year. Every sign points to Chiya. In my view, that kid definitely faked his death. Otherwise, why would his body have vanished into thin air? Just give the order."
Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't answer immediately.
He had always been weak and ineffectual toward outsiders, yet heavy-handed with his own people. At critical moments, he always hesitated.
He hadn't let hatred cloud his judgment.
Because whether or not Chiya was the one who had slaughtered his clan, the culprit had already surpassed the control of even him, the strongest Hokage in history.
Given the strength that person had shown, even if he sent the Funeral Squad to hunt him down—
There was no telling whether they could catch up. And even if they did, they'd only be throwing their lives away.
After all, Konoha had already lost the Uchiha Clan and the Sarutobi Clan, as well as the Shimura Clan along with them.
The village simply couldn't withstand any more blows.
If his poor decision-making caused Konoha to suffer another devastating loss,
it would do more harm than good.
Would he still be able to hold on to the Hokage Position then?
After thinking it over, Sarutobi Hiruzen settled on what he considered a cautious plan. "Spread the word: Fujiwara Chiya is suspected of murdering the Sarutobi Clan and the Shimura Clan. Effective immediately, he is to be classified as an S-rank missing-nin, alongside Uchiha Itachi."
"Are you just going to let that kid get away with it?" Danzo asked, his eyes bloodshot and his heart full of resentment.
"What else do you want to do?" Sarutobi Hiruzen's bully-at-home nature came out as he snapped, "Never mind that Fujiwara Chiya died in front of everyone. Even if the killer really was him, where are you going to find him? And once you do, how will you capture him? He managed to wipe out both our clans by himself in such a short time. If I sent you, could you catch him?"
"Th-that..." Danzo's voice immediately weakened.
No matter how unwilling he was to admit it, the strength that mysterious person had demonstrated was far beyond what ordinary shinobi could handle.
Unless they used overwhelming numbers and threw lives away, there was no way to capture him.
Sarutobi Hiruzen said impatiently, "Enough. We have to handle this gradually.
"I'm sure you know the state Konoha is in, even if I don't spell it out.
"Our top priority is to stabilize the village. And tomorrow, I'll still announce your punishment.
"If you truly care about the village, you should accept it quietly.
"As for everything else, don't get too involved.
"I'll have people look into Fujiwara Chiya's case in secret."
He planned to spend a fortune, sparing no expense, to post a bounty through the Underground Exchange and find Chiya so he could avenge his clan.
Whether or not Chiya was the killer,
he wanted to see him alive or see his corpse.
Even if Chiya wasn't the culprit—even if he really was dead—Hiruzen still needed to obtain his body and read his memories to discover who had taken his mask and sword, and thereby identify the real murderer of the Sarutobi Clan.
The Uchiha Clan, the Sarutobi Clan, and the Shimura Clan had all been wiped out.
Konoha now had two S-rank missing-nin.
It was a bombshell.
Uchiha Itachi, S-rank missing-nin. Crime: slaughtering the entire Uchiha Clan.
Fujiwara Chiya, S-rank missing-nin. Crime: suspected of slaughtering the Sarutobi Clan and the Shimura Clan, and suspected of murdering several Konoha Anbu members.
The two wanted posters immediately sent shock waves through Konoha's shinobi and civilians alike.
They could at least understand Uchiha Itachi, given how the Konoha High Command had suppressed the Uchiha and how the Konoha Military Police Force operated.
Almost everyone already disliked the Uchiha Clan.
They thought the Uchiha were lunatics.
And Sasuke Uchiha, the sole survivor, was living proof.
So perhaps committing something as insane as wiping out their own clan wasn't all that surprising.
But Fujiwara Chiya was another matter.
Not only the Anbu who had seen 'Chiya's' corpse, like Kakashi and the others, but even most of Konoha's civilians were unwilling to believe it.
Never mind whether he had the strength to wipe out the Sarutobi Clan, with the Third Hokage at its head, and the Shimura Clan, with Danzo at its head.
Even if he did, he had no motive.
Everyone knew that Chiya had always been a graceful, kind, polite shinobi who loved the village and cherished his comrades.
Before joining the Anbu, especially during his time as a Genin and then a Jonin, he had been highly respected by the villagers.
Even Kakashi, a veteran elite Jonin of Konoha, had thought highly of him.
Now he had suddenly become an S-rank missing-nin. It was hard to believe.
Of course, that was only for now.
Given the Konoha F4's skill at manipulating public opinion,
it wouldn't be long before more than ninety-nine percent of Konoha's people hated Chiya.
If they said you were guilty, then you were guilty.
They could turn even white into black.
And this time, he really was black.
Sarutobi Hiruzen issued a bounty for Chiya and branded him an S-rank missing-nin.
Chiya knew nothing about it.
Even if he had known, he wouldn't have cared.
By then, he had already followed Obito to the Akatsuki's base in the Land of Rain.
It was a country where it rained for at least half the year.
It was also the most miserable country in Naruto.
A battlefield for the great nations.
It lay at the crossroads of the Land of Fire, the Land of Wind, and the Land of Earth.
Wedged between three countries,
it had suffered through endless wars.
Chiya, Obito, and Uchiha Itachi arrived at Amegakure in a small boat.
Perhaps Nagato knew they had guests coming that day.
He hadn't used the Rain Tiger at Will Technique.
Chiya was also glad he wouldn't have to get drenched.
Following Obito, Chiya and Uchiha Itachi boarded the boat and drifted downstream.
"In the organization, everyone calls me Tobi. I'm not a full member, just a trainee with no real ability. You'll need to watch how you treat me from now on."
Obito had cut his hair short, and his mask had changed from its original tiger stripes to an orange, spiral-patterned one.
He stood at the bow with his arms folded and addressed the two of them.
Before you continue