So, that's how it is?

Shimura Danzō was walking in the direction of the Root base.

Suddenly, the cry of an eagle echoed through the sky.

Yamanaka Fu, who was walking behind Shimura Danzō, immediately stepped forward and raised his arm to let the eagle land.

He removed the small paper cylinder from the eagle's claw and poured out a scroll.

After a quick read, he hurried to Shimura Danzō's side and said, "Lord Danzō, we just received word from our peripheral Root members: traces of Wood Release have been discovered in the Forest of Death."

Upon hearing this, Shimura Danzō immediately commanded, "All units, pick up the pace. Target: Forest of Death."

With that, he took the lead and rushed toward the Forest of Death, with the Root members following silently behind him; the group was deathly quiet.

The perimeter of the Forest of Death was already packed with people.

Whether they were villagers looking for excitement or members of the Police Force maintaining order, everyone had gathered here.

After receiving the notification from the Anbu, Minato Namikaze had only left behind one order: "All Anbu, head to the Forest of Death immediately and seal off the scene."

Then, he vanished using the Flying Thunder God.

The Anbu who arrived afterward had no choice but to bite the bullet and seal off the site.

When Shimura Danzō arrived with his Root personnel and saw the situation, he knew this would not be easy to resolve.

Just as he was about to order his men to drive away the onlookers, Sarutobi Hiruzen, Utatane Koharu, and Mitokado Homura arrived with their own Anbu.

Seeing them, Shimura Danzō frowned and said, "This matter can be handled by Root alone."

Sarutobi Hiruzen puffed on his pipe, his eyes fixed on Shimura Danzō, saying nothing, just staring.

Seeing the situation, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura began to harbor their own suspicions.

They simply watched the two men, remaining silent.

Eventually, Shimura Danzō could no longer bear the weight of that gaze; though he felt a bit guilty, he could not afford to lose his composure.

Moreover, he couldn't let this drag on—heaven only knew when the other ninja clans who had received the news would arrive.

To avoid further complications, he bit the bullet and asked, "Hiruzen, why are you looking at me like that?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't waste words; he reached out and cast a silence barrier, enclosing his two classmates within it as well.

"Danzō, be honest with me. Was the Wood Release experiment back then a success or a failure?" Sarutobi Hiruzen asked, staring at Shimura Danzō with a cold gaze.

Shimura Danzō, of course, could not admit it directly.

He had to remember that he had reported the Wood Release experiment as a failure to Sarutobi Hiruzen at the time.

If he admitted now that there was a successful Wood Release test subject, Sarutobi Hiruzen would surely explode.

There would certainly be no good outcome for him later.

Ever since Minato Namikaze, that brat, had taken a swipe at Root a while back, they had been tightening their belts.

If Sarutobi Hiruzen were to squeeze him further, Root would be left with nothing but a handful of stragglers.

So, he bit the bullet and said, "It truly failed back then. Homura and Koharu were both there watching the whole time; how could I deceive you?"

"Then how do you explain the current situation?" Sarutobi Hiruzen raised his hand and pointed directly at the Wood Release: Four Pillar Prison not far away.

One had to understand that only the few people present knew that Hashirama Cells had been taken out for experiments.

The other researchers involved in the Wood Release experiments were all trusted clansmen of those few.

Furthermore, every time an experiment failed, the samples of Hashirama Cells were destroyed on the spot.

The researchers were also kept in isolation for several days before being released, all to prevent the theft of Hashirama Cells.

Under such rigorous experimental protocols, Sarutobi Hiruzen did not believe that any Hashirama Cells could have leaked out.

Therefore, there was only one truth: it was Danzō.

Only he had the audacity.

It had to be him.

If things went south, it meant the experiment had actually succeeded back then, and to monopolize Wood Release, Danzō was absolutely capable of deceiving him.

Seeing Sarutobi Hiruzen's gaze grow increasingly hostile, Shimura Danzō knew he couldn't hide it anymore and had to recount the sequence of events.

"So, the Root member named Kinoe is now missing?" Sarutobi Hiruzen said, his face expressionless.

Shimura Danzō remained silent.

Seeing this, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura, not wanting to damage the harmony between old friends, chimed in, "Hiruzen, the priority right now is to find the person."

"We can deal with Danzō's matter later."

Seeing his two old friends pleading on Danzō's behalf, Sarutobi Hiruzen took a deep breath and exhaled: "Let's go. We'll go in together and take a look."

"When this is over, we will have a talk." The last sentence was directed at Shimura Danzō.

As soon as they walked in, they saw a figure examining the traces of the Wood Release jutsu; upon closer inspection, it was Minato Namikaze.

Seeing him appear here, he knew he might suffer a heavy loss today, and he turned his head to glare fiercely at Shimura Danzō.

Shimura Danzō knew the problem had originated on his end, so even after being glared at, he didn't dare look back at Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Seeing that Shimura Danzō was at least sensible, Sarutobi Hiruzen abandoned the idea of venting his frustrations on him and gathered his scattered thoughts.

He looked at Minato Namikaze and said, "Minato, did you discover anything?"

"The Third Hokage and the two elders have more experience than I do; I wonder if there is anything you would like to tell me."

Minato Namikaze did not answer Sarutobi Hiruzen's question, but instead countered with one of his own.

He pointedly left out Shimura Danzō, as he was no longer an elder.

His words also conveyed a message: the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai had appeared in Konoha once again.

Yet, as Hokage, I did not receive the news in advance, only learning of it through an Anbu report.

Therefore, what other matters are you, Sarutobi Hiruzen, and the two elders keeping from me?

Hearing Minato Namikaze speak this way, Sarutobi Hiruzen gave a bitter smile: "If I told you I only just found out about this, would you believe me?"

Minato Namikaze gave a sunny smile: "Of course I believe you, Third Hokage."

The implication being: I believe you, but as for the other elders, well.

"Let's go, let's head to the Hokage Building to talk." Understanding Minato Namikaze's intent, Sarutobi Hiruzen decided to lay everything out in the open.

After all, he was a 'victim' himself; it was all that detestable Shimura Danzō's fault.

Today, he had nearly lost his reputation because of Shimura Danzō's schemes.

He was simply a walking disaster.

Everything had been fine before, so why did he keep causing trouble for him the moment he stepped down?

Could it be that he saw him living too comfortably?

And wanted to turn up the heat on him?

Forget it, this blame was his to bear anyway; why should I go out of my way to shoulder it?

Thinking of this, he suddenly felt refreshed, and his steps even became a bit lighter.

Shimura Danzō, following behind Sarutobi Hiruzen, had no idea he was about to be scapegoated again and was still mentally preparing his defense.

The other two had already reached a silent understanding.

Today was clearly Shimura Danzō's fault, and it had nothing to do with them.

Later, for the sake of their old friendship, they would put in a word or two for him; that would be doing as much as they could.

After exchanging glances, the two remained silent and continued to follow.

Hokage Building

Inside the Hokage Office.

"So, that's how it happened?" Minato Namikaze wore an expression that clearly said, 'Do you really think I believe that?'